Insulin Resistance

SHBoss1673

So I have someone who I believe is insulin resistant, it's genetic, she's actually quite healthy otherwise, but this gets the best of her quite often. I need some people who have experienced this pre-diabetic condition, or have loved ones that have it. I need advice from people who have succeeded with it. doctors are pretty much useless with this aspect. They are great for facts and treatments, but when it comes to the human aspect of it, they fail miserably. this isn't a client of mine, it's someone I care about, unfortunately, she is in a little bit of denial about it, and it hurts me very badly to see her suffer when I know there's a medical reason.

Please contact me via email if you fit this request, I don't want to do this on the forums as it's a private issue.

A little background:

She exercises like a madwoman, she does at least an hour a day at around 80% average Maximal Heart rate (which is very high, even for experienced athletes). She eats extremely well. Finally, she is at about an 800 calorie a day deficit (and yes, she eats her exercise cals). After a recent metabolic test, her metabolism was confirmed at what we thought, so yes, she is actually eating at an 800 calorie deficit, not just an assumed deficit, so it's NOT starvation mode. She is moody, she has sudden onset hunger within 2 to 3 hours after eating a full, nutritionally balanced meal, she has carbohydrate cravings after she eats carbs. Her normal diet is low carbohydrate (about 35% or so), and yes, she was tested for food allergies, she has none. Add all this to her inability to lose even 1 lb over the last 9 weeks, and you have a metabolic condition IMHO.
She refuses to have blood work done, because she feels like if she is diagnosed pre-diabetic then her life is over, I'm at the end of my ability to help her on my own.

So I'm asking for help, from someone who's been through this or a similar situation. I need resources, advice that has worked, referrals to websites, possible strategies, anything, I'm a little desperate. We're at a tipping point, she can either fall into serious depression, or I can pull her to the road to recovery, but I need help.

Again, please don't reply to this post, just email me. I'd be very grateful.

innerhottie

delete

SHBoss1673

I appreciate everyones situation and concerns, and if you would like me to share my results I will, but please, I respectfully request that we don't post a lot to this topic as the message tends to become lost as replies grow. So if you want me to share any info I receive, email me and we can do it in private, but I don't want to start posting on here. Besides bumping it to make sure all who are on here see it, I really don't want to air this out very much.

And remember guys, this isn't a question of us thinking she may have a condition. I KNOW she has a condition, she's been tested metabolically already, the results were analogous to a professional hockey player, yet she's considered on the edge of morbid obesity and has over 35% body fat, yet she can't lose 1 lb/week (or month for that matter.) on an 800 calorie a day deficit.


thank you.

SHBoss1673

bumping

FireMonkey

It's hard when somebody is in denial, about any health concern. I wouldn't write doctors off so quickly; there are good ones who do keep up with health issues outside of prescribing pills and a physical work-up would be best to determine what's going on. There are other conditions such as PCOS that can mess with your metabolism. And since she's already doing everything right otherwise, I don't know what else to suggest. If she has a family history for diabetes, is there also a family history for heart problems? Since those two often go together this may be a more compelling argument to see a doctor.

Good luck to you - hope things turn out well! :flowerforyou:

Phoenix_Rising

I appreciate everyones situation and concerns, and if you would like me to share my results I will, but please, I respectfully request that we don't post a lot to this topic as the message tends to become lost as replies grow. So if you want me to share any info I receive, email me and we can do it in private, but I don't want to start posting on here. Besides bumping it to make sure all who are on here see it, I really don't want to air this out very much.

bump

FrankyOsage

Bump

SHBoss1673

Bumpers. She reluctantly scheduled an endo appointment today. I'm very happy with this, as it means she's NOT given up hope and yesterday was just a speed bump, not a spiral. I really hope so, her journey has been very difficult, and I would like to see her find a light to strive toward.

amicklin

Bump

Phoenix_Rising

Bumpers. She reluctantly scheduled an endo appointment today. I'm very happy with this, as it means she's NOT given up hope and yesterday was just a speed bump, not a spiral. I really hope so, her journey has been very difficult, and I would like to see her find a light to strive toward.

Glad to hear she is moving forward in a positive direction, which relieves some stress and worry for you. :flowerforyou:

XFitMojoMom

I just found out that I'm glucose intolerant and trying to figure it all out - like your friend, I work out like a mad woman - P90X, cardio, personal trainer - upping my calories, lowering my calories... the only time I ever saw my scale move was by eating 800-1000 calories and burning the same in a day. It sucks. My PT tells me I'm one of the fittest people he trains, even if I'm "obese".

