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Sarah83
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Back again

Post by Sarah83 »

Sorry I've been missing in action for a while again. Been feeling pretty rubbish for months now and about a month ago was diagnosed with diabetes. Spent 10 days in hospital while they got my blood sugar stable and am now managing it at home fairly well. I'm on insulin injections at the moment but the specialist thinks if I lose all the excess weight I'm carrying I should be able to come off them. I've only been trying for 2 years to lose the weight with no result so that should be really simple :roll: It was not being able to lose weight that got me diagnosed with diabetes since they ran blood tests to try and find out why it wasn't shifting. Anyway, I'm feeling quite a lot better now, didn't realise just how awful I'd been feeling until I started feeling better. The hospital stay wasn't much fun as my German isn't great and nothing I've learned really prepares you for talking about illness. But there was a lovely park just outside the hospital and hubby and I walked around it every day :mrgreen:

These were the things we saw in the park
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Spencer is fine. We seem to be past the awful teenage stage now and he's generally a pleasure to be out and about with now. We are having problems with humping from time to time though. It seems to be certain dogs, usually the ones who won't say boo to a goose so I have to watch him like a hawk with new dogs and certain dogs he knows well and step in if it looks like he's about to hump. He's also become a pain when there's a ***** in season nearby, whining, pacing, air scenting and just generally losing his brain. So I'm stuck in the whole neuter/don't neuter debate with myself at the moment. Think we may try the Suprelorin before making a final decision. Other than that he's an absolute star really. He's polite and friendly with the majority of dogs he meets, polite and friendly with most people, responsive to training and just generally a lovely, lovely dog.

His face in this pic makes me laugh. The black blob is actually another Labrador.
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His silly face
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The broken tail is really obvious here
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Stopping to take in the scents
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ClareMarsh
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Re: Back again

Post by ClareMarsh »

Sorry to hear about the diabetes Sarah :( I stumbled across a film on reversing diabetes a month or so ago(including amazingly some brilliant results on type I diabetes) using raw diets. Don't worry lol, you don't have to eat raw chicken wings. It might be worth watching the film http://www.realfarmacy.com/simply-raw-r ... full-film/

I'm not even sure why I ended up watching it but it inspired me to eat a lot more raw fruit and veg in any event. The turn arounds where pretty amazing.

The hospital ground look magical, I just hope Judy doesn't let Jasper see the screen or he's going to insist on a trip over to you to make friends with the grazing herds :shock: :lol:

I've had a couple of instances where Ted's either picked up the scent of a b tch in season and doing anything but following it with him (on lead) has been next to futile and I"m pretty convinced there was one in the area a week or so ago as all the entire males were next to impossible to get past a bit of the heath, insisting on spending as much time as possible sniffing the wind :roll:
Proud owner of Ted and baby Ella
My blog about Ted http://tinkerwolf.com/
Ted's Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/Tinkerwolf
Ted's You Tube Channel http://www.youtube.com/user/TheTedVids
Sarah83
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Re: Back again

Post by Sarah83 »

Will have to have a watch of that later Clare :D I've been told next to nothing about diet so far, seeing a dietician but so far all she's done is get hung up on the fact that I said I cannot honestly say that for the rest of my life I will never give in to temptation and have a piece of cake or glass of coke lol. I'm only human!

Bit reluctant to neuter because he's a bit sniffy when there are bitches in season but given the community we live in it may well be for the best. Especially if he gets worse. So far he's not tried to take off after one but we've already had several requests for him to be used as a stud dog :(
ClareMarsh
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Re: Back again

Post by ClareMarsh »

I haven't the greatest faith in dieticians but fingers crossed yours is at least some help. The diet they followed in the video is very strict raw vegan but had amazing results and most of them continued with a version of it when they went home. Some however couldn't make it through the program. At the very least it's going to give you some stuff to think about, like I said I've changed my diet a bit as a result and I can definitely feel the difference in my health even though I didn't think I was unhealthy before :D

As for Spenny's balls, I'm sure you'll make the right decision. I've had people ask about using Ted as a stud dog and by this I don't mean breeders who want to cross in another line I mean random pet owners in the street who just want some "nice puppies" :evil: This includes the owner of a male pug :shock: who because Ted has long hair struggles with the fact that he's a boy :roll: and wants his dog to mate as he doesn't want his line to end What the Actual F***?
Proud owner of Ted and baby Ella
My blog about Ted http://tinkerwolf.com/
Ted's Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/Tinkerwolf
Ted's You Tube Channel http://www.youtube.com/user/TheTedVids
Sarah83
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Re: Back again

Post by Sarah83 »

I don't think I could adopt a vegan diet myself to be honest. But I can certainly make changes to my diet. The dieticians attitude really made me just want to come home, eat a truck load of chocolate cake and drink a vat of mountain dew, just as an "up yours!" sort of thing :oops: :lol: I didn't though, I had a handful of grapes instead.

