Hi,

I was diagnosed with type 2 in January of 2002. I was then put on meds and finally insulin. I was put on insulin because I wasn't controlling my food and exercise. If you can get some weight off of you and keep your food intake in control (it's not like you can NEVER have a piece of cake again...just eat it with dinner so that the other food can balance the sugar so it doesn't spike), you may be able to do just meds or control by diet alone. What was your sugar when they tested you? Mine was 333 so I was pretty high to start off with. Plus you need to exercise. My doctor said that exercise is what really produces the insulin so that helps control your sugars a lot. Just a 30 minute walk a day will help.

It is overwhelming but my life isn't that different now. Actually that's not true, it is different, but not because I'm diabetic but because i've finally decided I don't want to be fat anymore. My life is different because I'm taking care of myself. Since losing weight I've gone from 20 units of insulin a night to 5 and I've been having low sugars this week so I may be off the insulin by Christmas. You can do it! It's easier to lose weight if you never have to go on the insulin!

Good luck and you can do it!

Amber

cyl53, i'm sorry to hear about the dx. but there is hope, especially in the early phases of diabetes. exercise and diet are often all you need to overcome it. sometimes, they also add a medication to help lower your sugar/sensitize your body to insulin. metformin is the most common. it's helped a lot of people to lower their sugars and to lose weight.

it's easy to get overwhelmed, especially when you're probably still reeling from the diagnosis. try to break it up into small bits. and be sure to give yourself some "you" time just to process things and de-stress a bit. you might want to see a diabetic educator and/or a nutritionist. this is often covered by insurance and can help point you in the right direction.

*hugs* you'll get through this. 300 is a bit on the high end of the scale... you need to be checking your glucose frequently until it gets better controlled. i know this can all be overwhelming. you ought to see if your insurance covers a diabetic educator. they're usually really good about teaching you how to use your equipment, diet, etc.

the following link *should* take you to the american diabetes association learning center for the newly diagnosed. it is a good place to start, when you feel ready to. http://www.diabetes.org/all-about-di...learningcenter

good luck. i know this is hard for you and very overwhelming. pm/im me if you need to vent. if i'm not on the board, i'm usually on yahoo- my id there is isenephthys.

I was diagnosed with diabetes a few years ago. Stubbornly determined to not go on insulin, I fought it until two weeks ago, when I realized my blood sugar was over 300. I told my husband that I would try South Beach and if I did not get down in one month I would go on insulin. Two weeks into SB, my blood levels are 124-150 and going down as I go down. Talk to your doctor about diet and exercise, but do go on medications if he recommends it, until you can get diet and glucose levels under control.
You can do it!! Tripgal

Well, I've lost 4 lbs. since I was informed to cut out the sweets. I have gone to a diabetic class and got some very good information. It's still overwhelming and I'm trying to adjust.

I am back to doing more aerobics....walking, Leslie Sansone, Gin Miller, Gilad and Richard Simmons. I do feel better after I do aerobics, too. My meter showed 139 this morning. That's good isn't it?

I am using the glycemic index to help decide on food, too.

Having a support area like this does help. This is a great site!

Cyl53

Exercise is a great way to bring down the glucouse levels! 139 is great, heading in the right direction! I took some classes too, loved the information, but I realized so many diabetic diets actually contained a heavy carb diet. South Beach seems to be the perfect balance (in my opinion anyway).
tripgal

awesome news about south beach. i haven't really looked into it, but i'm seriously thinking about it. i'm not diabetic yet, but i am insulin resistant. is it hard to follow?

What I've found is that it's easy to follow, if you CHOOSE to follow it. For me, it is my choice to not go on dialysis in ten years (or less) so I choose to diet and exercise (which I hate!). It's all about how you perceive it.
It's not a difficult diet to follow, you can do it! =)
tripgal

tripgal, i totally understand your point. part of the reason i am choosing to pursue weight loss and fitness at this point in my life is that i do not want to wind up diabetic with all of it's complications. i saw my poor grandmother die of it; she was poorly controlled though. it's just something that i *have* to do. i'm going to check out the information out there on the south beach diet; currently i am counting calories and watching carbs, but i want to switch over to a lower-carb, healthier diet plan.