What is Reddit's opinion of Blood Glucose Monitor Kit - Diabetes Testing Kit with 1 Glucometer, 100 Blood Sugar Test Strips, 1 Lancing Device, 100 Lancets, Travel Case for Blood Glucose Meter and Diabetic Supplies?

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I wouldn't wait for my Dr. I would suggest ordering a meter off Amazon (I use this one) and extra strips to go with it. Sometimes insurance can be very stingy when it comes to diabetic supplies (if they cover them at all...mine doesn't). Then you can test more often.

There are a few here that would love to see a 5.5 A1C (me included!). That's not bad.

I would suggest simply cutting down on carbs and sugar some (make notes of what you eat and how many carbs). Carbs can be sneaky so make sure you read labels. Don't concern yourself with net carbs, just look at total carbs and record those.

If you want a meter, I use this one since the strips (where they really get you money-wise) are cheap for 100 of them. Test, eat then test after 2 hours, record the before, what you ate and after test. Since your numbers are really good, don't be afraid to experiment with things like fruits, vegetables, pasta and rice (make sure you only have the serving size on the package, not an Olive Garden serving of pasta :D ). You can then have a real-time look at which foods are doing what to you and what you may need to cut out or minimize.

Go buy a blood glucose reader and take your readings in the morning, 2 hours after eating and randomly ! You’re probably totally fine and just stressed to fuck

Also watermelon has a ton of sugar. You are probably just getting a sugar high or you’re dehydrated.

Care Touch Diabetes Testing Kit – Care Touch Blood Glucose Meter, 100 Blood Test Strips, 1 Lancing Device, 30 gauge Lancets-100 count and Carrying Case https://www.amazon.com/dp/B076VSN7TR/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_rrikFb7CRE1JZ

Something like this

I got this one: Blood Glucose Monitor Kit - Diabetes Testing Kit with 1 Glucometer, 100 Blood Sugar Test Strips, 1 Lancing Device, 100 Lancets, Travel Case for Blood Glucose Meter and Diabetic Supplies https://www.amazon.com/dp/B076VSN7TR/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_JVD0A0P74MV9A4YXZ2X1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1 and it was 20-40 points off from the lab and the monitor the doctor gave me.

Great, thank you! I'm seeing monitors for as low as $30, (this) which seems doable. Libre a bit more...I'll look into quality, or let me know if you have a sense.

I am a T2, very slim, ate right and got (and still do) plenty of exercise and was completely surprised by the diagnosis.

First find out which type you have (there's a few different ones), then breathe. Once you have that info there are plenty of folks here to talk to/vent at who have been in your shoes and can help you.

One big thing you can do right now is get yourself a glucose meter (you don't need a prescription) and plenty of strips. It's the universal tool that all diabetics use daily and while the meters are cheap the strips, depending on the brand, can be pretty expensive. Check with your insurance to see if both are covered. If not, Walmart and Amazon have them (I use this one, strips are $20 for 100 of them).

It's not your fault. At all. I will be rude for a moment, but there are extremely obese folks who can eat donuts by the handful and drink gallons of soda and will never get T2. There are folks like myself, who are skinny, got plenty of exercise and ate right, only to come out of the Dr's office with an A1C of 12. Diet can help contribute to it, but it does not cause it. You did nothing wrong, blame genetics.

Your best course of action is to immediately get a blood glucose monitor (I use this one) and test when you wake up, before you eat and two hours afterward, every meal. Get a cheap spiral notebook and write everything down, what you ate and what your readings were before and after. Log your exercise too. Set a goal (I use the old 140 fasting/180 2 hours after). Any foods that spike me higher than that are either gone completely or saved for a very special treat. A log is a great way to see real-time which foods do what to your sugars.

Try not to beat yourself up over food. We all have those days when we want something forbidden (maybe a donut, maybe a piece of fruit). Have it, savor the heck out it and move on back on track. Those indulgences every once in awhile (not every day!) make things more bearable.

The banana and potatoes have to go, sadly. Peanuts have sugar and carbs. Put on toast equals more carbs, so that may have to go too.

Diabetes is a life-long disease, no cure or reversing it, but you can be well managed. The big two are diet and exercise. You see people push Keto, fasting, etc. but everyone is different and what works for some won't work for all.

