On Friday morning July 3, 2009, I met my brother for breakfast. Our plans for the day did not survive contact with reality.

After we finished breakfast and were standing at the cash register, I began to feel "funny." I felt a bit disconnected from reality and life was passing by like a movie I was watching rather than something in which I was present.

As we were walking to his truck, I told my brother something was wrong. I began to get tunnel vision, began to walk very carefully as if I might lose my balance, and had to try several times before I could grab the truck door handle
to open it and get in.

By this time my brother, a trained law enforcement officer, was very concerned and started asking the kinds of questions designed to see if the person you are encountering is oriented to time, space, date, etcetera. I think I got through some questions with appropriate answers but apparently my lack of expression and monotone voice alarmed him.

Then he asked where we were going. I knew that I knew the answer but I could not recall "Fremont Street" or respond except to say, "Uh, Uh." Then he asked me if I knew his name and the same thing happened.

So we are on the way to the ER. He asks if we should go to St. Joseph's and I was able to communicate I had no insurance so we should go to the County Hospital.

I did not realize it but apparently we went there very quickly. I was not afraid or in pain, just confused and a bit frustrated by whatever was goin on.

At the hospital I was able to walk in to the Emergency Room, but one look at my careful gait and the look on my face got me an escort to a cubicle. A swarm of folks hooked me up to lots of sensors, a saline IV was started and I was given some aspirin. They took blood, vital signs, etcetera.

I was recovering quickly and able to answer the doctors' and nurses' questions. Everyone was suspecting a minor stroke or heart problem. It was quickly clear that a heart problem was not likely but could not be definitively ruled out.

Then one result of the blood tests returned: I had a blood glucose over 400. This is way too high and they told me in some people would result in diabetic coma. Whoopie, I'm a Type 2 diabetic!

A carotid ultrasound was essentially negative, but some arterial plaque was found.. A echo cardiogram was scheduled, rescheduled, and finally pushed out a couple weeks because there were no signs of heart problems and the hospital
staff to do the testing were not available.

So 24 hours or so in the hospital, a few insulin shots, lots of saline IV pumped through my system, not much sleep, little edible food - and most not appropriate for a diabetic! , etcetera. In other words, a standard hospital stay.

I left with some advice and literature from a dietician, prescriptions,a last insulin shot, and appoints for a couple weeks out a the outpatient clinic.

So over the weekend I wrestled with my emotions [anger, sadness, etcetera] as I picked up my glucose test meter, lancet device for pricking my fingers, baby aspirin, and three other medications designed to help my bodies natural insulin,
reduce arterial plaque formation, and slightly moderate blood pressure.

I spent time online and in bookstores to learn about diabetes and its treatment. I monitored my blood glucose before three meals a day [its ranging from a high of around 240 before breakfast to a low of about 165 before dinner, and
apparently "should" be ranging between about 160 and 80].

My personal survival decisions: [1] keep monitoring the blood glucose, and [2] adopt a vegetarian diet [no animal products, plant protein, and fruits lower on the glycemic index]. Exercise is supposedly a good thing, too.

My personal guru for now is Dr. Neal Barnard. Of all the sources I have looked at, his book makes the most sense to me. Based on worldwide population statistics and studies for decades, doing your best to eliminate animal products
from your diet not only reduces cholesterol [the only significant sources of cholesterol are animal], leads to loss of weight, and can radically reduce and even eliminate the need for diabetes medication.

I will let you know how I progess from time to time.

Wow, just wow. I am sorry and at the same time glad you found out now instead of out in the middle of open seas.

I don't have any other comments about it since I don't know much on the topic.

Read In Defense of Food by Micheal Pollan. There's a bit in there on diabetes research done on an aborigine population. The big point is that escaping from the American diet is essential. Like you say, a mostly vegetarian diet or a diet based on traditional food sources, small scale agriculture and hunting and gathering. Don't try and hang on to this lifestyle by replacing crappy processed food with crappy processed food for diabetics. It sounds like thats kind of the path you're on now. Good luck, its a tough row to sow.

$9 w/free amazon prime shipping 2day
Not bad!

http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Food-Eater...0730&sr=8-1

Good reviews too.

I may give the book a go, and see if I can change my eating habits too... I mean what's healthy is healthy!

get you but to dlife.com - seriously

For your meter readings - I love the software at sweetspot.dm (standard disclaimers)

You need a diabetes buddy - drop a line

They tell you your A1C?

(Charlie - who found out the same thing in January)

First read this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diabetic

It's not the end of the world. A nasty shock, but not the end of the world. You are simply going to have to be sensible about what you eat and respectful of your condition. Not scared of it, but respectful. That does not mean going vegetarian. For some people it's actually beneficial because it forces them to look after themselves. I have a close friend who suffers from diabetes. He was overweight, drank and smoked. Looked about 70. Old 70. Year after he was diagnosed he looked closed to 50. A healthy 50 and his weight is down to something reasonable.



