New to T2

[nikkin]

Hi all,
I was diagnosed with T2 a couple of months ago and am struggling with it a bit. My blood sugar at diagnosis was 53 so not really high but I went to an eye screening and have background retinopathy. It scared me to think that the diabetes was already having an impact on my body. I have nearly 5 stone to lose to get to a healthy BMI but it feels insurmountable, particularly as I also have long covid and can't exercise that much and am a really bad comfort eater! Any support/advice gratefully received.

 

[Windy]

Morning Nikkin, welcome to the forum. Sorry to hear about your diagnosis, the background retinopathy and how it's all making you feel.
I'm also a comfort eater who was carrying an extra 5 stone at time of diagnosis last year. My advice with the comfort eating is to try and clear all the tempting food from the house. Or if you do have to have them in because other household members like them, see if you can buy ones that you don't like, so for instance prawn cocktail crisps (which are vile) over salt and vinegar, which are the premiere flavour.
I also use delay to try and stop me eating when I shouldn't - so if I fancy a chunk of cheese as a snack, I try and wait an hour before I have it, and distract myself by making a cup of tea, or putting the washing on, or reading or whatever. Sometimes I've forgotten about the cheese after the hour.
I've lost my weight by dieting alone, I go out for the odd walk and cycle ride, but not frequently enough.
Can you ask the receptionist at your GPs if they offer any support for weight loss, or the low calorie diet replacement for T2 diabetics scheme which is being rolled out in some areas?
I want you to set mini goals, rather than "I will lose 5 stone". I set myself losing one and a bit stone/15kg initially and time limited it to three months, as that was the longest that I'd ever stayed on a diet. If I didn't hit the 15kg, I would still have lost some weight, and that was a result in itself.
Also focus on the longer term goals, like, if I keep my BG in check, and lose some weight, I will reduce the risk of complications. Some people on the forum have had retinopathy and it's improved with better BG management, so focus on that as a goal, and think of it when the siren song of the kitkat/pringles is calling you to the kitchen.
There's a weight loss forum you can post in too, or read how other people have done. I didn't feel I was dieting alone after reading some of the posts in there.
Best wishes, Sarah

 

[nikkin]

Hi Sarah,
Thanks so much for replying and for your advice. And well done on the changes you have made.
I think it's a really good idea you had about setting a shorter term goal as well as having a long term one and will go with the one you suggest. Thinking about having to diet for an eternity hasn't been helping at all.
I will check out the weight loss forum and have a chat with my surgery because it doesn't look like my NHS trust is doing the scheme you mention.
Thanks again 🙂

 

[Leadinglights]

You may be able to glean something from this link which is a low carb approach which has been successful for losing weight and reducing blood glucose. https://lowcarbfreshwell.co.uk/
You are only just into the diabetic zone so some changes are going to be needed but whatever you do does have to be enjoyable and sustainable so you should look upon it as a new normal way of eating not A DIET.

 

[nikkin]

You may be able to glean something from this link which is a low carb approach which has been successful for losing weight and reducing blood glucose. https://lowcarbfreshwell.co.uk/
You are only just into the diabetic zone so some changes are going to be needed but whatever you do does have to be enjoyable and sustainable so you should look upon it as a new normal way of eating not A DIET.

Thank you, that's so helpful. I've been working on cutting out sugar and lowering my carb intake but it's good to have some more guidance and information. Thanks again.

 

[Drummer]

I had background retinopathy at the first test, but nothing found after that - I have been eating low carb ever since diagnosis.

 

[nikkin]

I had background retinopathy at the first test, but nothing found after that - I have been eating low carb ever since diagnosis.

That's really good to know, thank you 🙂

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Welcome to the forum @nikkin

Good luck on with you plans to lose some weight, and try to get you BGs back on a bit more of an even keel.

Don’t be in too much of a panic to get things back in line instantly. It can be kinder on the fine blood vessels in the eyes to allow things to improve fairly gradually over a slightly longer period.

Hopefully by moving gently towards more stable and in-range levels any changes to your eyes can stabilise, or perhaps even disappear.

Several members (myself included) have had ‘background changes’ noticed once or twice, and later get an ‘all clear’, while others just have the ‘background changes’ stay the same for decades without progressing further.

 

[nikkin]

Welcome to the forum @nikkin

Good luck on with you plans to lose some weight, and try to get you BGs back on a bit more of an even keel.

Don’t be in too much of a panic to get things back in line instantly. It can be kinder on the fine blood vessels in the eyes to allow things to improve fairly gradually over a slightly longer period.

Hopefully by moving gently towards more stable and in-range levels any changes to your eyes can stabilise, or perhaps even disappear.

Several members (myself included) have had ‘background changes’ noticed once or twice, and later get an ‘all clear’, while others just have the ‘background changes’ stay the same for decades without progressing further.

Thank you for the welcome and for replying. That's really reassuring, I was quite worried! Thank you

 

[Vonny]

Hi @nikkin, are you on the long covid pathway? They should be able to help to improve your energy levels. My best friend has recently been diagnosed (and she has several other complex medical needs) but on contacting the helpline, she has been given new meds and advice which are helping her to recover.

As @Windy says, mini goals are the way forward. I have lost nearly 5 stone (3lb to my latest target!) but when I started out it was absolutely one day at a time. I would have fallen at the first hurdle if I'd tried to think of the bigger picture. And remember, slower is better as far as bagginess is concerned. I did it too quickly and am reaping the consequences of being far too small for my skin!

 

[nikkin]

Hi @nikkin, are you on the long covid pathway? They should be able to help to improve your energy levels. My best friend has recently been diagnosed (and she has several other complex medical needs) but on contacting the helpline, she has been given new meds and advice which are helping her to recover.

As @Windy says, mini goals are the way forward. I have lost nearly 5 stone (3lb to my latest target!) but when I started out it was absolutely one day at a time. I would have fallen at the first hurdle if I'd tried to think of the bigger picture. And remember, slower is better as far as bagginess is concerned. I did it too quickly and am reaping the consequences of being far too small for my skin!

Thanks for replying and for your advice on setting mini goals. I think that probably is the way forward for me. I'm on the waiting list to see the community rehab team for long covid so am hoping they can help. Thanks again

 

[Mrs Mimoo]

Hi all,
I was diagnosed with T2 a couple of months ago and am struggling with it a bit. My blood sugar at diagnosis was 53 so not really high but I went to an eye screening and have background retinopathy. It scared me to think that the diabetes was already having an impact on my body. I have nearly 5 stone to lose to get to a healthy BMI but it feels insurmountable, particularly as I also have long covid and can't exercise that much and am a really bad comfort eater! Any support/advice gratefully received.

don't give up I lost 11 kg and am going to try to lose 5 more - i'm now feeling much better. I got started on the Newcastle diet and then used the freshwell app.

 

[nikkin]

don't give up I lost 11 kg and am going to try to lose 5 more - i'm now feeling much better. I got started on the Newcastle diet and then used the freshwell app.

Well done! And thank you for replying and for the encouragement

 

[Deleted member 21371]

I lost five stone, 30 kilos.
I went on a low fat diet, for about a year, then mopped up the rest with an 8 week 800 calories shake based diet.
I found most of my eating was just habit, so I just concentrated on establishing a new routine, and it was actually very easy.

 

[nikkin]

I lost five stone, 30 kilos.
I went on a low fat diet, for about a year, then mopped up the rest with an 8 week 800 calories shake based diet.
I found most of my eating was just habit, so I just concentrated on establishing a new routine, and it was actually very easy.

Well done! It's good to know that you found it easy, I've been imagining it to be really difficult. Thanks for your message