Shameless moan about close friends and family refusing to understand my T2 diabetes ugh!

Status
Not open for further replies.
M

maryjaneholland

Well-Known Member
Whining moaning mewling trigger warning! Whoop!

Not posted here for while, but really reached my limit today being told by close friends and family members that 'ahem'...

1 - You being vegetarian your whole life and not eating meat or fish has caused your diabetes, whack!

2- You not eating real protein like meat or fish causes health problems and that's why you are ill, thwop!

3 - You are overweight because you don't eat enough proper protein like meat or fish, kablam!

4 - If you ate more actual protein like meat or fish you wouldn't have diabetes any longer, kaboom!

5 - If you did more exercise and ate more meat and fish, all of your health issues would disappear overnight, thwack!

6 - I saw on breakfast TV someone blah said something blah about olives being good for you, so now I have spoon of olive oil for my breakfast and somone blah on TV said this is proven to lose weight and you should try this instead of all those low calorie low sugar low carb diets so you can actually lose weight, kapow!

And before anyone asks, no neither my self nor any of the people who made the spurious comments above are medically qualified, or are doctors or nurses, or have studied medicine, or are therapists or practitioners of any kind, nope!

Really gets me down that I have to constantly play the "educator" role when I'm still struggling to understand and manage my diabetes diagnosis myself, and the dreaded term "lifestyle condition" for Type 2's is just an excuse for open season for everyone else to judge like "it must be those vegan smoothies you used to drink, it must be the water supply, it must be the lack of real meat and fish in your diet, it must be your weight issues, it must be linked to living in rough area, it must be your mobility issues to blame, it must be you to beatdown upon about you catching diabetes due to all your bad decisions..." Pretty much given up explaining my own experiences as everyone is a critic when you are overweight and can't walk far and take medications for multiple medical conditions...

The news about "mounjaro" prescription drug being available in the near future gives me hope, but there's no guarantee my GP Surgery will prescribe it or I will meet threshold as only been prescribed metformin for T2 diabetes and think you have to be prescribed three prescription drugs to be considered suitable for "mounjaro" but not dead yet despite total lack of support!
 
Hiya @Inka thanks for your supportive words and I have missed the support forum when confronted with ridiculous commentaries about my medical conditions from people who are easily influenced by daytime TV adverts!
I should have added that although I'm not perfect, I do have very varied diet I am trying hard to improve since my disastrous walking holiday last summer and subsequent diabetes diagnosis by GP last September, so plant-based sources of protein include tofu, tempeh, soya beans, milks made from nuts/soy/oats, beans, lentils, legumes, nuts, seeds, pulses, nut butters and tahini (sesame seed paste), houmous (chickpeas and tahini dip), wholegrains, and mixing different sources of amino acids to form complete proteins as simple as - beans on toast, pitta bread dipped in houmous, peanut butter sandwich, bean chilli with rice, pasta with pine nuts and italian cheese, granola with nuts covered in almond milk...

Obviously, the steep learning curve with diabetes is reducing sugar and carbs and cutting out worst processed foods like fizzy sugary drinks and unhealthy snack foods - you can most definitely be vegan and still over-indulge in ultra processed junk foods from many high street stores and restaurants and think the "organic vegan" label means healthy in all circumstances! 😉
 
Thanks, it's good to know I'm vaguely heading in the right direction and my coping strategies for managing my diabetes are very much work in progress, like swapping out potato chips and crisps for root veg fries (frozen) made from thin slices of sweet potato, beetroot, parsnip, carrot, and tray of fresh roast veg is healthier still if you have more time for food prep and cooking!

There is some other good news to share as I have finally been accepted on to the Newcastle-style NHS Remission Programme with eight weeks of extreme low calorie dieting, followed up with access to nutrionists and dieticians to maintain long-term weight management, and due to the unexpected timeframe, I have postponed the start date to March to ensure I can clear my kitchen of unhealthy foods (going to foodbank NOT thrown in bin!) and fully commit to the year long programme, as it does require willpower discipline and determination to lose at least 10 Kg of excess weight via dieting and controlling calories, but I don't think my blood glucose levels will lower any further without weight loss and removing strain on my liver/kidneys/pancreas in terms of scientific research and case studies behind the Remission programme!

