Comment by Mike Ratrie on May 23, 2012 at 2:53pm

Yes, a part of the on-going, never-ending need to explain that for T1D's "a carb is a carb is a carb".

I always just say, "Thanks for asking, I really appreciate your concern for me! I can eat anything you can, so don't make any special provisions for me."

Comment by BadMoonT2 on May 23, 2012 at 6:46pm

Shawnmarie I think your plan is a good one, no need to make a big deal out of it. I've found most people know sugar is out, but don't realize the havoc bread and pasta can cause on ones blood sugar, especially for a T2 like me who takes no insulin. I certainly didn't pre diagnosis.

Comment by Chris Miller on May 23, 2012 at 7:54pm

I tell people that I avoid sweets, pastries, juice, regular pop, fatty foods, white rice and white flour. So they assume I can never have those things. I always have to explain why. Those things shoot my blood sugars way up, but they are not off limits.

Comment by Brian (bsc) on May 24, 2012 at 5:24am

You friend cares enough to ask, even if they don't understand. If this is a true friend, then this is a teaching moment.

My Suggesting. Low Carb Cheesecake! Cheesecake factory has a great one! One estimate of the carbs is 35g/ 12g fiber. Not too shabby.

Comment by BadMoonT2 on May 24, 2012 at 7:05am

My daughter has made a low carb cheesecake several times for holiday meals(I'm not much of a cook/baker) and they can be quite good. She made the crust out of pecans run through a blender. The tricky part was figuring out how much stevia to use. You can just skip the meal and go directly to the desert, very filling:) Another trick I learned around here is to eat something before you go. That way you won't be starving if there isn't much you choose to eat.

Comment by smileandnod on May 24, 2012 at 7:05am

Hi Shawnmarie, your post made me smile. I attended an awards ceremony at work yesterday where everyone was digging into build your own ice cream sundaes. Like you, I *chose* not to have any. But one of my co-workers said "they should have some fruit or something for you since you can't have ice cream"....fruit doesn't count I guess. :)

Comment by Shawnmarie on May 24, 2012 at 1:33pm

Thanks for the suggestions everyone. Low carb cheesecake! Yum!! Skipping the meal and going directly to dessert was a regular occurrence for me before the big D. :-)

Comment by dzinermom1 on May 26, 2012 at 5:02pm

How true this all is. I find most non diabetics do not understand how carbs work and affect us. It was called "sugar diabetes" for so long that people just think that if we eat no sweets we will be just fine. It just gets tiring having to explain it to people all the time. Which is why sometimes I just eat really small portions of whatever is being served and keep it to myself.

Comment by Shawnmarie on May 29, 2012 at 2:02pm

After dealing with this particular gathering, I realized something at the heart of all this -- I don't like other people concerning themselves with what I eat, why I eat, how I eat it, etc. I also realize that other people aren't going to change just because something bugs me, which means I have to find a way to come to my own peace when dealing with questions, observations, comments, judgments, etc., about my eating. The only things I have any measure of control over are my own thoughts and choices, so I guess I'll focus on that. Too bad there's not something I can inject to change my own thoughts!

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