conceit--update

[conceit]

thank you guys for the well wishes <3

 

[LizJ]

You asked for common channels and mine is 100cc. I'm almost two years out and became diabetic right before surgery, came out of post op no longer diabetic! Best thing I ever did for myself. Wishing you luck on your MRI, hope everything turns out okay!
Liz

 

[DianaCox]

I never crossed over to diabetes, but I’m pretty certain managing the healthy DS lifestyle is way easier (and cheaper even with all that delicious protein) than managing diabetes.

 

[conceit]

Diabetes life is definitely more expensive than a healthy DS life. Here the testing strips alone cost more than monthly vites (for the average DSer), then the meds ..which one needs more of over time are very costly too. Even in a place like Canada, Diabetes is expensive as hell.

 

[JackieOnLine]

managing diabetes for these past couple of weeks has given me more confidence that i have the discipline to manage DS life

that's excellent

 

[Larra]

No question in my mind that you can handle the DS. And not only is diabetes expensive, the long term complications really are awful.

 

[southernlady]

Diabetes life is definitely more expensive than a healthy DS life. Here the testing strips alone cost more than monthly vites (for the average DSer), then the meds ..which one needs more of over time are very costly too.

And not only is diabetes expensive, the long term complications really are awful.

For me, it's more of a pain in the ass. The medicare advantage plan I had while residing in FL was dirt cheap ($0), it also covered at no out of pocket copay, my test strips were free. And my metformin was dirt cheap for a 90 day supply. BUT getting enough test strips is the hardest part with a Medicare based plan. They only allow ONE test strip a day plus the extra 10 since a box of 90 isn't an option. However, my PCP used the term "uncontrolled diabetes" (cause it was and still is to some extent so I got extra boxes of 50 each. Every 90 days, I filled it, whether I needed to or not so I was stocked ahead.

I've been very lucky in that the only complication I have had was peripheral neuropathy and tight management for almost 13 years before my DS and 6 of the years with the DS gave my nerves a chance to heal. PN is not forever if caught early and have tight management of the disease.

Retinopathy and Renal issues haven't reared their ugly heads. I hope they never do. While PN hurts, those are much worse.

 

[conceit]

I think strict control makes a notable difference. Complications are very real and very horrible but for most people they are not inevitable. Of course the disease is very individual so there people who develop somr complications even with good control. but what I have learnt is to respect Diabetes instead of fearing it. the first few weeks were very disheartening but after I started eating to my meter I realized I did have control and could so things to significant ly reduce complications of I could get and keep my a1c under 6.

A big reason why the disease is seen as horribly progressive with inevitable dire consequences np matter what is because people are given awful dietary advice and put on drugs that exhaust the pancreas rather than teaching people how beta cells can be preserved for people with t2d. Dr Bernstein talks about this in detail. A lot of the studies from the 90s were done on people who had much less resources and access to info on diet and meds than we do now. Like online communities made a life or death difference for people getting WLs, they made a similar difference for diabetics. Now is a much easier timr to have diabetes than juat two decades ago. a lot of people ate ADA recommended diets more often than not, and had little opportunites to learn otherise. we're still told to test bg once a day which is bullshit. you can't control your blood glucose without regular pre and post prandial testing. People were also given horrible targets like 180 post meals which is high as hell. The medical establishment engenders a fatalism in people that diabetes is a life sentence and death with crippling agonizing diseases is inevitable. this kind of thinking isn't going to help people
nor is it accurate.
The other reason is lack of antibodies testing in people assumed to be t2 Ling after meds diet and exercise have stopped working. if you're going to treat 1.5 like type 2 and deprive them of insulin when early insulin therapy prevents so much damage and complications for them and also helps prolong remaining beta cell function, of course these type '2s' will deteriorate rapidly. a lot of 1.5 folks talk about this.

Again iam not at all saying that anyine who gets complications despite good control is at fault . The disease is very individual and some people are genetically more susceptible to complications early on. Everyone with diabetes deserves to know the DS is am option and an excellent one if they have the means to manage vitamins high protein diets and labs. But for the average person t2d does not have to be a life sentence . And this doesn't come from my own wisdom by a long shot. It's something I learnt from long term diabetics who are complication free and whose definition of good control is diferent from the ada, hard lessons for them too.

At only 30, the DS will give me a chance to give my body hopefully a very long or even permanent break from diabetes. But I am no longer going into the surgery with diabetes doom and gloom hanging over my head. I am mentally prepared for shaking hands with diabetes if that time comes again since I plan to live to 90 lol and to treat it with respect rather than catastrophizing. my heart and mind are at ease going into the DS.

