New and anxious

[Grogg1]

Dinner white fish or chicken breast with brocolli child portion. Will try kale this week. Any idea is this ok?

You don't need to have a child portion, you can have an adult size portion. You can also have sauces with your fish or chicken, providing they are not full of sugar! I use curry paste and coconut milk to make a curry sauce if feeling lazy and if you check the different paste jar ingredients some flavours have 1/2 much carbs as others. I add veg to make sure I get my five a day and I've now discovered bare naked noodles which are on offer in Holland & Barratt (buy second for 1p). They have zero carbs and I found really nice with a thai curry. For stir fries instead of rice or noodles I just have bean sprouts which are very filling. As others have said Fat is not your enemy so real butter if you eat diary, double cream with strawberries etc. and you will still lose weight.

 

[Grogg1]

I too find mash and white bread some of the worst too!

Damn you both. I was going to try mashed potato with lots of cream and butter!

 

[Chris Hobson]

Something that I have learned from coming to this forum is that everyone is different and we all have to find what works best for us. I find that I need some carbohydrates because I am so active. After doing exercise, I have had mild hypos even after having come off the insulin and only using lynagliptin.

 

[Jesselondon]

Hi Chris, Grogg and all, thanks for the advice, they are very helpful. I'm trying to tame the fear and decided to take the middle ground. Will still have low carb diet coz I aim to have a healthier BMI and I'm not as active normally just office work, housework plus 20 min exercise per day. Too much for me to prick my finger 8 times a day due to the fear of needle but will try 1-2 times a day. Will see what my GP say next week. Anyone had the similar GTT 11.7 like me? I'm hope not to go on medication and just control with diet and exercise. Any hope?

 

[Martin Canty]

due to the fear of needle

It's all in the mind, doesn't hurt, particularly when you do it quick & don't really think about it.

 

[grovesy]

Hi Chris, Grogg and all, thanks for the advice, they are very helpful. I'm trying to tame the fear and decided to take the middle ground. Will still have low carb diet coz I aim to have a healthier BMI and I'm not as active normally just office work, housework plus 20 min exercise per day. Too much for me to prick my finger 8 times a day due to the fear of needle but will try 1-2 times a day. Will see what my GP say next week. Anyone had the similar GTT 11.7 like me? I'm hope not to go on medication and just control with diet and exercise. Any hope?

I can't remember as my GTT was over 15 years ago, I had Impaired Glucose Tolerance(PreDiabetes) at the time.

 

[Grogg1]

I can't remember as my GTT was over 15 years ago, I had Impaired Glucose Tolerance(PreDiabetes) at the time.

I haven't had a GTT I was diagnosed by the hba1c test. Will I have a GTT, what does it do?

 

[Jesselondon]

(Oral) Glucose Tolerance Test (GTT) - 2 blood tests, first one usual fasting, then immediately given some sugary drink and asked to sit for 2 hours, then blood was taken after. So there are 2 readings - pre and post. My fasting BG was 5.3 and post was 11.7 considered as high reading.

 

[Dave W]

Have no idea what I can eat for breakfast - I normally have 2 eggs and 1 slice of wholemeal bread with flora proactive spread. Worry about the sugar in fruit so only eat apples. Dinner white fish or chicken breast with brocolli child portion. Will try kale this week. Any idea is this ok?

Get started with a meter Jesse. You don't really have to test 7 times a day, testing is about seeing how what you eat affects your BG. I test every second day and sometimes less frequently and only usually do it twice - once before a meal and again about 2 hours after and I vary tests between breakfast, lunch and dinner and an occasional test before bed. This gives me a pretty good idea about how my BG levels are going in general and how my lifestyle and foods affect me. It also means I don't use up a lot of test strips.
And as far as your eggs for breakfast goes, there are loads of permutations - fried, scambled,boiled,poached, omelettes with various fillings such as cheese, smoked salmon, mushrooms etc and a rasher or two of bacon would do you no harm.

 

[Chris Hobson]

Make sure that you take your BMI reading with a pinch of salt. There are a couple of threads on the weight loss group on the subject of the BMI that are well worth looking at.

 

[Jesselondon]

Get started with a meter Jesse. You don't really have to test 7 times a day, testing is about seeing how what you eat affects your BG. I test every second day and sometimes less frequently and only usually do it twice - once before a meal and again about 2 hours after and I vary tests between breakfast, lunch and dinner and an occasional test before bed. This gives me a pretty good idea about how my BG levels are going in general and how my lifestyle and foods affect me. It also means I don't use up a lot of test strips.
And as far as your eggs for breakfast goes, there are loads of permutations - fried, scambled,boiled,poached, omelettes with various fillings such as cheese, smoked salmon, mushrooms etc and a rasher or two of bacon would do you no harm.

Hi Dave, I certainly will. Many thanks for the advice. Appreciate it.

 

[Jangles]

Hi Jesselondon,

I've just been reading your posts , it's very natural to feel anxious about a diagnosis is hope you are feeling less anxious with the support here on the forum.
I was diagnosed in November with a BG of 22.7 and hba1c of 115.
I felt freaked out that I was going around with such high glucose but at the same time I was pleased to be diagnosed. For years I've had various symptoms which I felt (wrongly) hadn't been enough to see the GP about but now make perfect sense in the context of diabetes. I am actually pleased I know what I have and am taking control of my diet and lifestyle. I think it puts you in the driving seat.

