Intolerance to meds

[Hazel Purple]

Hi there I've managed to keep my sugar low for 10 years by diet and exercise, however, I am suffering from long covid and my sugar is high. GP says u need to start medication, but I tried 6 meds in 2017 which I reacted very badly to. Has anyone else had experience of this? My GP is asking advice from an endocrinologist but in the mean time I'm terrified. Thanks for any advice, appreciated
regards Hazel Purple

 

[Leadinglights]

Welcome to the forum
Diet is an important aspect of maintaining blood glucose in range. Hopefully the increase you have will only be temporary as it is an after effect of Covid.
Maybe you need to review your dietary regime and reduce your carb intake a bit more to see if that helps.
What sort of meals are you having and are you testing to see if there are any which are too high carb for you to tolerate.

 

[gll]

Hi Hazel
Sorry long covid is messing with your clearly awesome management.

I'm also a bit rubbish with meds 🙂 You aren't alone in that.

Just wanted to drop this link in for you
https://forum.diabetes.org.uk/boards/threads/nice-sign-flowchart-for-t2-medication.99813/
The post has numerous links to the typical medication pathways for a T2 so you could have a look and see what else there would be to try that you haven't already and look into those meds more and be prepared for the likely options.

I hope you get on top of it again either way you choose to go 🙂

 

[Hazel Purple]

Hi Hazel
Sorry long covid is messing with your clearly awesome management.

I'm also a bit rubbish with meds 🙂 You aren't alone in that.

Just wanted to drop this link in for you
https://forum.diabetes.org.uk/boards/threads/nice-sign-flowchart-for-t2-medication.99813/
The post has numerous links to the typical medication pathways for a T2 so you could have a look and see what else there would be to try that you haven't already and look into those meds more and be prepared for the likely options.

I hope you get on top of it again either way you choose to go 🙂

Thank you very much for your advice, I appreciate it. I haven't been able to walk my dog for weeks.... . we usually do 5km a day, and that has definitely impacted my sugar.
Kind regards

Hazel

 

[Hazel Purple]

Welcome to the forum
Diet is an important aspect of maintaining blood glucose in range. Hopefully the increase you have will only be temporary as it is an after effect of Covid.
Maybe you need to review your dietary regime and reduce your carb intake a bit more to see if that helps.
What sort of meals are you having and are you testing to see if there are any which are too high carb for you to tolerate.

Thank you very much for your advice. Whilst I'm waiting to be prescribed I've decided to try fasting. I eat very well, but I could eat less and I'm trying to walk more but at the moment it's a struggle to take my dog out.
Kind regards
Hazel

 

[NotWorriedAtAll]

Thank you very much for your advice. Whilst I'm waiting to be prescribed I've decided to try fasting. I eat very well, but I could eat less and I'm trying to walk more but at the moment it's a struggle to take my dog out.
Kind regards
Hazel

Things I have found that make a big helpful difference to my blood sugars:

Drinking more water through the day to stay hydrated.
Drinking peppermint tea - once in the morning, once after lunch and once before bedtime.
Getting to bed fairly early and trying to get to sleep using audio help - there are some great podcasts specifically to hekp people drop off to sleep on audible - I use Hello Sleep and Sleep Sound with Jamie Doman and Bedtime meditations for Kids.
During the day I use an app called Tripp and that helps my stress levels.

If I do these things as well as keep my food choices sensible - then things improve. The peppermint tea and drinking water makes a big difference almost immediately. Personally I find if I go a long time between eating it raises my blood sugars rather than reducing them so I try to stick to eating small amounts regularly through the day - breakfast, lunch and evening meal.

I also find that gentle activity like washing up and tidying shelves also helps as much as more vigorous activity.

