I was diagnosed with an HbA1C of 72 in June (exactly a month after my dad died from complications of diabetes). I’d probably had symptoms for a year, I’d put them down to being old, knackered & looking after a dying Dad!
Having had a DF who was the poster boy for how not to control your diabetes (amputations, vascular collapse, wet gangrene is a sensory delight, not) and being slapped on his death certificate, I’ve gone balls to the wall to get my situation under control.
Lots of exercise (mainly walking, unfortunately I have a spine of a 90 year old thanks to genetics), and have completely throttled down my carb intake. With my diabetes nurse’s support, I intermittent fast (I’d suggest only doing it with your diabetes team’s consent) and I’ve lost 3st.
My nurse also suggested, due to such a high starting value & familial link, to get a blood glucose monitor (unfortunately not available for free on the NHS for type 2 if not insulin dependant), I think I spent around £25 on one, I can’t remember off the top of my head, I think Sinocare (?) and spend another £20 every 6 weeks for lancets & test strips. It was the best recommended on Amazon (lots of type 1s writing positive reviews against the NHS kits).
I’m also taking Metformin (and Atorvastatin, she always gives them together), I do have some gnarly Met side effects which are probably helping with the weight loss 😂
In the first 3 months, I had reduced my HbA1C to 48!
I’m also lucky that my son’s Dad has been type 2 for years, and unfortunately now has to take insulin, so we had a good couple of hour chat (for the first time since our son graduated, our son’s an adult so no need to chat lol) and he has been a fab supporter & advisor. It’s not weird, it was actually my DH who called my son’s Dad to see if we could have a natter- they’ve always chatted more than my ex & I ever did 😂).
I did find the diabetes bumpf I was given by the nurse was pretty basic, and she warned it’s a bit patronising (eat healthy, move more, this is what a vegetable looks like) but she said it has to be that basic as there are genuinely people (like my Dad was) who just think they can do whatever they fancy when they’re on Metformin & be damned with the consequences. It’s frightening reading the diabetes.org.uk boards how uneducated people are about food, what carbs are etc., so I can understand why the NHS booklet is so basic.
Wishing you well as you start your journey!