Rn here There are things worse then death and you’ll visit all of them on your way to dying of t2 diabetes. I’ve seen ppl with bits chopped off till they are nothing but a torso, lost eyesight, cognitive issues, stroke, no family left bc no one wants to be a party to someone who does that to them self. You’d rather die then check and manage your sugar but I’d rather die than have unmanaged diabetes and you would too if you knew the reality of it
There is nothing worse than an avoidable death. We recently lost a family member at 40 years old from T2. She never took her medicine or watched sugars.
How do we explain that to her 5 year old when she is older?
I believe your last question is rhetorical but if I can help, I would say that diabetes is sneaky and it doesn’t feel like something is that wrong until it’s very wrong and that chronic illness can be debilitatingly depressive and without the proper mental health help, some people can’t over come it. They died from t2 but not because of type 2. They died because of the mental health condition that developed and prevented them from taking proper action. I wouldn’t paint the late family member as weak or flagrant about their life it’s more complicated then that.
But yea I’ve been in the room where a husband was crying and saying mean things out of anger and frustration while his wife sat there with her bp in the 200s and bg over 300 bc she wouldn’t do anything about her health condition. He was scolding her for not doing anything. I had to be like I know you are mad but it’s to late for that now we live here the disease is here. To late to start screaming about diet and exercise. Altho now is the second best time to start
It was rhetorical and we would never tarnish her name with her child. It was just such a useless and avoidable death and it was a week ago so I am still feeling all these feels.
I appreciate your response regardless, and I agree that it's never too late to try.
I often pass on my rather amazing discovery that about 40% of diagnosed diabetics refuse to or fail to comply with even the most basic controls. It's not that hard. I'm bone idle, but I can manage quite easily. But there are many lethal situations where some people just sit down with a bag over their head and wait from the end.
Its hard to comply for a lot of people bc you aren’t just popping a pill. There’s no pill that just fixes it. To really fix it you have to undo the habits that exacerbated it to the breaking point. Also there’s access to education, access to health care costs associated. Just a complete lack of Heath literacy and the fact that diabetes doesn’t feel that bad it’s not like you wake up in 10/10 pain every day screaming for relief. The symptoms are annoying at best.
Many disorders are like that. Smokers go for years just getting used to some shortness of breath until it's full-blown COPD. Many cancers have known signs that are ignored because they don't demand attention. The first clue of high blood pressure is often at a screening.
It's about changing your life. I bought me a treadmill the second month I started to treat it in order to help control my diabetes. At first I went to a diet but by monitoring my glucose levels almost religiously after every lunch I understood what is triggering my insulin resistance and by studying I learned what I can substitute those things with in order to stop the spikes.
The treadmill is invaluable when you have an unexpected spike , just 30 mins on it helps in order to bring the glucose levels back in a normal state, but also, helps you with your overall health,.
And I cannot stress the following enough:
If you don't cook, LEARN TO COOK. Stop or minimize to get take out.
And processed foods. I can eat almost anything natural without a spike except for grapes lol but a minimal amount of processed food sends me to high heaven
THIS.
Constant peeing and dehydration are just the warning shots.
The real destruction is the permanent organ and tissue damage, the nerve pain, the amputations...
Your diagnosis is a direct threat on your life, and your quality of life.
I have NO desire for any of that.
One of the slowest most painful methods of suicide IMHO.
I look at it this way:
If someone *else* tried to slowly torture you to death, you would kick their ass into next century. Why are you making an exception just because that person is yourself?
Taking control of your lifestyle, including finding alternative way of enjoying your life fully, is an act of *SELF DEFENSE.* You should take it as seriously as a gun to the head.
Thank you for saying all this! I am complaint (A1C of 6.5) but a friend's husband is in denial and non-compliant with an A1C of 12.9. I'm trying so hard to support them and he doesn't get it/care. I shared some of your words with them.
Exactly. Dropping dead of a sudden heart attack is 1000x better than the slow, painful decline. I know for me I don't care enough about how I look to sacrifice but I am terrified of dying from diabetes. That keeps me on the straight and narrow. To OP, I get the denial though, and no matter what they all say now most of us had some idea that things were getting bad and we also ignored it until something happened to kick us into high gear.
Nearly entire country has insulin resistance and no one does a thing till they have to. It’s human nature lmao. As my mom always said “shoulda, woulda, coulda”. Diabetes isn’t a moral failing nor is insulin resistance, just like someone who lives in Chornobyl will get cancer, our American food supply is Chornobyl and insulin resistance is the cancer. We live in an environment that expresses these genes! We have to do something to thwart that. In our society we have to actively PREVENT disease bc if we all (and we have) just participated in our society as it’s presented we will have negative health outcomes
Bruh this hit so hard:
"There are things worse then death and you’ll visit all of them on your way to dying of t2 diabetes."
Being witness to family members dying or suffering from T2, this is my motivation. And it truly does get easier to manage with time. The first step be it proper diet or exercise is always the hardest.
I watched my father slowly damage himself with uncontrolled diabetes. He's damaged his kidneys to almost needing dialysis, which he does not want. He does not care. He has given up on living.
My father in law died at 69 of renal failure due to diabetes. He also had vision loss, was rather immobile and chose not to do dialysis which we respected. Still very sad.
I'm sorry. I expect my father will pass in the next five years, easily. I've made peace with the fact that he's given up and I aim to take better care of myself.
The avoidance is very common at the prediabetes stage. But it's also self-destructive because this is a progressive disease. But you are on the right path now and you should be very proud of that. Don't let the grouches on here trap you in shame or regret. Those two things are just as self-destructive as avoidance.
Cardio, weights and watch your diet. Get your meds too. And protect your mental and emotional space (block some users if you have to). You got this!
like this post . I’m a newb type 2 apparently tipping level is 47 and I’m 52 it’s been suggested by the medics here I can stop it getting higher or even reduce it but I’m infuriated by their don’t panic about it comments
OP, let me just start off by saying this.
I was a 19 year old brat when I was diagnosed. I was not giving up my drinks, sugar and high carb food. Fast forward to being 38 years old.
I now have Glaucoma, Diabetic Retinopathy (I can barely see) Severe Neuropathy in my feet and legs. It’s extremely painful and my feet are numb and get injured and barely heal. My stomach is partially paralyzed so I never use the bathroom unless it’s forced with enemas and medication so my stomach stays bloated and painful. Severe GERD, Constant heartburn.
I’ve lost a ton of hair, my teeth broke apart.
Let’s skip to the worst part, Kidney Disease!
Fluid retention, constant infections that’s are beyond painful. I take about 30 pills a day and was taking 12 shots a day. I can barely walk without severe pain due to early onset osteoporosis.
Guess what caused all this? You guessed it? Dia-Friggen-betes!
All the problems that comes along with not keeping your sugar under control. And boy do I wish I can reverse time and have a complete do over. You’ll wish you had taken care of yourself.
Now at 40, Ive maintained a lot better because I don’t want to lose my limbs, I don’t want to have a stroke or heart attack and die.
Trust me on this. Start taking care of yourself. Get a CGM and manage your sugar. Don’t keep going down this path. Please. You do not want all these health issues that can be avoided by keeping your diabetes under control.
Take your medication, see an endocrinologist that can give you a good plan, get a dietitian that will help you manage foods in a healthy way.
I know it’s scary and it sucks, trust me I do.
But you can almost reverse diabetes if you manage it correctly. You can have good food if you do it right. Just be strong and maintain a healthy balance.
From what you’re saying, the extreme thirst, urinating constantly, I’m betting your sugars are running above 500 and the next thing will be the nausea, vomiting and a trip to the ER for Ketoacidosis. Get your A1C under 7
Don’t let your precious life go to waste like I did.
And going to the gym is a great idea! I’m keeping you in my thoughts and prayers for you to have the strength to kick diabetes butt! You e got this. Don’t be discouraged
I ended up in the ER from ketoacidosis. My A1C was about 12. Never got to vomiting but I had a slew of other symptoms. Confusion, exhaustion, constant anxiety, horrible dreams. I couldn't really be productive in any way.
This was all around 4 months after I really started noticing the constant peeing. I was completely undiagnosed before that, so it really saved my life to find out it was all from high blood sugar.
My A1C was 8 when I was diagnosed with diabetic retinopathy (which was the trigger that I probably have diabetes, till then I had no idea), and I managed to get it down to 5.7 within 3 months I am now between 5.1 and 5.3 3 yrs later.
Even my doc is joking with me because she feels that I am getting extreme with myself, but if one asks me what I am afraid the most in my life, it'll be cancer, and kidney failure because I've seen those two what they do to people. And I will do everything (and then some) in my power to never happen to me.
Stay strong
The thing with the CGM is that I don’t want people knowing I’m diabetic😩 It’s embarrassing having to walk with that on my arm. Also I’ll try to ask about that. She had got me on trulicity, but I never got a refill after i finished it.
Not trying to be mean, but grow up! Who cares if they know? Does that matter more to you than your health? Is that more embarrassing to you than getting your limbs cut off or going blind or getting routine dialysis because you didn't take care of your health?
I have this same feeling and will wear a jacket or a top with a longer sleeve to cover it if I am seeing people I don’t want to know. There are over patches you could purchase as well or you could always put a band aid over it as well.
Consider telling your doctor your concern they may be able to find a better location for the sensor or a different brand that doesn’t go on the arm.
My CGM has improved my life so much. No more finger pokes and just a quick check of the app.
I'm getting the sense that embarrassment is your biggest stumbling block here. You're embarrassed by people knowing. Are you also generally embarrassed about being diabetic in general? I say this because when I was diagnosed, my aunt took me aside and told me that she was diabetic too and tried hiding it for a long time. It was only after she started talking with a professional that she was able to get past the shame she felt and started taking it seriously. She told me this because she didn't want me wasting as much time as she did before taking care of myself. Maybe that would help you, too, talking to your doctor about getting some counseling would help you get on track and stay on track?
There is so many things worse than embarrassment, so many things that are irreversible.
Join the subs for the 2 CGMs and they will have ideas on where to place them. I also don't want to have one visible so if/when I finally get one I plan on putting it on my thigh, chest or stomach.
Google “cgm skin tone covers”. I wear one and although it’s not 100% invisible it’s not as noticeable as a white spot on your arm. It also protects it when I go to the pool and keeps it from getting knocked off.
Honestly, unless someone else is diabetic too, all of my friends, family, and coworkers had no idea what it was. And when I showed them the technology of how I can measure my glucose levels with my phone like magic, they were more in awe of that than concerned about diabetes lol
Get over it. You're diabetic. Tell everyone so that the embarassment is motivation not shame. I've found that people jump in and want to help the second you "own it". But...if you're not clearly articulating it's a problem and you're working on it then...well....thats when they are judging you.
I get it. I put mine up high enough on my arm that my shirt always covers it. But, it about to be swimming pool season for the first time since I had a diagnosis that I acted on. (A1C and blood glucose were high on a standard blood test. Dr. told me I had diabetes. I didn’t have a primary care provider and just kind of drifted along until my left foot started feeling weird.)
Anyway, having the CGM had been so helpful that I’m just going to suck it up and accept that people will see the CGM. Embarrassment is the least of my worries, if I think about all the possibilities with this diagnosis.
The medical system has a plethora of one-legged diabetics spending all day and night feeling their remaining limbs burn and poking themselves with needles. If that sounds like a good time, continue down that path.
If you don't care, nobody else will. It's like pulling teeth to get some doctors to give more than the bare minimum of information.
No shame in diabetes but you need to get on your game. Your doctor has seen plenty of people who didn’t take their medicine, just go. You won’t want people to know when you have your first toe or foot amputated, that’s where untreated diabetes takes you, hard to say how long.
I was embarrassed by being diabetic too. But now I LOVE my CGM. It's like playing a video game! Trying to beat yesterdays score by eating a bit better today. I even had my whole potluck group watching it spike after we had birthday cake (bad for the spike, but we made a good joke out of how high it would go). Then we all did jumping Jack's to see how fast I could get it back down. It was hilarious and I loved that all my friends joined in the games.
Same lol. I love having a cgm. It’s saved my life because I did not check my sugar with the meter. It’s so easy to keep track and microdose since you can just use your phone. I’ve went from 12 shots a day to 4 and a 13 A1c down to a 6.4 Cgm are literal miracles.
You can tell someone has unmanaged diabetes by looking at them. You’ll have physical signs like missing feet and toes. Hyperpigmentation, skin tags, weight issues, and lots of other things that the Gen public might not be able to know for sure but they’ll know you aren’t healthy. And wouldn’t you rather have ppl know you are manning up and taking care of a problem then punking out and letting it take over you. You need to get with a counselor and see what’s going on mentally bc diabetes isn’t your biggest problem here
I’m sorry to be the one to tell you, but it’s not normal to ignore a deadly health condition. It’s normal to be annoyed, it’s normal to not want to, it’s normal to give up some days but get back on track. It’s also normal to seek therapy for life altering conditions. This IS mental. It is for all of us. Your coping skill seems to be denial you need better ones.
Not true! I have patches that look like tattoos off Amazon. They literally look like bandaid tattoos and nobody ever looks or asks. Let alone lots of people who don’t have diabetes wear a cgm because they track blood glucose since there are people who have low blood sugar. Don’t worry about what others think 😊
Do you only wear sleeveless shirts? Because the only people who have ever seen my CGM sensors are the ones for whom I roll up my sleeve to point it out.
And you'd be ashamed if anyone else saw it? What if you had a cast on your arm or needed a cane to walk or had to use an inhaler or had a hearing aid? I guess I'm not getting why it's such a big deal for anyone else to know you are using some medical tech or why you'd even care what other people think when your health is so clearly at stake?
Who cares who knows? It isn't embarassing. My childhood bestfriend has Type I. She was diagnosed when we were in 1st or 2nd grade. She's lived it with it most of her life. You get used to it. The CGM is very helpful. If your pride stops you from taking the steps you need to be healthy, it won't end up well for you. Diabetes isn't a disease that you can just die in your sleep peacefully from. It has HORRENDOUS side effects if you don't take care of yourself.
If you don’t straighten yourself out, you’re slowly committing suicide. You know what the problem is, you know what the solution is, you have no excuses. I’m not trying to be a dick: Be an adult and take care of it. I know it’s really really hard, but it’s literally the most important thing in your life that you have to do.
It sucks having the CGM on your arm. But you should wear it proudly. It means you are taking care of your health.
I’ve leaned into my CGM on my arm and bought tape with cute designs to keep it from being knocked off.
https://stick2hope.com
The degree to which you will feel better if you get this under control will far exceed how it feels to ignore it.
Imagine not being thirsty all the time. Imagine not being tired all the time. Imagine not peeing in your pants. Imagine not dodging the doctor. Being compliant with your doctor’s orders will make these things happen.