I see an endo next week for further testing.

Funny you posted this Banks - I was about to PM you a message yesterday asking for your advice!

kelli_panzera

The stigma is that you must be fat and lazy, an unmotivated overeater. I was in denial for 2 years before I did anything about it, and then it was full blown diabetes. The good news is I may be able to come off meds this year since all the right things seem to be happening. But the point i'd like to make is this: if I had just done the right thing when I suspected I had it, I could have prevented a lot of damage from being done. I was embarassed, in denial, and really pissed off. It's genetics, folks...my dad was the oldest of 13 Italian kids...my grandparents BOTH had it, as do (or did) all off the aunts and uncles, my father also passed of a heart attack stemmimg from the double amputation of his legs-up to his hips-because of gangrene from a stubbed toe. Also for me, I was afraid my husband would just say enough is enough and walk away...our life is pretty crazy without the addition of this damn disease. But, to my surprise, he seems to be in it for the long haul, and more supportive that I ever dreamed.
So all my fears were unfounded-and i just wasted time worrying when I could have been doing. So i've made the necessary adjustments, and I keep on doing.

July24Lioness

Hi SHBoss.

I suffered from Insulin Resistance and didn't know it and I crossed over to full blown Type 2 diabetes.

The best thing she can do for herself, is not get depressed over it, but to fight it.

The good news is, IR or Type 2 diabetes can be reversed through diet and exercise, it just takes some lifestyle changes to reverse it.

Her eating should consist of generous protein and fat intake, along with lots and lots of green, leafy vegetables. Nuts are good to snack on and fruit should be of the lower glycemic variety such as berries, cherries, pears, apples, peaches. Grains, beans and dairy should be consumed in limited quantities.

Her endocrinologist should recommend a "controlled carb" eating plan similar to the one I outlined above.................

leavinglasvegas

The stigma is that you must be fat and lazy, an unmotivated overeater. I was in denial for 2 years before I did anything about it, and then it was full blown diabetes. The good news is I may be able to come off meds this year since all the right things seem to be happening. But the point i'd like to make is this: if I had just done the right thing when I suspected I had it, I could have prevented a lot of damage from being done. I was embarassed, in denial, and really pissed off. It's genetics, folks...my dad was the oldest of 13 Italian kids...my grandparents BOTH had it, as do (or did) all off the aunts and uncles, my father also passed of a heart attack stemmimg from the double amputation of his legs-up to his hips-because of gangrene from a stubbed toe. Also for me, I was afraid my husband would just say enough is enough and walk away...our life is pretty crazy without the addition of this damn disease. But, to my surprise, he seems to be in it for the long haul, and more supportive that I ever dreamed.
So all my fears were unfounded-and i just wasted time worrying when I could have been doing. So i've made the necessary adjustments, and I keep on doing.

I had a similar experience, except I went to the doctor right away when I suspected something was wrong and they kept pushing it aside. I tried everything on my own , but I didn't know what I was doing and I didn't have support. They all seemed to just assume that I was a lazy, binge-eater and just kept telling me to diet without telling me how. If they had asked about what I ate, they would have seen that I was eating at and often below 1200 calories and still exercising. They unfairly judged me. I just ended up depressed and with more out of control conditions in the end. And by the time I finally started getting real help, I was litterally double my weight.

July24Lioness

The stigma is that you must be fat and lazy, an unmotivated overeater. I was in denial for 2 years before I did anything about it, and then it was full blown diabetes. The good news is I may be able to come off meds this year since all the right things seem to be happening. But the point i'd like to make is this: if I had just done the right thing when I suspected I had it, I could have prevented a lot of damage from being done. I was embarassed, in denial, and really pissed off. It's genetics, folks...my dad was the oldest of 13 Italian kids...my grandparents BOTH had it, as do (or did) all off the aunts and uncles, my father also passed of a heart attack stemmimg from the double amputation of his legs-up to his hips-because of gangrene from a stubbed toe. Also for me, I was afraid my husband would just say enough is enough and walk away...our life is pretty crazy without the addition of this damn disease. But, to my surprise, he seems to be in it for the long haul, and more supportive that I ever dreamed.
So all my fears were unfounded-and i just wasted time worrying when I could have been doing. So i've made the necessary adjustments, and I keep on doing.

I had a similar experience, except I went to the doctor right away when I suspected something was wrong and they kept pushing it aside. I tried everything on my own , but I didn't know what I was doing and I didn't have support. They all seemed to just assume that I was a lazy, binge-eater and just kept telling me to diet without telling me how. If they had asked about what I ate, they would have seen that I was eating at and often below 1200 calories and still exercising. They unfairly judged me. I just ended up depressed and with more out of control conditions in the end. And by the time I finally started getting real help, I was litterally double my weight.