 

[Leadinglights]

Thank you very much for your advice. Whilst I'm waiting to be prescribed I've decided to try fasting. I eat very well, but I could eat less and I'm trying to walk more but at the moment it's a struggle to take my dog out.
Kind regards
Hazel

Sometimes people think they are 'eating well' but some of the foods which may seem healthy are not so great for managing blood glucose levels being too high in carbohydrates for them to tolerate.
It may be worth your while keeping a food diary of everything you eat and drink and totting up the carbohydrates you are having to see how close you are to the suggested less than 130g per day if following a low carb regime.
Fasting can work for some people but it can often increase blood glucose as the liver tries to be super helpful in releasing glucose to give your body energy for your organs to function.

 

[Hazel Purple]

Welcome to the forum
Diet is an important aspect of maintaining blood glucose in range. Hopefully the increase you have will only be temporary as it is an after effect of Covid.
Maybe you need to review your dietary regime and reduce your carb intake a bit more to see if that helps.
What sort of meals are you having and are you testing to see if there are any which are too high carb for you to tolerate.

Thank you very much for your advice. Whilst I'm waiting to be prescribed I've decided to try fasting. I eat very well, but I could eat less and I'm trying to walk more but at the moment it's a struggle to take my dog out.
Kind regards

Things I have found that make a big helpful difference to my blood sugars:

Drinking more water through the day to stay hydrated.
Drinking peppermint tea - once in the morning, once after lunch and once before bedtime.
Getting to bed fairly early and trying to get to sleep using audio help - there are some great podcasts specifically to hekp people drop off to sleep on audible - I use Hello Sleep and Sleep Sound with Jamie Doman and Bedtime meditations for Kids.
During the day I use an app called Tripp and that helps my stress levels.

If I do these things as well as keep my food choices sensible - then things improve. The peppermint tea and drinking water makes a big difference almost immediately. Personally I find if I go a long time between eating it raises my blood sugars rather than reducing them so I try to stick to eating small amounts regularly through the day - breakfast, lunch and evening meal.

I also find that gentle activity like washing up and tidying shelves also helps as much as more vigorous activity.

Thank you for taking the time and trouble to advise me, I appreciate it.
Kind regards
Hazel

 

[Hazel Purple]

Sometimes people think they are 'eating well' but some of the foods which may seem healthy are not so great for managing blood glucose levels being too high in carbohydrates for them to tolerate.
It may be worth your while keeping a food diary of everything you eat and drink and totting up the carbohydrates you are having to see how close you are to the suggested less than 130g per day if following a low carb regime.
Fasting can work for some people but it can often increase blood glucose as the liver tries to be super helpful in releasing glucose to give your body energy for your organs to function.

Thanks very much for your advice. I'll certainly start a good diary, that's a great idea.
Kind regards
Hazel

 

[Hazel Purple]

Welcome to the forum
Diet is an important aspect of maintaining blood glucose in range. Hopefully the increase you have will only be temporary as it is an after effect of Covid.
Maybe you need to review your dietary regime and reduce your carb intake a bit more to see if that helps.
What sort of meals are you having and are you testing to see if there are any which are too high carb for you to tolerate.

Thank you for your advice, I appreciate it. At present I am eating a lot of steamed food as my sister in law is over from Malaysia and looked after me post covid. I note that walking with my dog really helps the levels and I look forward to getting out there again. Damn this covid!!

 

[Leadinglights]

Thank you for your advice, I appreciate it. At present I am eating a lot of steamed food as my sister in law is over from Malaysia and looked after me post covid. I note that walking with my dog really helps the levels and I look forward to getting out there again. Damn this covid!!

Remember it is what you eat not necessarily how you cook it, rice, noodles, pasta, starchy veg are all high carb, eggs, meat, fish, cheese, green veg, salads are pretty low carb so I hope you are having those as part of your diet.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Welcome to the forum @Hazel Purple

Sorry to hear Covid is lingering around and playing havoc with your BG levels and your dog walking

Hopefully your medical notes will detail the meds you tried previously that you found difficult. Some people find an initial reaction subsides over time (especially with meds that can cause gastric upheaval), or find that things are better if they start on very low doses, and increase them gradually.

