Newly diagnosed and in shock, I think!

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JayMill

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Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
Hello, I was diagnosed with diabetes this week after being admitted to hospital with an infection in my leg. My blood test came back with a diabetes test result of 56, but I don’t even know what that means except that my doctor called this week after I got home and told me that I was now a diabetic. Our discussion was very short but he told me that he wanted to start me on Metformin and also a statin. This really shocked me as I’ve been in generally good health all my life except for having a pretty serious weight problem.

I’ve told my doctor that I do not want to start taking medication before. I have tried to put my diabetes into remission to diet and exercise but now I’m not even sure whether that was the right decision. I definitely don’t want to just accept the results but I’m also fearful now that I am will damage myself by not taking Metformin.

My doctor said he wants to send me for some blood tests to confirm the result once my latest illness has passed. So hoping that those tests will remove me from the diabetic range, but I doubt it. I really am shocked and at a loss as to what to do for the best.
 
JayMill said:
Hello, I was diagnosed with diabetes this week after being admitted to hospital with an infection in my leg. My blood test came back with a diabetes test result of 56, but I don’t even know what that means except that my doctor called this week after I got home and told me that I was now a diabetic. Our discussion was very short but he told me that he wanted to start me on Metformin and also a statin. This really shocked me as I’ve been in generally good health all my life except for having a pretty serious weight problem.

I’ve told my doctor that I do not want to start taking medication before. I have tried to put my diabetes into remission to diet and exercise but now I’m not even sure whether that was the right decision. I definitely don’t want to just accept the results but I’m also fearful now that I am will damage myself by not taking Metformin.

My doctor said he wants to send me for some blood tests to confirm the result once my latest illness has passed. So hoping that those tests will remove me from the diabetic range, but I doubt it. I really am shocked and at a loss as to what to do for the best.
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I became very ill taking Metformin and Atorvastatin, and stopped taking the tablets, but I did not need them to return to normal numbers for blood glucose and the top edge of normal Hba1c. I ate a low carb diet and checked the results after meals with a meter, and the recovery was quite fast.
I was no longer diabetic in 80 days from diagnosis.
I am, though a very ordinary type 2 diabetic, nothing more interesting or exotic.
 
JayMill said:
Hello, I was diagnosed with diabetes this week after being admitted to hospital with an infection in my leg. My blood test came back with a diabetes test result of 56, but I don’t even know what that means except that my doctor called this week after I got home and told me that I was now a diabetic. Our discussion was very short but he told me that he wanted to start me on Metformin and also a statin. This really shocked me as I’ve been in generally good health all my life except for having a pretty serious weight problem.

I’ve told my doctor that I do not want to start taking medication before. I have tried to put my diabetes into remission to diet and exercise but now I’m not even sure whether that was the right decision. I definitely don’t want to just accept the results but I’m also fearful now that I am will damage myself by not taking Metformin.

My doctor said he wants to send me for some blood tests to confirm the result once my latest illness has passed. So hoping that those tests will remove me from the diabetic range, but I doubt it. I really am shocked and at a loss as to what to do for the best.
Click to expand...
It is a bit of a shock when the doctor reels off the associated health risks. I'm very laid back though. A bit too laid back. As I had been taking meds for mental illness for years and have had people tell me to stop taking them when they aren't qualified to do so.
 
I have been diabetic for 8 months a pharmacist is all I have ever spoken to. I am trying the diet route but complicated by other illnesses and lack of mobility. The pharmacist wants me on metformin but I will fight it for a while as it has affect’s that can clash with other stuff. Beware of you tube especially American sites they just confuse you further
 
HI 50 is only just into the diabetic range so a change of diet to reduce all carbohydrates and increase fats and protein to balance things, with some light exercise may well push you back to below the diabetic threshold (48).

Personally, I think you were absolutely right to try your own way without meds but you will now have to do your part by changing your diet and lifestyle. You are in charge, not the doctors who are here to advise and support and many know very little about diabetes anyway.

Do lots of your own research on the internet and this web site and take control.

Good luck and do let us know how you get on

Oh and shock is a normal reaction but most (here) get to understand and cope well with their condition and the shock goes as we take control and see success.
 
Doctors are often a bit hasty in reaching for the prescription pad especially when people express a wish to try by dietary measures for a 3 month period, however a GP can get a feeling from somebody that there is no way they will engage with doing that so that is when the meds are prescribed.
Where you are on the diabetic scale is not desperately high and with some changes it should be very possible to get it down. It is quite likely that the result may be a bit higher as infection can cause blood glucose to be a bit on the high side but look upon it as an opportunity to make some positive lifestyle changes anyway.
Diet is key and whatever approach you choose has to be enjoyable as it really need to become a new way of eating which will be sustainable for life if you are going to keep blood glucose in normal range.
I found following the principals in this link successful in reducing my HbA1C to normal in 6 months. https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/, it is a low carb approach which is suggested as being no more than 130g carbs not just sugar per day, it is not NO carbs.
A good plan is to keep a food diary of everything you eat and drink with an estimate of the total carbs and then you can see how close you are to the 130g and see where some savings can be made. An obvious start would be cutting out cakes, biscuits, sugary drinks including fruit juice and looking at portion sizes of bread, potatoes, rice, pasta, breakfast cereals and tropical fruits.
There is no need for reduced fat products unless you need to for other medical reasons as fats and protein do not convert to glucose and many find by reducing carbs that cholesterol can be reduced anyway.
Carb info can be found in the nutritional information on packets, tins, etc or doing a google search for food X total carbs.
The book or app (or indeed other apps) Carbs and Cals is a useful resource in giving carb values of portion sizes of a whole range of foods.
 