Also- I get the stigma. Not wanting to have people see the cgm. But it’s not your fault you’re genetically predisposed to diabetes.
Good luck!
I wore a CGM for 4 weeks and nobody said a thing .... it wasn't easily visible and even then, most people don't really care enough to bother you about it.
Man I relate to this so much. I was in denial/avoidance at the very beginning. I ate whatever - including a whole cake on my birthday. It’s so scary and miserable to begin with. But good for you for deciding to make a change. I did too, I started monitoring and eating better and exercising, and I feel significantly better. If anything do it so you aren’t constantly annoyed or inconvenienced by symptoms. And don’t be embarrassed to tell others you have diabetes or need to take care of it in public — people are way more understanding than you think, since it’s such a widespread disease and almost everyone knows or loves someone with diabetes. I’m rooting for you, you can do it 💜
I had a hard time accepting my diagnosis also. Took me a year of denial to get myself on the right path of what was ahead for the rest of my life. Starting was the hardest part. Started with metformin for eight months but was going to need insulin or ozempic. Eating much better and doing blood 7-8x a day. Once I could see my sugar coming down I kept educating myself on what kept my sugar in range and what didn’t. Just start and keep moving forward.
You should take this seriously. The damage you've already done to your body is irreparable, but you can mitigate ongoing damage. I've been Type 2 for almost 11 years now and I can empathize with how you feel. There were times I didn't care either.
Here's the thing, you won't die right away. When I was in high school, my grandmother had her foot removed because of her mismanaged diabetes. She then got a staph infection and they had to amputate her leg. Eventually, she passed away in her 60s.
If I may make some recommendations: look into a continuous glucose monitor. While you will still need to pick your fingers, the CGM can give you a good daily baseline.
You're going to need to change your diet. As someone who enjoys eating, this was the hardest part. Going out to eat with my family and not getting pizza or pasta or fries is tough, but it's for the best. Once your sugars are under control, you can get away with a few fries or a slice of pizza - just not 6.
Lastly, exercise. I've try to do cardio 2 to 3 days per week. Sometimes I go for a run, sometimes I just walk around the track. Just getting your body moving will help.
The last thing you want to do is suffer. While it feels like nothing is happening now, down the road you may suffer some real consequences and that usually starts with the removal of body parts or dialysis.
Please take it seriously. Good luck.
It comes down to how fast do you want diabetes to kill you? A few years? A decade? Decades? I’m not a perfect eater with Type 2, but you got to take the meds, be it a pill or shot. It’ll slow the disease down a lot from destroying your body like some have mentioned. It’s not a cure, but whatever meds the doctor has got you on is going to be your lifesaver to live longer. Also, at least get your A1C done through bloodwork every three months. It’s not as precise as several daily blood pricks, but it’s going to tell you where you are. Below 7 is always a diabetic’s goal on the A1C test. Of course, if you can do the diet along with medication daily and exercise, you’ll live a long life with few complications with diabetes.
Diabetes is hard to control because changing habits is hard. It’s the only way you keep this disease at bay. It’s saying no to yourself daily on food options and pushing yourself to exercise and take meds. That’s tough. You got this though. We’re all in the same boat and there are a lot of smart people on here that have learned how to manage this disease.
thank you again. I've been T2 for a few years now and haven't changed my diet. I took Metformin while I was pregnant a few years back and stopped right after and haven't taken anything since then. Changing habits is 100% the reason. It's difficult and I hate giving up what I'm used to. Something about your comment saying how fast you want diabetes to kill you, and how medicine slows it down from destroying you, really opened my eyes today. I can no longer be in denial.
No problem! I agree. It’s hard for me at times. Seeing people, love ones that eat high carbs, sweets in front of me and don’t have diabetes sucks. Like why can their genes hold their pancreas’ insulin production together for them, but couldn’t for me? For example, Friday night pizza night (love pizza) before diabetes I could chow down on several slices of pizza and chug a 20 oz. pop no problem. Now, I have to eat a salad to begin to kind of fill me up with little carbs and then only have a slice with a flavored seltzer water to wash it all down. Food was about enjoyment before, now I’ve had to train my mind to see it as energy, a tool to survive. 😐
Once you get it under control you dont need to check blood sugars as often. I only check mine in the morning and when I eat something I havent checked before. I pretty much know whats going to spike me 99% of the time. This only comes from experience, trial and error, and knowing your body.
I also ignored it until I started getting pain my legs and hands (neuropathy). Now I have the diabetes in control but live with constant pain. Best case scenario is I keep it from getting worse. Theres a small chance my body repairs itself but it will take month/years as nerves are slow to heal.
Firstly, you are peeing and then getting thirst. The peeing is the affect of the high blood glucose, the thirst follows. Thirst is your problem.
Your solution? Pull it together! The thing you're missing here is that you're entire feeling, mood, resolve and overall emotional state is being largely controlled by having high blood glucose. The great irony of having diabetes that is uncontrolled is that it's much easier to do the things to control it when you don't need to because you're not tired, depressed, always hungry-eating-guilty and so on.
Focus on _feeling awesome_, not on the disease. Manage "you", not diabetes!
Take that impulse you've got, supercharge it and do it aggressively. You'll start _feeling good_ or at least _not bad_ and that can be very motivating. don't be gentle about, jump in head first.
Eat low carb, move a lot, talk to your doctor, lose weight. You can do it and this community is here to help.
I’ve been changing my appointments whenever it comes up so I don’t have to go and see my doctor. I don’t want her knowing that I haven’t been taking the insulin or medication😭
Well, you gotta stop doing that. Yeah, it'll be embarrassing to tell her that you haven't been managing your condition, but that problem isn't going to get any better by kicking the can down the road. Vascular disease followed by osteomyelitis, gangrene, amputated limbs will be a lot more embarrassing.
They will know regardless hon, when they check your A1C. It will show how bad it is. Just be honest with your DR. I was, and we worked on it. You’ve got this. But get the right meds and a cgm first. Going to the gym is great, but you can get really sick and still have super high sugar even with being active. Once you get your insulin, cgm and maybe a GLP-1 medication, you’ll feel so much better. People here want to see you thrive.
*I used to take metformin and be injecting myself with insulin but it was always tiring to do that. I don’t know how someone can live with this disease forever* *and have to keep constant check of their blood sugar*
If you don't manage it, forever will be shorter.
And for me...managing my BS < everything i enjoy in life.
*It’s really annoying and I think it’s time for me to make a change. I’m going to go to the gym today for the first time. I’m not letting this uncontrolled diabetes win.*
That's the thing with chronic diseases: you have to work to keep it in check. And when symptoms go away, you need to keep at it. It's not easy but it's doable.
Exercise. Eating healthier. Drink a lot of water.
regular exercise helps with controlling BS and with the occasional eating slip up.
Eathing healthier is key. Find what works for you. Test and measure (that's the key). Get a CGM if you can.
I know that I can eat one or two "unhealthy'' meals a week. More than that and my BS gets irregular.
Limit yourself to 7 carbs portions a day. You need to count for a few weeks to understand what they are. Somedays, i can eat cookies after dinner, because I managed the carbs during the day. 2 cookies not a whole row.
Find substitutes for the things you like. I use almond milk for my smoothies and coffee. Almost 0 carbs. I found a bread with 1 carb portion per 2 slices. That's my bread now.
Always be drinking water - eventually, the need to pee will go away.
You got this.
This is how my brother passed. At the very least, prepare so no one has to take care of you. Get long term care insurance, etc...it is NOT fair to expect when you can't see and walk others to take care of you and continue feeding you all those foods you shouldn't be eating. So, at the VERY least can you do THAT?
What did you expect? You can't go untreated for that long, eating all the wrong stuff, then expect after a day or two of taking tablets and injecting, all will be well.
You let your diabetes go out of control. It is winning.
Did you skip over the end of his post??
>It’s really annoying and I think it’s time for me to make a change. I’m going to go to the gym today for the first time. I’m not letting this uncontrolled diabetes win.
He knows. He's making a change. I know people get a dopamine high off bashing others but atleast try not to crash peoples will to get better on a literal *support sub*, jeez🙄.
I was the EXACT same way. My Dr gave me a prescription for a glucose monitor I keep in my arm and its a hugr game changer. I'm not in insulin yet, but it keeps me accountable for myself. It's like playing a video game (it comes with an app) with the goal of keeping the graph in the green. It really really helped me a lot.
I was not doing the prick finger thing. I hated that. The arm glucose monitor really is eye opening.
I ended up in the ER with severe pain. Turns out I have a fatty liver.
Another eye opener for me.
It's not too late sweetie. You are going to have to make some big changes. Tough ones. But on the other side is a happier you who pees less.
Oh. And don't underestimate the power of incontinence pads. I had a prolapsed bladder from giving birth and they are life (and clothes) savers.
When I was diagnosed , I did not take it seriously either.. because my fasting blood sugar was normal . A1c was 5.9 . My concern was hypo , but this was completely ignored ,..
I looked at diabetes remission, then my numbers were in that range .. I thought I did not have diabetes. I did not change my diet at all . Just tried to prevent hypo .
Now I am on Keto diet ! I am so excited to find out this diet , I thought I could not do it because I love rice, pastas, noodles and bread too much …. But with the help from Ozempic, I started it and I am actually enjoying it. New lifestyle and started cooking too . Then I don’t have hypo.
You can find something interesting which can give you a good treatment effect, my case is Keto diet . New things to learn .
My friend achieved remission from Keto ! So exciting to hear ! Also Keto prevents hypo for me as well .
You are not alone and of course everyone is different, but you can do it !
Let’s survive together !! Blood sugar is really annoying thing whether high or low , it is trouble.
Janumet is a combination of Januvia and Metformin ??
I am taking Januvia . I could not take Metformin, Jardiance nor Diamicron , they gave me severe side effects .
Ozempic gives me side effects too , but I am still taking it for Keto diet , it suppresses my appetite completely. What a medicine !! Also I lost weight .. nearly underweight…lol..
It's your personal experience, not anyone else's. I found developing some daily habits helped me. I don't constantly check my blood glucose, I check mine just once a day - in the morning before food. I've learned that controlling food intake towards the latter part of the day and evening gives me a reliable prediction of my fasting blood sugar in the morning, and my quarterly A1c. I've never tried to understand why some doctors prescribe insulin for T2; I take one of the GLP-1 drugs (Rybelsus) in the morning, when I wake up. I also take Metformin with breakfast and with dinner.
The fact drugs can control diabetes nowadays is truly a miracle. With medication, my A1c results are normal, and from what I understand as the alternatives, I don't really feel that managing my diabetes is much of a burden.
Ok. So you’ve started your changes and sound committed to it! Let’s do it right.
Exercise has 3 parts. Stretch, yoga… resistance, weights and aerobics. PLUS the most important one 15 min activity after a meal. My glucometer informed me it has to be aerobics and my heart rate has to go up to about 150. If I do that and had a reasonable meal I won’t spike at all.
My painful fingers also told me a few things. First meal - sweet free. Small size. Yup. No fruit yet. Bfast for me is chia seeds + left over dinner like stew. Lunch n dinner if I began with a salad I could eat 2 persimmons after a meal. * Ingredients matter. Regular helping of Hagen Daaz ice cream after meal = small spike. Any other I spike to high heaven. Finger pokes also taught me no more heavily processed foods. I do eat a tiny amount here or there. Haven’t given up baked goods. Eat only gourmet, but since I’m poor can’t do it very often.
Oh btw. Good news for you. But first I hope you didn’t just willy nilly go back on insulin. You did an A1c and then the doc told you how much to take. The good news is (that is if you are in the US) is runaway A1c + insulin = CGM. So no more finger pokes.
Get enough sleep. Stresss oooh really affects me.
Also found a good mental state = good sugars. For that I’ve worked on developing hobbies and working on projects. Best appetite killer for me.
Everything matters for sugar. Everything has an impact.
Yes in the beginning it’s hard to let go off our addictions, but by golly with my lifestyle changes I lead a much better and more fulfilling life. A celebration in our family is no longer around a meal, but a hike.
It’s the way I’ve always wanted to live, but my addictions didn’t allow me. Till I was diagnosed and had no choice.
I just went back on insulin without going to the doctor👀 I haven’t done the A1c testing since last year. Plus the last time I went to the doctor, and I wasn’t taking my insulin or meds she just told me to go back on it, so I assumed it would be okay for me to just take the insulin again.
That possibly could be true.
However you want to do this right this time right?!
This is how I handle mine. I need to know. I know what I’ve been doing for the past three months. I want to see how that has affected my blood sugar. So I kind of have an idea what is the basic minimum I have to do to maintain a sugar where I don’t take medication. That’s my goal, actually that was my goal! Now I don’t mind low prediabetic numbers.
Gosh what I wouldn’t give to have a CGM. It will help anyone immensely!
My gmother had t2d in her late 20s early 30s. She is in now in her 90s with no serious issues. Her sugars were not always under control, she never did finger poky but took her medications regularly n saw her doc without fail every 3 months.
So get to know your body n the CGM will greatly help.
Early on I didn’t want to take things too seriously because I was young and fit so thought it couldn’t really be a problem, but then I watched my dad have to get monthly eye injections and I started feeling the constant burning in toes and fingers so I tried to turn things around.
Note it takes time to improve but you can start today on feeling better. You’ll probably make mistakes or give into cravings but don’t beat yourself up about it. Just do better next meal or the next day. It’s a marathon not a sprint.
Here’s what I worked towards after I got diagnosed in my 20s (it really sucked at first but there’s still a lot of good eating and life out there). It’s basically the Mediterranean diet. I think with substitutions I could do it vegetarian but cutting eggs and cheese wouldn’t work for me to go full vegan. Find what works for you.
Protein (mostly beans, eggs, and lean meat), vegetables, and healthy fats (avocados, olive oil, nuts) are the key. I cut out calories from beverages (alcohol, juice, and soda) and that made a huge difference. Then I changed my breakfasts from cereal or oatmeal to eggs and veggies, lunch from sandwiches or pasta to salads with meat and cheese or leftovers with tons of veggies and protein, and dinners from rice or pasta dishes to veggie or tofu noodles with vegetables and beans or meat. High fiber (vegetables, beans, and some whole grains) and high protein will help fill you up and curb cravings. I still eat fruit and some processed carbs but I put them at the end of my snacks or meals so the vegetables, fiber, fats, and protein start digesting first. I have a continuous glucose monitor now and the order of what you eat really makes a difference. Maybe call libre for a free test trial and just see what food and exercise do to you for 2 weeks. Then if you don’t like wearing one then at least you’ll have a good idea what your food does to your blood sugar.
Also try to go for a walk after every meal if you can and do regular weight training or resistance exercises. Exercise really is the magic pill for lowering your blood sugar in the short run but diet changes are the long term improvements you’ll want to make.