No more fatty liver or sad pancreas or woeful kidneys in the future ha! :D
 
Brilliant news about the NHS Remission programme @maryjaneholland 🙂 If you can lose the appropriate amount of weight, that should help a lot - not just with the diabetes, but hopefully just make you feel better in yourself too.
 
Sounds likre you are really moving in the right direction!
A healthy plant based diet is deffo good good insulin sensivity ...and i agree the best way to avoid unhealthy food/ snacking is not to have the ultra tempting food in the house in the first place
 
maryjaneholland said:
There is some other good news to share as I have finally been accepted on to the Newcastle-style NHS Remission Programme with eight weeks of extreme low calorie dieting, followed up with access to nutrionists and dieticians to maintain long-term weight management, and due to the unexpected timeframe, I have postponed the start date to March to ensure I can clear my kitchen of unhealthy foods (going to foodbank NOT thrown in bin!) and fully commit to the year long programme, as it does require willpower discipline and determination to lose at least 10 Kg of excess weight via dieting and controlling calories, but I don't think my blood glucose levels will lower any further without weight loss and removing strain on my liver/kidneys/pancreas in terms of scientific research and case studies behind the Remission programme!
Click to expand...
@maryjaneholland this is very positive news to hear and wishing you lots of willpower and discipline. It'll be great to hear of your remission journey in our type 2 diabetes remission area: https://forum.diabetes.org.uk/boards/forums/community-chat-with-people-about-remission.48/
You might find it helpful to read through others' experiences in trying remission, @mhtyler springs to mind. They've been giving weekly updates. Good luck and looking forward to hearing how you get on. 🙂
 
maryjaneholland said:
Whining moaning mewling trigger warning! Whoop!

Not posted here for while, but really reached my limit today being told by close friends and family members that 'ahem'...

1 - You being vegetarian your whole life and not eating meat or fish has caused your diabetes, whack!

2- You not eating real protein like meat or fish causes health problems and that's why you are ill, thwop!

3 - You are overweight because you don't eat enough proper protein like meat or fish, kablam!

4 - If you ate more actual protein like meat or fish you wouldn't have diabetes any longer, kaboom!

5 - If you did more exercise and ate more meat and fish, all of your health issues would disappear overnight, thwack!

6 - I saw on breakfast TV someone blah said something blah about olives being good for you, so now I have spoon of olive oil for my breakfast and somone blah on TV said this is proven to lose weight and you should try this instead of all those low calorie low sugar low carb diets so you can actually lose weight, kapow!

And before anyone asks, no neither my self nor any of the people who made the spurious comments above are medically qualified, or are doctors or nurses, or have studied medicine, or are therapists or practitioners of any kind, nope!

Really gets me down that I have to constantly play the "educator" role when I'm still struggling to understand and manage my diabetes diagnosis myself, and the dreaded term "lifestyle condition" for Type 2's is just an excuse for open season for everyone else to judge like "it must be those vegan smoothies you used to drink, it must be the water supply, it must be the lack of real meat and fish in your diet, it must be your weight issues, it must be linked to living in rough area, it must be your mobility issues to blame, it must be you to beatdown upon about you catching diabetes due to all your bad decisions..." Pretty much given up explaining my own experiences as everyone is a critic when you are overweight and can't walk far and take medications for multiple medical conditions...

