Hi
Yesterday I ate small steak tonnes of veg and salad at 2pm. At 6pm Tuna and veg. Nothing since other than water and tea . My mind is in the right place.
I walked a good bit too.
I joined slimming world years ago and asked if they could keep my weight loss or gain private. Just between me and the leader, sure no problem. So I paid for books etc etc.
Then in the group sessions she said “I am sure Lucia won’t mind me telling you all she has gained three pounds, here Lucia, take this food tracker form and shall we say you will lose the perfect pound next week? As she walked right up to me and gave me a piece of A4 paper I had to fill in. She had filled in the pound goal on her iPad as I sat there Sooo embarrassed. I left never went back. I feel that they want you to gain and lose and gain so they keeping getting their weekly £5.95. I am sure others say they are wonderful but my mental health couldn’t cope.
This quiet website has been the best thing. You all care for each other. With compassion. You don’t ‘profit’ from it other than in wisdom and friendship – thank you
Love Lucia xxx

Hi all, welcome to The Old Brock, call out if you need any help.

Verano, ironing – what is that. I used to iron everying, knickers included and towels. Now nothing sees an iron. I am lucky as hubby is exRAF and does all his own ironing since we first met when I didn’t iron a correct crease in his shirt sleeve 🙂

Slimming World and the likes seem to be just a cash cow. I have a friend who joined around 20 years ago weighing in at 18 stone. After about 4 years she was 22 stone and still getting told it was working and she was doing well. I think she still goes, pays her money and doesn’t even stay. I do get the magazine every month but more to have something English to read and the recipes which I can adjust, although they are going a lot more for low carb but still have bread, pasta and rice as FREE foods.

Feeling better and might go for a short swim this afternoon but still not sure. Enjoy the rest of the weekend.

Old Brock, just read your profile page. You are certainly in the right place to get your diabetes under control and hopefully give your heart some healthy foods. I guess as you have been with SW you also want to lose weight but it will all be part of the same journey.

Lucia your experience with SW is just terrible. At least here we can ‘disclose’ or not as and when we feel like. I think you’ve cracked it … mind in the right place is the real secret to success.

S-g I just have to iron! Can’t stand un-ironed bedsheets etc. I never did iron knickers or towels but I do iron everything else. When I see that pile of folded crease free clothes I feel happy … I know really sad but there you go. Glad you’re feeling better today.

So, still 2.6lbs of my carb fest to lose with just 0.8lbs down. Scales were static today so had an early brunch around 11am of an apple, not had one in ages and really enjoyed the crunch. raspberries, walnuts and seeds with Greek yogurt. That filled me for the day so just thinking about dinner now which will be salad with homemade fish cakes… no potato. Sometimes I find eating earlier in the day works better for me but I’ll see tomorrow!

Enjoy the rest of the weekend.

Hi
Yesterday went well.
I ate only between 1pm and 5pm. I am not starving any more. I did feel like something else to eat so I had a drink which sorted before out. I felt hungry going to bed but I embraced the feeling. This is huge for me as I used to snack in the middle of the night!
There is a huge difference between being hungry and starving. Starving is all my cravings just screaming at me so loud I cannot think straight
I also did the garden reaching up to trim branches, bending down to pick up leaves and weeds , watering , moving pots around. Plus the fresh air cleared my mind and is good for me including vitamin D
All of 2024 I have tried to reduce the sweets, chocolate, crisps, biscuits, cake , ice cream . It seems to be coming together this month. I just focus on one day …and well, if I say so myself , yesterday was a good day but today I am going to do better.
I think I would like to educate myself a little more by listening to Michaels pod cast and Tv programmes. They are all on the Internet for free. He spoke simply so I could understand and I loved the twinkle in his eye just for us viewers.
I would love to weigh and write everything down soon so I can sharpen up the good work I am doing.
I have come a long way from constantly grazing , eating takeaways , slobbing on the couch. Allowing my stretch elasticated clothes to get tighter and tighter.
I think for me, I had to wait until my mind was in the right place, I wish I could of just changed it all on day one , instead of tweeking things and doing baby steps. Now that I have the hang of it I pray I can keep hold of it. I am sooo aware that being alone you can just reach out for the wrong food and start grazing again. I am grateful I have this website I can just unburden myself .
Thank you
Love Lucia xxx

I’m here for a long overdue for a check-in here, to help get back on track after three months of being largely’off piste’. I confess I haven’t read all the posts on the July thread, although I will say, Lucia, there is no harm in taking baby steps. Think all us wish we had stumbled on this way of eating sooner, but the joy is we HAVE found it.

