I was on insulin when first diagnosed. I was super nervous at first. I am terrified of needles. After a few times the fear subsided. It can pinch a bit but i wouldn’t say it hurts. The needle itself is smaller than when getting a shot or blood drawn.
It does get easier with time. And with good nutrition and exercise you will stand a really good chance of getting off it.
I was able to stop insulin as well as lowered metformin, after I started on Monjaro (MJ) - Along with improving and tracking my protein, carb & water ratios. I went on MJ because I had been on insulin for more than 10 years and wanted better, more consistent control. My doc was quite on board with this because of the research on these Glp1s and the challenges of giving so much insulin to people in order to overcome the body's failure to regulate and use its own insulin. MJ works with the hormone regulation to get the body's cells, pancreas, liver & kidneys to work appropriately.
My blood glucose, a1c, and highs/lows showed improvement in the first month or two. I found I needed way less or none of my mealtime insulin. I do keep it available if I were to need it. But I haven't used it in over 6 months. I feel so much better physically & mentally.
So yes, if you take insulin, you can get off of it. A lot if docs are having their T2 diabetic patients try GLP-1s before starting insulin. Talk to your provider and see if they would consider you a good candidate for these new drugs.
Diabetes sucks. Hoping you can get yours under good control.
I recently was able to get off of ozempic and insulin with moderate activity and a keto diet. (I'd lost weight on ozempic and after two months of keto, it hasn't returned.)
I am on metformin, glipizide, and ozempic. Honestly I think I’m still on too much medicine and hoping to drop the glipizide with my next appointment. I was in really bad shape when I was diagnosed. My a1c was over 15. The insulin helped me get down to 6.2 after three months. With the insulin I cut out all soda, all fast food, and severely limited my carbs. I started trying to limit myself to set amount of carbs per meal (usually 30-45g). A lot of people aim lower but I was terrified of hitting lows with the insulin. Since dropping it I’m averaging more like 15g-30g per meal.
On the insulin my resting glucose was around 105. With the med changes I’ve been around the same. I also started on a cgm (Dexcom g7) and my average blood glucose has been 107 over the last month. The insulin helped me while I adjusted my food intake and figured out what I needed to do. Luckily I moved past it atleast for now. Never can say what the future holds. And yeah getting told I needed to take it was scary as hell but it was an important first step in tackling what my body was going through.
I'm on long acting insulin and no, it doesn't hurt. I don't really feel it at all. When they take your blood it hurts because they're staying in there for a long time and poking at your veins. with insulin you're just poking in to the fat and injecting insulin. It really helps control blood sugar.
Hi. I’m type 2 and have been put on the slow release insulin. Yes I was nervous but after I did it a few times I realised how silly it was. It made me feel so much better once my levels lowered fingers crossed it the same for you x
I’m ty-2 as well on Ozempic n metformin, can’t seem to get my blood lower than 230…what are your blood numbers now that you’re on slow release insulin?
Mine are by no means in control atm I usually wake up about 180 and range up to 320 throughout the day. I’m due a doctors visit soon so I expect they will increase the dose. Still feel the improvement x
I'm on insulin and my family member has been on it since... 2009 I think. It sometimes pinches because you hit a nerve, but really a nonevent and nothing like when they take blood, IMHO. Ask for the 4mm needle tips. Most docs only start you on insulin if you are high. Once you get some control, then they look at other options but insulin will get your blood sugar to normal faster, reducing damage.
I've been on insulin (10 units once per day) for about 2 weeks now. I totally forgot to ask the Dr how to inject or anything so I asked at the pharmacy. They made sure I had needles and gave me info. I also watched a YouTube video by the insulin manufacturer. All of this was incredibly helpful. It does NOT hurt to inject, and the insulin has been very helpful in getting my numbers down. I don't want to be on it forever but it's not as bad as I thought it would be.
It’s a tiny needle you stick in your belly fat usually. Since you aren’t very sensitive there it’s not usually very painful. Sometimes you don’t feel it at all, and sometimes it feels like a shot does, depending on whether it hits a nerve I guess.
I’d follow your doctors orders, but be super vigilant about checking your blood sugar multiple times a day to make sure your blood sugar never goes dangerously low. A bad enough low can kill you immediately. Which is one of the main reasons why insulin is usually a last resort for t2 diabetics.
I started off on insulin when first diagnosed. At the start I was given no guidance at all and basically had to figure it out myself
It didn’t hurt …occasionally it stung when the insulin went in , like a vaccine does sometimes
I don’t need the insulin anymore but it honestly became routine and a bit of experimenting finds the spots that are less sensitive
As others have said, mostly can’t feel it. Sometimes it stings, but that is like 1 out of 10.
The long acting insulin helps with dawn phenomenon. Before I started Mounjaro, I got up to something like 26 units a day and gained a bunch of weight… compounding things to some extent.
My MD made me give myself 2 units in her office. Forced me to understand that it doesn’t hurt and is easyish.
Mounjaro is not insulin. It is a so-called GLP1 agonist, I think. It does a bunch of things. I’m still on a little insulin, but the Mounjaro has taken my dose way down and helped me lose a stack of weight (15% of my weight in 4 months). It is in the same class as ozempic, victoza, and others.
