Small (BIG) brag, and an offer of hope
kcaffee1
Posts: 759 Member
Last November I was diagnosed T2 diabetic because my fasting blood sugar was over 126, and my A1c came back at 7.1. The doctor immediately tried to put me on Metformin, which I TRIED to take. I expected all the wonderful digestive issues I got, but the headache that came with was NOT acceptable. I'm a student, and I HAVE to be able to concentrate - that low grade headache prevented that. So, I took matters into my own hands and with the help of RainyLaney and KDPIZZAZ (Sorry if I miss spelled, don't have the SN right in front of me.) started on the road to learning about this monster.
I saw a nice drop going into my 3 month check up for the A1c, and this trend continued through the following 3 months. I just had another round of blood work completed, and am VERY proud to say I am STILL in the 5% club! This last A1c came back at 5.9, which is phenomenal because I had been sick the week before (and frankly, quit watching carbs because everything tasted funny - if I could TASTE it, I ate it), which has driven my fasting sugar counts up onto the warning, no outright danger zones, then they fall back into the low 90's to high 80's for the rest of the day.
And, despite a bad week of eating all the wrong things, I have once more clambered back into the saddle of this beast, and reclaimed the reins. Fasting numbers aren't as good as they COULD be, but they are once more on the way down where I prefer them (high 90's - low 100's fasting, mid to high 80's for the rest of the day). Because I'm making my way without meds, gentling the numbers back into "acceptable" ranges is a slow process. Especially without my normal exercise - that starts again next week. I don't want to over do it, and relapse back into another bout of the junk I'm kicking out.
I hope that others who are new to handling this monster can draw hope from my story/journey to control. It IS possible, especially when you are willing to put in the work and discipline to make it happen.
K
I saw a nice drop going into my 3 month check up for the A1c, and this trend continued through the following 3 months. I just had another round of blood work completed, and am VERY proud to say I am STILL in the 5% club! This last A1c came back at 5.9, which is phenomenal because I had been sick the week before (and frankly, quit watching carbs because everything tasted funny - if I could TASTE it, I ate it), which has driven my fasting sugar counts up onto the warning, no outright danger zones, then they fall back into the low 90's to high 80's for the rest of the day.
And, despite a bad week of eating all the wrong things, I have once more clambered back into the saddle of this beast, and reclaimed the reins. Fasting numbers aren't as good as they COULD be, but they are once more on the way down where I prefer them (high 90's - low 100's fasting, mid to high 80's for the rest of the day). Because I'm making my way without meds, gentling the numbers back into "acceptable" ranges is a slow process. Especially without my normal exercise - that starts again next week. I don't want to over do it, and relapse back into another bout of the junk I'm kicking out.
I hope that others who are new to handling this monster can draw hope from my story/journey to control. It IS possible, especially when you are willing to put in the work and discipline to make it happen.
K
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Replies
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May I ask what advice did they give you? I'm taking metformin and having bad headaches. Would love to get my blood sugars down without meds. Are you low carbing it?0
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Such great progress! With your attiutde, you'll continue to see improvement!!0
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May I ask what advice did they give you? I'm taking metformin and having bad headaches. Would love to get my blood sugars down without meds. Are you low carbing it?
pkdarlin
The doctors didn't get a voice in whether or not I would continue to try the metformin route. Though, on the advice of an RN cousin-in-law I did try to cut back the dose to about a quarter with breakfast, another half at lunch, the last quarter with dinner. Supposedly, if you eat with the metformin it should help with any of the side effects. I didn't get that lucky.
Eventually, I shifted my eating over towards a low carb/ keto menu, and things settled down. Granted, right now, the numbers are up a bit, and I am dealing with a nasty case of carb cravings from indulging in just about anything last week, so long as I could taste it, and it didn't taste spoiled. But, when I've got the carbs under control, and can keep the total carbs around 10% of my calorie total (Net carbs usually come in around 55 - 65) my blood sugar numbers settle down into acceptable ranges. Though, I would LOVE to get my fasting numbers down into the 90's consistently, that's going to take a bit more control, concentration, and dedication than I feel like putting in at the moment. Something on the "get done SOON" list after I get through this year of school.
But, even with the low carb menu, I have had to eliminate a few food items completely. If you go that route, don't rule out any GROUP of foods, but check each combination of items you eat to find out which ones give you the worst spikes. For me it was grains in general (with one exception in single serving sizes) and cow milk. Because I didn't rule out DAIRY, I get to still enjoy cheese, Greek yogurt (regular yogurt started producing a nasty roller coaster for me.) And, SOME fruits are completely off the regular menu (much to my dismay) while other fruits can be enjoyed in limited quantities. But, in finding this out, I had to dedicate myself to eating to my meter while I was learning. And, some of the foods I thought would have to go surprised me, while others I wanted to stay did just the opposite.
Also, I initially tried a higher total carb max, which worked for a few weeks, then I had to drop it down. So, you will also want to play around with how many carbs you allow yourself, and where your "sweet spot" is for control.0 -
I remember your initial posts. Congratulations on finding what works best for you and staying the course.0
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Wow! What a great journey! You keep it going! I am spurred on by you and your posts to keep my journey going. Thank you! :flowerforyou:0