It's random pet owners wanting to use Spen as a stud. No papers, no history, no idea whether his lines carry epilepsy or anything else, he's just an intact male and they want their ***** to have puppies. Some of them have never even met him, just seen me out with him, and have no idea what his temperament is like either! Don't get me wrong, Spen is a lovely dog and I'd have another like him in a heartbeat but that doesn't justify breeding him.
JudyN
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Re: Back again

Post by JudyN »

ClareMarsh wrote:This includes the owner of a male pug :shock: who because Ted has long hair struggles with the fact that he's a boy :roll: and wants his dog to mate as he doesn't want his line to end What the Actual F***?
:shock: :lol:

Good to see you again Sarah, but sorry about your health problems. Jasper says can he please help with culling the deer population...
Jasper, lurcher, born December 2009
MPbandmom
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Re: Back again

Post by MPbandmom »

What a lovely park.

Diaticians should realize that people are only human and do have weaknesses. I know people who are diabetic that just up their meds a bit when attending a get together that will likely result in injesting something not appropriate to their diet. They may have a less severe form than what you are currently dealing with though as I don't believe they use insulin. I have a friend who has just been upgraded to insulin after unsuccesful attempts at treating her with other meds alone. She is not a happy camper. I have sympathy for you as you work through this and learn new eating patterns.
Grammy to Sky and Sirius, who came to live with me, stole my heart, and changed my life forever as I took over their care and learned how to be a dog owner.
Sarah83
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Re: Back again

Post by Sarah83 »

I have no idea MPbandmom, the info I've been given is sketchy at the moment. At one point they weren't sure whether I had Type 1 or Type 2 but they now think it's type 2. It seems they do it a bit differently here though, instead of spending months trying to get your blood sugar under control with diet and tablets and exercise alone they start on insulin, get it under control then see whether it's likely you can do without the insulin. Which makes sense to me in a way since it's apparently the blood sugar being high for long periods that causes the problems associated with diabetes. Not much fun sticking needles in myself and I'm covered in bruises from it but I'm feeling soooo much better :D

Jasper would have loved that park at the hospital :lol: Sadly it was strictly no dogs allowed or I'd have got hubby to bring Spen up to see me, would have done him good to get a good walk since hubby was juggling his time between work, visiting me and sorting Spen out.
jacksdad
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Re: Back again

Post by jacksdad »

good to hear from you sarah. So VERY sorry about the diabetes.

I am not a full on diabetic, but my blood sugar crossed the line a couple times a few years ago. and so I have to be careful. though to be honest, I have slipped pretty badly in my eating habits the last couple years, but have never gone all the way back to the "way I was".

I had to make some pretty drastic changes to lose weight back when this happened. I was pushing 250 (am only 6foot, so that is about 60 pounds too much) and needed to lose weight fast.

There will be some food you are going to have to use an IRON WILL to avoid for a while. there is no other way because some foods are like a drug to us. Be it we are "addicted" to their taste. Or we have emotional associations, ie with things get stressful we reach for X. Or because they are feeding our body something it LOVES, but isn't so good for us in out of control quantities.

For me it was carby food. such as french fries, pastas, pizza. Loved that mountain dew as well. I could and did drink easily 2 or 3 12 oz cans at work, come home and have another 2. And that was normal, not a special occasion.

Anyway, my blood sugar crossed the line one new years weekend, didn't realize it, couldn't understand why I was so thirsty and had to pee all the time. Being a holiday weekend, and thirsty, there was LOTS of sodas around the house...so what did I do...drink more mountain dew...... How I didn't end up on insulin shots is beyond me.... actually I know. fortunately, every blood test I have had so far has put my blood sugar only in the warning zone, not in full diabetic range.

Anyway, after that first scare, I had to make some changes. at work, we would go out to lunch at a local sports "bar" that in my opinion had the BEST hamburgers in town. The reason, all the fat in the burger. So on average 3 times a week....double cheese burger, large french fry and large soda....and you wonder why I was pushing 250 :lol: :oops: . And that is just one example of my poor eating habits. If I liked something, like a pasta dish, or pizza or chines food etc, I can't stop. I OVER eat. Soooo.....to get started losing my weight, I had to use IRON WILL to break those bad habits. The first month was miserable, and it is mostly an emotional thing. you get cravings, you can't stop thinking about that (in my case) burger and fries because suddenly you can't have them. But...after that first month, it got easier and easier to say NO to the food I should not be eating. or needed to cut back on eating.

