Off topic: Diabetes?

Bokeh

I have been recently diagnosed with Type II. Anyone else out there dealing with this?

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Rappeller

I was diagnosed at the end of August with Type II also

IndyLoveless

My wife is a Type II Diabetic. Looking from the outside, I can't imagine having to deal with it everyday, but she says it is like 2nd nature to her.

She has an OmniPod pump system to help control her diabetes.

joehalford01

You can do it dude. Multiple people on my moms side of the family have been diagnosed with it. The biggest driving factor is not taking care of themselves or eating right. This isn't necessarily the reason you have it, skinny people can have it to, and I don't know anything about your personal situation. I do know that in my family, when the weight comes off, the symptoms go away like it never existed, then when the weight comes back on, there it is again. I know I'll be diagnosed with it someday if I don't keep my own weight down, so regular exercise and eating right has become as important to me as getting sleep. If you do those two things and follow your doctors recommendations, your quality of life won't be bad, you won't miss a beat.

Bokeh

Thanks everyone. I went in for something totally unrelated, and the blood test came back possibly positive. Had to go back after fasting and re-test. Bingo, there it was. It does run in my family, so someone was bound to get it.

So far its just diet, exercise, and one pill a morning. It just not having that second slice of pizza, or a second burger. Forget the bag of chips with lunch, etc. I start my round of counseling tonight for the next few weeks, then first follow up with doc on the 17th. Buying a decent pedometer has helped, since I can track steps and calories through out the day.

Plantwiz

Bokeh wrote: »

... It does run in my family, so someone was bound to get it.

....

Careful with that sort of thinking (and those comments are made in my family as well so I'm not picking on you in particular), but NO ONE has to get it [Type II] but frequently folks 'think' it is inhereted but family members are more likely to develop the disease as they have similar habits (good/bad) and they eat similarly. Mom/Dad were raised a certain way, they were probably similar in backgrounds/neighborhoods, so their parents taught them...now the two of them get together, share similar food/eating excercise (or lack of) habits and pass it on to their children...bam...'it' [type II] runs in families. (not really, but that is the thought process).

You have a good wake-up call! So, the ball is in your court and you can make choices to live on the borderline risk for a while and continue down into full-blown Type II complete with insulain injections...or you may find food you can tolerate and live a relatively healthy life free of diabetic worries. Adjust your pallete and your comfort foods...treating yourself (if ever) on very rare occassions ONLY and you'll run a very good chance of being in good shape the rest of your life and saving yourself from the hardships of strokes, kidney stones, kidney failure, amputations, etc...

(and your post hits on the morning after hearing of how a close friend has progressed from diabetes, to several strokes with recovery, to dementia...so make the changes in your life while you can....because only 18 short years ago a 'pre-diabetic' friend started with a pill and option to manage diet....has progressed into this....)

Take care of yourself!

Bokeh

Oh I know its nobody's fault but my own. I am just more prone to it with previous relatives having it. As the doc told me "can't swap out your gene pool."

I am determined to fight this as hard as I can. In fact just got back from hitting the stairs here at work after lunch. Only 3 flights, but 3 laps helps with the step total. Diet is HUGE as well. Get rid of the crud and eat better, then you'll feel better and be better overall as well.

whatthehell

Bokeh wrote: »

Oh I know its nobody's fault but my own. I am just more prone to it with previous relatives having it. As the doc told me "can't swap out your gene pool."

I am determined to fight this as hard as I can. In fact just got back from hitting the stairs here at work after lunch. Only 3 flights, but 3 laps helps with the step total. Diet is HUGE as well. Get rid of the crud and eat better, then you'll feel better and be better overall as well.

There is no point in blaming yourself right now. If you dwell on the past, you lose the present and the future deteriorates as well. You need to focus on what is going on at this point. This is totally beatable and you can do it. My family has a history of this, and it can be a very bad disease.

1. Making drastic changes will not be a permanent fix, as it will lead to binging. Make slow changes, like eating bad 2-3 times a week instead of 5 times a week. Chew slower, and make it a point to have one salad each day.
2. You do NOT need to go crazy with exercising. Daily exercise 3-5 times a week would be a great start. Walk 30 minutes a day, and then try to build up to jog/walking (use Couch25k -- great plan)
3. Try low impact exercise like swimming, especially if you are a heavier person. Jogging, basketball, and other high impact exercises may lead to injuries at first, but, after dropping more weight and being motivated, do some of the higher impact stuff on an intermittent basis (as they are usually the most fun, IMHO).

Again, you are not alone, you can totally do this, and take one day at a time and try to do something to improve each day (be it small or big).

simonmoon

Bokeh wrote: »

Diet is HUGE as well. Get rid of the crud and eat better, then you'll feel better and be better overall as well.

This is correct. Just understand that crud = sugar. I've seen people suddenly decide they need to cut butter and red meat even though those are good for you.

the_Grinch

My dad has diabetes (got diagnosed in 1980) and made a huge change when he found out. His mother had it and didn't take care of herself, so she ultimately lost her leg and then passed away. It is great that you are making the changes and doing things the right way. It took awhile, but now my dad is down to the one pill a day (he use to take a lot awhile ago) and is the picture of health. Also, make sure you are going to the foot doctor on a regular basis because if there are issues your feet will be the first sign. My dad loves going to the doctors, but he goes to the foot doctor usually every three months. Another advantage you have is the fact that there is so much sugar free stuff out there now. In the 80's and most of the 90's, your choices were limited. My dad actually wrote to Hershey in the 90's about coming out with sugar free candy and their reply was there isn't a market. Now everything is sugar free! My last word of wisdom is watch the drinking (alcohol) and make sure you eat on a regular basis. Drops in your sugar can be quick and wicked (especially if you take your insulin and forget to eat or take it too early). People drop all the time because they get busy and forget to eat and a lot of times they fall (hitting their heads, etc). As an EMT, I carry liquid insulin in my kit in my car and it is the nasty stuff you will ever taste (if we give it to you, you have a whole tube to finish and it blows big time)! Save yourself and keep on top of when you last ate!

Devilsbane

I'm sure that this doesn't count, but one of my dogs was diagnosed with diabetes about a year ago. Other than 2 insulin injections a day and more frequent visits to the vet she has lead a normal dog life.

I also know some people with it who lead normal lives, you just have to be mindful of what your eating and have a tester readily available to make sure that you're doing alright.