Welcome to the list, Michelle,
I hope you will soon be feeling more relaxed about
being Diabetic. Please note that stress and
uncertainty play a negative part in sugar control.
I am not sure but I 'Have a Feeling' that until you
get the Diabetes controlled and steady, it and the
tablets may cause reactions to unexpected substances.
Taking steroids definitely affects the sugar balance
and makes it more difficult to control.
Also, 7.5% for your first HBA1C is not bad at all -
much better than my first one which was 9%.

I think that you would find it useful if you were to
read as many as you can of the archived messages on
the T2 web site as these will give you a mine of
information to delve into and learn from.
Oh and the list frequently goes quiet at weekends.
Best wishes,
Cynthia.
~~~~~~
>From: "BamaRose821" <bamarose821@...>
> Subject: Another New Member
>
> Hi, my name is Michelle. I was diagnosed with
> diabetes about a month ago when I was in the
> hospital for a "rare allergic reaction" to my new
> antidepressant meds. I was taking glucophage, but I
> had an allergic reaction to that also (I've never
> had allergic reactions to meds before, very strange)
> so now I am taking Amaryl.
I am still having high readings, regardless of what I
eat. It is very frustrating. I also have to take
Altace to prevent kidney damage. My A1C number was
7.5 in the hospital and 7.6 a weeks and a half ago at
the drs. office. I was on predisone for 2 weeks for
the first allergic reaction and I know what is why it
went up. My sugars were high then.
>
But now I have been off the predisone for 2 weeks or
so and my sugars are still high, even higher than
before. For three days this week my morning blood
sugar was 200 - 205. I increased my Amaryl from 1
> to 2 mgs and this morning it was 167. Thats better
> but still way too high. I dont' know what to do at
> this point. I go back to the doctor next week. I'm
> almost afraid to go, it seems I get bad news every
> time :(
>
> Anyway, thanks for listening. I am looking forward
> to getting to know everyone. Is the list usually
> this quiet? There haven't been any posts for a few
> days. I did read the last few online. Boy Yahoo is
> getting aggressive with their ads, aren't they?
>
> Thanks again,
>
> Michelle G
> Mom of 3
> It's not the tales of Stephen King that I've read
> I need protection from the things in my head.
> Jimmy Buffett
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>
>
>Hi Carole,
I'll answer what I can of your questions within your
letter and beneath each query.

From: "CaroleW.Kohler" <Shorewood@...>
>
I am also newly diagnosed, at about the same time as
> you. I am only on Glucophage and am taking 500 mg
per day. I just started self monitoring a week ago,
and while I cannot address most of your concerns, I
can certainly address your concerns about the
inability to get the levels down. I have heard though
that Glucophage at least, takes six weeks to work
effectively so that is hopefully some of the problems.

## Glucophage is also well-known to upset the stomach
and cause diarrhoea, wind from both ends and stomach
ache during the first few weeks but your stomach will
settle down as it gets used to it - as mine did.#

I don't know about the other meds you are taking. I
am not taking any other meds for sugar control, but I
was put on synthroid, as I was also diagnosed with an
underactive thyroid. I am losing weight unbelievably
fast. It is good, but almost scary. I have been on
many diets before diagnosis, and at best lost two
pounds a week. Now on the low carb, I have lost 14
pounds in three weeks. I am more than a dress size
smaller :-)

## I would think that this big weight loss is more the
effect of your thyroid working at its correct rate
than the low-carb by itself. Don't forget that quite
lot of that weight loss is more likely to be mainly
fluid as this is what goes first and fastest. Besides,
dieticians here usually say that losing a steady 2
pounds a week is better as the slower weight loss
generally means that it will stay off. I hope that
your weight loss steadies and settles down to going
gently and easily. Remember to drink plenty of water
as this will help you. (grin:)),-I was told to have at
least 8 large glasses of water/liquid per day.)##

I think the list is very quiet too, and so I thought
I might share some things that are going on with me to
see if other newly diagnosed people have had some
frustration with.
>
1. Do educators usually know more than the newly
diagnosed patients? WOW, was this a major
frustration. I went in with 3 pages of questions and
my educator knew the answers to about six of them.
> Most of the questions I was told I should direct to
my nutritionist or my doctor, while others she
> speculated on and ended up saying 'I don't know'.
> What a waste of money that my insurance did not
cover. One thing I asked her was whether the
> neuropathy in my feet would improve when I was able
> to get my blood levels more stable. She said that
what I had was tingling in my feet not neuropathy. I
told her my feet had been "asleep" for three years,
and she said that was just tingling that diabetics
have and
> that it would go away.
> Now I have read and read and read, and no where have
I found that this tingling that people get for three
years and neuropathy are separate things. Can any of
the more knowledgeable people on this list address
this for me? I would be very happy to learn that I do
not have neuropathy,and that I instead just have
tingling that will go away.
##Sorry, I don't know enough about nepropathy to tell
you the answers to your queries.#
>
2. Why can I go to bed at midnight with a bg of 109,
and wake up with 164 when I have not eaten anything?
Does this have to do with stored glucose in my liver
that puts glucose in my bloodstream while I am asleep?
Is this a bad thing?

## It puzzled me too but when I asked my endo, he said
that it is neither good nor bad but something that you
can't do much about as your body goes on working while
you sleep. It will frequently be higher in the morning
but personally, I wouldn't have thought it would rise
by that much but others might know better than me.

##Are you keeping a food diary? Are you able to check
back to see what you ate the day before and the pills
you took and when? Are you able to take a walk after
your evening meal as this will bring down the numbers
before bedtime.
Do you have a snack or say, a hot milky drink before
you go to bed, because that could send your sugar up.#

I do not like to eat breakfast when my bg is already
that high.
## You should eat something for breakfast even when
its that high. You can always go for a walk afterwards
which will bring it down.#

3.If your monitor gives you a reading, does that mean
there is enough blood on the strip? Sometimes I see a
tiny bit of the strip that does not seem to have blood
on it but the monitor beeps and begins to start
working
## I don't know what meter you have but with mine,
providing the area that covers the flashing tester
light has blood on it, then I get an accurate reading.
I use a Roche and it tells you if you havent enough
blood or its on the wrong place by coming up with an
'error' message. I would think most meters do much the
same.#

4.Is it important for diabetics to eat at the same
> time each day?
## Diabetics should eat regularly - I don't think that
you can say you will always eat at exactly the same
time everyday 'cos it doesnt always work out like
that. Its more important that you Don't beat up on
yourself if you are an hour later or earlier than
usual. Stress can make the levels rise.#

5.Should you exercise when your bg is high, or just
any time in the day?

## Taking walks After meals is more useful than before
them, but if you go to the gym, take something that
you can eat with you so that you don't eat or drink
what you shouldn't through sudden hunger.
I carry a few unsalted nuts (cashews/almonds) in the
car for emergencies - one or two of those will take
the edge off for me and I do mean only one or two.#

Well, anyway, there is so much to learn and appreciate
any responses from anyone who might know the answer to
these questions.
##Keep on asking. I learnt more from those on the list
than I did from the diabetic nurse or doctor in the
clinic.#

Carole
> WI
Best wishes, Cynthia.

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