New to Forum - Ruby/London

[Ruby/London]

My main aim is to reduce bg and lose weight so I can get my blood pressure down and low cal seems the best option. I tried Atkins, Drummer and just couldn't get along with it. If I go too low carb I feel really awful. I am looking at IF and the 16/8 option. I really don't like low carb breakfasts, so skipping it won't be a problem. My 8 hour window for eating will be 11am to 7pm, which seems manageable but might just sneak in low cal, low carb protein snack just before bedtime to target DP. I am hoping a combination of fasting and low cal helps kick start the weight loss.

Brando, I ended up with tinnitus and a diagnosis of Menieres after a viral infection and a right pain in the backside it has been. It can disappear for months but a cold, chocolate or food allergy sets it off. It's tree pollen at the moment.

Waves to Lucy - hi to you, too🙂

Thank you to everyone, I have learned so much this weekend🙂

 

[Maz2]

welcome to the Forum Ruby. I love the Greek yoghurt 3 grams per 100g too. You may want to have a look at the recipes section. There is a lovely Flaxseed Loaf put up by Mark Parrott. I enjoy that for breakfast with an egg sometimes and then yoghurt with nuts and seeds or sometimes leave the yoghurt for an after lunch dessert.

Testing is very important to see what suits you.

 

[Ruby/London]

Thank you, Maz. All the feedback, information and support this weekend has been amazing and motivating!

 

[Maz2]

I am not surprised you have found this Forum so helpful. It has also proved very valuable to me too. I was diagnosed pre-diabetic a couple of years ago as an "incidental" finding. I was taking part in medical research and was found to have a high fructose level in my blood. Researchers alerted my GP who did hba1c and found it high. I did not need to lose weight but changed my diet, lost weight but the hba1c went up a bit again before coming down. it went back to normal but it has crept back up again unfortunately.

GP is not sure why as I am underweight now. He thinks it may be increased insulin resistance due to my age but not really sure. Will check again in one year. Meanwhile, I will battle on.

It is very important, as posters have said, to test what suits you. I, for example, found the 3% Fage yoghurt you mentioned has lower sugar and carbs than any other, including full fat ones but that is where I shop and may not be the same everywhere. What suits one person does not suit another so it is important to check what suits you. I get on OK with yoghurt and love it for breakfast.

 

[Ruby/London]

I am not surprised you have found this Forum so helpful. It has also proved very valuable to me too. I was diagnosed pre-diabetic a couple of years ago as an "incidental" finding. I was taking part in medical research and was found to have a high fructose level in my blood. Researchers alerted my GP who did hba1c and found it high. I did not need to lose weight but changed my diet, lost weight but the hba1c went up a bit again before coming down. it went back to normal but it has crept back up again unfortunately.

GP is not sure why as I am underweight now. He thinks it may be increased insulin resistance due to my age but not really sure. Will check again in one year. Meanwhile, I will battle on.

It is very important, as posters have said, to test what suits you. I, for example, found the 3% Fage yoghurt you mentioned has lower sugar and carbs than any other, including full fat ones but that is where I shop and may not be the same everywhere. What suits one person does not suit another so it is important to check what suits you. I get on OK with yoghurt and love it for breakfast.

Hi Maz, I was informed that I was pre-diabetic a couple of years ago and was told to be careful because of my previous experience when I was pregnant. With my child bearing years well and truly behind me, I didn't take much notice. I think it would be helpful for more education at the that stage, rather than a cursory nod. Still, I am where I am and getting on fine, apart from bruised finger tips.

