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Just diagnosed with Type 2

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M

MattK

New Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
Hi all - just been diagnosed with Type 2. I'm 52 and had been losing a bit of weight steadily since lockdown. Other symptom was drinking a lot of water and getting up in the night. Wife nagged me to go to the Dr. as I rarely went and a BG test came back as 31 which I now know is very high. Been prescribed Gliclazide and have immediately changed my diet which although pretty healthy contained stuff I've now cut out.

Now getting a steady 12 on the BG test and been referred for more tests. Family history in T2 and my mother manages it well in her mid 70s so far have been following her advice. Good to know there is a resource like this around. My Dr. is good and listened but I knew almost nothing about it previously, so want to learn more so I can do the right thing.
 
Hi Matt, welcome. You’ve come to the right place. I came here when diagnosed in June and went straight on low carb diet which I’ve enjoyed very much. My BG has come down from 19 (HbA1c of an astronomical 130) spanning 5.5 and 7.4 most days. The other really valuable bit of advice I got here was test test test. I’ve learned that everyone responds to carbs differently and you’ve got to find what works for you. I eat loads of above ground veg and berries which is where I get most of my carb intake. Delish. Rest is chicken, fish, meat and nuts. All fresh and nothing out a box! Plus I walk twice a day for an hour or more. Now my BG is under control I can really feel myself getting fitter.
 
Hello @MattK and welcome to the forum.
Diagnosis can be a bit of a shock but also a 'wake-up' call, and many members find that eventually then end up with a better healthier lifestyle when they make some changes, - and it sounds as if you are well on the way to doing that.

As @Largesse1! mentioned many of us find that using a glucose meter and testing the effects of different foods can be a big help. If you don't have a meter then SD Gluco Navii is one that many people use, and test-review-adjust gives information on how to go about testing.

I hope all goes well for you.
 
Thanks for all the replies. It is encouraging information that diet and exercise can make a massive difference. I am testing 3 times a day at the moment, and keeping notes to see what makes a difference. Also started walking an hour a day as I'm lucky enough to live right next to some beautiful countryside which makes it a bit easier. Will follow up on the information as my knowledge is pretty low at the moment. Sure to come back with some questions.
Matt
 
Hi @MattK and welcome. Start a food diary and record what you eat. Try and measure your BG when you wake up (approximates to a fasting BG), before meals and two hours after meals. That way you can see what impact the various meals have on you. Please ask any questions you may have. There are lots of very knowledgeable people on here with lots of experience who are very willing to help
 
Thank you @adrian1der . I have just started the food diary as you suggest. I am taking the BG when I get up and I have been taking 2hrs after midday and 2hrs after evening meal. It looks like I should do more testing before meals as well.
 
MattK said:
Thank you @adrian1der . I have just started the food diary as you suggest. I am taking the BG when I get up and I have been taking 2hrs after midday and 2hrs after evening meal. It looks like I should do more testing before meals as well.
Click to expand...
Hi @MattK, yes the thing is to test immediately before eating and then 2 hours after. Then you can compare the two numbers and see the difference - ideally you want no more than a rise of 2-3. Good luck!
 
MattK said:
Thank you @adrian1der . I have just started the food diary as you suggest. I am taking the BG when I get up and I have been taking 2hrs after midday and 2hrs after evening meal. It looks like I should do more testing before meals as well.
Click to expand...
If your numbers are not high after eating there isn't much information to be got from adding in a 'before' test. You might do a few so as to get the full picture for a new food or new way to prepare something.
 
Hi @MattK 7
welcome to the club no one wants to join, but you done well already there’s a great post called Maggie Daveys Letter for those who are just diagnosed it’s well worth a read in my opinion
link below
Regards M ..

forum.diabetes.org.uk

Maggie Davey's letter to newly-diagnosed Type 2s

This disappeared from the original site, but @Alan S has managed to track it down. Rather than risk losing that link I'm posting the text here. I've had to split it over a few posts, as there is a size limit for each post and it wouldn't all fit in one! :) An open letter to the newly-diagnosed...
forum.diabetes.org.uk forum.diabetes.org.uk
 
Hello and welcome to the forum @MattK 🙂
 
MattK said:
Thank you @adrian1der . I have just started the food diary as you suggest. I am taking the BG when I get up and I have been taking 2hrs after midday and 2hrs after evening meal. It looks like I should do more testing before meals as well.
Click to expand...

Welcome to the forum @MattK

Hope you can begin to see some improvements by moderating the carbs in any meals which give your BG a big rise.

With luck the food diary will really help you spot some easy wins and identify some possible tweaks to your menu.

Feel free to ask the experienced folks here for tips of how they have adapted and tweaked various meals 🙂
 
Thanks all. Just done the before and after 2hrs test and rose from 8.1 to 12.7 so not within the 2-3 yet. Overall trend of results is downwards though so will see how it goes. @Martin9 - thanks for the link - lot of info there that was very useful to me and saved a lot of wasted effort.
 
What did you eat?
Your before number isn't all that bad, but you might be making food choices too high in carbs to get so high a spike.
 
Yes it was a small amount of brown rice. Evening meal difference was a rise of 2 which was better
 
MattK said:
Yes it was a small amount of brown rice. Evening meal difference was a rise of 2 which was better
Click to expand...
Ah - I can't eat any grain if I want to have normal levels. A rise of 2 is much more like it.
 
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This thread is now closed. Please contact Anna DUK, Ieva DUK or everydayupsanddowns if you would like it re-opened.
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