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Purdey

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Type 2
Hi, had my diagnosis of type 2 11th May. I think my hb1ac was 113 when I had my initial blood tests and whilst with the diabetic nurse my blood sugars were 13. (So much to take in at that appt, my head was spinning!) I was given my monitor and have had to make the necessary diet changes. In hindsight I’d been craving all the sweet things and crusty breads in the run up to the tests - all the things I shouldn’t be having! I’ve been following the suggested Mediterranean diet for 10 days or so now and I’m 4 days into metformin. This weekend my readings have been between 7.9 and 9.8. Not going to lie, it all feels a bit strange and being someone who loves food, it’s taking a lot of getting used to. Looking forward to getting ideas and support on my new journey
 
Welcome to the forum, you must have been feeling pretty rough with an HbA1C that high so good that you have a diagnosis. Metformin will help but dietary changes are going to be equally important. Fantastic you have been given a monitor, many Type 2s have to self fund so make good use of it to make good decisions of what foods and meals to have.
Many find it useful to test before they eat and after 2 hours and aim at an increase of no more than 2-3mmol/l, if ore than that your meal is too carb heavy. As levels come down then a 2hr post meal reading should be less than 8.5mmol/l.
As your starting level is quite high then reducing your carbs gradually over a few weeks will be less likely to cause issues with your eyes and nerves due to a sudden drop in blood glucose and it also allows your body to adjust without giving you 'hypo' symptoms of being a bit shaky.
There are some meal plans on the main DUK website for various way of reducing blood glucose and also in this link https://lowcarbfreshwell.co.uk/ if you think that a low carb approach would suit you.
 
Thank you, really appreciate that info. I was told that being on metformin (rather than glyclacide) I wouldn’t need to keep testing, but I am doing as still trying to understand the changes to my BS based on what I eat and seeing lower readings will help me stay focussed. I’m trying to be really careful as it’s all a bit scary at the moment. I have noticed eyesight changes but that was pre-diagnosis so hopefully that will settle. I’ve been given appt for diabetic eye test and booked on a diabetic course by my doctors practice to learn/understand more. Can’t fault my doctors tbh. The low carb info is really appreciated, I’ll definitely take a read thank you.
 
Purdey said:
Thank you, really appreciate that info. I was told that being on metformin (rather than glyclacide) I wouldn’t need to keep testing, but I am doing as still trying to understand the changes to my BS based on what I eat and seeing lower readings will help me stay focussed. I’m trying to be really careful as it’s all a bit scary at the moment. I have noticed eyesight changes but that was pre-diagnosis so hopefully that will settle. I’ve been given appt for diabetic eye test and booked on a diabetic course by my doctors practice to learn/understand more. Can’t fault my doctors tbh. The low carb info is really appreciated, I’ll definitely take a read thank you.
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Eye changes can happen both when your blood glucose increases and then decreases as the environment in the eye changes from normal salty to sugary and back to salty so the osmotic pressure changes causes the shape of the eye to change. An optician should not recommend a change in prescription if you wear glasses until it settles.
When people say no need to test ask them if they would drive a car without a working speedometer, I suspect not.
 
Purdey said:
Thank you, really appreciate that info. I was told that being on metformin (rather than glyclacide) I wouldn’t need to keep testing, but I am doing as still trying to understand the changes to my BS based on what I eat and seeing lower readings will help me stay focussed. I’m trying to be really careful as it’s all a bit scary at the moment. I have noticed eyesight changes but that was pre-diagnosis so hopefully that will settle. I’ve been given appt for diabetic eye test and booked on a diabetic course by my doctors practice to learn/understand more. Can’t fault my doctors tbh. The low carb info is really appreciated, I’ll definitely take a read thank you.
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Testing is a good idea to see how foods (And stress) affect you.
My eyesight changed a few months before I was diagnosed - the high blood sugar causes the lens to change shape - but I just put it down to my poor eyesight which changes anyway. It went back to normal very quickly after changing diet and getting blood sugar back to normal levels.
 
harbottle said:
Testing is a good idea to see how foods (And stress) affect you.
My eyesight changed a few months before I was diagnosed - the high blood sugar causes the lens to change shape - but I just put it down to my poor eyesight which changes anyway. It went back to normal very quickly after changing diet and getting blood sugar back to normal levels.
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Thank you. Things have been a bit stressful it’s helpful to know that can affect my levels too.
 
Purdey said:
Not going to lie, it all feels a bit strange and being someone who loves food, it’s taking a lot of getting used to.
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Hi @Purdey the good news is that once you've cut out the sweets and crusty bread, you'll find you don't crave them after a while. Although I didn't eat much sweet stuff, every meal I had was seriously carb heavy: bread, taters and rice. In fact my favourite meal was a chip butty...double the carbs! I was seriously addicted to them and thought my life was over when I realised I'd have to ditch the carbs. But a few weeks into low carb I realised the cravings had stopped. You will still be able to love your food, but just different types. Best of luck x
 
Hi @Purdey and welcome to the forum.

Can you tell us a bit more about you and whether you’re named after an Avenger?
 
Leadinglights said:
Eye changes can happen both when your blood glucose increases and then decreases as the environment in the eye changes from normal salty to sugary and back to salty so the osmotic pressure changes causes the shape of the eye to change. An optician should not recommend a change in prescription if you wear glasses until it settles.
When people say no need to test ask them if they would drive a car without a working speedometer, I suspect not.
Click to expand...
Thank you, I agree especially as it’s such early days with testing and seeing results.
Vonny said:
Hi @Purdey the good news is that once you've cut out the sweets and crusty bread, you'll find you don't crave them after a while. Although I didn't eat much sweet stuff, every meal I had was seriously carb heavy: bread, taters and rice. In fact my favourite meal was a chip butty...double the carbs! I was seriously addicted to them and thought my life was over when I realised I'd have to ditch the carbs. But a few weeks into low carb I realised the cravings had stopped. You will still be able to love your food, but just different types. Best of luck x
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thank you. It’s certainly been an eye-opener. Not just the obvious carbs I’ve been scoffing but some of the less obvious ones in things I thought would be healthier! Certainly doing my homework at the moment but enjoying the low carb options.
 
Purdey said:
Hi, had my diagnosis of type 2 11th May. I think my hb1ac was 113 when I had my initial blood tests and whilst with the diabetic nurse my blood sugars were 13. (So much to take in at that appt, my head was spinning!) I was given my monitor and have had to make the necessary diet changes. In hindsight I’d been craving all the sweet things and crusty breads in the run up to the tests - all the things I shouldn’t be having! I’ve been following the suggested Mediterranean diet for 10 days or so now and I’m 4 days into metformin. This weekend my readings have been between 7.9 and 9.8. Not going to lie, it all feels a bit strange and being someone who loves food, it’s taking a lot of getting used to. Looking forward to getting ideas and support on my new journey
Click to expand...

Welcome to the forum @Purdey

Well done on your solid start to your diabetes management. Great to hear you have a BG meter that can help you see the impact of different meals, sources of carbs, and portion sizes on your BG levels, to tweak and tailor your menu to suit your individual tolerance to carbs 🙂
 
everydayupsanddowns said:
Welcome to the forum @Purdey

Well done on your solid start to your diabetes management. Great to hear you have a BG meter that can help you see the impact of different meals, sources of carbs, and portion sizes on your BG levels, to tweak and tailor your menu to suit your individual tolerance to carbs 🙂
Click to expand...
Thank you. Can’t fault my GP, they have been great. Looking forward to getting inspiration from forum too
 
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