• Please Remember: Members are only permitted to share their own experiences. Members are not qualified to give medical advice. Additionally, everyone manages their health differently. Please be respectful of other people's opinions about their own diabetes management.
  • We seem to be having technical difficulties with new user accounts. If you are trying to register please check your Spam or Junk folder for your confirmation email. If you still haven't received a confirmation email, please reach out to our support inbox: support.forum@diabetes.org.uk

Newbie - Terrified

Status
This thread is now closed. Please contact Anna DUK, Ieva DUK or everydayupsanddowns if you would like it re-opened.
Jellybean64

Jellybean64

New Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
Hi all, I've only been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes since last Friday. I'm really scared because I haven't got a clue where to start. I also have COPD, depression and anxiety, High blood pressure,the list goes on.......
I'm hoping for any tips or advice on where and how I start to put my health back to being healthier.
Thank you for reading my post. I hope I haven't rambled on too much
Jellybean64
 
You'll get some sage advice here, when this thread gets picked up. I was diagnosed T2 recently and here was my first port of call to get advice. Be prepared to give some stat such a HBAc1 figure etc...
 
Jellybean64 said:
Hi all, I've only been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes since last Friday. I'm really scared because I haven't got a clue where to start. I also have COPD, depression and anxiety, High blood pressure,the list goes on.......
I'm hoping for any tips or advice on where and how I start to put my health back to being healthier.
Thank you for reading my post. I hope I haven't rambled on too much
Jellybean64
Click to expand...
Welcome to the forum, what a time to have a diagnosis which some people are shocked to get, but sometimes it is a relief as it explains symptoms that you have been getting.
It is important to know that it is a condition that can be managed but should be taken seriously. How much work you need to do depends on how high your HbA1C is, that is how far into the diabetes zone you are. If not too far then some dietary changes should be all that is needed but medication may have been prescribed if blood glucose is high.
Reducing the amount of carbohydrates you have is one way many find successful so a low carb approach, that being less than 130g total carbs not just sugar per day, but it does not mean NO carbs.
This link may help you with some ideas for modifying your diet. https://lowcarbfreshwell.co.uk/
If you give a bit more information about your diagnosis, what medication you may have been prescribed and what your HbA1C is then that will help people tailor their comments.
There is no need to be terrified as once you make some even modest changes you should start to feel better.
 
MrPixels said:
You'll get some sage advice here, when this thread gets picked up. I was diagnosed T2 recently and here was my first port of call to get advice. Be prepared to give some stat such a HBAc1 figure etc...
Click to expand...
Thank you for your reply. I'm hoping to get as much information and advice as possible
 
Leadinglights said:
Welcome to the forum, what a time to have a diagnosis which some people are shocked to get, but sometimes it is a relief as it explains symptoms that you have been getting.
It is important to know that it is a condition that can be managed but should be taken seriously. How much work you need to do depends on how high your HbA1C is, that is how far into the diabetes zone you are. If not too far then some dietary changes should be all that is needed but medication may have been prescribed if blood glucose is high.
Reducing the amount of carbohydrates you have is one way many find successful so a low carb approach, that being less than 130g total carbs not just sugar per day, but it does not mean NO carbs.
This link may help you with some ideas for modifying your diet. https://lowcarbfreshwell.co.uk/
If you give a bit more information about your diagnosis, what medication you may have been prescribed and what your HbA1C is then that will help people tailor their comments.
There is no need to be terrified as once you make some even modest changes you should start to feel better.
Click to expand...
Leadinglights said:
Welcome to the forum, what a time to have a diagnosis which some people are shocked to get, but sometimes it is a relief as it explains symptoms that you have been getting.
It is important to know that it is a condition that can be managed but should be taken seriously. How much work you need to do depends on how high your HbA1C is, that is how far into the diabetes zone you are. If not too far then some dietary changes should be all that is needed but medication may have been prescribed if blood glucose is high.
Reducing the amount of carbohydrates you have is one way many find successful so a low carb approach, that being less than 130g total carbs not just sugar per day, but it does not mean NO carbs.
This link may help you with some ideas for modifying your diet. https://lowcarbfreshwell.co.uk/
If you give a bit more information about your diagnosis, what medication you may have been prescribed and what your HbA1C is then that will help people tailor their comments.
There is no need to be terrified as once you make some even modest changes you should start to feel better.
Click to expand...
 
