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The sad irony of a beekeeper with Diabetes!

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It’s seems that your body managed that breakfast well 🙂
In time as you learn more your levels will start coming down . Often the waking levels are the last to start coming down, so don’t get disheartened if this happens to you.

I found it helpful to to look online at the carbohydrate content of food labels , which saved an awful lot of time when shopping, you can also expand/enlarge the screen , I suggest to join your usual supermarkets online service to help you in this.

TBH I only check out the carbohydrate content on food labels as in the UK sugar is already included in the carb content, sugar is just a simple carbohydrate.
Don’t get me wrong as I don’t actually eat much fat, but I do not check out the fat content of foods, though I couldn’t eat belly of pork if you paid me (too fatty for me)

That’s the trouble with foods like yogurts that are made to be low fat , they have to add some carbs to make them more palatable, imo go for the normal ones but compare the carbs to other brands/ flavours
 
@Ljc
Thanks for those tips. Looking at products online for content is a great idea.
Funny how we are all different.....What I would give for a piece of belly pork or a nice fatty lamb chop at the moment is nobody's business, even if I can never eat a potato again, although I will crave those no doubt when my new potatoes in the garden are ready. There is nothing quite like home grown new potatoes and I have just bought my seed potatoes and have them chitting. Perhaps my body will be able to cope with the odd one once I have things more under control.
Just finished my tuna salad so quite excited to do my next reading in an hour or so. Fingers crossed.
 
Some of us can tolerate a few new potatoes ., I love mine with butter and mint.
Nowt wrong with a pork chop yummmmm , you could cut off some of the fat if you like
 
Absolutely delighted to report that I have my 3rd reading in a row that is lower than the previous one despite having two meals...... that is the first sustained positive direction I have had since I started monitoring I think. It also ties in with my symptom onset 2 hrs after I had a steak and ale pie and chips and mushy peas, but no sweet stuff and when my reading shot up to 29 the day after I had 2/3 of a packet of Jacobs Crackers ..... the only time I seriously sinned during my previous 6 weeks of strict dieting with only wholemeal.
I so hope this trend continues.

I really, really can't thank you guys enough for helping me figure this out! Fingers crossed it continues and I can stop or at least cut back the medication at some point. Will be Sod's law if the nurse comes back to me tomorrow to say that the consultant has authorised insulin and then it will be me saying."Hold your horses!"
 
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Only wholemeal - I'm afraid I sighed at that - as over the 'low fat' - anything labelled low fat is best avoided for the time being.
I am rally really hoping that you will be one of the lucky type twos who can get back to normal just by eating low carb - just to show how all the dietary advice pushed at us is simply wrong.
I would say again - low carb often means really low sodium by comparison with normal, so I put a tiny pinch of salt along with the pinch of cinnamon in my morning coffee.
If food processors don't want us to read the amount of carbs in their products I suspect that there is a reason for it, so if it is too small to read I put the pack back on the shelf and move on.
Keep away from grains, potatoes - fruit for the time being and if you feel a little light headed take a drink of water and just maybe have two or three grapes - chew them slowly one by one if you get a real wobble - it reassures your brain and restores normal function in order to get on with life.
I used to have a couple of shopping lists with low carb foods listed, 10 percent is my limit other than for very dark chocolate - and as a lucky type two myself, I can only say that it is the best diet ever.
 
rebrascora said:
. Will be Sod's law if the nurse comes back to me tomorrow to say that the consultant has authorised insulin and then it will be me saying."Hold your horses!"
Click to expand...
If the consultant does suggest insulin, and you want to hold off, I think you should ask for a GAD antibody test. If this test is done, and comes back positive, it is normally an indication of Type 1, in which case there is really no point in delaying insulin. If you are Type 1, taking Gliclazide will be flogging the proverbial dead horse, and you will feel a lot better once you start on insulin. (I speak as a Type 1 who struggled for six months on Type 2 drugs!)
 
Tbh I felt SO much better on insulin that I’d leap at the chance.
 
