Welcome Jan.

Great post Tom!  :o)
Kudos!!
Billie

Just chiming in as someone who doesn't want to go for that walk *after*
dinner -- exercise whenever & however you will actually do it, even if it's
not the perfect time/place/activity/vigor/program.

Just do *something*, it doesn't have to be the same
thing/time/type/vigor/etc. all the time, but you do have to make exercise
part of your life on a regular basis to the extent that you can.
Best wishes.
bj

Thanks Nicky I sure appreciate it.  I have been all over the internet
and actually bought the book The First Year and have found it really
helpful this last week.   I think I will feel better once I get settled
in and know what I am doing.

Thanks again.

Thanks Cheri.  I will say the initial response to my "plight" has been
overwhelming here.  Thank you all so much.  It does make a difference
when you hear it is not the end of the world or a death sentence. I am
47 years old.  Was diagnosed by just my annual blood work. Fasting BG
was 288.  Then they did an A1C and that came in at 10.3.  No symptoms
or family history either which has stumped my Dr.   I actually have
lost 83 pounds in the last 2 years.  Stopped stress eating after a
divorce. :)  My eating habits though were not healthy.  I usually just
snacked at lunch and a frozen entree at dinner. This I know is going to
change.  Right now until I meet with the Dietician next week, all the
Dr. said was to stay away from starches. :)  So I have been watching my
carbs and took out the sugar from my diet, but that is about it so far.
What is your dietary guidelines that you are following?  It seems like
there are so many different opionions on how to eat that it is
confusing.  That is why I am looking forward to my meeting with the
dietician, so I will at least have some guidelines to work with.

Kasey ... please hang in there in the early days that are SO
overwhelming.
There is much to learn and it happens pretty fast.  The first recipe I
ate
from  diabetic cookbook was home made oatmeal that sent my blood sugar
through the freaking roof... come to find out I was not alone in how my
body
reacts to oatmeal.

It's a learning process and try as we might, we can not learn
everything
right away.  Go to your pharmacy and get a testing unit.  The people
there
will be willing to tell you how to use it.  Priority # 1 right now is
to start
finding out how different foods affect your blood sugar.

Do a search for "newbie" in this newsgroup and you will learn an
incredible
amount in the threads that have that word in the title.

Cheers and best of luck

Paul

What kind of pills have you started taking, Kasey ?

cheers

Paul

Hang in, Kasey!  Gretchen Becker's book is very good.  There really
isn't one way of eating that works for everyone, so cookbooks for
diabetics can be way off base for what will work for you.

If you can't get a meter before after the holidays, my suggestion for a
rough way to attempt control of your blood sugar until then is to
minimize starches (potatoes, rice, bread, noodles, cake, cookies, etc.)
and fruits (oranges, bananas especially), and add in more non-starchy
vegies like green beans, bell peppers, broccoli, cauliflour, cabbage,
avocadoes, mushrooms, cucumbers, and a host of others, including leafy
greens.  Meat, poultry, fish, and seafood (as well as tofu, if you like
it) are fine to eat (not breaded).  Nuts, cheeses and eggs are OK, as
are non-sweet pickles and olives.  Milk should be minimized.  Feel free
to drink lots of water, but no sugared sodas or fruit juice.  Tea and
coffee are fine.

After you get your meter you can experiment and see how various foods
affect your BG at different times of day, in combination with exercize
and with other foods, and so on.

I know you're scared, but please remember, as my endocrinologist used to
say to me a lot, that it's a marathon not a sprint.  You have time to
figure things out, research, learn, adapt to your specific needs, and so
on.  You're not alone, and you have many resources available to you.

So, welcome!

Priscilla

[Default] On Tue, 12 Dec 2006 14:04:55 -0600, "Kasey Ignarski"
<nospam@nospam.com> Giggled into the madness of usenet:

most diabetic cook books are completely worthless.  Even many of those
on the ADA web site are worthless, especially to newbies.

and not because the food is bad or bad for diabetics.  It's because
they don't always give clear nutrition labels and carb counts per
recipe and per serving.

Currently there are 2 basic ways to figure a diabetic meal, food
exchanges and carb counting.  Both do basically the same thing how
carb counting is far easier for both type 1s and type 2s for many
different reasons.

what isn't explained is how many food exchanges or how many grams of
carbs per meal a new diabetic needs.  And it can't be explained as any
set number.  Everyone is an individual with different needs and
different reactions to different types of foods.

This is why Most here believe that Jennifer's advice to newbies:
http://www.alt-support-diabetes.org/NewlyDiagnosed.htm
is a great starting place as well as a great refresher for newcomer
and old timer alike.