Plus you may find that new meds have arrived on the scene since you last tried them.

Hope your food diary helps you moderate your total carbohydrate content in the mean time, and you find suitable meds to help support your blood glucose management.

 

[Hazel Purple]

Welcome to the forum @Hazel Purple

Sorry to hear Covid is lingering around and playing havoc with your BG levels and your dog walking

Hopefully your medical notes will detail the meds you tried previously that you found difficult. Some people find an initial reaction subsides over time (especially with meds that can cause gastric upheaval), or find that things are better if they start on very low doses, and increase them gradually.

Plus you may find that new meds have arrived on the scene since you last tried them.

Hope your food diary helps you moderate your total carbohydrate content in the mean time, and you find suitable meds to help support your blood glucose management.

Thanks Mike

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Nice to see you again @Hazel Purple

How have things been going?

 

[Hazel Purple]

Hi Mike, thank you for asking. I'm still waiting for a diabetes appointment so I can know if there's new meds that will suit me. Thinking of going private if I have to wait much longer. I am flabbergasted by the indifference shown by my GP who just want to wait for the consultant. I've had to talk to PALS at my local hospital because it's been 2 months since my referral. Just hoping I get to see someone soon

 

[Leadinglights]

Hi Mike, thank you for asking. I'm still waiting for a diabetes appointment so I can know if there's new meds that will suit me. Thinking of going private if I have to wait much longer. I am flabbergasted by the indifference shown by my GP who just want to wait for the consultant. I've had to talk to PALS at my local hospital because it's been 2 months since my referral. Just hoping I get to see someone soon

How did you get on with making some changes to your diet, did any of the suggestions help.? Waiting can be so frustrating.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Hi Mike, thank you for asking. I'm still waiting for a diabetes appointment so I can know if there's new meds that will suit me. Thinking of going private if I have to wait much longer. I am flabbergasted by the indifference shown by my GP who just want to wait for the consultant. I've had to talk to PALS at my local hospital because it's been 2 months since my referral. Just hoping I get to see someone soon

Sorry to hear you’ve just been left waiting Hazel

Diabetes is generally a slow moving for, but sometimes I don’t think HCPs recognise how distressing and worrying it can be to just have to wait an indeterminate amount of time after the bombshell of a diagnosis has been dropped

 

[Hazel Purple]

How did you get on with making some changes to your diet, did any of the suggestions help.? Waiting can be so frustrating.

Hi there
I continue to eat very low carb and have added things like lemons and tomato juice to get the triglycerides down. I also completely cut bread out and have swapped milk for oat milk. My blood sugar levels remain high unfortunately. I've come to the decision that if I don't hear from the hospital soon, I will go private. Thank you very much for the time and consideration you have shown me

 

[Hazel Purple]

Sorry to hear you’ve just been left waiting Hazel

Diabetes is generally a slow moving for, but sometimes I don’t think HCPs recognise how distressing and worrying it can be to just have to wait an indeterminate amount of time after the bombshell of a diagnosis has been dropped

Thanks for your support, much appreciated

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Hi there
I continue to eat very low carb and have added things like lemons and tomato juice to get the triglycerides down. I also completely cut bread out and have swapped milk for oat milk. My blood sugar levels remain high unfortunately. I've come to the decision that if I don't hear from the hospital soon, I will go private. Thank you very much for the time and consideration you have shown me

If you are continuing to see high glucose levels despite a very low carbohydrate diet, it may be worth asking your Dr for a cPeptide check.

Approx how many total carbs (not just sugars)do you think you are eating per day?

In T2 you would expect insulin resistance to lead to a fairly high level of natural insulin secretion (which a cPep check can measure), but other forms of diabetes where the islet cells have become compromised would show a lower insulin output.

It may be that your type of diabetes ought to be reviewed and confirmed?