[4x5]

I found out recently that I have type 2 diabetes. This is new since it turned up in a regular blood test used to monitor my cholesterol. That was in early March and I've been taking Metformin 500mg twice a day. For the most part I've managed to get my blood sugar under control and when I meter I normally get BS levels around 110 give or take a few points.

What concerns me is that when I go 8+ hours without food or after heavy exercise rather then having low BS I find that it's high. Normally around 140 but sometimes it's higher then 200. It always goes down. I just don't understand why it would go up without eating.

 

[Terrie]

Hello 4x5! Hmmm. I'm pretty sure that you are not 4' tall by 5' wide. Anyways, Welcome!!

Sorry to hear of your diagnosis but the more you learn the healthier you will be if you put it into action. You will probably be healthier than most of your Family or Friends.

It is not unusual for a Diabetic's blood sugar to rise during exercise or not eating. You are running out of glucose so your liver pumps out more to give you energy. It is there to help a Person and it feels that you are in need of glucose. Isn't it Nice?? So try to help it and you out the next time.

Going too long without food is not a Good thing. Your liver has to pump out glucose and sometimes it pumps out too much. So have even a small snack with protein(meat, cheese, 1 tbsp. peanut butter, about 6-8 nuts, 1 or 1/2 Glucerna bar, etc.).


Is a 4x5 a truck? No, that's a 4x4. Okay....a 4x5 is photography associated. Wow! Cool! A 150 mm lens + camera.
I like the camera.

 

[4x5]

Hello 4x5! Hmmm. I'm pretty sure that you are not 4' tall by 5' wide. Anyways, Welcome!!

Sorry to hear of your diagnosis but the more you learn the healthier you will be if you put it into action. You will probably be healthier than most of your Family or Friends.

It is not unusual for a Diabetic's blood sugar to rise during exercise or not eating. You are running out of glucose so your liver pumps out more to give you energy. It is there to help a Person and it feels that you are in need of glucose. Isn't it Nice?? So try to help it and you out the next time.

Going too long without food is not a Good thing. Your liver has to pump out glucose and sometimes it pumps out too much. So have even a small snack with protein(meat, cheese, 1 tbsp. peanut butter, about 6-8 nuts, 1 or 1/2 Glucerna bar, etc.).


Is a 4x5 a truck? No, that's a 4x4. Okay....a 4x5 is photography associated. Wow! Cool! A 150 mm lens + camera.
I like the camera.

I figured it out. The film I use is 4"x5". I get a lot of interesting questions and comments when I'm out in the field.

Not going extended periods is going to be a major change. I like to eat dinner ~8pm and in my life have only eaten breakfast a few times. That means no food from ~8pm until lunch.

 

[Terrie]

Hi 4x5:

I wonder when that type of film dates back to since I saw it in an old style camera? That was interesting. So must be your job for that matter. I would enjoy doing that type off photography also because I have done a few photos(using my Hubby's 35mm)that were pretty Good. If I don't know how to use the camera(since I haven't read the instructions on mine yet)then they are usually blurry. Like taking night photos with the switch on sunylight. Yes, those turned out Well.

Believe it or not I have a photo that is on a piece of tin. It's People in old dress styles and I know it is old because of the Person I received it from.

As far as what you are doing with your lack of eating, that is dangerous. You must be able to carry a small cooler with you. If not the Glucerna bars, lunch bags of 10 (almonds or walnuts preferrably-carry in your pocket)nuts, apples, bananas, etc. do not have to be refrigerated. Just in case.

How often do you test? You could be having higher or lower tests if you don't test often enough. Granted, since you were recently dxd. you still have sufficient Insulin and Metformin to keep you regulated most of the time but that will run out or will not work adequately for your body, even with that amount of Metformin, if you don't look after it more carefully. I will presume that you are not Insulin resistant right now. Sorry for preaching. Good Luck! You can do this!

 

[4x5]

I gave up on 35mm a few years ago. My dslr does at least as well as 35mm. Some days I have trouble focusing no matter how much time I spend on it. The photo on tin is a variation of wet/dry plate. The image was made as a direct positive with no negative. In theory the process (tin type) is obsolete but there are a few of us that stubornly cling to the old processes.

