Zachfan001

Dear Chris,

Yes, it is absolutely possible to control type 2 diabetes without taking any diabetes medication. However, if you have type 1 diabetes, you absolutely have to take insulin.

There are "only" two things that you have to do:

1. Exercise a lot. Please see my many articles on this topic here at HealthCentral.com and on my website, www.mendosa.com

2. Lose weight and eat little. What is your BMI? You really need to get it below 25 and even better below 23. It also makes it a lot easier to lose weight if you eat a low-carb diet, because it is carbohydrates that make you hungry. And being hungry makes you gain wait. I have written about this recently here.

Best regards,

David Mendosa 

Hi Chris,

Why don't you start by clicking on the "Just Diagnosed" button. I don't like self-promotion, but a lot of people find my book "The First Year: Type 2 Diabetes" helps a lot. 

Hi Chris,

Finding out you have Diabetes (or any medical condition) can be tough. Diabetes is a life changing condition, only because you have to alter your way of thinking about your lifestyle and in many cases, make changes. Most of the time, the changes are for the good. Having diabetes requires that we spend a little more time and effort making sure we take care of ourselves.

I was diagnosed several years ago and it was no surprise to me because I am a big woman and diabetes runs in my family. (I believe the statistics are if one of your parents has Diabetes type 2, you are more than 50% likely to develop it too, both of my parents were diabetic)

So as one diabetic to another. Here's what you do:

Step 1 Breathe In

Step 2 Breathe out

Step 3 Repeat

One of the first things my doctor did was order a cardiac work up. Diabetes works on the muscles and the Heart is the big guy of the bunch. So having a cardiac work up gives the doctors a base to look at in the event the diabetes begins to affect your heart in adverse ways.

Next, he set me up with an endocrynologist to monitor my diabetes. The two doctors work together to watch my blood stats and determine what medication is best. My diabetes is insulin resistant, so I do not take insulin. My body makes plenty of insulin, but does not use it. I take a combination of Amaryl and Meformin to open the receptors on my cells to the insulin.

Once all of this is in place, there are some very good resources for information here at Health Central that will help you make informative decisions with your doctor about managing your diabetes. Diet and exercize are important, but as a diabetic, equally important is wearing proper footwear and taking care of your feet, watching for issues with neuropathy and other things.

For help with diet, Dave Mendosa has published a Glycemic Index of foods. This is very helpful, because it essentially gives you a list of good and not good foods for diabetics. You learn more about the Glycemic Index in a post by Ginger located here. Ginger is a type 1 diabetic (childhood diabetes) but gives some really good information and tips in her blog. She also refers to the posting where the Glycemic Index lives located here.

Reading anything by the resident experts here is highly recommended. You can find David Mendosa's posts (profile link here.) I have been reading his work for years and was delighted to have found him here on Health Central. Also, Dr. Bill Quick (profile link here) is not only a respected member of the medical community, but has diabetes himself. He and his wife Steph run the oldest online resource for diabetes information.

There are also many folks online here who have diabetes and write about their own accounts, giving tips on how to make that bland piece of chicken taste better, or what to do when you really want that piece of birthday cake. I like reading Gretchen Becker's posts (profile link here) Sometimes when you are feeling down, if you read one of her posts, such as Tips for coping with the holidays and or New Years Resolutions.

I know this seems like a lot of information to digest (think of it this way, at least it's sugar free!) but it's very helpful when trying to figure out how to manage your life. There are lots of folks out here who are more than willing to help too. If you need some information about a particular drug, or want to know about particular foods, or if you just want to talk with someone who understands what you are dealing with. We're here. Just give a shout!

Take care and stay in touch. Let us know how you are doing!

Vicki M

Chris, I know that it might feel like you're in the middle of a whirlwind right now, but hang on. You can do this. It sounds like you already have the right attitude to be successful.

Settle in to a healthy lifestyle that you can maintain for your entire life. (as opposed to exercising like mad for a few weeks and giving up.) Continually learn what you can from reputable sites such as this one, Diabetes.org, and others. I've been a Certified Diabetes Educator for years and had thousands of patient encounters dealing with diabetes - & I still learn new things all the time.

I also have a little website and produce a free newsletter to give solid information, made simple, encouragement, confidence and a laugh or two. It's at www.abcDiabetesCoach.com.

I wish you the very best.  Garren Woodby, PharmD, CDE