Any diabetes experts out there

peternap · January 02, 2009, 08:02:20 PM

My blood sugar has spiked for a couple of years now. It goes way up then tanks. I suspect that's why the cinnamon helped so much this summer.

It's playing new tricks now and I can't figure it out. To be short, it's high. I had quit taking it for a while and had started having problems....Like going to sleep, sometimes while standing up. Being tired all the time and huffing like a freight train with minimal exercise. My vision seems to get blurry several times a day.

I was also thirsty. I had started keeping a gallon of water with me and going through several a day. To be honest, I thought it was my heart and I was just marking time.

I started taking my sugar readings again a few weeks ago. They are fairly consistent. Today is a good example. They have ranged from 327 to 518'. I can't seem to bring it down even with fasting.

Doctors are still on the ...drive a stake through their hearts....list.

Any idea how to force it down without going to one?

NM_Shooter · January 02, 2009, 09:33:02 PM

Peter, suck it up and go to an endocrinologist. YOU ARE GOING TO FRY YOUR KIDNEYS.

Start an exercise program.

Don't make us yell at you.

January 02, 2009, 09:47:41 PM

Sassy has had a lot of experience with patients with it, and took some training on it - she is working this week but I'll see if I can get her for some comment.

MountainDon · January 02, 2009, 10:13:10 PM

Peter, I think this may be one of the times a doctor visit is in order.

According to one of my formerly overweight and diabetes diagnosed doctor friends, weight control and exercise is a key. He dropped enough weight and now doesn't need insulin.

Redoverfarm · January 02, 2009, 10:39:20 PM

Peter I have a SIL who is what you would almost call an expert in that she teaches about diabetes. A RN and travels all over. She said the first tell tell sign is the consumption of water. Her husband my BIL has been one since he has been 15. To the extent of having a insulin pump. What she stresses is Carbohydrates intakes. Seriously you need to get with a regiment of controlling your sugar level. Your health will come after that. If you would like I can talk to her and see what she suggest for short term help but it would be only that with follow-up to kep you around.

January 02, 2009, 10:56:52 PM

Called her -- she can't get a good connection to the net now. Basic info to hopefully make it understandable.

High blood sugar ie: diabetes causes the blood to be sticky with glucose (sugar).

Sassy says stay away from Carbohydrates, sugar, bread, most fruits.

Meat and vegetables are OK except restrict consumption of corn, bread, white potatoes, carrots and carbohydrates. Carbohydrates and starchy vegetables raise the blood sugar. For carbohydrates eat only complex and high fiber carbohydrates such as whole grains - fruits - (not juices). Sweet potatoes are OK. Try the Atkins diet. Homegrown had to follow that. This may or may not help. High Protien/ meat is good.

Cinnamon is good.

Check your blood sugar several times per day 1/2 hr before you eat - and a couple hours after. Write down what you eat - keep a diary to see what is raising your blood sugar. Try it for a couple weeks to see if it makes a difference unless you note serious symptoms.

The reason you are drinking so much water and possibly peeing like a race horse is that your body is trying to get rid of the sugar. The sugar in the body is not getting into the cells. It's circulating in the blood stream making the red blood cells sticky like glazed donuts. The sticky red blood cells clog up the capillaries -in all areas esp. in the eyes - kidneys- feet. The sugar in the blood stream is super concentrated drawing the fluid out of the cells by osmosis, making you thirsty as body tries to dilute it. This can lead to dehydration which can lead to collapse.

Diabetes is the leading cause of blindness, kidney failure, heart disease and amputations if the blood sugar is not controlled. You are tired because the sugar is not being absorbed by the cells - due to lack of insulin.

The cells are starving and you don't have energy.

The cells are starving so the body starts burning fat making the body acidotic (ketoacidosis) because the cells are not able to use the sugar. Having the body too acidotic can kill you.

The insulin is key to unlocking the cells to use the glucose but instead the glucose is only circulating in your blood stream and not getting anywhere else.... not getting into the cells so the cells are starving.

BTW smoking constricts the blood vessels so the effect is double. Stopping smoking can help slow down damage to the blood vessels besides getting the blood sugar under control.

Sassy says you are in a serious range that could cause you real problems. If you try this for a bit sticking to an Adkins type diet you may be improved but no guarantee. If symptoms such as blurred vision, severe thirst , frequent urination, hunger, weight loss continue, you need to see a doctor.

