Q for Diabetics: when you were newly diagnosed, did you obsess?

In My Humble Opinion
1

I’m not that “newly” diagnosed; however, I’ve always been able to distract myself with the weasel words “prediabetic” or “insulin resistant”. I’ve kind of ignored it.

About a week ago I went to a new family doctor. We discussed that I had a history of issues, with an A1c of around 7, and that I used to take metformin, but didn’t anymore. He had me run a bunch of labs, and said we’d discuss the medication after that.

Well, the results came back yesterday. My A1c was up to 7.7; I don’t know what my fasting sugar was at that point, but for about 2 weeks it hasn’t been any lower than 180-ish. So, I’m back on the metformin (as of this morning) along with vitamins & fish oil for my triglycerides.

I went out for dinner last night, and had a big dinner at a faux-Italian chain. I woke up about 2 hours after I went to bed (about 5 hours after eating) and my blood glucose was at 249. This morning, I woke up feeling hung over, and my blood glucose was 257. :eek:

I have to face it, I guess, or I won’t do what I need to: My name is Indyellen, and I’m a diabetic.

I’ve been trying to test my glucose throughout the day, at the appropriate intervals (2 hours after eating), but I keep wanting to test it, and test it, and test it and see if it’s any better. Is this normal? How have other Dopers reacted when they were first diagnosed diabetic?.

Any advice is welcome. (If this should’ve gone in MPSIMS, instead of IMHO, please move appropriately.)

2

No I wasn’t really that worried about it , I did check my level on a regular basis but my numbers were pretty good - normally less than 160 or so unless I ate a really big meal which was rare.

3

No. I was in denial for nearly two years.

I complied with my doctor’s recommendations re: meds, diet, and exercise at first. I took my meds, dieted and exercised, and lost 35 pounds. But it was hard for me to face the enormity of being diagnosed with diabetes at age 30. And my sister had just died at 27 two weeks prior to diagnosis, so I was still bereaved and not thinking clearly. I didn’t research the illness or take an active role in my treatment.

After about a year, I stopped complying with the medications. Every time I went into the doctor’s office, he wouldn’t listen to me when I told him the meds were causing severe GI distress and abdominal pain. He just said, “keep taking them.” He would also say, every time, “You are not in control,” as if it were all my fault that my blood glucose levels were still too high, despite doing everything he told me to do (and more, actually, with regard to diet). Being blamed like that, and having my suffering ignored, was incredibly demoralizing.

I spent a year just dieting and exercising on my own. There are a lot of people out there, including my sister who is a doctor, who will tell you that should be enough for a Type 2 diabetic. I waited on a list for a new doctor for nine months. (If this is what health care is like for the insured, I shudder to think what it is like for the uninsured!) When I finally got one, my blood glucose levels were back to their pre-treatment levels.

It was only at that point, two years in, that I took serious charge of my own care. And I realized the truth–that most doctors are not very competent in the treatment of diabetes. My original doctor should have known that there is a different form of the medication that made me sick, that eliminates almost all GI discomfort. My current doctors are incompetent in too many ways to detail. (Yes, I’m looking for new doctors.)

Now, I am very vigilant. But I mention my experience because I know that denial is a very common reaction for diabetics. This is not helped by uninformed doctors who try to treat you without being fully educated on the topic of diabetes management.

It’s okay to be upset or feel a certain amount of denial. That’s normal. But don’t let it stop you from getting healthy.

BTW, something all diabetics should know: your blood glucose should be under 140 two hours after a meal, or you are at increased risk for organ damage (retinopathy, neuropathy, heart disease, etc.) The latest research indicates that a hemoglobin A1c result over 5.5% puts you at increased risk for diabetic complications. Good control is essential. Work with your doctors to get there.

4

BTW, it was metformin I couldn’t tolerate. Metformin ER is a lot easier on the GI tract, but a lot of doctors don’t even know that it exists! Metformin is the best medication by far for Type 2 diabetes. Anything that helps you stay on it is a blessing.

5

Metformin has a very long track record with good results and few problems so that is why many Drs. like to prescribe it. A couple of odd things about it though: 2 other similar drugs were approved and later banned for problems they caused. Also it was approved in the US much later than it was in Europe.

