Diary, January 2014 to Present *In Reverse Chronological Order* ~~ START AT THE BOTTOM IF YOU'RE NEW TO THIS PAGE ~~ Jul 17, 2015:   (11:18 pm) More good news! My A1C test results on 8 June shows maintaining an even keel at 5.6. I'm not surprised since I haven't changed my diet any. Even better, today I weighed in at 190. I'm still slowwwwwwwwly losing now. Bouncing back and forth is more like it but I haven't weighed 190 for 12 years since I first started gaining weight (mostly thanks to Prednisone I think). So if you're a newly diagnosed Type II diabetic this is what I'm doing: I keep all my meals under 30 grams of carbs. Snacks that help are Planters Redskin Peanuts (only 13 carbs in the whole can); low carb greek yogurt; Atkins snacks and meal replacement bars (really good); and some South Beach treats. Carb Balance Tortillas are a good replacement for bread and hot dog buns. Other than that just basically sticking to meat, chicken, fish and veggies. Breyers Carb Smart frozen fudge sticks are AWESOME and only 4 carbs each. Does all this get old? YES. Worth it? Most definitely. Tuesday I'm getting my eyes checked (diabetic exam). On a side note my lack of carbs doesn't seem to be causing any additional muscle issues so high carb/low carb = no difference. Feb 24, 2015:   (11:18 pm) Yesterday was the 90 day follow-up from my physical after being diagnosed with type II diabetes. I'm happy to report today that I'm being taken off Metformin. The doc said my labs were fantastic. A1C is 5.6!!! That is in the NON-diabetic range! Thank you Jesus!! I also dropped 30 pounds from my self-imposed low carb diet. Atkins makes some great chocolate substitutes by the way. All my lipid levels were totally awesome too. My triglycerides have never been better. Still just a pinch short on good cholesterol but a great improvement from past labs. I'm enjoying taking my old clothes to the local Thrift. I weighed in at 198 pounds! I am going to ride this train 'till it stops (or at least until I can get into a size 32 jean). Nov 5, 2014:   (10:23 pm) Yesterday I had my annual physical. Today I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Yay for me. :( The good news is that my A1C was only 7.1 which is just above borderline. So I'm switching to a low carb diet. I obviously can't work out so diet is my only choice. It's a good idea anyways. I need to drop some weight. Last time I tried the Atkins diet I lost 9 pounds in less than 3 weeks so this is probably a good thing. My doc has put me on 500mg metformin twice a day. So we'll see how it goes. I suppose diabetes would explain the numb feeling I get on the bottom of my feet from time to time. I'll see the doc again in Feb and I'll post the results of my efforts. Weight yesterday was 232. As for my previously mentioned ailments; no noteworthy changes good or bad. My muscles are still like bad rechargeable batteries. I also have a case of costochondritis. More than likely caused when we moved in June. It took just over 2 months to do a move that would have taken a normal person a week. I beat myself up too bad doing that I think. Still haven't recovered from it. My doc thinks I'm nuts. She's probably right. We had to do it. The old house was too big, as well the yard. The new place is much more manageable. Jan 2, 2014:   (2:04 pm) I thought it was time for an update. The good news is my cholesteral is being managed well with Zocor and it seems to have no added effect on my muscles so it's hard to say if Zocor was in fact the trigger for my muscle ailments or not. I'm leaning towards not. It does appear that my neck muscles are now effected. I've had a sore neck for going on 4 or 5 months now. I wasn't sure at first. It's not like I'm sitting center court at tennis matches all the time (or ever). I did quit smoking on the 3rd of August 2013 and have had no relapses. I can say with certainty that stress does not worsen my condition. Two days before Christmas this year we had a major plumbing foopa that is still yet to be repaired and my Mom passed away yesterday in California. God rest her soul. Click HERE to escape from a frame or if you don't see navigation links at the top of this page.