Frustrated Diabetic

[forbey]

Re: Frustrated Diabetic

Meter is OK, I'm going to the doc tomorrow to get a few tests done to check thyroid, lipids etc. (another thread,)

Just trying everything I can to get the job done.

[forbey]

Re: Frustrated Diabetic

UPDATE:

Just reading "Atkins Diabetes Revolution". In it they talk about how weight loss could be delayed while the blood glucose levels straighten out. In several examples the subjects discussed how the progression from out of control sugars took several months.

That being the case, I'm a bunch less frustrated. This mornings Fasting BG was 245, It is the lowest, non-insulin effected BG I've had in months.

As Dr. Atkins is quotes and Dr. Vernon attests to, the loss of weight is secondary to the beneficial effects of correcting the blood glucose levels, reducing the insulin resistance and all of the other health problems associated and/or connected to diabetes.

So "frustrated" is becoming "optimistic"! Need a drink!

forbey

[AJs-mommy]

Re: Frustrated Diabetic

WOW!!! That is a very drastic procedure!!! I sure hope your lifestyle changes improve your blood sugars!! Good luck!! Keep us posted!!

[forbey]

Re: Frustrated Diabetic

Dr visit went OK, should get blood work back by Friday.

Immediate pluses:

Last visit: Blood Pressure was 155/98 Today: 139/86
Weight: 308 Today: 292
A1C: 11.2 Today: ?

No threats about insulin, but he did add Glyburide tablets. We will see.

Tonight Bedtime BG: 236 I graphed out my fasting BG from January till now, not only are the numbers going down, but the range of highs and lows is tightening.

Say Goodnight Gracie.

Goodnight Gracie!

[forbey]

Re: Frustrated Diabetic

OK, the numbers are in. I realize many of them still need work. But we are improving!Here goes:

Last Test: .......10/28/2008.......... This test: 4/7/2010..................... Men's Normal Range

NA ......................136......................... ...... 139 ........................... 136 to 145 mEq/L
CL ........................96 ...............................100 ..............................98-107 mmol/L
A GAP ...................18 .................................14 ..............................5-15
Glucose ................296 ...............................215 .............................70-110 mg/dL (still too high, but getting there)
Cholesterol ............246 ...............................227................ .............. 0-200
TGL ......................205 ................................93 ..............................30-150 mg/dL
HDL ........................53 ................................49 ..............................40-60 mg/dL (dropped, but still within acceptable range.)
LDL .......................152 ..............................159 ...............................0-129 mg/dL (went up a tad, but 2 months after stating WOE it was expected)
VLDL .......................41 ................................19 ..............................6-30 mg/dL (Great change!)
Thyroid:
.........Free T4 ..........n/a .............................0.94 .............................0.60-1.61 mg/dL
.........T3 .................n/a .............................0.59 .............................0.87-1.67 mg/dL (low, have asked for detemination on how to fix)

There you have it. Next visit in July; hopefully, more improvement with these numbers by then.

forbey

[2big4mysize]

Re: Frustrated Diabetic

COngrats on the improved BP and BG


was that your free T3 at .59? hope your doc is prescribing some T3 meds ASAP and some T4 too. every cell in your body needs FT3 for metabolism and once it is back to normal for you you will notice how much better you function in just about every possible way.

LDL 152 159 0-129 mg/dL (went up a tad, but 2 months after stating WOE it
was expected)
VLDL 41 19 6-30 mg/dL (Great change!)

this it the improvement despite a high LDL we have been telling you about. as you can see even though your total LDL went up the dangerous particles went way DOWN.

it is curious your HDL went down since that tends to rise with atkinsa eating and ther mandatory exercise part of our atkins.

[forbey]

Re: Frustrated Diabetic

COngrats on the improved BP and BG


was that your free T3 at .59? hope your doc is prescribing some T3 meds ASAP and some T4 too. every cell in your body needs FT3 for metabolism and once it is back to normal for you you will notice how much better you function in just about every possible way.

The T4 is mid-range, however, I have asked for a nurse to call so I can have her ask the dr. Same with the T-3 I asked what could I do to get the T3 to increase.

this it the improvement despite a high LDL we have been telling you about. as you can see even though your total LDL went up the dangerous particles went way DOWN.

it is curious your HDL went down since that tends to rise with atkinsa eating and ther mandatory exercise part of our atkins.