Anyway, I’ve been properly home for a week now and I too have been taking baby steps, to get back to my normal eating pattern. However this week I shall be fully back to my normal regime, to ensure losing the additional.pounds gained whilst away.

From this morning, I have 10lb to lose to get back to pre-trip weight … 11lb to get to target. Today is a fasting day, the first of two for this week. I did one last week and it went surprisingly well, as I was expecting the first one post indulgence to be really tough.

Anyway, I shall be checking in more frequently now and will be reading new posts too …. looking forward to catching up with everyone’s news and being part of this wonderful band of ‘losers’ (🤣) again.

Hi everyone, had a bit of a blip last night – a slice of bread and butter. Funny but I have gained just from that but I know it is the fluid it is holding in. It was a craving that I needed to get out of my head. Will weigh in tomorrow as I am sure it will be better. Less than a week now and still 1lb to lose.

Good to the returners getting back on track Sunny and Verano.

Lucia, it is great to hear you are getting your head around it. No it is not easy but you have got there. It is easy from now on. Just ignore my ups and downs as I am permanently on low carb but as it is my life I sometimes need a small slip but mainly I am strict. There are so many podcasts to watch, some are a bit heavy going but some are fun like the Glucose Goddess, I also like Sarah Hallberg on TedXTalks. She starts by saying Reverse your Diabetes – Ignore the Guidelines. She is an obesity doctor and she really understands. Watch.

Have a good week.

I have just re-watched the video and I am re-motivated. Very sad but apparently Dr Hallberg died a couple of years ago from Lung cancer. Such a shame. She was a innovator just like Dr Mosley.

Hi
Yesterday I ate at 2pm a couple of seafood sticks and then at 6pm I ate mince meat done with onions and veg, nothing since.
Keep drinking water and occasional tea. My exercise was gardening. My stress was reduced as I did some zentangle doodles.
So all in all everything coming along nicely as I hit my 3rd week marker tomorrow.
No cravings , no cold, flu symptoms , no headaches
Grateful that I am in a good place both with your support in this group and within myself
Love Lucia xxx

S-g thanks for posting the Sarah Hallberg podcast. I’ve just watched it and all people with pre/T2 should watch this as it gives such a straightforward explanation of why carbs are so bad. Not sure I need all the ‘science’ !

Keep going Lucia all sounds good.

I’m enjoying being back on my healthy ‘diet’. Just 0.8lb to go to get rid of my holiday gain so quite happy with that. Then I’m back to my 1lb a week target with any extra being a bonus. We have a trip in 10 weeks and I’m hoping to lose 11lbs to get me to my first target of the year. I know we are almost at the end of July but if I only make my target by the end of the year that in itself will be a vast improvement on the last few years. But I really hope to do better than just reaching one goal. Time will tell.

Sunny here today which is always good. Hope everyone is in good spirits.

Hi all, lost the 1lb from the slice of bread. I have had some bad nights not being able to sleep and got up in the middle of the night and watched a recorded 4 In A Bed, finally fell asleep around 6.30am. Fortunately I didn’t have to get up so up around 10.30. Poor hubby had to take our oldest cat to the vet as he has lost 1kg in the last month which is a lot for a cat. Thought it might be his teeth with the crunchy biscuits so started feeding him a soft food which he gobbles up but still losing weight. Just waiting for the blood results now. Think it might be sad news.

No more news.

Sorry you’re not sleeping well, SG. Hopefully it will be short lived snd you’ll be sleeping better again soon.

Worrying that your cat is poorly. A friend’s cat had similar symptoms, it proved to be thyroid related and is now doing well on medication. Will be keeping my fingers crossed that your cat will be okay too.

