Declined from Cohens

[frustratedtype2]

Hi there, newbie here - back in November 09 I paid for my 18yr old daughter to do Cohens. She lost 28kgs in four and a half months and has maintained by going to the gym and making healthy food choices. As an inspiration to me I decided to go ahead and do it too. I however am a non medicated diabetic - half the reason I wanted to do Cohens!!
I went for bloods, paid the $$ up front and was told today by the Wollongong office that I was declined to participate due to abnormally high blood sugar levels, being 16.3. I know this is high but doesn't this lifestyle advocate for non medicated diabetics?? Why be declined?? What could possibly go wrong? It musn't be good for me but I cant work out why. If it decreased glucose and insulin levels and enables weight loss isn't that a good thing for any diabetic??
I would be most grateful to hear from anyone who can help me understand this. Rejection's not good at the best of times but when one is geared up mentally to give it my best shot only to be turned away - it's very frustrating and heartbreaking actually. Am I destined to be fat and unhealthy??

Oh and I asked the clinic why and all she said was that she got an email from Dr Cohen simply saying 'unsuitable.'

[louise41]

I am so sorry, I can understand how disappointed you must be! I am afraid I have no answer for your question. Did they suggest something you could do so you could become suitable?

[forfreddie]

Hi

Sorry to hear you were rejected. Was this a fasting glucose level? If so this is v abnormal and you need to get it checked out with your GP and prob start medication then see if you can be reconsidered.

Your first bloods are usually supposed to be fasting so, if not, might be worth getting it rechecked. Am suprised at the lack of advice from your clinic. Definately pursue it futher. I had borderline type 2 before starting and it is cured with weight loss.

Good luck

ff

[frustratedtype2]

Unfortunately that is fasting. I have been advised to get my bgl's down to below 10 and try again. If I knew how to do that, I wouldn't need Cohens.

[mcpsych]

Ok
the way to do that is to follow the food types that you know are good for you
eg
no processed sugars
no starch
fresh fruit and veg
fresh lean meat
no additives
this will be hard work but with the help of your gp and a dietitian and your daughter it is doable
don't be put off
if your gp does not think youneed medication there is every possibility you can reach a lower blood level
trust yourself

[Superstar]

Hi
i to was rejected the first time so i did a little bit of research and found a company called healthy inspriations - its very similair to cohens (and away cheaper)
the weight loss it not as fast but it is still 1 -2 Kg per week.

They offer you suport with eating and exercising- they give you a journal to log ur food intake ect and if there is a club near you you go in 3 times a week - i found them a lot better as a surport network then Cohens (my cohens office wasnt very helpful when i was struggling)

give them a go as they never turn any one away - they are only there to help .

what have you got to loose?

www.HealthyInspirations.com.au

hope this helps you ... it helped me ...

[Clarice]

I can't really say for sure because I don't know your medical history, but I'm a practising pharmacist and find it fairly unusual that your fasting glucose is that high and your doctor doesn't think you need medication? To be honest, I think you need to consult your GP about it, and explain what you are wanting to do with Cohen's. It's really not in your best interests to leave your glucose that high whether or not you intend to diet, but perhaps medication could be used to control it to a level where Dr. Cohen is able to write a programme for you, and then as the weight is lost and your insulin resistance improves, you can come off the medication as needed. Of course, I don't know if there's a specific reason why you're not currently prescribed something for it, but I think it's most definitely worth a trip to the GP to discuss what you want to do. If you're in the mindset to make those changes, I say you need to go for it in any way you can. Just keep moving forward!

[cathbug]

Hi

I agree with Clarice.
1.Talk to your GP and advocate for yourself - get a satisfactory answer.
2. "If you're in the mindset to make those changes, I say you need to go for it in any way you can. Just keep moving forward!"
- When you made the decision you were really making a commitment to yourself rather than specifically to Cohens. Use that commitment to make your blood sugar Cohens-friendly. McPsych's suggestions are great.

I know it sounds a bit "easy for you to say" but it will be worth it and good prep for the mindset you will need to successfully complete Cohens.

Keep plugged in here and we can support you as go.

[frustratedtype2]

Thank you so much for your replies. I went to the Doc today - not my usual one though. He wants me to do a glucose tolerance test and start again from scratch so they can devise a plan - ie: what meds to put me on etc.
My Dr is working tonight so I am going to make a return visit as he knows my history etc. I just can't really see the point in doing a GTT when my fasting blood test is what it is and only 2 days old.
I thought I might do my daughters plan in the meantime - what do you think??

[mcpsych]

No one on here will advise you to do your daughters plan nor should they
it was written specifically for her and could potentially be harmful to you
if you follow the guidelines of my previous post and work with your gp and a dietitian it is likely that you will get healthier

[cathbug]

McPsych is absolutely right. Please don't risk harming yourself by using your daughter's plan especially with the issues you're already dealing with.

