To ask what happened when you were diagnosed with type 2 Diabetes.

[Whatnowsugar]

Were you told in person or by text/email?

Did you have a follow up call and are you now medicated?

Did you try the super low calorie diet and how did it go?

Have you changed everything you are eating?
Did you tell family and friends?

I know all of this is personal experience but I’m fascinated to hear how it was handled in different parts of the country and also what you would have liked to see happen.

It was about ten years ago, so things have probably changed post-covid. I was asked to make an appointment to go in and speak to the diabetes nurse. I was given dietary advice, started on meds and have yearly blood and foot checks.

I do much better on a low carbohydrate diet and cut out most unnecessary carbs immediately, as in anything containing sugar, putting sugar in my tea or on cereal, not eating sweets, biscuits or cakes. Cutting out additional sugar is relatively easy, for me reducing bread, rice, potatoes and pasta is much more difficult. I tried brown rice and wholewheat pasta and don't like either of them.
I have upped my vegetable consumption and become more aware of hidden sugars in things. I am a label-checker, and I am careful about how much, and what type of fruit I eat.

Regardless of all that I still don't manage to control my diabetes just through diet, although it does help.

Oh - and it doesn't really affect my life that much socially - so unless there is a reason I don't tell people. If I am offered a piece of cake or a dessert and am finding it difficult to make somebody believe I don't want it then I tell them. I choose the least carborific option if eating out, and try to have smaller portions of things like potatoes and bread, or just don't have them at all if there's enough of other things to do without them. I rarely drink alcohol anyway but it can be difficult to find something to drink in a pub as I don't like diet coke and there are usually few other options. I don't like dry white wine but if I did then a white wine spritzer is a good option. My drink of choice is a diet bitter lemon topped up with soda water.

GP got the diabetic nurse at my practice to ring me.
I was given Metformin.. didn't agree with me.
So was given Anagliptin.. that didn't agree with me either..
As l was obese l decided to buy monjaro and kill two birds with one stone.
After 9 weeks l completely reversed my diabetes.. now I've also lost 4 stone.
I did speak with my GP and diabetic nurse about mounjaro before l went on it.

Not me but DH was diagnosed last year.

He was classed as pre-diabetic 2yrs ago. His GP organised an online course back then. I think it was weekly for 4 weeks, then monthly and lasted 6mths. Others online were also pre-diabetic. They discussed healthy eating, exercise, food swaps etc. He already exercised and we eat a range of healthy food from scratch, so he didn't feel he benefitted much from it. His father was diagnosed at the same age, so it wasn't a surprise. We did change to brown bread, brown rice, brown pasta etc, but otherwise, he hasn't change his diet dramatically. A few years ago we both did keto, but the dietician running the course strongly advised against doing this.

Last year, his GP called to tell him that the latest blood test confirmed diabetes. Since then, he has been sent to a diabetic eye clinic and had a dexa scan on his liver. I 'think' this was a research project locally. He barely drinks and it wasn't done due to any liver concerns. He was not given any further info on diabetic eating, referral to a dietician etc, but maybe the course 2yrs back ticked that box?

His GP initially discussed metformin, but DH's father had issues with eventual resistance to this, and DH asked if anything else was available. He was started on semiglutide tablets. Yes, tablets! I'd never realised it was available in tablet form.

DH snacks slightly less and had increased his exercise, and has lost about 15kg (2 stone) in 6mths.

Strangely, his last blood test had a reading even less than his pre-diabetic reading. The GP couldn't explain it and wasn't sure if the diabetic reading was actually wrong, or if DH has dramatically reversed it? The GP suggested continuing the meds and trying to lose more weight and they will repeat the blood test in a few months.

Sorry, this is already SO long. NO- he has not told anyone about his diagnosis other than me. Even his own diabetic dad and his mum who is pre-diabetic. DH is in his 50's and prefers to keep his medical info to himself.

Thank you all so much for sharing your experience. I’m rather impressed that people have reversed it and found comfortable ways of managing things.

Well done everyone for managing it so well!
Please keep doing it, I know far too many people who have died from it. But they were all drinkers. Started with the feet dying and then them.

I was diagnosed during the pregnancy of my 3rd child 5 yrs ago, consultants believed I had it prior to being pregnant. Anyway, doctor shoved medication on to me due to the high hba1c, which was about in the 40's. I declined and just cut out mostly all carbs, no biscuits, no sugar in tea, no sugar in coffee, no sugar stuff basically. The tea was difficult so I gradually reduced it from 2tsp to 1tsp and now have 0. With meals I have about 80- 100g of carbs per meal, so like pasta, bread, rice etc and balance it with more veg and protein.
If I'm going to have something really carby, I have an apple cider vinegar shot with water before my meal, about 15 mins. I also eat in order...sounds sad but works for me, so I eat salad first then veg and protein, then usually leave the carbs last. It's proven better for diabetics to eat this way.

U may have to watch for morning levels because they are the highest for most diabetics, so I either have something egg based with 0 carbs or homemade granola with little oats and buckwheat groats etc

Good luck!!

P.s. I was told over the phone and cried for days lol

I was told by an A&E doctor when I went in for something quite unrelated - she asked ‘how long have you been diabetic?’

I went to the GP and asked what to do. My Mum was diabetic, had all sorts of complications, and had a very restricted low carb diet as well as medication, and I really, really didn’t want to live like that. He said lose a lot of weight and increase exercise. Over the next 18 months, I lost 6st and started going to the gym regularly doing loads of cardio stuff. My diabetes is now in remission, and has been for a couple of years, though I still have six monthly checks. I still do finger prick tests after carb-heavy meals (rare now), and it’s clear I am a bit insulin-resistant because my blood glucose is slow to come down, but as long as I eat a mostly healthy diet, I can eat more or less normally without problems.