Knowing that Atkins can make some strange fluctuations at first I am more glad to see the Total and the VLDL drop than I am concerned about the increase in LDL (I'm sure that has something to do with the drop in VLDL) or the decrease in HDL.

forbey

[Dryunderwater]

Re: Frustrated Diabetic

Hip Hip Hooray for Forbey!!!! Woot Woot and Yay! You are doing the dang thing! I'm so happy for you and proud of you! Keep it up.

Best Wishes!

[forbey]

Re: Frustrated Diabetic

Thanks, Dryunderwater:

HOWEVER, I'm no longer frustrated... I'm ticked off!

I didn't reference the Thyroid "TSH" results because they were within the acceptable range.

When I wnet back and looked closer I found the T3 below range; Free T4 ans TSH at the lower 25% of the acceptible range.

I find on the web that the ranges really don't mean squat because everyone is different... AND

These are the symptoms of an UNDER ACTIVE thyroid:

Dry scaly skin ...............most of the time
Dry Hair .......................most of the time
Always feeling cold ........more as I get older
constipation
depression ...................yupp
lethargy .......................yupp
loss of appetite .............yupp (could be Atkins induced)
inability to decrease weight..DUH! (Here I am stuck at 288 pouns and it COULD be an underactive thyroid problem)
always wanting to sleep... Always is an understatement
swollen lymph glands
start of goiter
weak immune system .......yupp
recurrent sore throats/sinus infections...sinus infections
painful / bleeding gums .....at times
Painful TOM .................... (he doesn't bother me! But he ticks my wife off every now and then!)
Difficulty concentrating/poor memory ... sorry I can't remember...oh...YUPP!
Low heart rate
fluid retention ................... Let me show you my ankles some time...YUPP!
carpal tunnel syndrome ........starting in right hand
weakness in muscles and muscle cramping ..... yupp
swollen, arthritic like joints ..... for years, without actual signs of arthritis
general apathy ..................... yupp

18 of 22 symptoms listed effect me!

forbey

[2big4mysize]

Re: Frustrated Diabetic

Glad you rechecked your thyroid numbers and saw they were low. too many docs look at TSH because it used to be the only countable chemical dealing with thyroid. It is now known that one can be hypo or even hyper and have normal TSH because TSH is a pituatary hormone. FT4 and FT3 are the important numbers. Ft3 is the chemical every cell in your body needs and being low is not a good thing. most of the hypo sites will tell you that you want your FT3 in the upper 1/3 of the lab range so you are very low with your number. FT4 they want in the middle of the range.


I'm not sure you are understanding what VLDL is. It is a type of LDL that is counted in your LDL number too.

so you dropped 22 mgs of the bad stuff from your LDL yet your LDL went up. the other LDL component is the larger fluffy particle A type. that means you are making more of the "healthy" LDL and don't really need to be worried about it being higher.

and look at that great drop in your triglycerides just as Dr Atkins promised they would go down eating his plan.

[H20baby]

Re: Frustrated Diabetic

Way to go forbey! I didn't see your new hemoglobin A1C change listed.

You are doing great, I bet your doc was impressed with your weight loss, lower blood sugar levels, lower blood pressure and as 2big says the cholesterol numbers are improving big time!

Keep up the great work!

TTFN

Melody

[mjurb]

Re: Frustrated Diabetic

i read this whole thread and understand your frustrations, but could you weight loss be hampered due to hidden sugars? on page 2 of this thread (for me) you mention going to get a salad and a mcdonalds angus burger for lunch, well the angus burgers are seasoned with all kinds of sugars.

100% Angus Beef Patty:
100% Angus beef. Prepared with Grill Seasoning (salt, black pepper) and Angus Burger Seasoning: Salt, sugar, onion powder, natural (botanical source) and artificial
flavors, maltodextrin, natural beef flavor [beef broth, yeast extract, maltodextrin, salt, lactic acid, natural flavor (plant source), beef fat, citric acid], spice, dextrose,
autolyzed yeast extract, garlic powder, dried beef extract, sunflower oil, caramel color, worcestershire sauce powder [distilled vinegar, molasses, corn syrup, salt,
caramel color, garlic powder, sugar, spices, tamarind, natural flavor (fruit source)], spice extractives, annatto and turmeric (color), calcium silicate and soybean oil
added to prevent caking.

how often is that part of your menu? or others like it

[wackielady]

Re: Frustrated Diabetic

I also read the whole post....I had to grin at how many time you mentioned that you drank 100+ ozs per day and other constantly wanted to make sure that you were getting in enough water. Grinning at that...and not being mean about it.