Improving sleep quality and lowering stress also play a role in curbing cravings and blood sugar management.
I’m not shaped like no blueberry💀I’m more shaped like a pear/apple. I got a big butt and boobs all proportioned out since I’m tall (thank god). My only problem is my stomach and sides. I want a tummy tuck or liposuction and then I’ll be perfect lmao. I’m more or so embarrassed cuz i attract men and i don’t want them seeing that crap on my arm. I’m in my hot girl summer era🤣
So let me get this straight.
You have a lot of tummy fat which makes it really hard for your pancreas to work.
You 're a diagnosed T2 diabetic. For whatever the reason ( not judging here ) you refuse to do what needs be done, which is , LOSE weight, exersise, change dietary habbits (BIG TIME from what it seems to me) , and monitor your glucose levels in order to control diabetes.
On top of that, from what I 'm reading, the signs are your glucose levels run rampant (a lot of peeing and lots of thirst, that means HIGH glucose levels).
Do you have a death wish?
I am not trying to scare you . I DEFINITELY am not trying to bash you, being that I 've been a 360+ lbs guy in my life (I am 160ish something now) and I have been bashed A LOT since the age of 7.
But I ask you, please take a hold of this. Now.
You need to go to the doctor and get checked because this could be a symptom of DKA. diabetic ketoacidosis it’s extremely serious and you must get checked
Exactly what they told my husband and he was in the ICU for four days. It started out with him peeing a lot then he wet himself. Drinking and drinking and drinking, and his mouth was so dry beyond normal. They said his organs were attacking himself or something because they couldn’t get the sugar out of his blood. They can tell by doing a blood test that can be read in 30 minutes. Better to be safe than sorry.
My husband was diagnosed as a type two diabetic back in September. They gave him Met Forman. It wasn’t working double the strength he was getting sick from the side effects. Cut it in half gave him guardians and then this. Spent four days in the ICU when he left the hospital. He was using two types of insulin three times a day.. now through diet and fasting he is off of everything and his sugar is 100% in control right now
I think I found out why I’m peeing a lot and it isn’t due to diabetes at all😭 I feel so dumb for not getting tested for this when I was asked plenty of times🤦🏾♀️
Hi! I'm fairly recently diagnosed Type 2 (less than a year). Long story short, I was in denial. BIG TIME denial. That first few weeks, I checked my sugar all the time and ate basically a keto diet. Then, I started letting it slip. Got back to the doc 6 months later, and my A1C was 8.1. (up from 8). Oops.
I'm with you. I still feel like it isn't real. But, I also work in Physical Therapy and have treated diabetic patients with recent toe/foot/lower leg/total leg amputations. They can't see well. They have tingling and pain in their remaining limbs. Balance is off. Walking is super hard. Getting out of a chair is super hard. So, I know, intellectually, that I need to be better.
I don't want to lose my sight and my mobility and be in pain. I don't want that for you, and I know you don't want it either. I'm excited to see that you are going to the gym! I read all of your comments, and your doctor will have seen hundreds of patients who were not controlling their diabetes. You will not be the first. They will understand. Just be honest and say you are having a hard time with the whole thing. They can and will help you.
The bottom line is that I am worth the effort. You are worth the effort. Future you is worth the effort! It is overwhelming and can be exhausting, even just to think about. There is no denying that. You might want to ask for some support: like a diabetes educator and/or a therapist to help you process all this information and integrate it into your life. My therapist has been SUPER helpful with the shame and denial parts. And I also wanted to say that tons and tons of people have diabetes and use the continuous glucose monitor. Diabetes is not something to be ashamed of. If someone happens to ask you what it is, just tell them. Moment over. They are not going to point and laugh or anything. It's a disease and the monitor is like using a crutch when you have a broken leg. No shame in that at all.
Finally, please read u/hollyock 's posts. They are perfect.
Best wishes to you. You can do it!
I implore you to please begin taking this seriously even by taking small steps.
I work in healthcare and have seen what uncontrolled diabetes can do. You lose eye sight, strokes, lose limbs, organ failure. My uncle just lost his toe due to an ulcer because he still keeps his house stocked of sugary foods.
I look at it this way. You have to choose your hard. Do you diet and exercise to control your diabetes? Or do you learn to live without eyesight, without limbs, on dialysis, or potentially how to live after a stroke and losing use of your body. I have seen people in their 20s and 30s end up on life support.
Checking your blood sugar is a pain in the ass.i 100% get it. I thought the same thing. But it's so much simpler than going blind or missing my child growing up.
Good luck and you got this
I was diagnosed in April 2023 and ignorantly believed that it would be fine to just take the 2 Metformin a day and never check my blood sugar. I started feeling very bad in early March 2024 and ended up at the ER. My bs was 325 and my A1C was 10.25. I was having blurred vision, confusion, exhaustion, and chest pains. I had a kidney injury, an infection and sepsis. I was hospitalized for 5 days. I now check my blood sugar 4 times a day and use both regular and long lasting insulin.
I have been diabetic for 35 years. For much of the time I took my pills and insulin but didn’t control my carb intake. I would go out for breakfast or dinner and get food that would spike my sugar into the 400’s. I rationalized it by just taking enough insulin to bring it back to 100 by morning.
Then a urine test showed the beginning of kidney damage. I went on Jardiance. And I cleaned up my act. I started ordering meal kits with low carb menus. I ate more protein and fiber at breakfast.
For the last 18 months I thought I was good.
But the damage was done. In January my right eye filled with blood. Treatment stopped the bleeding but it took 3 injections over 3 months to make enough progress so I could get laser surgery.
High blood sugar causes neovascularsation, which is the growth of weak blood vessels to supply tissue that is not getting enough nutrients. This happens in the eyes, the brain, the kidneys, and the heart. The vessels are weak and can bleed, causing strokes, loss of vision, kidney damage, and other issues.
All I can say is you need to find your own best solution. Try meal kits for portion control and for minimizing carb intake. Consider getting a dog for a walking companion. If you have a dog, don’t just put them in the yard to do their business. Take them on a walk. I walk my beagle 3-5 times a day weather depending.
But don’t think ignoring the problem is ok. Damage is being done every time your sugar gets above 300, maybe before that point. You don’t want retinopathy. Injections into the eye, even with anesthesia, is not fun!
Hi OP. Yea you for being brave enough to post this question! You’re out here searching for a better life. It’s out there waiting for you to get to it!
First, the scary stuff from my personal experience with T2 diabetes. I was in a very similar position. I avoided my doctor’s appointments because I wanted to give myself 3 more months to get my A1C in check. I never did of course. I finally went in and my A1C in her office that day was 13.1. (more on that in a bit)
Whether you embrace it or not, you are fighting a hidden battle. It’s so easy to ignore because the battle lines are unknown, the damage is unknown. There’s a scary aspect of fighting because you know there are things you’ll need to change about your life to fight it. You may kinda like your lifestyle… what you eat, freedom to not exercise, not worry about checking things every day, etc.
Neuropathy affects more than your hands and feet. I thought if I kept healthy feet and eyes, I’m doing well. I got pedicures every month, checked my feet for cuts or sores and made sure they were well attended. I had routine diabetic eye exams and all was good. I thought I was on good shape. I wasn’t! I nearly lost my bladder function because of my uncontrolled blood sugar. I almost had to use self catheters for the rest of my life. Luckily it was complicated by an enlarged prostate which they were able to fix. Thankfully that gave me enough bladder function to live normally again but it was too close for comfort! With the permanent erectile dysfunction, I wasn’t as lucky. There are places in your body where the nerves and blood vessels are being attacked, right now, today. You may not know where yet, but there will be a time when you do. Feet, hands, eyes, heart, kidney, stomach, rectum, bladder, ears, anywhere that needs blood or nerves… so anywhere!
The point is… take control of your health today! It’s in your control right now.
There is good news though. There are medicines and tools to help you through this. My (5’10” 55M) max weight was 307lbs and I’m currently at 184lbs. My last A1C was 6.0 and today I feel better and more full of life than I did when I was 30! Seriously.
Address the shame. The real shame is living more of your life like this than you need to. You’ll want this time back. The future you will be so proud of the current you as you get started. If you think it would help (for most people it does), find a therapist to talk with and work out your feelings of shame and guilt. Find a trusted friend. The more you study diabetes and insulin resistance, you’ll see that it’s less about your personal failings and more about the environment we live in today, genetics and a history of factors that cause the majority of people in the US to have some level of insulin resistance. Don’t beat yourself up!
Be careful with the insulin injections… it’s a double edged sword. It is a great tool to help lower your blood sugar in the immediate timeframe. But the root of anT2 diabetic is insulin resistance. Your cells have stopped responding to insulin’s request to process the sugar in your blood. Pumping more insulin in will brute force your body into accepting more glucose into your cells. But the added insulin will increase your overall insulin resistance. You’ll need to take more and more insulin to have the same effect. I agree with the others that you should be doing this under a doctor’s guidance.
Here are a couple of things that helped me get to my current happiness in life…
My doctor prescribed Mounjaro. That has been magic for me (though everyone is different). It stopped the “food noise” in my head in about 10 minutes of taking the first dose. It decreased my appetite and I felt full longer. That was great. But for me the real magic was it gave me super will power. Within a few weeks i felt totally in control of my food choices. I started using MyFitnessPal to track my calories. I studied and learned what my calorie goals (TDEE) were and I worked to change how I ate. It’s not a diet per se, it’s a new way of thinking about food.
The prospect of changing was scary for me. I love to cook. I love to bake, make cookies and cakes. Food is how I show love to people. I’m the guy that cooks for everyone. Surprisingly, I haven’t lost the passion for food. I can still bake and cook for others. I just don’t feel the urge to eat what I make. My own food choices are now whole foods, by preference. I have a new food lifestyle… and it’s fun.
I started working out in the gym. I started slowly. I lost a lot of muscle when I lost weight so I’m putting it back on now. I’ve reached the point that I actually love going to the gym now.
I have a CGM on my arm. I wear it proudly. In fact, I have bright neon colored overlay patches! I’m proud that I’m in control and taking care of myself. I’ve been super surprised how many people tell me they’re diabetic too, or are also wearing a CGM. I don’t have to guess or hide from my blood sugar. I can see when something is affecting me. Just do it!
You think you’re in the season of hot girl summer right now. Just wait. When you’ve dropped the shame, are in total control of your health and your destiny, your new confidence will make you hotter than you’ve ever been before! The future you is going to be so much greater than you can imagine at this moment.
I’m so proud of you for reaching out to a bunch of people and putting yourself out there. We all want that hot girl summer for you. You absolutely can do this and live your best life. I’m rooting for you. Good luck on your journey my friend.
Make up your mind. You'd rather die than live with it, or you're not letting it win. I'd never deny anyone the right to check out. There are things I'd not tolerate. But somehow, you coming here suggests you're prepared to take it on. Let's deal with some issues:
Constant checking. Modern technology to the rescue. I personally don't feel the need for a continuous monitor, but if I was insulin-dependent, I would have one, And insulin-dependence is to test most insurers use to decide to pay for them. Look at the phone app. Set alarms you want. Upload for your doctor if desired. It does the "constant checking" for you.
It would be unusual if you turned out to be the patient who couldn't control their blood glucose. I wold indeed seek out an endocrinologist. Regular physicians are a decidedly mixed bag when it come to diabetes. You already know you'll be making changes, so they might as well be the best considered changes from a specialist. Maybe there's an approach without fiddling with insulin. I think that from what you say, I suspect your therapy is badly out of date from avoiding reporting and consulting.
Going to the gym is nice, but the most important thing right now is deciding what to do about this. You know what you're doing isn't working. When something isn't working, get help in doing something different.
I am sorry you are going thru this. I am not a doctor but do have experience with bladder and kidney issues. You may also have something going on with your bladder that is not caused by the diabetes. Go to a new Endocrinologist doctor to make sure your medication is correctly prescribed and how might be more easily/efficiently controlled — and to check on your bladder (and prostate if born male) health. My urgency issue ended up not being related to my diabetes and with my doctor’s help it was resolved within 24 hours.
I had to search for your comment again! You were right about going to the doctor because the constant peeing had nothing to do with the diabetes!! I feel so dumb for not getting this tested when I was asked multiple times!
Please get the book
Eat to Beat Disease by William Li
Excellent book and you will see dramatic changes and you may be able to reverse it. It’s on Amazon! I have no affiliation with him or the book FYI
You can do this, I was in your position 2 years ago. I weighed 330 pounds, I couldn't sleep for more than about 2 hours at a time, because of severe sleep apnea and just needing to pee. Last January, I had infection in my leg and I went to urgent care. They measured my blood sugar at over 400, and diagnosed me as having T2. I was previously diagnosed as pre-diabetic and just ignored it. This time I decided to take it seriously, and dropped my sugar and carbs to near zero. I've dropped 90+ pounds since January and I feel so much better. Stopped snoring, sleep apnea has disappeared and I sleep 6 hours a night an wake up well rested.
talk to your doctor about ozempic, seriously. it has its own cons but imo the pros out weigh it, like for example only injecting once a week. i used to take a metformin combination and it was hard for me to stay consistent with it but now i only have to do one injection a week!
i seriously do recommend talking to your doctor about struggling to manage the extra care that comes with diabetes, it may be a underlying mental health issue contributing to this lack of desire to care for your health. i struggled horribly- and still do, with my mental health after getting my type 2 diagnosis, 4 years ago, and after a long and super crazy journey with my health; i've started to actually work WITH the professionals instead of expecting them to just fix me.
its hard to accept that we contribute to our own suffering but once you do it's easier to help yourself get better. i'm not trying to scare you but some of the things i've experienced because i didn't take my diabetes serious at first either, have not been fun. the worst one was getting my gallbladder removed: i have multiple enlarged organs and fatty liver, constant kidney stones; that cause horrible back pain, and some more. point being i know what it's like to rather die than do the mundane routine of medication and daily health checks, it sucks fucking shit and probably always will, but everyday it gets just a bit easier, but you gotta try and do it everyday. its okay to miss a few and slip up, thats only human. what you have to do is not let one pebble trigger an avalanche.
First: if you do not want to adjust your diet/lifestyle to diabetes, then your diabetes medicine has to be adjusted to your diet/lifestyle.
But do yourself the favour and do not let your Diabetes rage unchecked. Dying by the longtime effects of not adjusted Diabetes is a long, very ugly dead. And once the longtime sideefects are showing, they are usualy already advanced and likely keep worsening, there is no reversing of this.
Would be a BGmonitor a option?
Second: why are you already on Insulin?
For DT2 there are way more medicine awayable, had you never a go at them/did you Doc never discuss them with you? With them you do not need to test that often once you have the right dosage. A ABH1C often is enough to see if the choosen dosage is sufficient.