I currently meter around 3-4 times a day sometimes more, sometimes less but never less then twice. Always first thing in the morning and always before going to bed. When I first got a call from my doctor about the result he told me the good news, to take the metformin he was going to phone the prescription in for, to "eat healthy and lose weight" and see him in three months. I haven't seen him for the three month follow up yet. While picking up the metformin I decided to get a meter and test strips so I could feel out how my body reacted to the food I ate. My father was diabetic and my mother is diabetic and neither did much of anything to control it. Needless to say I don't want their results!! While most of the swings more or less make sense to me I didn't understand the spikes I was getting when my logic told me that I should have been seeing a drop.

On the positive side I've lost 20lbs in the last few months and feel better then I have in years. I think the change in diet and excercise is something I should have done years ago!!

 

[Terrie]

You're among many that are going back to the more primative/basic style of products.

That's interesting. I've not heard of that. Mind you, I haven't looked it up either. I know less that nothing about cameras and accessories.
That doesn't make sense. How can you get a picture without the actual negative? I thought that you needed a negative to make a photo. Sure you do.

As far as the fogginess, if your sugars have gone down then, are you wearing glasses or contacts? If so, perhaps the prescription needs changing. Or your glasses or contacts may be worn or need cleaning. Glasses made of plastic or contact lens need to be cleaned with a special solution to get the film off.

Okay, you seem to have the testing and types of food that you can eat down pretty Good. If so, Great job! You're a first Class! I can certainly see your motivation. Too bad that that has to be the reason for it.

That's a shame about your your Dad and your Mom still. I'm sorry to hear that. Too many of these amputations, going blind, kidney failure, heart failure and death has been going on for too many years. It needs to stop.

 

[4x5]

The direct positive is a function of the tintype process. The emulsion (the light sensitive "stuff") is put on the plate and the plate is put in a camera and exposed and developed. The result is a positive image. One of the many downsides to the process is that you can make duplicate prints from it. Some of the old processes were more then a little weird and very dangerous. As an example the dagarreotype involved holding the exposed plate over the vapors from boiling mercury!!

I've worn glasses since I was 15 and my vision is fine. My occasional inability to properly focus my 4x5 camera is a personal problem not at all related to my vision. Being near sighted I have to take my glasses off to focus. Most people need to use a "focusing loop" (specialized for of magnifying glass) to focus I take off my glasses and make use of my ability to focus sharply as close as 3". After a week of taking metformin my uncorrected vision went to 20/20 but alas that only lasted a few weeks! :-(

Fortunatly neither my mother or father had anything amputated. My father did lose all feeling in his feet and had a lot of problems from that. The father of a coworker ignored his diabetes and now has to go in for dyalisis<SP?> twice a week. I look on all of it as an object lesson about how diabetes is something that has to be taken very seriously. That's a hard thing to do for people like me that developed type II diabetes in their late 40s and later. It's requires huge lifestyle changes. Until three months ago we never thought about our blood sugar. It takes time and it's not fun but the consequences of not dealing with it are far worse. Of course you know all of this so I'll get off of my soapbox now.

 

[Terrie]

Hello 4x5:

Interesting process. Why is making duplicate prints of it a down-side?
You're right about the dangerous side. That mercury sure is important. They use it for so many things. They're supposed to be getting rid of it and yet they put them in these eco light bulbs we use and most like a lot of different things.

You take your glasses off to focus the camera? Wow! I had not heard of that one. Getting 20/20 vision from Metformin? A few weeks of better vision is remarkable.. Did you tell your eye Doctor?

I look on all of it as an object lesson about how diabetes is something that has to be taken very serious.That's a hard thing to do for people like me that developed type II diabetes in their late 40s and later. It's requires huge lifestyle changes. Until three months ago we never thought about our blood

I agree with that. It must be Very hard as a mature Adult. If I was eating all that food and all it's variety, that would be a mountain to climb to get to a Diabetic or low-carb diet.

But it is also Very hard for a Child to understand at a young age why they have to miss out on so many of a Child's normal and Fun stuff. They lose their Real Life before they even learn about it all. Anyways, some make it through from both sides and some do not.

Hmmm. Why were you surprised about being diagnosed? I would think that with 2 Diabetic Parents someone might have mentioned it to you, if you didn't realize it yourself? My Kids know that they might be dxd. I see my Daughter still watch me as I give my shots. You are right and I am right. I wouldn't have wanted my Kids to suffer with this disease when they were little. Looks like we both know it.

 

[4x5]

Sorry typed to fast. With tintype it's not possible to make duplicate prints.

