[Mayfly]

I was really upset at my last visit to the doctors. On the premise that a doctor is there to listen and give encouragement, I told him about several things which were giving me concern.

Number one, I have a slight phobia about blood/needles etc. When I inject myself, the bottoms of my feet get that "scraping finger nails across a blackboard" feeling, and it's not getting better, it's getting worse. I was concerned as I presume having insulin will be by the same method. His attitude was that I was being a baby and should shut up about it.

Number two, he very obviously thinks that I eat too much and need to stop. I have been through my diet with several people, and it's pretty good, but possibly I could do with eating less. My problem is that I am hungry non-stop. I eat breakfast, and I'm hungry. I spend all morning being hungry. I have some soup and spend the whole afternoon being hungry. I have supper (where I could cut down) and then will be hungry at about 10.00. Sometimes I wake up being hungry. My doctor says that I only put on weight because I eat too much. When I tried to explain my point of view, he more or less exploded, and said that the problem "must be psychological then" in a tone which implied that I was hungry because I was mad. He wouldn't consider any other reason, and has now instructed me to attend a weight loss clinic. I can't seem to get across the problem that yes, I could certainly eat less, but I will be hungry all the time, I have problems in meetings because my stomach will growl all the way through and I want to not do the whole "I can eat whatever I like because I'm on insulin" thing when I switch, but I don't think I'll be able to stop myself.

It's an emotional subject, which I have tried to explain, that if I'm to put on weight through insulin, I may as well eat what I want. After all, at least I won't be getting fat AND starving myself as well. I feel I need help, but I just can't get it. Things are pretty good at the moment, because the Byetta supresses my appetite, so I feel hungry but my head will ignore the hunger pangs.

I'm thinking of trying to change doctors, has anyone else had this sort of experience?

 

[ColaJim]

dunno but for me the hunger pangs seem to be from eating too much carbohydrate and not enough fat. fast carbs are the worst.


ColaJim

 

[jwags]

Mayfly, I have followed your story on some of the other forums. I think what a lot of doctors really don't understand is what "Insulin Resistance" is and how to deal with it. When a diabetic is insulin resistant we don't metabolise carbs correctly and many times way too much insulin is produced. It is all this insulin floating around that makes you hungry all the time and probably attributes to increased weight. That is why many diabetics seem to gain weight in the belly and no matter what can't lose it. I have found eating the diet the dietician gave me made this condition worse. The only thing that helped me was a very low carb diet. When you eat low carb foods you still can eat lots of calories so you are not hungry all the time. But since you are not eating the carbs your pancreas doesn't need to produce a lot of insulin. This is why so many diabetics have moved to low carb. Very few doctors and dieticians will agree with low carb, but it is the only thing that has worked. It is hard in the beginning because carbs havd an addictive quality. The more you eat the more you want. I still eat very well on low carb and I can eat whenever I want without putting on weight. When I am hungry I eat cheese, nuts, veggies, low carb cookies or muffins that I make with flaxseed and Coconut oil. These foods never raise my bg so they don't raise my insulin levels, either. If you could find a doctor that believes in low carb, that would be the best. Here in the US it is hard but they are beginning to pop up. I would suggest you get Dr Bernsteins book, Diabetes Solutions Dr. Bernstein's Diabetes Solution. A Complete Guide to Achieving Normal Blood Sugars. Official Web Site or look into the Atkins Diet for Diabetics.

 

[Jen]

Jeannie - that was a wonderful response to Mayfly.

Jen

 

[Mayfly]

Hiya Jwags - I'm a bit confused - do you mean you have followed similar stories or my story in particular? I'm only a member of one other Diabetic forum and I haven't been there for a while.

Thank you for your reply, I'll have a look at the diet, I'm just not sure about low carbing. I have tried it in the past, and it made no difference to my levels which is what I would be looking at to see any improvement (first off - I wouldn't simply ditch the diet from no loss in weight). I would also be looking at them for any detrimental effects. Example : I had a slice of chibatta bread late at night yesterday which should have had some effect on my levels. They went down this morning from yesterday's readings.

The only thing which seems to be making a difference is eating soup for lunch, rather than a meal. I think (THINK) I am losing some weight at last, it's tricky because my once a month problem means I put on about seven pounds and that happens a week before I'm due, hangs around during the event and finally goes over the following week. So I get one week in which I can see some real results as opposed to sort of 'fake' results.

Oh well, I can but try............

Thank you for your encouraging and positive response.

 

[jwags]

I am also on the other forum, using a different name. Lots of us have to experiment with diets, but you have to give them a chance to work. The reason I like Dr B's book is that it is more than a diet book. He explains how your diabetic body works and how each diabetic is totally different. He is a doctor specialising in diabetes. He makes everyone keep extensive bg records with food intake and exericise and stress noted. He uses these records to prescribe a treatment plan. Depending what times of day you spike he may recomend different oral meds or insulins. He, himself has been a diabetic since he was 12. He is now 84. Yes, his diet is low carb and hard to do at first. As I have been successful with weight loss I have been able to add back some carbs, slowly but still need to be careful. When you are insulin resistant as long as you eat carbs you will be over working your pancreas and eventually it will burn out. Once it burns out, you then produce no insulin and will definitely need to be on long acting and fast acting insulin. Some type 2's can stay on oral meds for a very long time, others seem to progress quicker to needing insulin. Have you had a C Peptide test recently? It will tell you how efficient your pancreas is. The important thing about Low Carb Diet are that they are Lifestyle ways of Eating. Many of us have been doing them for a long time. We don't deprive ourselves of good food. We are just careful of the carbs. We still make fantastic meals, snacks, cookies, desserts, etc. We just stay away from the foods that spike us. Most of us Eat to our Meters. When we eat we test at 2 hours. Ideally you should be 120-140. By tweaking diet you can even get it lower, almost normal. Usually the longer you stay on low carb the closer to your natural weight you will get. I have lost 80+ pounds since the age of 50. I now stay within a 5 pound weight range, the same that I was in the late 1960's in college. I hate having diabetes but it gave me the motivation to get all my weight off and keep it off.

 

[Vytautas]

Dunno... My diet is loose. I eat whenever I am hungry. I don't really watch what I eat (there is no such thing as "You can't eat that" in my diet) apart from estimating the carbs. I said it several times and I will say it again. I had a very good doctor while I was changing to a pump who said (keep in mind that this is for T1):

Any doctor who gives you a bunch of numbers for how much to eat and how much insulin you should use and expects you to do it is not incompetent but not thinking straight.

Following this if I don't like the doctor (though the one I go to is pretty strict she is also very good) I simply nod my head a few times, say thank you and leave and don't come back for the next 2 years.

I seem to be doing fine with insulin. One thing that you need to remeber is that the doctor does not live with you. He does not know what your real eating habits are and he will 100% give you wrong bolus numbers which you will have to adjust. You ALWAYS need to adjust your bolus depending on what you eat. Which is why I roughly estimate the carbs and increase or decrease the bolus acordingly.