Get yourself a meter (I use this one from Amazon) and start testing before and two hours after you eat. Set a threshold (I use the old 140 before, 180 two hours after) as a marker. If something spikes me more than 180, then it's either removed completely from my diet or I treat it as a very special once-a-year thing. Diet drinks can be misleading too. Like someone else said Sparkling Ice spiked the crap out of me, however I can drink Diet Dr. Pepper all day without a blip. Make sure you test after you drink!

Also, get moving. Just the simple act of taking a brisk walk after meals can help keep sugars lower. I try to get in at least 3 miles a day, plus I put on music and just go crazy dancing around the house :).

I use CareTouch. Strips are pretty reasonable and the monitor when tested against the lab work was within one point of accuracy.

You need a glucose monitor. This is the absolute number one tool you will use a few times a day. The monitors themselves aren't expensive but the strips, depending on which you get, can be very costly. I have and use this one. The strips run $20 for 100 of them and in the beginning you'll use quite a few (mornings, before/after meals).

Every three months is standard when first diagnosed and when your A1C and BG numbers are good it's usually scaled back to once every six months.

My advice for watching your progress is to write everything down. Get a cheap notebook (school is 'starting' so spiral-bound ones are super cheap, grab a few) and record your BS numbers when waking up, before and two hours after you eat and what you ate. It helps to have a written record to look back on, especially for food (the baked chicken and broccoli was okay...the chicken with a side of carrots...oof!) and you can see your progress in real-time instead of waiting until your next appointment.

Corona Premiere only has 2.6 carbs btw :).

>I'm not currently testing at all because my strips expired and I lost my health insurance 4 months ago.

I would encourage you to test your expired strips anyway. And if you can, invest in the Caretouch glucometer and strips. The glucometer and kit is about $32 and test strips are about 25 cents each. No insurance needed

https://www.amazon.com/Care-Touch-Diabetes-Testing-Kit/dp/B076VSN7TR/ref=pd_lpo_1?pd_rd_i=B076VSN7TR&psc=1

You can buy them without a prescription. I use this meter and the strips are $20 for 100.

First, diabetes cannot be cured. Once a diabetic, always a diabetic, but with diet, exercise and sometimes (more often than not) medication you can be very well managed/controlled.

Second, and very important: YOU DID NOT DO THIS TO YOURSELF!!! There are large people who can eat dozens of donuts and drink gallons of soda daily and never get it. There are folks like myself who ate right, got plenty of exercise and get it. You got the bad luck of a crappy pancreas.

Third, you need to tell your family and use what I wrote above. Don't let them judge you, shame you, etc. It is NOT your fault. You will have to tell them because from here on out, what you eat is going to be radically different than the way you have been eating, which if you live at home or visit often almost all of the food will have to align with what you have to eat.

Fourth, the food. Low carb, no pizza/pasta/bread/cake/rice/potatoes/etc. All the good stuff that normal people eat are off the table. The Diet Doctor has a good list of what you should eat and what you need to avoid. Some folks will tell you keto, other say one-meal-a-day, others say fasting. Only YOU can decide which diet/way of eating you choose to go with. My advice is to eat to your meter, testing before you take a bite and two hours after. This is a good way to see which foods do what to you and what's safe and what's not. It's important to note that this is going to be a lifelong journey, so finding a way to eat and being able to stick with it for the long haul is what you need to look at.

Five, the meter. Yes you need a meter, no way around that. Some folks use the continuous meters, but those are very expensive and most insurance companies don't cover them. For the rest of us, we finger-stick numerous times a day. I hate needles to the point I almost pass out when I have to have my labs done. But if I can manage to stick myself, then anyone can. There are Youtube videos on how to do it painlessly so I'd check those out. Where to get a meter? If insurance provides one, great! If not, WalMart has their ReliOn brand, both the meter and strips (strips are the most expensive part and you'll use a ton of them) are pretty cheap. I use this one from Amazon and the strips aren't too bad price-wise. You need one of these ASAP.

Six, the tests. Simply, A1C measures the amount of sugar in your blood over a 3 month period. Your doctor may have you come in every 3-6 months for testing (it can get expensive though) to check your numbers. You want to work at getting whatever your number is now down below 7. Your fasting glucose is the amount of sugar in your blood from your last meal (when I was diagnosed mine was 268 after fasting for 14 hours). Ideally you want your fasting number below 140, and you want to keep your two hour after eating number below 180. Some folks go for much lower numbers, but I think as to not overwhelm you (which I probably did with this post) that's a good starting point.

