[Justin]

Hi,my name is Justin, and I am new to the forums. As of currently, I fear I may have type II diabetes. I know it has been in the family before, as my grandmother had it.

I started noticing symptoms more recently when I would make frequent trips to the bathroom, especially during the middle of the night, to go urinate. I experience a burning sensation every now and then throughout my body, such as my back, my feet, and my hands. Sometimes I wake up and some of my extremities feel really numb. Other times, my skin itches a lot. There is also some slight weight loss involved, though I'm uncertain if it is related to it.

Unfortunately, I have no health insurance at the moment as it's been difficult for me to find a full time job after dozens of applications. As a result, I've been reluctant to go to the doctor for diagnosis until then, though I'm pretty sure it is type 2 diabetes mellitus due to family history and unhealthy eating habits.

The past week I have been watching what I eat as far as sugar intake and carbs are concerned. I also have been exercising for about an hour a day. Despite this, I feel this may not be enough as symptoms do emerge, especially at night. I'm not sure how to judge the amount of carbs to eat so I won't experience these symptoms. I'm almost afraid to not eat anything because it seems like a little noodles or rice still puts my sugar levels up high. I feel that excercise and low sugar intake aren't enough, and that I will need medication to treat this as well.

Are there any over the counter medications I could get to treat this? I heard about Metformin being a popular anti-diabetic drug of choice, for instance; would this be good to use? What anti-diabetic drugs do you guys use? Also, are insulin shots required in conjunction with an anti-diabetic drug?

I am aware that I will have to monitor my blood glucose levels as well. Is it possible to obtain a blood glucose monitoring kit at a local retail store like Walmart...if not, where could I acquire one? Also, how many times a day are you supposed to check blood glucose levels?

I know I have so many questions, as I am a newbie to diabetes. I'll probably ask additional questions on here from time to time, so I hope I won't be too much of a nuissance Thank you guys for any insight on my situation and guidance towards treatment of it.

 

[Justin]

Good that you are paying attention to what your body may be trying to tell you. Not being a doctor, I can't say much more than it sounds like you are on the right track, but with luck, it could be something else.

You can buy the glucose monitor, lances, and strips at most pharmacies. Seems that the Relion at Walmart is about the least expensive. Test when you get up every morning, which is called your fasting glucose. Be nice if they were under 100, 70's being what some would call "normal" Let us know what you get after a handful of days.

Always wash your hands before you test. Always. And in my opinion test on your pinkie or ring fingers. Seems to hurt less. Never on the pad of the finger, always around the sides.

Those who can afford the test strips in quantities, will test before they eat a regular meal, then one hour, and two hours later. Again, nothing is dead on accurate, but normal folks will see very little rise in their readings after eating, and not expect to exceed 125 or 130. Those are not exact numbers. 140 and above is a problem as damage to your body begin when you spike above that.

Just test first. If the numbers are up there, (post them for a ton of opinions <g>) then you can must start to go low carb and see if that helps.

Noodles are bad. We are all different, but you need to be thinking lower carbs, which is highly personalized. For a while, try for 20 or 30 carbs per meal, which means lots of reading of the boxes, and no fast food. There are many places on the net for diets that will help you find something you like, but that will be lower carbs.

CalorieKing lists just about everything and its nutritional value.

You don't want to take meds, plus they all require a prescription. First try adjusting your diet and keep exercising and see what happens to your readings.

The best test is called an A1c test that your doctor would order, but you can buy the test kit at Walgreens, and I think Walmart or other pharmacy. They will know what you seek if you ask them.

This test reports your average blood sugar over the past three months, so you may want to do that yourself before you drop the coins to go the doctor, who will order the test anyway

There are no stupid questions. Diabetes is serious, but can certainly be controlled, so ask away, post us your numbers if you buy a meter. If you are someone who can control the numbers with diet and exercise, and will do the A1c test at home, there is nothing a doctor can do for you anyway.

Watch what you eat. If you are diabetic, it won't take much to skyrocket your readings. That's probably enough for now but come back and ask away. That is why we are around. Everyone's system is different, but most T2 diabetics not on drugs, can't eat junk food, bread, rice, potatoes, and the like.

Keep a log of what you eat, and how much of it, and tell us what you find.

Good luck. Its kinda traumatic at first, but like I said, you can run to the doctor and he will send you for the A1c test and make you get a meter, or you can do it yourself to begin with, and learn what is up before you have to pay him to tell you what you will already know.

Another test is the fasting glucose tolerance test, which is fasting overnight, and then going to the lab where they will give you a 75gram solution of sugarwater, and test you before, and twice after to see if your numbers come back under 140 within two hours. You can do that at home two with the right qty of soda pop. Test, drink about 75 carbs of 7Up, test in an hour, and then two hours, and if you come back down under 140, you may be good, or at least not very far into it.

These are all just ideas to try in lieu of a doctor at first. If your numbers are up, and won't come down with low carbs and exercise, then you need a doctor to get the prescriptions, but if you take this information to him/her then you will save a lot of time and already be able to ask the right questions.

Do it for a week, read the labels, stay off the carbs as much as you can, and see if you can affect your numbers. On the other hand, if your GB readings are up there, like over 200 all the time, look for lose change in the couch, and go to the doctor A week won't kill you, but if the numbers are way out of spec, get it taken care of.

BBQ or roasted chicken is okay (no fried), pork and even red meat, as are most veggies, so have bacon and eggs for breakfast, eat deli meats for lunch without bread, or tuna, canned chicken mixed withs some mayo, and have a salad with tomatoes and hard boiled eggs for a third meal. That is what I do, pretty low carb, and so far, no need for meds. Not very exciting to eat, but it will teach you something.

Long winded, I know I get that way.

Good luck, and ask anything you want.

John

Thank you very much for your informative response, John. I will purchase a glucose monitoring kit and perform some tests to observe any unusual levels of blood sugar over the next few days. I'll be sure to report numbers so I can get a second opinion regarding if it is indeed type II diabetes.