[luckharm]

Hi Everyone,

I was recently diagnosed on June 12, 2008. My husband and I had gone to Las Vegas in mid-May, and as we were walking up and down the strip, I noticed that I was always thirsty and had to stop often to go to the rest room. Now, I am pretty cheap, and for me to pay $4.00 for a bottle of water at a casino, it must have been pretty bad. I also noticed that no matter how much water I drank, my thirst did not go away. (Of course, now I know that all of the carbs I was eating at the buffets, must have sent my sugar levels through the roof!)

Anyway, when we got home, I also noticed that, despite all the eating we did in Las Vegas, I was losing weight. At first I was happy, who doesn't like to be a few pounds lighter??? But, when I started to notice other symptoms, like always being tired, I decide I'de better go to the doctor. Sure enough, my fasting blood test results came back with a blood sugar reading of 335! My doctor put me on Metformin right away and told me what NOT to eat.

I am happy to report that this morning my blood sugar reading was 192. Yes, it is still hight but it has been coming down slowly. My biggest challange, has been changing my eating habits. I was born in Italy and I love pasta, bread, and sweets. They have been part of my "DNA" for so many years, that I can't imagine living my life without them. But, for the past 2 weeks, I have been trying.

Reading some of your stories has given me hope that I can do it. I want to live a long life, so I would appreciate any suggestions and support.

Thank you for this great forum!

[CookD]

Hi Margie,

Welcome to the club that no one wants to join. I too loved pasta and bread. The thought of completely changing my eating habits was daunting. However I resigned myself to this new lifestyle of more veggies and less carbs.

Have you tried Dreamfields pasta. I find it to be quite good. It makes me feel less "deprived" and it is easier to stick to my low-carb plan. At least there are many low carb recipes on the internet to sift though. I'm experimenting with many different vegetable dishes that are delicious and nutritious.

This forum has helped me tremendously, I've learned so much in the past few months. Everyone is so helpful and supportive. Hope to "see" you hanging around....

[shutterbug]

Welcome to DF. Try Dreamfields it is great. Doesn't spike BS too much and tastes nothing less than regular pasta.

Make sure you don't over cook it.

Good luck!

[Achilles]

Welcome to the forum Margie. I'm on Metformin too and it took about 4 weeks for my numbers to come down consistently but they did. I also exercise 30 - 40 minutes / day about 5 days a week.

I've tried the Dreamfields pasta and it is indeed good (thanks to the forum advice).

There is also a low carb wrap called "flatout" that only has 6 g of carb. I put pizza sauce, mozarella cheese, sliced mushrooms with pepporoni and bake it for 12 minutes at 350 deg F. Comes out great if you like pizza and doesn't spike me.

[EazyE77]

Hey Margie,

I would like to first off welcome you to DF. It is indeed a great place and I would have to say that because of this community my life has been much easier since being dx'd 2 years ago next month.

As far as what "Not" to eat yea most of the time you should listen to your doctor but I have found from personal experience and from reading stories on here that the stuff we can and cannot eat is really based on how it affects our bg levels etc so if you want to see how it effects your numbers, eat a meal and just frequently test starting with anywhere from 1 to 2 hours after the meal and see how it effects the numbers and then continue to test every so often after that through the day. One thing I've learned is it's not what we can eat but yet the portions we will do ok with *but there are some things no matter what will send your numbers through the roof every time and you'll find that out in time".

As for your numbers right now I wouldn't stress to much about them because I too came home from spending 1 week in the ICU with my numbers in the low to mid 200's. The docs can only do so much to teach you and help try to stabalize your numbers and what not and sometimes you just need to get back home, learning what to do and get back in to a lifestyle and the numbers will slowly come down over a few weeks .

I know I speak for a great majority of the forum when I say I wish you the best in learning what you can to help make your life much better and getting things under control and keeping them there! You definitely started off good by finding this great community!

*edit* on the Dreamfields pasta, can't say I've tried it yet myself but have heard nothing but good things about it, will have to get some and give it a try!

[Jan B]

Welcome Margie!

I loved your introduction. It sounds like you have a great attitude, which will no doubt help you! I try to find things I can eat instead of concentrating on the things I shouldn't be eating -- it's a lot more fun that way! I also like to substitute better foods instead of feeling deprived.

You'll feel so wonderful and much more energetic when your bg gets down to around 100.

Glad you found DF!

[KarenBC]

Hi Margie,
Welcome aboard - very glad you found this forum. Keep posting and let us know how you are doing.

I haven't tried the Dreamfields pasta, will have to see if it's available up here in northern Canada. I am having fairly good numbers with Catelli whole wheat pasta though...the trick for me is portion control, and having protein with it.

[princesslinda]

Hi Margie, welcome! Its tough those first few weeks after diagnosis. For many of us we had to make quite a few difficult lifestyle changes. Hang in there!!! It does get easier as time passes....and you won't believe how much better you'll feel when you blood sugars normalize!

As for pasta, I eat the Dreamfield's w/o problems. You'll have to give it a try.

Right now, your main goal is to get you blood sugars as close to normal as possible, so you may want to consider really limiting your carbs (pasta, rice, bread and potatoes) until your meds have had time to really kick in, THEN you can add things little by little to determine your individual tolerances.