If your body is not making insulin you have to be on it. If you are only type II diabetes - insulin resistant, you may have better results with diet, exercise - that type of thing, but if you are not putting out insulin, you have to have it. You will need supplemental insulin. This is information only - not medical advice - with me (GK) trying to type the info Sassy is dictating....

If you have dirty oil and fuel, no water and leaking your fluids, your engine will stop running. Insulin is the carburetor that makes your fuel burnable. A plugged carburetor or no carburetor means the engine won't run.

You need to maintain it or get a mechanic.

Homegrown Tomatoes · January 03, 2009, 12:14:44 AM

Glenn, I would add that I could not even eat sweet potatoes during the gestational diabetes or my numbers would shoot up to the mid-200s (doc wanted them under 120). Also could not eat peas or very many beans, or even more than just a few bites of tomatoes. Green leafy veggies, broccoli, cauliflower, and lots of red meat and nuts seemed to help. Don't eat any bread at all, even WW, until you get your numbers down... I tried a WW tortilla (just one teensy weensy one) and sure enough my blood sugar skyrocketed. Eggs are good.

Whitlock · January 03, 2009, 12:19:17 AM

Peter I have diabetics in my family. They live by the Dr. Atkins diet. Basically no carbs.
If your suger level is that high you need to stay away from carbs.smoking, drinking, stress.
You need to exersize a lot!!!!!!!
If you get pissed off easy

Can't get enough water

have to go to the bathroom a lot

Blurred vision

falling asleep after meals

your blood sugar is too high $:-\$

Acorns will actually help control your blood sugar levels

Good Luck,W

peternap · January 03, 2009, 04:39:41 PM

Thanks everyone!
I guess I get to see a Doctor next week

January 03, 2009, 06:58:45 PM

Good plan, Peter. The above suggestions can still help.

Homegrown Tomatoes · January 03, 2009, 11:05:37 PM

Peter, I am relieved that you are going, and I hope it is a good one and not some quack. In the mean time, please try to take care of yourself.

considerations · January 05, 2009, 01:13:19 AM

Stress and anxiety will spike your blood sugar as well, even when you are being good with the diet and exercise.

Breath.

peternap · January 06, 2009, 11:26:22 AM

I went to the hospital this morning for tests.
I've been fasting and then folloowint Adkins and had gotten down to 179. After the tests, I decided to get a scrambled egg at the cafeteria. They were out of eggs and only had oatmeal so I got a serving. No sugar or anything else. I ate half of it, walked a mile and then tested....

DAMN>>>>>249

This is not going to be fun!

glenn kangiser · January 06, 2009, 11:45:43 AM

At least you are working on it and have a bit of a plan as well as are figuring out where the problems are. Please keep us posted Peter.

January 06, 2009, 11:55:56 AM

Best of luck with that Peter.

Homegrown Tomatoes · January 06, 2009, 12:52:35 PM

Quote from: considerations on January 05, 2009, 01:13:19 AM
Stress and anxiety will spike your blood sugar as well, even when you are being good with the diet and exercise.

Breath.

I second this, too. In dealing with my blood sugar, if I was stressed or had a rough night's sleep/lack of sleep, my numbers would be high no matter how I ate or what exercise I got. Pretty much the second half of the pregnancy with Sylvia, I could eat only a certain range of things, and going to bed early and getting a good night's sleep was imperative. Every single day, I had at least two meals that included a dark green leafy salad with little/no dressing, and then only something that had no sugar. Even now that I am supposedly no longer diabetic, if I don't sleep well, or if I am stressed out, my blood sugar is higher than it should be... I am still testing, though probably not as consistent as I should be, just to see that things really are OK. My great grandma had to have her legs amputated due to diabetes, and I'm in no hurry to follow that path! So, try to relax and eat well, avoiding anything starchy/sugary, and get sleep at night when you need it. Hope that you get it figured out pretty soon and are feeling better. Super high or low blood sugar makes you feel awful, so I can't imagine how you must be feeling after it being elevated so long.

peternap · January 06, 2009, 04:36:48 PM

WHAT IS GOING ON?

