Alternative headline: Setting aside an emergency hypo or hyperglycemic episode, can a "cheat day" where one does unhealthy things cause life altering damage, or is it the sustained high readings that do it? Or is it frequent high readings?

For instance, let's say that I maintain healthy habits generally every day and my levels are good and rarely spike. Let's also say that one afternoon a month I want to get sloshed on 10 Bush Lights.

Does a one-off instance like this do damage if levels don't drop too low or high? Is there a way to "prep" for knowing when I'll be in a situation like that and offset the effects?

I've just been diagnosed (confirmed July 6, suspected with prior test in late June). I've done a 180 on health already in just this last week or so, dropped a little weight and started testing. A1C was like 7.2 and my fasting sugar this a.m. was 135. It was 181 2 hours after breakfast.

For reference, I was binge drinking maybe 4 times per week. I suspected I was an alcoholic but now I'm thinking I was really more of a habitual, heavy drinker. Most of my drinking was while playing Civilization 6. I would just play the game and suck them down. I frequently drank on an empty stomach, and when I did eat it was horrible, fatty salty food.

Thanks!