One other thing: my girlfriend is diabetic. Which is a PITA but it's not exactly slowing her down. One thing she ain't done is give in to her condition.

It is a fast growing club, I have been a type 2 now for going on 15 years. Here are a few things I have learned:

1) take charge of it. Your doctors will display as much interest in helping you as you display in helping yourself. If they tell you to do something, do it. If you do not understand something, ask.

2) test frequently and keep the results and show to the Doctor.

3) Exercise, (walking is best for me) is critically important and shows measurable effects on blood sugar levels on days I walk and those I don't.

4) Do not fear insulin! I was on pills for a long time and always felt sick. I started on insulin and felt my old self come back in less than 2 days. There are 24 hour types of insulin, so you might need only one shot a day. I have a feeling that with fasting blood sugars of the mid-200's they will start you on pills. I had fasting blood sugars in the low 300s when diagnosed, and was started on pills. If I had to do it over again, knowing what I know now, I would start on insulin (e.g. "lantus") right away. On insulin, I get fasting blood sugars in the 80-100 range and A1C's of 6.0 to 6.2. You want your A1C to be below 7.0: below 6.0 is "normal."

It is great you are looking at your diet. Read labels: sugar is hidden in the most unlikely places and in large amounts. Remember that 4 grams of sugar is equal +/- to one teaspoon of table sugar. Do the math on the "teaspoon" content on a 12 oz can of cola and you will be amazed. However, diet and exercise may not be enough to get your control where you need to be.

Lastly, one of the most expensive parts of this disease is the cost of the tests strips if you are paying out of pocket. The big "brand name" meter strips will run anywhere from .75 to $1.00 per strip, and you may be testing several times a day. I found the cheapest place to get a meter and strips was Wallyworld's house brand and strips, via on line order (100 strip box), bringing the cost per strip down to the 43 cent range. One of our local chain drug stores (Rite-aid) also has their house brand with similar pricing. Skipping testing can get you into trouble fast: it is not something that can be ignored.

It is a very individual disease and these are my experiences; I hope you find them useful. Think of it this way: your body used to be on "automatic" but is now on "manual" and you have the controls in your hands.

Well, "congratulations" on joining that club. Full of irony, of course.

From a healthcare provider's standpoint, I'm glad that you were sick, and got caught. I'm sure your sugar was more than 400 - that by itself USUALLY isn't too symptomatic. Chances are their handheld meter just tops out at 400. When you finally get your insurance (subtle hint!) and talk to your doc, have him get copies of your blood work and see your real numbers.

Diabetes sucks. It's a crummy disease. you usually feel fine, but are suddenly at increased risks for all sorts of things. If you want details, pm me. I try to be brutally honest with all my DKA and newly-diagnosed patients, b/c I don't think that many of them realize how deleterious this can be (sort of like high blood pressure).

The best advice? Lose weight. I don't care how, really, as long as you're not eating less and puking more. It's possible that you can "reverse" diabetes with a healthy weight and body fat index. Even if you don't, you get much better control over your sugars.

Good luck!

I'm happy to say I've gotten my A1C down to 5.8, and my daily glucose numbers are trending down since then. MD had me stop exercising because of my leg (it was messing stuff up there), but that is temporary

After several days of emotional rollercoaster [anger, sadness, etcetera] I decided that diabetes is just a circumstance, kind of like an unexpected hill to climb. Reading menus is just a different kind of game.

I am testing before each meal and my numbers seem to be trending lower [between low 200's and low 100's]. The vegan thing turns out to be pretty easy most days and most places.

Looser clothes would seem to indicate weight loss. Exercise is still a challenge; if money gets better I will resume walking and playing golf courses a few times a week.

New project: vegan survival in the wild.

Thanks for the support, folks!

You are very lucky that your diabetes has been diagnosed and you can do something about your condition! It is not the end of the world and with proper management you can live a long and productive life.

One suggestion that may be of some help to you. Many hospitals offer one or two day diabetes workshops that give you a lot of information about your disease and how you can best cope with it. These workshops are often free or offered at low cost. They usually spend a lot of time on food selection and preparation and how to avoid potential pitfalls. I strongly suggest attending one of those workshops rather than reading a book and taking off on your own. There are also tons of online recipes and meal preparation tips that can be helpful.

Also keep the doctor who is managing your diabetes fully informed about your condition and what you are doing to manage it. You will do great!

Been online quite a bit. Still looking.

Local hospital disappointoing - "we don't have a dietician with a diabetes focus."

Cinnamon has been a surprisingly widely touted addition to a diabetes fighting diet.

