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Concerned About A Hyper

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H

hip cat

New Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
Hello,

I'm new here and just wanted to ask a question.

I've been unwell with a virus like lurgy for about 2 and a half weeks now but I've also found that my sugar levels via tests strips are very high indeed. I have had the monitor for some time but actually quit using it daily a while ago but on Saturday as I felt so unwell I gave it a go and was shocked to find my sugar levels were really high. I've been testing them every day (maybe a few too many times due to anxiousness) and they remain high.

My questions are -

1 - Is my hyper causing the cold like symptoms or are my cold like symptoms causing my hyper?

2 - At which point do I call 111?

I do take a tablet daily (sitagliptin) and was first diagnosed as 'pre' about 4 years ago. I have lost weight and I do watch what I eat but I also have lapses. Last week was a bit of a lapse sugar intake wise.

I've not listed full symptoms etc in a bid to keep things brief but any help or advice much appreciated.

Thanks.

HC
 
What were your levels? But yes colds and illness can raise your glucose levels.
 
Well, when you say 'high' you'd have to tell me how high before I could pass comment. Is it below 10, below 20 or below 30?
 
Hi Thebearcametoo,

Thanks for your message.

On Saturday morning I felt very unwell after going to the gym and I suspected a hypo but the readings came back as 15 going up to 20 mmol/L and then between 10 ish and 14 ish at various times of the day in the days since. I am being a bit slack in terms of when I check - I've done it first thing in the morning, immediately after eating or a few hours after eating.
The last reading was 13.3 after having had some crackers and fruit about an hour earlier.

I'm also starting to feel a bit sick but I ALSO have the cold like symptoms i've had for a while now - fatigue, head ache, slight light headedness etc...

Apologies for sounding like a hypochondriac. Thanks for advice.
 
Hi Trophywench -

Thanks for your message.

I've explained a bit in my message above - but just to clarify

Saturday 20 going down to 15 and up to 16 before I went to bed.

Since then floating from 12 to about 14 and inbetween.
 
HI @hip cat, when you say you haven't used your testing kit in a while, how long are you talking? It might be worth checking the date on your test strips as they could have expired meaning the results you are seeing could be inaccurate.
Illness can cause increases, but some of the symptoms you mention, fatigue and headaches could also be an indicator of high levels. It may be worth a trip to your GP, who can request an HbA1c if necessary to determine if this increase in levels is a short term response to a virus or whether it is more general increase that requires treating. In the meantime try and stay hydrated, but if your are concerned before you can see your GP do call 111.
Hope you feel better soon.
 
Hi LucyDUK,

Thanks for your message.

Funnily enough I had an HSBC1 done on Friday so I'm waiting for the results.

The test strips say 2020 - 6 - 30 which I take to mean end of June this year.

Yes, I'm also feeling a bit of a coughy chest, slightly raised temperature so I'm hoping it's just this sort of mild cold.

Assuming the readings remain high after how many days should I see a doctor? I guess the HSBC 1 will determine that?
 
If your HbA1c is high then your doctor may well wish to see you anyway, but there's not really a set time scale for how long to wait to see a doctor.
If you are concerned, not feeling great and the high readings are also making you a bit anxious then it's probably a good idea to see your doctor.
 
Hi hip cat, You say that you watch what you eat, but you don't say which 'Way Of Eating' you are using in order to try to control your Blood Glucose.
Are you doing Fasting? A Crash low calorie diet,? Or a Low Carb/Keto way of eating?
I ask this because the standard advice given to me and to most other Type 2's is based upon the 'EatWell Plate' and it was this type of High Carb, Low Fat way Of Eating that got me diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes in the first place - so it is advice which makes Blood Glucose higher and needing more and more medication, instead of the 3 ways I listed above which reduce Blood Glucose.

