medications for treating Type 2

Welcome Kristy,

I believe the medication you referred to is possibly metformin. If so, it
is one of the oldest medications for treating Type 2 on the market. Many
doctors will start a patient on that medication and possibly adjust the dose
or maybe add an additional medication to help control blood sugar levels.
Metformin does have a well known side effect of causing flatulence and
diarrhea in many patients for the first week or so until the body adjusts to
it.

Did your Dr. give you an HbA1C or glycosylated hemoglobin test? If so, what
was the result? Or was the diagnosis based on a fasting blood glucose
reading? If your doctor did not tell you, the A1C should be at least 7.0%
or less and many doctors prefer that number to be even lower. Ideal fasting
glucose readings should be between 80 and 120; two hours after a meal at 160
or less; and between 100 and 140 at bedtime. There are definitely other
things you'll need to learn but it is important to become comfortable doing
a blood glucose test with your meter. If your doctor didn't give you one,
ask him/her if they have any available or you can purchase at your local
pharmacy. The meters are relative cheap, it is the test strips that get
you. If you have insurance, the doctor can write a prescription to cover
most of the strip cost.

The best way, for me, was to test before eating and again one and two hours
later, taking note of how much my glucose levels rose. This allowed me to
learn how different foods affected me and, as you'll see around here, YMMV
or your mileage may vary - diabetes is a "custom" disease that affects each
of us differently. My body reacts to rice and potatoes but I'm able to eat
whole-grain pastas and breads. You might be able to eat rice but not
potatoes, pasta, or bread. And different portion sizes alter those
readings, as does the meal's fat content as fat slows the absorption of the
carbohydrates.

This group is a good source of information, as well as hearing from others
going through the same things you are, and feeling like you're not the only
one in the world going through all of this. Another good group is Healthy
Recipes for Diabetic Friends. It has lots of diabetic-friendly and low-carb
recipes. And a good source on TV is dLife which airs on CNBC every Sunday
(at 7pm EST).

I would highly recommend that you ask your doctor to send you to your local
diabetic education class. Most of these programs run four consecutive weeks
and cover medications, nutrition, lifestyle changes, and lots more. They
typically also include a private meeting with a dietician who will help you
come up with a starting meal plan based on your dietary needs.

Now take a deep breath, let it out, and don't stress too much. You'll have
lots of info to absorb along the way so relax and let it in.

Michael