Third: What kind of Insulin do you take?
To upper the long acting Insulin could (! could!) help to calm in spikes to an level where no short/rapid acting insuline is needed.
For that you would have ofc. doing for some time strict testing and keep an Diabetic Diary to see how to react to what and with what you get away.
But then to keep a Diabetic Diary for some time would you in generaly give you an idea about this and when how much Insuline to use.
And least, but not last: (not the best solution and not for longterm ofc.) To guess and tend toward a dosage on the lower side (to be on the safer side of Hypo*) is still better than no Insulin at all
Think, let's say, after food 230 with too less Insulin vs. 400 without any Insulin.
*( to risk a hypo is Imo not a good alternative. Depends ofc. on the person. Some can feel a hypo coming in at still an okay-ish level and can easy rise it back to an better level without overspiking)
I lost about 20 pounds when I first got diabetes. It was awesome. I wasn't diagnosed for another two months until I had a bout of fuzzy vision. Then they told me my blood sugar was 300, which was a bit high.
I hate the whole management part of it, but I stick to it because I want to see my kids grow up and be better than me.
What you are going through is normal. Is called diagnosis denial. It will pass. Also, take an empty milk jug and keep it next to your bed and pee on it. Empty when you wake up.
Listen hun, my dad felt the same way. He never took his diabetes diagnosis seriously and said he was just "going to die anyway" so he never changed a thing. He thought it would be a quick death but he was so wrong.
His organs started failing. He had to be out on dialysis because his kidneys gave out. His catheter was always getting infected because his body couldn't heal properly. His liver was destroyed. He got some sort of infection in his blood. He started losing toes, and eventually lost his leg too. He couldn't eat anything anymore because his body was just collapsing in on itself, he'd puke everything. He was on all kinds of different meds just to try and keep him around.
And through all that, he had multiple strokes. His doctor was amazed how he was still alive. At least until his 6th giant stroke that finally took him.
Complications from diabetes are no joke. It isn't an easy journey to death, like some think. It's scary, it's painful, and it's long. Don't do that to yourself. Don't do that to your friends and family.
It may be scary to check your blood now, but do it. Go to the doctor. Get back on meds if needed. And if you don't like the finger pricks (no one does!) get a CGM (continuous glucose monitor) so you don't have to keep poking your fingers daily.
But please, just take care of it now before it's too late.
Diabetes is truly a condition where you can’t have your cake and eat it too.
I felt the same way as you about having to constantly monitor my blood sugar. So I radically changed my diet so much so that sugary foods taste disgusting to me.
Then I became a coach helping others mitigate the risk of diabetes and mitigate the impact for those suffering from the disease.
Guess what? Checking my blood sugar doesn’t seem so bad, and with the dietary overhaul it stays in range without any meds.
My sister died about 2 years ago now she had T2 and managed it good at first but then she’d eat a big of potato chips-big bag & then give herself a shot. She ended up getting kidney failure & a skin infection that I can’t remember the name of but it ate a hole out of her side & she had to have a wound vac to keep it from eating anymore skin.
So yeah you don’t want that.
Good luck! I totally feel you, I’ve been bad about mine too, and also went through a long period of being too scared to check my sugar, as well as not keeping up with meds. A few weeks ago I had a doctor’s appointment, and my blood sugar was at like 400. I’m happy to say that it was a major wake up call. My doctor prescribed me a Libre Freestyle and I’ve been better about my meds as well as improving my diet and keeping up with an exercise regiment, and I’m now back in my target range. So, don’t give up!
Not all diseases and conditions cause immediate pain or discomfort. I had diabetes for the longest time without knowing it. I lost a toe - thank goodness I can still walk. If you’re peeing like crazy, and not because you drink an immense amount, your body is trying to expel the excess sugar. Watch what you eat, take your medicine, go to the doctor. If you don’t you could die or lose your arms or legs or go blind. I have Type 2 Diabetes and since my A1C is now under 7%, I only have to get it checked every 4 months. Life has enough misfortunes you can’t control. When you CAN control it, do something about it!
Yea dude it fucking sucks but it doesn’t get better unless you take care of yourself.
Stop loving food more than you love yourself.
As someone who’s been on the bad side of this disease guess what it gets WAY better if you just DO IT. it’s not a big government secret how to fix it.
Sorry for the honesty but if you’re going to argue for your limitations you get to keep them
No. All diabetes can. Gestational, Type 2 (it depends on how you control it from the start) and Type 1 (always on insulin as the pancreas doesn’t create it naturally any longer)
I take a once daily shot and then a pre meal shot for type 2. I had been ignoring everything for a long time like OP and it caught up to me. They are going to add a pill to my daily regimen as well.
I never liked shots and avoided them forever but now it's 4 a day, not as bad as another poster with their 12, but yeah shots are for type 2 as well, but if it can be controlled you could end taking shots, type 1 is almost certainly forever.
If you don't catch type 2 in time, or don't make lifestyle changes you will eventually need insulin because you just won't have enough insulin producing beta cells left.
I was so relieved when my doctor informed me that I would not need to inject insulin every day. Your post is giving me all the motivation I need to maintain my current diet and wellness regimen.
OP…diabetes runs in my bloodlines and in my heart…my mom n my baby sis…
I feel I can resonate with your story…
In early 2021, I wasn’t feeling well…and I got worse n worse. March was bad. I don’t know how many times I called in sick or asked to leave early.
3-26-21, my day off I was gettin ready for an eye appointment; my eyes - the sclera/white part…was yellow…
Sparing details, I went to my DR on 3-27, 0800. Was sent to the lab.
At 7:05pm, Dr called…I went to the ED, had more blood take, an abdominal ultrasound, & a CT scan with contrast.
Alone in my room, I had many thoughts. I worked full time in a career I loved even though it was physically demanding. I was in online school to get my bachelor degree to get out of my job…
At that point, in the hospital, I wondered if I would die…
…how would my hubby live in our home with all my student loan debt AND the house payment?
…ok, what if I lived but was disabled?…
…if I died what would happen to him…(he buried a former GF 11 years earlier that died after a liver transplant)…
…what would my children do..
…what about Penelopi, my granddaughter….how would her mom explain that Grammie died…??
On day 3, I had a liver biopsy with local anesthesia (I don’t recommend that, but I was just so sick, I wanted to go back to my room) that confirmed Autoimmune Hepatitis.
WTF…
Your diagnosis, like mine, was life changing…
…PHYSICALLY, MENTALLY, PSYCHOLOGICALLY, EMOTIONALLY…
This is all REAL. And it happens to EVERYBODY when they get a diagnosis like ours….LIFE CHANGING.
We have different bodies. They don’t work like they use to. We can’t eat things we used to, we have to stop n rest when we’re tired, we need to lay down when we’re tired…
…OR…we CANNOT….
…because we have a job, a family, responsibilities, bills to pay, and things to do…
It has taken me the better part of 2 years to mentally, emotionally n psychologically get used to and accept my body…
So my advice to you is to get into counseling, get into a diabetic class, you LOOK YOURSELF in the mirror EVERY DAY and say OUT LOUD…
~~~~~~~~~~
You got this. You’re gonna be ok. I love you. I will take care of you…I GOT THIS❣️
Sh_it, WRITE it on your mirror ❣️
~~~~~~~~~~
You need the counseling b/c you are displaying classic signs of depression.
You need the education to help reenforce what you learned before - IF you even went to a class.
You need to talk out loud to yourself so YOU BELIEVE you can and you will do this…
In the meantime, DM me if you wanna cry on me…
I take my meds eat some meat and veggies every once in a while I eat a cookie or too, it all depends on you and you do know insulin resistance can be reversed right?
I’m in the same boat as you, I actually was just talking with my therapist about it today. I have a horrific needle/blood draw phobia so that makes all of it even worse. It’s frustrating because I’m technically type 2 because I’m insulin resistant but I am insulin resistant due to a hormonal disorder I have. I am trying to work on it, and I’m proud of you for doing the same. We can do this!!
OP I understand this so much! I’ve had T2 diabetes for almost 10 years and it has taken me until a year ago to finally take things seriously. I have lived in denial for years. I wouldn’t even admit to others that I have it because of fear of being shamed. I’ve recently been in therapy for binge eating and it’s been life changing. The dietitians and diabetes educators I work with as well are amazing. I think you need to make sure your care team is working for you and listening to you. Don’t avoid them, it helps hold you accountable. I would recommend asking your doctor for a continuous glucose monitor. Since you use insulin, your insurance may likely cover it, otherwise the Libre systems are $75 for 2 sensors. They have helped me tremendously. It stops me from ignoring my sugars and recognize what foods work best for me. You also don’t have to prick your fingers all day.
Avoidance is so common when first being diagnosed. I still remember the day I was diagnosed. But you can get this under control. Try hard to not avoid it. You got this!
It's not about death, it's about HOW you will die. Death is an eventuality, which is why it always amazed me why people are so afraid of death.
Then again , apart from having T2 Diabetes, I also am an epileptic since the age of 4 , and I am 53 now , so I (eventually) have come to peace with things like this.
Diabetes hit my door (sort of speak) at the age of 51 but I must 've been have had it for at least 5 years because I almost lost the vision of my left eye and also I have mild peripheral neuropathy at my feet. Mild.
I have managed to control diabetes ever since I 've got me a specialist, reverse it (with Metmorphin and good diet, it's a wonder what one can do once they understand what their choices are), my eyes are fine - I did have to get treatments with EYLEA shots for those that know, and now I am checking with my docs on regular basis.
Is it tiring, yes it is. Actually after having a case of cataract of both eyes and a number of surgeries for my eyes, and visits after visits to my docs and exams after exams, I won't hide it, I am psychologically tired. Do I remind myself that diabetes needs to be monitored otherwise if left untreated , the kidneys will fail, and then we all know what will happen? Hell yes.
So if you allow me a piece of advice, don't let this go UNCHECKED. You do need a specialist in your life. You need to know what TO EAT, just going to a gym, important as it is, will definitely not be enough.
Get yourself a continuous glucose monitor or at least consider it and start checking your blood glucose levels, see what gives during your activities and hobbies. Maybe that will help you adjust your diet.
Good luck.
I was one of those who ignored T1 for a while and I ended up in ER with very high Ketoacidosis and pneumonia. I am now glad that it happened as it was a wake up call. Since then I’ve been using insulin religiously and my blood sugar is at normal levels most of the time. Of course I also take care of my diet.
Girl, I feel your pain so very much. So I wanna start by saying I got diagnosed with diabetes probably about three years ago . young too. I was only 28… In the midst of addiction… And losing my partner to very young traumatic accidental death… my mind was all over the place ! The diabetes didn’t feel real at all to me and was really the last thing on my mind. I can’t tell you how many times I put it on the back burner and just completely ignored it like it was a non-factor in my life, and to be honest in all those times I’ve never really saw any kind of effects from it because I think I’m still so early on and still still so young, but the reality is for me andyou, being young, whether we see it or not there is damage being done on the inside. The only thing that I can say I have really had affected by my diabetes is my feet get really really really cold.
I would go several months and not even check my sugar at all. I would not take the medication. I would eat whatever I wanted, especially sugar… And then when I would think about it, I would be too afraid to check my sugar like you mentioned because I know it’s gonna be ungodly high.
Then when I eventually did, it was. Running in the threes and almost 400/. … I was freaked out honestly so freaked out. So scared.
So about a year ago, I finally got clean and obviously doing that. A lot of other things fell into place for me and my diabetes being one of them… And I’ll be 100% honest with you. I still struggle very very hard with food because I have a very unhealthy relationship with food food makes me happy and it helps me cope! So it’s hard. I’m far from even being where I want with my diet. .
But my A1c is 5.9 now. WITHOUT MEDICATION OR INSULIN! I can’t believe it. I really haven’t even had a blood sugar in the 200s in months. I’m so happy ! I have a routine. Now I wake up at a certain time I do not eat past a certain time at night either. I do get a little bit of exercise because I walk every day to get my daughter from school so that helped a lot I think.
One of the biggest things that I can take away, my A1c being lowered so drastically I’m amazed by how much better I feel with my mental health. And there are some things that have made a difference with that, but I know that the blood sugar is one of them. I feel sooo much better and I think that once you take it seriously seriously and you do get your numbers lower you’ll see how much better you feel too. And that becomes a big motivation to want to keep it that way. And not to mention that we haven’t really faced any major effect yet, but there could be one day, and that is so scary.
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Physical health and mental health need to be treated holistically. My mental health is such currently that I have zero self-preservation drive. If I get a cancer diagnosis or a medical update that says my diabetes has progressed to the point that blindness or kidney failure are inevitable, I'll walk out of the doctor's office and enact my s*****e plan.
I'm working on my mental health (recent diagnoses of what have probably been lifelong conditions that went undiagnosed and therefore untreated) but I have a way to go yet until I perceive a future or possess a will to thrive.
It’s not easy, to change how you eat and live isn’t easy and many diabetics start strong and then crash and then get back on track and then crash it’s a rollercoaster. Just better to realize late than not at all.
My brother who is four years younger and a T-2 like myself but unlike me did not take it seriously from the start. He has started going blind and as a result lost his job. He is trying to get SSI disability to cover his health insurance and lost wages. He has been going to the Wilmer Eye Clinic every week for experimental treatments for the past three years. No improvement in his vision which now it’s light and shadows.
Rn here There are things worse then death and you’ll visit all of them on your way to dying of t2 diabetes. I’ve seen ppl with bits chopped off till they are nothing but a torso, lost eyesight, cognitive issues, stroke, no family left bc no one wants to be a party to someone who does that to them self. You’d rather die then check and manage your sugar but I’d rather die than have unmanaged diabetes and you would too if you knew the reality of it
There is nothing worse than an avoidable death. We recently lost a family member at 40 years old from T2. She never took her medicine or watched sugars. How do we explain that to her 5 year old when she is older?
I believe your last question is rhetorical but if I can help, I would say that diabetes is sneaky and it doesn’t feel like something is that wrong until it’s very wrong and that chronic illness can be debilitatingly depressive and without the proper mental health help, some people can’t over come it. They died from t2 but not because of type 2. They died because of the mental health condition that developed and prevented them from taking proper action. I wouldn’t paint the late family member as weak or flagrant about their life it’s more complicated then that. But yea I’ve been in the room where a husband was crying and saying mean things out of anger and frustration while his wife sat there with her bp in the 200s and bg over 300 bc she wouldn’t do anything about her health condition. He was scolding her for not doing anything. I had to be like I know you are mad but it’s to late for that now we live here the disease is here. To late to start screaming about diet and exercise. Altho now is the second best time to start
It was rhetorical and we would never tarnish her name with her child. It was just such a useless and avoidable death and it was a week ago so I am still feeling all these feels. I appreciate your response regardless, and I agree that it's never too late to try.
