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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 6 of 6. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Dinah on May 7, 2004, at 5:02:49
I swear, there are times I just forget that I have diabetes, and make choices that are sure to make me feel rotten later. So it's not even that I'm choosing enjoyment over my health. I'm not even enjoying it. I forget that my body processes things differently now than it used to.
So I gave him permission to remind me.
I feel kind of guilty now for being rough on my mother in the past. Not that diabetes is the root cause of our difficulties. But I'd be sort of hmmm, not sure what, when she'd say that something or another would make her feel sick if she ate it. Or when she fell asleep for hours and hours. I have a lot more compassion for that now, because I can see that it *was* probably physical.
No need for a reply. Just musing as I sit here in the wee early hours with a splitting headache feeling awful after a heavy cream pasta meal. :( To my credit, I didn't realize cream was involved. I thought it was just a pasta meal. Sigh.
Posted by smokeymadison on May 8, 2004, at 11:56:56
In reply to I've given my husband permission to nag, posted by Dinah on May 7, 2004, at 5:02:49
diabetes runs in my family. i find that i am very sensitive to sugar in general. i eat a candy bar and feel a rush and sometimes sick. is it possible to have low-grade diabetes? i have been tested and i don't "have" it. but is it an all or nothing thing? just wondering.
Posted by Dinah on May 9, 2004, at 13:17:11
In reply to Re: I've given my husband permission to nag, posted by smokeymadison on May 8, 2004, at 11:56:56
I don't know how much hard science backs it up (or if it's a marketing ploy), but there's supposedly insulin tolerance or something like that that precedes diabetes in some people and is the basis behind the low glycemic index diets. I think I read about it in "Sugar Busters" book.
You might find yourself feeling better if you eat foods with a low glycemic index, although I've never managed the restrictions very well.
Posted by Racer on May 20, 2004, at 1:33:53
In reply to I've given my husband permission to nag, posted by Dinah on May 7, 2004, at 5:02:49
I am guessing you're type II, and that your diabetes came on after some weight gain? Did you gain weight from the psych meds and then get diabetes because of the weight gain? I know that the weight gain from other drugs has been pretty horrendous for me, physically and emotionally. Permanent damage like that scares the bejesus out of me.
By the way, I do know a woman whose type II diabetes no longer required treatment once she got her weight down using the old fashioned Diabetes Association diet with food exchanges. Even her doctor couldn't believe it. She's regained that and more -- thanks to drugs -- and apparently still isn't having problems with it. (She's weird that way, though -- lots of transient health problems with things that are usually chronic.)
My husband is Type I, and the strangest things can set him off. Last night it was a diet soda sending his sugar through the roof. Go figure. (Yes, I bought it for him as a special treat. Guess I get the premium diet orange soda. Too bad I am not very fond of orange soda, huh? You wanna come over and have one with me?)
Posted by Dinah on May 21, 2004, at 12:04:16
In reply to Injecting some of my own concerns... » Dinah, posted by Racer on May 20, 2004, at 1:33:53
I actually was able to go off the medications for a while last summer after losing fifteen pounds, but as work stress went up I had to go back on, even before I started gaining weight again.
I figure if I get low enough in weight, I could probably go off it entirely.
I did gain fifty + pounds on Luvox and never gained or lost anything after that. My type II diabetes didn't kick in until several years of holding at that weight, after a particularly stressful time at work.
My mother had Type I diabetes, and I know that is far more difficult to live with.
Posted by Racer on May 22, 2004, at 9:10:34
In reply to Re: Injecting some of my own concerns... » Racer, posted by Dinah on May 21, 2004, at 12:04:16
The stress relation to diabetes doesn't surprise me. I know that my responses to stress -- especially the extended stress that I've been going through for the last few months -- do me in, in a lot of ways, and it has had it's effect on my blood sugar over the years. In my case, though, it's just losing the normal ability to regulate blood sugar. I get really brittle at times, but it seems to be med related. Yet another reason to dread going to the damn doctor again.
Thank you for your answer. As for the Type I/Type II question, I think it's one of those "there is no heirarchy of suffering" things, but I've always thought that Type II would be worse in a lot of ways. In my DH's case, he knows his routines inside and out, he has a life's habit of staying inside his limits, and he can regulate his blood sugar with an injection of fast acting insulin to compensate for any little indiscretions. That actually gives him a fair degree of flexibility, as his ice cream consumption tends to prove. (Low carb and/or sugar free, but it's still not exactly Diabetic Health Food, if you know what I mean.)
Good luck, and I'm pulling for you on the diet side. Have you tried noa's suggestion of water chestnuts for snacks? They've got a nice, kinda nutty taste, and they CRUNCH!!! That crunch always seems so satisfying to me. They won't fill you up, but if you need a crunch fix, they might help. (And I love Claussen's pickles, nice crunch, savory taste, and just great RacerSnack.)
This is the end of the thread.
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