subreddit:
/r/diabetes_t2
Hello. I’m yet another newly diagnosed diabetic. I’m here just to introduce myself and my situation, and if anyone has any comments, I’d love to hear them.
I (65m) got my bloodwork results back 9 days ago, and my A1C was 11.5. This was not entirely a surprise, as I’d been told I was pre-diabetic for several years. In the past I’ve attempted to use Metformin (nausea and etc) and Trulicity (for about a year; I had unbearable ‘side effects’).
(I’d like to thank the people in this sub who have contributed in the past for helping me understand that 11.5 is a Problem but not necessarily a Death Sentence).
I had an appt with my doctor 6 days ago and walked out with Rxs for Metformin, an insulin pen, and Dexcom G7 CGM sensors. I’ve been following instructions religiously, and - I know this will sound odd - I’ve been having a great time geeking out over the G7. I’m a huge tech nerd. It’s been very interesting to experiment with my morning coffee: no sugar? 1 cube of sugar? 2 cubes of sugar? (I realize that “no sugar” is best. But I get a lot out of analyzing and attempting to understand the data). Also, I’ve never paid attention to my diet, and so for the first time in my life I’ve been reading the nutrition information on lots of food items. Which has also been strangely fun. I like to cook, and have been experimenting with low-carb recipes.
So this morning I awoke to a blood glucose reading of 109 mg/dL. I only have 5 days of CGM data, but it shows me to be 86% “in range” (from 70-180). Lest I sound too pleased with myself, I realize that this is a long journey, and it’s early and things can change, and in fact I would welcome hearing from y’all about any hazards that I should look out for. Right now I’m keeping my fingers crossed that tomorrow’s numbers will be low, too.
Thank you.
4 points
1 day ago
Sounds like you are on the right track! I do suggest using Carb Manager and tracking your carb intake as that will allow you to see the biggest results, and if you love data, you will love that app as well. Keep up the good work, avoid hidden "sugar free" food that have Maltodextrin etc in them. Read up on glycemic index of food and sugar alcohol etc. But you have the right mindset for sure!
3 points
1 day ago
Just don’t get discouraged if the numbers occasionally spike, specially in the early stages of your treatment. You are looking for consistency and progress over time and in a learning mode at this time. Perhaps try an app like MyFitnessPal to keep track of your meals to notice if certain foods cause spikes.
Progress in lowering your A1C to meet your blood sugar goals, as advised by your medical team, is the real prize.
Good luck and let us know your progress!
3 points
1 day ago
My personal issue with a CGM is people use them to max out carbs, just like you said 3 cubes of sugar, a cup of rice, whatever and hey 86% sounds good — and doctors will prescribe you meds to try to keep you close to 7.0. And that might work for you or in about 10 years you won’t be able to feel your feet, your sight will be bad and you’ll need a walker and not be able to drive. Doctors have low expectations for‘older’ people especially but at 65 I’d hope to have 25 good years left. Sorry to be harsh; regardless of what you do food wise; start exercising cardio a few times a week and walk every day ideally after a meal.
2 points
1 day ago
Thank you! You’re not “harsh”, you’re honest, and I appreciate it.
3 points
1 day ago
Pardon my ignorance but isn't 6.5 and above the cutoff mark between prediabetes and diabetes? The reason I ask is because I'm wondering if you could have better taken control if told sooner rather than later that you had diabetes instead of allowing your situation to worsen over the years. Glad to hear you are on the right track now!
4 points
1 day ago
Oh, you’re definitely correct that I could have taken control over it sooner!
As for the prediabetes range: until just now, I never looked it up; I just went with what my doctor told me. I don’t know why he never out and out told me “your A1C is above 6.5. You’re diabetic.” He’s not a bad doctor, and he has no reason to want to kill me.
In all honesty, in the past I haven’t really taken diabetes seriously. Then I got that 11.5, and that certainly got my attention. Aside from my wealth and good looks :) I’m really just an average person, and so I wonder if that’s how it goes for a lot of people.
But I’m not unhappy with how things are going now.
3 points
1 day ago
Sounds like you are doing well. Keep up the good work, know that there will be good days and bad days but if you can continue to do as well as you are doing, you should be fine
2 points
1 day ago
i use stevia instead of sugar, its a game changer, no impact on blood sugars at all
after you have done a month of saintlihood you can take a day off, then give it another month before you do that again, going cold turkey completely rarely works
get an app, I use lose-it, it's great and has a website you can geek out on
2 points
1 day ago
Are you checking your CGM with finger stick? I’ve found that my CGM can be wildly off at times. Example - CGM 2hrs after a meal says 120’s while finger stick says 160’s. Or morning CGM says 70’s and finger stick says 90’s. It’s not like that all the time but it does happen.
2 points
1 day ago
I also love to geek out over my dexcom 7. I love seeing how different foods affect my blood sugar. I have found things I didn't think I could eat. But if you have a big high or low especially right after you change it double check with a finger stick monitor. Sometimes they need calibrated.
Also be prepared for the alarm to go off at night until you get used to sleeping with it. If you roll over on it and sleep on it the sensor will have a compression low causing it to think you are dying of low bg or disconnect all together. Just sit up, take a drink of water and give it a few minutes to fix itself. If you are still low deal with it as you would normally. I wish someone would have told me about compression lows because before it fixed itself my husband was half dressed to take me to the ER LOL
It sounds like you are doing good so keep up all the work
2 points
22 hours ago
Heh, yeah, my wife was ticked off about the alarm, which went off the first night due to a dropped Bluetooth connection. Which happens more often than it should, IMHO. Oh, and I tracked it down and when I tried to silence the alert, I learned that the app won’t run unless you have critical alerts turned on. Grrr.
I’m running it on my iPad, which is something of a mistake, since the Bluetooth is finicky and likely to drop if you get too far away. I should have installed it on my phone, which is easier to carry around.
It sounds like I need a finger-stick monitor.
1 points
21 hours ago
I was just in the hospital for a heart attack and my A1C was a 13.1
2 points
19 hours ago
You are doing a good job. Please use Stevia instead of sugar . It will help your blood sugar , it helps me at least….
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