Byetta help

[Well.legless.69]

Ok been on 5m byetta pen for 2 mths saw nurse at hospital who said get bloods checked then GP will put me on 10m pen but doc said I'm at 7 so it's so 5 pen is fine very confused I'm also on 4 glucophage a day & had hoped I'd be on just byetta eventually as I'm on so many pills for various thing & hate pills glucophage are big IMO & I choke taking them just wondered what other byetta users are on diabetic nurse said 5 pen was for starters but it would be the 10 I'd be on but GP says different not sure who's right was going to call the nurse but hate being a pain

 

[Northerner]

I wouldn't worry about calling the nurse for her opinion, you need to be assertive and proactive in this game, I've found 🙂 Better to ask than to worry! I'm guessing that the doctor thinks your blood sugar levels are improved enough on the 5m dose and that doubling it is unnecessary. From what I can gather a number of people find that stepping up to the 10m dose really kicks in with the side-effects, so that sounds like a risk worth avoiding 🙂

 

[lucy123]

Hi - I do know from reading on a forum on the internet that a lot of people end up staying on 5mcg - either due to good bs or the fact it makes them so ill. If you can keep of 20 mcg a day I would do - it made me really ill. I even tried 15 mcg but everytime severe vomiting.

If your bs are at 7, maybe the 5mcg and metformin is sufficient - I suppose the question is how do you feel? I feel so much better than I have in years on 2x 5mcg and 2000 metformin + frusemide. It seems to be a nice balance for me. My bs are good and I feel well. On 20 mcg I dont feel I have a life.

Also my consultant did say every now and then he would ask me to go a week without Byetta to make sure my body doesn't get too used to it. (I was qutie surprised but by reading on another forum for Byetta users - Its quite common).

If you want to know if you can tolerate 10 mcg - could you not inject 2x5mcg and see how you feel? My consultant told me to try this before purchasing a 10 mcg pen and I am glad I did? It is probabaly worth checking with your gp/consultant first though.

I cant remember the name of the forum I went on but if you type Byetta forum into the search engine you should find something.🙂

 

[Copepod]

Well.legless.69 - the hands of the GP and DSN may be tied by PCT (Primary Care Trust) or equivalent body and / or NICE (or equivalent body) guidance.

However, some may be willing to give "off the record" advice eg as Lucy's consultant advised her.

By, the way, be careful about units, as Byetta comes in doses of 5 or 10 micrograms, which actually shouldn't really be abbreviated, but can be written as mcg or Greek letter that looks like a u with a line down from left side of letter as well as right side, to avoid possible confusion with milligrams (mg). Obviously, such confusion is more likely with handwriting, and transcribing between handwriting and typing, than purely typing

 

[Well.legless.69]

Thanks for replies going to call the nurse & discuss it all as I'm averaging 16.2 at the moment was up at 20 but thankfully it's coming down but I'm never below 10 I'm also moving to a bigger practice as the village one is not great in my opinion not just diabetes wise but the doc is hopeless paracetamol is his answer for everything

 

[Northerner]

Thanks for replies going to call the nurse & discuss it all as I'm averaging 16.2 at the moment was up at 20 but thankfully it's coming down but I'm never below 10 I'm also moving to a bigger practice as the village one is not great in my opinion not just diabetes wise but the doc is hopeless paracetamol is his answer for everything

Was the 7 you mentioned in your first post an HbA1c value i.e. 7%? I'm surprised if you are getting fingerprick readings that are never below 10 and usually mid-teens, I would expect it to be higher I'd definitely look for a second opinion!

 

[lucy123]

Also - if your HBA1c is 7 or below, you may be refused Byetta under Nice Guidlelines on NHS. I wonder if this could be why your GP wont increase it?

As Alan says though, it is strange to have this hba1c if your levels are always as high as you have stated.

I am probably as confused as you now?🙂

 

[Well.legless.69]

Nurse is going to double check results as I'm never below 10 even at 7.30am I'm between 12 & 15 but doc says my hba1 is 7% I'm really confused I test when I get up then 1hr after food then 2hrs after the before food etc etc as I'm trying to see what's good & what's bad have told nurse I'm moving practice as I've no faith in local doc

 

[Northerner]

Nurse is going to double check results as I'm never below 10 even at 7.30am I'm between 12 & 15 but doc says my hba1 is 7% I'm really confused I test when I get up then 1hr after food then 2hrs after the before food etc etc as I'm trying to see what's good & what's bad have told nurse I'm moving practice as I've no faith in local doc

It certainly doesn't sound right if you are getting all your meter readings in double figures. Hope you can get to the bottom of it and find a better doctor who can REALLY get you a 7%! 🙂