# Hiya from a new Type 2



## karloc (Sep 9, 2019)

Hi, Ive been diagnosed with Type 2 now for almost 6 hours.
And high blood pressure for about 2 weeks.
So just the start of my journey, got some meds, pointed at this site by the Doctor.
Not really sure what to do, where to start but I am sure it will come with time.


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## CathyB (Sep 9, 2019)

Hi Karloc, welcome to the club no one wants to join   It’s a bit of a mine field at the start but once you get your head around it you will see it’s not so bad   Not sure what you have been told so far but it’s not just sugar you need to cut, carbohydrates are the main problem, especially rice, pasta, potatoes and bread, our body uses these exactly the same way it would a slice of cake!  Most of us here have chosen low carb high fat diet as a way to manage our blood sugar and weight.  Be careful with fruit as that also has loads of natural sugar, especially the tropical fruits, grapes are little sugar balls!
Best advice I could give would be to first read as many back posts as you can, then ask any questions you might have


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## SueEK (Sep 9, 2019)

Hello Karloc and welcome to our club. As Cathy suggests having a good look round is probably your best first step and then ask all you want, we are all happy to help you in any way we can. Just about everyone is either overwhelmed, panicked, emotional, confused, shocked, scared or all of these when first diagnosed. It’s something we don’t expect to happen and as you said we don’t know what to do. Carbs are the big thing to reduce as much as you possibly can, if you need to lose weight this will help a lot as will increasing your exercise if you can.
It is very early to go into much detail so I will leave it at that for the time being and look forward to seeing your posts when you are ready.  Sue x


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## Eddy Edson (Sep 9, 2019)

karloc said:


> Hi, Ive been diagnosed with Type 2 now for almost 6 hours.
> And high blood pressure for about 2 weeks.
> So just the start of my journey, got some meds, pointed at this site by the Doctor.
> Not really sure what to do, where to start but I am sure it will come with time.



6 hours and you're not an expert yet?? 

Kidding! It took me about 3 months from diagnosis until I had any kind of clue. 

Anyway, take your time to learn and process info. Maybe over a couple of weeks get together a list of everything you want to ask and go over with yr doc/nurse.  Don't launch into radical changes unprepared - you need to work out a strategy which will work for you over the long term.  Everybody is different, and nobody on message boards etc is an expert in anything but their own diabetes, so what works for them may or may not be right for you. 

Good luck!


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## karloc (Sep 11, 2019)

Thank you for the welcome.
I have been reading lots and lots - so much information 

My story (I think) is a bit different to most (obviously similarities at points)
I was actually relieved (i think) to get a diagnosis.
I have been 'unwell' for quite a long time and finally went to the doctor with a suspicion that it was diabetes.
I am overweight, not active enough and bad diet.

Got my blood results for doctor - HbA1c 86 mmol/mol
16 stone (5ft 9) - should be 10 stone according to BMI sites
I have been given Metformin 500mg, 1 a day first week, then 2 a day week 2, and 3 a day to week 3.

I would say that at least half (maybe more) of my carbs daily were from sugar (mmm love that stuff) many coffees, coke, fruit juice.
I have mostly 1 maybe 2 meals a day some times a few biscuits.
I know my diet was bad.

So changes I am starting to make are going to be massive - I know that.
I am not sure the best way of doing it but I have started with dropping sugar, my thinking is I need to add some carbs (low) to my diet throughout the day rather than big hits else I could hit 0 carbs which I think is bad.
I am getting periods of tiredness but I was having them before so tricky to know how its going 

I have decided to get a blood glucose monitoring tester as I think I need to know what my levels are doing. Should arrive in a couple of days.
I have assumed that the Metformin should be per meal and the limit of 1 a day first week etc is about how I get along with that med and if that is the case jumping up to 3 meals a day might not be best. Plus as I need to loose lots of weight I am hoping that keeping my current few meals with dropping sugar and reducing carbs in those meals will help weight loss.

Seeing diabetes nurse in a week or so on my own for now.