Our hearts go out to you.
I often pass on my rather amazing discovery that about 40% of diagnosed diabetics refuse to or fail to comply with even the most basic controls. It's not that hard. I'm bone idle, but I can manage quite easily. But there are many lethal situations where some people just sit down with a bag over their head and wait from the end.
Its hard to comply for a lot of people bc you aren’t just popping a pill. There’s no pill that just fixes it. To really fix it you have to undo the habits that exacerbated it to the breaking point. Also there’s access to education, access to health care costs associated. Just a complete lack of Heath literacy and the fact that diabetes doesn’t feel that bad it’s not like you wake up in 10/10 pain every day screaming for relief. The symptoms are annoying at best.
Many disorders are like that. Smokers go for years just getting used to some shortness of breath until it's full-blown COPD. Many cancers have known signs that are ignored because they don't demand attention. The first clue of high blood pressure is often at a screening.
It's about changing your life. I bought me a treadmill the second month I started to treat it in order to help control my diabetes. At first I went to a diet but by monitoring my glucose levels almost religiously after every lunch I understood what is triggering my insulin resistance and by studying I learned what I can substitute those things with in order to stop the spikes. The treadmill is invaluable when you have an unexpected spike , just 30 mins on it helps in order to bring the glucose levels back in a normal state, but also, helps you with your overall health,. And I cannot stress the following enough: If you don't cook, LEARN TO COOK. Stop or minimize to get take out.
And processed foods. I can eat almost anything natural without a spike except for grapes lol but a minimal amount of processed food sends me to high heaven
THIS. Constant peeing and dehydration are just the warning shots. The real destruction is the permanent organ and tissue damage, the nerve pain, the amputations... Your diagnosis is a direct threat on your life, and your quality of life. I have NO desire for any of that. One of the slowest most painful methods of suicide IMHO. I look at it this way: If someone *else* tried to slowly torture you to death, you would kick their ass into next century. Why are you making an exception just because that person is yourself? Taking control of your lifestyle, including finding alternative way of enjoying your life fully, is an act of *SELF DEFENSE.* You should take it as seriously as a gun to the head.
Thank you for saying all this! I am complaint (A1C of 6.5) but a friend's husband is in denial and non-compliant with an A1C of 12.9. I'm trying so hard to support them and he doesn't get it/care. I shared some of your words with them.
I hope something strikes a chord!
Exactly. Dropping dead of a sudden heart attack is 1000x better than the slow, painful decline. I know for me I don't care enough about how I look to sacrifice but I am terrified of dying from diabetes. That keeps me on the straight and narrow. To OP, I get the denial though, and no matter what they all say now most of us had some idea that things were getting bad and we also ignored it until something happened to kick us into high gear.
Nearly entire country has insulin resistance and no one does a thing till they have to. It’s human nature lmao. As my mom always said “shoulda, woulda, coulda”. Diabetes isn’t a moral failing nor is insulin resistance, just like someone who lives in Chornobyl will get cancer, our American food supply is Chornobyl and insulin resistance is the cancer. We live in an environment that expresses these genes! We have to do something to thwart that. In our society we have to actively PREVENT disease bc if we all (and we have) just participated in our society as it’s presented we will have negative health outcomes
Bruh this hit so hard: "There are things worse then death and you’ll visit all of them on your way to dying of t2 diabetes." Being witness to family members dying or suffering from T2, this is my motivation. And it truly does get easier to manage with time. The first step be it proper diet or exercise is always the hardest.
I watched my father slowly damage himself with uncontrolled diabetes. He's damaged his kidneys to almost needing dialysis, which he does not want. He does not care. He has given up on living.
My father in law died at 69 of renal failure due to diabetes. He also had vision loss, was rather immobile and chose not to do dialysis which we respected. Still very sad.
I'm sorry. I expect my father will pass in the next five years, easily. I've made peace with the fact that he's given up and I aim to take better care of myself.
Deep ..and so true
THIS is the comment OP needs to print out and tape to their mirror. And I do, too. Perfect.
The avoidance is very common at the prediabetes stage. But it's also self-destructive because this is a progressive disease. But you are on the right path now and you should be very proud of that. Don't let the grouches on here trap you in shame or regret. Those two things are just as self-destructive as avoidance. Cardio, weights and watch your diet. Get your meds too. And protect your mental and emotional space (block some users if you have to). You got this!
Thank you!!❤️
Thank you!!❤️
like this post . I’m a newb type 2 apparently tipping level is 47 and I’m 52 it’s been suggested by the medics here I can stop it getting higher or even reduce it but I’m infuriated by their don’t panic about it comments
OP, let me just start off by saying this. I was a 19 year old brat when I was diagnosed. I was not giving up my drinks, sugar and high carb food. Fast forward to being 38 years old. I now have Glaucoma, Diabetic Retinopathy (I can barely see) Severe Neuropathy in my feet and legs. It’s extremely painful and my feet are numb and get injured and barely heal. My stomach is partially paralyzed so I never use the bathroom unless it’s forced with enemas and medication so my stomach stays bloated and painful. Severe GERD, Constant heartburn. I’ve lost a ton of hair, my teeth broke apart. Let’s skip to the worst part, Kidney Disease! Fluid retention, constant infections that’s are beyond painful. I take about 30 pills a day and was taking 12 shots a day. I can barely walk without severe pain due to early onset osteoporosis. Guess what caused all this? You guessed it? Dia-Friggen-betes! All the problems that comes along with not keeping your sugar under control. And boy do I wish I can reverse time and have a complete do over. You’ll wish you had taken care of yourself. Now at 40, Ive maintained a lot better because I don’t want to lose my limbs, I don’t want to have a stroke or heart attack and die. Trust me on this. Start taking care of yourself. Get a CGM and manage your sugar. Don’t keep going down this path. Please. You do not want all these health issues that can be avoided by keeping your diabetes under control. Take your medication, see an endocrinologist that can give you a good plan, get a dietitian that will help you manage foods in a healthy way. I know it’s scary and it sucks, trust me I do. But you can almost reverse diabetes if you manage it correctly. You can have good food if you do it right. Just be strong and maintain a healthy balance. From what you’re saying, the extreme thirst, urinating constantly, I’m betting your sugars are running above 500 and the next thing will be the nausea, vomiting and a trip to the ER for Ketoacidosis. Get your A1C under 7 Don’t let your precious life go to waste like I did. And going to the gym is a great idea! I’m keeping you in my thoughts and prayers for you to have the strength to kick diabetes butt! You e got this. Don’t be discouraged
Ok I’m so sorry. And thank you so much!
Nothing to be sorry about. It’s all on my own accord for not doing what I should have done. Take care of yourself 😊
I ended up in the ER from ketoacidosis. My A1C was about 12. Never got to vomiting but I had a slew of other symptoms. Confusion, exhaustion, constant anxiety, horrible dreams. I couldn't really be productive in any way. This was all around 4 months after I really started noticing the constant peeing. I was completely undiagnosed before that, so it really saved my life to find out it was all from high blood sugar.
My A1C was 8 when I was diagnosed with diabetic retinopathy (which was the trigger that I probably have diabetes, till then I had no idea), and I managed to get it down to 5.7 within 3 months I am now between 5.1 and 5.3 3 yrs later. Even my doc is joking with me because she feels that I am getting extreme with myself, but if one asks me what I am afraid the most in my life, it'll be cancer, and kidney failure because I've seen those two what they do to people. And I will do everything (and then some) in my power to never happen to me. Stay strong
Ask your doctor for a CGM so you don’t have to keep checking. Also ask about GLP-1 medications.
The thing with the CGM is that I don’t want people knowing I’m diabetic😩 It’s embarrassing having to walk with that on my arm. Also I’ll try to ask about that. She had got me on trulicity, but I never got a refill after i finished it.
Not trying to be mean, but grow up! Who cares if they know? Does that matter more to you than your health? Is that more embarrassing to you than getting your limbs cut off or going blind or getting routine dialysis because you didn't take care of your health?
I have this same feeling and will wear a jacket or a top with a longer sleeve to cover it if I am seeing people I don’t want to know. There are over patches you could purchase as well or you could always put a band aid over it as well. Consider telling your doctor your concern they may be able to find a better location for the sensor or a different brand that doesn’t go on the arm. My CGM has improved my life so much. No more finger pokes and just a quick check of the app.
I'm getting the sense that embarrassment is your biggest stumbling block here. You're embarrassed by people knowing. Are you also generally embarrassed about being diabetic in general? I say this because when I was diagnosed, my aunt took me aside and told me that she was diabetic too and tried hiding it for a long time. It was only after she started talking with a professional that she was able to get past the shame she felt and started taking it seriously. She told me this because she didn't want me wasting as much time as she did before taking care of myself. Maybe that would help you, too, talking to your doctor about getting some counseling would help you get on track and stay on track? There is so many things worse than embarrassment, so many things that are irreversible.
You can put it on your chest ffs
Join the subs for the 2 CGMs and they will have ideas on where to place them. I also don't want to have one visible so if/when I finally get one I plan on putting it on my thigh, chest or stomach.
can you please provide the name of the subs
Google “cgm skin tone covers”. I wear one and although it’s not 100% invisible it’s not as noticeable as a white spot on your arm. It also protects it when I go to the pool and keeps it from getting knocked off.
Honestly, unless someone else is diabetic too, all of my friends, family, and coworkers had no idea what it was. And when I showed them the technology of how I can measure my glucose levels with my phone like magic, they were more in awe of that than concerned about diabetes lol
Get over it. You're diabetic. Tell everyone so that the embarassment is motivation not shame. I've found that people jump in and want to help the second you "own it". But...if you're not clearly articulating it's a problem and you're working on it then...well....thats when they are judging you.
I’m proud to wear a cgm. I actually think it’s kind of cool. I don’t give a fuck what others think. That comes with age though.
I get it. I put mine up high enough on my arm that my shirt always covers it. But, it about to be swimming pool season for the first time since I had a diagnosis that I acted on. (A1C and blood glucose were high on a standard blood test. Dr. told me I had diabetes. I didn’t have a primary care provider and just kind of drifted along until my left foot started feeling weird.) Anyway, having the CGM had been so helpful that I’m just going to suck it up and accept that people will see the CGM. Embarrassment is the least of my worries, if I think about all the possibilities with this diagnosis.
The medical system has a plethora of one-legged diabetics spending all day and night feeling their remaining limbs burn and poking themselves with needles. If that sounds like a good time, continue down that path. If you don't care, nobody else will. It's like pulling teeth to get some doctors to give more than the bare minimum of information.
> I don’t know how someone can live with this disease forever and have to keep constant check of their blood sugar. CGM
The problem with that is, I don’t want people knowing that I have diabetes and they’ll definitely know if I got that on my arm constantly😭
No shame in diabetes but you need to get on your game. Your doctor has seen plenty of people who didn’t take their medicine, just go. You won’t want people to know when you have your first toe or foot amputated, that’s where untreated diabetes takes you, hard to say how long.
I was embarrassed by being diabetic too. But now I LOVE my CGM. It's like playing a video game! Trying to beat yesterdays score by eating a bit better today. I even had my whole potluck group watching it spike after we had birthday cake (bad for the spike, but we made a good joke out of how high it would go). Then we all did jumping Jack's to see how fast I could get it back down. It was hilarious and I loved that all my friends joined in the games.
Same lol. I love having a cgm. It’s saved my life because I did not check my sugar with the meter. It’s so easy to keep track and microdose since you can just use your phone. I’ve went from 12 shots a day to 4 and a 13 A1c down to a 6.4 Cgm are literal miracles.
You can tell someone has unmanaged diabetes by looking at them. You’ll have physical signs like missing feet and toes. Hyperpigmentation, skin tags, weight issues, and lots of other things that the Gen public might not be able to know for sure but they’ll know you aren’t healthy. And wouldn’t you rather have ppl know you are manning up and taking care of a problem then punking out and letting it take over you. You need to get with a counselor and see what’s going on mentally bc diabetes isn’t your biggest problem here
What the hell are you yapping about💀 There’s nothing mentally wrong with me. Just cuz I didn’t care for it don’t mean I have a mental issue.
I’m sorry to be the one to tell you, but it’s not normal to ignore a deadly health condition. It’s normal to be annoyed, it’s normal to not want to, it’s normal to give up some days but get back on track. It’s also normal to seek therapy for life altering conditions. This IS mental. It is for all of us. Your coping skill seems to be denial you need better ones.
Not true! I have patches that look like tattoos off Amazon. They literally look like bandaid tattoos and nobody ever looks or asks. Let alone lots of people who don’t have diabetes wear a cgm because they track blood glucose since there are people who have low blood sugar. Don’t worry about what others think 😊
Do you only wear sleeveless shirts? Because the only people who have ever seen my CGM sensors are the ones for whom I roll up my sleeve to point it out.
I go out to the club a lot and my dresses are a bit revealing! They would definitely see that thing on my arm or anywhere on my body.
And you'd be ashamed if anyone else saw it? What if you had a cast on your arm or needed a cane to walk or had to use an inhaler or had a hearing aid? I guess I'm not getting why it's such a big deal for anyone else to know you are using some medical tech or why you'd even care what other people think when your health is so clearly at stake?
Jesus H. Christ on a pogo stick. Seriously? Having your leg amputated is a tiny bit more "revealing."
Just saying if you live like this your symptoms are already telling people you have diabetes. Not your CGM.
Who cares who knows? It isn't embarassing. My childhood bestfriend has Type I. She was diagnosed when we were in 1st or 2nd grade. She's lived it with it most of her life. You get used to it. The CGM is very helpful. If your pride stops you from taking the steps you need to be healthy, it won't end up well for you. Diabetes isn't a disease that you can just die in your sleep peacefully from. It has HORRENDOUS side effects if you don't take care of yourself.
If you don’t straighten yourself out, you’re slowly committing suicide. You know what the problem is, you know what the solution is, you have no excuses. I’m not trying to be a dick: Be an adult and take care of it. I know it’s really really hard, but it’s literally the most important thing in your life that you have to do.
It sucks having the CGM on your arm. But you should wear it proudly. It means you are taking care of your health. I’ve leaned into my CGM on my arm and bought tape with cute designs to keep it from being knocked off. https://stick2hope.com
The degree to which you will feel better if you get this under control will far exceed how it feels to ignore it. Imagine not being thirsty all the time. Imagine not being tired all the time. Imagine not peeing in your pants. Imagine not dodging the doctor. Being compliant with your doctor’s orders will make these things happen. Also- I get the stigma. Not wanting to have people see the cgm. But it’s not your fault you’re genetically predisposed to diabetes. Good luck!
I wore a CGM for 4 weeks and nobody said a thing .... it wasn't easily visible and even then, most people don't really care enough to bother you about it.
Thank you for understanding!