After reading that page, when looking for a cook book check for the
following:
each recipe has a complete nutrition label that includes number of
servings and grams of carbs per serving.

if the only information it gives is food exchanges, you'll probably
just want to put it back on the shelf.

basic math: 1 carb exchange/1 bread exchange/1 starch exchange(however
it might be listed) is equal to 15 grams of carbs.  1 fruit exchange
is the same.  1 vegetable exchange however is not always equal to 15
grams of carbs.

for example: 1 vegetable exchange for green beans is 1/2 cup cooked.
1 cup cooked green beans is 7.9 grams carbs.

what does all that mean?  Carbohydrates have a direct impact on BG
levels.  Following Jennifer's advice and a little testing you can
figure out how certain types and amounts of carbs will raise your BG.

In the beginning this does mean that you will be testing a lot more
than most who have been type 2 for decades.  But you'll be able to cut
back on the testing frequency after you learn how things work for you
as an individual.

Hey, Kasey - don't you panic either : )

There's a bunch of us shown up in the last few years who are around the same
age. I'm 46 in a couple of weeks. It just means you have to get nice, tight
control so you can enjoy your 80th birthday...

But it's taken you several years to become diabetic; it's going to take you
at least a little while to get good control. Take some deep breaths, have a
read at the first few bits in Gretchen Becker's book, and have another go at
reading the meter instructions. Wash your hands in warm water. Put a test
strip in the machine. Crank the stabber thing to no. 1, press it hard
against the side of a finger pad, and press the button. Squeeze gently. If
you don't get any blood, crank the stabber dial up a notch and try again -
check that the meter hasn't fallen asleep. The idea is that you just poke
hard enough to get the right size drop of blood for the meter - you're going
to be doing this a lot, after the first couple you're going to get very
blase about it, trust me : )

Are you on Metformin? That's a brilliant pill to start with, but it can give
you awful tummy problems. Try taking the pill right in the middle of a
fairly low-carb meal, see if that helps; if the issues don't go away within
a day or two you might need to ask your doctor for the extended release
version. Ramp up the dose very slowly, only moving up when you're accustomed
to the lower dose. It takes about 3 weeks to kick in, so don't expect
immediate results.

Now, where were we - ah, yes - DON'T PANIC :D

Nicky.

First,

Don't be scared.  We are all living proof that the disease can be managed.  
I have had it for 20 years (type 2, that is) and still don't need insulin
and am well able to manage my blood sugar numbers.  It will take you (and
yoru wife) time to work out what works fo ryou in eating, exercising etc
and if or what meds you need with your doctor.  

Fist qquick and dirty trick-don't eat any white starches, potato, pasta,
rice, etc you get the idea.  Stick to leafy adn low starch vegetable like
spinach, cabbage family(cauliflower, broccoli, brussels sprouts, etc),
string beans, etc.  go lightly on winter squash, peas, etc.  

DON'T DRINK ANY FRUIT JUICES.  G lightly on fruits ,in general and avoid
bananas.  concentrate on berries and any sstone fruits (hard at this time
of the year),  eat smal or parts of fruit, like half an apple or orange
and only a few a day.  Watch your milk drinking.

Here is a beakfast that I love and that works well for ME.  You, of course
will at some point have to test our own blood sugrs to see if it works for
you.  
Take 1/2 C low fat cottage cheese and top it with SMALL amounts of a few
fruits like the following, 3-4 strawberries, a handful of blue, black
rasp berries, 1/4 an apple, 1/2 a cleentine oragne, a smile sized slice of
canteloupe, 1/2 pech, 1 apricot(fresh or dried, not canned) you get the
idea.   Top this with 1/4-1/3 cup of low fat plain yogurt, mix and enjoy.  
I hae this with black coffee adn am quite happy.  

In place of any bread you usually eat, try some of the whole grain Wasa
crckers or Ryevita.  One or two can be quite satisfying with a bit of
peanut butter or margrine on them.  I sometimes have 2 or 3 of these
largish crackers wiwth 2 oz of smked salmon on them for breakfas or lunch
and it works well for me.  You usually can manage more at lunch than at
breakfast.  

Well this is enough to get you started and to see that it is not all
rabbit food and gloom with this disease.  Filling up on the rabbit food
helps but is not the only thing you can eat.  

Keep coming back for advice and with yoru questins and we will all try to
help as best we can.  

Wendy

Your Dr. sounds like mine.  I get into the dietician next week (2 weeks
after diagnosis) and was told nothing except to take your pills and i
will see you in 3 weeks. It was terrifying to me to start taking this
medication (Metformin) with no education on it or what to expect or a
meter to start testing, or even like you, what to eat.  I took half a
dose last week and just moved up to a full dose this week and it is
fine, no side effects except for running to the bathroom last week.
But that has disappeared. I had to take it upon myself to call for the
Dietician, to call the office about a meter etc.  It is very scary, but
the way I am getting through this initial time of the unknown is with
the attitude that Lord knows how long I have had this disease  and did
nothing about it, so another week or 2 is not going to make a
difference.  I bought the book THe First Year and it is wonderful. I
suggest you get it asap as it will help you through this time of the
unknown until you get situated. As far as eating, I was just told by my
Dr. to stay away from starches until I see the dietician (generic
advice if you ask me).  But I have just been watching the kind of carbs
I am eating (nothing refined, no sugar etc) until i get in.  Dont know
if that is right or not, but like you, I dont know what i am doing.
Hang in there.  Us Newbie's will get through this together!