Thanks SunnyB, little boy is back home and okay, he has a kidney problem which will need medication for life then he needs his teeth doing. We will get a quote for that. In the meantime we have to get tablets down his throat. He is so thin we thought we were going to come home without him.

Hi
So the doctors done the blood and other tests
Loads of numbers which at the moment I can’t focus on
As the nurse said what are you eating?. I explained . She told me i have to stop. . I have to eat cereal every morning
I have to eat the following every day
Bread and flour
Oats
Breakfast cereals
Rice
Pasta
As all are low in fat

All veg and fruit frozen tinned or fresh
Dried beans and lentils
Baked or boiled potato
Dried fruit
Fish
Lean white meat
Eggs
Dairy foods

Not to have any fats nor spreads
I can have tea coffee mineral water fruit juices

I heard it with my own ears

What my body says to me is if I have carbs like spuds or pasta I crave and I mean CRAVE sugar anything sweet I have just got to eat.

Maybe the nurse is an assassin and just trying to bump me off ( I have watched CSI)

Going to carry on what I have been doing theses last 23 days

Feeling very upset as the people you reach out to, to get the best educated advice is failing me

Love Lucia xx

You are doing the right thing Lucia eating low carb 👍keep on going 👏👏
Even Dr Michael Mosley said doctors are still not taught up to date information about nutrition in medical schools & nurses will be the same . The British Diabetic Association are also very very slowly adjusting their guidance as are the NHS. It’s not sabotage just ignorance based on old research that is sadly still being taught!!
My husbands diabetic nurse is not quite so bad but our old GP did compliment him on his weight loss whilst following this way of eating. Sadly he has had Type 2 diabetes too long to reverse it, it’s partly genetic because his father also had it, but he has greatly been able to reduce his medication & is keeping very well. We eat this way to help keep him well but also for me to continue to lose weight even though I am not pre-diabetic just arthritic so losing weight & eating low carb hopefully will help my knees & reduce the arthritis inflammation process.
Lucia you are doing so well!! ⭐️⭐️
Margaret xx

Ah bless you Lucia, you are now learning something we all know. Doctors and nurses know poop and she is talking out of the hole in her bum.

Before you get despondent, publish here your results – I hope you have them all, if not, then ask for them. Particularly HbA1c, and maybe cholesterol and triglicerides (do you have your last set of results for comparison). We will be able to see if she had reason to be critical – I bet not. It reminds me of when I was with Slimming World and I went along, got weighed and she said Oh Dearie Dearie me thats a pound. When I got home I looked at my card and she hadn’t even written my weight. So next week I asked her why she hadn’t written my 1lb gain and she said, oh you lost 1lb but I expect better of you. I never went back.

Anyway, lets see where you are after only 23 days it might not be a fantastic result but lets not judge.

Lucia please watch the podcast s-g recommended …. Sarah Hallberg on youtube. I watched it this morning and it just reinforces low carb for pre/T2. No in-depth science just common sense. You know what to do. Doctors/nurses are using out of date information.

S-g so glad your cat is home again and can be treated. Hopefully he will be well again soon.

We had two, aged 17 & 19 when they eventually passed away. Still miss them so many years on.

Sorry I was a bit harsh on that poor nurse who has been trained to believe what we all now know not to be true. There are a lot of good things on that list but I think you know which ones to ignore. We have a reputation of being non-compliant patients. A compliant patient does exactly what they are told as doctors/nurses know best. They take their medication and follow all instructions. On the other hand we just listen and nod politely then do what we know is best for us.

Really interested to see your results.

