Introduction/Type 2 Diabetes

You should demand a closer appointment and to see a dietician. You should be counting carbs and that should help you drop your A1C. MFP helps count carbs if you input exactly what you are eating. You may be surprised about how many carbs you are eating in a day.

Hi Bruce, I am 60 and have had Type 2 Diabetes for about 5 years, but really got serious about it when I went in for my April doctor appointment and my A1C was 8.5. My doctor put the fear into me about all the problems I am/will be causing my body. I am also really scared, but I consider this a good thing (sort of) as it has motivated me to really get serious, get going, and get healthy. If I can make some general recommendations. 1) Try to get in to see a dietitian ASAP. Your doctor may recommend a class, which is also good, but you may have to wait weeks for a new class to start. In the meantime, go right to the source and see a dietitian one-on-one right away. My dietitian showed me how to use my blood glucose monitor, and together we set up my nutrition goals using the My Fitness Pal website, which she recommended. She is a wealth of information. 2) Read and research. We must be our own advocates. Start with American Diabetes Association website, Google, etc. My dietitian put together a great 70-page handout for her patients. 3) Use that blood glucose monitor! Track more frequently to start, even if you have to pay out of pocket for extra test strips. I didn't use mine for 5 wasted years. I now track both blood glucose (sugar) AND carbs in my log. While many diabetics successfully follow a 'low-carb' diet, I do not and have settled into a more moderate 30 gram carb per meal and 15 carb snack plan that meets my blood glucose goals and the nutrition goals my dietitian and I developed together. But we are ALL different. Do what works for YOUR body. 4) If you are scared, like me, try to get some health screenings done for your own peace of mind. I am personally terrified of having a stroke. My doctor recommended our hospital, which does cardiac and vascular screenings 'on the side'. You have to pay out of pocket, but the costs are reasonable. It would be similar to the Lifeline screenings you may see advertised. Ask your doctor or dietitian about such a program. I am going in about 2 weeks, am terrified at what I will learn, but better to know. 5) Get an eye exam. It is recommended annually for diabetics, and should be covered by most insurance, as it is health related. Just had mine yesterday and was glad to know at least one part of my body is functioning properly! 6) Don't worry over the need to take meds. There are 2 schools of thought on that. Some people believe you can get off all meds through diet and exercise and they are successful at that. Other people believe it is better to stay on meds as a preventive measure. I feel each is right for that individual. But don't feel 'less than' because you need to take medication. This is something I have struggled with and have come to accept. 7) Join one (or more) of the My Fitness Pal diabetes groups. From "Community", go the bar above and click on "Groups". Type "Diabetes" into the search menu and a variety of groups will pop up. I recently joined "Type 2 Diabetes Support Group" and they have a great list of on-line resources to read and research. 8) Lastly, don't spend too much time beating yourself up. There is not much I can do about the damage I have already done to my own body. Grieve it and move on. And congratulations to you for all your hard efforts in the spin classes! Exercise is supposed to help with insulin resistance in our bodies, which is what gets me onto that stationary bike I don't care for. Best wishes for you, and apologies if I wrote too much!

Oh, and if you can handle it without gastric side effects, I’m a fan of metformin. Unlike most diabetes meds there’s a low risk of low blood sugar, and it acts as an appetite suppressant for many people, which is helpful if you need to lose weight.

I don’t have much advice as I am newly diagnosed too but there is a Type 2 Diabetes support group within MFP groups, with some helpful pinned posts. Come join that community!

I was in much the same boat as you in December. My A1C was 8.1, I'd been eating completely out of control for most of last year, I was addicted to carbs and scared. I spoke to my doctor and, with her approval, I started the keto diet on January 1st. Now it's June 1st and I've lost 50 lb. and dropped my A1C down to 6. You can do this. You can take back control of your life and your health. Keto may or may not be right for you. I found it easy to adapt to, because I was so tired of being scared and sick that it wasn't difficult to cut out the junk, the sweets and the fast food. It's also easy to stick to, since I'm satiated and not having hunger pains or cravings. Talk to your doctor first, but keto may be something you may want to explore. I know from comments I've seen on other sites that it's helped a lot of diabetics turn their lives around and even get off medication altogether. Best of luck.

Spacing out your meals it's almost as important as what you eat.

My markers were meeting the pre diabetes criteria and were flirting with the T2 critieria in Feb this year - here in the UK, there is a lot of focus on trying to get the weight down first before drugs. In some areas, the NHS are trialling a monitored, very low calorie (yet nutritionally balanced) diet for a short period of time. Essentially the aim is to get the body weight down pretty quickly and off the internal organs, the thought being the pancreas cannot manage insulin properly when its wrapped in lard. In some, T2 has actually been reversed - note, this is not a given for everybody AND it must be discussed with your doctor first AND it must be monitored. They are also offered support through into maintenance which as the boards here will show you, can be a danger zone.

I did follow this diet @ 800 NET calories for 8 weeks (I did food rather than meal replacements) and although still overweight this is now my only risk factor for diabetes - BP, BG and waist size are now in the acceptable range. I am now at 1500 calories a day to get the rest off.

There are lots of strong views on here about VLCD however I think this shows us there may be a context where they are appropriate with the right support and monitoring.

The upside of a very low calorie diet using food instead is you can find a macro that works for you - clearly sugar and refined carbs should be on the lower end. There is most definitely a place for complex fibre rich carbs in your diet

Here's a link where there is lots of info - again, just to be clear to everyone, if the OP is interested, this is one to talk through with the GP/MD first.

https://www.ncl.ac.uk/magres/research/diabetes/reversal/#publicinformation

I think this point is of particular interest because it reinforces that there isnt a one size fits all rule on this as to who is at risk - it is perfectly possible to be slim on the outside and have your internal organs wrapped in fat.

"A crucial point is that individuals have different levels of tolerance of fat within liver and pancreas. Only when a person has more fat than they personally can cope with does type 2 diabetes develop. In other words, once a person crosses their personal fat threshold, type 2 diabetes develops. Once they successfully lose weight and go below their personal fat threshold, type 2 diabetes will disappear.

Some people can tolerate a BMI of 40 or more without getting diabetes. Others cannot tolerate a BMI of 22 without diabetes appearing, as their bodies are set to function normally at a BMI of, say 19. "

OP - you are clearly motivated to support your body and I think you have already crossed the biggest hurdle in accepting what has happened and that you need to do something about it.

Good luck - I think you've got this !