New diagnosis and have been so worried and upset

[charrussell]

Hi everyone.

I'm hoping that posting on here i can maybe speak to people that may be in or have been in a similar situation. I am a 31 year old female with no history whatsoever of diabetes in my family. I also have a low bmi of 17 which is classed as underweight. So as you can imagine when the doctor told me last Thursday I have diabetes type 2 i was i extremely shocked.

I had my little boy 2 years ago and received bad care from my hospital. I had pre eclampsia that went undetected by the hospital which developed into eclampsia which resulted in seizures when i was 37 weeks pregnant. I am not sure if this led to me having diabetes or if i developed it while pregnant and again it went un diagnosed.

So my first worry is would i have done any real damage in the last 2 years as i do like to binge drink mainly brunches with a high volume of cocktails also vaping. I love my carbs/ chocolates/ sweets.

My doctor put me on metaformin and i drastically changed my diet last week cutting out all carbs / sugars. I read it's possible to go into remmison but mainly with people who have weight to loose?

I spoke to my doctor again and he said his worry is me losing more weight as metaformin can do this so has advised me to carry on my regular diet and come off the tablets and go for a blood test in 3 months. My recent was was showing as 50 and he said a normal person should be around 42. I have stopped taking them but with christmas coming up i am wondering can i just take the metaformin when i know i am going to have a big roast dinner with carbs etc?

I have been really struggling the last few days as i love my food and i love going out and i just don't know how to properly manage this yet. I'm sure it will get easier and everyday i am feeling a bit more postive

 

[Inka]

Welcome @charrussell Your BMI is low (I speak as someone very slim myself). Have you lost any weight recently or found that you could eat loads and not put on weight? I ask because I’m wondering if you might be Type 1 rather than Type 2. Did the doctor say why he/she thought you were Type 2?

I can totally understand why you’re stressed. Don’t worry - you’ll get lots of support here, so do ask anything you want. I advise you to get a home blood glucose meter so you can keep an eye on your blood sugar yourself rather than wait three months.

Sorry to hear you had pre-eclampsia. I don’t know of any link with diabetes. Binge-drinking isn’t a good idea, as I’m sure you know, so reducing that will help your general health, particularly if your drinks are also laced with sugar.

 

[Drummer]

Although we aren't supposed to give medical advice, your situation doesn't seem like the majority of ordinary type 2s, so I would advise bothering your GP if things don't go along the ordinary route.
Your Hba1c of 50 is not very high compared to some, mine was 91 at diagnosis, so a normal response would be to cut down a bit on the carbohydrates, so high carb foods such as bread, or anything with grain in it would be a good target for reduction.
I make desserts using sugar free jelly, some gelatine to make it a stronger set, then add frozen berries. I made real icecream in the summer, have made real custard and let it set now it is colder, or eaten it with full fat yoghurt or cream. Lidl have a 95% cocoa chocolate bar, there are lots of almost no carb fizzy drinks, but you don't need to cut out all carbs - even with a Hba1c like mine started at I was still eating low carb options along with the meat, fish, seafood, eggs cheese and other full fat dairy - you need to add in more protein and fats to compensate for the reduction in carbs. You might gain a bit of weight as the diet is nourishing and although it tends to lead to weightloss it is more like a 'normalizing' effect rather than something designed for weightloss. It is quite similar to the Atkins way of eating - I am not sure if there are still lots of copies around these days, but Dr Atkins New Diet Revolution was useful to me for all the lists of foods recipes and eating plans.
I have a proper Christmas dinner, but it isn't all that high in carbs.

 

[Inka]

Low carb causes weight loss. I was shovelling in fat when I tried it (even spreading butter on my cheese). I became underweight. Even if it was a great diet, I couldn’t physically do it because I’d be skeletal. Recommending such a diet against that recommended by the OP’s doctor is unwise. While low carb might help some people like yourself, Drummer, for others with different metabolisms it’s a bad idea.

 

[Leadinglights]

Your low weight means you can't afford to lose weight which means that the usual 'diets' for reducing blood glucose are also intended to help lose weight so for you it is important to make sure you are making up for any carb reduction by having protein and healthy fats as part of your diet. It would be useful to have a home blood glucose monitor so you can find out which and how much carbohydrate your body can cope with so you do not reduce them too much.
By testing before you eat and after 2 hours when an increase of no more than 2-3mmol/l or no more than 8-8.5mmol/l will indicate the meal was OK.
I do agree however that you should consider the possibility of being Type 1 so should ask your GP for the tests that could help clarify your Type.
Although this link is a low carb approach it may give you some ideas for meals that would suit you. https://lowcarbfreshwell.co.uk/

 

[Drummer]

Low carb causes weight loss. I was shovelling in fat when I tried it (even spreading butter on my cheese). I became underweight. Even if it was a great diet, I couldn’t physically do it because I’d be skeletal. Recommending such a diet against that recommended by the OP’s doctor is unwise. While low carb might help some people like yourself, Drummer, for others with different metabolisms it’s a bad idea.

As I mentioned, it could be that the OP will gain weight. The low carb guru himself found that people who were underweight often saw gains plus increasing well being - but if you want to argue with what Dr Atkins discovered....
I am still rather concerned about the diagnosis though - the symptoms really don't yell typical type 2 at all. Hopefully a reduction in alcohol intake and a rest for the liver with some really nourishing meals will really help.
The GP's advice of eat normally without any medication to someone with an iffy diagnosis, over Christmas with the strikes going on - I mean - hopefully everything will be settling down for the OP by the New Year - with no further weightloss, and further tests will be done, but a few less carbs could keep things from progressing rather than tempting fate.

