Re: Diabetic newbie

Wow, thanks a lot Vicky. I really appreciate it.

I'll keep everyone informed about my adventure.

Again thanks.

Robert Dion
in Montreal





On Thu, 28 Jul 2005 22:48:27 -0400, Vicki Beausoleil <VBeausoleil@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

>Jennifer wrote:
>>
>> Robert Dion wrote:
>>
>> > Hi everyone!
>> >
>> > 2 weeks ago went to the clinic and they found that my urine showed a high
>> > count of sugar. Sure enough, my BG showed 15.1
>> > Probably been diabetic for some years now, without knowing it. So this past
>> > Monday, they took some blood and urine samples. My appointment with the doc
>> > is this coming Monday.Needless to say I haven't been sleeping and eating
>> > much (probably a good thing). So nervous, not about the Diabetes because I
>> > have some friends and they kept me up to date with their treatments and I
>> > know I can cope with it. It's the other results that I'm worried about,
>> > especially the kidneys.
>> >
>> > My head has been caught in a nervous maelstrom with apocalytic scenarios,
>> > imagine I've been even looking at some kidney disease sites!
>> >
>> > Anyways, be seeing you.
>> >
>> > Robert Dion
>>
>> Hi Robert...
>>
>> Welcome to the group... and I'm very sorry you had to join.
>>
>> We all understand that first shock of diagnosis... A big load of stuff
>> has been poured onto your head today.
>> Feel crappy. Feel sad.
>> Feel angry. Cry. Scream.
>> Punch a pillow.
>>
>> Then take a DEEEEEEP breath. You're not going to keel over today.
>>
>> I promise... you have it within
>> your power to grasp every concept that surrounds this situation. You can
>> and will learn what you need to know. You will be able to choose a healthy
>> path that will be good for your body and mind. Millions of people live
>> with this disease. Many of them live LONG lives with few complications.
>> Why not you? You can, without a doubt, do this. Not all at once. Not
>> today. But you can.
>>
>> This is the advice I give all newbies....
>>
>> There is so much to absorb... you don't have to rush into anything. Begin
>> by using your best weapon in this war, your meter. You won't keel over
>> today, you have time to experiment, test, learn, test and figure out just
>> how your body and this disease are getting along. The most important
>> thing you can do to learn about yourself and diabetes is test test test.
>>
>> More than most anything, what you eat will affect your diabetes and
>> your blood glucose numbers.
>>
>> And more than anything you eat, carbs will affect your diabetes and
>> your blood glucose numbers.
>>
>> So, the most important information you can begin to compile about
>> yourself, is how your body handles carbs.
>>
>> This sounds like you would need a low carb food plan right?
>>
>> You don't... what you need to uncover is YOUR Personalized Carb Number.
>>
>> Which actually works better for most everyone. Because low to one
>> person is wildly high to another, but waaaaay too low for someone
>> else.
>>
>> Is low carb less than 30g a day? Is it anything less than the
>> Pyramid reccomendations?
>>
>> Finding your Personalized Carb Number is easy.
>>
>> Here's how you can figure out your own Personalized Carb Number.
>>
>> The single biggest question a diabetic has to answer is:
>>
>> What do I eat?
>>
>> Unfortunately, the answer is pretty confusing.
>>
>> What confounds us all is the fact that different diabetics can get great
>> results on wildly different food plans. Some of us here achieve
>> great blood glucose control eating a high complex carbohydrate diet.
>> Others find that anything over 75 - 100g of carbs a day is too
>> much. Still others are somewhere in between.
>>
>> At the beginning all of us felt frustrated. We wanted to be handed
>> THE way to eat, to ensure our continued health. But we all
>> learned that there is no one way. Each of us had to find our own path,
>> using the experience of those that went before, but still having
>> to discover for ourselves how OUR bodies and this disease were coexisting.
>>
>> Ask questions, but remember each of us discovered on our own what works best
>> for us. You can use our experiences as jumping off points, but eventually
>> you'll work up a successful plan that is yours alone.
>>
>> What you are looking to discover is how different foods affect you. As I'm
>> sure you've read, carbohydrates (sugars, wheat, rice... the things our
>> Grandmas called "starches") raise blood sugars the most rapidly. Protein
>> and fat do raise them, but not as high and much more slowly... so if you're
>> a T2, generally the insulin your body still makes may take care of the rise.
>>
>> You might want to try some experiments.
>>
>> First: Eat whatever you've been
>> currently eating... but write it all down.
>> Test yourself at the following times:
>>
>> Upon waking (fasting)
>> 1 hour after each meal
>> 2 hours after each meal
>> At bedtime
>>
>> That means 8 x each day. What you will discover by this is how long
>> after a meal your highest reading comes... and how fast you return to
>> "normal". Also, you may see that a meal that included bread, fruit or