One of the things that really made it easier after a while is, some foods that I was LOVING....after "detoxing" so to speak and breaking the habit of eating regularly...I can't eat now, I feel LIKE CRAP after doing so. Not emotionally, but physically. nothing like a little positive punishment to discourage future "lapse".

Soooo..... moving forward, I HIGHLY, HIGHLY encourage you to do your best to have an IRON WILL on the really critical things. Like chocolate and mountain dew. breaking that habit / craving etc is going to be hard, but critical. and you can do it. It will take some effort, but you will find replacements for these things. later, down the road, it might be possible to treat your self with small amounts of chocolate, but right now your health is MORE important than chocolate and mountain dew.

BUT the reality is....IRON WILL alone isn't enough. you will need someone to help you figure out new foods and find what it will take to loose the weight. simply cutting out a few things such as chocolate, soda, breads, pastas etc by them self combined with moderate exercise WILL help you lose some weight quickly, but how much is anyone's guess and by them self may not be enough.

Losing weight can be a difficult thing. my wife tried many different methods with zero success and the doctors were most unhelpful with their eat less, exercise more advise. sometimes that alone isn't enough or will even work. Recently she found a low carb, high protein diet that has helped her loose 70+ pounds simply by changing how she eats. so you might have to "shop around" until you find something that clicks with you and your body and takes into account the need to control your blood sugar.

I would also strongly encourage you start reading up on your own as well. education is going to be key here. not every doctor or dieticians will be 100% up to date or aware of all options. Not suggesting you try and "self doctor", but in my own digging around I found stuff that was helpful that my doctor didn't know about and when we discussed it he was on board.

Last thing I will toss out is work to minimize the "voids". lots of foods that you are used to eating that you love to eat etc are suddenly going to be on a "thou shalt not eat" list. you NEED to replace those "thou shalt not" with something other wise you will fall back into eating when you need to not be eating them.

Hang in there, first few months won't be easy, but things WILL get easier as you learn more, replace old habits with new etc. And feeling good will help keep those new habits.
gwd
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Re: Back again

Post by gwd »

MPbandmom wrote: I know people who are diabetic that just up their meds a bit when attending a get together that will likely result in injesting something not appropriate to their diet.
my son is type 1 diabetic and was diagnosed at age 12. with type 1 it has nothing to do with what sort of diet he ate or weight or activity. type 1, is an auto immune issue where the immune system sees the islet cells as "foreign" so the pancreas is just simply not able to produce insulin as the 'factory' has been boarded up and demolished. my son has always had a good diet and even as a youngin' was more likely to snack on left over chicken or steak instead of chips as he CRAVES protein. he's always been a athlete and never carried an ounce of excess weight.

as far as diet.........you're better with complex carbs as they digest more slowly than the simple sugars of fruit or actual sugar. fructose and sucrose both hit quick and will spike the bg faster. .........which of course is a GOOD thing to know if your bg goes low! he always carries candy in case of a low. starburst fruit chews are one of his go-to's as they are very concentrated (carbs by volumn) and they stand up to being in a backpack for weeks without turning gross.

do they have you on lantus and novalog? are you dosing by counting carbs? that regime is the least restrictive. .......if they have not done so, ask for the flex pen. it has a super fine needle and is pretty painless for the most part. occasionally you'll happen to hit a nerve but that's just the luck of the draw.
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ClareMarsh
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Re: Back again

Post by ClareMarsh »

gwd wrote:with type 1 it has nothing to do with what sort of diet he ate or weight or activity.
Take a look at the film I posted if you haven't seen it before gwd. The diet is very strict raw vegan but it did get the type 1s under control which I was pretty amazed by. From memory one of the guys with type 1 preferred to take the insulin and eat what he wanted but the other moved more towards the diet. In any event, even if the diet is not achievable in real life the results they got were pretty amazing :D
Proud owner of Ted and baby Ella
My blog about Ted http://tinkerwolf.com/
Ted's Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/Tinkerwolf
Ted's You Tube Channel http://www.youtube.com/user/TheTedVids
Sarah83
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Re: Back again

Post by Sarah83 »

GWD, I have no bloody idea what I'm on, the Germans gave me 2 types of insulin (one fast acting, one slow acting for night) and have been told they'll be changed to the English equivalent. Protophane and ActRapid are what the pens say. At the moment I have flex pens, they're apparently being changed to cartridge pens. All to do with what the pharmacy is able to stock :roll: I have had absolutely zero advice on diet so far except for the dietician to screech at me when I pointed out that I'm only human and cannot say that I will be able to avoid temptation 100% of the time for the next 30, 40 or whatever years. All the sites and books and other diabetics I speak to talk about counting carbs but that hasn't even been mentioned to me by doctors. The diabetes specialist didn't want to give me advice on a German diet when I'd be eating an English diet and the dietician so far has been as much use as a chocolate teapot :?

