Struggling with daily life due to Chronic Pain

Pop_Up_Pirate

MonkeyDr wrote: »

I was interested and went to his site. I couldn't actually see the quote about T2DM being curable, but I didn't look at every page. On his main diabetes page he talks about low carb diets improving levels, but not about curing T2DM.

Have you read the peer-reviewed papers that he lists as evidence? I have. None of them prove / describe / suggest that the diet is a 'cure', and all of the outcomes measured are measures of improved diabetic control. In all of the papers the low-carb / ketogenic group still had diabetes at the end of follow-up, as measured by HbA1c (which is the gold standard).

I think there is some evidence that these sorts of diets can help with T2DM control, and hopefully prevent or delay some of the longer-term complications, but there will also be people for whom they are not suitable, and there are also people who will be able to gain good control without them.

(someone mentioned pancreas regeneration as a potential future cure - that would be for T1DM not T2DM, as in type 2 the problem is insulin resistance not lack of production).

It is great that your diet worked for your family and improved your life. It will not necessarily work for everyone else's problems. Intentionally or not, you are also cruelly adding to the false narrative that T2DM is entirely the sufferer's fault.

The site you looked at is just one out of 100s all saying the same thing that Low Carb, High Fat diets will control diabetes to the point that meds are no longer needed, weight is lost and out of control blood glucose is virtually non-existent.
And yes, many of the doctors have announced this as "curing diabetes".

Best thing anyone can do in this position is research it. Read reports, studies, tests, ted talks speakers etc

Then try it.

Its hard because most people don't want to give up their mashed potatoes, rice, muffins, crisps, cereal, orange juice, bread, cakes, pizza etc They are bombarded with ads for all this stuff, hell they are even advised to eat it! They give in to temptations. Alternatives are too expensive. Eating out makes it impossible. Etc
Plus, they don't want to add in all the right foods that will give them the vitamins and minerals they are lacking.

Noone is saying its easy.

I would be interested to hear who's fault you think diabetes 2 is? Where have all the 520 milllion people who have it today got it from?

From Diabetes.org.uk
"Since 1996, the number of people diagnosed with diabetes in the UK has more than doubled from 1.4 million to almost 3.5 million"
They also say
"OBESITY
Obesity is the most potent risk factor for Type!2
diabetes. It accounts for 80–85 per cent of
the overall risk of developing Type!2 diabetes
and underlies the current global spread of the
condition
Almost two in every three people in the UK are
overweight or obese (59 per cent of women
and 68 per cent of men). This is an increase of
13% between 1980 and 2013. The same study
suggests that 26 per cent of boys and 29 per cent
of girls are also overweight or obese.
In England, most people are overweight or obese.
This includes 61.3 per cent of adults and 30 per
cent of children aged between 2 and 15.
The proportion that were overweight, including
obese, increased from 58 per cent to 65 per cent
in men and from 49 per cent to 58 per cent in
women between 1993 and 2011. There was a
marked increase in the proportion of adults that
were obese from 13 per cent in 1993 to 24 per
cent in 2011 for men and from 16 per cent to 26
per cent for women
In 2011, in England around three in ten boys
and girls (aged 2 to 15) were classed as either
overweight or obese (31 per cent and 28 per
cent respectively

They recommend.
"People with diabetes should be supported to eat a healthy diet and maintain a healthy weight"
.

Mrs_Ryan

Type 2 diabetes is increasingly being linked with alcohol consumption. My dad (who is the correct BMI for his height) has it because he is an alcoholic and I have also nursed patients who have it through alcohol addiction.

lessonlearned

Mrs Ryan. Sorry to hear about your MH issues.

I do actually know what it's like to have issues with food..........bad childhood, narcissistic father, diagnosed with duodenal ulcer ar 17, IBS and GERD until fairly recently. So yes I do have some understanding of how food issues can get "out of hand". I too went through a phase of gagging when I had to handle raw meat so I do appreciate your difficulties.

Please don't give up though, keep fighting and get the help you need.

You deserve better than a life of pain. We all do.

In one sense I'm lucky in that in my case I found out early on that for me the pills really don't work. I absolutely could not take any kind of oral pain relief. The standard meds just played havoc with my stomach.......I can't even manage ibruprofen so I was more or less forced to look for alternative methods. Popping pills was never an option for me. My doctor told me that if My digestive system couldnt cope with mild NSAIDs then there was nothing he could prescribe and I would have to try other methods.

It's taken me several years to find out what works. Not just tweaking my diet, but also Physio, yoga, meditation and relaxation techniques, sleep, rest, exercise, walking, vitamin supplements, adding spices known to reduce inflammation to food, laughter therapy, warm baths, lavender wheat packs etc. I do find heat helps although I understand that some people find heat makes pain worse.

I can use topical gels containing diclofenic because they bypass the stomach. I use voltarol 12 HR gel on my knees. It really helps.

I just use a combination of therapies that I have experimented with over the years. It's trial and error, some work, some don't but I figured that anything was worth a try. I just wasnt prepared to give in.

I recently read that thyme tea helps with fibromyalgia pain so I bought a little pot of thyme yesterday. Again I just figure it's worth trying. If I try something and it doesn't work then I've lost nothing.

Mrs Ryan....you sound utterly defeated and demoralised.

Please don't give up. Keep trying, there will be something out there to help you.

KxMx

MonkeyDr wrote: »

(someone mentioned pancreas regeneration as a potential future cure - that would be for T1DM not T2DM, as in type 2 the problem is insulin resistance not lack of production).

