As soon as I saw the doctor's phone number on caller ID I knew it was trouble. My A1c was 8.5. That's the highest it's been since diagnosis, but I could tell from the readings I've been getting that it was going to be high. He increased my glimiperide from 1mg twice a day to 2mg twice a day. I know if I take 2mg with breakfast I will get a hypo. My problem is in the afternoon and evening. I refuse to add carbs to breakfast just to keep from having a hypo. KWIM? I will take 1/2 dose (1mg) in the morning and double up in the evening, but I won't tell the dr that. I am going to completely eliminate simple carbs and just stick with complex carbs. The worst thing is, I KNOW what to do, but I always think it won't hurt to have a little bit here and there and I have to rid my mind of that thinking. I need to accept that I have diabetes and cannot eat like a normal person anymore and expect to have my health. I am really upset about this, but in my heart I knew it was coming. Maybe it's the wake-up call I needed. I know that glimiperide causes weight gain and that's not going to help me. I will use it as a tool to get me through the worst, but it is not in my plan to rely on it to keep my blood glucose down.

Sorry to hear that Carol Sue. :hug: I looked back to the day you had the lab work done as I thought I remembered you writing that you wished you had waited to have it done after you got back to exercising etc. after the first of the year. I assume it is higher than you expected though. Just look at it like this.

Don't be too hard on yourself. Just look at it this way. Now you now have enough glimiperide to use while you get things back to normal. So instead of letting it get you down just make it work for you.

I still wish my doc would give it to me, but he won't and the only way that I might get it is to go to another doc and I'm not ready to do that. I'll just do the best I can with diet and exercise.

Trish, do you really want a drug that is going to make you gain weight, or at least prevent you from losing? That's what it does. It forces your pancreas to release more insulin and insulin stores fat. Has Tony gained weight since he started on it? If he didn't, that's unusual. I don't think another doctor would give you glimiperide unless your A1c goes up. My doctor didn't put me on it until my A1c hit 7.9. After I started taking it my A1c came down into the 6 range, but now it has gone back up. I have to take it now because my kidney function is already down and I don't want it to develop into total kidney failure. I also notice that my vision is getting worse. This is something I have to do, no matter how much I don't want to.

I was going to wait to have my blood work done until I could get back to exercising and bring the A1c down a bit, but I had to make an appointment because I am having some discomfort in my throat so I want to get another endoscope done to check my hiatal hernia for changes. If it's not one thing it's another. I'm just lucky that I haven't gained any of my weight back. That's the only good thing I have going for me right now. I'm going to pot!!

Morning everyone
I was thinking of a goal for the new year,,,I've been on the weight loss journey most of my life. This year I'm going to concentrate more on losing inches. I know my BMI is crazy high and I watched a program last night called What is fat? Very informative. The documentary showed a lady's fat inside her body,,,how it encased all of her organs! Very eye opening to say the least. Then they showed how people who tried a very no/low fat diet for a week did miserably,,,,, fatigued, irritable, constipated, starving were all the complaints. The show would discuss different fats/ then show the scientific explanation of how it affected our bodies. They discussed why some fats are good for us even though they are saturated fats. At the end of the show they did say this is a new way the scientific field is heading but it's still ongoing.
After the show it made me feel better and more reassured about eating certain fats. But, one definite thing I have to change is to include more omega 3's ... It's been proven they are one thing that really helps the body.

p.a. I wish I knew were I could see that documentary. Was it on Public Television? It sounds like something I would really like. I googled What Is Fat and found a lot of different documentaries about fat but not called What Is Fat. I know there are fats that we need in our body and that eating good fats is not what causes us to get fat.

I chose my screen name Wannabehealthy because that is more important to me than the number on a scale or how I look to others. I want my blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol, etc, to all be in good ranges. It just so happens that losing weight would help that happen, but there's more to it than just lowering my weight. The nutrients in the foods I eat and exercise play a big part, too. I never cared about nutrients most of my life. Food was just something I ate that satisfied my hunger/cravings. It never used to matter whether it was healthy food or not. My DH thinks that you should just eat what you like and enjoy it while you're here because everyone is going to die eventually whether they eat healthy or not, and while that's true, I think a healthy lifestyle contributes to the quality of whatever lifespan you have. I don't want to live to be 100 if I'm going to be laying in a bed in a nursing home. I want to be able to get around and be relatively pain free for whatever years I have.

p.a. Thanks for sharing about the documentary. I also googled What is Fat, but didn't find any new science info. I hope they will put it on YouTube so maybe I can find it there. I do remember seeing a doctor years ago when they first started talking lowfat and he said "Do not go no fat, eat lowfat". Of course since then we have learned that when you remove the fat that you are hungry all the time.