Hi Lucia,
I am not pre-diabetic or diabetic ( I was “just” fat) but I have been following this way of eating for almost nine years and I have read extensively and watched all the videos etc. This is my understanding of what is happening.
Low carbohydrate eating is the best way we know to lower your insulin levels. Insulin is produced by your pancreas to make use of the calories you eat. The insulin “tells” your cells to store energy (it also does a lot of other things) but one of its main jobs is to move excess calories into our fat stores.
So now you are overeating calories and lots of insulin is being produced by your pancreas and you just get fat. (been there, done that!)
And, when you get fat, the cells in your body become RESISTANT to insulin. They don’t respond anymore to insulin — sort of like insulin knocking on the cell door, and the cell saying “sorry, no more room, I’m not accepting any more fat — get lost”.
So then the pancreas gets excited and thinks, if you, cell in the body, will not accept any more of my fat, I will INCREASE the insulin and then you will HAVE TO accept the fat. I will beat it into you!
So now you have insulin resistant cells in the body, LOTS of insulin in the blood and a very tired, worn-out pancreas. The pancreas is working very hard to produce insulin and now it is also clogged with fat.
Solution?
Well, the current medical solution is to push insulin even higher, with insulin injections. But the research (that I follow) suggests that the body benefits from LOWERING the insulin in the body, so the cells of the body can become more sensitive again to insulin. And, the best way to do that is to eat a LOW CARBOHYDRATE diet. Low carb eating keeps the insulin levels low in the body and the weight loss gets the fat out of the pancreas so it can do its job better.
Add to all this, there is excellent research from Dr. Ben Bikman and others that INSULIN ITSELF can be the source of illness (cancer and Alzheimers just to name two). So keeping our insulin LOW by eating low carbohydrate is extremely important, even if you are not fat.
So, I would encourage you to stay with low carb.
You have already discovered that low carb controls your cravings and allows you to stay on the diet. It is one of the best things that happens when you eat low carb.
Best, Julia

So glad your cat is home, SG and has a manageable condition. It must be a huge relief!

Hi
Bless you all for your prompt replies, they were like warm hugs
I am sorry but I got sooo angry when she said I had to stop straight away and have cereal every morning.
When I eat bread I crave sugar (something sweet) straight away. I would murder for a cake or sweets or chocolate .
But
It’s taken me some time to actually twig what is happening with my body
I was so angry I wanted to throw in the towel ( I don’t usually make it to day14)
What I AM going to do , I believe in myself. I am going to carry on until the end of August and if I am still losing weight and I am still eating chicken and salad and veg etc etc then I will make the decision to carry on this way
If I have gone over 220 pounds then I know I have gone it wrong

What’s even worse she said all the food had to be low fat types .
You trust the nurse who has been trained on courses that have got the best research etc

Thank you all for the hug
Love Lucia
Xx

Would still like to know what your blood results were. Also, have you actually lost weight in the last 23 days – I thought you had. Let us know so we can help.

Hi all, just reading on another thread that someone who had dipped into diabetes from pre has, after just 2.5 weeks, knocked it back down to pre. Lucia I am sure you will be doing the same soon.

When I first started on this diet with a few others who are still around (Verano, SunnyB, CaliforniaGirl are but a few) we were almost guinea pigs as this diet was untested in the mainstream and had only ever been done in hospitals or under strict supervision. I remember in week 3 my BG had dropped from over 200 to around 130 and I started to panic. I wrote a thread called What Are We Doing to Ourselves – I was that scared. I hope all you newbies who are trying to control diabetes are now feeling more confident that this does work and you are well supported.

I don’t have any news today. Family arrive and although I have already done loads of shopping went to supermarket and spent another €192 (€195 last week) and still have to go to the fruit and veg market tomorrow. Good job I had €85 in vouchers.

S-g pleased to hear that your cat will be able to be treated👍 Enjoy seeing your family although I know it is hard catering for larger numbers.
I’m carrying on managing low carb eating & hope when I weigh on Saturday that I will have lost more weight. I played short mat bowls this morning & am still having to work through my pile of ironing which is partly my fault for preferring to wear linen & cotton clothes that do need ironing 🙂4000 steps so far today which isn’t too bad with my dodgy knees😂
Margaret xx

I am really struggling today I expect because it’s a grey day & I feel depressed & lacking in energy. I was planning to fast but caved in & ate some bought vegetable quiche minus the pastry, I found in my freezer, plus salad for lunch & a small banana. I’m planning marinated tuna steak & spinach for supper which is a Fast Diet recipe. My exercise today is ironing .
I hope you are all having a better day than me today!
Margaret xx

Margaret, just because you didn’t do a fast doesn’t mean you have not done great. Look at what you have eaten. I have heard Dr Mosley say that even 500 cals is counted as a fast as it is a lot less than you would normally eat. Yes we think of a fast as going without anything. The Fast800 considers its 500 days as fast days. You are doing great.

