Iceman,
Great info about ebay. I will check that out. I had no idea about the pawn shops. It makes sense.
I sent you an email and I will give Dr. Neubauer a call, see when he can fit me in.
Thanks again!
Sig

117 isn't a bad number at all! I am type 2 diabetic and I wish my number would make it to 117! When I went to the nutrition classes, I was told that in the morning when you first wake up and before food, you should be around 80. Then within 2 hours after a meal you could spike to a high of 140 but day time normal is around 120.

Looks like you are getting your pat on the head....lol

Mary1358

Hi Mary,
I went interviewed a local doctor today and he also made me feel better about my numbers. He felt that I am in the very beginning stages of this and that it might not be too difficult to pull back into a pre diabetic state. He stressed to me though that once your body starts down this path it is ineveitable that you eventually be put on meds. I haven't gotten Dr. B's book in the mail yet so I'm hoping he will have a different opinion. Considering that most folk continue to eat the foods that make them sick, perhaps experience does lead to this assumption.
He gave me one of those tests that show you where your average level has been for three months. Mine was at 5.5 He told me that his is at 5.4 and he is not diabetic. He didn't think I would be able to improve that number very much. I'm up to the challange.
Thank you for your pat on the head! I can use em right now. It's been a wild seven days for me.
Thanks!
Signey

Hi Signey

I've had type 2 for almost 2 years now. When I first learned I had it my doctor, sent me to see a nutritionist and to diabetic education classes at the local hospital. My insurance paid for everything.

The classes were excellent, but the nutritionist wanted me to eat about 200 carbs per day. As it turned out, I can't eat more than 50 per day or I have problems.

Today I take 1000 milligrams of Metforman twice a day and 30 milligrams of Actos once per day.

My numbers are always high in the morning before breakfast but by mid day I am normal again.

When I started my A1C was more than twice normal. I made it down to 5.8 but 3 months ago it went back up to 6.3. My doctor increased my Actos, so we will see in two weeks if it worked.

Good Luck!

Dear Mary,
I sincerely pray that all of your health problems will be pacified and that your merit, wisdom, wealth, and longevity increase beyond measure!
Hugs!
Signey

When you get your book, you'll find that Dr. B most definitely does have another opinion! He believes that by keeping your blood sugars normal, many type 2s can avoid medications and/or insulin, and you are lucky, having caught this early, so I can't see why that won't apply to you.

I think your observation is correct, Signey. So few diabetes patients keep their blood sugars in a low enough range to avoid complications, and I'm sure that's why many doctors don't believe it's possible. But then, it's a vicious circle, because very few doctors give their patients good advice about diabetes and diet.

Karen

Have been reading this thread and have a question about the testing process. Am on Atkins, and also have PCOS, and recently have been getting a bit worried about the possibility of having diabetes (recently i have become thirsty all the time, go to the bathroom v. regularly and am constantly tired - all of which i have heard can be symptoms.)
BUT have been scared to go and get tested because i really don't want to be fed any glucose or have to eat lots of carbs or anything... Is there any way of getting a test where this is not necessary? Thanks...

Avlev,
I'm not the one to ask about this because I am so new to the process. I can share with you my experiences.
For the last four years my skin has been very dry and itchy. That apparently is one sign that your sugars are high. I didn't know that.
I have congestive heart failure too and so the tiredness....I'm tired anyway so I didn't notice a difference.
Because of the diuretics that I take for the CHF, I'm always in the loo so that wasn't a clue for me either.
I'm getting the impression from what I have read that if you are carrying a lot of weight and you are having problems losing it you are probably insulin resistant. That is the step before becoming diabetic. It's important (and I can't stress this enough) that you get tested with the symptoms you're having. If nothing else, you get a baseline. You can say where your body was on this date. That's valuable. My doctor was saying that people can go for years undiagnosed. That can account for so much damage to your body.
I'm not thrilled to know that I am diabetic. It's scares the hell out of me. But knowledge is power. I know now that I've got to get serious and make real efforts towards changing my weight and my food issues. I'm fortunate because this was discovered before uncontrolled sugar damage occurred.
You have the opportunity to take control. Since you do have these concerns, please, go get tested and find out. It's a very caring thing to do for yourself.
The glucose test is the first step. Once they know how you react to that I don't think there's any reason to repeat it. There are other tests that can be given at that point if your doctor thinks that's what needs to happen.
I know how scary this is for you. This is one of those things you just gotta get tough about and go do.
Let me know how it turns out.
Signey