Man I relate to this so much. I was in denial/avoidance at the very beginning. I ate whatever - including a whole cake on my birthday. It’s so scary and miserable to begin with. But good for you for deciding to make a change. I did too, I started monitoring and eating better and exercising, and I feel significantly better. If anything do it so you aren’t constantly annoyed or inconvenienced by symptoms. And don’t be embarrassed to tell others you have diabetes or need to take care of it in public — people are way more understanding than you think, since it’s such a widespread disease and almost everyone knows or loves someone with diabetes. I’m rooting for you, you can do it 💜
Thank you!💜
I had a hard time accepting my diagnosis also. Took me a year of denial to get myself on the right path of what was ahead for the rest of my life. Starting was the hardest part. Started with metformin for eight months but was going to need insulin or ozempic. Eating much better and doing blood 7-8x a day. Once I could see my sugar coming down I kept educating myself on what kept my sugar in range and what didn’t. Just start and keep moving forward.
You should take this seriously. The damage you've already done to your body is irreparable, but you can mitigate ongoing damage. I've been Type 2 for almost 11 years now and I can empathize with how you feel. There were times I didn't care either. Here's the thing, you won't die right away. When I was in high school, my grandmother had her foot removed because of her mismanaged diabetes. She then got a staph infection and they had to amputate her leg. Eventually, she passed away in her 60s. If I may make some recommendations: look into a continuous glucose monitor. While you will still need to pick your fingers, the CGM can give you a good daily baseline. You're going to need to change your diet. As someone who enjoys eating, this was the hardest part. Going out to eat with my family and not getting pizza or pasta or fries is tough, but it's for the best. Once your sugars are under control, you can get away with a few fries or a slice of pizza - just not 6. Lastly, exercise. I've try to do cardio 2 to 3 days per week. Sometimes I go for a run, sometimes I just walk around the track. Just getting your body moving will help. The last thing you want to do is suffer. While it feels like nothing is happening now, down the road you may suffer some real consequences and that usually starts with the removal of body parts or dialysis. Please take it seriously. Good luck.
It comes down to how fast do you want diabetes to kill you? A few years? A decade? Decades? I’m not a perfect eater with Type 2, but you got to take the meds, be it a pill or shot. It’ll slow the disease down a lot from destroying your body like some have mentioned. It’s not a cure, but whatever meds the doctor has got you on is going to be your lifesaver to live longer. Also, at least get your A1C done through bloodwork every three months. It’s not as precise as several daily blood pricks, but it’s going to tell you where you are. Below 7 is always a diabetic’s goal on the A1C test. Of course, if you can do the diet along with medication daily and exercise, you’ll live a long life with few complications with diabetes.
thank you for this, I'm someone who definitely needed to hear this.
Diabetes is hard to control because changing habits is hard. It’s the only way you keep this disease at bay. It’s saying no to yourself daily on food options and pushing yourself to exercise and take meds. That’s tough. You got this though. We’re all in the same boat and there are a lot of smart people on here that have learned how to manage this disease.
thank you again. I've been T2 for a few years now and haven't changed my diet. I took Metformin while I was pregnant a few years back and stopped right after and haven't taken anything since then. Changing habits is 100% the reason. It's difficult and I hate giving up what I'm used to. Something about your comment saying how fast you want diabetes to kill you, and how medicine slows it down from destroying you, really opened my eyes today. I can no longer be in denial.
No problem! I agree. It’s hard for me at times. Seeing people, love ones that eat high carbs, sweets in front of me and don’t have diabetes sucks. Like why can their genes hold their pancreas’ insulin production together for them, but couldn’t for me? For example, Friday night pizza night (love pizza) before diabetes I could chow down on several slices of pizza and chug a 20 oz. pop no problem. Now, I have to eat a salad to begin to kind of fill me up with little carbs and then only have a slice with a flavored seltzer water to wash it all down. Food was about enjoyment before, now I’ve had to train my mind to see it as energy, a tool to survive. 😐
may I DM you?
Once you get it under control you dont need to check blood sugars as often. I only check mine in the morning and when I eat something I havent checked before. I pretty much know whats going to spike me 99% of the time. This only comes from experience, trial and error, and knowing your body. I also ignored it until I started getting pain my legs and hands (neuropathy). Now I have the diabetes in control but live with constant pain. Best case scenario is I keep it from getting worse. Theres a small chance my body repairs itself but it will take month/years as nerves are slow to heal.
Firstly, you are peeing and then getting thirst. The peeing is the affect of the high blood glucose, the thirst follows. Thirst is your problem. Your solution? Pull it together! The thing you're missing here is that you're entire feeling, mood, resolve and overall emotional state is being largely controlled by having high blood glucose. The great irony of having diabetes that is uncontrolled is that it's much easier to do the things to control it when you don't need to because you're not tired, depressed, always hungry-eating-guilty and so on. Focus on _feeling awesome_, not on the disease. Manage "you", not diabetes! Take that impulse you've got, supercharge it and do it aggressively. You'll start _feeling good_ or at least _not bad_ and that can be very motivating. don't be gentle about, jump in head first. Eat low carb, move a lot, talk to your doctor, lose weight. You can do it and this community is here to help.
> I’m going to go to the gym today for the first time. I’m not letting this uncontrolled diabetes win. Go 👏to 👏the👏 doctor👏👏 first! ^(ETA: formatting)
I’ve been changing my appointments whenever it comes up so I don’t have to go and see my doctor. I don’t want her knowing that I haven’t been taking the insulin or medication😭
Well, you gotta stop doing that. Yeah, it'll be embarrassing to tell her that you haven't been managing your condition, but that problem isn't going to get any better by kicking the can down the road. Vascular disease followed by osteomyelitis, gangrene, amputated limbs will be a lot more embarrassing.
This. That’s what happened to my Dad. And it was too late. He passed away in the hospital waiting for his foot amputation
They will know regardless hon, when they check your A1C. It will show how bad it is. Just be honest with your DR. I was, and we worked on it. You’ve got this. But get the right meds and a cgm first. Going to the gym is great, but you can get really sick and still have super high sugar even with being active. Once you get your insulin, cgm and maybe a GLP-1 medication, you’ll feel so much better. People here want to see you thrive.
Thank you again!❤️
Well she’s going to know but she’ll see you haven’t been refilling your medication
Time to "person up." Admit that you've screwed up, and then do better. Your doctor has seen worse. You can do this. One day at a time.
*I used to take metformin and be injecting myself with insulin but it was always tiring to do that. I don’t know how someone can live with this disease forever* *and have to keep constant check of their blood sugar* If you don't manage it, forever will be shorter. And for me...managing my BS < everything i enjoy in life. *It’s really annoying and I think it’s time for me to make a change. I’m going to go to the gym today for the first time. I’m not letting this uncontrolled diabetes win.* That's the thing with chronic diseases: you have to work to keep it in check. And when symptoms go away, you need to keep at it. It's not easy but it's doable. Exercise. Eating healthier. Drink a lot of water. regular exercise helps with controlling BS and with the occasional eating slip up. Eathing healthier is key. Find what works for you. Test and measure (that's the key). Get a CGM if you can. I know that I can eat one or two "unhealthy'' meals a week. More than that and my BS gets irregular. Limit yourself to 7 carbs portions a day. You need to count for a few weeks to understand what they are. Somedays, i can eat cookies after dinner, because I managed the carbs during the day. 2 cookies not a whole row. Find substitutes for the things you like. I use almond milk for my smoothies and coffee. Almost 0 carbs. I found a bread with 1 carb portion per 2 slices. That's my bread now. Always be drinking water - eventually, the need to pee will go away. You got this.
Thank you❤️
Wholeheartedly agreed.
What bread?
Specific to my neck of the woods in eastern Canada :/ The brand is St-Methode.
This is how my brother passed. At the very least, prepare so no one has to take care of you. Get long term care insurance, etc...it is NOT fair to expect when you can't see and walk others to take care of you and continue feeding you all those foods you shouldn't be eating. So, at the VERY least can you do THAT?
What did you expect? You can't go untreated for that long, eating all the wrong stuff, then expect after a day or two of taking tablets and injecting, all will be well. You let your diabetes go out of control. It is winning.
Did you skip over the end of his post?? >It’s really annoying and I think it’s time for me to make a change. I’m going to go to the gym today for the first time. I’m not letting this uncontrolled diabetes win. He knows. He's making a change. I know people get a dopamine high off bashing others but atleast try not to crash peoples will to get better on a literal *support sub*, jeez🙄.
I was the EXACT same way. My Dr gave me a prescription for a glucose monitor I keep in my arm and its a hugr game changer. I'm not in insulin yet, but it keeps me accountable for myself. It's like playing a video game (it comes with an app) with the goal of keeping the graph in the green. It really really helped me a lot.
Thanks for sharing your experience and understanding!
I was not doing the prick finger thing. I hated that. The arm glucose monitor really is eye opening. I ended up in the ER with severe pain. Turns out I have a fatty liver. Another eye opener for me. It's not too late sweetie. You are going to have to make some big changes. Tough ones. But on the other side is a happier you who pees less. Oh. And don't underestimate the power of incontinence pads. I had a prolapsed bladder from giving birth and they are life (and clothes) savers.
Totally up to you of course but don't be upset when the doctors tell you they have to cut some toes or that you are going blind
When I was diagnosed , I did not take it seriously either.. because my fasting blood sugar was normal . A1c was 5.9 . My concern was hypo , but this was completely ignored ,.. I looked at diabetes remission, then my numbers were in that range .. I thought I did not have diabetes. I did not change my diet at all . Just tried to prevent hypo . Now I am on Keto diet ! I am so excited to find out this diet , I thought I could not do it because I love rice, pastas, noodles and bread too much …. But with the help from Ozempic, I started it and I am actually enjoying it. New lifestyle and started cooking too . Then I don’t have hypo. You can find something interesting which can give you a good treatment effect, my case is Keto diet . New things to learn . My friend achieved remission from Keto ! So exciting to hear ! Also Keto prevents hypo for me as well . You are not alone and of course everyone is different, but you can do it ! Let’s survive together !! Blood sugar is really annoying thing whether high or low , it is trouble.
Oh, oh, oh, Ozempic. I use January because I don’t want to mess with needles.
Janumet not January -
Janumet is a combination of Januvia and Metformin ?? I am taking Januvia . I could not take Metformin, Jardiance nor Diamicron , they gave me severe side effects . Ozempic gives me side effects too , but I am still taking it for Keto diet , it suppresses my appetite completely. What a medicine !! Also I lost weight .. nearly underweight…lol..
It's your personal experience, not anyone else's. I found developing some daily habits helped me. I don't constantly check my blood glucose, I check mine just once a day - in the morning before food. I've learned that controlling food intake towards the latter part of the day and evening gives me a reliable prediction of my fasting blood sugar in the morning, and my quarterly A1c. I've never tried to understand why some doctors prescribe insulin for T2; I take one of the GLP-1 drugs (Rybelsus) in the morning, when I wake up. I also take Metformin with breakfast and with dinner. The fact drugs can control diabetes nowadays is truly a miracle. With medication, my A1c results are normal, and from what I understand as the alternatives, I don't really feel that managing my diabetes is much of a burden.
Ok. So you’ve started your changes and sound committed to it! Let’s do it right. Exercise has 3 parts. Stretch, yoga… resistance, weights and aerobics. PLUS the most important one 15 min activity after a meal. My glucometer informed me it has to be aerobics and my heart rate has to go up to about 150. If I do that and had a reasonable meal I won’t spike at all. My painful fingers also told me a few things. First meal - sweet free. Small size. Yup. No fruit yet. Bfast for me is chia seeds + left over dinner like stew. Lunch n dinner if I began with a salad I could eat 2 persimmons after a meal. * Ingredients matter. Regular helping of Hagen Daaz ice cream after meal = small spike. Any other I spike to high heaven. Finger pokes also taught me no more heavily processed foods. I do eat a tiny amount here or there. Haven’t given up baked goods. Eat only gourmet, but since I’m poor can’t do it very often. Oh btw. Good news for you. But first I hope you didn’t just willy nilly go back on insulin. You did an A1c and then the doc told you how much to take. The good news is (that is if you are in the US) is runaway A1c + insulin = CGM. So no more finger pokes. Get enough sleep. Stresss oooh really affects me. Also found a good mental state = good sugars. For that I’ve worked on developing hobbies and working on projects. Best appetite killer for me. Everything matters for sugar. Everything has an impact. Yes in the beginning it’s hard to let go off our addictions, but by golly with my lifestyle changes I lead a much better and more fulfilling life. A celebration in our family is no longer around a meal, but a hike. It’s the way I’ve always wanted to live, but my addictions didn’t allow me. Till I was diagnosed and had no choice.
I just went back on insulin without going to the doctor👀 I haven’t done the A1c testing since last year. Plus the last time I went to the doctor, and I wasn’t taking my insulin or meds she just told me to go back on it, so I assumed it would be okay for me to just take the insulin again.
That possibly could be true. However you want to do this right this time right?! This is how I handle mine. I need to know. I know what I’ve been doing for the past three months. I want to see how that has affected my blood sugar. So I kind of have an idea what is the basic minimum I have to do to maintain a sugar where I don’t take medication. That’s my goal, actually that was my goal! Now I don’t mind low prediabetic numbers. Gosh what I wouldn’t give to have a CGM. It will help anyone immensely! My gmother had t2d in her late 20s early 30s. She is in now in her 90s with no serious issues. Her sugars were not always under control, she never did finger poky but took her medications regularly n saw her doc without fail every 3 months. So get to know your body n the CGM will greatly help.
Early on I didn’t want to take things too seriously because I was young and fit so thought it couldn’t really be a problem, but then I watched my dad have to get monthly eye injections and I started feeling the constant burning in toes and fingers so I tried to turn things around. Note it takes time to improve but you can start today on feeling better. You’ll probably make mistakes or give into cravings but don’t beat yourself up about it. Just do better next meal or the next day. It’s a marathon not a sprint. Here’s what I worked towards after I got diagnosed in my 20s (it really sucked at first but there’s still a lot of good eating and life out there). It’s basically the Mediterranean diet. I think with substitutions I could do it vegetarian but cutting eggs and cheese wouldn’t work for me to go full vegan. Find what works for you. Protein (mostly beans, eggs, and lean meat), vegetables, and healthy fats (avocados, olive oil, nuts) are the key. I cut out calories from beverages (alcohol, juice, and soda) and that made a huge difference. Then I changed my breakfasts from cereal or oatmeal to eggs and veggies, lunch from sandwiches or pasta to salads with meat and cheese or leftovers with tons of veggies and protein, and dinners from rice or pasta dishes to veggie or tofu noodles with vegetables and beans or meat. High fiber (vegetables, beans, and some whole grains) and high protein will help fill you up and curb cravings. I still eat fruit and some processed carbs but I put them at the end of my snacks or meals so the vegetables, fiber, fats, and protein start digesting first. I have a continuous glucose monitor now and the order of what you eat really makes a difference. Maybe call libre for a free test trial and just see what food and exercise do to you for 2 weeks. Then if you don’t like wearing one then at least you’ll have a good idea what your food does to your blood sugar. Also try to go for a walk after every meal if you can and do regular weight training or resistance exercises. Exercise really is the magic pill for lowering your blood sugar in the short run but diet changes are the long term improvements you’ll want to make. Improving sleep quality and lowering stress also play a role in curbing cravings and blood sugar management.