[danders]

Hi Frustrated, A glucose tolerance test will provide more information than a fasting blood test. As Clarice says, it is important to control your blood sugar levels as high blood sugars sustained over a long period will cause organ damage. Along with a review by your GP, there are other resources available to teach you how to manage your diabetes through diet and exercise which your GP may be able to direct you to. Hopefully that may help you become suitable for Cohen's in the future. All the best

[Clarice]

I agree with danders -- the tolerance test will give them more information than a single fasting result. Actually, this is the reason why we rarely do glucose tests in our pharmacy although we can if we need to; one test simply doesn't give all the information needed to make any real judgement calls or decisions about the state of someone's insulin response. (You might then wonder what Dr. Cohen's doing with the single result he gets at the beginning; well, his plan is presumably built on ALL the requested results taken in tandem and this is also probably why you were declined; your result was out of the workable range and the normalisation of that result is beyond the actual scope of the programme at this point.) I'm really glad to hear that they're looking at this for you, though; as someone who has only just begun to realise how much she really wants this and how much willpower she does actually have, I can only imagine how horrible it is to be stonewalled. But there are things you can do, and you can do them!

Also, I wouldn't recommend your daughter's programme either. You've got one goal to work out -- bringing the glucose down -- and that's more than enough. And that's leaving aside the fact that her programme probably wouldn't work for you as your other baseline bloods are likely to be different to hers. With that said, taking mcpsych's advice above about the dietary changes you can make to help with the glucose will prime you for Cohen's. I know I started trying to eat more fruit and veg before I started, and to cut back on naughty things...not just because I was starting a rigid diet, but because I was beginning to realise this is not a short term thing, it's a long term adjustment I need to make to my life and my mindset. And that's terrifying. So...you have the time, because nothing happens overnight. Do this for yourself first, and then when you can do Cohen's your body will thank you for it.

[Kohinoor]

Hi frustrated,

I thought I might do my daughters plan in the meantime - what do you think??

I totally agree with others who say "NO" !!

Except, I would say, learn from her Plan's foodtypes. Ignore her weights of food, but eat "that type of food" in larger amounts and you will be doing yourself a favour - eating HER amounts, you won't be doing yourself any favours - for sure !!

Koh

[mcpsych]

Koh is right
plan food in and of itself is the best you can do for yourself
all natural all fresh, nothing added
can't go wrong

[jlou]

To just add to the comments about (not) doing your daughter's plan - they really truly are individually tailored (I have seen other people's - a friend had same start weight and goal weight but different plan!). If you use her plan you actually risk GAINING weight because if the quantities are wrong for you, you could go into starvation mode and store fat instead of losing it!!

Start eating only the plan allowed foods and I will be surprised if your Glucose levels don't improve.

On another note - isn't it great Cohens would rather turn someone away for current health issues than take your money and give you false hope (or endanger your health).

You will get there. Just do the work to make it possible.
We will all support you

[frustratedtype2]

I have taken your advise and wont be doing my daughters diet plan. However, I have (in consultation with my Dr) chosen to do a low carb eating plan until my BG's reduce enough. If the weight comes off as well then I might just stick to it permanently.

My question is: Why? Why would I have been turned away from an eating plan that would essentially lower bg's anyway?
If the recommendation here is that I eat what DD ate but larger portions, how can doing Cohens on my own program be so bad as to be declined?

Is it a liability thing do you think?

[jlou]

If the recommendation here is that I eat what DD ate but larger portions, how can doing Cohens on my own program be so bad as to be declined?

There are many reasons Dr C says people are not suitable - only your clinic can give you an insight into what the actual reason might be.

But you do need to remember that the program is designed to have you at a minimum level of food intake. If you have BG issues then it could be a risk to your health. There is a HUGE difference between eating Cohens-type food and actually doing the program - as has been seen by others who ate only Cohens food while they waited for their program to arrive - and lost weight - only to start the program when it arrived and lose a lot more, a lot faster.

Best of luck and hope we see you back here in the future.

[goodlucktummy]

Hi FrustratedType2!

I know how you feel. I was also initially rejected from Cohen's because of my blood sugar. My fasting blood sugar was 312mg/dl -- normal range is 70-100mg/dl. So mine was extremely bad. My Cohen consultant (from Singapore) called me up right away and told me that I should go on a transition/interim diet and that it was imperative that I see a doctor to get medicated. I met with an endocrinologist right away. She put me on insulin injections and this other oral med that would help absorb the insulin. She actually gave me the option to take purely oral meds but she said that that would take longer. I also met with a nutritionist who gave me an eating plan based on calories. I must say, that it actually helped me transition into Cohen's with less headaches and typical detox effects. 3 weeks after the insulin + transition diet, I took another blood test and my FBS had gone down to 136mg/dl... at that point, I was told that my eating plan was on its way.

After a month of Cohen's, my sugar had gone down to 70mg/dl, which moved my endocrinologist to lower my insulin dosage. Now I'm off it and maintain a 90mg/dl sugar level.

Just wanted to share my story and I hope that you eventually get a Cohen's eating plan because it will really change your life!

[mumandnana]

Wow GLT, great story you have to share and you are going SO well !!! Very well done.