The news about "mounjaro" prescription drug being available in the near future gives me hope, but there's no guarantee my GP Surgery will prescribe it or I will meet threshold as only been prescribed metformin for T2 diabetes and think you have to be prescribed three prescription drugs to be considered suitable for "mounjaro" but not dead yet despite total lack of support!
Click to expand...
I'm diet agnostic: plant-based diet, low carb, high protein, carnivore, even high carb (just not out of a box)...pick your poison. We're omnivores. Individually some may work better than others. Just don't pick the MacDonald's diet; high fat AND high carb. It works too, ...but only for a while. The real villain: sugar, at whose altar I worshipped for many years.
 
maryjaneholland said:
Whining moaning mewling trigger warning! Whoop!

Not posted here for while, but really reached my limit today being told by close friends and family members that 'ahem'...

1 - You being vegetarian your whole life and not eating meat or fish has caused your diabetes, whack!

2- You not eating real protein like meat or fish causes health problems and that's why you are ill, thwop!

3 - You are overweight because you don't eat enough proper protein like meat or fish, kablam!

4 - If you ate more actual protein like meat or fish you wouldn't have diabetes any longer, kaboom!

5 - If you did more exercise and ate more meat and fish, all of your health issues would disappear overnight, thwack!

6 - I saw on breakfast TV someone blah said something blah about olives being good for you, so now I have spoon of olive oil for my breakfast and somone blah on TV said this is proven to lose weight and you should try this instead of all those low calorie low sugar low carb diets so you can actually lose weight, kapow!

And before anyone asks, no neither my self nor any of the people who made the spurious comments above are medically qualified, or are doctors or nurses, or have studied medicine, or are therapists or practitioners of any kind, nope!

Really gets me down that I have to constantly play the "educator" role when I'm still struggling to understand and manage my diabetes diagnosis myself, and the dreaded term "lifestyle condition" for Type 2's is just an excuse for open season for everyone else to judge like "it must be those vegan smoothies you used to drink, it must be the water supply, it must be the lack of real meat and fish in your diet, it must be your weight issues, it must be linked to living in rough area, it must be your mobility issues to blame, it must be you to beatdown upon about you catching diabetes due to all your bad decisions..." Pretty much given up explaining my own experiences as everyone is a critic when you are overweight and can't walk far and take medications for multiple medical conditions...

The news about "mounjaro" prescription drug being available in the near future gives me hope, but there's no guarantee my GP Surgery will prescribe it or I will meet threshold as only been prescribed metformin for T2 diabetes and think you have to be prescribed three prescription drugs to be considered suitable for "mounjaro" but not dead yet despite total lack of support!
Click to expand...

Your friends/family seem to have a bizarre fixation on protein :/
Also, eating a diet high in vegetables actively LOWERS your risk of T2D, so if anything being veggie is probably helping with your condition, not causing it.
 
maryjaneholland said:
Thanks, it's good to know I'm vaguely heading in the right direction and my coping strategies for managing my diabetes are very much work in progress, like swapping out potato chips and crisps for root veg fries (frozen) made from thin slices of sweet potato, beetroot, parsnip, carrot, and tray of fresh roast veg is healthier still if you have more time for food prep and cooking!

There is some other good news to share as I have finally been accepted on to the Newcastle-style NHS Remission Programme with eight weeks of extreme low calorie dieting, followed up with access to nutrionists and dieticians to maintain long-term weight management, and due to the unexpected timeframe, I have postponed the start date to March to ensure I can clear my kitchen of unhealthy foods (going to foodbank NOT thrown in bin!) and fully commit to the year long programme, as it does require willpower discipline and determination to lose at least 10 Kg of excess weight via dieting and controlling calories, but I don't think my blood glucose levels will lower any further without weight loss and removing strain on my liver/kidneys/pancreas in terms of scientific research and case studies behind the Remission programme!