I as still stuck around 72.8 and think 73 is my set point which I don’t mind as it used to be 75kgs. Today is my last day with family arriving tomorrow so I am not worrying. Just eating normal i.e. scrambled egg breakfast, chicken salad lunch and I am doing a chicken stirfry with tons of veg for dinner, 10g dark chocolate then nothing after 8pm. That is pretty much my usual routine.

Don’t want to rub your noses in it (Margaret) it is 32 degrees here and it is way too hot. I will have to leave my swim until after dinner tonight. Have a good day.

hiya, well done to everyone!
It’s a busy week pre-hol for us this week- made more stressful by a friend of my eldest’s who has been staying with her (and us)- mega drama this week- not what was needed, and I’ve not been watching my diet so closely or weighing the last couple of days- we all lost a night’s sleep last night, which was particularly unhelpful, as you know, for sensible eating, but there we go- I hope we have an ok night tonight and I remember to weigh in the morning!
Love to all xxx

Hi Lucia,
I fully understand where you are coming from. The nurse at our GP’s, as part of the Diabetic Clinic, told me exactly the same, and was sooooo patronising! I am keeping my fingers crossed that when they next test my bloods she will have to eat her words!!! I started the BSD on the 16th June…I have lost weight, but won’t know about the effect on my diabetes until September!
Like you, I have found that if I eat carbs I crave more sugary sweet things…and the longer I go without too many carbs (trying to keep under 50g a day) the easier it is to resist the sugary temptations.

The biggest problem I have is with Bananas. For many years I have had a banana for breakfast, sometimes with cereal (always with cereal when I last dieted in 2016 – 2018 and lost 4 stone but my pre-diabetes number increased! Now I know why!) I still crave a banana…but don’t want the 25g carb that goes with it! So I am limiting it to one a week! Maybe I should just stop them altogether???

Sunshine-girl,
As a newbie, I have to say a huge thank you to all you ‘guinea-pigs’. Without the support and advice from you all, I know I would have faltered before this! As it is, I am absolutely convinced that this is the way forward for me, to tackle my diabetes and keep healthy!
So thank you!

Thank you so much Pootle. I sometimes worry I am too strict with diabetics and I maybe put some off the diet. But I am so happy when someone like you ‘gets it’. That is why I wanted you to pair up with Lucy – you can be her mentor.

Hi
I took a huge mental blow that knocked me down, from that nurse
I have since spoken to my doctor and again the nurse. The attitude I am interpreting is that I am stupid. I know less than a 5 year old. I think it was the way I was TOLD to immediately have breakfast cereals, not gently guiding me.
I was told to seek out family and friends who could help me with stress and sort my diet out for me- I explained I have no-one but that fell on deaf ears. It is scary and more difficult when you are in your own .

I feel now I have been dumped and my medical records have been ear marked as a bad person.

So I have wallowed in self pity especially as my first message here was a desperate plea for help
I am now going to say to hell with the world and do my own thing. I am going to carry on this path.

I think I have mental problem when it comes to helping me. Or I have a mental weakness and get too upset or ‘take things the wrong way’. I want to eat more carbs when I feel vulnerable

My conclusion is that I am barmy and obese. There i have said it.
Now i am rolling my sleeves up and getting on with life
Yesterday small ham salad and later one egg and bacon with a couple of nuts to crunch on when I was craving. Not bad for a crazy person
So onwards to 31st
Love Lucia xx

Lucia you are doing really well so don’t let the ill informed (your GP and nurse) throw you off track.

You’ve been here before so you know that there is still a lot resistance to this way of eating despite the huge growth in scientific evidence over the last 5 or more years. WE KNOW this way of eating works, we have proved it and keep proving it.

