Just got diagnosed

[Spudz]

Hi all, another new kid in town.
Just been diagnosed with type 2 due to my Blood sugar levels being high (123).
Got some pills and a finger pricker test machine and so the journey begins.
Looking forward to reading the many posts and hopefully pick up some tips on how to manage this thing.

 

[Inka]

Welcome @Spudz 🙂

 

[pjgtech]

Hi and welcome, check out the resources section (Learning tab) on here, lots of good useful info on there.
Have they put you on any medication yet, or given you any advice?
Do you need to lose weight, etc? (no need to share info if you don't wish to).
Also check out the Freshwell website, lots of info and good diabetic friendly recipes on there. (Also lost of good recipes on the Diabetes UK website).
Any questions, just ask away, they seem a friendly enough bunch on here (still new myself).
Cheers

 

[Drummer]

Hi all, another new kid in town.
Just been diagnosed with type 2 due to my Blood sugar levels being high (123).
Got some pills and a finger pricker test machine and so the journey begins.
Looking forward to reading the many posts and hopefully pick up some tips on how to manage this thing.

That is a bit high - but the good news is that if you are an ordinary type 2, by eating fewer starches and sugars you can lower it towards normal numbers.
Even if you are something more interesting, it is still going to be possible to get a hold of things with medication or a change in lifestyle. I've joined up with some morris dancers, but it isn't necessary to go to those lengths.....
First thing is to evaluate your eating habits and the things you eat. Concentrate on the carbohydrates even those supposed to be healthy.
I always had a problem with the accepted advice to eat low fat, low calorie but high carb - the usual diet handed out for weightloss. It never worked.
Second - consider what you could cut out, going gently and working through your menu week by week so as to make it not so much of a shock to the metabolism.
Thirdly consider getting hold of a blood glucose tester, then testing before and after meals, a 2 hour after starting to eat test would be, ideally two whole numbers higher than the starting point - but when starting out it is really just a matter of looking and learning about your own reaction to foods.
When I started out I was puzzled by peas and beans not in pods - somehow I can extract more carbs than the listed values. I just halved the portion size or chose French or runner beans but the Tee 2+ meter from Spirit Healthcare was a useful indicator of what sort of meals to eat.
I Just went straight in and cut back to no more than 50gm of carbs a day - by nickname used to be 'No Fear' - once I was seeing under 8mmol/l after meals I paused the changes in food, but my tests showed ongoing reduction, so I assumed that my metabolism was recovering.

 

[Leadinglights]

Good suggestions from people but it can be useful to keep a food diary and note down everything you ear and drink with an estimate of the carbohydrates (not just sugar) so you can see where your starting point is for cutting down.
The Freshwell program is based on the suggested no more than 130g carbs per day so you can see from your food diary where savings could be made. This is the link https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/. It should be suitable but may depend on what the medication is you have been prescribed, perhaps you could post what it is so we can be sure we are giving appropriate suggestions./

 

[Spudz]

Hi, some great advise there, thanks, very much appreciated. I've been given a course of Metformin (one a day for two weeks then one twice a day) and Gliclazide (one a day). I know these have been prescribed to kick start a reduction in my blood sugar level but, hopefully, when it's more under control I'd like to reduce the dependancy on pills; if that's possible.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Hi, some great advise there, thanks, very much appreciated. I've been given a course of Metformin (one a day for two weeks then one twice a day) and Gliclazide (one a day). I know these have been prescribed to kick start a reduction in my blood sugar level but, hopefully, when it's more under control I'd like to reduce the dependancy on pills; if that's possible.

Welcome to the forum @Spudz

Glad you have joined us!

Hope the meds help to give you the start you are looking for.

You might find the experience of @Martin.A inspiring, who like you, started with an HbA1c in 3 figures, and was able to eventually come off medication with the agreement of his surgery.

Good luck - and let us know how you get on 🙂

 

[Martin.A]

You might find the experience of @Martin.A inspiring, who like you, started with an HbA1c in 3 figures, and was able to eventually come off medication with the agreement of his surgery.

Never thought of myself as an inspiration, although I was told by the Headmaster at my grammar school that I would probably go down in history.

He also said that if I didn't pull my socks up I'd likely go down in Maths, Science and everything else as well.

