Self Medicating With Food...Diabetes, Support?

[73kittycat73]

Hi, I've tried to word/start writing this a few times, so I hope it comes out OK...But, today I have finally realized that I eat junk/sweet food to self medicate.
I have type 2 diabetes and have been 'getting away' with it for a while, but I'm starting to feel the effects of eating sweet food. If I eat chocolate before bed for example, I get terrible cramps in (Mainly my left) calf. Recently I have cut down on chocolate as it was making me feel like crap after eating it. I take depression and anxiety tablets and they make me tired so I thought it was them. However I have really noticed recently that eating it makes me so wiped out afterwards.
Today I was bored so ate a bit of cheesecake. Boy did I feel like shit afterwards. I was still feeling a bit rubbish a few hours later so I decided to dig out the old blood sugar testing kit. My blood sugars were17. In the dangerous category. (A non diabetic person should be between 7.1 to 10.0). It has given me a shake, and a wake up call.
I went to my Sainsburys delivery (Due Sunday.) and have taken all the sweet things out, including Pepsi Max. I drink 2ltrs of the stuff a day (I get 'cotton wool' mouth from the medications I take for depression/anxiety and just water does nothing.). I have read conflicting articles on whether Pepsi Max spikes your insulin so have taken them out my list too. I tried finding a decent drink that wasn't full of sugar or artificial sweeteners, I couldn't find any! So I have ordered some fizzy water and orange squash (With sweeteners.) to have it very diluted for some flavour.
However, like I said, it's only just clicked that I self medicate with food (Sweet stuff being the most.). I know I'll be back to craving even later tonight, or definitely tomorrow, so I was wondering if anybody would like to join me on cutting down on junk food. We could come on when we are craving, or just for some support generally. If you're doing it to loose weight that's fine too.
I hope I haven't gone on...I just wanted to be honest (With myself too.) and start a new, healthier, way of eating.

I'm also T2 diabetic, and haven't been as careful as I should have been. My wake up call was a problem with my one eye and thinking I had the start of retinopathy.

So this New Year has been a new start, and I feel so much better. I've ditched diet drinks and all artificially sweetened foods, and went cold turkey on sugar and high carb foods. I've also lost 10 lbs so that's a bonus too.

Have you had your Hba1c checked lately?

Hi, nice to met you. Funnily enough I have recently had the results of my annual Hba1c, last year it was 69, this year 59! My diabetic nurse (Who I fibbed to and said I was testing regularly, serves me right! ) was pleased with that. Don't know how I managed it with what I've been eating!
Well done on your new start! How is your eye now?

blood sugar for a non diabetic should be between 4 and 7 so you were quite a lot over that. I really urge you to take care of your blood sugar as you don’t want to end up with eye damage/ nerve damage/ heart problems

Thanks oldyellerbeller I believe the leg cramps are nerve damage.
I suppose I just focus on now because I'm convinced because of the T2D I'm going to end up limbless/blind/stroke/heart attack.
I have had a wake up call with the 17 reading, and feeling so bad, I just have to remember this and not do it again!

Touch wood the eye is fine, thanks, they did a scan at the opticians, but my dad is t2 diabetic and has had awful eye problems so it really did give me the kick up the arse i needed.

Are you on any medication or just diet controlled?

Glad the eye is OK! I'm on metformin and Gliclazide. You?

Metformin, though it's ripping my stomach lining to shreds sadly. I went onto the modified release version but it's not really helped much. Hate taking it but luckily my hba1c has stayed under 48 since being on it and which is why my GP keeps telling me to persist with it.

I think the lower carb approach works well for me - I say lower as I can't do very low like keto as I'm vegetarian and it's just too limited. I'm building quite a firm bond with celeriac root instead of potato

I didn't realise Metformin did that to your stomach-I'm on medication for GERD (Acid reflux). They don't tell you these things do they?
I did try low carb last year but like you, I'm veggie too. I've never tried celeriac root, what's it like? Just to be picky (!) I don't like sweet potato, do you? I did try courgetti once and it was just a watery mess. lol
I don't know what to eat if it isn't dough or potato based! lol

Well, I had to have Cheerios for breakfast as have nothing else in till Sunday, but felt hungry later...Would normally snack on chocolate/something very sweet, but...actually had an apple instead! 1 win so far today.

Really want some chocolate now... Must remember how it makes me feel!

There's a great group on fb called diabetes and the low carb life, I really recommend you join it. 59 is really quite high for an hba1c but recognising that you need to change your eating habits is a great first step.

Regarding sweeteners there's no affect on my glucose levels from ones in soft drinks. Google keto sweeteners and you'll find a list of the good and bad ones ie maltodextrin has the same affect on you as sugar (you'll find this sweetener in the sugar free sweets and biscuits in Sainsbury's) erythritol is a sugar alcohol and won't affect your glucose levels, it's expensive but great for baking.