Welcome to the forum @JayMill

Sorry to hear about your diagnosis. It can come as a real shock, even when people know they are at risk, so I can completely understand how worrying it must have been coming out of the blue like that.

The diagnosis value for T2 diabetes is an HbA1c of 48 and above, so at 56 you are comfortably over that line, but on the other hand we have members who started their diabetes ‘career’ in 3 figures, and were able to reduce things to below 48 without the need for ongoing meds.

Whether or not people are offered medication at your starting point seems to vary sligtly from GP to GP. Some prefer to make things easier for people with some meds to start with, while others offer folks the opportunity to start with diet and exercise first. Metformin is a fairly gentle helping hand which increases insulin sensitivity, and reduces glucose output from the liver. It may help a little, but changes to diet and lifestyle will help more.

Diabetes is generally a fairly slow-moving foe, but of course, since you had no idea your levels were above the healthy range, you won’t know how long that has been the case.

Reducing your weight, and moderating the amount of total carbohydrate (along with cutting out the obvious sweet and sugary things, even if only ‘naturally sweet’ like fruit juice and tropical fruits) can often go a long way to helping your metabolism process the food you are eating without raising your glucose levels too high.
 
Go on youtube and check out the following people or channels: Glucose goddess, Blood sugar king, Beat diabetes, Dr. Jason Fung, Dr. Ken Berry, Dr. Berg, Dr. Bernstein, Dr. Boz, Dr. Dhand, Dr. Attia, and ask questions here.

You'll eventually get back on track. Don't panic yet, just work on getting your numbers down.
 
@JayMill - fairly familiar experience to many of us when we were first diagnosed and metformin and statins were mentioned to us. I did start on Metformin, but not on statins. I eventually came off metformin as diet, exercise, etc. changes did the trick for me. My circumstances were similar to your except my initial HBA1c was higher.
 
Thank you for all the replies. It has now been a couple of weeks since my diagnosis and my doctor has obviously started me on some sort of diabetes track. - I’ve been contacted regarding lots of different appointments which I need to attend, including an eye test, an “introduction to diabetes” online session and a further blood test to confirm the results of the test which led to me being diagnosed.

I’m surprised at how little contact I have actually had with my GP. The practice nurse seems to be dealing with me at the moment and i’ve only ever had one two-minute call phone call with her. Otherwise, I’m just receiving letters.

I’ve also been put on a waiting list to attend weight management classes. I know I need to do this but to be honest I’m dreading it. - I said I will be told once again to “eat less and move more” which is not exactly revolutionary advice, but it’s not advice, I have found helpful in the past!
 
JayMill said:
Hello, I was diagnosed with diabetes this week after being admitted to hospital with an infection in my leg. My blood test came back with a diabetes test result of 56, but I don’t even know what that means except that my doctor called this week after I got home and told me that I was now a diabetic. Our discussion was very short but he told me that he wanted to start me on Metformin and also a statin. This really shocked me as I’ve been in generally good health all my life except for having a pretty serious weight problem.

I’ve told my doctor that I do not want to start taking medication before. I have tried to put my diabetes into remission to diet and exercise but now I’m not even sure whether that was the right decision. I definitely don’t want to just accept the results but I’m also fearful now that I am will damage myself by not taking Metformin.

My doctor said he wants to send me for some blood tests to confirm the result once my latest illness has passed. So hoping that those tests will remove me from the diabetic range, but I doubt it. I really am shocked and at a loss as to what to do for the best.
Click to expand...
Hi I was diagnosed with a BG level of 82 earlier this year. Like yourself I was prescribed metformin and a statin. I can’t advise you on whether to take these or to just try and reduce your BG through change of diet and exercise, but I just wanted to say that I have not had any side effects from either medicine. My BG came down to 52 after 3 months, though it took me a while to make changes to my diet and not a great deal of increased exercise. I also lost about 10 Kg in weight even though my BMI was in the normal range.
I can’t really say how much the metformin has assisted this and I am about to have a blood test to check cholesterol, but won’t know whether any hopeful reducing in LDL will be a result of diet or statins. I was given some literature on statins though I was strongly advised to go onto these, as I was at higher risk of CVD due to diabetes and some family history of both diseases.
 
JayMill said:
Thank you for all the replies. It has now been a couple of weeks since my diagnosis and my doctor has obviously started me on some sort of diabetes track. - I’ve been contacted regarding lots of different appointments which I need to attend, including an eye test, an “introduction to diabetes” online session and a further blood test to confirm the results of the test which led to me being diagnosed.

I’m surprised at how little contact I have actually had with my GP. The practice nurse seems to be dealing with me at the moment and i’ve only ever had one two-minute call phone call with her. Otherwise, I’m just receiving letters.

I’ve also been put on a waiting list to attend weight management classes. I know I need to do this but to be honest I’m dreading it. - I said I will be told once again to “eat less and move more” which is not exactly revolutionary advice, but it’s not advice, I have found helpful in the past!
Click to expand...
Hi, there is a booklet regarding what care to expect which you can find on this site in the shop- information tab. I was given this by the practice nurse and also offered it by the eye clinic. I have also had no contact with GP though I have had a foot and eye check and a couple of phone calls from pharmacist to check on how I am dealing with medication. Good luck and just take it one step at a time. There is a lot of useful support and advice on this site.
 
Having a look around at the resources and links on this site may give you a better idea of some of the changes you can make without feeling you are being 'told' to do it by your nurse as it is a decision you can make for yourself about which strategy to adopt. It is important to find a regime you can enjoy as it needs to be sustainable for the long term not just a few weeks.
 
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