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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.
Newbie
- Thread starter Mr Wongle
- Start date
- Status
Inka
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Welcome @Mr Wongle 🙂 How long have you had Type 2?
rebrascora
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Hi and welcome from me too.
You must have been diagnosed pretty young then since you would have been early 30s then. Did you fit the typical Type 2 profile. Just asking because many Type 1 diabetics get misdiagnosed as Type 2 if they develop diabetes beyond childhood. Many health care professionals are under the misunderstanding that Type 1 only presents in childhood, so they assume you are Type 2 if you are an adult when you develop it. Not saying you have been misdiagnosed but it is always something to bear in mind particularly if your diabetes escalates ie. Your HbA1c suddenly increases when you haven't changed your diet or lifestyle much. There is often a slower onset to Type 1 diabetes in adults and it can often appear to respond to Type 2 medication in the early stages, which may last weeks, months or years.
If you don't mind me asking, how do you currently manage your diabetes? Diet and exercise/oral meds/insulin or other injectables?
Is there anything particular which has drawn you to the forum, seeking information perhaps or you just fancy being part of our great community.... and who can blame you! 😉
😎
Anyway, shout up if you have any problems or need any help. If you self test, perhaps you might like to join our Group 7-day waking average thread, where we post our morning waking readings.... the weekly average thing is generally ignored and we just drop in each morning with our reading and a bit of chat.... rather like a virtual coffee morning. You will get to know us better and it is more of a social thread than the rest of the forum. Would be happy to see you post there in the morning if your would like to join us... link below.
https://forum.diabetes.org.uk/boards/threads/group-7-day-waking-average.20148/page-3854#post-1098014
Please don't attempt to read the whole thread from the beginning as it is massively long, just jump right in at the end and post your reading and you will soon get the hang of it.
You must have been diagnosed pretty young then since you would have been early 30s then. Did you fit the typical Type 2 profile. Just asking because many Type 1 diabetics get misdiagnosed as Type 2 if they develop diabetes beyond childhood. Many health care professionals are under the misunderstanding that Type 1 only presents in childhood, so they assume you are Type 2 if you are an adult when you develop it. Not saying you have been misdiagnosed but it is always something to bear in mind particularly if your diabetes escalates ie. Your HbA1c suddenly increases when you haven't changed your diet or lifestyle much. There is often a slower onset to Type 1 diabetes in adults and it can often appear to respond to Type 2 medication in the early stages, which may last weeks, months or years.
If you don't mind me asking, how do you currently manage your diabetes? Diet and exercise/oral meds/insulin or other injectables?
Is there anything particular which has drawn you to the forum, seeking information perhaps or you just fancy being part of our great community.... and who can blame you! 😉
😎 Anyway, shout up if you have any problems or need any help. If you self test, perhaps you might like to join our Group 7-day waking average thread, where we post our morning waking readings.... the weekly average thing is generally ignored and we just drop in each morning with our reading and a bit of chat.... rather like a virtual coffee morning. You will get to know us better and it is more of a social thread than the rest of the forum. Would be happy to see you post there in the morning if your would like to join us... link below.
https://forum.diabetes.org.uk/boards/threads/group-7-day-waking-average.20148/page-3854#post-1098014
Please don't attempt to read the whole thread from the beginning as it is massively long, just jump right in at the end and post your reading and you will soon get the hang of it.
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Welcome to the forum @Mr Wongle 🙂
How have the last 10 years treated you? Has your diabetes management changed over that time? Perhaps adding or changing medication? Have you reduced or moderated your total carbohydrate intake to help your metabolism cope better with the food you are eating and to balance with any meds you take?
Do you use a BG meter to check your levels at home?
How do you get on with exercise or activity? Is that something you are able to include as part of your diabetes management toolkit?
Have a browse around the forum and ask away with any questions you have, or just rant and moan about the silliness and frustrations of living with diabetes - we instinctively ‘get it’ 🙂
How have the last 10 years treated you? Has your diabetes management changed over that time? Perhaps adding or changing medication? Have you reduced or moderated your total carbohydrate intake to help your metabolism cope better with the food you are eating and to balance with any meds you take?
Do you use a BG meter to check your levels at home?
How do you get on with exercise or activity? Is that something you are able to include as part of your diabetes management toolkit?