I went through the same thing...............

I went from 120 pounds up to 265 before I was able to find a doctor to help me out and that is when I discovered how a controlled carb lifestyle is the only way to battle this endocrine disorder.

I actually had a doctor tell me I was lying to him about my exercise habits and my low fat, low calorie eating plan. I had everything journaled. The 1000 calorie low fat diet and a rigorous exercise program. I wasn't lying, the low fat foods I was eating was just piling the weight on me more.

That is when I lost all faith in conventional wisdom and with the help of my OB/GYN that was so helpful I was able to find what works for people with PCOS, insulin resistance or diabetes, etc................

XFitMojoMom

I just found out that I'm glucose intolerant and trying to figure it all out - like your friend, I work out like a mad woman - P90X, cardio, personal trainer - upping my calories, lowering my calories... the only time I ever saw my scale move was by eating 800-1000 calories and burning the same in a day. It sucks. My PT tells me I'm one of the fittest people he trains, even if I'm "obese".

I see an endo next week for further testing.

Funny you posted this Banks - I was about to PM you a message yesterday asking for your advice!

Oh, and the reason I didn't message you was because you status update was that your week was sucking hard.

XFitMojoMom

I had a similar experience, except I went to the doctor right away when I suspected something was wrong and they kept pushing it aside. I tried everything on my own , but I didn't know what I was doing and I didn't have support. They all seemed to just assume that I was a lazy, binge-eater and just kept telling me to diet without telling me how. If they had asked about what I ate, they would have seen that I was eating at and often below 1200 calories and still exercising. They unfairly judged me. I just ended up depressed and with more out of control conditions in the end. And by the time I finally started getting real help, I was litterally double my weight.

I went through the same thing...............

I went from 120 pounds up to 265 before I was able to find a doctor to help me out and that is when I discovered how a controlled carb lifestyle is the only way to battle this endocrine disorder.

I actually had a doctor tell me I was lying to him about my exercise habits and my low fat, low calorie eating plan. I had everything journaled. The 1000 calorie low fat diet and a rigorous exercise program. I wasn't lying, the low fat foods I was eating was just piling the weight on me more.

That is when I lost all faith in conventional wisdom and with the help of my OB/GYN that was so helpful I was able to find what works for people with PCOS, insulin resistance or diabetes, etc................

I had my husband question if I ate "bonbons" all day long. He took that comment back recently while he watched me complete a P90X session, while he huffed and puffed and could barely do 1 push up.
Then my overweight doctor asked me why I strive to look like a "porn star"... I just about fell off my chair. I'm sorry, but asking to weigh 150 pounds instead of 200, is not striving to look like a porn star, but striving to look healthy and maintaining a healthy weight.

SHBoss1673

Thanks to everyone for their comments. mojo, it's the next logical step. While I wholeheartedly encourage everyone to first try to use a healthy diet with a moderate calorie deficit and viggorous (within your parameters) exercise as the fist course of action, there are always those for whom the above actions don't work. Many times when this is the case, the cause is hormonal, and it's best to seek out the advice of a qualified professional.

Please note, while many times a regular blood panel will identify these types of anomolies, IR and other hormone issues can sometimes be missed as it's not always associated with the regular glucose statistics.

For instance, using blood glucose level does little to diagnose insulin resistance as your fasting glucose doesn't change with IR, you need a test called an Oral Glucose Tolerance Test to see if your body is at the correct insulin sensitivity. Likewise, many times the TSH test done for the thyroid comes back normal even though T3 and T4 levels are abnormal (indicating hyper or hypo thyroidism), these are tests your GP won't order unless you ask (and sometimes insist). And while most doctors won't have a problem with this, and won't have a problem giving you a referral to an endo, some do, don't take NO for an answer. If you suspect, check!

godblessourhome

boy can i relate, but i have no advice so i won't clog up up your message box banks. i've been working at this for almost 2 years now and have finally dropped 3 pounds in 3 months instead of gaining. good luck to her!
dawn

gracefullyjenn

am insulin resistant myself with PCOS. It took having two babies( which is basically a miracle under my condition and cirsumstances) to get things better. I now after 2 months of consistant calorie counting and dropping processed foods and white flour and sugar and exercinsg everyday day have fasting sugars in 70's and 80's

ivykivy

Bumping for you.:bigsmile: