5 Things I Wish I Had Known When Diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes
My diagnosis as a Type 2 diabetic caught me completely by surprise. I knew almost nothing about it and had to get up to speed on the disease, fast.
Here’s a quick list of a few things I wish I had known immediately after getting off the phone with my doctor:
1.) Am I going to die? Diabetes is, almost always, a life sentence. It’s probably not going to go away, but that doesn’t mean it’s going to kill you. If you manage and control your diabetes you can live a long, healthy life. In many ways, I’m healthier now than I was before being diagnosed. The complications from diabetes are severe however, and if you don’t take control it can (will) cause permanent damage that can lead to death. Don’t take a diagnosis lightly, even if your doctor tells you you are “pre-diabetic” or “slightly” diabetic.
2.) What should I eat? The diabetes pamphlets and dietary advice your doctor gave you was probably confusing at best and dead wrong at worst. The best advice is to buy a blood glucose monitor and test yourself 2 hours after every meal. If what you ate made your blood sugar skyrocket, cross it off the list. You’ll probably find that means you’ll eventually end up on a low, or restricted, carb diet.
3.) Should I exercise? Absolutely. Regular exercise will help improve your insulin resistance. That doesn’t mean you have to start running marathons or pumping iron like a bodybuilder. Walking is a great start. A half hour or forty five minutes a day will do amazing things for your glucose levels over time.