No more fatty liver or sad pancreas or woeful kidneys in the future ha! :D
Click to expand...
Good news on being accepted onto the NHS programme. I just missed out on getting accepted because my HaB1c was 88 in September last year and the threshold for getting accepted was 87 here in Gloucestershire. Undeterred I did it myself, from October 2023 to mid January 2024 (with a week's break over xmas). I had 3 shakes per day (sometimes a meal replacement bar instead) plus a plate of salad or non starchy veg or veg in a soup and lots of water and tea. I lost 10lbs the first week and then averaged 4lbs a week after that. My weight dropped from 17st13lbs to 13st 6lbs (25% of my starting weight) and my HbA1c fell from 88 to 37. I've now been 4 weeks of more sustainable regular eating, smaller portions and being careful to keep the weight from climbing back. I may be overdoing that a little as I have lost another 6lbs since. The very clear advice I have had is that whilst nothing is guaranteed, if I keep the weight off I am likley to stay in remission.
I don't consciously count carbs or follow a low carb diet, but I have found that flavoured cauliflower rice (fried, or lemon, or garlic etc) is as enjoyable as ordinary rice, celeriac chips make a nice change from potatoes and I prefer to swap some of the mashed potatoes for celeriac or carrot or swede mash (or a mix of them). The weight maintenance seems also to be regulating the carbs.
Morning fasting finger prick testing whilst on the Newcastle diet averaged 5.2 and since coming off of the diet the average is 5.4, so it's all looking positive so far.
I found the weeks on the diet were dull rather than difficult. I rarely felt hungry or had cravings and the scale of weight loss was very motivational. When I needed to taste something other than a banana or chocolate shake I'd have a pickled onion (avoiding the sweetened ones) or drink a mug of beef consomme soup or treat myself and swap a shake for a pot of M&S Prawn and Pasta salad (the same calorie and carb count as an Exante shake). You'll have to check whether any of that is allowed under the NHS plan.
I hope this helps and wish you all the best for when you start in March.
 
Austin_98 said:
Your friends/family seem to have a bizarre fixation on protein :/
Also, eating a diet high in vegetables actively LOWERS your risk of T2D, so if anything being veggie is probably helping with your condition, not causing it.
Click to expand...
True, but to clarify, not so much starchy vegetables.
 
maryjaneholland said:
Hiya @Inka thanks for your supportive words and I have missed the support forum when confronted with ridiculous commentaries about my medical conditions from people who are easily influenced by daytime TV adverts!
I should have added that although I'm not perfect, I do have very varied diet I am trying hard to improve since my disastrous walking holiday last summer and subsequent diabetes diagnosis by GP last September, so plant-based sources of protein include tofu, tempeh, soya beans, milks made from nuts/soy/oats, beans, lentils, legumes, nuts, seeds, pulses, nut butters and tahini (sesame seed paste), houmous (chickpeas and tahini dip), wholegrains, and mixing different sources of amino acids to form complete proteins as simple as - beans on toast, pitta bread dipped in houmous, peanut butter sandwich, bean chilli with rice, pasta with pine nuts and italian cheese, granola with nuts covered in almond milk...

Obviously, the steep learning curve with diabetes is reducing sugar and carbs and cutting out worst processed foods like fizzy sugary drinks and unhealthy snack foods - you can most definitely be vegan and still over-indulge in ultra processed junk foods from many high street stores and restaurants and think the "organic vegan" label means healthy in all circumstances! 😉
Click to expand...
I follow a similar diet and was raised veggie, there is a GI consultant recommending a plant based diet for gut conditions, Dr Alan Desmond, he has written a excellent book that I would highly recommend shoving rudely under noses of your family, I had someone similar on my husband’s side of family and now am loosing weight they are backing off. I had slipped into veggie junk diet at one point but phasing back in a wholefoods approach and slowly getting better re gut issues though diabetes still causing issues but baby steps are working with dietitians help. Sending positive thoughts to you x
 
Thanks for all the positive feedback, it's really overwhelming and appreciated and apologies I'm not on the forum every day as currently struggling with housing issues but fingers crossed my life will be more settled in March and all the efforts I am making will help me start the first twelve weeks of Remission Programme low calorie low sugar low carb diet with soups and shakes and water with boost!