Jacksdad, from what I've read I'm either going to have to make massive, massive changes or very few at all. Was really hoping the dietician would help because I've read so much conflicting stuff online and in books that I don't know where to start lol. I've been following Weight Watchers for the past 6 months (with zero effect on my weight which is why I went for blood tests) so it's not like I've been eating crap. I've mostly been drinking water with just the occasional bottle of Dew and I haven't had any Dew at all since being diagnosed. I weigh/measure things like pasta, potatoes and rice coz it's so easy to overestimate a portion. The main thing I'm missing is my tea. I can have the tea, just not the sugar. And it just isn't the same :( I'm hoping that with time I'll get used to sugarless tea but for now it's quite sad lol. I need a diet that isn't so restrictive I'm going to keep falling off the wagon but that's okay for me with diabetes. The dietician seems rather fanatical though, made it sound like I'd drop dead if I so much as look at a piece of cake :( I know my neighbour was less than impressed with her too, said she just rattled on about him needing to lose weight but didn't actually help in any way.
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minkee
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Re: Back again

Post by minkee »

Sorry to hear about your troubles, Sarah. It's so frustrating when professionals get stuck on what they think the problem is and refuse to listen to what's really going on.

Also I feel your pain, voluntarily :( I've been trying to cut sugar out of my diet too, and it's SO SO DIFFICULT. The first few days with nothing are the worst, craving c**e and d*******s and c**e and c*******e... I've found that having lots of things like flavoured fruit or peppermint teas and cuppasoups has helped, just so that I can have SOMETHING when the cravings hit. Until I looked at the ingredients in the cuppasoup to see the first ingredient was sugar :(

But good luck with it. Is your OH on board with helping you out? Presumably he is, of course! but I just mean that it's so much easier when there's nothing in the house available for if your resolve cracks. AND alternatives available. Hummous and carrots are good! :D
Sarah83
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Re: Back again

Post by Sarah83 »

Hubby's trying to help out but can't really expect him not to have the things he likes just coz I can't have them. Thankfully his big ones are chocolate and ice cream, neither of which I'm a big fan of. Mine tends to be crisps and cake.

And yeah, it's awful how sugar just sneaks up on you! Even things you think won't have tons of sugar in them seem to. Bottle of flavoured water I looked at had 10g sugar per 100mls! A porridge thing had 20g of sugar.
gwd
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Re: Back again

Post by gwd »

Sarah83 wrote: All the sites and books and other diabetics I speak to talk about counting carbs but that hasn't even been mentioned to me by doctors. The diabetes specialist didn't want to give me advice on a German diet when I'd be eating an English diet and the dietician so far has been as much use as a chocolate teapot :?
oh dear.........and the german vs the english diet is hogwash. ........it's all about counting carbs. and never fear, you can indulge in cake and chocolate again. this is not to say you want to make that the 5th food group! however, you can have sweets in moderation in the future.

the tough part is wrapping your head around the notion that you are having to synthetically provide insulin via an injection in the same manner that your pancreas would normally have done.

where the counting carbs comes into play is learning how many units of the short acting insulin you need per gram of carb. this varies per person which is why the bg testing is part of the management. ........ for example if you had steak and potato with a salad for dinner, you'd figure the carbs for the potato.........the steak has no carbs nor does the salad (unless you have a surgery salad dressing such as french dressing). if you have bread of course you'd count the carbs in that also. ..........then you dose the units of insulin to match what you've eaten.

this give you flexibility in your food choices and also gives you flexibility to have meals on a less strict timeline. ........

the long acting is just a maintenance dose and isn't dependent on what carbs you've eaten......

obviously shedding some weight is going to be to your advantage.........and the amount of exercise you get will effect your bg......as will stress! my son tends to dip low when he's in finals week. ........when he's doing heavy workouts he needs less insulin. you'll learn to listen to your body!

the best advice i can give you is to be proactive in learning about this on your own.......sad to say but don't put your health in the hands of doctors! :lol:

the second advice i have is to view this as a pain in the *ss inconvenience.............it's not the end of all good things.....
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