Day of Reckoning: Type II Diabetes Diagnosis
When I was pregnant with Henry (9 years ago), I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes. I controlled my blood sugars with diet and exercise (mainly stairs after eating). After giving birth, my status reverted to pre-diabetic.
I fell off the carb wagon. It's so easy to do - diabetes is easy to ignore. My body didn't hurt, so it was easy to "reward" myself with carbs. I'm not much of a sweets person, but I love my chips and bread.
Fast-forward to a month ago (Feb. 2017)....I had some blood work done in preparation for a check-up, and had the results below. Diabetes. No longer pre-diabetic. I was angry at myself for not keeping ahead of full onset, I felt sorry for myself (and sad about all the carbs I'll be missing out on), and incredibly ashamed (I'm a 42 year old who has never regularly exercised) - all at once. I bought a glucose meter and started checking my sugars (morning fasting & post-meal).
My first fasting glucose was 177. (Normal fasting is between 70 and 90.)
I immediately changed how I was eating...I switched to a high-fat, low-carb diet (20< carbs), and saw my post-meal numbers drop to 130-150, but didn't see any change in my fasting numbers.
I tried optimizing my sleep (6.5-7.5 hours per night), I tried eating a protein snack before I went to bed, I tried not eating after 7 pm, but I couldn't get my fasting numbers under 137.
After a month, it has become clear I needed to start exercising. I hate exercising. I mean, I really hate exercising....I hate exercising the way Cy hates chicken....I'll do it once a year and then will gag and complain the whole time and it will be another year before I do it.
But my new choice is to start exercising or start taking metformin....and I really don't want to take drugs (my Dr. also wanted to put me on statins). It's not that I don't believe in medication, I just believe that my 42 year old body shouldn't be this broken down.
After talking to Team Greene (my SUPER healthy neighbors), I've decided to add Crossfit to my routine.
I really can't believe I just typed that.
I started on Monday. I almost threw up before I got in the door because I was so nervous. But I decided I only needed to focus on each next step: drive to the gym, go inside, explain very clearly all the reasons I'm going to die (if I do Crossfit/exercise, as well as if I don't), and then just do each of the exercises I'm told to do.
I walked in and very strong people were doing things like this and it took everything I had to not leave. The voice in my head started telling me I didn't belong, and that there's no way I could do it, and that I'd just slow everyone down.
But I stayed. I told that voice to shut up (over and over again).
And I did everything I was told to do.
And my fasting glucose was 117 the next day. (20 point drop.)
Tuesday I did rowing for 20 minutes and some stretching.
Last night I went in for my 2nd session with the coach, and I found out that my body is capable of things I didn't think it was. I got in my car and was....wobbly...there's no other way to describe it....and on the verge of tears. I realized I really, truly, enjoyed every minute of the workout. I felt strong, proud, and hopeful.
My fasting was 111 today. I'll be going to my first group class today. I'm terrified, but I'm just going to focus on each next step:
1. Get in the car
2. Go inside the gym
3. Do what I'm told
A1C: 6.7
Lipid Panel:
| Component | Your Value | Standard Range |
|---|---|---|
| Cholesterol | 236 mg/dL | <200 mg/dL |
| Triglycerides | 148 mg/dL | <150 mg/dL |
| HDL | 73 mg/dL | >40 mg/dL |
| LDL, Calculated | 134 mg/dL | <130 mg/dL |
| Chol/HDL Ratio | 3.2 | <4.5 |
Metabolic Panel:
| Component | Your Value | Standard Range |
|---|---|---|
| Sodium | 139 mmol/L | 136 - 146 mmol/L |
| Potassium | 4.6 mmol/L | 3.5 - 5.0 mmol/L |
| Chloride | 105 mmol/L | 98 - 108 mmol/L |
| CO2 | 26 mmol/L | 22 - 34 mmol/L |
| Urea Nitrogen | 13 mg/dL | 8 - 20 mg/dL |
| Creatinine | 0.83 mg/dL | 0.50 - 1.00 mg/dL |
| Glucose | 151 mg/dL | 73 - 100 mg/dL |
| Calcium | 10.2 mg/dL | 8.6 - 10.3 mg/dL |
| Protein | 7.4 g/dL | 6.0 - 8.3 g/dL |
| Albumin | 4.7 g/dL | 3.5 - 4.9 g/dL |
| AST | 25 IU/L | 8 - 30 IU/L |
| ALT | 28 IU/L | <=35 IU/L |
| Alkaline Phosphatase | 47 IU/L | 30 - 116 IU/L |
| Bilirubin, Total | 0.6 mg/dL | 0.2 - 1.2 mg/dL |
