Questions from a "not-yet diabetic"

[Halia]

Hi all! I went to see my doc yesterday to go over blood work. I have been so tired lately I was sure my thyroid meds needed adjusted (I'm hypothyroid). I was right on that, but I'm also anemic & had a borderline high blood sugar reading. He did a a1c test & it came back barely under 6 so he prescribed glucophage & wants me to lose weight over the next 3 months & see if I can ward off moving into diabetes. He's also willing to give me phentermine for a couple of months to kick start my weight loss.

I'm trying not to freak out. I knew I was at a higher risk because I have PCOS, but I've always kept in in check with exercise & diet since I had my children. Except lately. In the last 6 months I gained 40 pounds & let stress rule my life. The stressful things aren't going anywhere, in fact they're getting worse, so I can't use that as an excuse anymore. I have to get back on plan & do it quickly. The past week I've stayed on my LC plan, but due to the exhaustion I'm feeling I haven't been able to exercise. I'm hoping the adjustment of my thyroid meds & some iron will help that clear up & I can get to it again.

I'm so full of questions but I'll try to limit myself. My doc didn't say anything about checking my blood sugar on a regular basis. I have a meter that was given to me by a friend. It's a little One Touch thing. I thought about just starting to check it on my own. Do y'all think that's a good idea? I'll have to read about when I should. Also, I know to eat LC & I don't have a problem with that, but is it important to eat at certain times? For instance, I have a hard time eating when I get up in the morning. I have to force myself to & it often makes me want to be sick. Do I need to eat upon first waking up? I typically eat a small-ish breakfast, whatever I can force down, a larger lunch & a smaller dinner & then try my best not to snack after dinner because that's where I get weak. Everyone always spouts the 6 small meals a day stuff when trying to lose weight, but when I've lost weight in the past I could never eat 6 times a day or I'd stay hungry. If I did 3 meals I would lose weight.

Ok, I'm going to stop. My head is swimming with all the info I've been trying to read & questions that I'm wondering about. Thanks for getting through this if you did!

[Vilya]

OK, first off - don't panic!

If you're really anemic, I would not worry about exercise until you get your iron levels back up. I became severely anemic during an abnormal menstruation, and my doc had me on lockdown until I got better.

I would definitely start testing your blood sugar, since you already have the meter. If you can, get your doc to prescribe some test strips for you. OneTouch strips are quite expensive in Walgreens, about $64 per box of 50. I used to get mine from an eBay seller instead, for about $45 per box of 100. But then I switched to the ReliOn Confirm meter, which is sold in Walmart. Strips are only $36 for a box of 100, and the meter is very accurate.

Good times to test: first thing in the morning, before meals, 1 hour after a meal, 2 hours after a meal, and right before bed. This is the only way you will know what various foods do to your blood sugar. I don't test quite as often now, since I eat mostly the same things and have developed a sort of "radar" about my BG level at any given time. LOL I personally try to stay between 70 - 100 at all times, but it's considered normal to be at 120 or so after meals.

The "Blood Sugar 101" website is also a really good place for diabetes info.

Hang in there! You're doing great for yourself by asking questions and wanting to take charge.

[Mobear]

Another good source of information (besides the Blood Sugar 101 website) is Dr. Richard Bernstein. The third edition of his book "Diabetes Solution" came out a few months ago.

Dr. Bernstein does mention 5 or 6 small meals if a person not taking insulin wishes to go that route. However, if you know that won't work I would just follow his general guidelines: 30g of carbs a day with 6g at breakfast, 12g at lunch, and 12 at supper. He is a big proponent of keeping things uniform from day to day. In other words eat the same amount of protein each day for breakfast, determine how much protein you want for lunch and have that amount every day and then determine how much you want for supper and have that every day. No low fat or fat free products!! No restricting fat at all.

Glucaphage (metformin) helps a lot of people lose weight so taking it is a good thing.

As Vilya said, don't worry about the exercise until your meds are adjusted and the anemia resolved.

Perhaps something like meditation or relaxing music will help your stress - if you can do that.

Good luck and try not to worry too much. You are the path to resolving this problem.

[Halia]

Thank y'all so much for your info! It really helped to settle my nerves. I truly appreciate it! I've been reading & researching & trying to learn. I've also been hard core trying to stay under 20 net carbs a day & really kick this thing's butt before it kicks mine.

My stress level is generally only helped by exercise so I started up this week. I can tell that the additional thyroid meds I needed & the iron are beginning to help. I'm not as tired as I have been. And I can feel the love of the gym beginning to come back to me. That will be a huge help I know.

I just started testing my blood sugar today. Somehow I lost the monitor in my closet. But finally found it & went & bought the test strips yesterday. I'm starting the glucophage tonight. I wanted to wait until I had a full day of testing recorded before I started it. I'm a little concerned about the side effects hitting me, but I'm trying to not think about that.

When I went back & calculated I realized I've lost 8 pounds in the past 7 days. I hope I'm on a roll that not only includes weight loss & getting in shape, but also getting my blood sugar stable & under control. Thanks again y'all!