I have to say, you sound like me last year. THANK GOD I went on Atkins.

I reversed heart disease and I'm no longer pre-diabetic. I went on Atkins after a kind doctor I happened to meet on a plane told me to go on it to save my life. My own doctor was against it. Now she's the biggest proponent of it since Dr A himself.

so so happy you found us! (((hugs)))

Marcia, welcome! It looks like you're really committed to nipping this BS thing in the bud, and fortunately, you didn't wait too long to start. I had a high sugar 2 years ago (188) at my employee physical. It was right after lunch (high carb, of course). The nurse told me to check my blood sugars and see my doctor, which I promptly did. He ran the usual fasting tests, which came out just fine, handed me the 1200 calorie ADA diet sheet, and sent me on my way. He didn't tell me to test or anything, just said everything was fine. Fast forward 2 years later to last summer - I felt terrible all summer and was draining the ice bucket because I had a thirst that couldn't be satisfied. A little light bulb went off in my head and I started checking my sugars with my old meter and was getting readings well over 200. I went back to the doctor, who wasn't going to do a thing because my fasting once again was "borderline." He finally ordered a glucose tolerance test, where my 1 hour was 309 and my 2-hour was 255, and the "official diagnosis" was made. You can find other posts on this forum about my frustration with diabetic education.

There are some great books out there. The Bernstein book is good, which you already read, and his story is amazing. I would also recommend The First Year, Type 2 Diabetes by Gretchen Becker. It also addresses prediabetes. It's not too technical and is a pretty easy read. I got mine off Amazon.

I'm sorry about your mom. My dad died of pancreatic cancer 5 years ago - it's a horrible disease. He ate/drank whatever he wanted. I'm with you on taking this seriously and not waiting! I went through my "pity party" for a few months, but then I got my act together (for the most part).

Good luck to you!

what a great story Triplemom!

Glad you took care of yourself!

Marcia, about the beverages - what works well for me as far as coffee goes is to get one of the blends that is mixed high octane and low. Maxwell House's is called 'Lite' and Folgers has one that is called 'half caf'. I too like my coffee and I want a little caffeine but not too much, it does seem to raise my sugar somewhat. Or, you can always just mix a pound of regular and a pound of decaf together in a container, I do that sometimes when decaf is on sale (rarely, 'cause they soak you for decaf).

I haven't tried Pepsi One but I have tried Coke Zero and I love it. It does have caffeine but the rest of it seems very benign. It tastes much better to me than Diet Coke, which always leaves an aftertaste in my mouth. I don't drink much soda anyway, but sometimes ya just want one!

I think I have to agree with MizKitty that you are early diabetic, perhaps in the same range as I am because we both seem to be showing the same numbers (roughly) going on low carb, and my numbers were similar to yours at the beginning. I don't excercise much either, but now that it is Spring here I walk my dogs a little longer every morning and sometimes evenings too. I have 4 little rescues so there is plenty of walking to be done if i want to. Funny thing is, though, I didn't lose weight because of excercise, it just came off on the diet, although I have more energy for walking now that I am thinner, plus I just feel better in general. It sort of seems to come naturally, and I don't think about it that much, nor do I obcess about it. Don't knock yourself out until you truly feel like it, I think that is the thing for us ladies 'of a certain age' - we do what we can do, we just can't jump into a workout routine like we used to.

You're doing so well, I think you will be very successful in controlling this. You have the right mindset and that is more than half the battle!

I still say you should not blame yourself for becoming diabetic. We all ate garbage probably, but that isn't all there is too it. If we have the genetic tendancy it will probably surface eventually, and there can be many triggers, not just food. Gretchen Becker, in her book 'The First Year' says this about genetic predisposition: (quoted roughly) 'A person can lie around on the sofa all the time eating chips and junk and watching tv with no excercise at all, and they probably will get fat, but if they don't have the gene for diabetes they won't get diabetes.'

Of course they may get something else with a routine like that, lol - nobody gets off scot free! But diabetes? Nope.

I felt incredibly guilty when I was first diagnosed, like "what have I done to myself?" I haven't even told my mother about my diagnosis because she's been badgering me for years about losing weight - I can just hear "I TOLD YOU SO" reverberating in my head at the thought of even telling her...isn't that terrible?