It's actually being mooted to help both T1 & T2

http://www.nhs.uk/news/2017/02February/Pages/Fasting-diet-may-help-regenerate-diabetic-pancreas.aspx

The scattered anecdotal reports I've seen involve people with Type 2, and those people allegedly went on to be symptom free and clinically clear on a normal, sometimes even high sugar diet.

Anoneemoose

Mrs_Ryan wrote: »

Unfortunately my ESA doesn't stretch to paying £80 for a nutritionist I can pretty much put up with the pain- it isnt for the most part the pain that stops me from doing much, apart from on the days when my tumours decide to make their presence felt which can floor me for days. If some quack 'diet' could cure my personality disorder and anxiety and alopecia I might be interested as that's what stops me living my life in the way I would like but as I've said no diet is going to cure them. Some days I don't want to even move from the sofa as my mood is so low and I certainly don't want to start messing around with sharp knives and hot pans- on days like that I'm lucky if I can open a bag of crisps! My mate got sent to a nutritionist and all the stuff she got told to eat I wouldn't touch with a fifty foot barge pole, I've got serious issues with food and an eating disorder so I'm not really enamoured with the idea of messing with my diet!
I guess it may sound like I'm making excuses but my mental health problems are massively complex and largely govern my poor relationship with food. I've had therapy and all sorts and have now been told there's nothing more they can do for me so I guess my poor relationship with food will continue. It's not something I can just snap out of either and nothing any nutritionist can help me with as the minute they start telling me I have to eat stuff that I'm not prepared to then I'll just point blank refuse.

Sorry to hear of your issues..I totally agree with you. I have an ED and struggle greatly with restricting anything. I too, have CFS/ME and Fibro and I know a lot of members of one of the fb groups I am on really benefit from low carb/paleo and similar. Thing is though, how do you even begin to attempt something like that when you have the constraints of an ED, as well as other MH issues (I have OCD and anxiety as well).

Pop_Up_Pirate

Anoneemoose wrote: »

Sorry to hear of your issues..I totally agree with you. I have an ED and struggle greatly with restricting anything. I too, have CFS/ME and Fibro and I know a lot of members of one of the fb groups I am on really benefit from low carb/paleo and similar. Thing is though, how do you even begin to attempt something like that when you have the constraints of an ED, as well as other MH issues (I have OCD and anxiety as well).

It's difficult.
All you can do is tell yourself that eating certain foods (or cutting some out) is going to help with the problems you have and take it one day at a time,

I would start by taking it slowly. Add in a few key supplements. Do you find a tablet easy enough to take?
Omega 3 (in triglyceride form if you can find it) and vitamin D3 drops.
Bear in mind you should give them a good 2 months at least to start feeling the benefits.
Could you eat a spoonful of coconut oil a day? Or fry something in coconut oil or olive oil? Fat is essential to overall health, especially brain health so try to eat some every day in whatever form you can manage. (Margerine, buttery spreads, sunflower and vegetable oils are not healthy fats so avoid them if you can)

Then start to drop refined carbs. If you can't go cold turkey, its best to go bit by bit. They really are bad for us and we eat far too many. They turn straight into sugar in the body, which poisons our whole system including the brain.
But it can be difficult to drop all those things we have loved to eat such as cakes, biscuits, muffins, pies, most breads and most cereals.

All these things can be reintroduced in smaller quantities later if you feel the need but take it slow, and see how you get on.

Some people can't drink a full glass of green juice but could manage a shot glass of it.
Try blend up a small piece of cucumber and a small piece of celery each day and down it in one. It's not such a heavy taste and as you get used to it, you can add more if you want or add other veggies. Sometimes, adding a banana can lift it a little.
This is then feeding your body key vitamins and minerals.

If you're determined to feel better, you can do it but it will take some time and perseverance. Baby steps. Rome wasn't built in a day

Hope you get on ok.

MonkeyDr

KxMx wrote: »

It's actually being mooted to help both T1 & T2

http://www.nhs.uk/news/2017/02February/Pages/Fasting-diet-may-help-regenerate-diabetic-pancreas.aspx

The scattered anecdotal reports I've seen involve people with Type 2, and those people allegedly went on to be symptom free and clinically clear on a normal, sometimes even high sugar diet.

Thanks! I didn't know that. Interesting stuff.

MonkeyDr

Pop_Up_Pirate wrote: »

The site you looked at is just one out of 100s all saying the same thing that Low Carb, High Fat diets will control diabetes to the point that meds are no longer needed, weight is lost and out of control blood glucose is virtually non-existent.
And yes, many of the doctors have announced this as "curing diabetes"
.

I think we may be getting caught up in semantics around 'cure', and I think it's reasonable to say that the majority opinion is that these diets 'manage' rather than 'cure', even if they help considerably, because the individual still has the propensity to higher blood sugar levels than I have if we e.g. eat a mars bar. I haven't read any published studies that demonstrate long-term 'cures', just short-term normalisation of blood sugars (which is still a very good thing).

With regard to your other point, of course I don't deny the link between unhealthy diet and lifestyle and t2dm, but it is certainly not the only cause, especially in certain ethnic populations. It is definitely the case that 2 people could eat identically and one get diabetes in their 30s and one never. It's a fine balance between doing all we can to encourage people to live healthily / take some responsibility for their health, and going too far and blaming / shaming, which doesn't help anyone.

(I say this as a non-smoking, normal-BMI, balanced-diet person. I'm not being defensive, I'm being practical.)