One bit of useful information I found is the part fibre plays, it confused me that you need more fibre but its a carb. But I found somewhere that we can't digest fibre so when looking at the amount of carbs in a food, you deduct the fibre figure from the carbs figure to get the digestible carbs figure. Hope this is correct


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## Eddy Edson (Sep 11, 2019)

karloc said:


> One bit of useful information I found is the part fibre plays, it confused me that you need more fibre but its a carb. But I found somewhere that we can't digest fibre so when looking at the amount of carbs in a food, you deduct the fibre figure from the carbs figure to get the digestible carbs figure. Hope this is correct



In the UK, food labels show "carbs" net of fibre and I think generally showing the amount of fibre is optional unless the vendor is making some kind of "high in fibre" claim. In the US, carbs include fibre and fibre is shown separately. Worth bearing in mind if you're looking at US sites for nutrient info. 

I really don't like the UK way of doing things. For one thing, I want to know how much fibre I'm eating. 

For another, some fibre actually does get converted into glucose. This is highly variable & depends on the type of fibre, the person, your gut microbes, phases of the moon etc etc, but it can have an impact.  Eg: the American Diabetes Association carb-counting recommendations say include half the amount of fibre in your carb count if you're eating more than 5g (I think) in a meal.

Finally, calorie counts generally do the same thing: include half the amount of fibre for calorie purposes. So if you're micromanaging calories it's hard to do if fibre is missing from the food labelling.


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## karloc (Sep 11, 2019)

Ok thanks, so some high fibre foods are just high carbs anyway.
I had a feeling that people would vary with how they deal with fibre.
I'm in the UK


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## rebrascora (Sep 11, 2019)

Hi and welcome from me too.

Biggest tip is to take Metformin with a significant meal, not just a snack and take it mid meal. It doesn't matter too much when you take it, morning and night is usually suggested but if you only have a light breakfast then lunch and evening is probably better. Only eating 2 meals a day is not a problem in itself and some of us find that is best once we embark on a low carb diet with just a small snack to tide us over in between . Most people get some digestive upset from Metformin in the early days/weeks, which is why introduction is slow, to allow the body to get used to it, but if you take it mid meal and you are still getting unacceptable side effects after a couple of weeks, ask for the slow release version.
Good luck getting your BG under control. It takes a bit of getting your head around but we have all been on that roller coaster journey.... I too was a sugar addict pre diagnosis and it feels good to be back in control of that although I may now have developed a blue cheese addiction!!


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## karloc (Sep 12, 2019)

My blood glucose monitoring tester arrived early - yay
13.00 - 8.1 (very few carbs this morning)
13.30 - Light lunch (no metformin)
14.30 - 9.2
16.00 - 9.0
Not to bad I think


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## ScottCourt (Sep 12, 2019)

Can I ask what tester you went for. I seem to be in a very similar situation. Thanks


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## karloc (Sep 12, 2019)

The codefree one from amazon as recommended on here somewhere 
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Codefree-G...r_1_6?keywords=codefree&qid=1568322534&sr=8-6
As far as I can tell it works fine, only come with 10 strips so got some extra and some stabby things


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## ScottCourt (Sep 13, 2019)

Thank you. Excuse my ignorance but you need a new stabby thing every time you test?

I’ve started on the Metformin once per day with the evening meal (2 days in) but then need to move up to 2 per day in a week.


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## Eddy Edson (Sep 13, 2019)

Most people here seem to use the same stabby thing until it gets too blunt - so for several months. That’s what I do.


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## SueEK (Sep 13, 2019)

I change my shabby thing every few days x


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## karloc (Sep 13, 2019)

I thought that i would just get new stabby thing for each time as they were relatively inexpensive £7 for 300. I may change over time


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## SueEK (Sep 13, 2019)

karloc said:


> I thought that i would just get new stabby thing for each time as they were relatively inexpensive £7 for 300. I may change over time


I used to use a fresh one each time but I bruise whether it’s used once or a dozen times and tester only on the second lightest setting, obviously I’m a delicate little petal lol x


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## karloc (Sep 13, 2019)

Morning reading 5.7 - My first reading in a good range, time to celebrate with some sugar - lol


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## rebrascora (Sep 13, 2019)

Congrats on a great fasting reading! Looks like you are getting the hang of things very quickly. Well done!