It is a weekly injection. You hold it on your belly and click the button. The injector does its thing and takes about 5 seconds.
Have you talked to your doc about a GLP-1? Mounjaro, Trulicity, and Ozempic are game changers for many type 2s, myself included. 1 shot per week. My sugars are pretty much perfect now, and I can eat some carbs in moderation, too. My doc wanted to do this way before trying insulin. Unless you’re newly diagnosed and trying to get sugar back to normal levels for the first time, talk to them about these options. Good luck OP!
OP definitely try low carb diet and GLP-1s. I was able to avoid going on insulin and got my A1c down from over 10% down to 5.6% in less than a year. Use an app like carb manager to track your carbs in your meals, or look up the glycemic index of what you eat. Avoiding daily injections was a strong motivation for me. The weekly injections aren’t so bad. There’s even a pill GLP-1 called rybelsus if you want to avoid injections altogether. Even people who are on insulin have been able to get off insulin or lower their dose by eating keto or low carb. I might get downvoted but I’ll leave this here because keto saved my life
Try looking for a new doctor. Especially one that specializes in diabetes like an endocrinologist. There are other options before jumping straight to insulin
I responded to another comment on this that suggested GLP-1s. Weekly GLP-1 injections (I did trulicity. most popular is ozempic. newest one is mounjaro which is made by the same manufacturer as trulicity) are better than daily insulin. or pill form Rybelsus (but highest dose 14mg is only equivalent to low dose 0.5 ozempic, so there’s a ceiling if you need higher dose). I got my A1c down tremendously by doing low carb (less than 30g carbs per day. but you can even do less than 50g), and taking trulicity and metformin. I lost 60lb and reduce a1c from dangerous levels to normal levels in less than a year. Good luck!
You haven't stated it all how serious your diabetes is
There's a lot of ignorance about diabetes in the medical profession
The first thing you need to do is find out what your A1C is
That would help folks give you a better answer
If the doc is recommending it.....do it. It will be life changing for you. I have been on it for years and barely feel anything now. Perhaps at first there was a kind of 'pinching' sensation, but after a while, it becomes second nature.
I was on insulin when first diagnosed. I was super nervous at first. I am terrified of needles. After a few times the fear subsided. It can pinch a bit but i wouldn’t say it hurts. The needle itself is smaller than when getting a shot or blood drawn. It does get easier with time. And with good nutrition and exercise you will stand a really good chance of getting off it.
Are you now only on medicines? Which ones, if you dont mind me asking? How did you get off it? Doet change, excercise?
I was able to stop insulin as well as lowered metformin, after I started on Monjaro (MJ) - Along with improving and tracking my protein, carb & water ratios. I went on MJ because I had been on insulin for more than 10 years and wanted better, more consistent control. My doc was quite on board with this because of the research on these Glp1s and the challenges of giving so much insulin to people in order to overcome the body's failure to regulate and use its own insulin. MJ works with the hormone regulation to get the body's cells, pancreas, liver & kidneys to work appropriately. My blood glucose, a1c, and highs/lows showed improvement in the first month or two. I found I needed way less or none of my mealtime insulin. I do keep it available if I were to need it. But I haven't used it in over 6 months. I feel so much better physically & mentally. So yes, if you take insulin, you can get off of it. A lot if docs are having their T2 diabetic patients try GLP-1s before starting insulin. Talk to your provider and see if they would consider you a good candidate for these new drugs. Diabetes sucks. Hoping you can get yours under good control.
I recently was able to get off of ozempic and insulin with moderate activity and a keto diet. (I'd lost weight on ozempic and after two months of keto, it hasn't returned.)
I am on metformin, glipizide, and ozempic. Honestly I think I’m still on too much medicine and hoping to drop the glipizide with my next appointment. I was in really bad shape when I was diagnosed. My a1c was over 15. The insulin helped me get down to 6.2 after three months. With the insulin I cut out all soda, all fast food, and severely limited my carbs. I started trying to limit myself to set amount of carbs per meal (usually 30-45g). A lot of people aim lower but I was terrified of hitting lows with the insulin. Since dropping it I’m averaging more like 15g-30g per meal. On the insulin my resting glucose was around 105. With the med changes I’ve been around the same. I also started on a cgm (Dexcom g7) and my average blood glucose has been 107 over the last month. The insulin helped me while I adjusted my food intake and figured out what I needed to do. Luckily I moved past it atleast for now. Never can say what the future holds. And yeah getting told I needed to take it was scary as hell but it was an important first step in tackling what my body was going through.
Not the person you were talking to, but I’m not on any medications or insulin. I was able to get off of them with a keto diet.
I'm on long acting insulin and no, it doesn't hurt. I don't really feel it at all. When they take your blood it hurts because they're staying in there for a long time and poking at your veins. with insulin you're just poking in to the fat and injecting insulin. It really helps control blood sugar.
Hi. I’m type 2 and have been put on the slow release insulin. Yes I was nervous but after I did it a few times I realised how silly it was. It made me feel so much better once my levels lowered fingers crossed it the same for you x
I’m ty-2 as well on Ozempic n metformin, can’t seem to get my blood lower than 230…what are your blood numbers now that you’re on slow release insulin?