 

[conceit]

Sorry for the typos. I'm on my phone.

 

[Munchkin]

I think strict control makes a notable difference. Complications are very real and very horrible but for most people they are not inevitable. Of course the disease is very individual so there people who develop somr complications even with good control. but what I have learnt is to respect Diabetes instead of fearing it. the first few weeks were very disheartening but after I started eating to my meter I realized I did have control and could so things to significant ly reduce complications of I could get and keep my a1c under 6.

A big reason why the disease is seen as horribly progressive with inevitable dire consequences np matter what is because people are given awful dietary advice and put on drugs that exhaust the pancreas rather than teaching people how beta cells can be preserved for people with t2d. Dr Bernstein talks about this in detail. A lot of the studies from the 90s were done on people who had much less resources and access to info on diet and meds than we do now. Like online communities made a life or death difference for people getting WLs, they made a similar difference for diabetics. Now is a much easier timr to have diabetes than juat two decades ago. a lot of people ate ADA recommended diets more often than not, and had little opportunites to learn otherise. we're still told to test bg once a day which is bullshit. you can't control your blood glucose without regular pre and post prandial testing. People were also given horrible targets like 180 post meals which is high as hell. The medical establishment engenders a fatalism in people that diabetes is a life sentence and death with crippling agonizing diseases is inevitable. this kind of thinking isn't going to help people
nor is it accurate.
The other reason is lack of antibodies testing in people assumed to be t2 Ling after meds diet and exercise have stopped working. if you're going to treat 1.5 like type 2 and deprive them of insulin when early insulin therapy prevents so much damage and complications for them and also helps prolong remaining beta cell function, of course these type '2s' will deteriorate rapidly. a lot of 1.5 folks talk about this.

Again iam not at all saying that anyine who gets complications despite good control is at fault . The disease is very individual and some people are genetically more susceptible to complications early on. Everyone with diabetes deserves to know the DS is am option and an excellent one if they have the means to manage vitamins high protein diets and labs. But for the average person t2d does not have to be a life sentence . And this doesn't come from my own wisdom by a long shot. It's something I learnt from long term diabetics who are complication free and whose definition of good control is diferent from the ada, hard lessons for them too.

At only 30, the DS will give me a chance to give my body hopefully a very long or even permanent break from diabetes. But I am no longer going into the surgery with diabetes doom and gloom hanging over my head. I am mentally prepared for shaking hands with diabetes if that time comes again since I plan to live to 90 lol and to treat it with respect rather than catastrophizing. my heart and mind are at ease going into the DS.

My H managed his diabetes perfectly. The only carbs he ate were green veggies and his A1C was normal. Great, right? Wrong! Even with strict management his comorbidities kept getting worse. He was seeing his future as blind in a wheelchair. He would walk on the treadmill for hours every night and occasionally fall down because he would fall asleep! And BTW he had a terrible family history of diabetes too.

 

[conceit]

My H managed his diabetes perfectly. The only carbs he ate were green veggies and his A1C was normal. Great, right? Wrong! Even with strict management his comorbidities kept getting worse. He was seeing his future as blind in a wheelchair. He would walk on the treadmill for hours every night and occasionally fall down because he would fall asleep! And BTW he had a terrible family history of diabetes too.

Yes it's very individual as I was saying. There are people who run higher than normal A1Cs for years with no complications, and some people are just genetically susceptible to complications even when well managed. A strong family history of diabetes, particularly with Diabetic complications developing at younger ages and/or lower AICs definitely points to a more severe than average case. No wonder the DS did absolute wonders for your DH's diabetes.

 

[southernlady]

A strong family history of diabetes, particularly with Diabetic complications developing at younger ages and/or lower AICs definitely points to a more severe than average case.

I have a very strong family history on my daddy's side. In fact, looking back at symptoms, I has insulin resistance from the early age of mid 20's. (I'm 64 now). Yet, most of my family wasn't diagnosed til they got into their 60's/70's. I was super young at 44 compared to the rest of my family.

Dr Bernstein talks about this in detail.