It never fails to amaze me that all medics, and I mean without exception, describe me as ‘a diet controlled diabetic’! My blood sugars have been ‘normal’ for nearly 8 years, without medication. What does it take for them to remove the ‘diabetic’ tag … well the answer is obvious really…. GPs get paid to monitor ‘diabetics’ so why take me off their books when I’m making money for them???

If you’re crazy we all are but hey I’m quite happy to carry on in my crazy world that keeps my T2 in remission. They can think what they want and say what they want but I’m still going to trust my own judgement. I ignore the label they give me. If I’m a ‘diabetic controlled by diet’ to enable them to earn more money fine but no way would I ever follow their carbohydrate filled diet.

Just 5 more days to the 31st …. onwards and upwards!

Onward and upward Lucia…the 31st is nearly here!

You may be on your own, but you are not alone in using this diet to stabilise your health! (And I think the members on this forum are brilliant!)

I have also had GP’s talking to me as though I am a stupid 5 year old….I felt cowed and depressed when it happened, but after I had left the surgery, I became increasingly angry and the rebel in me determined I would prove them wrong!
I did then go to a GP who is much more open minded who said she will be fascinated to hear how I get on!
Then, when the diabetes nurse tried the same tactic as the first GP I wasn’t going to put up with it! I don’t think she had ever had anyone say NO to her before!! So I am also probably down as a “difficult” patient!! I have never acquiesced when TOLD but can be persuaded if the reasoning appears sound to me!

If that makes me barmy, I think there are probably a lot of us out there! I can hear my late brother talking……”Don’t let the B*****ds grind you down!”

As I only started the diet in June, I am still learning…..but I am convinced it is the only way to control the recently diagnosed diabetes!

Onward and upwards….!
xxxx

Lucia & Pootle you are doing brilliantly so stick with what you are doing! I found two books written by the Canadien Doctor Dr Jason Fung called The Diabetes Code & The Obesity Code very helpful in explaining how what we eat affects our bodies & in particular the relationship between carbs & insulin in storing fat. They were recommended by others on here soon after I joined early last year. They are available on Amazon.
Margaret xx

We have all been there. We don’t tell our doctors what we are doing – especially the 800 calories part. Good for you Pootle telling the nurse you think she is wrong, we need to stand up for ourselves.

As for being labelled a ‘difficult’ patient that is what I mean’t about being compliant – being a good little girl and doing everything the doctor says and going away and taking more and more medications. We are mainly non-compliant and don’t do what the doctor says unless it is around medication and even then it should be up for discussion. Yes we are all naughty and barmy (a good Yorkshire word).

In a way we are still pioneers until this dietary method of curing ourselves becomes the mainstream. As one of the doctors (Dr Fung in The Diabetes Code) we should be curing a disease caused by food with food not artificial insulins and tablets.

Daughter and the rest of them arriving in just over 2 hours so I won’t be around much although you do ping up on my fitbit so I do read all the comments. Have a great weekend and a good next week.

I’m a newbie here but have been reading the posts over the last month or so.
Ive just had my annual review and unfortunately my HbA1C has gone up a little.
However, the point I wanted to make is that the Specialist Diabetic Nurse at my GP surgery is totally committed to the low carb diet and encouraging all the way.

Welcome Parki. Good to hear you have a supportive nurse it’s really great not to have to do battle with/ignore health professionals.

I just read your profile and while losing weight is important, in my opinion the ‘key’ is to stay low carb. I think once our blood sugars are under control we each can find the level of carbs we need to stay below to remain in remission. Best of luck and shout out if you need help.

Firstly welcome Parki & I’m still newish having joined in January 2023 & just before last Christmas had lost 28 lbs but have been up & down since then gaining weight after social happenings & holidays but then promptly losing it afterwards. I have just weighed & have lost another 2lbs so 6.5lbs in two weeks. I have six days to lose more before my Golden Wedding Anniversary trip to Gibraltar next Friday for four nights & hopefully a delicious choice of food 😀. I like drinking wine with a meal & that is my carb/calorie temptation so I usually limit a glass until the weekend with never drinking alcohol on a week day but next weekend I will have some 😀.
I enjoyed watching the Olympic Games Opening Ceremony & such a shame about the pouring rain. I felt very sorry for the participants particularly the pianists with rain pouring off their grand pianos☔️😳
I hope everyone has a good weekend & I have bought another dress from M & S that I will be collecting but also be taking two back I bought & don’t like for refunds that didn’t flatter me. I am planning to wear dresses to dinner each evening 😀
Margaret xx

