I'm back - a bit healthier with room for improvement

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I'm back - a bit healthier with room for improvement

Postby brannach » Sat Oct 01, 2011 10:39 pm

I finally gave in and went on a new medication for my Type 2, so less metformin but with Januvia added. My blood sugar was totally out of control before and now it is ALWAYS below 10mmol (still haven't found that conversion chart!).

I gave in on the new meds after lots of testing - I have no neuropathy, no insulin resistance but I'm simply not producing enough insulin. My specialist is loathe to put me on insulin because of the increase hospitalisations he's seen it cause - and my HBa1c is under the clinical levels set for insulin use. On Januvia I've had a few hypos (not supposed to happen), and I'm having lots of issues with bloating with the occasional instance of being physically ill. I see him in two weeks so we'll talk then. He's just been to a conference in San Diego and said he will update me on Januvia risks and research (the only reason I decided to go on it really - well that and not feeling well).

I'm reading 'Food for Life' and plan to follow that program for a while to get rid of these stubborn final 10 kilos. I think that will make a big difference to how I feel. It's also coming on summer and I'm walking in the mornings again. I hate daylight saving as it was just light enough to feel safe and as of today it's dark again. But two or three weeks and the light will be back.

So - my current weight is 79 kilos - 173lbs. I'm still struggling with using food as an emotional crutch - and I am still determined even if progress is slow and with as many steps backward as forward. I certainly eat better than I did 5 years ago, and much better than 10 years ago. I stick to the program probably 90% of the time but the 10% does undermine my confidence in myself - so time to focus on being just that 10% more committed to my health.

Roseanne :-)
Roseanne
I had a weight problem then I discovered it was a thinking problem. Now I know there's a good food solution.
Fave Quote - "Everyone and everything around you is your teacher." Ken Keyes
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brannach
 
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Location: NSW, Australia

Re: I'm back - a bit healthier with room for improvement

Postby MixedGrains » Sun Oct 02, 2011 10:38 am

Hey, Roseanne -- welcome back!

I've been where you are -- After years on more toxic meds, I was on Jenuvia briefly before my numbers got good enough (after starting to eat plant foods) that I could stop taking it. (I have to go back to my doctor for a new blood test in a few weeks to prove to him that my A1C isn't going back up now that I'm off the Jenuvia -- but my fasting levels at home continue to drop, so I think that's gonna go well.)

You already know that last 10% is what's zapping you, so I wish you the best of luck in eliminating that! For me, cutting out refined carbs didn't help my diabetes much, even though I did that for years. It was only when I got my calories-from-fat percentage below ten percent or so that the dramatic blood sugar improvements started. And to do that, you really can't "cheat" at all -- if you eat any animal products or extracted oils, your percentage-of-calories-from-fat number shoots up too high.

My advice is to to whatever it takes (food diary, locking yourself in a cellar, whatever!) to muscle through at least three days (5 or 7 would be more of a sure thing) of 100% compliance. Take your blood sugar numbers frequently during this time if you like (although I find the fasting morning number most illuminating and give it by far the heaviest weight in my thinking.) If you're anything like me, you'll see a sudden drop in blood sugar numbers within those first few days, and that for me has been very motivating in continuing to eat right and avoid bad-food excursions.
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Re: I'm back - a bit healthier with room for improvement

Postby brannach » Mon Oct 03, 2011 1:20 am

SNAP!! Hi MG! That's what I'm doing - it's school holidays so no temptation from school and more time. I'm actually reading Eat to Live by Joel Fuhrman, just to reinvigorate my belief in how this works. All my blood work is fantastic for my age - I just need to work out how to drop those kilos. I know that exercise is now the greatest part of it for me. I get so rushed by teaching but I'm taking back my life - I'm doing art (decorative art) again and regaining my relationships with my friends. And if they really love me they will help me with this. It is getting easier - though people seem to equate eating plant based with being gluten free??? :eek:

I'm glad you finally found the answer and you've managed to get off Januvia. I wish I had known about this way of eating (ie how well it works) early on in my diabetes, but all the same I think 25 years without side effects says a lot for a plant based diet. I've got out my Simple vegan cookbook and have identified quite a few recipes that I love and I'm making sure I have them available. I've also gone back to Dr McDougall's suggestion of having cooked potatoes in the fridge. Steamed potatoes are yummy - moist and flavourful.

Thanks for your good wishes - it's what I love about this site - and why I know it is OK to admit to not being perfect. All the best
Roseanne
I had a weight problem then I discovered it was a thinking problem. Now I know there's a good food solution.
Fave Quote - "Everyone and everything around you is your teacher." Ken Keyes
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brannach
 
Posts: 117
Joined: Tue Nov 28, 2006 1:33 am
Location: NSW, Australia


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