I can understand the frustration in losing weight...i don't think I have lost any thing since restarting a couple of weeks ago, but I am watching for when my weight does go up instead of down...did I get my water in? did I eat too many foods with NA? (Like pork rinds/ cracklings? love them). And even shrimp that I cook in olive oil, butter and garlic will make me gain a few pounds overnight.

Keep up the good work, you are doing great. We did not put this weight on overnight and we are not going to get it off overnight. I use to do groups for addicts, and a few of the phrases that was often used were are still helpful for me to remember...."if you work it it works if you don't you die"....got to do the atkins by the book. "one day at a time"...that is all we can do. and then the serenity prayer...there is only certains that we can control. you are in control of a lot of things and that is evident by your recent lab work. but I was also wondering what your A1C was. I am also a diabetic, but mine is a little more under control than yours. I do take my metforman (spelling) and my usually runs about 5.9. How much as your come down since starting atkins?

keep up the good work!!!

[wackielady]

Re: Frustrated Diabetic

i read this whole thread and understand your frustrations, but could you weight loss be hampered due to hidden sugars? on page 2 of this thread (for me) you mention going to get a salad and a mcdonalds angus burger for lunch, well the angus burgers are seasoned with all kinds of sugars.

100% Angus Beef Patty:
100% Angus beef. Prepared with Grill Seasoning (salt, black pepper) and Angus Burger Seasoning: Salt, sugar, onion powder, natural (botanical source) and artificial
flavors, maltodextrin, natural beef flavor [beef broth, yeast extract, maltodextrin, salt, lactic acid, natural flavor (plant source), beef fat, citric acid], spice, dextrose,
autolyzed yeast extract, garlic powder, dried beef extract, sunflower oil, caramel color, worcestershire sauce powder [distilled vinegar, molasses, corn syrup, salt,
caramel color, garlic powder, sugar, spices, tamarind, natural flavor (fruit source)], spice extractives, annatto and turmeric (color), calcium silicate and soybean oil
added to prevent caking.

how often is that part of your menu? or others like it

I had never thought about this. I am one for having a bunless burger at a fast food place, but I think I am gonig to start making my own...at least I know what seasoning I am putting in it. That for the reality shot.

[forbey]

Re: Frustrated Diabetic

i read this whole thread and understand your frustrations, but could you weight loss be hampered due to hidden sugars? on page 2 of this thread (for me) you mention going to get a salad and a mcdonalds angus burger for lunch, well the angus burgers are seasoned with all kinds of sugars.

100% Angus Beef Patty:
100% Angus beef. Prepared with Grill Seasoning (salt, black pepper) and Angus Burger Seasoning: Salt, sugar, onion powder, natural (botanical source) and artificial
flavors, maltodextrin, natural beef flavor [beef broth, yeast extract, maltodextrin, salt, lactic acid, natural flavor (plant source), beef fat, citric acid], spice, dextrose,
autolyzed yeast extract, garlic powder, dried beef extract, sunflower oil, caramel color, worcestershire sauce powder [distilled vinegar, molasses, corn syrup, salt,
caramel color, garlic powder, sugar, spices, tamarind, natural flavor (fruit source)], spice extractives, annatto and turmeric (color), calcium silicate and soybean oil
added to prevent caking.

how often is that part of your menu? or others like it

This is about the third time I have had to explain this. But, because it really bothers me to have miss information being spread I will gladly continue the shpiel!

The patty is 100% beef, from the Angus breed. It is cooked with salt and pepper. The seasonings listed are SHAKEN on the burger before putting the top bun on it. If you want to cut the carbs out of the Angus Burger, order it WITHOUT the seasoning. The seasoningsfor the Angus burger are kept in a shaker near the end of the burger assemply line.

If you are watching your salt and/or pepper you will have to wait an additional 4 or 5 minutes while they cook you one fresh.

I have 2 or 3 a week, without the seasoning ( the beef, mushrooms and swiss cheese hold all the flavor I need) and they are yummy!

forbey