help!

[lell1]

hi all

I was diagnosed with type 2 and have been very cavalier about it! In other words, I've done nothing!

So, yesterday I think I had a hyper? Felt really nauseous, banging headache, so tired that I slept most of the day. I did drink loads of water, and had some porridge. I managed a salmon sandwich for tea. I also went incredibly cold (am menopausal so this doesn't usually happen!)

However, I still feel nauseous today, even though I've been drinking plenty of water again and had some weetabix (no sugar n semi milk) for breakfast.

Am now somewhat anxious! Should it go on this long?

[TheAwfulToad]

Why on earth are you still eating weetabix, porridge and bread if you have T2D?

Fix your diet and all this will go away. It's not difficult or unpleasant. You don't have to remain ill unless you want to.

[lell1 in reply to TheAwfulToad]

ty Theawfultoad! Think maybe I needed to be shaken down n buck my ideas up huh?

[TheAwfulToad in reply to lell1]

I get it, really I do. There's an immense amount of nonsense written about "diabetic diets", all of which ignore the fundamental definition of the disease: your body has lost the ability to extract energy from carbohydrates. People with T2D are typically encouraged to eat weetabix, porridge and bread by the very people who ought to know better.

Nevertheless, today is the day to get them out of the house, and commit to never buying them again. Buy proper food instead. The sooner you do it, the better your prognosis. A majority of people with T2D achieve complete remission simply by changing their diet, as long as they do it early enough. Once you start down the correct route, you'll be amazed how quickly it all just drops into place.

Frankly, this group is not the place to get support - it's populated mostly by people who have competitions about the number of pills they're taking. You might want to try the LCHF group - it's a much more upbeat place, and a few of the members there are ex-diabetics.

[lell1 in reply to TheAwfulToad]

Well that got me pretty close to tears! I only have these breakfast options as they are supposed to be helpful! Bread and crisps are my biggest downfall and I need to get these in for my dad! Maybe I will need to create 'lell's cupboard'? Thanx again for the butt kick! I appreciate it! What is the LCHF group?

[TheAwfulToad in reply to lell1]

Sorry ... not intending to kick any butts or upset you

However I get very, very annoyed about the misinformation being handed out to diabetics - much of it by the medical profession. It's unconscionable. Telling diabetics to eat low-fat, high-carb diets is the biological equivalent of pouring gasoline on a chip-pan fire. T2D is curable (for a rather loose definition of 'cure' - some people will take me to task on that). So I hope you'll excuse my rather direct approach!

LCHF group is here:

healthunlocked.com/lchf-diet

Do drop in and say hello. They're a great bunch over there.

[lell1 in reply to TheAwfulToad]

No really, I need the kick! Never saw the sense in low fat anything, just a sell gimmick. Thanx again TheAwfulToad (love the name!)

[lell1 in reply to lell1]

ps, did u mean to mention chips??????

[TheAwfulToad in reply to lell1]

LOL ... no, I didn't even notice that until you pointed it out

It's a funny thing: many diabetics do notice (as you have) that the standard advice just doesn't stack up, but they're afraid to challenge the 'experts'. Those guys know what they're talking about, surely? It's too frightening to think that maybe the doctor's advice could be wrong. But doctors are explicitly taught in medical school that much of what they learn will be subsequently shown to be wrong, and the fact is that the history of medicine is littered with the most outrageous errors - that is, treatments that make absolutely zero sense in the context of known biology. The treatment of T2D is turning out to be of those instances. The NHS is making a half-hearted attempt to do something about it (people like Dr David Unwin are pioneering an approach that actually works) but it's very much the old 'it takes a long time for an oil tanker to change course' scenario.

In the meantime, you have the option of taking matters into your own hands. The aetiology of T2D is complex, but the solutions are not. Eating right doesn't require a PhD or an MBBS.

[lell1 in reply to TheAwfulToad]

expert: ex is a has-been and spert is just a drip!

[cathie in reply to lell1]

I suspect you might have encountered someone with particular views about diet. Check Diabetes UK and other sources like that until you can talk to the clinic. Proper porridge (with no added sugar obviously) is seen by most experts in the UK as quite healthy. Obviously in moderation.

