Hello all, I'm new here as of today, and I'm very glad to have found you and to be here with you. Here's my history.
I am 70 years old and 10 years ago I was told I was glucose intolerant. About three years later I was formally dx'd with type 2. Shortly after that I was put on meds. I was on Actos for a couple of years, then glimepiride (starting with 1 mg, now 4) then Januvia, which is horribly expensive was added.
My A1C went down from 7.2 to about 6.5 with the meds but then it began to climb slowly and now it is at 8.1 and my doctor decided to put me on Levemir at the beginning of this week -- plus the meds.
I will have to confess that even though I quit smoking cold turkey 30 years ago, I find sugar much more difficult. I'm afraid I cheat a little every now and then.
Welcome to the site and to the club, I guess. I was a type 2 until everything just quit and antibodies showed in a gad65 test. I know and understand your position. Don't worry about the Levemir, it will help. I wouldn't be surprised if your physician adds some rapid acting insulin for you at meal time. Insulin is a wonderful drug, and no type two should be afraid of it, although many can be. For me, getting my diet in order was a lot like quitting smoking twenty some years ago... it was something that I no longer felt that I needed. Carbs, in the amount that I was consuming, wasn't necessary, either.
Hang in there; keep at this. It will become easier as you become accustomed to it. We are all here to help.
Levemir is in my opinion great and nothing to be feared. I believe its better to start insulin than it is to keep beating your self up with oral meds.
One of the things you will notice is the need to test more often because insulin is a powerful drug that you will need to keep an eye on. Testing more often will help you in many ways not just with insulin.
Levemir is a slow acting insulin and may be just the boost your system needs to manage your BG better. If thats not enough then there are fast acting insulins to help with the BG spikes you get with meals.
I have done all the non-insulin drugs and find that I like Insulin therapy much better. With insulin you have control which is something you don't have with oral meds.
Hi, and welcome to the community! I'm pretty new here myself, but I can relate to your situation - I started on Levemir just about a month ago. I was afraid of insulin for a long time; in fact, even though I'd thought about it and pretty much knew it was going to be a necessity eventually, I couldn't keep from crying in my doctor's office when he actually brought it up and we decided to go that route. He reassured me (he must have been reading my mind) that going on insulin wasn't a sign of failure, but an opportunity to treat the condition more effectively. He took me off Januvia as soon as I started insulin, but I'm still taking Metformin. I did find that, once I started the insulin, my overall numbers improved and I actually did start to feel better. I confess, though, that I've basically never met a carb I didn't like, and I struggle with the whole "diet" (there's that four letter word again...) thing. I've switched over to Lantus now (cheaper co-pay) and I'm still trying to find the right dose to get my fasting numbers where the doc wants them. I'm currently at 50 units per day and hoping it doesn't go too much higher, but reminding myself that this is a process and everyone's different, so I just have to hang in there and find what works for me. Best wishes to you as you work the process!
I am diagnosed as a T2 and use Levemir. I follow a strict low carb diet and also take metformin. I take two shots a day, 35 units at night and 15 units in the morning. The large shot at night is to keep my Darn Phenomenon under control and helps me wake up with a good morning blood sugar. I also take Humalog, about 10-15 units per day, primarily at lunch and dinner. With insulin, I've been able to achieve the best control of my blood sugars I've ever had. I've not gained any weight either.
Very dark chocolate is low in carbs! I happen to love dark chocolate covered almonds. Mmmmm.... Oh, and you have gotten some great advice here from people who really know what they are talking about. Welcome!
Thanks to all of you, I really appreciate all of your input. It is very kind of you all to take the time!!
I am doing pretty well so far. presently I'm taking 8U levemir in the morning and 12 at night. I'm sure that will go up, but my morning BGs are roughly averaging 120, considerably lower than before. The post mealtime spikes are still pretty worrisome (250 or so even three hours out,) even with the Januvia and Glimepiride, and I may need some fast acting to even that out a bit. Will discuss with my Doc when I see him next week.
Like TiaAJ, I never met a carb I didn't like, but I am trying to do better. No ice cream or cookies for a week, well, 1 cookie. And it's hard for me to get used to the idea that spaghetti and bread are almost as bad as sugar! Nevertheless, I am learning to count carbs.
Unlike some, I don't have too much trouble getting motivated to comply, or to go on insulin. Why? Before I retired I was a U.S. administrative law judge (ALJ) who handled medical disability cases. I saw enough of the unfortunate results of uncontrolled Diabetes -- including loss of vision and even loss of limbs to be motivated now. I choose to pass on that! Thanks for the encouragement! I really do appreciate it.
I'm T1 myself but I would think that the answer for post mealtime spikes might be insulin, humalog/ novolog? I would suggest that if you are 70, you've already pretty much "won" (I always figured I wouldn't last much past 40 as I was, uh, rather wild when I was younger) but it's great that you are keeping engaged with it. It seems like a lot of reports in the community involve people w/ T2 having docs tell them "we'll try this and see how it goes until you come back in 3 months or 6 months" but, at the same time, the patients are testing and seeing the post-parandial highs and wondering about the "damage done" but, unlike Neil Young, the needle may undo some damage with diabetes? It's strong stuff though so be careful like everybody says? Since you were a judge, I have to admit that I eat cookies sometimes...