I've just eaten a delicious chocolate brownie with 2g of carbs in it. 85% chocolate is great as it's low carb also there's one called chocologic you can buy in Tesco which is low carb and pretty tasty, a bit like advent calendar chocolate

You could discuss GLP1 therapy with your endocrinologist (or ask GP to refer if you are not already under one). It’s recently been approved by NICE and helps with Hba1c reduction and appetite 🙂

Hi to you both. WreckTangled I think I'm an all or nothing person, I can never have just one! My diet needs to be much healthier anyway. I have added some nuts to my shop for snacks. Actually, I've just gone and bagged up (To give to neighbour) all my sweet treats. I won't tell you how big the bag is...
Thank you for the info on sweeteners. I have swapped one for the other. This morning I took my BS and had only had a bit of PepsiMax to drink and it gave a reading of 11. I have stopped drinking it and have switched back to Sainsburys own brand Sparkling Blackcurrant and Cherry Flavoured Spring Water. It only has one sweetener in, sucralose. Don't know if that's any good?
Hi TheBlahWitchProject I've not heard of GLP1 therapy before, I'll have to Google it in a minute. I don't have a endocrinologist. My drs hadn't really been much use 'till last year. They just told me I have T2D and basically left me to get on with it. I am agoraphobic so couldn't go and see them. However, last year they did send the nurse out and she was very nice. Checked my feet and did all the tests.
Are you both T2Ds?

What's your levels first thing in the morning? I think your meds need upping tbh. There's a lot of people (including medical professionals) who are ok with high levels but with modern technology and new research there's really no need to accept it as the norm when diabetic these days.

Personally I find trying to cut things out completely is likely to make me binge as it's not sustainable but we're all different, I do eat very low carb though and still eat all the treats, just made low carb.

I'm type one (for 21 years!) and my last hba1c was 39. I want it lower though and I know I can do it. It's the same principle though, fewer carbs means less room for error and makes it easier to control. You need insulin to process carbs and your body isn't doing it right (or at all in my case!) so the obvious answer is to eat less of them. I bet you're feeling awful with levels as high as 17, I know I feel very unwell if I go into double figures.

Honestly, I can't remember the last time I did my BSs before yesterday, certainly not since last November at least. I need to get the healthy stuff in on Sunday (Food delivery) and start from there I think.
I think I was in a kind of catch 22. I was feeling crap, not realising that it was all the sweet stuff ( I ate a LOT of it.) and then eating sweet stuff for the energy boost.
I understand what you are saying about binging. I tried dieting that way and that's what I kept doing. But, at the moment I'm going cold turkey (I did it for smoking (2009) and it was hell, but easier after a while.). I really am all or nothing! Mind you, that's for all the sweet stuff. I'm not sure about carbs yet. I remember last year I did do my BS before, just after, and a few hours later to see if I could tolerate oven chips, and I could. Only went up to 9 IIRC.

Yes different items will have different sorts of spikes. Cereal is the work of the devil, might as well have a bar of chocolate. Lentils are not so bad. There's lots of trial and error and a low carb diet is considered under 150g a day which is quite a lot still. I think it's a good idea to go cold turkey on the sweet stuff to stop that initial craving and habit. Good luck!

Thank you! 150g a day sounds good.

with an a1c of 59 you may need to go on insulin

Hi Whyyyyyythough I was 69 last year! My diabetes nurse, whom I spoke with earlier in the week, thought getting down to 59 was good.???

I think lots of medical professionals would think it was ok, personally I would be really upset to have one that high. BUT the reduction is brilliant and if you've got it down that much you can probably get it down lower with a bit of diet control and if you can't then they can change/adjust your medication. A normal hba1c is below 6 and there's no reason why you can't/shouldn't aim for that.

Should be under 48 to avoid complications

Sorry if I'm gatecrashing this thread. I don't have diabetes but my youngest brother does, he's type 2 and really not taking care of himself. He keeps his symptoms close to his chest, says everything is fine but I know his eyesight is really bad, eyelids are 'gritty' and he keeps rubbing them.

He never used to eat such a bad diet, full of carbs and sugars, but since being diagnosed he craves the stuff.

It's easy for non-diabetics to say, "just stop it" but, from what I've seen of my brother, it's very much a bodily response to the disease. I would just like to support him and don't know how really? :(

That must be tough lying unfortunately unless he wants to make changes there's not much you can do. He knows what he's doing and the likely consequences, if that's not enough to make him want to change there's probably not much else you can say. We all want what we can't have, I would say it's easier for some than others to give up the sugary/carby foods but I'm not sure it's harder for those who are diabetic necessarily.

Thanks, WreckTangled, it is. I don't know what it feels like to be a diabetic and he doesn't talk about it at all, he just looks terrible. He shies away from any 'tellings off' from anybody, doctors/nurses included.

It's really eye-opening to read this thread and learn a bit more about it.

You don’t need commencing insulin for Hba1c of 59 (especially as insulin will cause fat storage) just low carb (less than 100g a day) and weight loss plus GLP1 if you can get a prescription (GP will probably need an endocrinologist to suggest as expensive and certain criteria for prescribing). I’m not diabetic but a nurse specialist in a close field 👍🏻