Have a browse around the forum and ask away with any questions you have, or just rant and moan about the silliness and frustrations of living with diabetes - we instinctively ‘get it’ 🙂
Morning,
I'm currently on a combination of Metformin, Sitaglyptin and Gliclazide (no injections) and a so called "diet/lifestyle" - however I must confess my control in the present day is nothing short of horrendous - with the lockdowns that have been in place I have 1) not been to the gym since March 2020 (as it is where I work and I work from home still) and 2) my eating has been all over the place. My last check up I had my knuckles rapped by the nurse as my sugars were WAY over what they should be. And I guess I am one of the many hundreds (or thousands/millions) of people that, by my own admission, is living in somewhat of a denial that Diabetes IS affecting me on a daily basis. Because I cant see what is going wrong with me, I tend to push my diet and correct eating to one side and just eat what I want, regardless. I just can't seem to take this seriously which when saying that out loud is a ridiculous thing to say - as I know the implications of having this disease long term and the damage it can do if I don't keep it under control. I have 2 year old twins who I desperately want to see grow up and start families of their own, and enjoy life in retirement with my wife, move to the coast, get a dog etc.... I have an amazing job, great future prospects, financially speaking, and its finally time I need to concentrate on this once and for all. Otherwise something IS going to happen, like sight loss, or amputations, or a heart attack. My problem is that I am still in denial, 10 years on from diagnosis.
I joined DiabetesUK last night and paid my yearly subscription upfront - as I need more than anything support, guidance and inspiration from others in my position that have been here, conquered their pig-headedness, and taken back control of their lives. I want to get my sugars back down to a safe level, and keep them there. But at this present time, my mindset seems to be stuck in the "I eat what what I want, when I want" mentality. It has to change.....I appreciate that I love my food and I am a very simple eater who likes basic meals - not at all adventurous when it comes to trying new things, to the point I would rather say "I dont like that" without having ever tried it - sounds typical right?
Anyways, hoping anyone who reads this can point me in the right direction and give me a much needed kick up the bum / wake up call.
Thank you
I'm currently on a combination of Metformin, Sitaglyptin and Gliclazide (no injections) and a so called "diet/lifestyle" - however I must confess my control in the present day is nothing short of horrendous - with the lockdowns that have been in place I have 1) not been to the gym since March 2020 (as it is where I work and I work from home still) and 2) my eating has been all over the place. My last check up I had my knuckles rapped by the nurse as my sugars were WAY over what they should be. And I guess I am one of the many hundreds (or thousands/millions) of people that, by my own admission, is living in somewhat of a denial that Diabetes IS affecting me on a daily basis. Because I cant see what is going wrong with me, I tend to push my diet and correct eating to one side and just eat what I want, regardless. I just can't seem to take this seriously which when saying that out loud is a ridiculous thing to say - as I know the implications of having this disease long term and the damage it can do if I don't keep it under control. I have 2 year old twins who I desperately want to see grow up and start families of their own, and enjoy life in retirement with my wife, move to the coast, get a dog etc.... I have an amazing job, great future prospects, financially speaking, and its finally time I need to concentrate on this once and for all. Otherwise something IS going to happen, like sight loss, or amputations, or a heart attack. My problem is that I am still in denial, 10 years on from diagnosis.
I joined DiabetesUK last night and paid my yearly subscription upfront - as I need more than anything support, guidance and inspiration from others in my position that have been here, conquered their pig-headedness, and taken back control of their lives. I want to get my sugars back down to a safe level, and keep them there. But at this present time, my mindset seems to be stuck in the "I eat what what I want, when I want" mentality. It has to change.....I appreciate that I love my food and I am a very simple eater who likes basic meals - not at all adventurous when it comes to trying new things, to the point I would rather say "I dont like that" without having ever tried it - sounds typical right?
Anyways, hoping anyone who reads this can point me in the right direction and give me a much needed kick up the bum / wake up call.
Thank you
Traditional, simple, real food is generally good for us Type 2 's. The only problem with not trying new things is that you may then miss out on valuable substitutions for some of the common higher carbohydrate foods you may find hard to cut down on.
Many of us have got our BG and HbA1C levels back down to normal levels by small lifestyle changes alone. By lifestyle I just mean taking at least the minimum advised exercise 5 x 30min brisk walk per week eating only (no snacks just when bigger satisfying meals). Eating Low Carb to directly reduce it being digested into Blood Glucose.
Now comes the counter-intuitive part. Carbohydrates are not good in general for Type 2 diabetics (and that includes both whole grains and tropical fruit) because both starches and sugars make us hungry and make us fat as well as raising our Blood Glucose. But Fat in moderation merely provides us with energy without affecting our Blood Glucose and by reducing the insulin from consuming carbs, it allows our own surplus body fat to become available for energy - so eating fat can actually make us slimmer (it did for me).