I'm new here, and luckily do not have Diabetes, but I would like to chime in with a bit of information about coffee and caffeine that might help those who are.

Part of the problem with the American way of drinking coffee is that they mostly brew it in a drip style, coarsely ground, and often too weak at that. The brew time, grind and the strength is actually what 'releases' the caffeine from the bean into the coffee cup. The longer the brew time, the coarser the grind, and weaker the strength - the more caffeine in the cup. A whopping lot.

On the other hand, counter-intuitive though it is, an espresso brewed from the same bean/roast or even darker, will have an fraction of the caffeine; tiny in fact. That's because the grind is fine, there's a lot of grind tamped down in the container, and the water whizzes through in seconds, not minutes.

I not only have a home espresso maker, I have a home coffee bean roaster and roast my own beans. I'm able to get all fair trade and organic coffee - types from all over the world - and roast enough beans exactly the way I like them to last a week, in just fifteen minutes. I'd never go back to drinking drip coffee or store-bought roasted beans, and not just because I pay about 1/3 the price for my green beans as you pay for pre-roasted - it just tastes so good and is always amazingly fresh.

Those who love their coffee might want to consider saving their money and their health by going espresso, and there are now a ton of very affordable, easy-to-use-and-clean machines for the home available these days. If anyone wants some tips on what to look for, etc. please let me know.

Lisa

That's how I feel too when I was told I had heart disease. I just sat there, with a roaring in my ears, mutely listening to the doctor with his little plastic heart model explaining what I'd done to myself.

How could I have almost taken my daughter's mother away from her?

I
I haven't told my mum either. I feel so guilty about it, I have had warning signs and of course been very overweight for years now. I told myself that I hadn't told my mum because she has just left on a big trip and I didn't want to spoil it by worrying, but really I am ashamed to admit what is going on.
I'm hoping by the time she is back (4 months) I will have some positive results to show her.

Awriter, that's interesting about the coffee, thanks.

Triplemom and Muffles, sounds like you need to have a printout of Lottadata's excellent article "You Did NOT Eat Your Way to Diabetes" handy when you tell your mothers.
http://www.phlaunt.com/diabetes/14046739.php

(Bonus... there's a section in there that blames the mother...heehee)

Wow! That is wonderful, Pennick! I guess you were in the right place and the right time... similar to how I feel when I decided to take a look at the Diabetic Forum over at Jimmy Moore's. Who knows when it would have been discovered!

What is it with doctors??? IMO my doctor should have been a bit concerned. Obviously by looking at me I have Metabolic Syndrome and with this belly I am obviously insulin resistance and with a slightly high FBG. You'd think that T2 might have crossed her mind. I just don't get it!

I wanted to tell you and Rose that I bought the book during lunch hour today... began reading it. I think it's going to be very helpful!

Thank you... and sorry for your Dad as well. Even though they are to pass before us it's never easy losing a parent.


Decaf seemed to spike my BS too! What's with that? I've gone 2 days without and actually have been doing fine, no headaches. Might be difficult this weekend...

I really like it and I'm thrilled that it looks like it's going to be ok.

It certainly is possible, but I'm going to give it til May and see what I can do. If I am, I am, but at least I'll be armed with knowledge! You probably said this but are you a diagnosed T2? Are you on any meds?

Thanks!

You're right!!! I bought the book and that's what it says! I thought you were just being nice... thank you!

Thanks Lisa I may give Espresso a try!

Rhonda and Muffles... We love our mothers, but sometimes!!! Mine necer said anything to me about my weight because was very heavy and an untreated T2, but she sure laid quilt trips on my in other ways... but, I loved her with all my heart! I miss her...

Awriter - thanks for the expresso tips, definitely something to look in to! I do have a little filter carafe and use that sometimes - it makes delicious coffee. But it's not practical around here because my husband won't go to that trouble and just wants to push a button and get coffee in 5 minutes. He gets up first so that's the way it is here unless I want to get up at 4 am, And make 2 kinds of coffee (NO!!!)

