New and confused

[Emillie1983]

Morning all,

I have recently been diagnosed type 2 and have started on Metformin 2 weeks ago.
I invested in a glucose monitoring machine as I want to try a low carb/keto diet and experiment with what foods I can tolerate.

this morning my levels were

7.8mmol waking
8.2mmol an hour later before breakfast
1 Egg 2 chicken sausage and mushrooms for breakfast
9.9mmol 2 hours after breakfast

I feel like that rise is quite large for a Protein based breakfast or am I overthinking it ??
Any advice is gratefully received

if it helps I am 16 stone and my HCA thingy levels at diagnosis were 103!!!!

 

[Docb]

Hi @Emillie1983 and welcome. I think you might just be overthinking things at this stage but I reckon you have made a good start. A HbA1c of 103 is up in the red zone and implies that you were running well into double figures for most of the time and so a post breakfast 9.9 should be seen as definately going in the right direction.

Keep to your low carbs for a couple of weeks and see what happens. If you begin to lose some weight and your blood glucose levels keep below 10, then that will be a real sign of progress. Keep us posted on how you get on.

 

[Emillie1983]

Thank you for replying ! I will keep on doing what I am doing this forum is so helpful. I really hope I can get it under control quickly

 

[Loobyloo]

I was where you are a few months ago but after following a low carb diet and losing nearly 3 stone now things have improved greatly and my last hba1c was 40 and within normal range. Keep at it you sound like you have made a great start.

 

[Emillie1983]

Thank you Loobyloo that’s so encouraging to hear!! Do you feel a difference in how you feel? I have always thought I felt fine but just 2 weeks of eating better and I realise how horrible I was actually feeling and had just gotten so used to it !

 

[Drummer]

Did you check the carbs in the sausages? I vaguely recall looking at a pack and exclaiming in shock before replacing them on the shelf.
Now that you are eating lower carb foods it is rather like opening a sluice gate on a dam where a large lake has formed behind it - every hour the level of the water in the lake is a tiny fraction lower, but it will be some time before the streams feeding the lake begin to flow faster and clear away the mud and the big round lake begins to look longer and slimmer.

 

[Emillie1983]

Did you check the carbs in the sausages? I vaguely recall looking at a pack and exclaiming in shock before replacing them on the shelf.
Now that you are eating lower carb foods it is rather like opening a sluice gate on a dam where a large lake has formed behind it - every hour the level of the water in the lake is a tiny fraction lower, but it will be some time before the streams feeding the lake begin to flow faster and clear away the mud and the big round lake begins to look longer and slimmer.

I love that analogy ! I checked it said they are 1.3grams per sausage is that good or bad I get so confused lol !!

 

[rebrascora]

Hi Emillie and congratulations on your progress so far. Things are definitely going in the right direction but it is general trends you are looking for so don't get too tied up on individual readings. Considering your starting point of 103 getting single figure BG readings already is a fantastic result.
1.3g carbs per sausage is not a problem.

 

[pm133]

Morning all,

I have recently been diagnosed type 2 and have started on Metformin 2 weeks ago.
I invested in a glucose monitoring machine as I want to try a low carb/keto diet and experiment with what foods I can tolerate.

this morning my levels were

7.8mmol waking
8.2mmol an hour later before breakfast
1 Egg 2 chicken sausage and mushrooms for breakfast
9.9mmol 2 hours after breakfast

I feel like that rise is quite large for a Protein based breakfast or am I overthinking it ??
Any advice is gratefully received

if it helps I am 16 stone and my HCA thingy levels at diagnosis were 103!!!!

Sounds like you are doing well.
The readings of 7.8 and 8.2 should be taken as essentially identical. The meters are not accurate enough to read more into those numbers.

In addition to the sausages, your mushrooms will have some carbs as well. All of these will have contributed to the rise to 9.9 but quite honestly this is a very good result and the increase is not too big.

 

[Emillie1983]

Hi. I was higher than you at diagnosis (114) and my DN (unusually, it turns out) gave me a testing kit and told me I needed to get into single figures. It took me 3 weeks, so you've done really well. Once you've accumulated enough readings you'll be able to see a trend, which will tell you whether you're heading in the right direction. A rolling 7-day average is the usual means for calculating a trend (apologies if you know that already).

Martin

No I didn’t so thank you very much for explaining! I am grateful for all the advice and information the web is a minefield of contradictions and my doctor isn’t very helpful ! It’s good to know I am heading in the right direction

 

[Drummer]

I love that analogy ! I checked it said they are 1.3grams per sausage is that good or bad I get so confused lol !!

Oh that is good, the ones I looked at were a lot higher.
I find that often things are added in which are supposed to improve a food, and they up the carbs a lot as 'carbs are good for you' is fairly universally believed.

 

[Loobyloo]

Thank you Loobyloo that’s so encouraging to hear!! Do you feel a difference in how you feel? I have always thought I felt fine but just 2 weeks of eating better and I realise how horrible I was actually feeling and had just gotten so used to it !

OH yes feel so much better. I too didnt realise just how bad i was feeling as it all crept up slowly on me. I have far more energy and the breathlessness on exertion has gone. I know this may be a strange statement but this has in a way be good for me because has forced me to make changes and lose weight that i have battled to do for years. I usually lose weight and then after a while give up and put back on again. This time i have no choice but to carry on my new way of eating if i treasure my health. The low carb way is a way i havent tried before and have settled into without feeling too much hardship. I have found out after testing with my monitor what gives me highs and what treats i can occasionally have without too much effect on my sugars. The initial shock and gloom i felt has gone and i am feeling very positive. Things will begin to improve for you and you will probably feel better than you have in a while. Good luck keep us informed as to how you are getting along.

 

[Ditto]

Hello and welcome to the forum @Emillie1983 🙂

 

[SB2015]

Welcome to the forum @Emillie1983

You have already had a loads of useful advice. Keep that sluice gate open (nice analogy @Drummer) and continue with the changes you have already made. Great that you can already see the impact and also feel better.

Keep in touch and let us know how you get on.

 

[Squirrel768]

Welcome @Emillie1983 - that rise after food, with the amount of carbs in the sausages, is a very good outcome 🙂

As a T1, I would be very happy to see that LOL. I am now a Hobbit - I love my second breakfast LOL. (No, I don't eat more, I just have it in two parts 🙂 ). Helps to prevent a post-breakfast spike I wasn't aware of before starting with Libre!

For T2, I think you are working on it really well. Love that analogy by @Drummer too 🙂

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Good to hear you’ve made such a positive start @Emillie1983

Don‘t get stressed if it takes a little while for your averages and HbA1c to come down, it can be easier on the fine blood vessels for your levels to reduce relatively gently towards more ‘in range’ values.

Good luck, and keep going!