 

[goodybags]

Hi @Spudz welcome to as they call it the club none of us wanted to join
I’m sure you will as many of us have pick up tips and advice on the forum

Like you and others I was also a 3 figure Hba1c on diagnosis (for im not sure exactly how many years)
but have had confirmation from the hospital it was definitely over 30 years ago I was diagnosed
but knowing now what I didn’t back then
I’m sure I was actually diabetic way back before then
why I wanted to tell you that was basically this forum just gave me so much information a few years ago, and have got loads of support when I needed it and now like so many others have a more normal Hba1c

My advice
is reach out anything you want to know, someone will help
by the way you said you’ve already got a as you call it a finger pricier test machine, was that from the GP or have you had to source that and self fund it ?

 

[Martin.A]

Hi all, another new kid in town.
Just been diagnosed with type 2 due to my Blood sugar levels being high (123).
Got some pills and a finger pricker test machine and so the journey begins.
Looking forward to reading the many posts and hopefully pick up some tips on how to manage this thing.

Further to what @everydayupsanddowns said, after my diagnosis I came home from the surgery, plonked a pack of Metformin on the kitchen table and told my wife I had to take it for the rest of my life. Only later did I read about remission and realised that it didn't have to be the case. After embracing low carb, being more active and losing some weight I got my HbA1c down from 114 to 56 in 3 months and back into normal range after a further 2 months, by which time I'd already been told that I could stop taking the Metformin. I'm still low carb, still active and my BMI is a healthy 22. Remission isn't guaranteed, even if you do all the right things. No one knows why it works for some and not others, but that's no reason not to try, and there is a view that it's more likely in the early stages of diabetes.

What helped my on my journey was tapping into the lived experiences of forum members and the advice they were able to give. Not sure I could have done it without them.

 

[harbottle]

Hi all, another new kid in town.
Just been diagnosed with type 2 due to my Blood sugar levels being high (123).
Got some pills and a finger pricker test machine and so the journey begins.
Looking forward to reading the many posts and hopefully pick up some tips on how to manage this thing.

I got told in a phone call: "You're diabetic, stop eating chips, lose weight, go for a walk five days a week. Don't drink beer. There's no cure, but some people can put it into remission. Take this Metformin (1000mg a day)"

I already did walk every day, so that was OK.

I pretty much did what she said. I used the low-carb recipe books by the Caldesis (Written by a chef who put his T2 into remission) for 3 months, lost a lot of weight, and my reward was a hba1c of 36.

The tablets were halved; hba1c remained in the 30s, and then eventually stopped when it remained in the 30s

Strangely, I seem to be able to handle chips these days and beer doesn't cause me a problem at all!

I remain generally low carb, but not as strict as I was. Some days I eat normally and don't seem to see high blood sugar levels, especially if combined with exercise.

 

[Spudz]

Hi @Spudz welcome to as they call it the club none of us wanted to join
I’m sure you will as many of us have pick up tips and advice on the forum

Like you and others I was also a 3 figure Hba1c on diagnosis (for im not sure exactly how many years)
but have had confirmation from the hospital it was definitely over 30 years ago I was diagnosed
but knowing now what I didn’t back then
I’m sure I was actually diabetic way back before then
why I wanted to tell you that was basically this forum just gave me so much information a few years ago, and have got loads of support when I needed it and now like so many others have a more normal Hba1c

My advice
is reach out anything you want to know, someone will help
by the way you said you’ve already got a as you call it a finger pricier test machine, was that from the GP or have you had to source that and self fund it ?

Hi, thanks for the reply, very encouraging. The test machine (Accu-chek) was supplied by my GP but I'm looking at options for non finger pricking

 

[Chris Price]

I was diagnosed with type 2 by the GP but ended in hospital with dka and the consultant told me I was misdiagnosed and was type 1 after doing tests.I recommend keeping a close eye on your blood glucose levels as doctors often make this mistake.

 

[Lucyr]

The test machine (Accu-chek) was supplied by my GP but I'm looking at options for non finger pricking

CGM generally isn’t recommended in your situation. You can get a free trial one from abbot if your phone is compatible but beyond that, it’s far more cost effective to fingerprick before and after each meal in turn till you have a repertoire that works.