 

[CathyB]

Welcome Ruby

 

[Glenys]

Hi Ruby, I was recently diagnosed Type 2 in April this year controlled by diet Hba1c of 58 . O boy it is certainly a learning curve isn't it? like you I have had a few blips and positive success,s in reducing my blood sugar level or changing my way of eating.
My blood sugars have come down from the high 7's (Fasting) then 6's (mostly 6's now) but have had two 5's in last week. A couple of things I have noticed is that my bs on going to bed are very often lower then the morning fasting bs, which has been a little frustrating especially when daytime ones are either normal or nearly if I dont over indulge on the carbs. i test before and after meals and it has taught me what spikes my blood sugar.
I have reduced my carb input a lot, I suffer with cravings for chocolate and a few other goodies but have been looking at items just as yummy to replace them with and to be honest I have found them (mostly). I am totally gobsmacked at how versatile Cauliflower is, previously could take it or leave it on a roast dinner, but love it as mash with sausages, or as rice with curry.

best wishes

glenys

PS forgot to say am losing weight

 

[Northerner]

A couple of things I have noticed is that my bs on going to bed are very often lower then the morning fasting bs, which has been a little frustrating especially when daytime ones are either normal or nearly if I dont over indulge on the carbs.

This is far from uncommon - your BG levels will start to rise as soon as you raise your head from the pillow. I hadn't realised just how pronounced this can be until I started wearing Freestyle Libre sensors, which give a continuous reading of your levels. It's all part of the 'Circadian Rhythm' - your liver constantly releases glucose into your bloodstream to supply energy for your heart, lungs, brain, digestive system etc. when you are not eating, and this reduces as you sleep (when you need less energy) and increases as you begin to wake 🙂 Having a little something to eat 'switches off' this morning boost as your body realises you are no longer in 'starvation mode' 🙂

 

[Maz2]

I had never heard of this Northerner until I joined the Forum and I had wondered why, on occasions, my morning bgs were higher than when I went to bed. Are the freestyle libre sensors very expensive? I would be interested in one as I think it would be good to see how the bgs fluctuate during the day. I know it is no use asking my GP as I am pre-diabetic and they don't provide anything for Type IIs any more now as they think the 3 monthly hba1c is sufficient. Only trouble with that though is you need to know what foods you can eat and what you cannot or need to eat less of.

 

[Northerner]

I had never heard of this Northerner until I joined the Forum and I had wondered why, on occasions, my morning bgs were higher than when I went to bed. Are the freestyle libre sensors very expensive? I would be interested in one as I think it would be good to see how the bgs fluctuate during the day. I know it is no use asking my GP as I am pre-diabetic and they don't provide anything for Type IIs any more now as they think the 3 monthly hba1c is sufficient. Only trouble with that though is you need to know what foods you can eat and what you cannot or need to eat less of.

Unfortunately the Libre sensors are quite expensive - they work out at £25 per week, plus the one-off cost for the scanner. They are now available on the NHS, but with generally very strict criteria for getting one. They certainly do provide you with lots of information though, even after several years of being pretty well-controlled I discovered some quite surprising things when I started wearing them. Can't afford them all the time though, so just get them when there is something going on that I'd like the extra information for. They are particularly useful when you are on insulin as you can be pre-warned of a low blood sugar and take action before it hits.

 

[Maz2]

Ouch!!! Don't think I will be asking my GP for one of those. I know I would not get it anyway. yes, that is a bit expensive. May try one if I cannot get the hba1c down below 42 at next test in one year. Will continue testing myself and trying new foods and battle on. If it does not work I may try a libre for a while just to see what is happening.

I can't talk GPs into doing test in under a year as guidelines state only once a year unless diabetic or borderline diabetic which I am not.

 

[grovesy]

Ouch!!! Don't think I will be asking my GP for one of those. I know I would not get it anyway. yes, that is a bit expensive. May try one if I cannot get the hba1c down below 42 at next test in one year. Will continue testing myself and trying new foods and battle on. If it does not work I may try a libre for a while just to see what is happening.

I can't talk GPs into doing test in under a year as guidelines state only once a year unless diabetic or borderline diabetic which I am not.

At the moment Abbott the manufacturer are not taking on any new customers. Though you can register for when they resume.

 

[Grannylorraine]

Welcome to the forum. Sorry I have been bad at welcoming new people these last few days.

 

[Ruby/London]

Waves to Glorraine, You've had a baby shower to organise! Hope all is going well🙂

 

[Drummer]

I managed very well with an ordinary meter with cheap strips, testing two hours after starting to eat just to make sure I was not going over 8 mmol/l once I was settled on no food with over 10 percent carbs. That solved all problems very quickly.