I'm one of those that uses the same lancet (stabby thing) for months without any problem. I have very thick skin and need it on the top setting but I haven't noticed any problems with using it multiple times and the only time I change it is when it stops penetrating the skin on the top setting or I have to massage my finger a lot after pricking it to get blood as that is when your fingers get sore. I tend to use the same finger for a day and the next finger the following day. I sometimes test as often as 10 times a day and don't have any problems with sore fingers. I guess I am the opposite of @SueEK


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## karloc (Sep 13, 2019)

Thank you, I am sure it will take time to properly get a handle on it, but trying to understand 
3 hours after 5.7 jumped to 7.1 - little bit surprised after 2 white coffees (oh how i miss you sugar) and small tomato juice - learn learn learn 
But starting to feel less tired which will help in increasing my activity.
Slight blurry vision issue this morning. But I have glasses and vision changing (focus distance) was an issue I had so I guess it will take a while to settle and I am overdue for new glasses anyway.
Reading / long distance lenses are ok but the Task-oriented lenses have changed since yesterday.


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## rebrascora (Sep 13, 2019)

It is normal for BG to wander upwards once you get up and about in the morning. It is called the Dawn Phenomena (DP) and is caused by the liver releasing Glycogen into the blood stream supposedly to give you the energy to chase down and kill a woolly mammoth! If you are able to take a brisk walk, that may bring it down.
I also used to love sugar in my coffee and it had steadily crept up to the point that I just shook some in out of the sugar pot which would easily equate to 3 heaped teaspoons. I stopped drinking coffee when I was first diagnosed because I didn't want it without sugar. Now that my tastes have changed and I have broken my sugar addiction, I am back to drinking coffee but I have it with cream and milk instead of sugar and milk and I love it. It has taken a little bit of time to adjust, but the cream just seems to make it sweeter and smoother and it fits in with my Low Carb High Fat diet. I used to feel quite guilty about such luxuries as coffee with cream but then I remember that there are so many other things that I can no longer have, that many people take for granted and I accept that my morning coffee and cream just makes up for that. I decided that cream was preferable to eating lots of sweeteners which just feed your sweet tooth and make you continue to crave sweet things rather than re-educate your palette.
I still have days when my sight is better and other days when it is worse and I am 7 months down the line with my diabetes diagnosis. My distance sight is good but some days I need glasses to read the computer screen and food labels etc and other days I can manage without. I will say that my BG levels are still higher than normal most of the time (in the 8-10 range), so perhaps it will settle when I maintain better control. Getting your insulin and BG levels balanced is a tricky business!


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## SueEK (Sep 13, 2019)

karloc said:


> Thank you, I am sure it will take time to properly get a handle on it, but trying to understand
> 3 hours after 5.7 jumped to 7.1 - little bit surprised after 2 white coffees (oh how i miss you sugar) and small tomato juice - learn learn learn
> But starting to feel less tired which will help in increasing my activity.
> Slight blurry vision issue this morning. But I have glasses and vision changing (focus distance) was an issue I had so I guess it will take a while to settle and I am overdue for new glasses anyway.
> Reading / long distance lenses are ok but the Task-oriented lenses have changed since yesterday.


Your blurry vision may be because you have started Metformin. I had the same thing, couldn’t read my computer screen at work, and confess I really freaked. It turns out that high bg levels allows the diabetes to take fluid from all over, including the back of your eyes, and so when Metformin readjusts your body to what it should be it also allows the body to replace the fluid, including behind the eyes, which results in you having blurred vision for a while. For me it was about a week I think but I think it took longer for other people. Do not go and buy new glasses as this should settle. If it doesn’t then obviously follow it up.
Hope that makes sense, got a headache and not really thinking straight!!


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## karloc (Sep 13, 2019)

rebrascora said:


> It is normal for BG to wander upwards once you get up and about in the morning. It is called the Dawn Phenomena (DP) and is caused by the liver releasing Glycogen into the blood stream supposedly to give you the energy to chase down and kill a woolly mammoth! If you are able to take a brisk walk, that may bring it down.