I decided to try a lean steak for lunner

(I was hungry)

I figured it would be over 300

It's 170 now

I'm puzzled

Homegrown Tomatoes · January 06, 2009, 05:14:04 PM

Did you have anything with the steak? Meat and dark green leafy veggies, nuts, and eggs never raised my blood sugar very much at all... in fact, it usually stayed just a few points above what it was at fasting with foods like that. However, one time I decided to stick that steak, some onion and peppers, inside a tortilla (whole wheat at that) and it shot up to something like 240 or 250. (I was told to keep mine within a range of less than 90 when fasting and less than 120 after eating.) Another thing that helped control mine was eating a big, protein rich breakfast (2-3 eggs, salsa, and broccoli and cheese or something...and no more than one cup of coffee... the caffeine seems to have an effect too. If I ate a good breakfast, my sugar levels stayed better regulated for the rest of the day.) I don't like diet pop, but tried to drink some one time when I was really wanting a burger and a coke. My blood sugar didn't go up as high as it would have if I'd eaten coke and a burger (I had the diet dr. pepper and just the meat and veggies off the burger and gave the bread to the dogs) but it stayed up all evening and was still high when I got up the next day. I don't know how those sugar substitutes really work in your body, but gut feeling on it is that they aren't good for you overall. I also tried icecream with something similar (some no-carb type junk). I had the same reaction... blood sugar was up, not as high as it would have been had I had the real icecream, but it stayed up a lot longer than it would have if I'd eaten real sugar.

peternap · January 06, 2009, 05:30:53 PM

Quote from: Homegrown Tomatoes on January 06, 2009, 05:14:04 PM
Did you have anything with the steak? Meat and dark green leafy veggies, nuts, and eggs never raised my blood sugar very much at all... in fact, it usually stayed just a few points above what it was at fasting with foods like that. However, one time I decided to stick that steak, some onion and peppers, inside a tortilla (whole wheat at that) and it shot up to something like 240 or 250. (I was told to keep mine within a range of less than 90 when fasting and less than 120 after eating.) Another thing that helped control mine was eating a big, protein rich breakfast (2-3 eggs, salsa, and broccoli and cheese or something...and no more than one cup of coffee... the caffeine seems to have an effect too. If I ate a good breakfast, my sugar levels stayed better regulated for the rest of the day.) I don't like diet pop, but tried to drink some one time when I was really wanting a burger and a coke. My blood sugar didn't go up as high as it would have if I'd eaten coke and a burger (I had the diet dr. pepper and just the meat and veggies off the burger and gave the bread to the dogs) but it stayed up all evening and was still high when I got up the next day. I don't know how those sugar substitutes really work in your body, but gut feeling on it is that they aren't good for you overall. I also tried icecream with something similar (some no-carb type junk). I had the same reaction... blood sugar was up, not as high as it would have been had I had the real icecream, but it stayed up a lot longer than it would have if I'd eaten real sugar.

I just had the steak and a glass of water. Adkins says coffee raises it so I quit. That has been difficult. I normally drink half a 2 gallon urn of coffee a day.
I think your right about the meal in the morning. There seems to be a lot more to this than NOT eating. BTW, it's official now...type 2 diabetes.

I'm keeping a log and trying to be as detailed as possible. I ate a tangerine a little while ago and it didn't change my reading at all.

Tomorrow, I'm going to try your breakfast and see if I can keep it under 200 all day.

Thanks!

Homegrown Tomatoes · January 06, 2009, 08:37:32 PM

I know how that is to give up coffee... pretty hard to do, especially in the winter.

Try the breakfast, though... it will most likely make a difference. Funny thing was that I actually LOST weight during the last pregnancy eating like that (3 or more eggs a day, bacon, steak, you name it... at the end of the pregnancy, I weighed about 8 or 10 pounds less than before I got pregnant, and had an 8-lb kiddo to boot.)

January 06, 2009, 09:27:29 PM

Peter I know my BIL who is a extreme diabetic could not survive w/o his coffee. He uses an artifical sweetner. Never heard his comment on raising his sugar amount. We generally do not use artifical sugars so he brings his own stash which we leave on hand when he visits. I am sure you will get it under control in a short time. Your health should improve to being normal (

) again.