Carol Sue I never cared about nutrients either. When they came out with micro/macro nutrients, I thought "great one more thing I've got to watch". It seemed so confusing. The thing I like about MFP is that it track all that and if I wanted to pay for a membership, it would keep up with the micro/macro nutrients too. I did find in my research a way that will fit into my way of doing a CAD like woe. I made my fat/protein/carb ratio fat 35, protein 35 and carb 30. I think I read that Dr. Sears says 40% fat, but I have no desire to do HFLC.

I also am watching my salt intake now. MFP keeps up with the calories, carbs, fat, protein, sodium, sugar and fiber. And I find their food lists to be pretty thorough.

Hi kids!!!

Carol
I agree with you!!! For diabetics, getting older is all about quality of life and mobility. Can I reduce my risk enough to prevent amputations, poor eyesight, kidney problems? I have a BIL who is currently losing his eyesight because he won't do what his doctor tells him. One stubborn man. I feel bad for my sister having to watch her DH throw his quality of life and life itself away. And my brother has been in a nursing home since age 54 due to diabetes and mental illness. So I see what doesn't work when it comes to self care, and I'm determined to not let that be me!

p.a.
I almost exclusively cook with olive oil since I saw that program. It's a real eye-opener.

Evening everyone I'll post the link but a friend on another board couldn't get it to work,,,even though I tested it before I linked it. I had the name wrong . It's 'The truth about fat' on TVO ( a local channel like PBS in the States.) they are starting a series called the food chain. I must remember it each week.

http://tvo.org/video/documentaries/the-truth-about-fat

Thanks for posting the link, p.a. I bookmarked it and will watch it tomorrow. I got up very early this morning and I'm so tired my eyes are burning. I hope I can sleep late tomorrow so I will be able to stay awake to welcome in the New Year. We are staying home and I don't have anything planned so I have all day to relax, and watch the video.

Trish, I don't pay attention to how much fat I eat but the times that I do track, it seems to be a big part of the pie. The pie chart does not differentiate between sat fat, mono, or polyunsaturated, but when you enter your food it does give you that breakdown. I don't like the taste or texture of greasy food. I rarely eat bacon, but when I do I have to blot it to get the grease off. I have never liked and rarely bought low fat or fat free foods, other than skim milk. But I could never eat high fat the way some do. It actually irritates my acid reflux. I would consider my eating to be moderate fat.

Cindy, I worry so much about my eyesight. It has been worse lately and I am very overdue for my eye exam, and I'm actually afraid of what I will hear. It would kill me to lose my sight as I like to read so much, and would not be able to get on the internet if I couldn't see. I'm sorry to hear that your family members have been having issues with diabetes in the past. It makes it a wake-up call for you, seeing things like that and knowing what you have to do to prevent that from happening to you. I think you are well aware of the risks and will avoid those types of issues.

FBS is coming down w/o Metformin and I just might make it into 220s within the next few days.

Everybody have a safe New Year's Eve.

Unless a tree falls on my house, I'll be safe. I'm staying home and there's no alcohol involved. The worst I can do it overeat.

Happy New Year to everyone. Let's gear up for 2016.

Hi Carol
I was thinking about your A1c and I remembered working for a cholesterol specialist. His patients would all cancel appts around this time, because they knew their blood tests would be worse than usual. So I think you were very brave to be tested around this time.

Hi Pattygirl
Congrats on lowering your FBS! Little by little we WILL get there.

Hi p.a.
Thanks for the link, it's great information.

See you all next year!

Cindy, since my blood sugar had been going so high lately I have been doubling up on my meds. I was going to run out before I was due for a refill. So I had no other choice than to go to the doctor and have him increase my dose so I could get more pills. I knew it was going to be bad, but truthfully didn't expect it to be that bad. Today I watched my carbs very well. I only took 1 gm of meds. I always check my BS before I take the meds to be sure I need them. When I checked BS at dinner it was only 88. I haven't had a BS in the 80s in over a year. So that proves I can lower it if I do what I'm supposed to do. I know I cannot eat that low in carbs long term, but if I start from here and increase gradually I should find a sweet spot, no pun intended. LOL

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2016

I am really excited that I am now out of the 230s. Starting 2016 down 229.4. And my FBS wasdown 4 pts as well. I'm not taking the Metformin. I only take 1 BP medicine and hopefully that will eventually go, but if not I can live with that. I agree with you Carol Sue when I do what I know to do then it works.

Watercolor Good to see you.

Y'all have a great day.

Trish, congratulations on the new decade!! I might bring my stats and ticker back for the new year.

My fasting blood sugar is still higher than it should be but it's staying below 200. The readings 2 hours after a meal have greatly improved. I heard that fasting is the last one to improve. I don't think I will ever have a good fasting level due to the dawn phenomenon, but as long as I can get my A1c down I will be happy. I want it below 7 and my doctor is happy with that, too.