Interesting, thanks so much to learn 

Sweeteners are not an issue for me has I hate them so so much. We ended up with some half and half sugar (my wife claims must have delivered wrong one, I'm not sure  ) but made coffee as normal and literally spat it out  - so its not just in my mind.

Not sure how I will cope over time with my sweet tooth - In fact so sweet is my tooth that I won't touch brown sugar because I find it not sweet 

Thanks for the info about eye sight.


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## karloc (Sep 13, 2019)

SueEK said:


> Your blurry vision may be because you have started Metformin. I had the same thing, couldn’t read my computer screen at work, and confess I really freaked. It turns out that high bg levels allows the diabetes to take fluid from all over, including the back of your eyes, and so when Metformin readjusts your body to what it should be it also allows the body to replace the fluid, including behind the eyes, which results in you having blurred vision for a while. For me it was about a week I think but I think it took longer for other people. Do not go and buy new glasses as this should settle. If it doesn’t then obviously follow it up.
> Hope that makes sense, got a headache and not really thinking straight!!



Thanks, changing / blurry vision was an issue I was having before being diagnosed so I guess no real shock that its happening. Getting old gave me blurry vision to start with so its likely to get worse over time and I suspected that the Diabetes was having a hand it that also. Not noticed such a fast change before but I guess I had a steady high BG before. Only on day 5 so early days and I know it will take some time but good to know what is 'normal'.
Hope your headache goes soon


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## Red9 (Sep 13, 2019)

good luck.

I follow Dr Michael Mosley’s research and it’s working for me.

https://books.google.co.uk/books/ab...=frontcover&source=kp_read_button&redir_esc=y


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## Drummer (Sep 13, 2019)

Tomato is a fruit - and fruit juices are to be avoided - they make absorbing the sugar so much easier and faster as the fluid from the cells is released as the process of juicing breaks open the cells.
I use a fresh lancet every time - I am a musician and do not want even the slightest of problems with my fingertips.


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## karloc (Sep 13, 2019)

Drummer said:


> Tomato is a fruit - and fruit juices are to be avoided - they make absorbing the sugar so much easier and faster as the fluid from the cells is released as the process of juicing breaks open the cells.


I probably shouldn't have it but my reasoning to myself is... After suddenly stopping 5 to 10 coffees at 15g sugar each and 3+ cans of coke at 35g sugar each per day. It would be nice to have a nice tasty drink available and at 35g carbs per litre it would be ok . I have been having less each day and tomato is a magic fruit .


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## Drummer (Sep 13, 2019)

Oh I have no problem with tomato as it comes - when I responded I had just eaten one with breakfast - I would usually have had a coffee with cream afterwards, but I have been removing the 'dead' dishwasher and putting in the new one.  Not doing badly for a 68 year old granny.
Yes you have made big changes, and probably really lowered your intake of carbs - I did the same, but I have found that to even be just at the top of normal I need to be so careful. I eat less than 40 gm of carb a day - but I suspect that I have had a long history of glucose intolerance which has been disregarded by the doctors who have always pushed diets with high carb and low fat. I have always been heavy, even when I had a 24 inch waist, as I was physically strong - I could swing by my arms across a 14 rung horizontal ladder in the local park - I did it twice a day Monday to Friday just to be sure I could, but the muscle was interpreted as 'over weight' equalling 'fat' - I used to be very active out of doors, but was advised to buy exercise videos and join a gym. I did not even have a TV....
If you have no long history of dieting you might very well find that you have a lot more leeway than I do.


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## TheClockworkDodo (Sep 13, 2019)

Hi @karloc and a slightly belated welcome to the forum 

I had a lot of vision changes around the time I was diagnosed (in fact, it was my optician who first suggested I might be diabetic).  I was advised not to get new glasses for at least six months, as it may take that long for your eyes to settle, apparently.

The problem with juice is that it is very fast-acting - to the extent that it can be used as a treatment for dangerously low blood sugar.  Fruit which hasn't been juiced isn't quite so fast-acting, and tomatoes are relatively low in carbs so a good fruit to eat - but no fruit juice is good to drink for a diabetic (unless they are like me and have very frequent lows!).  Are there any herbal or fruit teas you like? - they'd be a better choice for an alternative to coffee.