Jan

Hi Kasey, Welcome to the group. Your feelings are very normal. The
unknown is scary at times, but you'll learn quickly once you get
started. All the things that were said to Jan can apply to you as well.
I really liked my diabetes nurse, and I hope yours is a good one too. I
would seriously avoid the diabetic cookbooks until you're further into
it though. Take care and post often.

--
Cheri

Kasey Ignarski wrote in message

Hi Kasey,

I'll just repeat what I said to Jan, which is just keep coming back.
Figuring out way of eating is a discovery process, and you and your
honey will probably start eating an even better diet in the process.
Lots of people here have said that the diabetes diagnosis was a help to
them in the long run because they started taking their health
seriously.  (I know, I'm not there yet either)

Looking forward to your posts about your progress.

Best,

Ricavito

This post not CC'd by email
On Tue, 12 Dec 2006 14:04:55 -0600, "Kasey Ignarski"
<nospam@nospam.com> wrote:

G'day G'day Kasey,

 Being scared is unpleasant and that understates the situation.
Being scared however is useful. It gets us to make changes rapidly
when otherwise we might not.  T2 diabetes doesn't happen over night. A
decade in coming is more likely.  Whatever we did in that decade in
regard to our health wasn't enough so thankfully we have these backup
emotions like being afraid that really engage our attention in a
manner we can't ignore.  The good news is you acknowledge that you are
scared.   That IMHO is a very positive step.  It is a strong indicator
that you are ready to make real changes and do whatever it takes to
get a good result.

For many of us, diagnosis with T2 diabetes marked a turning point to a
better life. At last we knew what was at the root of many apparently
unrelated illnesses.  We got the support we needed from the medical
fraternity.  We lost weight which hadn't happened in a sustained way
before. We got fitter.  You may think this is the exception but my
experience of listening to people's stories here suggest it is common.

By coincidence, I was diagnosed in the pre-Xmas period many years ago
and faced a similar situation. The dieticians were booked out till
after the New Year etc.  At the time I thought this was pretty
terrible.  In retrospect I've taken a different view.  It forced me to
do my own research on diet, exercise, diabetes in general and not
depend heavily on others.  

I'm sure if FEELS like that.  However, you did find your way here.
Most everyone who posts here is a diabetic.  That means there is a
vast accumulation of first hand experience on what it takes to survive
as a diabetic.

Each diabetic is different.  When people are diagnosed with T2
diabetes about 50% of the beta cells in their pancreas have died.
This amount though isn't fixed.  Some people will have more functional
beta cells than others.  To get rapidly to the point this means there
are some questions you have to answer personally.  How tolerant are
you of concentrated sources of carbohydrate, that is starchy food eg
bread, pasta, potatoes.  Most T2s are rather intolerant of these, at
least to start with.  A few surprisingly are not.  The important thing
to realise is that it a personal question that must be answered by the
individual based on their blood glucose reading.  

Others have recommended Jennifer's advice to newbies and so would I.

Why?  

Because it explains in plain language a successful strategy that has
worked for so many of us.

Library.  Smart thinking.  There is a temptation to lash out on books
that MIGHT help given the anxiety you feel.  The problem is that the
books are written for someone else's diabetes.  The most successful
diet is one you evolve for yourself ... in consultation with the
dieticians when they become available.  

Hard as it maybe to accept, T2 diabetes is a slow disease. While
waiting till after Xmas may seem like a long time, it is a short time
compared with the time you have ahead of you, living with diabetes.  

Your GP will or at least should be recommending appointments with
other specialists eg an ophthalmologist to check the retina of you eye
for damage to the vascular system there. These are early days. Good to
see you have a blood glucose meter.  In a short while you will find
using it an easy routine.  FWIIW I like Tom's question to you, what is
the FIRST part of the instructions in the instruction booklet you find
difficult to follow.  

LOL.  That is probably a sign of intelligence ... not much more.  

People who write books have a need to write something a bit different
from the other books.  The end result would be confusing if we
attempted to believe them all.

The other bit of truly good news is that your wife is keen to support
you.  A practical way she might be able to support you is to walk with
you or go swimming with you.  In a very rough sort of way gaining
fitness is twice as important as weightloss in beating the odds of
avoiding what are euphemistically called complications.

Best wishes,