 

[Jesselondon]

Make sure that you take your BMI reading with a pinch of salt. There are a couple of threads on the weight loss group on the subject of the BMI that are well worth looking at.

I will look for it, thanks Chris. I currentry just using the NHS BMI calculator. I'm not far from my target hopefully in 4-6 weeks. I know the weight reduction will slow down bit it also gives me time to adapt my diet to make it a long lasting one.
Sometimes I can't believe how lucky I am to find so many helpful people here. Thanks guys - you all are STARS !!

 

[Martin Canty]

I currentry just using the NHS BMI calculator

To be honest I wouldn't even go there.... BMI is not a particularly good way of looking at weight targets, myself 6' tall & about 165lb & BMI is still near the high end of healthy weight.

adapt my diet to make it a long lasting one.

I like to think of my diet as a Way of Eating (WoE),keeps me in the mindset that I will be sustaining this WoE for life.

 

[Jesselondon]

Hi Jesselondon,

I've just been reading your posts , I was diagnosed in November with a BG of 22.7 and hba1c of 115. I felt freaked out that I was going around with such high glucose but at the same time I was pleased to be diagnosed. For years I've had various symptoms which hadn't been enough to see the GP about but made perfect sense in the context of diabetes. I am actually pleased I know what I have and am taking control of my diet and lifestyle. I think it puts you in the driving seat.

You are so right Jangle, wish I have your wisdom. Yes I have kind of accepted the fact and like you said - put myself on the driver seat before more damage is done to other vital organs. I still have a lot of anger inside which I channel it to exercise. Good news is the weight loss has been doubled since I exercise more. Still dreading about pricking my fingers - oh dear it's so scary.

 

[Jesselondon]

To be honest I wouldn't even go there.... BMI is not a particularly good way of looking at weight targets, myself 6' tall & about 165lb & BMI is still near the high end of healthy weight.

I like to think of my diet as a Way of Eating (WoE),keeps me in the mindset that I will be sustaining this WoE for life.

You are so right Martin, I replied to Chris that I will take the time to adapt a healthy eating pattern that hopefully become a way of life. Thanks for the advice.

 

[Martin Canty]

StI'll dreading about pricking my fingers - oh dear it's so scary

My morning routine..... Go to the kitchen, start brewing some coffee, wash my hands, grab my test kit, salivate at the aroma of fresh brewed coffee, test as quickly as possible so I can get to my coffee. Having said that, I have been doing this for almost 2 years so I don't really think about the mechanics or any momentary discomfort that I sometimes have, just look forward to the result.

 

[Jesselondon]

My morning routine..... Go to the kitchen, start brewing some coffee, wash my hands, grab my test kit, salivate at the aroma of fresh brewed coffee, test as quickly as possible so I can get to my coffee. Having said that, I have been doing this for almost 2 years so I don't really think about the mechanics or any momentary discomfort that I sometimes have, just look forward to the result.

Hmmmm... so brave you are. I'm hoping to get use to it soon maybe will try your method 🙂

 

[Jangles]

You are so right Jangle, wish I have your wisdom. Yes I have kind of accepted the fact and like you said - put myself on the driver seat before more damage is done to other vital organs. I still have a lot of anger inside which I channel it to exercise. Good news is the weight loss has been doubled since I exercise more. StI'll dreading about pricking my fingers - oh dear it's so scary.

I know about the fear of finger pricking ! I was terrified but actually found it ok. I think a diagnosis can bring out different emotions, I kind of went on a bit high! I think it was because it gave me reasons and answers to things I knew but couldn't identify. This sounds silly but for years I've not been able to eat porridge or breakfast cereals as about an hour later I'd be shakey and hard to concentrate requiring something to eat to feel ok again, but I never got this with a protein brekkie. I've had various recurring illnesses that the doctors were investigating and have now been attributed to undiagnosed diabetes. I think I've had poor glucose tolerance for a long time so was (almost ) over the moon that I could do something about it.

The other benefit from the diagnosis are the health checks and vaccinations, it's great we have this care.

I do think the initial diagnosis is a shock and quite scary but with the support from your health team and here on the forum is hope you feel less anxious ☺

 

[Grogg1]

I think most people are phobic about needles. Over 20 years ago for another condition I was told I needed to inject myself or go to the GP/Hospital for the jabs if I couldn't do it myself. I had a no nonsense who set up the pen with injection then showed me where to put it on my leg and shouted at me "press" and I just obeyed. I had been shaking with fear while she was talking me through drawing up the injection, loading pen etc. What I discovered was that being in control of the jab and not seeing the needle made it okay!

So when I was given a kit to test my BG I was initially worried my fingers would become painful etc. and that it would hurt but once again I like the feeling of control and my fingers are not sore. I did get frustrated that in the early days (and occasionally now) it often took 3 jabs before I got enough blood carried on.

I always test in bed morning and night. I wake, put on lamp and test in the morning and then last thing at night I test, put off light and sleep! Other than that I have days of testing to see how food is affecting me. Like today I woke 5.6, then 2 hours later before brekkie (I was in work early) I was 7.1 and 2 hours after brekkie 7.3. Before lunch 5.5 and after lunch 6. So I know delaying breakfast is not good for my BG but my breakfast didn't impact too much on my BG. Lunch was a good meal no doubt helped by the brisk walk I had before eating. I record my meals and readings on a spreadsheet and note if I feel tired/unwell or taking other medication so I can look for patterns.