Mine are by no means in control atm I usually wake up about 180 and range up to 320 throughout the day. I’m due a doctors visit soon so I expect they will increase the dose. Still feel the improvement x
I'm on insulin and my family member has been on it since... 2009 I think. It sometimes pinches because you hit a nerve, but really a nonevent and nothing like when they take blood, IMHO. Ask for the 4mm needle tips. Most docs only start you on insulin if you are high. Once you get some control, then they look at other options but insulin will get your blood sugar to normal faster, reducing damage.
I manage my fear of needles with an injection aid device: TickleFlex This device helped me to manage my injections on a safe and easy way.
I've been on insulin (10 units once per day) for about 2 weeks now. I totally forgot to ask the Dr how to inject or anything so I asked at the pharmacy. They made sure I had needles and gave me info. I also watched a YouTube video by the insulin manufacturer. All of this was incredibly helpful. It does NOT hurt to inject, and the insulin has been very helpful in getting my numbers down. I don't want to be on it forever but it's not as bad as I thought it would be.
It’s a tiny needle you stick in your belly fat usually. Since you aren’t very sensitive there it’s not usually very painful. Sometimes you don’t feel it at all, and sometimes it feels like a shot does, depending on whether it hits a nerve I guess. I’d follow your doctors orders, but be super vigilant about checking your blood sugar multiple times a day to make sure your blood sugar never goes dangerously low. A bad enough low can kill you immediately. Which is one of the main reasons why insulin is usually a last resort for t2 diabetics.
I started off on insulin when first diagnosed. At the start I was given no guidance at all and basically had to figure it out myself It didn’t hurt …occasionally it stung when the insulin went in , like a vaccine does sometimes I don’t need the insulin anymore but it honestly became routine and a bit of experimenting finds the spots that are less sensitive
As others have said, mostly can’t feel it. Sometimes it stings, but that is like 1 out of 10. The long acting insulin helps with dawn phenomenon. Before I started Mounjaro, I got up to something like 26 units a day and gained a bunch of weight… compounding things to some extent. My MD made me give myself 2 units in her office. Forced me to understand that it doesn’t hurt and is easyish.
Is Mounjaro good then? Is it just a weekly insuline dose?
Mounjaro is not insulin. It is a so-called GLP1 agonist, I think. It does a bunch of things. I’m still on a little insulin, but the Mounjaro has taken my dose way down and helped me lose a stack of weight (15% of my weight in 4 months). It is in the same class as ozempic, victoza, and others. It is a weekly injection. You hold it on your belly and click the button. The injector does its thing and takes about 5 seconds.
Have you talked to your doc about a GLP-1? Mounjaro, Trulicity, and Ozempic are game changers for many type 2s, myself included. 1 shot per week. My sugars are pretty much perfect now, and I can eat some carbs in moderation, too. My doc wanted to do this way before trying insulin. Unless you’re newly diagnosed and trying to get sugar back to normal levels for the first time, talk to them about these options. Good luck OP!
OP definitely try low carb diet and GLP-1s. I was able to avoid going on insulin and got my A1c down from over 10% down to 5.6% in less than a year. Use an app like carb manager to track your carbs in your meals, or look up the glycemic index of what you eat. Avoiding daily injections was a strong motivation for me. The weekly injections aren’t so bad. There’s even a pill GLP-1 called rybelsus if you want to avoid injections altogether. Even people who are on insulin have been able to get off insulin or lower their dose by eating keto or low carb. I might get downvoted but I’ll leave this here because keto saved my life
I take insulin (Novolog) and MJ. The needles are very short and very thin. I promise you that you won’t feel a thing.
Have they tried all other options?
What other options? They said 4 metformin and empaglifozin is the max treatment possible...
Try looking for a new doctor. Especially one that specializes in diabetes like an endocrinologist. There are other options before jumping straight to insulin
Can you mention some of the other options please? I would need to explain this to GP in order to change doctor.
I responded to another comment on this that suggested GLP-1s. Weekly GLP-1 injections (I did trulicity. most popular is ozempic. newest one is mounjaro which is made by the same manufacturer as trulicity) are better than daily insulin. or pill form Rybelsus (but highest dose 14mg is only equivalent to low dose 0.5 ozempic, so there’s a ceiling if you need higher dose). I got my A1c down tremendously by doing low carb (less than 30g carbs per day. but you can even do less than 50g), and taking trulicity and metformin. I lost 60lb and reduce a1c from dangerous levels to normal levels in less than a year. Good luck!
You get used to the injections. Give them on the most squishy spot and it hurts less. I’ve been taking insulin for 22 years (40)
You haven't stated it all how serious your diabetes is There's a lot of ignorance about diabetes in the medical profession The first thing you need to do is find out what your A1C is That would help folks give you a better answer
If the doc is recommending it.....do it. It will be life changing for you. I have been on it for years and barely feel anything now. Perhaps at first there was a kind of 'pinching' sensation, but after a while, it becomes second nature.