• Please Remember: Members are only permitted to share their own experiences. Members are not qualified to give medical advice. Additionally, everyone manages their health differently. Please be respectful of other people's opinions about their own diabetes management.
  • We seem to be having technical difficulties with new user accounts. If you are trying to register please check your Spam or Junk folder for your confirmation email. If you still haven't received a confirmation email, please reach out to our support inbox: support.forum@diabetes.org.uk

Blood sugar help please

Status
This thread is now closed. Please contact Anna DUK, Ieva DUK or everydayupsanddowns if you would like it re-opened.
L

Lilyrose

New Member
Hello,
I am waiting for an appointment after my last lot of blood tests. Not diagnosed as of yet but I know it's coming.
I have a blood sugar monitor at home that I've used on and off after pancreatic surgery. Its recently been giving me readings of 12/13 first thing in a morning. My last hb1ac was 65.
My question is, is it normal, when having high blood sugars to feel like they are too low when they get to 9/10? 9 is the lowest they have been since I started to notice symptoms. When my sugars get to 9 I'm shaky, hungry, just the general symptoms of low blood sugar. I feel ok once I've eaten but then they go high, depending if it's a snack or meal, with a meal as high as 15, 2 hours after food.
This potential diagnosis is quite scary but I don't know how to get my sugars down as I feel i'll pass out with the low sugar symptoms. I have another 4 week wait until an appointment.
Thank you.
 
Hi @Lilyrose 🙂 Yes! They’re known as false hypos and they happen because your body has got used to higher sugars so anything more normal feels ‘bad’ and ‘hypo’ even though technically you’re not hypo.

I’ve had them before and I know how unpleasant and real they are. Try sipping some water and having a tiny amount of carbs just to take the edge of the feeling without raising your blood sugar. Stop, nibble a little and rest. As your sugars get more back into a normal range, these false hypos will stop.
 
Hi and welcome.

I am not sure how you don't have a diagnosis yet as your last HbA1c of 65 should have got you a diabetes label and your pancreatic surgery gets you a Type of 3c, so you are Type 3c diabetic... and should be treated like a Type 1 once you start getting the appropriate treatment ie a basal/bolus insulin regime.... which means 2 different types of insulin, one for food and the other to cover the glucose your liver trickles out all the time to keep your vital organs supplied.

I am going to tag @eggyg as she has had pancreatic surgery and had to fight hard for her Type 3c diagnosis. It may just seem like a label but it may be important as to the type of treatment you receive both in terms of insulin and technology to help manage it at a future date.

As @Inka says, you are likely experiencing false hypos. You really want your body to start accepting these levels as normal, so try not to overtreat them. Sometimes a rest and a none carb snack is enough (a boiled egg or a piece of cheese or meat or some nuts) rather than carbs which will push your levels back up again or perhaps just one jelly baby (the normal hypo treatment would be 3 JBS). I remember some of those false hypos feeling far worse than the proper hypos I now experience, so I do sympathise.
 
Thank you both so much for your replies. The nurse rang me with results but didn't give me any other information, she just said she would make me an appointment with my consultant as there were a few other bloods out of range too but I still have 4 weeks to wait. I'm feeling quite anxious about it all, I don't know alot about diabetes but I know it's not good and I've been so worried that my sugars don't seem to come down at all and I have these feelings that they are really low when in reality they're too high
Thank you for the advice with the false hypos, I will try it out when I'm feeling like that.
 
Hi Lilyrose,

Welcome to the forum. It's totally natural to feel anxious. Once you get your head around things, you'll be fine. The numbers may not be coming down due to the food that you're consuming such as carbs, so that's something that will adjust as you get to grips with things.

It's actually good to do things gradually as a huge swing in blood sugar numbers isn't good either so take your time.

I find these two pages really informative. One is about managing your blood sugar numbers and the other is about what to eat.

How to check your blood sugar levels

Knowing your blood sugar levels helps you manage your diabetes and reduces your risk of having serious complications – now and in the future. On this page:
www.diabetes.org.uk www.diabetes.org.uk

I have type 2 diabetes – what can I eat?

If you've just been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, one of the first things you might be worried about is food. You’re likely to be faced with what seems like an endless list of new tasks. Medical appointments, taking medication, stopping smoking, being more active and eating a healthy, balanced...
www.diabetes.org.uk www.diabetes.org.uk

Do let us know if you have any questions that we can help with.
 
Welcome to the forum @Lilyrose

Those false hypos can be rotten can’t they. :( And everything in your body and brain will be screaming for you to eat the entire contents of the fridge when they happen.

The snag, of course, is that bouncing back up to high BGs again to quell the symptoms will keep those false hypos coming whenever your BGs get close to being in range. Hopefully over a few weeks you can bring your BGs down gradually, and only modestly treat the symptoms when they occur, so that over time your ‘glucose thermostat’ can reset to the usual BG range.
 
Status
This thread is now closed. Please contact Anna DUK, Ieva DUK or everydayupsanddowns if you would like it re-opened.
Back
Top