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My Diabetic Health by Tim Harris |
- Posted 20 January 2026 - |
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Introduction
There are likely many
countless different web pages detailing experiences of type 2 diabetes so
here's mine. This is an
account of how I've been managing diabetes. I hope it is of some interest
even if it's of no use, or of some use even if it's of no interest.
I have no medical background, simply
determination to succeed. I am signed up to the NHS app and I find it
invaluable for looking at test results. I am also signed up to the NHS
Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Diabetic Eye Screening Programme.
Anyone with a clear mind will listen to and
absorb information/advice/assistance given by medical professionals or via
the NHS website,
but your health is ultimately your own responsibility.
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Since my type 2 diabetes diagnosis during
August 2024 I have formulated, over time, a set of ideals that I feel other
diabetics might find useful. Top of the list is determination and willpower. I have no other known medical conditions. Key factors: 1 Determination and willpower 2 To set realistic goals over a realistic timescale. 2A Formulate a realistic plan comprising Targets, Aims and Hopes (TAH) 2B Work towards a realistic timetable 3 Less food, more exercise 4 Cut down on, but do not cut out, everything 5 Aim for putting Type 2 diabetes into remission 6 Weigh yourself once per month and only once 7 Do not reward yourself with food or drink when you have reached one of your targets 8 Be truthful to yourself and to your Doctor/Health team 9 Realise that you are human and will not stick to all your rules at all times; do not beat yourself up about it. 10 Remember: What works for me may not work for you. What works for you may not work for me. |
Comments / Notes |
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You're doing this for your health. If you can't gain the willpower you need
for yourself, do it for those who care about you. 2 Targets, Aims, Hopes (TAH) Targets: Must be met Aims: Would be nice Hopes: Of greater benefit when possible. Only to be achieved when in the mood, but not at the expense of feeling too pressured by it. When setting TAH, be generous to yourself such that you will always reach your Target. Don't set impossibly high levels that cause you to give up quickly. Do not create a Target that will automatically put you under great pressure. Have a target that you can maintain over the long term. Review your targets, aims and hopes every so often. Are you making progress, and do you need to revise levels up or down. 3 Over time this gets easier and the benefits are great. 4 If a medical professional says cut out all sugar right now, listen to them. Otherwise, be honest with yourself and cut down the best you can over a period of time. 5 Type 2 Diabetes has no current cure but can be put into remission. When you have returned to a healthy weight alongside healthy sugar and cholesterol levels, you may no longer need medication such as Metformin or Statins to regulate your diabetes/cholesterol. You would still need to continue to maintain healthy levels, or you may require medication once more. 6 It is easier to gain weight than to lose it. Weigh yourself at the start of your plan but leave it at least a month before weighing yourself again. Also note that muscle weighs more than fat. As time passes and the fitter you get, your weight might not decrease as much due to gaining healthy muscle mass. 7 Disassociate food and drink from any reward system you have in place. If you reach a target of losing 5lbs in 3 months do not say to yourself that you deserve a doughnut, treat yourself to a pastime that you enjoy (a trip to the theatre, cinema, etc, etc) 8 Don't tell the medical professionals that you've cut out sweets if you're having a bag a week. Any advice health professionals give is based on what you tell them. 9 Breaking your rules on one day is not the end of the world but try not to do it often. 10 My way is not the only way but it is the way that works for me. No other way will work for me, so advice on alternate methods is unnecessary. Everyone has their own opinions but should assume that I'm not interested in hearing them :)
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| Background I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes during August 2024 with high readings for sugar, cholesterol and blood pressure levels. Despite the high sugar levels I was of the opinion that I needed to reduce my cholesterol down as the main priority and that my sugar levels and blood pressure levels would drop as a result. However, whilst I saw cholesterol as the priority, I took steps to reduce my sugar levels with immediate effect alongside cholesterol. My plan from day one was to cut back on food and fizzy drinks, and to walk a lot more. I did not convert to a specific diet as I knew this was not for me. I did not want to ever need insulin, or to take weight-loss drugs, or to develop blindness, and those three priorities are what have formed my Determination and Willpower to succeed. I cut out all crisps and cut my carb intake straight away: for example I dropped my roast potato portion down from 8 to 3 potatoes for Sunday lunch. I cut all portions of all foods down. I still occasionally have packets of crisps, on average one a month and I don't miss them. Over time I cut down on sweets, chocolates, biscuits, cakes, ice cream, and desserts in general, to a point where I no longer crave them (except for sponge cakes for some time, but I finally seem to have beaten that too). I occasionally have sweets, chocolate or biscuits but it is rare. I cut out all fizzy drinks, whereas I had been drinking two or three cans a day for around 9 months prior, and in lesser quantities than that before. I very occasionally have a fizzy drink now, about once every two months but it is far and few between. My main drink now is water, roughly two litres a day over the course of the day. Although I had cut down my alcoholic intake as of June 2018 I still cut down further and I don't have alcohol that often. My kidneys and liver worked well but I decided that if I were going to confront high sugar and cholesterol levels then I may as well reduce my alcohol intake further. I didn't sign up to diabetes.org.uk, Weightwatchers, gyms or any other organisation. I did not take up any offers for any recommended one-day sessions regarding diet tips. These work for many other people, particularly those that need people around them for support but I was to determined to formulate my own plan and succeed without hearing a hundred different opinions along the way.