6

When I was on metformin before, I had some GI side effects, but not a huge problem. At one point, I tried Glumetza, which is apparently related somehow to metformin, which did not cause me issues, but it was VERY expensive. My new doctor has told me that if I start having too many side effects, we’ll explore other options.

I’ve been in denial for a while, and I’ve lost two friends to diabetic complications. My ex-husband was also a brittle diabetic, in and out of the hospital all the time until he did a gastric bypass and lost around 170 lbs. (He’s still diabetic, of course, but isn’t on nearly the amount of insulin he used to have to take.)

I keep wanting to test my sugars, though. It’s kind of scary - I don’t want to get all OCD about it…

7

Glumetza is just a brand name for an extended release form of metformin. Metformin and Metformin ER are both available in generic. If you have issues with metformin again, and want the cheap ER form, ask for it in generic. I’m serious when I say many doctors simply don’t know it is out there.

8

To the OP, no. After the diagnosis (based on a blood sugar reading of 8.1–multiply by 18 to get US equivalent, so 8.1 is roughly 146) I got metformin. It didn’t case the slightest digestive upset–nothing upsets my digestion, my physician daughter-in-law calls me “stomach of steel” and did cause me to start to lose weight (the effect disappeared after about 25 lb over 4 years). My blood sugar has stayed between 6 and 7 and the A1G is under 6%. The doctor doesn’t feel that there would be any advantage to regular blood sugar measurement since I am obviously “behaving”. I have stopped eating sweets except fruit.

If course, it is a little different between being 30 and being in late 60s.

9

Obsess?!? I was downright freaking out for a good 6 months.

A lot of it was that I was REALLY diabetic - diagnosed with an A1c of 11.5. I got the whole diet & exercise spiel - problem was, I had already been doing everything they told me to do. I was eating fewer carbs than they told me to eat, was exercising WAY more than they told me I needed to. Did not need to lose weight. So it very quickly became apparent that diet & exercise & a couple pills a day was not gonna do much. I didn’t see a blood glucose reading under 200 for the first few weeks I had a meter, and that was eating no more than 50-60 carbs a day, and never more than 10 or 15 per meal.

Once they figured out I was Type 1 and not Type 2, and thus the treatment they were giving me was never going to work, things got a lot better. I think I cried the first day I was on insulin and woke up with a blood glucose under 200.

So, yes, it was a big shock. You’re not supposed to get Type 1 Diabetes when you’re 38 years old. But the worst part of it all was the first 6 months when I was facing a life where I could never eat a piece of fruit or slice of bread again, and I was in line for a lot of complications because my blood glucose was always high no matter what I did.

10

I was diagnosed on my 50th birthday, so I was obsessing over other things as well. Then I pretty much went into denial.

As far as Metformin is concerned, I had been taking it for years . . . but recently my doctor took me off it because it was affecting my kidneys. So now I’m on insulin instead.

11

Yes, I obsessed at first. I was terrified of anything that had sugar in it and panicked at my early blood sugar readings. When diagnosed, my A1C was about 11, fasting sugars were in the high 300s. My first drug was Avandia and it didn’t do squat, really. It was Amaryl that made all the difference, though eventually I had to add Metformin to the mix. Still not using insulin 9 years into it now.

12

My feet had become numb, and after procrastinating for about a year, I finally went to the doc about it. I knew it was a symptom of diabetes, so I was prepared for the worst when he gave me the news that I’m type 2.

For the first few weeks, I monitored myself like a hawk, and I examined every nutrition label for all the groceries I was buying. It really wasn’t that bad an adjustment to change what I ate and consciously exercise more. By the time I managed to get my glucose level to the acceptable range consistently, I had already made and coped with all the adjustments. Nowadays I maybe check once a week. Doctor gave me a clean bill of health my last visit.

So if you’re like me, you’ll obsess for a while, but you’ll see that things aren’t so bad and that you WILL get better. Stay strong.

13

It’s better the past couple days; I’m keeping a food log, and after 3 days on the meds my morning sugars are less than 130. I’m starting the GI side effects, though. I just hope I can keep up the momentum, without totally freaking out.

14

Q.N makes an excellent point, when push comes to shove, YOU are responsible for your illness and treatment. Don’t let anyone bully you into something you know is wrong.

Of course you have to use reason, sometimes the only choice is the “lessor of two evils,” but don’t fall into the trap that you think you’re utterly helpless in your illness.