Any Diabetes In The House

[abfan]

Somebody anybody any advice//what do u eat ...how do u eat/when do u eat
I cant take it any more...what about the pump. needles....shots shots..Lantus, u name it..Im tapped out...new to this stuff... sugar avg 300...im thirstyyyyyy

[juicefree20]

My mother's had it for about 25 years & it can be a bitch.

You have to be very careful with your diet...watch your sugar intake & your carbohydrates, bcause all carbs are not created equally, nor do they break down in your system the same way.

They started my mother off on pills such as Actos, Glipizide & the like. She maintained her sugar for years with diet & the pills. However, when she had her first bout with congestive heart failure some years back, during her hospital stay, they put her on the needle. First, it was Humolog, then Lantus [[which is long-acting) & just a month ago, changed to Humulin.

The problem for some is that after a certain period of time, certain insulins don't seem to be as effective & sometimes dosages have to be changed, if not the type of insulin. Also, infections can wreak havoc with your system & can make your blood sugars go haywire, which is not what you want. The main thing to to be strict with your diet, avoid binges of sweets & be sure to tell your doctor about anything unusual going on with your body. I know of people whom have taken diabetes lightly, ate whatever the hell they wanted to, then relied on their medicine to reverse the damage that they willingly did to themselves.

Also to be considered is your blood pressure. Diabetes can be rough by itself, but in combination with high blood pressure, it can be very difficult. If ou have to take medicine to control your blood pressure, that can keep your system off-balance & require constant monitoring & often, adjustment in your medications. All medicines seem to have side-effects & the very medicines that you have to take in order to maintain your blood pressure, often affects your other organs, primarily your kidney by elevating your BUN or creatin levels.

Your diet is also important because as many diabetics have circulatory problems, you want to keep your arteries as clear from plaque-inducing foods as is possible. Diabetes also inhibits the healing process, so cuts & the like are definite no-nos, as the inability to heal properly can lead to infections which can become gangrenous in some diabetics. Due to those problems with circulation, you have to be very careful.

But, it's not all gloom & doom, because you have age on your side. Given your age, I believe that if you watch your diet, get some exercise & understand that there can be serious consequences if you don't take diabetes seriously, you'll be fine. I wish you all the best, because it can be a difficult disease to deal with.

But, it CAN be done

My best to you!

[abfan]

Thanks,,Just recently diagnosed and boy am I having a hard time keeping these number below 200..My diet is fine just a few snack binges that kills me.I have veggie/ turkey burgers crystle light..no soda.I walk ... salads, yogurt..Its just checking my numbers and adjusting my insulin ...I was first on the pill. lost a lot of weight....now 3 to 4 shots a day is god awfull...They say I might be type 2 so It may be temporary...I dont know.. this is a nightmare 4 real...no problems with cuts or feet yet

[juicefree20]

By the way...

You eat just as you normally would, the primary difference being portion SIZE.

You can't starve yourself, because that just messes up your system. If you go into 'starvation' mode, then you'll never really know how your pancreas is breaking down the sugars. Also, should you starve yourself, your sugar levels may dip, which will leave you feeling sluggish & if they dip too low, you'll likely find yourself feeling drowsy, due to hypoglycemia.

The symptoms can range from feeling nervous or shaky, sweating for no reason [[no activity which should cause sweating), tingling, usually in your hands or feet & just feeling out of it. Usually, that happens when your blood sugar dips below 60, in which case you'll have to get some sugar into your system & fast.

So, your goal is to try to keep your sugar on an even-keel throughout the entire day. The best way to do that is to eat sensibly & to avoid binging, as well as starvation. A fallacy is that you won't be able to eat sweets, but depending upon the severity of your situation, that's not necessarily true. A good dietician should be able to help you plan an effective diet, even showing you how you can swap certain carbohydrates, so that you can still have the occasional piece of cake, etc. You should still eat your 3 meals, your body needs that. You just have to eat sensibly & responsibly.

[blueskies]

http://www.diabetes.org/?new_sess=1

Hopefully your physician put you through 'Diabetic Education'. If not, ask him/her. It usually last several days and is run by RN's and Registered Dietitian's. They really put you through the process. They teach you had to read labels, do food exchanges/carbs, etc. medications [[oral and injection), and teach basic physiology of diabetes, signs, symptoms and what labs need to be periodically done [[i.e. HgBA1C about every 3 months). The American Diabetes Assoc. offers classes and printed material. Your pharmacists can be a good resource person for meds [[docs are generally pretty poor in the teaching patients category). Everyone is different in how their blood sugar levels run, the symptoms they experience [[know the difference between hypo and hyper glycemia! When in question....do a glucometer check! I was diagnosed about 6 years ago, but fortunately, have been a health care professional for 36 years. Juicefree made very good points. Good luck to you!

[abfan]

Ive been to those classes and btw my A1C is 11 not good at all..I read labelsssssss all day n the store..Total carbs is what I watch and sugar content.I even buy glucerna products..Im still new to this, so im slowly learning

[blueskies]

I understand about reading labels....that got old. It was even worse when I was a Vegan. I about went blind in the grocery store reading labels! People started looking at me like maybe I had an "issue"! Sounds like your doing all the right things. Meds and 'adjustments' are not unusual in the beginning. Hang in there and best of luck!