You seem to believe that it's only sugar that you should be avoiding. Unless you are doing the 'crash diet' way, you should be avoiding all carbohydrates - so that means Fruit, Fruit Juice, Bread, flour, rice, potato (even sweet potato), pasta and even whole grains. Even if doing the crash diet way, you should be eating less of these compared with fatty fish and fatty meat and above ground vegetables than is advised by the government guidelines.

The only food you mention is fruit and crackers - both guaranteed to raise your Blood Glucose, which they did so you shouldn't be surprised at a reading of 13.5.

You also need to be more consistent about when you take your Blood Glucose meter levels. Since carbohydrates affect us all differently it is best to find out which ones you can get away with and which ones you need to avoid completely. The way to do this is to test just before each meal and then 2hrs after first bite. You should initially be trying to keep the spike from before to after the meal below 2.0 mmol. Anything more than that would be likely to be damaging your smaller blood vessels - hence the complications associated with diabetes (blindness and limb amputations).

A Low Carb way of eating can get many people's HbA1C down into the pre-diabetic or even the normal levels within 3 months. Dr David Unwin is a GP in Southport who has a 50% success rate in getting his Type 2 patients into remission using just a Low Carb way of eating, they come off their diabetes medications, off their Blood Pressure medications too.

If you rely on medication, you will always keep needing more and more medication.

If you decide to go down the Low Carb route, you will get lower Blood Glucose and you will need to be careful that it doesn't get too low (known as a Hypo) because your Sitagliptin wrings more Insulin out of the Beta Cells in your pancreas (until they stop working).

Sitagliptin.png
 
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Hi ianf0ster,

Thanks for that very detailed reply.

In terms of my diet I haven't been following anything formal in the ways you mention but perhaps it's time that I did.

I'm a vegetarian (no meat or fish) so I do tend to rely on bread and pasta. I'm not sure what 'keto' is but I'll look into it.

I did look up side effects of Sitagliptin and yes, the sore throat, headache, stuffy nose are my symptoms (along with a rise in head temperature) but I've been taking Sitagliptin for about 2 months now and these symptoms came along about 2 maybe 3 weeks ago so I'd put them down to a mild cold.

Having looked at keto diets I have to admit my diet has been pretty bad, I guess because my last HSBC1 was so low I got complacent. Lesson learned.

Thanks for the advice.
 
Bread and pasta are just starch, with very little actual nutrition - they are most likely the main reason for your high blood glucose long term. Being vegetarian makes keeping blood glucose levels low rather difficult, as the main sources of just about zero carb nutrition are all animal based.
 
Could I just gently mention that blood test is called the HbA1c test. Not Hong Kong & Shanghai Bank! LOL

Hb is the medical shorthand for Haemoglobin, which = red blood cells, and the A1c test measured how much excess glucose in your blood has stuck to your red blood cells. When Adam was a lad and I was diagnosed, the same test was called Glycosulated Haemoglobin - so HbA1c is much quicker to say!
 
Hello @hip cat, welcome to the forum.
As you can see from the replies you have, there is a great deal of help and knowledge available here.
I hope you are feeling better today, and can get to a doctor to discuss your symptoms and blood test readings soon.
In the meantime, although hard to do, try not to get too anxious about it, as stress will add to any problems.

We will always try to answer any questions you have, and would like to know how it goes for you, so please keep posting.
 
Welcome to the forum @hip cat

HSBC1 made me chuckle :D (though many new members do get rather befuddled by the medical jargon thrust upon them, so TW’s nudge was understandable)

Your joke reminds me of a much missed former member who used to refer to appointments at the ‘hostile pile’ 😛
 
When it comes to not using the correct terminology I have to admit that after my first test on Wednesday last week i have referred to the finger pricker as 'Mr Stabby B@stard'
 
Hiya. just a thought on the test strips. Sometimes its not just the 'expiry date' that's important....Mine direct me to the fact that once I have opened the container - they are only good for 6 months, even if they are still within the expiry date. It gives me a panel on the side of the tub to write the date i opened it up. Worth checking yours?
 
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