Homegrown Tomatoes · January 07, 2009, 08:49:07 AM

I'm not sure it is the sugar or the artificial sweeteners that make coffee have an effect... even if I drank more than one cup black, it made my sugar levels stay elevated longer.... almost the same effect that artificial sweeteners had on it. Iced tea (unsweet, of course) didn't seem to have any effect, so I'm not sure what it is about the coffee. Maybe it was because I was drinking decaf tea?? I was surprised at just how much some veggies elevated it, though. I made chicken stew with collards, carrots, and potatoes one time and I ate two bites that contained either a potato or a carrot (I tried to eat mostly the collards and let my family eat the other veggies) and my blood sugar went up over 200, which was very high for me. Anyway, I think each person is different. I always heard that diabetics could eat sweet potatoes if they didn't put sugar and such on them; however, for me, it raised my blood sugar dangerously high. Bananas, on the other hand, were fine, as long as I ate them with meat, nuts, or eggs. They were about the only fruit I could eat and not have sky-high blood sugar, which I never figured out because they're so sweet. They did raise it some, but not nearly as bad as everything else. I could eat up to four cherry tomatoes, again as long as I had them with protein rich foods, before my blood sugar would get out of range. I also had to eat a lot more often.... I am not a snacker, so it was hard for me to learn. I always liked to eat three big meals a day and not eat in between meals. However, I had to learn to have breakfast, and then a handful of nuts and a cup of milk or something around 10 in the morning and then between 2-3 in the afternoon, I'd have a piece of beef jerky or some celery or something. Otherwise, my blood sugar would be down in the 70s and I'd feel like I was going to pass out. I kept a big can of mixed nuts and a bag of beef jerky with me in the truck all the time. The funny thing is that I had all the symptoms that pregnant women complain about before I found out I was diabetic... I had swollen legs, feet and hands, varicose veins that ached relentlessly, headaches, nausea, heartburn, etc. When I changed the diet to control my blood sugar (which I HAD to do, especially since I was allergic to the medicine the doctor gave me to help control it!) all the "symptoms" of a so-called normal pregnancy disappeared. I felt better than I had felt during either of the previous pregnancies. My feet didn't swell, I wore my wedding band all the way through the pregnancy (what's more, after the baby was born, the ring was nearly falling off), I had a lot of energy, didn't have the usual headaches and heartburn, etc. It got to the point that I could tell that my blood sugar was high by the way that I felt... if I got heartburn, I can guarantee my numbers would be high. If I had swollen feet, I either hadn't slept well or hadn't eaten as well as I should have and my numbers would be high.

Hmmm... maybe I need to start eating like that again! I will say, though, that potatoes had never tasted so good, nor had ice cream or any of those other things I couldn't eat, as they did after the baby got here.

Peter, one other thing. If you are craving something sweet, instead of eating something you shouldn't, try to have a bite of one of the southbeach diet bars or the glucerna bars. They're expensive, but nice to have when you have a real craving for dessert but can't have it. The southbeach diet bars are too big, so you don't want to eat a whole one... maybe 1/4. The glucerna bars are better portions. Neither one spikes your blood sugar, though they will raise it somewhat. It is still better than giving in and eating a piece of pie or cake. They're not as good as the real deal, but you'll feel better than you would if you had a twix.

peternap · January 07, 2009, 09:23:43 AM

I guess the reason for keeping this thread open, would be what food to store for diabetics. Darned if I know yet except dried eggs.

This morning was a success!

I went for a walk about 5:00 this morning. It was raining but I never minded that. I walked a mile and a half and ate breakfast. It was the equivilent of three eggs (dried scrambled eggs at the hospital cafeteria), and walked a mile and a half home,

I took a reading as soon as I got home. 163

For some reason, every bone in my body hurts this morning, so I sat down and started looking at the stock market. I took a reading about 10 minutes ago and it was 155

. That's the lowest I have had since it has been staying up.

Terry · January 07, 2009, 12:09:05 PM

Did your Doctor put you on any diabetic medication? Or, are you trying the diet and exercise first?

pickngrin · January 07, 2009, 12:25:40 PM

I am border-line diabetic - A1C is fine, 2-hour glucose tolerance is not fine. I found the Zone Diet books to be helpful. One thing they stress is the importance of starting the day with protein, carbs, and fat in the right balance. I've started having a protein shake first thing in the morning, every morning, and that has really helped me stay focused and energized throughout the day. I also have a high-protein snack about 10:30-11:00 that seems to help prevent my blood sugar from getting too low. Glucerna bars have also been helpful as Homegrown Tomatoes suggests. They're good when I want something sweet but don't want to pay the consequences of eating real sweets.

The protein shake has really changed things for me - might want to give it a try. I get the chocolate flavored whey protein powder from Wal-mart and mix it with 8 oz of soy milk.

Good luck - I know it's a struggle.