[Hidden]

Hi lell1 and good to catch up with you on the dhs group too.

Lots of people have trouble in actually accepting their type 2 diagnosis and it's all too easy to just be cavalier and all but ignore it. But the long term damage to your body if you don't keep sugar levels under control are absolutely horrible and take many forms.

I think it is much easier to cope with if you spend a long time making small changes, rather than try to suddenly pull yourself up too sharply and set yourself a regimen which you can't adhere to.

Wonderful if you can follow the steps which will reverse your Type 2, but there's plenty of evidence that not everyone is willing, or capable of taking that route, so what's more important is finding the route that will keep you safe from the ravaging effects of high blood sugars.

I doubt your current symptoms were a hyper, but by the same token it's paramount to get a grip and work something out that will work for you without your feeling punished or deprived on a daily basis. Dramatic changes most often turn into failure.

You can rely on the dietary advice you were probably given on diagnosis. I don't know if you were offered one of the very comprehensive and sensible nutritional courses which some Health Authorities use. If you did, then go back to the guidelines you were given then. If not, the British Heart Foundation's 'sensible plate' option is good and you can find it at their website bhf.org.uk

Take care and the best of luck in turning this around.

[lell1 in reply to Hidden]

thanx Callendersgal. I tend to not bother much about myself, too much wasted energy! I was told to find a course, I didn't attend as the local one was 4 hours long and the others it would probably have been around the same taking travel into account. As you know, time away from home is limited. I then tried another option which was a one day course, and I could have got a day's cover easier than four hour session for 6 weeks! However, got so far and then never heard anything! Do you sometimes get the feeling that no-one cares so just what is the point? That's where I am right now

[Hidden in reply to lell1]

Hi again lell1,

Can I be a tiny bit blunt with you? I believe it's you who isn't invested in you and doesn't care, and not the health professionals round about you. I do completely get that it's especially difficult for you with your caring duties and you are probably overtired and even maybe suffering a little from clinical depression.

Honestly I'd urge you to take time out to have a talk with a GP about that, to check and see if that might be the case, but also, if you don't want to, or can't take the practical help offered, do it from home on the internet. All the information is out there. I know you can turn it around and feel better.

It's not recommended to type 2's but I've always sworn by blood sugar monitors. I make my husband use his, just two or three times a week, first thing in the morning before eating anything. That way he can see the trend if he's going off track and rein himself in a little.

As they will tell you at the classes, you can eat anything at all which you like. You just need to learn portion control, and that's absolutely right.

Or there's the other route, as suggested by TheAwfulToad, but knowing how much caring you have to do for someone else, it maybe needs to be the compromise route for you.

[lell1 in reply to Hidden]

you can be as candid as you like callendersgal! I'm now on a high! Have been awarded a holiday so that I can get to recharge the batteries! They let you have the caravan and the entertainment, you pay for everything else, which is more than fair I feel!

Part of the difficulty is that I do everything on my own? It gets tiresome, isolating and sometimes everyone could do with that duvet day feeling!

[Hidden in reply to lell1]

Hi lell1, well how good is that? It’s amazing how life can turn on a pinheaded sometimes. Just when I think you really need this, so I hope you have a wonderful break.

I completely agree with what you say about the isolation and always having to take all the responsibility.

I hope you will renew your batteries and decide that you are well worth spending time and trouble on yourself and get back on track with controlling your diabetes.

Take care and when the time comes have lots of relaxation and fun!

[lell1 in reply to Hidden]

Cancelled! ☹️

[Hidden in reply to lell1]

Oh lell1, of course it was inevitable, but how truly disappointing for you. No wonder so many of us are feeling in the doldrums. It's not any sort of consolation, but we are all in one very unhappy ship right now, and no quick and easy way to get to shore.

Had you thought of checking out our new community over at Positive Wellbeing during Self-isolation? I don't know if you are having to self-isolate just now, but we have a very positive vibe going on there at the moment and it might help you to feel a little less bleak.

Is there any hope you'll be able to take up this offer again at some time in the future when life eventually returns to normal? I do hope so. It would give you something to look forward to eventually.

Anyway, in the meantime I wish you well with finding a positive in this horrible negative moment of disappointment and that you manage to keep yourself safe and well.