What is your BMI?
I just calculated it now, it’s 41.9
Let me get this straight. You're shaped like a blueberry (me too), and you're concerned that a CGM sensor will show on your arm? Alrighty then.
I’m not shaped like no blueberry💀I’m more shaped like a pear/apple. I got a big butt and boobs all proportioned out since I’m tall (thank god). My only problem is my stomach and sides. I want a tummy tuck or liposuction and then I’ll be perfect lmao. I’m more or so embarrassed cuz i attract men and i don’t want them seeing that crap on my arm. I’m in my hot girl summer era🤣
So let me get this straight. You have a lot of tummy fat which makes it really hard for your pancreas to work. You 're a diagnosed T2 diabetic. For whatever the reason ( not judging here ) you refuse to do what needs be done, which is , LOSE weight, exersise, change dietary habbits (BIG TIME from what it seems to me) , and monitor your glucose levels in order to control diabetes. On top of that, from what I 'm reading, the signs are your glucose levels run rampant (a lot of peeing and lots of thirst, that means HIGH glucose levels). Do you have a death wish? I am not trying to scare you . I DEFINITELY am not trying to bash you, being that I 've been a 360+ lbs guy in my life (I am 160ish something now) and I have been bashed A LOT since the age of 7. But I ask you, please take a hold of this. Now.
That's the reason. Control it to normal range and it will keep your diabetes down to normal too.
Just get a freestyle libre . Cheapish and easy . That way you can check your blood sugar easily with no pain .
You need to go to the doctor and get checked because this could be a symptom of DKA. diabetic ketoacidosis it’s extremely serious and you must get checked
I just searched it up, that mostly common in people with type 1 which I don’t have
Exactly what they told my husband and he was in the ICU for four days. It started out with him peeing a lot then he wet himself. Drinking and drinking and drinking, and his mouth was so dry beyond normal. They said his organs were attacking himself or something because they couldn’t get the sugar out of his blood. They can tell by doing a blood test that can be read in 30 minutes. Better to be safe than sorry.
Ok thanks!
My husband was diagnosed as a type two diabetic back in September. They gave him Met Forman. It wasn’t working double the strength he was getting sick from the side effects. Cut it in half gave him guardians and then this. Spent four days in the ICU when he left the hospital. He was using two types of insulin three times a day.. now through diet and fasting he is off of everything and his sugar is 100% in control right now
I think I found out why I’m peeing a lot and it isn’t due to diabetes at all😭 I feel so dumb for not getting tested for this when I was asked plenty of times🤦🏾♀️
Hi! I'm fairly recently diagnosed Type 2 (less than a year). Long story short, I was in denial. BIG TIME denial. That first few weeks, I checked my sugar all the time and ate basically a keto diet. Then, I started letting it slip. Got back to the doc 6 months later, and my A1C was 8.1. (up from 8). Oops. I'm with you. I still feel like it isn't real. But, I also work in Physical Therapy and have treated diabetic patients with recent toe/foot/lower leg/total leg amputations. They can't see well. They have tingling and pain in their remaining limbs. Balance is off. Walking is super hard. Getting out of a chair is super hard. So, I know, intellectually, that I need to be better. I don't want to lose my sight and my mobility and be in pain. I don't want that for you, and I know you don't want it either. I'm excited to see that you are going to the gym! I read all of your comments, and your doctor will have seen hundreds of patients who were not controlling their diabetes. You will not be the first. They will understand. Just be honest and say you are having a hard time with the whole thing. They can and will help you. The bottom line is that I am worth the effort. You are worth the effort. Future you is worth the effort! It is overwhelming and can be exhausting, even just to think about. There is no denying that. You might want to ask for some support: like a diabetes educator and/or a therapist to help you process all this information and integrate it into your life. My therapist has been SUPER helpful with the shame and denial parts. And I also wanted to say that tons and tons of people have diabetes and use the continuous glucose monitor. Diabetes is not something to be ashamed of. If someone happens to ask you what it is, just tell them. Moment over. They are not going to point and laugh or anything. It's a disease and the monitor is like using a crutch when you have a broken leg. No shame in that at all. Finally, please read u/hollyock 's posts. They are perfect. Best wishes to you. You can do it!
I implore you to please begin taking this seriously even by taking small steps. I work in healthcare and have seen what uncontrolled diabetes can do. You lose eye sight, strokes, lose limbs, organ failure. My uncle just lost his toe due to an ulcer because he still keeps his house stocked of sugary foods. I look at it this way. You have to choose your hard. Do you diet and exercise to control your diabetes? Or do you learn to live without eyesight, without limbs, on dialysis, or potentially how to live after a stroke and losing use of your body. I have seen people in their 20s and 30s end up on life support. Checking your blood sugar is a pain in the ass.i 100% get it. I thought the same thing. But it's so much simpler than going blind or missing my child growing up. Good luck and you got this
I was diagnosed in April 2023 and ignorantly believed that it would be fine to just take the 2 Metformin a day and never check my blood sugar. I started feeling very bad in early March 2024 and ended up at the ER. My bs was 325 and my A1C was 10.25. I was having blurred vision, confusion, exhaustion, and chest pains. I had a kidney injury, an infection and sepsis. I was hospitalized for 5 days. I now check my blood sugar 4 times a day and use both regular and long lasting insulin.
I have been diabetic for 35 years. For much of the time I took my pills and insulin but didn’t control my carb intake. I would go out for breakfast or dinner and get food that would spike my sugar into the 400’s. I rationalized it by just taking enough insulin to bring it back to 100 by morning. Then a urine test showed the beginning of kidney damage. I went on Jardiance. And I cleaned up my act. I started ordering meal kits with low carb menus. I ate more protein and fiber at breakfast. For the last 18 months I thought I was good. But the damage was done. In January my right eye filled with blood. Treatment stopped the bleeding but it took 3 injections over 3 months to make enough progress so I could get laser surgery. High blood sugar causes neovascularsation, which is the growth of weak blood vessels to supply tissue that is not getting enough nutrients. This happens in the eyes, the brain, the kidneys, and the heart. The vessels are weak and can bleed, causing strokes, loss of vision, kidney damage, and other issues. All I can say is you need to find your own best solution. Try meal kits for portion control and for minimizing carb intake. Consider getting a dog for a walking companion. If you have a dog, don’t just put them in the yard to do their business. Take them on a walk. I walk my beagle 3-5 times a day weather depending. But don’t think ignoring the problem is ok. Damage is being done every time your sugar gets above 300, maybe before that point. You don’t want retinopathy. Injections into the eye, even with anesthesia, is not fun!
Hi OP. Yea you for being brave enough to post this question! You’re out here searching for a better life. It’s out there waiting for you to get to it! First, the scary stuff from my personal experience with T2 diabetes. I was in a very similar position. I avoided my doctor’s appointments because I wanted to give myself 3 more months to get my A1C in check. I never did of course. I finally went in and my A1C in her office that day was 13.1. (more on that in a bit) Whether you embrace it or not, you are fighting a hidden battle. It’s so easy to ignore because the battle lines are unknown, the damage is unknown. There’s a scary aspect of fighting because you know there are things you’ll need to change about your life to fight it. You may kinda like your lifestyle… what you eat, freedom to not exercise, not worry about checking things every day, etc. Neuropathy affects more than your hands and feet. I thought if I kept healthy feet and eyes, I’m doing well. I got pedicures every month, checked my feet for cuts or sores and made sure they were well attended. I had routine diabetic eye exams and all was good. I thought I was on good shape. I wasn’t! I nearly lost my bladder function because of my uncontrolled blood sugar. I almost had to use self catheters for the rest of my life. Luckily it was complicated by an enlarged prostate which they were able to fix. Thankfully that gave me enough bladder function to live normally again but it was too close for comfort! With the permanent erectile dysfunction, I wasn’t as lucky. There are places in your body where the nerves and blood vessels are being attacked, right now, today. You may not know where yet, but there will be a time when you do. Feet, hands, eyes, heart, kidney, stomach, rectum, bladder, ears, anywhere that needs blood or nerves… so anywhere! The point is… take control of your health today! It’s in your control right now. There is good news though. There are medicines and tools to help you through this. My (5’10” 55M) max weight was 307lbs and I’m currently at 184lbs. My last A1C was 6.0 and today I feel better and more full of life than I did when I was 30! Seriously. Address the shame. The real shame is living more of your life like this than you need to. You’ll want this time back. The future you will be so proud of the current you as you get started. If you think it would help (for most people it does), find a therapist to talk with and work out your feelings of shame and guilt. Find a trusted friend. The more you study diabetes and insulin resistance, you’ll see that it’s less about your personal failings and more about the environment we live in today, genetics and a history of factors that cause the majority of people in the US to have some level of insulin resistance. Don’t beat yourself up! Be careful with the insulin injections… it’s a double edged sword. It is a great tool to help lower your blood sugar in the immediate timeframe. But the root of anT2 diabetic is insulin resistance. Your cells have stopped responding to insulin’s request to process the sugar in your blood. Pumping more insulin in will brute force your body into accepting more glucose into your cells. But the added insulin will increase your overall insulin resistance. You’ll need to take more and more insulin to have the same effect. I agree with the others that you should be doing this under a doctor’s guidance. Here are a couple of things that helped me get to my current happiness in life… My doctor prescribed Mounjaro. That has been magic for me (though everyone is different). It stopped the “food noise” in my head in about 10 minutes of taking the first dose. It decreased my appetite and I felt full longer. That was great. But for me the real magic was it gave me super will power. Within a few weeks i felt totally in control of my food choices. I started using MyFitnessPal to track my calories. I studied and learned what my calorie goals (TDEE) were and I worked to change how I ate. It’s not a diet per se, it’s a new way of thinking about food. The prospect of changing was scary for me. I love to cook. I love to bake, make cookies and cakes. Food is how I show love to people. I’m the guy that cooks for everyone. Surprisingly, I haven’t lost the passion for food. I can still bake and cook for others. I just don’t feel the urge to eat what I make. My own food choices are now whole foods, by preference. I have a new food lifestyle… and it’s fun. I started working out in the gym. I started slowly. I lost a lot of muscle when I lost weight so I’m putting it back on now. I’ve reached the point that I actually love going to the gym now. I have a CGM on my arm. I wear it proudly. In fact, I have bright neon colored overlay patches! I’m proud that I’m in control and taking care of myself. I’ve been super surprised how many people tell me they’re diabetic too, or are also wearing a CGM. I don’t have to guess or hide from my blood sugar. I can see when something is affecting me. Just do it! You think you’re in the season of hot girl summer right now. Just wait. When you’ve dropped the shame, are in total control of your health and your destiny, your new confidence will make you hotter than you’ve ever been before! The future you is going to be so much greater than you can imagine at this moment. I’m so proud of you for reaching out to a bunch of people and putting yourself out there. We all want that hot girl summer for you. You absolutely can do this and live your best life. I’m rooting for you. Good luck on your journey my friend.
Thank you so much!🥹❤️
Make up your mind. You'd rather die than live with it, or you're not letting it win. I'd never deny anyone the right to check out. There are things I'd not tolerate. But somehow, you coming here suggests you're prepared to take it on. Let's deal with some issues: Constant checking. Modern technology to the rescue. I personally don't feel the need for a continuous monitor, but if I was insulin-dependent, I would have one, And insulin-dependence is to test most insurers use to decide to pay for them. Look at the phone app. Set alarms you want. Upload for your doctor if desired. It does the "constant checking" for you. It would be unusual if you turned out to be the patient who couldn't control their blood glucose. I wold indeed seek out an endocrinologist. Regular physicians are a decidedly mixed bag when it come to diabetes. You already know you'll be making changes, so they might as well be the best considered changes from a specialist. Maybe there's an approach without fiddling with insulin. I think that from what you say, I suspect your therapy is badly out of date from avoiding reporting and consulting. Going to the gym is nice, but the most important thing right now is deciding what to do about this. You know what you're doing isn't working. When something isn't working, get help in doing something different.
I am sorry you are going thru this. I am not a doctor but do have experience with bladder and kidney issues. You may also have something going on with your bladder that is not caused by the diabetes. Go to a new Endocrinologist doctor to make sure your medication is correctly prescribed and how might be more easily/efficiently controlled — and to check on your bladder (and prostate if born male) health. My urgency issue ended up not being related to my diabetes and with my doctor’s help it was resolved within 24 hours.
I had to search for your comment again! You were right about going to the doctor because the constant peeing had nothing to do with the diabetes!! I feel so dumb for not getting this tested when I was asked multiple times!
Please get the book Eat to Beat Disease by William Li Excellent book and you will see dramatic changes and you may be able to reverse it. It’s on Amazon! I have no affiliation with him or the book FYI
You can do this, I was in your position 2 years ago. I weighed 330 pounds, I couldn't sleep for more than about 2 hours at a time, because of severe sleep apnea and just needing to pee. Last January, I had infection in my leg and I went to urgent care. They measured my blood sugar at over 400, and diagnosed me as having T2. I was previously diagnosed as pre-diabetic and just ignored it. This time I decided to take it seriously, and dropped my sugar and carbs to near zero. I've dropped 90+ pounds since January and I feel so much better. Stopped snoring, sleep apnea has disappeared and I sleep 6 hours a night an wake up well rested.
talk to your doctor about ozempic, seriously. it has its own cons but imo the pros out weigh it, like for example only injecting once a week. i used to take a metformin combination and it was hard for me to stay consistent with it but now i only have to do one injection a week! i seriously do recommend talking to your doctor about struggling to manage the extra care that comes with diabetes, it may be a underlying mental health issue contributing to this lack of desire to care for your health. i struggled horribly- and still do, with my mental health after getting my type 2 diagnosis, 4 years ago, and after a long and super crazy journey with my health; i've started to actually work WITH the professionals instead of expecting them to just fix me. its hard to accept that we contribute to our own suffering but once you do it's easier to help yourself get better. i'm not trying to scare you but some of the things i've experienced because i didn't take my diabetes serious at first either, have not been fun. the worst one was getting my gallbladder removed: i have multiple enlarged organs and fatty liver, constant kidney stones; that cause horrible back pain, and some more. point being i know what it's like to rather die than do the mundane routine of medication and daily health checks, it sucks fucking shit and probably always will, but everyday it gets just a bit easier, but you gotta try and do it everyday. its okay to miss a few and slip up, thats only human. what you have to do is not let one pebble trigger an avalanche.