Lucia, so sorry about the stress you’ve faced, as a result of ill informed medical staff. Really pleased you have decided to forge your own path though. I’m confident you will be able to make huge positive changes to your health, so just keep doing what you’re doing.
Pootle, if it’s the flavour of banana that you miss, why not get some food flavouring drops to add to yogurt etc?
Parki welcome, hope you will be keeping us updated on your progress.
SG, enjoy your family time and don’t worry about us here, we’ll still be here when you have time to return.
Margaret, like you, I really like to dress for dinner when we’re away – especially if it’s in celebration of a special occasion. Hope you find replacements for the unsuitable dresses.

As I’m here, I can report that happily things have been going well this week, with small incremental loses each day. I am very hopeful of being back in the right stone bracket by next Tuesday, which is my weekly weigh-in day.

Wishing you a good weekend whatever you’re doing. Onward and downward everyone.

Hi
Doing ok. Pretending to feel slimmer. Cheese and onion salad lunch. Corned beef and cabbage and baked beans- weird right?
I am just going with the flow.
Love Lucia xx

Sounds like you have a good plan for today food, Lucia. Corned beef, cabbage and baked beans might not be for everyone, but if you like it, go for it!

I’ve had an okay food day, not very hungry this evening so will probably have cheese and a few low carb crackers and then start my next fast.

Hope everyone is having a good day.

OK, please can someone advise me….as a newbie

I have received a letter with an appointment for eye screening in August at a Community Centre about 20 miles away. Not on a bus route, and Taxis non existent round here! It says I should not drive after the exam because my eyes will be light sensitive! I could ask a neighbour to take me but:-

My Hb1Ac number in June was 49, in discussion with the GP, she agreed that I should try the BSD until my next blood test in September to see if I can control the diabetes. (When I was pre-diabetic I followed the high carb, low fat diet and lost a lot of weight, but my Hb1Ac numbers increased!!) Unlike the GP, the Practice Diabetes Nurse was scathing and patronising in the extreme, insisting I should obey all the tried and tested rules like a good little girl! I told her ‘No’ which shocked her!

I am very reluctant to allow them to ‘mess with my eyes’ using drops ….(I have regular eye tests that include photographs of the retina, without incapacitating eye drops)…until they can confirm that I have failed to control the BS. If I fail, I will follow their program!

My inclination is to phone to ask them to postpone the appointment for a month…until late September. when I will know whether it is essential! What would you do? (I know you are not medicos, but value your opinions…am I being stupid for not wanting the drops?) I will also say that I have very little faith in the safety of medical prescribing! I think many health professionals now treat us as if we were animals, not individual PEOPLE.

Hi
29th today , I really didn’t think I would get this far but here I am.
Eggs for lunch
Had chicken with a little Stilton cheese inside and the whole thing coated in crispy onion. This with steamed veg. It was ‘different’ but hey I am Trying to go outside the box occasionally.
Did gardening, cleaning and putting away glazed plants pots and a little greenhouse (plastic) etc
Really enjoyed being out in the sun and fresh air
My mental state- I have got over the nurse but feel a bit numb in the brain. I don’t have the same enthusiasm … as if they have burst my bubble. You don’t realise the impact until it happens to you
Feel as if I am limping to the finish line on 31st
Love Lucia xx

Pootle. I can see exactly where you’re coming from and must admit I do have some issues with prescribed medications and vaccinations etc. However, I do get my eyes tested every year for diabetes related problems. I have never really had any issues with the drops. Yes they dilate the pupils and you are very sensitive to light afterwards for a short time.

But, I really don’t feel that the drops are such a huge issue. However, you have to decide whether you want to risk the possible side effects of T2 on your eyes. I guess it all comes down to the answer to the question “ Is T2 reversible or can it only go into remission?”