>> other carbs gives you a higher reading.
>>
>> Then for the next few days, try to curb your carbs. Eliminate breads,
>> cereals, rices, beans, any wheat products, potato, corn, fruit... get all
>> your carbs from veggies. Test at the same schedule above.
>>
>> If you try this for a few days, you may find some pretty damn good
>> readings. It's worth a few days to discover.
>>
>> Eventually you can slowly add back carbs until you see them affecting your
>> meter.
>>
>> The thing about this disease... though we share much in common and we
>> need to
>> follow certain guidelines... in the end, each of our bodies dictate our
>> treatment and our success.
>>
>> The closer we get to non-diabetic numbers, the greater chance we have of
>> avoiding horrible complications. The key here is AIM... I know that
>> everyone is at a different point in their disease... and it is progressive.
>> But, if we aim for the best numbers and do our best, we give ourselves the
>> best shot at heath we've got.
>> That's all we can do.
>>
>> Here's my opinion on what numbers to aim for, they are non-diabetic numbers.
>>
>> FBG under 100
>> One hour after meals under 140
>> Two hours after meals under 120
>>
>> or for those in the mmol parts of the world:
>>
>> Fasting Under 6
>> One hour after meals Under 8
>> Two hours after meals Under 6.5
>>
>> Recent studies have indicated that the most important numbers are your
>> "after meal" numbers. They may be the most indicative of future
>> complications, especially heart problems.
>>
>> Listen to your doctor, but you are the leader of your diabetic
>> care team. While his /her advice is learned, it is not absolute. You
>> will end up knowing much more about your body and how it's handling
>> diabetes than your doctor will. Your meter is your best weapon.
>>
>> Just remember, we're not in a race or a competition with anyone but
>> ourselves... Play around with your food plan... TEST TEST TEST. Learn what
>> foods cause spikes, what foods cause cravings... Use your body as a science
>> experiment.
>>
>> You'll read about a lot of different ways people use to control their
>> diabetes... Many are diametrically opposed. After awhile you'll learn that
>> there is no one size fits all around here. Take some time to experiment
>> and you'll soon discover the plan that works for you.
>>
>> Best of luck!
>>
>> Jennifer
>
>
>Salut Robert!
>
>This is the number one piece of advice for those new to this. Jennifer
>and many, many others have been where you are now and done the science
>experiments and we know from where we speak. It will be a steep learning
>curve for you in the weeks/months to come, but learning the experiences
>of others who came before is one of the most beautiful parts of
>'support'.
>
>Muffaletto and palm both suffer from the same affliction: cranial anal
>inversion. They both have their heads up their asses. Chung is nothing
>but a basket case, as you've already seen.
>
>Here's some advice that may hit closer to home. Ask your doctor for a
>referral to an endocrinologist. You'll likely be refused, but ask
>anyway. Also see an ophthalmologist anually. You may have noticed or are
>now noticing changes to you eyesight. High glucose levels causes the
>pressure in the eyes to rise. It'll sort itself out in a couple of
>months, provided you get your Bg (blood glucose) levels down. Don't
>change the prescription for your glasses, if you wear them, until your
>Bgs are stable and closer to normal.
>
>Get a referral for retinal photography. It's very important. You'll have
>to pay, but insurance reimburses. Laboratoires RD does it, and their
>number is (866 or 514)344-2692. You don't *need* a referral, but
>insurance may not cover it without one.
>
>I'm not sure if it's a good thing or a bad thing, but diabetes is one of
>those thing where it's 99% up to YOU whether you succeed or not. The
>doctors basically sit on the sidelines and cheer us on and write the
>occasional prescription. (This stolen from OldAl, but I don't think he'd
>mind).
>
>OldAl is one of our goldmines of information. There's many others -
>Quentin, whose specialty is food and nutrient management and we're
>waiting for his book to come out, should he decide to write it, OldAl,
>who is highly knowledgeable in both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes because
>he's been treated as both, Jennifer, who reminds us that not one diet
>suits everyone and *you* have to find out what works for you, Jenny, who
>has a fantastic website with up-to-date information on carbohydrates and
>fats in diet. There are many others, it's that power in numbers thing.
>You'll know who to ignore after reading the group for a while.
>
>As for me, don't let the surname fool you. It's my husband's. Ask me why
>I wear a baseball cap most of the time and I'll tell you it's to hide
>the corners. ;-)
>
>Keep reading here, you'll be healthier for it.
>Oh, and to convert from mmol/l to mg/dl (the American scale), multiply
>by 18. 5.5 mmol/l is 99 mg/dl.
>
>Vicki in
>Gatineau
>T1, pumping

.

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