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Targets: Must be met Aims: Would be nice Hopes: Of greater benefit when possible. Only to be achieved when in the mood, but not at the expense of feeling too pressured by it. When setting TAH, be generous to yourself such that you will always reach your Target. Don't set impossibly high levels that cause you to give up quickly. Do not create a Target that will automatically put you under great pressure. Have a target that you can maintain over the long term. Review your targets, aims and hopes every so often. Are you making progress, and do you need to revise levels up or down. |
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Walking / Exercise After my diagnosis in August 2024 I decided that my aim would be to reduce my weight to 10 stone 7 (147 lbs or 66.7 kg) by August 2026, in the belief that my sugar levels, cholesterol levels and blood pressure levels would decrease in a healthy safe way over time. I like walking, I used to walk to work five days a week for many years, 55 minutes each time. I had become less active since June 2018 and this had undoubtedly contributed to my weight gain. From August 2024 I began to walk more often but eased myself into it as my cholesterol levels were high and it was safer to build my walking up slowly. By the beginning of November 2024 I was walking between 7000 and 15000 steps a day, every day without exception. Over time I have refined and altered my pattern of walking, partly because I find a strict routine routine dull, and partly because I've made good progress.
My current walking regime is as follows: Daily: Target: 7000 steps per day (for 25 days of each month) Aim: Between 7001 and 15000 steps in a day Hope: 15001 or more steps in a day I factor in days of rest to allow my feet chance to recover, so I reach my daily target on 25 days only per month.
Monthly: Target: 200,000 steps per calendar month minimum Aim: Between 200,001 and 300,000 steps per calendar month Hope: Between 300,001 and 500,000 steps per calendar month
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Figures taken from the Samsung Heath app As you can see, my walking takes the form of a wave pattern, some months I do more steps than others. I failed all my targets, aims and hopes during July 2025 but I do not feel too bad about this as my overall trend was to succeed or exceed during the other months. This walking wave trend is set to continue during 2026. I do not look at all the ins and outs of the health app, I don't think it's psychologically healthy to be obsessed by all the facts and details. Doing so may create the situation of putting myself under too much pressure to succeed. For me, slow and steady progress works. |
| My
Weight records: 2018 March: 90.5 kg (14 stone 3 lbs, or 207 lbs) - BMI 32.1 2020 November: 98.8 kg (15 stones 8lbs or 218 lbs) - BMI 35.2 2024 December: 78.95 kg (12 stone 6 lbs, or 174 lbs) - BMI 28.1 2025 August: 74 kg (11 stone 9 lbs, or 163 lbs) - BMI 26.3 2025 November: 68.4 kg (10 stone 11 lbs, or 151 lbs) - BMI 24.4
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BMI
(Body Mass Index - height to weight ratio) A BMI of 18.5 to 24.9 is classed as healthy for my height I cannot state with any degree of accuracy as to my weight as at the August 2024 diagnosis date: I was not weighed as part of the health review and I did not weigh myself either. My best guess is that I weighed somewhere between13 and 14 stone during August 2024.