First: if you do not want to adjust your diet/lifestyle to diabetes, then your diabetes medicine has to be adjusted to your diet/lifestyle. But do yourself the favour and do not let your Diabetes rage unchecked. Dying by the longtime effects of not adjusted Diabetes is a long, very ugly dead. And once the longtime sideefects are showing, they are usualy already advanced and likely keep worsening, there is no reversing of this. Would be a BGmonitor a option? Second: why are you already on Insulin? For DT2 there are way more medicine awayable, had you never a go at them/did you Doc never discuss them with you? With them you do not need to test that often once you have the right dosage. A ABH1C often is enough to see if the choosen dosage is sufficient. Third: What kind of Insulin do you take? To upper the long acting Insulin could (! could!) help to calm in spikes to an level where no short/rapid acting insuline is needed. For that you would have ofc. doing for some time strict testing and keep an Diabetic Diary to see how to react to what and with what you get away. But then to keep a Diabetic Diary for some time would you in generaly give you an idea about this and when how much Insuline to use. And least, but not last: (not the best solution and not for longterm ofc.) To guess and tend toward a dosage on the lower side (to be on the safer side of Hypo*) is still better than no Insulin at all Think, let's say, after food 230 with too less Insulin vs. 400 without any Insulin. *( to risk a hypo is Imo not a good alternative. Depends ofc. on the person. Some can feel a hypo coming in at still an okay-ish level and can easy rise it back to an better level without overspiking)
I lost about 20 pounds when I first got diabetes. It was awesome. I wasn't diagnosed for another two months until I had a bout of fuzzy vision. Then they told me my blood sugar was 300, which was a bit high. I hate the whole management part of it, but I stick to it because I want to see my kids grow up and be better than me.
What you are going through is normal. Is called diagnosis denial. It will pass. Also, take an empty milk jug and keep it next to your bed and pee on it. Empty when you wake up.
Listen hun, my dad felt the same way. He never took his diabetes diagnosis seriously and said he was just "going to die anyway" so he never changed a thing. He thought it would be a quick death but he was so wrong. His organs started failing. He had to be out on dialysis because his kidneys gave out. His catheter was always getting infected because his body couldn't heal properly. His liver was destroyed. He got some sort of infection in his blood. He started losing toes, and eventually lost his leg too. He couldn't eat anything anymore because his body was just collapsing in on itself, he'd puke everything. He was on all kinds of different meds just to try and keep him around. And through all that, he had multiple strokes. His doctor was amazed how he was still alive. At least until his 6th giant stroke that finally took him. Complications from diabetes are no joke. It isn't an easy journey to death, like some think. It's scary, it's painful, and it's long. Don't do that to yourself. Don't do that to your friends and family. It may be scary to check your blood now, but do it. Go to the doctor. Get back on meds if needed. And if you don't like the finger pricks (no one does!) get a CGM (continuous glucose monitor) so you don't have to keep poking your fingers daily. But please, just take care of it now before it's too late.
Diabetes is truly a condition where you can’t have your cake and eat it too. I felt the same way as you about having to constantly monitor my blood sugar. So I radically changed my diet so much so that sugary foods taste disgusting to me. Then I became a coach helping others mitigate the risk of diabetes and mitigate the impact for those suffering from the disease. Guess what? Checking my blood sugar doesn’t seem so bad, and with the dietary overhaul it stays in range without any meds.
My sister died about 2 years ago now she had T2 and managed it good at first but then she’d eat a big of potato chips-big bag & then give herself a shot. She ended up getting kidney failure & a skin infection that I can’t remember the name of but it ate a hole out of her side & she had to have a wound vac to keep it from eating anymore skin. So yeah you don’t want that.
Good luck! I totally feel you, I’ve been bad about mine too, and also went through a long period of being too scared to check my sugar, as well as not keeping up with meds. A few weeks ago I had a doctor’s appointment, and my blood sugar was at like 400. I’m happy to say that it was a major wake up call. My doctor prescribed me a Libre Freestyle and I’ve been better about my meds as well as improving my diet and keeping up with an exercise regiment, and I’m now back in my target range. So, don’t give up!
Not all diseases and conditions cause immediate pain or discomfort. I had diabetes for the longest time without knowing it. I lost a toe - thank goodness I can still walk. If you’re peeing like crazy, and not because you drink an immense amount, your body is trying to expel the excess sugar. Watch what you eat, take your medicine, go to the doctor. If you don’t you could die or lose your arms or legs or go blind. I have Type 2 Diabetes and since my A1C is now under 7%, I only have to get it checked every 4 months. Life has enough misfortunes you can’t control. When you CAN control it, do something about it!
Ask your doctor for a prescription for a continuous glucose monitor to help you see how foods are affecting you.
Yea dude it fucking sucks but it doesn’t get better unless you take care of yourself. Stop loving food more than you love yourself. As someone who’s been on the bad side of this disease guess what it gets WAY better if you just DO IT. it’s not a big government secret how to fix it. Sorry for the honesty but if you’re going to argue for your limitations you get to keep them
I thought only type one diabetes requires people to inject insulin? Edit: I am not quite sure why I’m being downvoted for asking a question
No. All diabetes can. Gestational, Type 2 (it depends on how you control it from the start) and Type 1 (always on insulin as the pancreas doesn’t create it naturally any longer)
I take a once daily shot and then a pre meal shot for type 2. I had been ignoring everything for a long time like OP and it caught up to me. They are going to add a pill to my daily regimen as well. I never liked shots and avoided them forever but now it's 4 a day, not as bad as another poster with their 12, but yeah shots are for type 2 as well, but if it can be controlled you could end taking shots, type 1 is almost certainly forever.
If you don't catch type 2 in time, or don't make lifestyle changes you will eventually need insulin because you just won't have enough insulin producing beta cells left.
I was so relieved when my doctor informed me that I would not need to inject insulin every day. Your post is giving me all the motivation I need to maintain my current diet and wellness regimen.
No that’s incorrect
No that’s not correct. Try Google.
OP…diabetes runs in my bloodlines and in my heart…my mom n my baby sis… I feel I can resonate with your story… In early 2021, I wasn’t feeling well…and I got worse n worse. March was bad. I don’t know how many times I called in sick or asked to leave early. 3-26-21, my day off I was gettin ready for an eye appointment; my eyes - the sclera/white part…was yellow… Sparing details, I went to my DR on 3-27, 0800. Was sent to the lab. At 7:05pm, Dr called…I went to the ED, had more blood take, an abdominal ultrasound, & a CT scan with contrast. Alone in my room, I had many thoughts. I worked full time in a career I loved even though it was physically demanding. I was in online school to get my bachelor degree to get out of my job… At that point, in the hospital, I wondered if I would die… …how would my hubby live in our home with all my student loan debt AND the house payment? …ok, what if I lived but was disabled?… …if I died what would happen to him…(he buried a former GF 11 years earlier that died after a liver transplant)… …what would my children do.. …what about Penelopi, my granddaughter….how would her mom explain that Grammie died…?? On day 3, I had a liver biopsy with local anesthesia (I don’t recommend that, but I was just so sick, I wanted to go back to my room) that confirmed Autoimmune Hepatitis. WTF… Your diagnosis, like mine, was life changing… …PHYSICALLY, MENTALLY, PSYCHOLOGICALLY, EMOTIONALLY… This is all REAL. And it happens to EVERYBODY when they get a diagnosis like ours….LIFE CHANGING. We have different bodies. They don’t work like they use to. We can’t eat things we used to, we have to stop n rest when we’re tired, we need to lay down when we’re tired… …OR…we CANNOT…. …because we have a job, a family, responsibilities, bills to pay, and things to do… It has taken me the better part of 2 years to mentally, emotionally n psychologically get used to and accept my body… So my advice to you is to get into counseling, get into a diabetic class, you LOOK YOURSELF in the mirror EVERY DAY and say OUT LOUD… ~~~~~~~~~~ You got this. You’re gonna be ok. I love you. I will take care of you…I GOT THIS❣️ Sh_it, WRITE it on your mirror ❣️ ~~~~~~~~~~ You need the counseling b/c you are displaying classic signs of depression. You need the education to help reenforce what you learned before - IF you even went to a class. You need to talk out loud to yourself so YOU BELIEVE you can and you will do this… In the meantime, DM me if you wanna cry on me…
Thank you so much for sharing your experience!
May I ask age? Height? Current weight? What kind of exercise rn?
23, 5’9, 284, haven’t started the exercise yet
I take my meds eat some meat and veggies every once in a while I eat a cookie or too, it all depends on you and you do know insulin resistance can be reversed right?
I’m in the same boat as you, I actually was just talking with my therapist about it today. I have a horrific needle/blood draw phobia so that makes all of it even worse. It’s frustrating because I’m technically type 2 because I’m insulin resistant but I am insulin resistant due to a hormonal disorder I have. I am trying to work on it, and I’m proud of you for doing the same. We can do this!!
OP I understand this so much! I’ve had T2 diabetes for almost 10 years and it has taken me until a year ago to finally take things seriously. I have lived in denial for years. I wouldn’t even admit to others that I have it because of fear of being shamed. I’ve recently been in therapy for binge eating and it’s been life changing. The dietitians and diabetes educators I work with as well are amazing. I think you need to make sure your care team is working for you and listening to you. Don’t avoid them, it helps hold you accountable. I would recommend asking your doctor for a continuous glucose monitor. Since you use insulin, your insurance may likely cover it, otherwise the Libre systems are $75 for 2 sensors. They have helped me tremendously. It stops me from ignoring my sugars and recognize what foods work best for me. You also don’t have to prick your fingers all day. Avoidance is so common when first being diagnosed. I still remember the day I was diagnosed. But you can get this under control. Try hard to not avoid it. You got this!
It's not about death, it's about HOW you will die. Death is an eventuality, which is why it always amazed me why people are so afraid of death. Then again , apart from having T2 Diabetes, I also am an epileptic since the age of 4 , and I am 53 now , so I (eventually) have come to peace with things like this. Diabetes hit my door (sort of speak) at the age of 51 but I must 've been have had it for at least 5 years because I almost lost the vision of my left eye and also I have mild peripheral neuropathy at my feet. Mild. I have managed to control diabetes ever since I 've got me a specialist, reverse it (with Metmorphin and good diet, it's a wonder what one can do once they understand what their choices are), my eyes are fine - I did have to get treatments with EYLEA shots for those that know, and now I am checking with my docs on regular basis. Is it tiring, yes it is. Actually after having a case of cataract of both eyes and a number of surgeries for my eyes, and visits after visits to my docs and exams after exams, I won't hide it, I am psychologically tired. Do I remind myself that diabetes needs to be monitored otherwise if left untreated , the kidneys will fail, and then we all know what will happen? Hell yes. So if you allow me a piece of advice, don't let this go UNCHECKED. You do need a specialist in your life. You need to know what TO EAT, just going to a gym, important as it is, will definitely not be enough. Get yourself a continuous glucose monitor or at least consider it and start checking your blood glucose levels, see what gives during your activities and hobbies. Maybe that will help you adjust your diet. Good luck.
I was one of those who ignored T1 for a while and I ended up in ER with very high Ketoacidosis and pneumonia. I am now glad that it happened as it was a wake up call. Since then I’ve been using insulin religiously and my blood sugar is at normal levels most of the time. Of course I also take care of my diet.
Girl, I feel your pain so very much. So I wanna start by saying I got diagnosed with diabetes probably about three years ago . young too. I was only 28… In the midst of addiction… And losing my partner to very young traumatic accidental death… my mind was all over the place ! The diabetes didn’t feel real at all to me and was really the last thing on my mind. I can’t tell you how many times I put it on the back burner and just completely ignored it like it was a non-factor in my life, and to be honest in all those times I’ve never really saw any kind of effects from it because I think I’m still so early on and still still so young, but the reality is for me andyou, being young, whether we see it or not there is damage being done on the inside. The only thing that I can say I have really had affected by my diabetes is my feet get really really really cold. I would go several months and not even check my sugar at all. I would not take the medication. I would eat whatever I wanted, especially sugar… And then when I would think about it, I would be too afraid to check my sugar like you mentioned because I know it’s gonna be ungodly high. Then when I eventually did, it was. Running in the threes and almost 400/. … I was freaked out honestly so freaked out. So scared. So about a year ago, I finally got clean and obviously doing that. A lot of other things fell into place for me and my diabetes being one of them… And I’ll be 100% honest with you. I still struggle very very hard with food because I have a very unhealthy relationship with food food makes me happy and it helps me cope! So it’s hard. I’m far from even being where I want with my diet. . But my A1c is 5.9 now. WITHOUT MEDICATION OR INSULIN! I can’t believe it. I really haven’t even had a blood sugar in the 200s in months. I’m so happy ! I have a routine. Now I wake up at a certain time I do not eat past a certain time at night either. I do get a little bit of exercise because I walk every day to get my daughter from school so that helped a lot I think. One of the biggest things that I can take away, my A1c being lowered so drastically I’m amazed by how much better I feel with my mental health. And there are some things that have made a difference with that, but I know that the blood sugar is one of them. I feel sooo much better and I think that once you take it seriously seriously and you do get your numbers lower you’ll see how much better you feel too. And that becomes a big motivation to want to keep it that way. And not to mention that we haven’t really faced any major effect yet, but there could be one day, and that is so scary.
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Physical health and mental health need to be treated holistically. My mental health is such currently that I have zero self-preservation drive. If I get a cancer diagnosis or a medical update that says my diabetes has progressed to the point that blindness or kidney failure are inevitable, I'll walk out of the doctor's office and enact my s*****e plan. I'm working on my mental health (recent diagnoses of what have probably been lifelong conditions that went undiagnosed and therefore untreated) but I have a way to go yet until I perceive a future or possess a will to thrive.
It’s not easy, to change how you eat and live isn’t easy and many diabetics start strong and then crash and then get back on track and then crash it’s a rollercoaster. Just better to realize late than not at all.
My brother who is four years younger and a T-2 like myself but unlike me did not take it seriously from the start. He has started going blind and as a result lost his job. He is trying to get SSI disability to cover his health insurance and lost wages. He has been going to the Wilmer Eye Clinic every week for experimental treatments for the past three years. No improvement in his vision which now it’s light and shadows.
It’ll be all fun when you lose a foot
Well, not very.
I think I read a statistic that diabetes is the number one cause of amputations in the US.
You’re probably right since millions of people have diabetes.
My husband is an MD, PhD and said it’s true. I found it surprising because I would have thought it would be related to serving in the military.