I just reduced the carbs I ate, replacing then with more protein and fat (so not going hungry) and my Blood Glucose dropped back don to normal levels quite quickly without either medication or additional exercise.
I 'eat to my meter' which means I use(ed) a Blood Glucose meter to test my meals and find ones that don't spike my BG by more than 2.0mmol between a reading just pre-meal and one taken 2hrs after the first bite.
Many of us have got our BG and HbA1C levels back down to normal levels by small lifestyle changes alone. By lifestyle I just mean taking at least the minimum advised exercise 5 x 30min brisk walk per week eating only (no snacks just when bigger satisfying meals). Eating Low Carb to directly reduce it being digested into Blood Glucose.
Now comes the counter-intuitive part. Carbohydrates are not good in general for Type 2 diabetics (and that includes both whole grains and tropical fruit) because both starches and sugars make us hungry and make us fat as well as raising our Blood Glucose. But Fat in moderation merely provides us with energy without affecting our Blood Glucose and by reducing the insulin from consuming carbs, it allows our own surplus body fat to become available for energy - so eating fat can actually make us slimmer (it did for me).
I just reduced the carbs I ate, replacing then with more protein and fat (so not going hungry) and my Blood Glucose dropped back don to normal levels quite quickly without either medication or additional exercise.
I 'eat to my meter' which means I use(ed) a Blood Glucose meter to test my meals and find ones that don't spike my BG by more than 2.0mmol between a reading just pre-meal and one taken 2hrs after the first bite.
@Mr Wongle Just one warning : Because you are taking Sitaglyptin and Gliclazide you need to be careful about trying Low Carb and should only do so in cooperation with your healthcare professionals because of the ability of the medication to induce 'hypos' - dangerously low Blood Glucose. Which is not a problem for those who are only on Metformin.
Felinia
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
Hi and welcome
I think by joining this Forum and being honest about yourself shows you have started to take your diabetes management seriously. As someone who is trying to get back on track after illness, I can empathise with you. Baby steps by reducing your carbs safely and getting out of the house and walking a bit each day - pushing the buggy if necessary! A little bit of thought and planning - not just grabbing what's available. A bit of co-operation with your wife over meal contents. It will benefit all of you. Best wishes.
I think by joining this Forum and being honest about yourself shows you have started to take your diabetes management seriously. As someone who is trying to get back on track after illness, I can empathise with you. Baby steps by reducing your carbs safely and getting out of the house and walking a bit each day - pushing the buggy if necessary! A little bit of thought and planning - not just grabbing what's available. A bit of co-operation with your wife over meal contents. It will benefit all of you. Best wishes.
rebrascora
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Many people struggle with acceptance and because it is an insidious condition which often doesn't have any obvious symptoms, it is easy to ignore it or put it off for another day or assume that by taking the tablets you are treating it, but you clearly know in your heart that you are burying your head in the sand and it is a ticking time bomb, so now is the time for action and we certainly have lots of inspirational members who have "cracked it"
I assume you have a BG meter since you are on Gliclazide. If you haven't, you should have because that is one of the few medications which can cause hypos, so you should have been provided with a means to test your levels in case you drop too low. I would suggest you need to start using that meter to show you what your food is doing to your BG levels. By testing before and then 2 hours after a meal, you will see directly how that food has impacted your levels and that can be a real eye opener and help to motivate you to avoid those foods or reduce portion size. Once you start to get better numbers, that in itself is motivating and you can set yourself goals of getting your first reading in single figures or your first in range reading.
If you are into tech then a Freestyle Libre might appeal and inspire you, as that will show you what your levels are doing all the time day and night simply by scanning the sensor on your arm. It has a set range/target band and I use mine a bit like a computer game to try to stay in range as much as possible. The system calculates how much of the time you remain in target and gives you a percentage score. I am currently on a personal best of 96% Time in Range (TIR) for the past 7 days. The wheel will come off sooner or later and I will probably drop back into the upper 80s% but that is still a good result as consultants are happy with anything above 70% TIR (for us Type 1s anyway. At the moment I am really focused on trying to get that elusive 97%, so I can recommend that as a means of helping to motivate you. The manufacturer, Abbot Laboratories currently have a free 2 week trial of the Libre system (Normally £50) if you fit the criteria but if not you can self fund. Quite a few Type 2 diabetics and Type 1s self fund as the system is invaluable in helping to manage your diabetes. Be aware, it can be quite addictive though!! Some of us are fortunate enough to now get it on prescription, but even though I am low income I can tell you that it absolutely was worth it during the 3.5 months I self funded for the data it provides. It is also able to calculate an approximation of your HbA1c result from it's data, so again that can be helpful in seeing improvement.