I found Dr. Bernstein in about 1997/98 from an email list using a listserv. It was (and still is) owned by an endocrinologist Dr. Auturo Rolla. Members included a few well known individuals. Gretchen Becker, author of The First Year: Type 2 Diabetes and a few others. https://www.diabetesdaily.com/blog/author/gretchenbecker/ , David Mendosa http://www.mendosa.com/diabetes.htm https://www.diabetesdaily.com/blog/honoring-david-mendosa-416910/ He was also a frequent contributor to HealthLine https://www.healthline.com/diabetesmine/saying-goodbye-david-mendosa#2

It was thanks to David that I found the email list in 1997 after I got my diagnosis on Dec 15th, 1997. It was thanks to that list that I decided I needed insulin before my doctor thought I did. It was because of that list that I went on MDI (Multi Daily Injections which mimic an insulin pump) instead of just one injection a day. I did get on an insulin pump soon enough after that. It was because of that list, I kept my A1C normal (not normal for a diabetic but NORMAL) until my body said enough in 2009/2010. At which time I discovered the DS.

Unfortunately I didn't find WLS soon enough to forever resolve my diabetes. But it's also why I had 6 years free of insulin and any other medication. Now, yes, I am back on metformin, adjusted to compensate for my DS malabsorbtion. And why I told my PCP's that if just the metformin didn't work, I was skipping straight back to insulin or one of the new insulin analogs.

I am glad you are getting the DS before you've dealt with diabetes too long. I wish I had been able to.

the first few weeks were very disheartening but after I started eating to my meter I realized I did have control and could so things to significant ly reduce complications of I could get and keep my a1c under 6.

AMEN! It's why I know what foods are dangerous to ME.

 

[conceit]

I've probably had insulin resistance since childhood. I started gaining weight after I hit puberty, already had skin darkening taking place in my upper thighs in my pre teens. It's caused by IR. Even after losing significant amounts of weight at 16, my insulin levels a few years later were four times normal. I had not regained much weight at the point, so it wasn't the weight gain. Doctors acted like high insulin levels weren't a big deal. I was eventually put on metformin, then taken off. My FBG used to be normal until I hit 26 or so. I have read Fasting numbers are the slowest to rise and slowest to come down. When Pre-D, I wish I had the good sense to start testing my post meal numbers. I could have controlled post meal spikes like I am doing now and possibly prolonged the Pre-D stage or gotten it out of the diabetic range (not a cure but good for the body), avoiding some of the microvascular damage caused by higher blood sugar even in prediabetics.

But you're right Liz, it's truly a blessing to have known about the DS while still young. You know..my doctor told me to test my BG once a week! Like what's that going to do? The nurse said once a day. And I am like neither of you know what you're talking about. It was only through browsing Diabetes online communities, which started exactly as you described with email lists, that I knew post prandial testing was indispensible and without it I'd be completely lost. I have heard of Gretchen and David Mendosa. David is a very respected and loved figure in Diabetes communities. I've bookmarked his website and check it out from time to time. I am so glad and grateful you were so proactive in seeking out Diabetes communities, which must have been much harder back in the day. It's so great that you were exposed to Bernstein through David and the listserv. His writings have saved countless lives and improved the health of countless Diabetics. Clearly going on MDI when you decided you needed was the best decision. It slowed down beta cell burnout, and likely led to your being able to control Diabetes with meds alone even if it returned post DS. That 6 year Diabetes remission also helped. It's not ideal that the D returned, but from my Bernsteinian *hehe* perspective, the MDI choice was absolutely brilliant and is still paying off. One lesson, among many, I took away from Bernstein was that insulin was a tool in Diabetes management, not a sign of impending disaster or a "last resort". Treating it as a last resort is why it's associated with "end stage" diabetes, because doctors take too long before prescribing it. Many people go on insulin and are able to get off it. Others stay on it. It's a tool, and you had great foresight in using it to your advantage at the right time.

Btw I also follow Jenny Ruhl, author of Blood Sugar 101. I've learnt a lot from her website, which I think everyone should read even non diabetics.

 

[JackieOnLine]

Btw I also follow Jenny Ruhl, author of Blood Sugar 101. I've learnt a lot from her website, which I think everyone should read even non diabetics.

I'm going to look at it; can't believe you got such poor advice from your doctor; it's really shocking.

 

[southernlady]

My first endo was the one who agreed with me about being on insulin. In fact I said I wanted on it while he was saying I needed it. So we agreed completely on a course of action. When he suggested the 70/30, I said no...MDI. He goes, you know that’s a lot of work. I responded, but it’s the best way unless I end up getting a pump. That I would have better control. So he agreed and I got a lesson on an orange, lol. Shot that orange with saline! I hated leaving him. In fact I cried on my way home but we moved from MI where he was to NC. I remember telling him I was getting info from an email list and told him who owned it. He was impressed with my level of knowledge.

I learned long ago, doctors have many patients with many issues. I have just one patient, ME. So I’ve read and researched everything I can find about the issues I’ve had to deal with. I have the time and incentive to focus on me.