Seven, get moving. Exercise is a big key to helping lower numbers. Walking/jogging, dancing, etc. Just like diet, find something you like to do that get's you moving and...well, get moving! :) And make sure you drink plenty of water.

Good luck, we're here for you.

First, the best testing kit is the one you can afford. Check with your insurance to see if they cover a meter and strips and if they do great! If not, Walmart has their Relion brand and strips are easy (and cheap) to get (the meters are cheap, the strips are really where they get you). I use the Caretouch system from Amazon. You need to get a meter ASAP, as that is really the number one tool to manage this disease. You'll need to test numerous times a day, so make sure you pick up plenty of strips...you'll go through them quick.

Food-wise, that's a bit harder (okay, a lot harder) to start but it does get easier, I promise. Carbs are what you need to cut out, so that includes no more pizza/pasta/bread/etc. Don't look at how much sugar things have, it's how many carbs. Some folks will tell you you have to do keto, or fasting, or something else. You don't. That meter? That's where it comes in handy. I eat to my meter, I test right before I eat and two hours after. If I get a huge spike then that food is a no-no in my diet. The Diet Doctor has a good visual list of what's safe and what's not. But don't be afraid to experiment some, as some of us can handle certain fruits and vegetables that are higher in carb than others. Just test-eat-test. You're aiming for less than 180 after you eat, less than 140 fasting. Some folks keep theirs much lower/tighter, but depending on what other things you may have going on body-wise that's a good start.

Exercise is important as it helps lower our sugars. Walking is excellent and anyone can do it. I can manage to rack up 3-4 miles a day walking in my house (I have a small house, not a mansion and I walk with purpose from one end to the other). Ask Santa for a Fitbit or similar tracker (I use my phone) to track your steps. Plus you can add other exercise, like yoga, dance, etc. Plenty of free videos on YouTube to get moving.

You got this.

First off, there is nothing YOU did to get this horrid thing. Genes and bad luck is what did it, not eating your way there. There are very large folks who can eat dozens of donuts and drink gallons of soda and never get it and then there are the skinny in shape folks (myself included) who do. I curse my pancreas daily...you should too.

Second, I never took my meds. I've read side-effects, read about other people's experiences with them and decided nope. There are folks who do get off them, so it can be done.

Third, yes you NEED a glucose meter! That is the number one tool we use. Walmart has their ReliOn brand which many people use (ignore the cost of the meter, those are cheap. The strips are where they get you!) and some of use this one from Amazon. You will need this to test before and after meals to see which foods are doing what to you, which ones spike you (those are a no-no) and which ones don't.

Fourth, The Diet Doctor has a good guide as to what to eat and what to avoid. You need to avoid/scale down carbs, so no bread/pasta/sweets/rice/etc. Now, people will come in here saying "You need to go keto!!", "One-Meal-A-Day is the way!"...and so on. Diabetes is different for each of us and what works for one may not work for someone else. Only you will know your body and by testing different foods yourself can you figure out what you can and cannot have. Some of us can have rice, some of us can have all the fruits, etc. Until you test and record (apps are nice, but old-fashioned pencil and paper work just as well) what you eat and the results of eating will you know for sure.

Fifth, keeping your numbers lower highly improves the chances that you can live a very long life without any of issues that diabetes causes. This disease sucks and it's a lifelong journey of watching what you eat, testing, rinse and repeat. You can never be cured (be VERY weary of those who claim you can cure/reverse it...you can't but you can be well managed) but keeping on top of it improves the odds in your favor.

Some insurance companies cover continuous monitors, some don't. They are expensive, so make sure it may be something you can cover out of pocket for the long haul. I prick my fingers using this monitor. It's really not that bad (the pricking and I too hate needles) and the strips (which are the expensive part) are affordable and always available.

I do not follow keto or any of the other diets. I eat to my meter, which means I test, eat then test two hours after. If I get a huge spike I stay away from that food. This gives me much more freedom with what I eat and it was recommended by my Registered Dietitian. If you can I recommend seeing one as well (NOT a Nutritionalist), as they can help tailor a diet for you. This list fromThe Diet Doctor is a good guide as to what to eat and what to avoid and a good place to start your journey.