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## karloc (Sep 13, 2019)

Thanks for welcome


TheClockworkDodo said:


> I had a lot of vision changes around the time I was diagnosed (in fact, it was my optician who first suggested I might be diabetic). I was advised not to get new glasses for at least six months, as it may take that long for your eyes to settle, apparently.


I will wait, thanks - unless I need to move much further back from my computer when I might not have a choice 



TheClockworkDodo said:


> The problem with juice is that it is very fast-acting - to the extent that it can be used as a treatment for dangerously low blood sugar. Fruit which hasn't been juiced isn't quite so fast-acting, and tomatoes are relatively low in carbs so a good fruit to eat - but no fruit juice is good to drink for a diabetic (unless they are like me and have very frequent lows!). Are there any herbal or fruit teas you like? - they'd be a better choice for an alternative to coffee.


Never going to give up my coffee , My beautiful espresso machine NEEDS me .
And herbal teas can smell nice but no, just no for me .


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## karloc (Sep 14, 2019)

Second morning of BG 5.7 yay .

More active around the house then I felt a bit shaky, checked my BG and 6.2 so I guess it's a sign of being unfit .
Feeling bit better after sitting / resting for a while, i guess i should check my blood pressure after 30 min rest.


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## rebrascora (Sep 14, 2019)

Wow! Congratulations again. Great consistency! Wish I could get 2 fasting readings somewhere near the same.

I often feel shaky or unusually fatigued when it isn't a hypo. My consultant thinks it isn't diabetes related, but so far other tests haven't found a cause. I hope that he is wrong and when I get my BG more stable, it will improve.


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## karloc (Sep 14, 2019)

rebrascora said:


> Wow! Congratulations again. Great consistency! Wish I could get 2 fasting readings somewhere near the same.
> 
> I often feel shaky or unusually fatigued when it isn't a hypo. My consultant thinks it isn't diabetes related, but so far other tests haven't found a cause. I hope that he is wrong and when I get my BG more stable, it will improve.


Thanks, think I just needed a rest then much better - Still think my body is just shouted, Oi where is that sugar I'm used to


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## rebrascora (Sep 14, 2019)

karloc said:


> Still think my body is just shouted, Oi where is that sugar I'm used to



Yes that is exactly how I feel!


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## silentsquirrel (Sep 14, 2019)

karloc said:


> Second morning of BG 5.7 yay .
> 
> More active around the house then I felt a bit shaky, checked my BG and 6.2 so I guess it's a sign of being unfit .
> Feeling bit better after sitting / resting for a while, i guess i should check my blood pressure after 30 min rest.


Could be what we call a false hypo - if your levels have been above normal, your body objects to lower levels.  This will change as your bg levels come down.  Have a cup of tea, or perhaps half a biscuit.


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## karloc (Sep 14, 2019)

Thanks

Just been out to late lunch at Beefeater with family - time to check the damage soon


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## TheClockworkDodo (Sep 14, 2019)

karloc said:


> Never going to give up my coffee , My beautiful espresso machine NEEDS me .
> And herbal teas can smell nice but no, just no for me .


Sorry, I misunderstood - I thought you'd had the tomato juice because you thought you couldn't have coffee any more.  Much better (at least for your diabetes) to have the coffee and ditch the tomato juice!


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## karloc (Sep 14, 2019)

TheClockworkDodo said:


> Sorry, I misunderstood - I thought you'd had the tomato juice because you thought you couldn't have coffee any more.  Much better (at least for your diabetes) to have the coffee and ditch the tomato juice!


No problem . The Tomato juice is a sort of security blanket gives me something better than sugar in coffee or coke, that was my thinking. Not good but better.
Such a major change is hard


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## KARNAK (Sep 15, 2019)

Hello @karloc another belated welcome to the forum.


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## karloc (Sep 16, 2019)

KARNAK said:


> Hello @karloc another belated welcome to the forum.


Thank you 

Morning reading of 5.2 (my lowest so far) after 3 mornings of 5.7.
Feels like its going well and managed to loose 6lbs (still many to go).
Blood pressure also looking better.