Hi Karen,
I got Dr. B's book and I'm in the process of reading it. I've got to admit, for all my talk of being brave, that I'm reading the book in dribs and drabs. I don't like reading about where diabetes can go. It scares me. I already have congestive heart failure. I've got that under control but I worry about how these two illness' can affect each other. That's no excuse not to read the book though. It's even more of a reason. I guess I'm still trying to wrap my brain around it. It's new and it's a bit traumatic. I'm sure you know what I'm talking about.
My husband has been frustrated with me because he thinks I'm being dramatic about the diabetes. I don't think he realises that there is a period of mourning that occures when you find out something like this. He's concerned that I'm not focusing on the positive enough right now. That's when I'm talking to him about my fears for the future, for my health. It's frustrating. I know what he means and I know he means well, but don't I also need to express what I'm feeling? How I'm scared? Don't get me wrong, I'm not a basketcase about all of this. I'm coping. It's just all new and it's shaken up my world a bit.
Signey

Avlev...you can get glucose meter and test yourself. Or if you have a diabetic friend ask them to test your blood sugar...we just love it when we get to poke someone else.... Bring the numbers you get back here and we can help you figure out what you need to tell your doc. There are diagnostic guidelines for diabetes on one page one of this thread that are based on the same readings you get from a glucometer. Your doc could probaby skip the OGTT (the big sugar test) and diagnose you with an A1c and fasting blood sugar. It is a process with them though and you may have to be patient.

Signey...what do you expect from your husband....he's a MAN.....

It can be frustrating when you're brand new at all this and trying to deal with all the personal implications in the presence of less than ideal support. My wife won't become involved in my disease either. It's like she's afraid she'll catch it or something. It doesn't bother me emotionally because I love her unconditionally, but on the practical side I would rest a little easier if she new how to identify a hypo and what to do if I was beyond helping myself. Maybe it'll change if she can get over her denial...and that could be a major factor in the way your husband is relating to you and your new dx at this time. One thing this dx demands of the ones who do battle with it is acceptance, tolerance and patience. We talk all the time about the nuts & bolts...the meters, the supplements, exercise, cinnamon, the lab tests, etc...but we rarely venture into the mental health and emotional areas associated with chronic, fatal diseases. I find the forums I participate in offer a level of understanding and empathy that sometimes just isn't available at home.

Keep On Keepin' On

Thanks so much for the answers and support guys - have been really worried about this recently! The thing is i'm not (and never have been) overweight; my major concern is that as insulin resistance is such a common part of PCOS this may have slipped into type 2 diabetes w/out me knowing...
So would it be ok do you think to just get a home testing kit and test without 'carbing up' or anything (have been on Atkins at 20 - 25g of carbs a day for over a year now, and am reluctant to go back even for a little while.) Would the results i'd get from that be meaningful if i brought them back and posted them for you guys, even though i'm probably in Ketosis?

Yup Avlev...they sure would. You can pick up a glucometer at any drugstore...I know all the big chains like Walgreens have them...I think the price starts at around $20 and goes up from there. You might get out the phone book and call around...there might even be meters available for free...then you just have to buy the test strips. The times you want to test would be first thing in the morning after a minimum 8hr without food. Then take one a couple of hours after you eat. If I can see those two numbers I can tell you how worried to be... Just kidding. Grab a meter and chek yourself out.

Doctors have a lot of obstacles and issues when dealing with diabetes patients and those get in the way of effective diagnosis and treatment. They have protocals to follow...if A equals C then check for B, etc...and quite frankly they are sometimes quite ignorant of the truth about the dx. The bottom line is they only treat diabetes to the point of affordability and at $185 an hour that usaully falls far short of being highly beneficial to the patient. Couple that with their stubborn adherance to the ADA dietary guidelines....well, after awhile you figure out that you will be much healthier if you take charge of your own treatment and only rely on the docs for lab orders and prescriptions.

Go get us some numbers........

Great! Will buy a meter first thing tomorrow and report back! Thanks Dr Iceman ;

I have been a diabetic for more than 25 years and if I could sue the American Diabetes Association I would do it. I went to the class and did things like they told me. The doctor gave me Rezulin and Glucophage. Later on he put me on Insulin. Then my weight ballooned to 310 from 240 and I could not lose the weight. I was very hungry all the time. I could not control the blood sugar in my blood and had to take more and more insulin. Then they put me on this crazy diet where I barely ate and was very hungy and could not do it. My blood sugars were over 600. Then because I felt so sick and the doctors would not do anything for me (I was just a pig), I discovered Atkins. To me Atkins was a miracle. The first day I had so much energy I could not go to sleep until 4 am. I felt like I had taken amphetamines or something. It took another day before I was able to sleep again and feel more normal. I never thought I could lose weight again. Not only I have lost weight (235 lbs at this time), I have also eliminated all medications. It is too bad that I had to go through all this. I have diabetes retinopathy and had also a stroke. I will not follow any of what the ADA says. I only believe in Atkins. I am a convert. Just so you know when you make a decision.

Good luck!

Dear SadLady,
What a story! Oh! How furious you must be. To have followed that plan all of those years and been treated so poorly, both physically and emotionally! I am so glad that you found Atkins and that you have been able to turn your health around to such a degree. You have lost so many pounds. Wow! That alone is a triumph.
Congratulations!
Signey