The best way to know how different foods affect you is to eat, then check your blood sugar 2 hrs after your first bite. At diagnosis, I was given the goal blood sugars of 140 or less 2 hrs after first bite, 110 or less fasting. If you test, you'll see how different foods affect you, and can make smarter food choices. It can take metformin around 3 weeks to reach optimal levels in your body, so you may not see the #s you want at first, but don't give up.

There's a great book you'll see recommended here often "The first year, Type 2 Diabetes," by Gretchen Becker--a VERYworthwhile read. She's diabetic, and it answers lots of questions you'll have.

Hope you post often. There's nothing more reassuring than being a part of a community such as this. There's always someone who is either going through what you're going through...or has already been there (which I find very encouraging).

[davef]

Margie,

I can't add to the great advice you have already received but would like to say welcome to the forums. Great place, great people, what more could you ask for.

BTW, I found that the book Linda mentioned was very informative and easy to read. Any day now Gretch Becker will have to start paying a commision to the forums

Ask lots of questions, join in and have fun,

[luckharm]

Hi All,

Thank you for the many replies to my post! Everyone seems so friendly and informative. So far I learned about Dreamfields pasta, which I will definitely try and a great book.

I was a little down this morning as my sugar level tested at 250 (yesterday it was 192). I did have a weak moment the night before when I had one bite of a sugary coffee cake. I was good all day, and I didn't think one bite would be that bad! Oh well....I am still learning! Today I am eating almost NO carbs to get back in line. I have a Dr. appt on Friday for my 2 week checkup and I want to show that my numbers are going down, so I will try to be extra good the next few days.

Again, a big thank you for all the words of encouragement!

[Eddy]

Originally Posted by luckharm

Thank you for the many replies to my post! Everyone seems so friendly and informative. So far I learned about Dreamfields pasta, which I will definitely try and a great book.

I've never tried that. I need to control my wheat intake, so I eat Tinkyada whole-grain rice spaghetti. It releases glucose very slowly over a five-hour period, which I suspect would be helpful for a type 2.

Originally Posted by luckharm

I was a little down this morning as my sugar level tested at 250 (yesterday it was 192).

A friend of mine once said, "I wouldn't fail so often if I weren't trying so hard."

Don't sweat it. Just stick to the "big picture" trends.

FWIW: I've had waking BG numbers in the range you stated. At the other end, my record low waking BG was sub-20. I like to think that I am conscientious and have good control. However, I certainly have my fair share of bad days.

Originally Posted by luckharm

I did have a weak moment the night before when I had one bite of a sugary coffee cake. I was good all day, and I didn't think one bite would be that bad! Oh well....I am still learning!

I believe that everyone on this site is still learning. As much as we grumble about popular misinformation, bad doctors, et cetera, none of us claim to be beyond learning.

Think of it as "science club".

Originally Posted by luckharm

Today I am eating almost NO carbs to get back in line. I have a Dr. appt on Friday for my 2 week checkup and I want to show that my numbers are going down, so I will try to be extra good the next few days.

Find a pace with which you can stick. Don't worry about sneaking some "forbidden tastiness" now and again. We all do it. It can't be a daily affair, but... yeah, we all do it.

Originally Posted by luckharm

Again, a big thank you for all the words of encouragement!

We might be a bit on the strange side, but we generally mean well.

[Holly]

Add exercise to your routine. That will balance off the carbs nicely. I wish we could get Dreamfield's pasta in Canada as I must have some Italian in my DNA too. I just got back from Las Vegas too and it is really hard to avoid those buffets and fancy dinners. Big sigh. Hate to see what my next A1C will be.

[kgm0612]

Welcome Margie. Nice people and tons of great information to be found here.

My advice.........test often and keep a log book of the foods you're eating. This way you'll know which foods you do well with and which foods you may need to cut back on or avoid alltogether. Exercise is important too. Try getting in a walk every night after dinner if you're able to do so. You'll notice a big improvement in your blood sugar readings.

Another pasta, other than Dreamfield's, you may want to try is one that says "whole grain" or "whole wheat". Also, Nature's Own Double Fiber Wheat Bread is delicious.

Karen

[luckharm]

Hi,

I just came back from my 2 week checkup post diagnosis and my doctor was happy with my progress. My glucose levels went from the 300's to the 200's. I was dissapointed that they werent lower, but she said that you don't want to go down too fast as your body might go into shock. She has had me slowly increase my dosage of Metformin over the past two weeks for this reason. Now that I understand this, I feel a lot better. I have another lab test and checkup in 3 weeks so I'll report back then.

By the way, I asked her this question.

Q. "If I bring my numbers down to normal levels and keep them there, will I still run the risks, over time of developing the ugly complications of diabetes. In other words, is the disease progressive no matter what you do?"

A. "No, if you keep your numbers in the normal range, you should live a normal, healty, long life with no risk of the complications."

This gives me the incentives I need to keep on track!

Thank you again for all the support and help.

[patricia52]

I am so glad you joined us. Glad your #'s are improving. I could not give up spagettii but I have switched to whole wheat spagetti and I still have to limit my portions. It's hard but in the end it is worth it. Keep looking for other ways to lower your carbohydrate intake without giving up the things you love. Another trick I have learned on this forum is to eat very slowly. Don't become discouraged and do not panic. We are here to help and support each other.