Recently Diagnosed Type 2

[janey31]

Hello everyone, hope your all well on this sunny day I'm recently diagnosed Type 2 and put on metformin. I hear some get side affects but would like to hear some positives if there are some?
I need to get into the habit of food planning and prep, any tips or pointers would be helpful. I have a love hate relationship with food and need to make a positive enjoyable experience. TIA

 

[Leadinglights]

Hello everyone, hope your all well on this sunny day I'm recently diagnosed Type 2 and put on metformin. I hear some get side affects but would like to hear some positives if there are some?
I need to get into the habit of food planning and prep, any tips or pointers would be helpful. I have a love hate relationship with food and need to make a positive enjoyable experience. TIA

Welcome to the forum. As you have heard some people get effects with the metformin but that can be minimised by taking with food and building up the dose gradually over a few weeks to whatever the maximum you have been prescribes, if it is slow release the effects are supposed to be gentler.
As you mention dietary changes are just as important if not more so.
Many find a low carbohydrate approach successful that being suggested as no more than 130g carbs per day but is not NO carbs but making careful choices. If you think this is a way that might suit you then this link may give you some ideas.

Freshwell Low Carb Project - Home

lowcarbfreshwell.co.uk

Other people find a low calorie or very low calorie or shakes - based regime suits them but the main thing is whatever you choose has to be enjoyable otherwise it will not be sustainable. It has to become your new way of eating.
Did your doctor tell you what your HbA1C is as that will indicate how far into the diabetic zone you are and how much work you will need to do. If now too far then some modest changes may only be needed.
A good start is cutting out cakes, biscuits, sugary drinks including fruit juice and looking at your intake of other high carb foods like potatoes, breakfast cereals, bread, rice, pasta, tropical fruits which are the big hitters so reducing portions and having extra veg, salads and basing meals on meat, fish, eggs, dairy, nuts and cheese.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Welcome to the forum @janey31

Many forum members take Metformin without any problems. Some have a few tummy grumbles at the beginning, but these either subside on their own, or can be worked around in various ways as @Leadinglights has suggested. There is also a ‘slow release‘ version which is easier on the tum.

But you may find you have no issues at all, so try not to worry unduly. It’s a very widely prescribed medication.

Or works away gently in the background to improve your insulin sensitivity, and to reduce the amount of glucose trickled out by the liver, so it isn”t some thing that works meal-by-meal, it more sort of builds up in the background, soaking into your system.

For meal-by-meal improvements to your blood glucose reaction you‘ll probably find that moderating the amount of total carbohydrates in your meals (not just ‘of which sugars’) has the most direct effect. That doesn’t mean trying to avoid carbs entirely… just reducing portion sizes, bulking meals out with leafy veg, and looking for lower carb options for some staples (eg swede or celeriac in place of potato) can have a big impact.

Try not to be disheartened about your diagnosis, many people on the forum later reflect that their diagnosis became a catalyst which prompted them to make positive changes towards a healthier and more active life. Perhaps changes that they had been intending to make for years. Diabetes is a serious condition, but it’s also one that can usually be managed well with a few changes and adaptations - it’s something that you can learn to live well with, and it shouldn’t stop you doing things you enjoy. 🙂

 

[Vonny]

I hear some get side affects but would like to hear some positives if there are some?

One of the plus sides of metformin is that it helps you to lose weight, either that or it suppresses your appetite somewhat. I have remained on one metformin per day for that very reason (at 5' and just 7.5 stone I don't burn many calories per day!). Also it provides some protection for the heart, or so my DN told me. So although I no longer need to be on Metformin, it's my choice to take it. I hope you can tolerate it. I had a bit of a dodgy tum for a couple of weeks but I was lucky that was all.

 

[grovesy]

I personally don't find Metformin helps with weight loss or suppress the appetite.

 

[Vonny]

I personally don't find Metformin helps with weight loss or suppress the appetite.

That may well be the case @grovesy, I just found in my case that when I stopped taking it I gained a little weight over a couple of months, which is why I decided to go back on it after speaking to my DN. It may be a coincidence of course!