This really is the unknown. We know we can control our blood sugars with a low carb diet but we don’t know if that means we no longer have T2 and could still suffer the possible complications that it can cause. The truth of the matter is that if you continue to eat a high carb diet, as you did, as prescribed by your nurse, your blood sugars remain high! So does that mean we still have T2 but under control!

If you’re uncomfortable about the test and given the inconvenience etc why not postpone it for a few months and give it some more thought.

Lucia

We all have set backs. Part and parcel of life. BUT you are almost there ! Does it matter if you’re sprinting or limping? The important thing is that you get over that line and meet you goal.

OK so just a couple of days, you can and will do it. What your next goal?

Always keep your eyes in the prize!

Well, I’m not having the best of weeks this week. So far, with still one day to go I’ve gained 1.4lbs. No idea what I’m doing differently. I feel as though I’m eating lots of salads and generally staying low carb. The only thing I can think of is that I’m not drinking enough fluids. So, today I will make a conscious effort to drink more water …… out within the timer again!

Almost the end of the month. Are we carrying on into August?

Hi Lucia and Verano,
Lucia, I am hurting along with you that your “bubble” of enthusiasm has been burst. That practice nurse is just saying what she has been taught to say. Even if she secretly agreed with you, she would not be able to say anything different than what is on her “talking points” sheet. Sadly, not everyone in the medical field has kept up on the new research — and there is a LOT of money connected to all the old ideas so there is a LOT of resistance.
This is a moment for you to go read up or listen to podcasts by the researchers and doctors who ARE questioning the advice. Can you get a copy of one of Dr. Fung’s books, or listen to one of his podcasts? I know I have said it 100 times before but Dr. Ben Bikman has wonderful podcasts about insulin (he is a doctoral researcher at BYU in the US). I love listening to him because he shares his knowledge in a way that is easy to take in and understand (he also teaches at BYU).
The research supports keeping your insulin levels as low as possible and the best way to do that is to lose weight and eat a very low carbohydrate diet. You can play around LATER with adding back in small amounts of carbs and see how it goes — you are your own unique body — what works for you will not work for another person and you are not just a number, or a faceless patient. Obviously the old way of losing wight did not work for you in the past, so why not just give this a fair try?
I think you will find that you feel better on this way of eating, your weight will come off and your blood sugars will stabilise.
Ben Bikman has a great new book called “Why We Get Sick” — I recommend it. Also Gary Taubes book “Good Calories Bad Calories” it is fantastic, but a long read. It was the book that changed my eating patterns forever. I am so grateful I found that book and read it. And of course, Dr. Mosely’s book which gave me a glide path to follow.
And 31 days in sight!! Verano is right — what’s your next goal?
Julia

Hi again Pootle, just answered you on the Advice thread.

Nice to get away from my visitors for a few minutes. I just had to jump in when I read about your eye test. I have my eyes tested once a year without fail, not always with the dialating drops. I have to give you warning. I went for my eye test in November 2022 and by January 2023 I was being operated on. My opthamologist detected bleeding in the back of my eye, my doctor sent me for a doppler and the doppler showed my carotid artery had split into two channels instead of one. It was a freak event but would have gone unnoticed if I had delayed my test and I was at 85% risk of having a stroke. Fortunately my eyes have not been affected by the diabetes, so no neuropathy. Then at my last test in April it was discovered I have glaucoma and basically going blind. Again, not caused directly by my diabetes although they do go hand in hand.

My suggestion is to delay for a couple of months (although I might had died if I had) but please don’t let it slip by and become months and months. But are you still going to have the same problem of needed a ride home. Also, is there somewhere you can go and have a coffee or browse around some shops for half an hour. The drops have never really affected my vision but you never know. BTW someone on here did have diabetic neuropathy and by doing this diet managed to reverse is to the amazement of her doctors.

Better get back to my guests.

Hi s-g yes I thought that too … was it Kasia? Anyway as you say she reversed it.

Enjoy your family!

Help, it is 40 degrees and they are moaning about everything – too hot for them. Oh and because on the first day they were all peeing in the pool the Ph is messed up and the water is cloudy. They just won’t listen. Only 5 days to go 🙂