 

[Ruby/London]

I just wanted to thank everyone for their support and encouragement and to share my good news. I had a call from my GP this morning to tell talk to me about the results of my A1C test. I have dropped from 48 to 38 in 5 weeks, and she said she was staggered by the result and wanted to know how I had achieved it. I took a deep breath and told her that I had followed a regime of low carb, intermittent fasting and self testing and had recently added in vitamin supplements . She was a bit taken a back about the self testing but said she couldn't argue with the results. I have been prediabetic for years and these results are the lowest they have ever been. I told her how important self testing had been in controlling bg - as emphasised on the DESMOND programme. We discussed the DESMOND programme and I mentioned that the diet information could benefit from being reviewed. I also told her how important the Forum and had been in helping me along and getting me on the right path.

I still have work to do on my blood pressure and some newly diagnosed raised ESR levels, which need to be monitored and I need to maintain the dietary changes in order to stay out of the danger zone. I also need tomake friends with my fitbit - a present for my birthday last year, which reminds me daily of my failure to complete 10k steps!

We ended the call with the GP saying she was going to try low carb diet on herself and I gave her the details of Dr Jason Fung's book, The Diabetes Code. She told me to carry on doing whatever it was I was doing and that we will review everything in 4 months. I must admit, I feel a bit staggered after that call and truly thankful for the welcome, guidance and support I received here. I know that I would have struggled to get to a handle on this without the Forum. I also know I was lucky that this was picked up very early. I rarely visit my GP and only made an appointment because of a pulled muscle in my neck that was lingering on to long.

I hope I can still hang out with you folks here on the Forum to keep learning🙂

 

[Alister]

Sounds to me like you have a good GP, one who will listen & not just spout NHS dogma blindly

 

[Ruby/London]

Oddly, my GP surgery is in chaos and going through a merger. The senior partner retired the practice nurse told me they are on the school equivalent of "special measures." I have only been with this practice for 2.5 years after moving to the area and have only seen a GP three times. The first time, I was prescribed a medication that had been discontinued two ears previously (well spotted by the pharmacist). My call this morning, and my original testing, were carried out by locum GPs filling in short term; but good medicine travels and hopefully our conversation may help someone along the line🙂 I am looking for a new GP practice, however. My son, is 10 months post op for a heart valve replacement and his follow up with the practice hasn't been great.

 

[Northerner]

I just wanted to thank everyone for their support and encouragement and to share my good news. I had a call from my GP this morning to tell talk to me about the results of my A1C test. I have dropped from 48 to 38 in 5 weeks, and she said she was staggered by the result and wanted to know how I had achieved it. I took a deep breath and told her that I had followed a regime of low carb, intermittent fasting and self testing and had recently added in vitamin supplements . She was a bit taken a back about the self testing but said she couldn't argue with the results. I have been prediabetic for years and these results are the lowest they have ever been. I told her how important self testing had been in controlling bg - as emphasised on the DESMOND programme. We discussed the DESMOND programme and I mentioned that the diet information could benefit from being reviewed. I also told her how important the Forum and had been in helping me along and getting me on the right path.

I still have work to do on my blood pressure and some newly diagnosed raised ESR levels, which need to be monitored and I need to maintain the dietary changes in order to stay out of the danger zone. I also need tomake friends with my fitbit - a present for my birthday last year, which reminds me daily of my failure to complete 10k steps!

We ended the call with the GP saying she was going to try low carb diet on herself and I gave her the details of Dr Jason Fung's book, The Diabetes Code. She told me to carry on doing whatever it was I was doing and that we will review everything in 4 months. I must admit, I feel a bit staggered after that call and truly thankful for the welcome, guidance and support I received here. I know that I would have struggled to get to a handle on this without the Forum. I also know I was lucky that this was picked up very early. I rarely visit my GP and only made an appointment because of a pulled muscle in my neck that was lingering on to long.

I hope I can still hang out with you folks here on the Forum to keep learning🙂

That is excellent news @Ruby/London ! 🙂 Of course you can still hang out here, we're happy to have you as a member, and good for you for telling it straight to the GP about how you have achieved such great results 🙂 Keep up the good work and keep learning (the learning bit never ends, you learn something new every day 🙂)