My biggest issue at the moment is the change to my eye site, that slight change at a point when i needed to change my glasses is making it a struggle mostly when at the computer which is where I spend most of my time


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## KARNAK (Sep 16, 2019)

Hello again @karloc  5.2 is regarded as the most natural figure on waking, DUK forum. My eyes were very blurry on diagnosis (DX) it lasted about a month and cleared up. I still get blurriness now and then but that is usually due to high BS (Blood Sugars) e.g. over ten, if you want too can you post your waking figures on https://forum.diabetes.org.uk/boards/threads/group-7-day-waking-average.20148/ its a bit of fun but members can keep an eye on each other and give advice where needed, take care.


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## karloc (Sep 16, 2019)

KARNAK said:


> My eyes were very blurry on diagnosis (DX) it lasted about a month and cleared up. I still get blurriness now and then but that is usually due to high BS (Blood Sugars) e.g. over ten.


Thanks, a number of people have said it will take a little while.

It's a pain when I need to see now .
Just about coping to read this forum by increasing the font size and leaning back a foot to bring it into focus  or using my reading glasses but they are varifocal with reading focus at bottom which is not good for looking at monitors.
As I have only just been diagnosed (weekiversary today) I don't know how long my BG has been high (but I suspect some time as a typical man I just ignored symtoms). I started having to have reading glasses maybe 10 years ago when I found my arms were no longer long enough. 
Over time it's gotten worse and I now suspect is partly BG levels. It will be a financial pain if I have to get new prescriptions while my sight is still changing/settling down but I can't really work how it is atm .
Switched glasses while writing this and the reading part of varifocals ones gives better and more comfortable vision (I think) and maybe the having to constantly move my head will help towards increasing my activity levels


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## TheClockworkDodo (Sep 16, 2019)

Apparently you can get cheap reading glasses from places like Poundland, which might be a temporary solution.


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## karloc (Sep 16, 2019)

TheClockworkDodo said:


> Apparently you can get cheap reading glasses from places like Poundland, which might be a temporary solution.


I think my eyesight is a bit beyond that type of reading glasses, but thanks it does make me think 
Have I got any old glasses but I need longer arms so change has gone wrong way for that probably.
Or maybe if I can find my reading prescription (which if I find will be in small print - dam opticians so my wife might have to read it ) I can see if there is a cheap option on the internet.
So big thanks for your idea


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## karloc (Sep 18, 2019)

Decided to get an eye test as I am really struggling with not seeing .
Eye test was free, yay .
Optician did not appear to think my vision would change again, but I am not so sure so will wait until getting new proper glasses.
So have ordered some intermediate glasses at cheapest possible. £19 is not too bad and whilst a bit more expensive that buying online, just feels a bit better getting them from optician in case of issues.
Now the wait for them to be available .


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## rebrascora (Sep 18, 2019)

karloc said:


> Decided to get an eye test as I am really struggling with not seeing .
> Eye test was free, yay .
> Optician did not appear to think my vision would change again, but I am not so sure so will wait until getting new proper glasses.
> So have ordered some intermediate glasses at cheapest possible. £19 is not too bad and whilst a bit more expensive that buying online, just feels a bit better getting them from optician in case of issues.
> Now the wait for them to be available .


I did the same thing although I also have pound shop reading glasses. I find that the prescription glasses are great for sitting down and reading a book (something I seldom find time for) but for the computer, I much prefer my pound shop ones as the distance is wrong for my PC screen with the proper ones.


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## karloc (Sep 18, 2019)

rebrascora said:


> I did the same thing although I also have pound shop reading glasses. I find that the prescription glasses are great for sitting down and reading a book (something I seldom find time for) but for the computer, I much prefer my pound shop ones as the distance is wrong for my PC screen with the proper ones.



Intermediate lenses are set for focal length of about arms length which is what i need for computer screens. Reading glasses have shorter focal length so don't work for screens unless you get too close.
As i need eye correction just reading glasses would not help .


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## karloc (Sep 19, 2019)

Yay I found a temp eye sight fix


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