Absolutely delighted to report that, apart from a couple of blips when I got a bit stressed (do other people find that stress causes spikes??), I am continuing the downward trend by avoiding carbs.....My fasting reading this morning was 10.6 which is my best result so far and I even had a few berries with some yoghurt last night after my chicken salad AND I cut back on the Gliclazide last night but did take the Metformin but have taken both this morning. Had bacon egg mushrooms and beans for brekky and had a slight spike at 13.7 shortly afterwards but it is on it's way down again. Will try an omelette tomorrow.
Nurse just rang to say that consultant has authorised Insulin to be started today but having explained my dietary "epiphany" of yesterday and that my readings are coming down despite reducing the Gliclazide back to one a day, she is allowing me to hold back on it to see if I can keep the downward trend going via the carb free diet and current medication (although I personally don't think the tablets are doing anything) The consultant has also asked for me to be referred to his clinic for Type ! testing and I will go along with that unless I have this under control with diet before then. Really feeling like I have some control over this again now and as a control freak, that is a great comfort. She wants to see me on Tues when I go for additional blood tests and Thursday for my appointment with her, so I feel they are getting more involved with this at last but I just wish I hadn't wasted 5 weeks earing porridge and whole grain carbs, thinking I was doing the right thing when it may actually have been the problem and if much more frequent testing had been encouraged I would have got to this "epiphany" much sooner.

I do find it a little odd that the 2nd item of the 10 Top Dietary Tips from the Diabetes UK folder I was given by the nurse, recommends to eat carbohydrates including fruit and wholemeal/wholegrains but just to moderate portions. I appreciate that many people can get away with this and I have a gut feeling that I may be OK with fruit or at least some of them but the literature should maybe include some mention that occasionally some diabetics cannot tolerate any carbs and to test this if BG levels do not start to drop.

Without the help of the wonderful people here on this forum I would still be floundering in the dark and now I really feel that I have light at the end of the tunnel. Can't thank you enough!
 
I will drop the baked beans tomorrow and test again but I am seeing a significant downward trend as it is with just a couple of spoonfuls of them the past 2 mornings. Thanks so much for the link regarding the veg. That is really useful. I shall have to find the ones I can grow myself and get sowing!
 
I am very pleased to hear that your levels are coming down , what a relief for you.

I don’t use the menus or dietary tips over on the main site as they are too carby for me.

However we have some very innovative cooks on this forum , I think you’ll be very impressed. Have a look at these
recipes

We bare our sins and shine our halos here
what-did-you-eat-yesterday

You’ll find the above and more on this forum
food-carb-queries-recipes.
 
Yes a huge relief and I could not have done it without the kind help of the wonderful people who have responded to this thread. I'm down to 10.2 in the middle of the day, so that has to indicate that I am on the right track now. Will be sooooo excited to see my first sub 10 reading in the near future, hopefully. Just off out to source some more testing strips to tide me over the weekend as they are going down rapidly, but will order online after that as it appears to be a bit cheaper.
I will peruse those threads when I get a moment as I really do need some inspiration when it comes to cooking without carbs. Thanks so much for your help.
 
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I am distinctly pleased to read that your numbers are dropping.
For most people lowering carbs enables their metabolism to recover many get off medication, some see total reversion back to normal numbers, there are even some who return to a more normal diet and find their blood glucose is still normal.
It can take time but in my case, after about two years I could see that things were getting back to normal - for me that was putting on weight at the slightest increase in carbs, but at least it was what I have always seen.
 
Just want to share my wonderful news of the day with you kind people who contributed to my thread and helped me find my way....

I got my first sub 10 reading just now (9.7) YIPPEE!! and that was after the indulgence of eating a lovely breakfast of mushroom omelette with salad leaves and a small dollop of mayonnaise again.... so that is 2 mornings running that I have had a delicious breakfast and readings have gone down afterwards. Can't tell you how over the moon I am and how grateful I am to you all for helping me find the right direction with this. I'm high as a kite!!
My next goal is getting a reading under 8 and then slowly coming off tablets after that, although I have halved the Gliclazide already.

I also cooked a really nice meal last night of lamb mince with onions and aubergines and tomato puree and fromage frais with cauliflower florets and it tasted really good and was filling so I am starting to feel more confident about cooking again too and just generally feel like I am going to be able to enjoy food again.

I tried a pear yesterday and that spiked me 4 whole units for an hour or so. I assume that is too much and I should avoid pears? Going to try blueberries this afternoon.
 
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You’ve done reallllllly well.
Don’t give up on the pears yet, for a long time I had to avoid them, now so long as my BG is in range I can eat a medium pear without needing insulin for it .

How many test strips are they providing you per month.
 
