Type 2 Questions please

[mum2westiesGill]

I have asked re my MIL a while ago in this thread so sorry for asking again
- http://www.diabetessupport.co.uk/boards/showthread.php?t=32896

A brief intro again rather than having to click on the link
My MIL is Type 2, Dx 2010 & taking metformin once daily. She seems to cope ok with everything but....

- she was given a meter & strips when first diagnosed then it came in that she would not be getting any more test strips

during a phone conversation with me:
- her GP said that if she's under 10 to just take the 1 tablet but if she's over 10 to take 2 tablets but how can she know this without testing?? Apparently she just has to go by how she feels??

carbs wise:
- for tea today the only carbs she was having were 1 small yorkshire pudding & 4 small roast potatoes
- mince pies are out now and when she looked on the packet it said 30g carbs so to satisfy herself she cut in half then decided to cut it in half again then ended up just with the smallest piece
- there is a tin of roses in the house at the moment but she's turning her nose up at them
- do TYpe 2's have an HbA1c the same as Type 1's?

 

[AlisonM]

Yes they do and the test should be done at least annually. If this is not happening she needs to contact the surgery for an appointment as soon as possible. She should also be getting at least annual checks of her eyes and extremities like the rest of us.

 

[trophywench]

She also needs to have a discussion with the flippin doc about how to KNOW her BG is 10 - good grief Gill, you must know as much as I do how hard it is to gauge what your BG is at any given moment, although T1s probably recognise highs a bit better than T2s, as a T2 if you happen to be running at 8.5 generally then 10 or 11 probably wouldn't be all that noticeable, because it isn't all that different- same as I'll know I'm hypo, but sometimes I'm 'only' 4.0 or 4.1 and others I can be 3.2 - it's only really under 3 (ish) the symptoms are violent and I know 'this is a 'bad' one' before I test. I'll also feel 'high' but that could be at 9 or 10 or far greater than that.

But there again, 2 Metformin wouldn't be like suddenly doubling your insulin, it isn't instant by any means and would need you to carry on taking 2 for a couple of weeks before it did anything. Even then it might not; it's a general thing that until you up the dose to 1500mg, it doesn't really make that much difference.

But the last time I said that, people on here were soon telling me they only took 500 or 1000 and that really works fine for them - so I guess it's much like everything else in diabetes - everyone is indeed different!

 

[LeeLee]

Metformin takes at least 2 weeks to get into the system and start working - a one-off extra one will have no immediate effect, and a negligible effect longer term.

The care she is clearly taking with reducing carbs will help, but with proper education and a supply of strips she would be able to work out which specific foods affect her as an individual. For example there are some of us that can have weetabix or porridge without going ridiculously high, whereas others have to avoid them completely.

 

[Northerner]

You are absolutely right about the testing - she can't possibly know if she's over or under 10 without testing, although I think the urine test strips would just about show a 10, but not very accurate. It would be worth posing the question to the GP as to how she is supposed to know what '10' feels like 🙄

 

[Royston46]

this really annoys me and im going to bring this up on the 12th November when I ave my appointment with the DBN at our surgery to review my annual results. I constantly ask the question how I would know what my reading are and what foods effect me and im always told I do not need to test😡

I know its down to cost 😡