 

[bulkbiker]

One of the plus sides of metformin is that it helps you to lose weight

I guess the explosive diarrhoea kind of helps with that but I found not being able to leave the house wasn't very conducive to a pleasant life..

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

I guess the explosive diarrhoea kind of helps with that but I found not being able to leave the house wasn't very conducive to a pleasant life..

You did have a particularly rough time with it eh.

Mercifully that does seem fairly rare - though I can understand that would be scant consolation!

 

[Lucyr]

Hello everyone, hope your all well on this sunny day I'm recently diagnosed Type 2 and put on metformin. I hear some get side affects but would like to hear some positives if there are some?

There aren’t really any positives of diabetes, it would be much better not to have it, but it is what it is and diabetes is at least manageable and doesn’t need to stop you doing anything.

 

[bulkbiker]

There aren’t really any positives of diabetes, it would be much better not to have it, but it is what it is and diabetes is at least manageable and doesn’t need to stop you doing anything.

Sorry but that's nonsense... without my T2 diagnosis I would not have started on my journey to better health.
Losing weight and a plethora of other health problems that had plagued me for some years.
I found it a huge positive motivator.

 

[bulkbiker]

You did have a particularly rough time with it eh.

Yes that's why I did all I could to avoid taking them and still do.

 

[Lucyr]

Sorry but that's nonsense... without my T2 diagnosis I would not have started on my journey to better health.
Losing weight and a plethora of other health problems that had plagued me for some years.
I found it a huge positive motivator.

You could have lost weight without getting diabetes though

 

[bulkbiker]

You could have lost weight without getting diabetes though

Tried for years eating less, moving more and just got fatter and fatter..
T2 diagnosis exposed me to low carbing and the multiple health benefits it brings, without the diagnosis I wouldn't have been looking for dietary treatments.

 

[Lucyr]

Tried for years eating less, moving more and just got fatter and fatter..
T2 diagnosis exposed me to low carbing and the multiple health benefits it brings, without the diagnosis I wouldn't have been looking for dietary treatments.

Low carbing was there before you had diabetes. If you lost weight before getting diabetes you’d have been healthier than losing weight after getting diabetes so diabetes isn’t a positive there. Many other things could have motivated you that didn’t involve a chronic health condition.

 

[bulkbiker]

Many other things could have motivated you that didn’t involve a chronic health condition.

Glad you know my mind better than me...

None of those "things" motivated me hence I was morbidly obese and got diagnosed...

I wasn't really aware of the benefits of low carbing before I was diagnosed and I was following the "health advice" of 'base meals around starchy carbs' which has since been shown to be flawed.

 

[bulkbiker]

I need to get into the habit of food planning and prep, any tips or pointers would be helpful.

I cut back on carbs as much as possible and experimented with a reduced eating window.

Ketogenic type diets are great for weight loss and blood sugar control.

https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/keto/diet-plan

 

[indio02]

You did have a particularly rough time with it eh.

Mercifully that does seem fairly rare - though I can understand that would be scant consolation!

For the first week it was utterly terrible for me.... had to take a week off work and was VERY seriously thinking of quiting Metformin. After that initial week the need to be within 5 seconds of a toilet passed but the diarrhea persisted although no particular stomach upsets other than that. Once the initial prescription had run out the Dr. changed it to the slow release version.
Just over 2 months in and although manageable the permanent diarrhea really is taking a mental toll.
Am currently waiting till my first post diagnosis HBA1C test next month to see what my options are but it's somewhat anxiety inducing to think that metformin might be a permanent part of my life going forward.

 

[bulkbiker]

Just over 2 months in and although manageable the permanent diarrhea really is taking a mental toll.

Have you thought about dietary treatment rather than the pills?

 

[indio02]

Have you thought about dietary treatment rather than the pills?

Like?

 

[bulkbiker]

Like?

Cutting out as many carbs as possible and limiting your eating window.
I went for a ketogenic diet and an 8 hour eating window when I threw my pills in the bin.
In remission in 4 months.