Oops I forgot to ask, what are you having for dinner and what time shall I be there :D
 
Thanks for the encouragement. Good to know that I might be able to revisit pears in the future. I am just savouring 24 blueberries with a little yoghurt..... each little indigo gem is bursting with flavour and sweetness in my mouth and contrasting fabulously with the sourness of the yoghurt. A little bit of bliss that a couple of months ago I would have scoffed down and barely even tasted.....My taste buds were seriously overdue for a reboot and what a difference it makes!

Dinner tonight is some fish called Basa that I found on the reduced counter in the supermarket. It will be lightly fried with lemon juice in my new ceramic frying pan which I have used twice and am loving! My friend suggested puy lentils and broccoli but not sure how I will react to lentils. Might just hang fire on them and have cauli and broccoli. I've never really been a fan of fish but part of that was a lack of exposure and confidence in cooking it, but the last twice I have fried salmon with lemon juice it has been lovely, so I am trying to broaden my tastes to other white fish than cod or haddock. Not sure I am ready to cope with sauces with fish yet so keeping it plain.... I have a childhood dread of cod in parsley sauce that I have never overcome!.

As regards testing strips. I got 10 initially and then a pot of 50 from the surgery but I am not written up for any more until August so I dashed out on Friday afternoon to purchase another 50 to tide me over the weekend (not as cheap as I could have got them online but I needed them straight away and patronising the high street is an important consideration too .... it is my lucky pot because my first reading on the new strips was that wonderful 9.7 earlier today. Going to ask the nurse on Tues if she will write me up for some more sooner as August is no real use.... I need to be testing lots now....especially if I am stepping down my medication and not going on to insulin as that will be saving them money, but I am prepared to buy them if she is unable to allow me more on the NHS..
 
Sorry I can’t remember if you’re on Gliclazide or not, if so testing strips should be on repeat prescription as their is a possibility of hypo’s. I never had a hypo while on them .

Many here who are refused testing strips or not prescribed enough use the SD Codefree meter as it has much cheaper testing strips than you can buy in chemists, around £8 for a pot of 50, it is only available online either directly from Homehealth (sorry I don’t have a link for Homehealth ) or from
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Codefree-Glucose-Monitor-Monitoring-Testing/dp/B0068JAJFS/ref=as_li_ss_tl?s=drugstore&ie=UTF8&qid=1506485682&sr=1-1&keywords=sd+codefree+meter+mmol/l&linkCode=sl1&tag=xfm-21&linkId=f39210144fdc26c27738e45b6d957003&th=1
 
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Delighted to report that I am still making great progress with my BG readings. My fasting reading this morning was 8.0 and that was after no Gliclazide for a day and a half and cutting my Metformin.
Been to see the nurse today and whilst she is pleased with my progress, she feels that the very low carb levels in my diet are not sustainable and is responsible for my fatigue.....for instance just holding my arms up to wash my hair last night gave me muscle burn. I have a pretty active manual lifestyle as I have 4 horses of my own with all the associated work including mucking out, fencing and land management plus I help my partner with his horses and have chickens and I like gardening. I have to stop frequently to rest and sometimes I hit a brick wall and need to sit or even lie down for 15 mins to recharge, but I am still managing to do everything.... it just takes me a lot longer!.
Anyway, the nurse has given me ketone testing strips for my urine on the instruction of the consultant and more blood testing strips and agreed I can come off the Metformin and half my Gliclazide to 40mg morning and evening and I am to introduce a little fruit into my diet and see how I get on and go back to see her on Thursday. She still feels I need to see the consultant and get Type 1 testing and is less optimistic than I am that I can (or will be able to) manage this with diet alone, but I am not letting her upset my buoyant mood! I am eating well and enjoying food again now (even more than I did before) and my readings are getting near to the normal range at last. Having more energy would be nice but just being able to eat something and enjoy it and not have such high readings is fantastic, plus my weight loss makes me feel better physically and mentally.
Maybe this whole Diabetes diagnosis is going to be a positive thing in making me be more health conscious.... like a wake up call. Better for this than my liver to break down or my heart to stop with all the junk I was eating.
 
Are you eating enough fat to fuel your lifestyle?
Low carb not sustainable - what is she like?
As long as your blood glucose is low the presence of ketones means you are in ketosis (hurray - that's good) not DKA which is bad.
 
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