Are you in the USA? Amazon has a decent glucometer setup for about 32 bucks : https://www.amazon.com/Care-Touch-Diabetes-Testing-Kit/dp/B076VSN7TR/ref=sr_1_5?keywords=glucometer&qid=1551998813&s=gateway&sr=8-5

Sadly some doctors are like that and honestly thank goodness for the internet! If I hadn't had found this forum and a couple others I really would have no idea what I needed to do.

If you can, try to make an appointment with a Registered Dietitian (NOT a Nutritionalist). They can help tailor a diet to your needs.

Very important: if they did not give you a glucose meter to check your sugars (which it sounds like they didn't), please get one ASAP! This is the number one tool that every diabetic must have. You can get one from Amazon, WalMart, etc. You do not need a prescription to get one, make sure you get plenty of test strips (those can be expensive depending on the meter you get. My Caretouch strips from Amazon run $20 for 100) because you will be testing quite a bit.

I use the Test-Eat-Test method with my diet, meaning I test right before I shove food in my face, eat and then test two hours after. I tend to keep my sugar around 140 or lower and try to not eat things that will take me up to 180 or higher. Any higher than that and that food is a no-no period. Some folks will say my numbers are too high, but for me personally since I have other conditions and take other meds those work for me.

You will have to cut carbs, so no pasta/bread/rice/sweets/etc. I do not follow this diet, but The Diet Doctor has a good list of what to eat and what to avoid. With the holidays and all the temptations coming, being dx'd around this time totally sucks (I was in your shoes last year) and you are allowed to be mad/angry/cry/yell. Hell I still do! This is not something you did to yourself, you got the bad luck of having a crappy pancreas and having to give up so much good stuff in general is a huge blow. You aren't alone, we're all here for each other...and you.

So for the record, I didn’t use this one specifically, it’s just the first one I saw: link

From the photo, the bright blue things are lancets - they’re basically the needles that go into your fingers. You’ll want to alternative fingers when testing - that helps prevent scarring (if you reuse them too much, it’ll get dull which causes the scarring). New lancet per blood draw. You’ll want to take the blood from the sides of the finger (though idk why) - too far to the side though and it’ll hurt more than necessary.

The test strips (here’s a closer look) are what reads your blood after pricking your finger. The side with the arrow goes into the machine and you’ll want the strip in the machine before you draw the blood (other side of strip, in the middle). Not sure if it was my machine being finicky, but I had to angle it a certain way so the blood wasn’t drawn up too quickly or the machine would throw up an error - you’ll have to play around with that. The strips are really the most expensive part in all of this (there’s bits of gold in it) but it’s also the bit you can’t reuse.

The silver pen looking thing is what holds the lancet. You basically open it like a pen and put a lancet in before recapping. You’ll probably have numbers - the lower the number, the less the lancet comes out (shallower prick), the higher the number, the more the needle comes out (deeper prick / if you develop calluses).

Ideal, by the books method of using it is alcohol swab the finger/area you will prick. Put a new lancet into the pen thing. Turn on machine and put the strip in. Immediately prick, squeeze blood out, dip the strip into the puddle of blood and wait the 1-2 seconds for your result (or notification of error...in which case you repeat the dipping with a new test strip). Clean and bandage your finger.

You’ll want most tests under 140. Occasional blips are ok (ie your baby shower and gender reveal are ok) but don’t make it a daily thing.

The meals don’t have to be full sit down meals - 3 normal meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner) + 3 snacks in between...which is a lot easier said than done in the beginning. After like a week, I found myself constantly starving so that made eating a lot easier (ofc then I found myself staring longingly at my food and waiting for the next meal to come).

For tracking purposes, I found glucose buddy to be great. I jotted down what I ate in the notes section and at the end of the week, you can download a report with your numbers and your meals come up as little footnotes.

Edit: as an aside, the monitor comes with a pouch for you to put everything into. There’s a mesh zipper pocket on one side (for bandaids, alcohol pads, lancets) and elastic bands on the other. Both the pen and monitor goes alongside the spine, the test strips stay in the container it comes in and goes perpendicular to the spine.