New type 2!

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GI Jan

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Type 2
Hi all,

What a great forum! I was diagnosed three weeks ago and felt rather bogged down by having a to deal with a lifelong condition. However, the support on this forum has already cheered me up, and that's without having posted before today!

I have three months until my next HbA1c test and am trying to control my blood sugar through diet and exercise. My diabetes nurse says that she doesn't think I'll be able to reduce my reading (and avoid going on Metformin tablets) as I already have a healthy lifestyle.:confused: I don't really want to go on drugs until/unless I absolutely have to.

I've been following a low GI diet for a few weeks and taking cinnamon and chromium supplements, in addition to the multimvitamin and omega oils I was already taking. I also have some rather disgusting herbal medicine! I've also cut out caffeine for good measure, as I have a slightly underactive thyroid.

I tested my fasting glucose level on Saturday and it was down from 7.1 to 5.3! Still a way to go and I have to keep it down, but I'm now more optimistic about delaying the drugs!

I would welcome anyone's thoughts or experiences in relation to my own.

Jan

PS Loving the iPhone app!
 
Hi Jan, welcome to the forum 🙂 It sounds like you have made a great start in understanding and learning how best to control your diabetes, so this will certainly help. I'm guessing that you aren't testing regularly though, given that you say you tested your fasting level only once. Ideally, you need to test your levels before and one or two hours after eating in order to ascertain how well your body tolerates the food you have eaten. Although you are doing the right thing in following a low GI diet, some people can find some types of carbohydrate can 'spike' their levels, whilst others can happily tolerate them - so you need to find out your own personal responses. If you haven't been prescribed test strips, then you should insist on getting a supply whilst you build up knowledge of food and food combinations that work well for you, and what you need to avoid.

Your nurse's pessimism suggests she may be one of those who doesn't believe you need to test, but it is widely recognised as being the best way to improve your levels, even if you feel you are eating healthily. Many of our members have been able to stay off, or reduce or stop medication once they have established a good diet for them. It's important to also get as much exercise as possible also, as this will make you more sensitive to the insulin you are producing.

Have a look in our Useful links thread for some good sources of information and recommendations, and if you have any questions, please ask away! 🙂
 
Welcome to the forum Jan🙂
 
Welcome Jan. I think your nurse is being unnecessarily pessimistic. It is possible to go a long time on diet/exercise alone, provided your body co-operates. Feel free to prove her wrong!
 
Thanks

Lovely to hear from people so quickly.

Northerner (Alan?) - thanks for the useful links. My nurse has given me a testing machine, but I have to pay for the strips and pins myself, apparently, as I'm not on medication.

Thanks for the welcome and encouragement Lee Lee, Shambles and Mark T.

J
 
GI Jan said:
Lovely to hear from people so quickly.

Northerner (Alan?) - thanks for the useful links. My nurse has given me a testing machine, but I have to pay for the strips and pins myself, apparently, as I'm not on medication.

Thanks for the welcome and encouragement Lee Lee, Shambles and Mark T.

J
Click to expand...

Hi Jan - really, if the nurse has given you a meter then you should also be prescribed some strips! Whether you are on medication or not is not the issue - you use the information provided by testing in order to learn what you need to modify in your diet. What I would suggest is that you do some testing and record everything, then show your results to your GP and explain how it is helping you to control your levels, then he/she may be persuaded to prescribe some strips.

Have a read of Test,Review, Adjust for a guide to efficient testing 🙂
 
If you push your GP, you may well get at least one batch of strips on prescription. Explain that you need them in order to find out what effect particular foods have on your blood glucose, allowing you to adjust your diet accordingly.

Despite being T2 on metformin only, I managed to get one pot of strips in February and still have quite a few left because my control is good so I don't feel the need to test much.
 
Nurse

The nurse did give me one lot of lancets and one pot of strips to get me started. I shall test and record as suggested and show her the results in the hope she will prescribe more!

TTFN

J
 
Check the date on your strips Jan - if they are as tight as mine they might be out of date!!

Not joking - the meter (with 10 strips) they gave me to start with ... the strips were out of date (only about a month) but i was like how long have you HAD this??
 
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