Leadinglights said:
Welcome to the forum, what a time to have a diagnosis which some people are shocked to get, but sometimes it is a relief as it explains symptoms that you have been getting.
It is important to know that it is a condition that can be managed but should be taken seriously. How much work you need to do depends on how high your HbA1C is, that is how far into the diabetes zone you are. If not too far then some dietary changes should be all that is needed but medication may have been prescribed if blood glucose is high.
Reducing the amount of carbohydrates you have is one way many find successful so a low carb approach, that being less than 130g total carbs not just sugar per day, but it does not mean NO carbs.
This link may help you with some ideas for modifying your diet. https://lowcarbfreshwell.co.uk/
If you give a bit more information about your diagnosis, what medication you may have been prescribed and what your HbA1C is then that will help people tailor their comments.
There is no need to be terrified as once you make some even modest changes you should start to feel better.
Click to expand...
Thank you very much for your reply. At the moment I have no other information apart from the fact that I have T2 diabetes. I have an appointment with the nurse on 10th January, so I'm hoping to find out more from the results of my blood test. Once I have some information, I will come back with the results and hopefully someone can help me to understand what it all means.
Sorry if I'm rambling, this is all new to me
 
Jellybean64 said:
Thank you very much for your reply. At the moment I have no other information apart from the fact that I have T2 diabetes. I have an appointment with the nurse on 10th January, so I'm hoping to find out more from the results of my blood test. Once I have some information, I will come back with the results and hopefully someone can help me to understand what it all means.
Sorry if I'm rambling, this is all new to me
Click to expand...
The important thing to ask is what your Hba1C is. That is the test used to diagnose diabetes and is the average blood glucose over the previous 3 months. A level over 47mmol/mol will give a diabetes diagnosis but does not distinguish Type 2 from Type 1 and unless there are clinical reasons to suspect Type 1 then the extra tests would not be routinely done so most people will be designated as Type 2.
If your Hba1C is only just over the diagnostic level then hopefully you will be given the opportunity to try dietary changes before being prescribed medication, however if it is 60mmol/mol or higher then medication might be prescribed. It does seem a bit random as to what a GP will consider it high enough to start medication.
It is however not too soon to be cutting out things which are very high carbohydrate like cakes, biscuits, sugary drinks including fruit juice and reducing your intake of potatoes, rice, pasta, bread and pastry.
Many find keeping a food diary of everything you eat and drink with an estimate of the total carbohydrates and then you can see where some savings can be made.
The book or app Carbs and Cals is a good resource as it gives carb values for various portions of a whole range of foods so can help you make better choices. It was and still is my bible when first diagnosed.
It is a good idea to have a list of questions for your appointment as it is easy to forget to ask things you meant to.
 
Jellybean64 said:
Hi all, I've only been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes since last Friday. I'm really scared because I haven't got a clue where to start. I also have COPD, depression and anxiety, High blood pressure,the list goes on.......
I'm hoping for any tips or advice on where and how I start to put my health back to being healthier.
Thank you for reading my post. I hope I haven't rambled on too much
Jellybean64
Click to expand...
Welcome to the forum. You say your list of conditions goes on but what other conditions are on the list? It may be relevant to any diet or exercise suggestions you receive here.

Do you know what the 3 month blood sugar level was too? It will be a number in the 40s or above, up into the 100s for some people.
 
Welcome @Jellybean64. I hope that a low carb diet will sort out some of your problems.
Although we are not supposed to give medical advice, I think I should mention one thing in case you are on medication for the high blood pressure.
Low carb can cause blood pressure to reduce, so if taking medication for it, it can drop low and cause dizzyness.
On the low carb forum I am on it has been mentioned a couple of times that people had falls due to going dizzy - one was very serious, but they had been continuing to take medication even though they were experiencing low blood pressure.
 
So sorry for the delay in replying, it's been a bit hectic here.
I haven't had an appointment with the diabetes nurse yet so I have no idea what my sugar levels are, but I'm guessing I'll find out at my appointment on the 10th January. I will let you all know as soon as I find out.
 
Status
This thread is now closed. Please contact Anna DUK, Ieva DUK or everydayupsanddowns if you would like it re-opened.
Back
Top