I'm NOT sure of my local Hospital, but when I was diagnosed, I looked at my medical plan, plus looked around for an endocrinologist who specialized in Diabetes (not all do) and who had a certified diabetes educator on staff. It was a good move

BTW - The term "diabetic" is VERY VERY Non-PC in certain crowds - it's "Person with diabetes" - 'I am not the disease I have'

I call myself a diabetec

Also: Diabetes is a condition. It is not a disease!

There are a number of OTC supplements that are claimed to "cure" or "reverse" or otherwise have some beneficial effects. Any particular one may or may not help. This is where frequent testing comes in. If you take one of the supplements, and can't see any effects on your readings, you may want to question if it really is doing anything, especially as some of the supplements can get pricey.

I tried some the first year or so I was diagnosed and found, at best, a less than 10 point reduction in my sugars. Helpful, but a long way from a cure. Eventually, they stopped having any effect.

None are a substitute for all of the things you already know you have to do.

Started reading this book.

Seems like it will be good for sure.

Was cinnamon among the things you tried?

I tried cinnamon, but did not find it had any detectable effect on my numbers or how I felt. I tried several other OTC things, the names I don't recall, with similar lack of success.

There was one that helped. I used chromium picolinate for about the first 2 years after I was diagnosed, and then it lost effect. The way it works is to help your body use the insulin it is producing more efficiently; e.g. lower the body's resistance. I did notice an improvement in my numbers and how I felt when I was on it and it was working, so I would say it is worth a try and see how it works for you. YMMV.

The little known fact (among many type 2 diabetics) about type 2 diabetes is that it is progressive, and eventually the insulin resistance that is your initial problem (but the body is still producing lots of insulin) may/can turn into a loss of the body's ability to produce insulin in the first place. The exact reason for this effect is, to my knowledge, unknown. In my case, my body lost over 90% of its ability to produce insulin, so no matter how "efficient" the use is, there was not enough to go around.

The speed and severity of the progression is very individual, and a person can improve if diagnosed early, and/or hold the progression at bay for years by doing the right things. But it is still a lifetime condition.

I'm glad you found out about your diabetes before something really serious happened. I think a couple of the most crazy "world's scariest police chases" I have ever seen on TV involved drivers impaired by their diabetes (never really mentioned whether their blood sugar was too high or low).

I think you're on the right track with your attitude about what to do. The end-all-be-all isn't the blood sugar, A1C or any other measure. Although excess blood sugar causes all the kinds of problems, just popping a pill to lower your blood sugar number isn't really a solution. Just like removing excess fat using liposuction from someone with an awful lifestyle doesn't address the root problems.

Diabetes is the result of a lot of different things getting out of whack in your body. It likely took years of gradual changes to get that way and it could take a long time to really get to where you want, but I think it is well within your means. In my own case, I was surprised to be told that my blood pressure was high (149/95 the first time) and it took a number of years, but I've brought it down under 120/80 without resorting to any meds. It improved part way fairly quickly, then I couldn't seem to improve it for a very long time until it suddenly dropped again, so don't be discouraged by plateaus or setbacks along the way. Stay focussed and I think you'll meet your goals.

I'm always interested to hear how people manage their hypertension.

What worked for you?

Good points BTW on having a holistic approach to diabetes (sorry, but it *is* a disease)

I love how you took this challenge on as a personal survival issue. Too cool!

My advice (to echo MDinana and a few others) is:
1.Take your meds. Don't view them as a "failure" to have to take them. They save lives. They are primarily to prevent a heart attack, which can happen even if you are exercising, etc. You are now in a very high risk population for cardiovascular events.
2.Keep losing weight. Weight resistance exercise anternating with aerobic 3x week appears to be ideal.
3.If you choose to take supplements, do your homework and use ones that have some decent peer-reviewed studies behind them. The chromium picolinate has some promise, but there is conflicting evidence that it may damage DNA. Alpha lipoic acid (ALA) however, is an excellent supplement and you consider taking it.
4. Don't give up on finding that diabetes educator. They exist in many outpatient clinics. It will open your mind to possibilities and especially eating patterns and help you counter the diabetes myths that are out there.
5. Lantus insulin is great, but having to go on the more immediate releasing insulins can increase your weight, which can increase the need for insulin, and it's a vicious cycle. If you can keep your A1C's good with just the oral agents, be happy!
6. The statin and ace inhibitor are just as important to your health as the other agents you should be taking (I'm guessing they started you on metformin). Oh, and the aspirin!
7.Proper fitting shoes and checking your feet is critical if you have any foot neuropathy, but hopefully this is not in your cards.
8.PMA!

Best of luck!

