Newly diagnosed. Type2

[Jacquelyn]

Hi

I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes at the end of Nov and have been taking Metformin twice a day. I have been testing my blood sugar morning and night and it has been as low as 1.9 and high as 12.2. It seems to be so random and I don't know what to do with this info. The doctor said they will be in touch in 3 months but I feel I need help to know what I should be doing. I also have aching legs alot of the time. I sm just looking for any tips or advice. Thank you

 

[mashedupmatt]

Hi @Jacquelyn and welcome to the forum - 1.9 doesn't seem right as you would be in big trouble at that level (sounds like an incorrect reading to me - and 12.2 is nothing to worry about unless it doesn't come down from there) - are you testing with a finger prick? Best thing to do is to test when you get up, before every meal, and 2 hours after eating , as well as when you go to bed - you can then see what foods etc. spike your blood sugar and try and cut them out as much as possible - bread, rice, pasta etc. There are many more qualified people on this forum to give more help than I can though - glad you have found us 🙂

 

[saffron15]

@Jacquelyn welcome to the forum. Do you want to say what your two Hba1c were? I had two tests 4 weeks apart. It was obvious to me after the first test I was diabetic (69) second one was 64 four weeks later and it started metformin 3 weeks later. I have aching joints but I don't know if it's age or the statin I was put on at the end of September. I'm due to see an HCP on Tuesday.

I have not been consistent with my finger pricking apart from November when I was on steroids. My lowest recently was 4 my latest hba1c is 44 and highest ever was 14. Are you noting your food? Are your readings generally reducing? Many people find a reading first thing can be higher than they hoped - surprisingly my 4 was an am reading but it can be glucose being released ready for the day ahead.
The 1.9 is likely to be a problem with the meter or your technique.
Were you asked to test or did you decide it was something you wanted to do. Are your strips in date? We're your hands clean and warm?

There are people on here who are far more accomplished prickers ( is that the correct word?)

 

[rebrascora]

Hi and welcome.

As others have said the 1.9 is almost certainly a rogue reading. Which BG meter are you using? Some give a false very low reading like that when you don't get enough blood on the test strip which to me makes them unreliable. Most good meters give you an error message if there is a problem.
What sort of average reading are you getting?
Having a good testing strategy is really important as random readings don't give you much useful information that you can act upon.

Dietary changes are probably the most important aspect of managing Type 2 diabetes and can be more powerful than most medication, so it can be really useful to start keeping a food diary along with your before and 2 hours after meal test results, to see how you are responding to particular meals and then adjusting the meal if it caused your levels to rise by more than 3 whole units on the meter. So if your BG reading just before a meal was 7.2 and 2 hours later it was 11.5 then that suggests that there were more carbs in your meal than your body could cope with. So if you had a sandwich with 2 slices of thick cut bread, try two slices of a lower carb medium cut loaf, or just one slice of bread with lots of salad and meat/cheese/egg/fish etc. If it was a meal with Yorkshire pudding and roast potatoes then have just half a Yorkie which is what I sometimes do and only one roast potato but plenty of veg to fill you up.

If you would like to tell us what you typically eat for breakfast, lunch and evening meal, we can perhaps make suggestions of lower carb options.

Do you have much/any weight to lose?
Have you been offered any courses or dietary advice?

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Welcome to the forum @Jacquelyn - glad you have found us 🙂

How did you find it going through your first Christmas? Did you try to take things easy, or did you dive in because you haven’t officially been told anything by your Dr yet 😛 (it’s ridiculous, but that’s exactly what I did when on my way to the appointment to get my results - I had a chocolate bar because while I knew deep down this wasn’t helpful, I hadn’t actually been diagnosed at that point )

Great to hear you have a BG meter to help you see how your body reacts to the carbohydrates (not just sugars) in your meals. It can be quite individual, and part of the secret of diabetes-wrangling is to find a range of options that you enjoy, in portion-sizes that your body is able to process effectively without your blood glucose going out of whack.

Though, as others say it can be worth double-checking if you get a reading that seems odd, or doesn’t match how you are feeling - as there are occasional duff strips, or sometimes meters misbehave if strips are underfilled (or if you haven’t been able to wash your hands pre-test).

Hope you find the information you get around meals helps you tweak your menu to steer your BGs in the right direction 🙂