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| My
Cholesterol levels: 2024 August: 6.4 mmol / L 2024 November: 2.5 mmol /L 2025 August: 1.8 mmol / L
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Healthy Range: Below 5 mmol / L |
| My
Sugar levels: 2024 August: 100 mmol / mol (11.3 %) 2024 November: 59 mmol / mol (7.5 %) 2025 April: 43 mmol / mol (6.1 %) 2025 August: 42 mmol / mol (6.0 %) 2025 November: 40 mmol / mol (5.8%)
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Healthy Range: 20 to 41 mmol / mol
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| My Serum
Triglycerides levels: 2024 August: 4.20 mmol/L 2024 November: 1.19 mmol/L 2025 August: 0.81 mmol/L |
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| My
Blood Pressure levels: 2024 August: 125 / 90 mmHg 2025 August: 110 / 81 mmHg
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Healthy Range: Below 120 / 80 mmHg but not below 90 / 60 mmHg |
| My Diabetic
Eye Tests 2024 December: A touch of background retinopathy in my right eye 2026 January: no trace of retinopathy in either eye
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| My Serum
Potassium levels: 2024 August: 4.2 mmol/L 2024 November 5.2 mmol/L 2025 August 4.6 mmol/L ----------------------- From August 2024 I started eating more fruits, mostly red grapes, conference pears and bananas. In November 2024 I noticed that my potassium levels had risen sharply so I cut down on my intake. Whilst I was always inside the reference range I did not want to risk going outside the healthy range and thereby risk potential health issues caused by that. The sharp rise had caught my attention. This is why I think the NHS app is invaluable, it gives you more information about you than can easily be given in a 10-minue appointment or phone consultation. |
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| My Diabetes 2
Progress I'm pleased with my progress as I have lost a fair bit of weight without too much effort, albeit over 17 months at this point. I no longer get overly tired each time I eat anything and I don't often have naps during the daytime. I no longer feel 'not quite right' or ill from diabetes. I feel a lot more awake, more energised and a lot happier. I still have a day, perhaps once in two/three weeks, where I feel tired for no reason but this is better than feeling that way every day of every week. Due to progress my Metformin dosage has been decreased from 2mg a day to 1mg as of August 2025. I feel confident that I will ultimately be able to push my Diabetes 2 into remission and to keep it there. I'm still on track to reach 10 stone 7 by August 2026 and may even get to 10 stone by that time, but I won't be pressuring myself to do so. If it takes another year after that then so be it.
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| Caffeine and
me During the 1990s I was tested for diabetes as I felt tired all the time, felt nauseous at times, and generally unwell. The tests were negative. I was also tested for ME and other health issues that may have explained my health issues. Every so often I would take a day off work simply because I felt unwell without knowing what the actual cause was. I gave up drinking caffeinated coffee as of June 2020 on medical advice from 111 when I had a period of days where I felt worse. The symptoms stopped but by the end of July 2024 I had a lot of symptoms back. By that time I couldn't face drinking fizzy drinks any more, particularly coca-cola. I cut down on everything once I had been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. During July 2025 I decided to try caffeinated coffee again, just to see what would happen. Within two weeks every symptom I'd had from the 1990s had returned. I knew for sure at that point that caffeine had been the cause of all those sleepless nights, heightened anxiety, a feeling of being unwell, immense tiredness, all those days off, all those years ago. The symptoms did not strike me all the time during all that time so it was hard to pin down a specific cause. Caffeine explained away all my symptoms whereas diabetes, ME etc explained away only some of the intermittent symptoms that I had. Caffeine explained all my symptoms, how had I not seen that, well, because I knew in my heart that by 2023 I had diabetes and assumed it was the only reason for my symptoms. I had started drinking more coffee as of the 1990s, up from two cups a day to six or more a day. Whenever someone at work would say that their caffeine was kicking in I hadn't a clue what they were on about, I never got any kind of buzz. I've since realised that I may have a slow metabolism, that caffeine kicks in later in the day and had never seen the connection. No point in having skin tests to prove what I believe I already know, I've simply cut out caffeine. The one thing I found caffeine useful for was that it gave me energy to walk, but I can do without all the side effects.
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If you've read all of this, thank you, and I wish you
well in all that you do and all that you aim for. I will update this page once in a while, perhaps once a year, with details of any further progress. Tim Harris 20 January 2026 |