Almost all the non-vegan food tossed or given away. New vegan stuff being tried almost daily. Tracking meds, glucose readings, and meals. Exercise remains the challenge it has been most of my life. Seem to be losing weight based on the clothes-loosing phenomenon.

Glucose reading variations really hard to figure out: rarely over 180 but no lower than the 120's. But I guess it still early days.

Really appreciate the support.

Not to get too far off the original topic of diabetes, but basically it was exercise and weight loss that contributed the lion's share, I believe. For the sake of this explanation, I'm treating them as separate things.

Although I had been doing cardio exercises about 30 minutes, 3-4 times a week when I got the news about my blood pressure being high, I guess that didn't seem to be enough. I immediately increased that to 60 minutes on most days and increased the intensity, too, although not necessarily for the whole 60 minutes. Fortunately, my body was already accustomed to the exercise, so making a big jump like that was OK for me. However, someone going from sedentary to 60 minutes a day in one go could be asking for an overuse injury.

I found that this extra exercise resulted in a quick and substantial drop in my blood pressure by the time I returned for my second BP reading. I forget when that was. Maybe 3 months later.

However, despite all that cardio, my weight stubbornly refused to come down more than a few pounds and my blood pressure stabilized at about halfway between where I was and that 120/80 goal I had. I didn't really change my diet since it was already fairly healthy and I didn't think had too many calories anyway. I just tried to avoid restaurant meals even more than before and tried to avoid eating so much that I felt stuffed.

For more than a couple years, I kept up that cardio routine, changed around the exercises and such, but the weight wouldn't budge. However, all of a sudden, maybe 6 months ago, the weight suddenly started dropping. I have no idea why. Before you knew it, I was 20 pounds lighter and noticeably thinner! And my blood pressure made that last move to the 120/80 or lower range.

I quit coffee a couple months ago to save money, but I'm not sure it affected my BP any.

I didn't really change anything when the weight suddenly started dropping, so to my thinking, perhaps those 2+ years of stable weight did not mean that nothing was happening. I don't think the weight stayed the same because I was getting more muscle and muscle is heavier than fat. I mean, I still kept cursing the fact that I couldn't wear certain old clothes that I used to wear comfortably so I was still packing extra fat. Maybe things were gradually changing with my metabolism that after 2 years, finally got to the point that allowed me to drop that extra weight quickly.

That's why I encourage people not to get discouraged when they don't see results for a long time doing something that should help, like exercise. As I said, chronic conditions take years to develop, so it can take years to get healthy, too. Popping a pill to drop the blood pressure does nothing to address whatever underlying physiologic condition was causing the blood pressure to be high. Blood pressure that is too high, like blood sugar that is too high, are not good for the body, but I think it is more useful to view them as symptoms of a system that is out of whack, and less like a "disease" that we somehow acquire or something that happens "to you," like some random thing. We have far more control over our health than most realize and are far more responsible than we think when things start to go haywire with our bodies, so popping a pill or going under the surgeon's knife should really be the last options rather than the first options for many of the conditions that afflict us.

I don't mean to sound like some health guru selling books or anything. But if we're really going to get a grip on healthcare spending, a big part of the problem is *us* and people not taking care of themselves properly in the first place. I wish we'd focus more on staying healthy and getting back to health rather than simply trying to treat things that are really more like symptoms, like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, high blood sugar, etc.

I went to a doctor for a yearly checkup. I blame the wife, anyhow...I am borderline diabetic. Was given 6 months to try and diet to get my numbers down or otherwise it was going to be medicaly labeled diabetic. Thank god I managed it. I no longer drink mountain dew like water. I actually drink water. I've cut way down on my dairy intake, so that helps with my high cholesteral. I switched to eating more chicken and fish years ago so that was already in place. And no, not fried, but baked. Skinless chicken breast when I do poultry. It has helped a lot.

Good job, Bill!

I have had to strike a more aggressive line on the diet but trying for the same results.

Got some new information and goals from my cardiologist and endocrinologist regarding the risk of heart disease. I went in with the following numbers for my cholesterol:
Total: 155
HDL ('good cholestrol') 63
VLDL: 11
LDL ('bad cholestrol'): 81

I figured, "Man, I'm doing great!"

Nope. New studies and guidelines show that for type 2 diabetics, to put the 10 year risk of heart disease in the "low" category, LDL cholesterol needs to be BELOW 70. Closer to 50 is better.

It's always something. Back to the drawing board. . .

ain't it the truth!

FWIW, the number 70 is fairly new. Though, good job with the HDL! It's rare to see a guy hit his goals.

Do yourself a favor and look at the ration of HDl and LDL. Supposed to be some interesting research on how it works, vs pure numbers, but I'm ont too well versed on it.

Ugh,
I'm at
126 total
LDL 82
HDL 36