I got a lot of knowledge and support from the diabetes.org.uk forums.

The GP rang me at home and told me my levels were so high that I needed to see a doctor at emergency. I didn't manage to do that but saw her the following Monday. Straight on metformin and a low carb diet. I was referred to a diabetes dietician but only went twice as she shouted at me about weight loss.

I'm now on ozempic and metformin. My HBa1C is in the non-diabetic range and has been for the last 3 years. I don't consider this reversed though as if I went back to a standard diet I'd soon be back into diabetes. I can eat a few more white carbs and some cake as my insulin resistance has dropped.

I'm completely open about being diabetic and on ozempic.

I found out because I’d bought myself a freestyle Libre sensor because I suspected but couldn’t get a Drs appt. The app started sending me ‘seek medical attention’ type alerts so I called 111 and they sent me to hospital. A couple of hours of tests later and I was sat in front of a nurse from the diabetes team learning how to inject insulin and being given a crash course on monitoring my levels and handling highs and lows. My numbers were really bad though.

i was initially just on insulin then they added in metformin, then they decided to prescribe Mounjaro and that has been a miracle, I’ve lost 5 stone since September, my diet has completely changed, I can’t handle carbs at all, even half a jacket potato spikes my levels super high for hours. I eat lean meat and green veg for main meals, any snacks are veg or protein/fat, I’ve added lentils and beans to things like stews to add fibre.

I do exercise every day and have nearly finished the couch 2 5k programme. Gone from a size 22/24 to a 12/14 and my diabetes is now in remission HbA1C has gone from 11% (86 nmol) to 5.7% (48 nmol).

I reversed mine through diet and exercise initially. My readings were 86 and my blood pressure was high too. I was also admitted to hospital. Then covid hit and my bad habits and diabetes returned. However, since going on Mounjaro, I've lost 4 stone and reversed it again. My levels are now normal. Blood pressure is down as well.

Can I ask why your mums was like that if she followed a good diet? Was it a case of too little too late

Her diabetes was very unstable from the time it was diagnosed, but I suspect she may have had high blood sugar for a long time before diagnosis. She started off with glibenclamide, and an effort to avoid insulin, she did loads of exercise after food, but as a result lost way too much weight, which made her even more unstable. Then she had to slow down because of osteoporosis, her blood sugar crept up, and she ended up in a hyperglycaemic coma (blood sugar way too high).

They put her on insulin then, but sometimes that gave her terrible hypos, and sometimes didn’t lower her blood sugar at all. My Dad weighed and measured every ounce of carb she ate and tried to titrate the insulin accordingly, but it was a losing battle because she was so insulin-resistant. She developed diabetic neuropathy and glaucoma. The added complication of severe osteoporosis meant that she had a very poor quality of life.

In person - Dec 2019 - immediately put on Metformin.
Was meant to do a course at local health centre but Covid prevented this.
Summer 2020 nurse started talking about Trulicity.

2 attempts to put me on statins when cholesterol levels didn’t warrant it.
Never been near Weight Management.

Not offered super low calorie diet (presume nhs soup and shakes diet) until Autumn last year and I turned it down on the basis after 2nd delivery the patient then met the costs, and I couldn’t get my head around why they’d want to offer this to someone who in past had chosen to take injections via private prescription.
This shakes diet seems phased out by a digital how are we feeling app service.

Was given a prescription of Victoza in 2023 (capped dose) through primary care which was obtainable for 2/3 months but when stock issues occurred that was the end of the prescription for any injectable as far as the GP surgery were concerned.

Yes changed lots of things and food advice has also changed over the years.
Just got a print out of good/bad food groups when first identified as pre-diabetic

Yes told friends and family. Also employer where appropriate.

I don’t know how or what else I’d have liked to see happen.
I’ve now got myself a podiatrist which I only wish I’d done from the start.

When I needed to read up on info in case diabetes was responsible for a leg and foot infection, the booklets were free to get from Diabetes UK and it makes me think experience must differ greatly as a friend who did suffer gangrene complications due to diabetes, when I said I’d got leaflets seemed not to know this was possible.

I’m meant to be halfway through pathway to remission, no Metformin since February this year and a HbA1c blood test in August will determine final outcome. The hospital were quickly wanting to pass that back to the GP. At the moment the GP surgery are probably quite pleased I’m housebound for sure I reckon! It was the only condition on recent discharge paperwork the hospital abbreviated!

I had a blood test for an unrelated condition, and the doctor suggested I might be diabetic and wrote to my GP. My GP sent me for a blood test which initially indicated that I was pre-diabetic, but subsequent tests showed that I'm diabetic. I was given metformin. I have a blood test every six months. My GP doesn't think I should take Ozempic due to my medical history.

Thanks for replying! it sounds hard and I’ve known a few people similar who haven’t been able to get a handle on it as the changes have come too late, and then not full commitment to the changes.
I think many still see it as not very serious but it’s actually so deadly.

@Disturbia81 T2 diabetes cannot always be controlled by diet alone no matter how committed the person is or how quickly they make changes. It is caused by the pancreas not creating enough insulin and your body not being sensitive to the insulin that is created. I was eating no carbs except those in green veg, I completely eliminated all breads, pasta, rice, oat, everything that contained any carbs and my sugars were still too high and barely controlled with 2 doses of insulin a day and maximum dosage of metformin. Thankfully Mounjaro was prescribed and it’s been brilliant but even now just a small amount of potato is enough to put me outside of normal range for hours and hours.