good advice
"Good advice. If I listened earlier, I wouldn't be here. But that's just the trouble with me. I give myself very good advice, but I very seldom follow it." Alice in Wonderland
I call this the Alice in Wonderland principle...
Do you ever feel like this...I sometimes do..."I resemble that remark." !
I have a friend who once told me "advice" was free, so I guess it hasn't cost me anything...or has it?
For those of you who have been following me for awhile you'll recall my "hypoglycemia" episodes...no fun at all. I have really tried to watch the sugar and carbs, I count calories and measure carbs, and visa versa...I have a food journal and I record everything, stay within the limits for the most part, 95 percent of the time anyway...although I will be the first to admit I'm not perfect.
I also have tried for the past two spring and summer seasons to increase my exercise...that seems to be when I get into the most "low blood sugar" trouble.
I have tried several "seemingly" good solutions, and all the medical advice I could get...but somehow things just didn't seem to be back on track.
I do "try" to follow my own advice...
During the last two days I had been watching my counts very closely, then it happened, two things to be exact. One was the fact that I had a severe blood sugar drop! wham...then it hit me...
That day had been especially "out of the ordinary". I had been on the road all day...not able to entirely control my menu choices, just doing the best I could under the circumstances. Doing a lot of physical activity then back in the car again. That's when it hit...unexpectedly...a sugar crash.
That when I took a good hard look at the big picture: that's when I had the second "reality check". Maybe it's not about the carb count at all, or even the "quantity" I'm eating, maybe it's about the "quality" of what I'm eating, "when" I'm eating and the "combination" of foods I eat together. I did better from November through February, what could I be doing differently? Not a lot, but enough to throw my insulin off apparently.
Long story short, I've decided to try, along with counting carbs, to add in the glycemic index and the low glycemic load approach. If I can manage to follow my own advice, I'll be letting you know how it goes.
Think I can do it?
If it "fixes" my problem, for sure I can do it...
One thing I have learned, everyone's body reacts differently to foods, it takes a while to find out exactly what works for you. One thing I do know, no matter how good my efforts at food counting have been, my insulin levels are off, and when that happens is when I seem to gain weight. That is not a happy thing!
Here goes..."Julia, follow your own advice,
By the way...If anyone has any experiential "advice" that works, please share!
Julia Holloman
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back to the bars
Extend bars!
During a recent experiences with hypoglycemia I scheduled an appointment with my endocrinologist.
He also happens to be a personal friend, we attended elementary and high school together from first grade through 12th. However, he went on to medical school and is now the chief endocrinologist at East Carolina Medical Center. He is actually the one who provided me the information I needed to begin considering gastric bypass surgery four years ago.
While there, I also got a great opportunity to talk with a nutritionist at the medical center who deals regularly with weight loss surgery patients having this dilemma.
I suggest that if you have had any symptoms of hypoglycemia to seek professional advise about carb intake, which carbs are right for you and correct amounts to eat at meals and in-between.
Eating small meals with a sufficient amount of the right carbs is important to helping control blood sugar levels.
In addition to the dietary advise and other recommendations was to add an Extend bar in the afternoon along with my snack. Remember RNY patients have a different digestive system than non-RNY diabetics, however, these bars have helped me control highs and lows. They are also recommended to their patients who need help with maintaining blood sugar levels during the night.
You can find Extend Bars at Walgreen or order online. Extend also offers shakes that are high in protein. If you have experienced low blood sugar drops, I would like to hear from you and also enjoy feedback from trying Extend.
re-post from Jan 2010