I haven't talked to anyone about the metformin effect on my vision. The change only lasted a few weeks and temporary changes to vision are listed as potential side effects.

I didn't mean to imply that diabetes isn't rough on children. (I had a bad night last night didn't I) I'm sure it's hard for children to understand why only they can't have a slice of birthday cake. I'm just getting a little frustrated by well meaning people that tell me that I need to completly change my life in an instant and if I don't it's because I'm not taking my condition seriously. I'm sure those people mean well but they do more harm then good. The key is to find a balance that you can live with that controls you BG and still allow you to enjoy your life. There are going to be days when I eat to much birthday cake, eat pizza and have a burrito!

 

[Terrie]

Hello:

Okay, that's a definite down-side then, about the tin. And makes more sense. It's neat to look at though. A unique piece of History. I don't know who the people are. It's only a piece of the tin, so it's small.

Oh sorry. Did I say this instant? I used to say, cut out foods slowly and learn things slowly so it's not so hard missing th food and then they can also absorb the info easier and correctly. So they wouldn't be overwhelmed. I assumed that they would not think that I meant..."right now". I know it's hard. and there's so much to learn about Diabetes. I think I know about 1/3 of it. Thankfully there are Cool Members here also that help a lot.

It's easier with Insulin except if a Person takes too much. Or eats too many carbs and doesn't take enough Insulin. Or does too much exercising without calculating how much Insulin that they took earlier. Now you know how a Kid feels. And they can't even go to their room and eat something sweet....just to spite the Person who told them that they can't. HA! I had to throw that in.

The key is to find a balance that you can live with that controls you BG and still allow you to enjoy your life. There are going to be days when I eat to much birthday cake, eat pizza and have a burrito!

Right on about the "key". Yes, most People have those "days". Even me. Only I have a small piece of cake, or 1 slice of pizza izza: because I hate high numbers and I do not like taking a lot of Insulin. I don't think I've ever had a burrito. I had something weird at the Tulip Festival. That might have been one.

Geez! My Bunny just threw her dish and scared me. I guess she thinks that she needs more food.

You and I must have been in the same place yesterday. Poor Don. :wave: I reread his post about 7 times. I just couldn't wrap my head around what he was saying. I figured I could answer John's post since it was shorter. Of course, he had to point out the erriors that I made. :doh: Thanks John. j/k I'm Glad that People point them out. I don't want to mess anyone up. Oh well, we all have those days.

 

[4x5]

It wasn't you that said I need to change my lifestyle overnight. That mostly comes from friends and coworkers. I agree I need to make changes but I feel that I need to make gradually. I have two important reasons for this. The first is that if I don't I won't be able to stick to it and will fall back into my old bad habits. The second is that by making the changes gradually and one or two at a time I could use my glucose meter to help me understand how my body reacts to different foods and what causes me problems. There have been a number of surprises along the way so I'm glad I made the changes gradually.

Did I mention that having diabetes stinks?? Not having grown up with as you have I can't pretend to know what it's like. I do know that there are a lot of foods that I miss but don't think I have much choice. Did I mention that having diabetes stinks??

 

[Terrie]

It wasn't you that said I need to change my lifestyle overnight. That mostly comes from friends and coworkers. I agree I need to make changes but I feel that I need to make gradually. I have two important reasons for this. The first is that if I don't I won't be able to stick to it and will fall back into my old bad habits. The second is that by making the changes gradually and one or two at a time I could use my glucose meter to help me understand how my body reacts to different foods and what causes me problems. There have been a number of surprises along the way so I'm glad I made the changes gradually.

Did I mention that having diabetes stinks?? Not having grown up with as you have I can't pretend to know what it's like. I do know that there are a lot of foods that I miss but don't think I have much choice. Did I mention that having diabetes stinks??

You sound like you have thought this through thoroughly. Good for you. You have 2 Perfect reasons right there. Your Friends and Co-workers are probably worried about you. They must have heard that Diabetics aren't supposed to be consuming foods and drinks that have sugar in them.

Ya, I know what you mean by surprises. No, you didn't mention that Diabetes stinks. No, you can't imagine what it's like to grow up with Diabetes. Yes. As a matter of fact, you did mention that Diabetes stinks. I agree but it could be something worse.

 

[tellmeaboutdiabetes]

Many things can effect blood glucose. Exercise, stress, illness, weight, and if injecting insulin - where you inject it and if you take oral diabetes meds - when you take them and with or without food.