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Just diagnosed

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J

Joy H

New Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
I have just been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. I feel frightened. Diabetes is rife in my family - my mother died young and my brother lost a leg. I am 56 and have an active lifestyle, but am overweight with lots of stressful events happening unrelenting over a prolonged period of time.
My blood pressure is well controlled and I take tablets for cholesterol - do not know current reading. I am told that I am just into the level of blood glucose which gives me the condition. I will be going to my surgery within the next 2-3 weeks, but in the meantime am reading so much about what is likely to happen to me I am getting confused and upset. I am a sensible person who will do what is right when I know what that is.
 
Hi Joy, welcome to the forum 🙂 I'm sorry to hear about your diagnosis, and also to hear about your family's history with diabetes. Please do not feel that what has happened to others will happen to you - you have made a good move by joining here because there are lots of friendly, knowledgeable people who understand just how you are feeling and will be able to answer any of your questions.

Diabetes, as you are clearly aware, is a serious condition, but it is something that you can learn to control well and reduce your risks of succumbing to any of the problems associated with it. Many people actually find that the modifications they make actually lead them to becoming happier and healthier than they have for some time, so there is plenty of hope 🙂

The first step is to have a plan. I would recommend starting by reading Jennifer's Advice and Maggie Davey's letter - these will give you a good perspective on diabetes and help you understand how you can live a full and healthy life despite it. I'd also recommend getting a copy of Type 2 Diabetes: The First Year by Gretchen Becker, highly praised by many of our members. Don't lose hope, there are all sorts of treatments and strategies available to people now and thanks to forums such as this one you have access to all the help and support of people who can identify problems and give you strategies to deal with them.

Please let us know if there are any questions you have - nothing is considered 'silly', and we will do our best to help 🙂
 
Welcome Joy ! You have a lot to take in & plenty of reading. Keep active & try to reduce carbs & sweet food. Good luck.🙂
 
Hi Joy, earlier this year I was in your position and felt frightened, angry and slightly ashamed that somehow I'd 'allowed' myself to get diabetes. I took those emotions and decided to turn them into action and I too have masses of unrelenting stressful events in my life so understand.

My advice would be to read, inform yourself, learn to understand your 'enemy' but more importantly learn how food uniquely affects you by self testing. It sounds from what you say like you may have a HbA1c just over the 48 mark which tips you into diabetic range. This means you can turn this around and possibly even without medication if your doctor agrees. That's what I'm doing. By adopting a much lower carb lifestyle your weight should start to reduce and that in turn positively impacts on your BG levels.

You may find that your surgery won't provide a meter and testing strips but push for them. If not, it's worth funding them yourself because it will teach you what you can eat to stay within reasonable levels (which NICE say are 7 or under before food and no more than 8.5 two hours after meals). However lower is better if you can achieve it but it can take a while to stabilise.

The people on here will help and support you. Good luck.
 
Hi Joy.

I'm just over 2 weeks from diagnosis so in the same boat as you. We shall learn together xx
 
Hi Joy

The NHS (and anyone who reads the Daily Fail) will tell you that a) you brought it on yourself (you didn't, it's quite obviously more genetic than anything else in your case) and b) it's always progressive and all the complication WILL definitely happen to you (they won't - not if YOU take steps to prevent it happening. If of course you don't - so many people think whatever their doc prescribes will magically do the trick whilst they do nob all, plus the fact that the NHS still mainly follow the high carb low fat regime, which actually has only been introduced in the last 25 or so years and is wrong wrong wrong wrong)

Soooo - start where Alan has told you to - there are other things too when you're ready, let the folk on here point the way to the ones that talk sense, for now until you can see the wood for the trees yourself, cos there's such a lot of garbage on the internet - some of it written by people who you'd think would know the truth but don't.

Did you know that eating low fat won't lower your VLDL? (the generally bad part of your cholesterol - cos we all need the 'good' LDL !)

However - low carb diets usually DO lower it and at the same time - also enhance the good bits!
 
Welcome to a great place. Always a friendly reply to any question, concern or worry 🙂
 
Hi Joy and welcome to the forum. Hope you find it a useful place to ask questions, I know have since being diagnosed.
 
Hi Joy,

I just wanted to agree with what others said, you should not feel guilty that you have diabetes. The media, and often medical professionals, will make you feel this way. I was thought to be type two for several years before being re-diagnosed as type 1, and for those years I carried a constant burden of guilt that I'd done this to myself, and it was my fault it wasn't improving.

Your diabetes clearly has a genetic component, and as long as you look after yourself, there's no reason not to live a full, healthy life. I'm much healthier now than I was before my diagnosis, and I think that many other diabetics are the same!

Also, when you tell people you have diabetes, a high percentage of them will reaaaallllly want to regale you with stories of a diabetic they know who's arms and legs fell off, or their kidney's self destructed. I think it's perfectly OK to walk away from these people 😛
Seriously though, don't let them scare you, and stay away from inflated newspaper headlines about the dire epidemic of diabetes!

This forum is a fantastic comfort for me, and I hope you too x
 
Such a pity we no longer have coal fires, isn't it? Cos newspaper articles like that would be really helpful - diabetics wouldn't need firelighters or even matches - we could ignite the screwed up newspaper articles with merely a good, hard, look !
 
Joy H said:
I have just been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. I feel frightened. Diabetes is rife in my family - my mother died young and my brother lost a leg. I am 56 and have an active lifestyle, but am overweight with lots of stressful events happening unrelenting over a prolonged period of time.
My blood pressure is well controlled and I take tablets for cholesterol - do not know current reading. I am told that I am just into the level of blood glucose which gives me the condition. I will be going to my surgery within the next 2-3 weeks, but in the meantime am reading so much about what is likely to happen to me I am getting confused and upset. I am a sensible person who will do what is right when I know what that is.
Click to expand...
I am very moved at all the responses I have had with such kind words from people who are strangers to me. Unfortunately things have got worse. I had a lovely evening out tonight and then had a phone call at around midnight to say that my eldest brother has passed away - from complications from diabetes. My younger sister is also dying of cancer. Words cannot express the devastation of this situation and I live on my own
 
Hi Joy
I'm very sorry to hear about your brother and your sister, it must be tremendously difficult for you without the added stress of diabetes. My Dad died of complications from type 2 18 months before I was diagnosed so I understand how frightened you are. Diabetes can be a devastating condition but they key is you know that, because sadly you've seen it first hand. There is lots you can do to help yourself and people here will help you with that when you are ready.

For the moment concentrate on dealing with your grief and making the most of the time you have with your sister, and start focusing on the diabetes when you feel you have the head space. It can be overwhelming at first but it gets easier. Don't forget there are people here if you need to vent or just want to be distracted for a little while.
 
Oh Joy! I am so sorry to hear about your brother. For now just deal with your grief and keep your carbs low - worry about your diabetes after you have settled down (((hugs)))
 
So sorry to read of your sad news Joy. A very difficult time for you xx
 
Sorry for your loss Joy.
 
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