Often in Winter months in the past when I was less informed about healthy eating, I freely admit indulging in ultra processed foods and vegetarian frozen foods, all refined palm oil, greasy breadcrumbs, sweetcorn, potato stodge, starch and salt, which I'm certain added to my weight gain and descent into unhealthy eating, but I am learning to appreciate fresh fruit and vegetables and herbs and home cooking all over again, and part of my housing plans are getting new kitchen installed having suffered from mice in the building destroying gas cooker from the inside out by chewing cables and insulation and turning it into scrap metal, but have to keep looking forwards to the future and improving my quality of life!

I understand the concept of Omnivores, and over my lifetime have heard all the debates about surviving plane crash by engaging in cannibalism as the human body just needs protein, but due to my medical conditions, I have to listen to medical doctors who have prescribed strict vegan diets to patients with heart conditions as saturated fat in red meat is not good for heart health, even reducing dairy products for same reason, but it's all very personal and I haven't ever followed calorie counting, I think portion sizes are helpful, or even being mindful about only eating food when you are genuinely hungry and not snacking and consuming extra calories out of boredom or stress reflex or anxiety coping mechanism or comfort eating as coping strategy for life events like family bereavement, I'm sure many people can relate!

No idea where my close friends and family get their misinformation about protein from, I think it's common misconception or trope especially about vegans and vegan diets consisting only of smoothies and carrots and no protein, so vegans are portrayed as sickly weak wheezing grey-skinned self-abusers, and meat eaters are big strong and built like athletes by default, yet the chemicals in cured meats are all proven carcinogens but still not banned by any European country despite this! Who knows! Try to have the healthiest diet which suits you and question the latest fad diet or TV advert promoting easy weight loss as if it sounds too good to be true, it usually is!
 
@mhtyler thanks for your entries about your remission programme journey, I imagined it was bowls of diluted gruel, carrots and drinking water, nothing else ha! What are your thoughts on using plant-based Stevia sweetener to replace sugar and artificial sweeteners? I am currently filling up on all kinds of teas with plant-based unsweetened milks and Stevia when I crave sweet taste, but Peppermint tea is naturally sweet without calories and Spicy Chai teas are very satisfying! Good Luck with your weight loss and remission journey and keep up the hard work! 😉
 
Some of the processed veggie and vegan foods are awful IMO. I rarely buy them. I make an exception for falafels as they’re convenient and not too processed.

Talking of protein, Michael Greger has an interesting section in his How Not To Age book. I don’t have the book myself but the free sample on Amazon is one of the longest samples I’ve seen and has a lot of interesting information in, including about protein @maryjaneholland Basically, we shouldn’t eat too much and animal,protein is worse than plant protein. If you want to have a read, it’s from about 55% of the sample onwards under the subheading IGF 1.
 
Last edited:
Great news about the remission programme @maryjaneholland
- look forward to hearing how it works for you. Sorry about the unsupportive comments from your family. Hope it’s a while before you get another barrage. Exhausting!

Inka said:
I make an exception for falafels as they’re convenient and not too processed.
Click to expand...

We make our own falafels from a Bosh recipe. They are really good, and not hugely time consuming (or we’d never have them!)

Couple of cans of chick peas, onion, garlic, parsley, harissa paste, and some gram flour.
 
maryjaneholland said:
@mhtyler thanks for your entries about your remission programme journey, I imagined it was bowls of diluted gruel, carrots and drinking water, nothing else ha! What are your thoughts on using plant-based Stevia sweetener to replace sugar and artificial sweeteners? I am currently filling up on all kinds of teas with plant-based unsweetened milks and Stevia when I crave sweet taste, but Peppermint tea is naturally sweet without calories and Spicy Chai teas are very satisfying! Good Luck with your weight loss and remission journey and keep up the hard work! 😉
Click to expand...
I have stevia in my tea, and I have tea multiple times a day. It's a bit controversial, ....celalphic phase...something or other...but I think you'll find it doesn't impede weight loss, and has been endlessly helpful to me.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top