About Diabetes, for those recently diagnosed as diabetic
First the diagnosis
From my own experience of being a diabetic for many years, and having faced the several situations and questions that confront you now, and those that will occur in the future, I offer here a few comments and observations that will, I hope, provide some general guidance for you in these early times. And there is abundant information available on the internet when you know where to look.
After first hearing the diagnosis “You are a diabetic” it comes as quite a shock, however gently conveyed. When you learn from your doctor that you have diabetes, most often type-2 diabetes, it is unlikely you will know much about the disease. The diagnosis will probably come after a blood test and a follow up visit to your doctor and being then told of the situation. You may be pre-diabetic, a condition in which the glucose levels in your blood are rather high but not yet into the diabetic range. Or your condition may be confirmed as diabetes, which means that the levels of glucose in your bloodstream do exceed the level considered as acceptable. As is explained elsewhere, the glucose in the blood is a normal situation and the result of the food you have recently consumed.
Your physician will explain the facts of diabetes and give advice on the subject, and tell you what you have to do and the life style changes you may have to make to manage your newly identified disease condition. These might include such things as diet, exercise, and possibly medications that will be prescribed if eventually your actions are unable to control your blood sugar levels and your diabetes worsens over the course of time, as is often the case with diabetic patients, perhaps a short time later or in some cases after several years.
There may be referrals to dietitians to help establish an appropriate dietary routine that incorporates your own personal food and life-style tastes and is tailored to your current health and physical condition(s). There are other health care professional who will advise and help you navigate your path through the complications of diabetes if they occur, but that will probably be later if the condition deteriorates.
The early reaction to learning of your diabetic condition
But after that early meeting you will probably leave the doctor’s office with many thoughts, questions and uncertainties still whirling around in your head. In the ensuing days there may be the desire to learn more about the disease, the causes, the treatments, the cures. Actually there is no cure right now according to mainstream medical practitioners, although reference will be made here to that group of qualified, respected and quite well known physicians who disagree and provide their solution in reversing diabetes.
You soon learn that much of the day-to-day control and management of the diabetic condition is in your own hands. It is left to you to find out about many aspects of the disease, you may wonder about the role of insulin and glucose and blood testing and alternative dietary approaches, what foods and beverages, including alcohol are acceptable and when to consume them while always attempting to stay as low on the scale of being diabetic as possible.
For much more on diabetes, check out the List of Topics on our companion website at Normal Blood Sugar Levels and Diabetes.
And additional diabetes related material can be found at Diabetic Menu Guide
Return to Introduction Page and Articles List for this website.