 

[harbottle]

Yes, Metformin has been linked to weight loss, but no one knows exactly why.
Sounds like the GP is doing OK.
50 isn't much above the diabetic threshold.

You mention alcohol and binge drinking - there's a link between alcohol intake and T2 diabetes.

 

[Inka]

No, Dummer, you said low carb had a stabilising effect. Clearly losing weight when totally unnecessary isn’t stabilising.

 

[ianf0ster]

I was a barely overweight Type 2 who used Low Carb to gain remission. Slim Type 2's are a larger proportion than many realise, although positively skinny (below BMI 18) are probably rather rare. Low Crab doesn't need to be lower calorie though for most it is due to the extra satiating effect of the increased Protein and Fat.

Does having less bodyfat actually harm somebody the way that having diabetic levels of Blood Glucose does? - I suspect in most case it doesn't, unless it's a symptom of something else! Look at long distance runners and cyclists - they are all very skinny, but they are generally healthy (with the exception of some extremely skinny female athletes who needed to put on some fat in order to become pregnant).

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Welcome to the forum @charrussell

I can understand why you are worried.

Hopefully you can get some clarification about your diabetes type given your slightly unusual presentation.

To put your mind at rest about the Metformin, it isn’t a medication that works directly on the following meal. It builds up gradually in the body over weeks, soaking into the system, and helps in the background by reducing glucose output from the liver, and reducing insulin resistance. But it doesn’t really work directly on food, so if your Dr has suggested you don’t take them until your 3 month check - perhaps you should just try that?

Maybe be a little careful about the level of sweet and sugary things you eat over the festive period, and perhaps consider making up any calorie deficit with good fats? (eg nuts, seeds, oily fish, olive oil)

 

[Drummer]

No, Dummer, you said low carb had a stabilising effect. Clearly losing weight when totally unnecessary isn’t stabilising.

Yes - that is what I wrote, as it was something reported in one of the books by Dr Atkins, that some of his patients were eating a low carb diet when underweight and that caused gains in weight as it is nutritious plus there is no limit on calories so regarding low carb as a weightloss plan is far too simplistic.
I think that the rather thin people were at his clinic due to heart arrhythmias and hormonal problems after low fat dieting, but it is some time since I read any case studies. They regained muscle mass to start off with I think.

 

[EmmaL76]

Welcome @charrussell Your BMI is low (I speak as someone very slim myself). Have you lost any weight recently or found that you could eat loads and not put on weight? I ask because I’m wondering if you might be Type 1 rather than Type 2. Did the doctor say why he/she thought you were Type 2?

I can totally understand why you’re stressed. Don’t worry - you’ll get lots of support here, so do ask anything you want. I advise you to get a home blood glucose meter so you can keep an eye on your blood sugar yourself rather than wait three months.

Sorry to hear you had pre-eclampsia. I don’t know of any link with diabetes. Binge-drinking isn’t a good idea, as I’m sure you know, so reducing that will help your general health, particularly if your drinks are also laced with sugar.

There is a link between preeclampsia and diabetes. I had both and have spoke to quite a few who have also. Thing is both type 1 and 2’s are about 2-4 times more likely to get preeclampsia.
@charrussell I was diagnosed at a low weight also and it’s extremely difficult to get a balance when it comes to diet. How are your energy levels ? Please be careful and ask for some more testing to determine type. Also watch those drinks as nothing on earth can spike sugar like a luminous cocktail. Wine, GnT much better

 

[Felinia]

Hello and welcome.
I think as your HbA1c is only just in the diabetic level you are most unlikely to have done any real damage that you are so worried about. If you are a genuine Type 2 diabetic, I would hope that by cutting down on your drinking and sweet habit, it might be enough to get you out of the diabetic range in the next 3 months. I applaud your GP for giving you the chance to help yourself without medication. Metformin does have side effects and needs to be taken regularly, not hit and miss. However as has been pointed out, there is a possibility of Type 1. If you start to feel unwell, or lose weight without trying, go back to your GP and ask for the Type 1 tests. In the meantime, you can enjoy lots of proteins and fats to maintain your weight. Why not get an app to measure your daily carb intake (record absolutely everything) - you might be surprised at how high your drink and sweet habit is? If you can, slowly reduce your carb intake.
Best wishes.

 

[Inka]

There is a link between preeclampsia and diabetes. I had both and have spoke to quite a few who have also. Thing is both type 1 and 2’s are about 2-4 times more likely to get preeclampsia.
@charrussell I was diagnosed at a low weight also and it’s extremely difficult to get a balance when it comes to diet. How are your energy levels ? Please be careful and ask for some more testing to determine type. Also watch those drinks as nothing on earth can spike sugar like a luminous cocktail. Wine, GnT much better

Yes, absolutely we’re at increased risk of pre-eclampsia. But I didn’t know that there was a link the other way - ie that pre-eclampsia causes diabetes, which is what I thought the OP was asking.

 

[42istheanswer]

According to this meta-analysis published in 2016, pre-eclampsia doubles the risk of type 2 diabetes, there wasn't sufficient data in the studies they found to reach a definite conclusion about type 1 - only one study and it didn't show a statistically significant increase

 

[Drummer]

Pre eclampsia 1985, diagnosed diabetic 2016 - quite a gap, but yes, had both, and both went away when I stopped the excess carbs.
I have always felt unwell when eating a normal high carb diet.