Marcia you may be wise to keep diabetes off your medical records for as long as you can. I don't know whether you work or not, but if you do and try to change jobs, that could work against you, both by the employers and the insurance companies. It isn't fair to people like us who are doing a fine job of controlling the disease, but that's the way it is, unfortunately. You are a long way from Medicare and you sure don't want to be put into the position of having to buy your own insurance for a lot of years and finding that because of the word 'diabetes' you are in the high risk (and super high premium) pool. I bet there are others here who have fallen into that lousy trap when in fact they are healthier than they would have been if they followed the ADA diet and advice, and will probably never require the astronomical medical expenses of those poor misguided people.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot - yes I am Type 2. And I am not on any meds (so far and trying to keep it that way if the Good Lord is willing and the creek don't rise.....)

Hi Rose Thanks for another wonderful post!

I've worked for the same DDS for the last 22 years. He'll be retiring in the next 2-4 years. I plan on hanging in there that long, but then I hope to retire when he does so I will probably have to self pay for a while and you're right... I sure don't want it in my medical record if I can help it. The only thing is I would love to get some Metformin ER to help with weight loss. It's coming off so s-l-o-w!

Are all of you on a reduced calorie diet? It seems that's what Dr. Bernstein wants you to do along with smaller protein portions. I have a tremendous appetite... I really thought with LCing, calories was not an issue. Perhaps if you have diabetes it is? I'm trying to be more careful but a 4 oz steak isn't enough for me!

Well, I'm off to read more of Gretchen Becker...

Rose (and everyone) - please call me Lisa.

First the bad news: making coffee using a filter is exactly the same as making a big pot of drip coffee. The grind is coarse and the water goes through slowly. An espresso maker sends the water through the fine grind under immense pressure - that's why espresso makers list what 'bar' level their pump uses. The higher the 'bar' - as in, "this machine has 18 bars" - the more powerful the pump and the faster the water is pushed through.

The good news: there's nothing easier or more convenient than a "super-automatic" espresso maker. That's what I have.

When I wander downstairs in the morning, my Capresso has already turned itself on, warmed up the cups resting on top, and is ready to roll.

The beans (enough for a week) are in the bean container. I push one of several buttons (depending on whether I want an espresso, two cups at once, a Latte or even an Americano) - and the beans grind themselves to the precise setting and amount for that cup. The tamper tamps the grounds down by itself, and within *seconds* my espresso is in my cup. The machine dumps the used grounds into an inner bin automatically, and is ready to make another cup. Instantly. I just dump out the contents of the bin once a week and refill the water and beans.

Even the foam for latte is automatic. I hook up the hose to one end, dunk the other in the milk or cream container and voila - thick, steamy, delicious foam comes out the spigot into my cup. The machine stays on as long as I want (all day), then rinses itself, turns itself off and goes to sleep, ready for tomorrow.

It 'tells' me it's made 5, 768 cups of coffee since it's birth at the factory (I bought it used), and I fully expect it to make another 6,000 one-button, automatic cups before it goes to its reward in that vast coffee heaven in the sky.

I'm so spoiled that having to actually 'make' a pot of coffee by myself would be waaaay too much work, and you'd have to pry my Capresso out of my cold, dead hands. Still clutching that last, delicious cappuchino of course

Lisa

I dunno Marcia...... the minute you get a script for Metaformin, the word is out unless Metaformin can be used for anything except diabetes (I have no experience with diabetes meds but that is what I assume). If it were me I would hold off and see how the weight loss goes, it might just kick in for you without using meds to jumpstart it. I think someone else with more knowledge should be able to help you, I'm just not sure.

As for a low calorie diet, LC pretty much falls into that catagory because there aren't any calorie laden desserts and such. Think of all the bread that we give up, for one thing. However, we do eat some rich and creamy stuff (like mmmmm real whipping cream and real cheese and real meat with fat!). But those are not necessarily the calories that stick with you, they do burn for energy now that we aren't giving our bodies much of any glucose to burn. Probably not a problem to have a bigger steak than 4 oz, and add some more fresh cooked veggies for the bulk that fills you up. Portions are not so much a problem with this type of diet as long as you don't overstuff yourself and run into problems that way. Personally I can't take in a lot of food at one sitting, it makes me feel rotten, but I suppose everyone has their own 'right' capacity.

Oh WOW Lisa - Now you've got me totally interested in an expresso machine! I had no idea they did all that! Thanks for all that information!