Thanks for the chizuk. It is not easy for me, as even when I was watching my weight NOT for diabetic reasons, by eating low-calorie and low-fat healthy foods, I was still eating a lot of fruit, controlled portions of pasta, etc. and I cannot eat much of that now because I have to watch my sugar count. SOOOOOO, I am primarily eating controlled amounts of low glycemic index complex carbs,i.e., sweet potato rather than white potato, brown rice, not white, whole wheat bread (I save my whole wheat consumption for challah on Shabbos, and get 100% whole wheat). These little changes have added up to a BIG change for me. I look better, feel better, the sugar is stablizing, and I can walk much better as well.
I am also drinking plenty of water, eating a lot of salads or steamed green vegetables and low-fat proteins, including plain fat-free Greek yogurt with some fresh blueberries or a little Splenda, chicken, and fish. When you cut down your food intake, after a few weeks, you really cannot eat the way you used to. The body doesn’t want as much food as it used to take in. I am satisfied with much less, and I no longer crave certain food items that were bad for me, like fried chicken or pizza. I really did not believe that would ever happen, but it did. B”H for that.
What helps the most is the support I get from my family and friends who constantly remind me how great I am doing. It gives me tremendous chizuk. I had to do something to prevent myself from succumbing to the various conditions that diabetes can cause. If anyone here is pre-diabetic, please take my words to heart, get checked out by your doctor, and proactively take steps to try to reverse the condition through diet changes and exercise (even just walking every day). Very often it can be done. I am hoping to reverse my actual Type 2 diabetes.