If you want to know more about any of this or testing strategies with a BG meter to help adjust your diet just ask and we will sort you out with links.
Anyway, that gives you a bit more info to work on. Not saying it is easy. The first few months of changing to a low carb way of eating were difficult, but I really enjoy my diet now and would not swap back to my old ways and in fact, my diabetes diagnosis was the kick up the pants I needed to become healthier and improve my diet. At 57 I feel as good as I did in my 30s and I still enjoy a glass of red wine or port most evenings with a large chunk of my favourite cheese and I have double cream in my morning coffee so not exactly deprived.... you just have to identify the foods that cause you problems via testing or Libre and then find alternatives that you enjoy just as much. Doesn't have to be anything fancy... Cauliflower cheese with high meat content sausages or gammon is one of my favourite meals. Cabbage bacon and mushrooms maybe with a fried egg. Rib-eye steak with salad and a big dollop of cheese coleslaw. Cheese, ham, mushroom and onion, 2 or 3 egg omelette with salad and coleslaw. You might not like these things but there will be other things that you will enjoy. It certainly doesn't have to be "sack cloth and ashes", but you do have to put some thought and effort into it.
Good luck with your onward and downward journey with your diabetes and shout up when you need help with anything. We are here to help you sort this and you absolutely can do it, because plenty of other people have.
I assume you have a BG meter since you are on Gliclazide. If you haven't, you should have because that is one of the few medications which can cause hypos, so you should have been provided with a means to test your levels in case you drop too low. I would suggest you need to start using that meter to show you what your food is doing to your BG levels. By testing before and then 2 hours after a meal, you will see directly how that food has impacted your levels and that can be a real eye opener and help to motivate you to avoid those foods or reduce portion size. Once you start to get better numbers, that in itself is motivating and you can set yourself goals of getting your first reading in single figures or your first in range reading.
If you are into tech then a Freestyle Libre might appeal and inspire you, as that will show you what your levels are doing all the time day and night simply by scanning the sensor on your arm. It has a set range/target band and I use mine a bit like a computer game to try to stay in range as much as possible. The system calculates how much of the time you remain in target and gives you a percentage score. I am currently on a personal best of 96% Time in Range (TIR) for the past 7 days. The wheel will come off sooner or later and I will probably drop back into the upper 80s% but that is still a good result as consultants are happy with anything above 70% TIR (for us Type 1s anyway. At the moment I am really focused on trying to get that elusive 97%, so I can recommend that as a means of helping to motivate you. The manufacturer, Abbot Laboratories currently have a free 2 week trial of the Libre system (Normally £50) if you fit the criteria but if not you can self fund. Quite a few Type 2 diabetics and Type 1s self fund as the system is invaluable in helping to manage your diabetes. Be aware, it can be quite addictive though!! Some of us are fortunate enough to now get it on prescription, but even though I am low income I can tell you that it absolutely was worth it during the 3.5 months I self funded for the data it provides. It is also able to calculate an approximation of your HbA1c result from it's data, so again that can be helpful in seeing improvement.
If you want to know more about any of this or testing strategies with a BG meter to help adjust your diet just ask and we will sort you out with links.
Anyway, that gives you a bit more info to work on. Not saying it is easy. The first few months of changing to a low carb way of eating were difficult, but I really enjoy my diet now and would not swap back to my old ways and in fact, my diabetes diagnosis was the kick up the pants I needed to become healthier and improve my diet. At 57 I feel as good as I did in my 30s and I still enjoy a glass of red wine or port most evenings with a large chunk of my favourite cheese and I have double cream in my morning coffee so not exactly deprived.... you just have to identify the foods that cause you problems via testing or Libre and then find alternatives that you enjoy just as much. Doesn't have to be anything fancy... Cauliflower cheese with high meat content sausages or gammon is one of my favourite meals. Cabbage bacon and mushrooms maybe with a fried egg. Rib-eye steak with salad and a big dollop of cheese coleslaw. Cheese, ham, mushroom and onion, 2 or 3 egg omelette with salad and coleslaw. You might not like these things but there will be other things that you will enjoy. It certainly doesn't have to be "sack cloth and ashes", but you do have to put some thought and effort into it.
Good luck with your onward and downward journey with your diabetes and shout up when you need help with anything. We are here to help you sort this and you absolutely can do it, because plenty of other people have.
- Relationship to Diabetes
- At risk of diabetes
- Status