High blood struggles ☹️

[razumova1979]

Hey! It’s nice to post here again.

Basically, I have a hard time not giving myself a hard time with high bloods. I have some questions and general concerns I want to get off my chest.

1) Last diabetes appointment my HbA1C level was 42 mmol/mol. The doctor was really happy about it and so was I, but I am really confused. The last diabetic eye screening showed that I had signs of background diabetic neuropathy?? How can both of those things be true at the same time?

2) Sometimes when I am really high I feel aches and pins&needles in my hands and feet, but it goes away when my bloods go back down. Is it normal to have temporary feelings like that? Even when my bloods are good most of the time?

3) My bloods today:


I feel so bad... I went to bed with bloods at 4.6 and I wake up like this??? I only had two dextrose tablets!!!!! And I have done so many corrections...I just feel bad about this. I haven’t been this high in ages...

 

[pm133]

It sounds to me like your basal is set at the wrong amount.
Performing bolus corrections isn't going to help you here.

 

[Inka]

Hi @razumova1979 In theory both things in your 1) can be true, for example, if you’re swinging from high to low. In that instance, your HbA1C will be ok but you’ll still be having the highs that might lead to eye issues. However, mild eye issues aren’t uncommon and can go away.

As @pm133 says, it could be a basal issue. Have you done a basal test recently?

 

[Becka]

1) Last diabetes appointment my HbA1C level was 42 mmol/mol. The doctor was really happy about it and so was I, but I am really confused. The last diabetic eye screening showed that I had signs of background diabetic neuropathy?? How can both of those things be true at the same time?

Retinopathy is not a side effect of having high levels, which comes and goes with them, but a consequence of them. When I was first diagnosed I had some background retinopathy. That damage was already down, so even though my HbA1c went down to 5.0% / 31 mmol/mol it was still there.

The point of maintaining lower glucose levels is to stop further damage, so the issue does not get worse that it becomes a real problem with your vision.

 

[helli]

1) Last diabetes appointment my HbA1C level was 42 mmol/mol. The doctor was really happy about it and so was I, but I am really confused. The last diabetic eye screening showed that I had signs of background diabetic neuropathy?? How can both of those things be true at the same time?

I believe (but I am not a doctor or medically qualified), lowering blood sugars too quickly can cause damage to your eyes. So the background retinopathy may be the result of the improvement.
However, this is something that can be reversed if blood sugars remain low.

2) Sometimes when I am really high I feel aches and pins&needles in my hands and feet, but it goes away when my bloods go back down. Is it normal to have temporary feelings like that? Even when my bloods are good most of the time?

I find that high blood sugars emphasise any sniffs, aches, coughs, itches, hayfever, etc. Once my levels return "in range" the sniffs, aches, etc. are alleviated.
Unfortunately, this can become a spiral as the stress from the sniffs, aches, etc can cause blood sugar rises and higher blood sugars lead to insulin resistance.
That is a long winded way of saying "yes, it is normal to have temporary feelings as a result from a short term high."

3) My bloods today:

As others have suggested your graphs look like insufficient basal.
However, if this is a one-off, it would be worthwhile checking your insulin pen and changing your basal insulin as one or both may be faulty.
There are all the other reasons - stress, less exercise, heat, illness (which could be something your body is fighting which may not have any noticeable symptoms yet), ...

 

[razumova1979]

Hi @razumova1979 In theory both things in your 1) can be true, for example, if you’re swinging from high to low. In that instance, your HbA1C will be ok but you’ll still be having the highs that might lead to eye issues. However, mild eye issues aren’t uncommon and can go away.

As @pm133 says, it could be a basal issue. Have you done a basal test recently?

I’ll give a basal test a go. Thank you for the information!

 

[razumova1979]

I believe (but I am not a doctor or medically qualified), lowering blood sugars too quickly can cause damage to your eyes. So the background retinopathy may be the result of the improvement.
However, this is something that can be reversed if blood sugars remain low.


I find that high blood sugars emphasise any sniffs, aches, coughs, itches, hayfever, etc. Once my levels return "in range" the sniffs, aches, etc. are alleviated.
Unfortunately, this can become a spiral as the stress from the sniffs, aches, etc can cause blood sugar rises and higher blood sugars lead to insulin resistance.
That is a long winded way of saying "yes, it is normal to have temporary feelings as a result from a short term high."

As others have suggested your graphs look like insufficient basal.
However, if this is a one-off, it would be worthwhile checking your insulin pen and changing your basal insulin as one or both may be faulty.
There are all the other reasons - stress, less exercise, heat, illness (which could be something your body is fighting which may not have any noticeable symptoms yet), ...

All this information is GREAT, thank you for replying!! I feel like I better understand it all

 

[Drummer]

If it helps, I had background retinopathy at my first check I had, but was able to return to normal numbers fairly swiftly from the 17.1mmol/l at diagnosis.
When checked again the retinopathy had gone, and has not been seen in subsequent years.

 

[rebrascora]

Not sure if it is relevant but my basal needs increased after my Covid vaccine in February and I had to steadily increase my basal insulin from 16 units to more than double at 35units. Thankfully, the last couple of weeks it is starting to decrease again but every few days I was having to increase my Levemir by a unit or two to keep things on an evenish keel although I felt like I was fighting a losing battle. I know it is odd to say it but it's a huge relief to be dropping into the red a bit the last couple of days and needing carb top ups instead of QA corrections every few hours.... much pleasanter to eat the odd jelly baby or dark chocolate digestive that inject insulin! So now I am doing the whole process in reverse and decreasing my basal every few days in response to my new lower levels..... It has been a bit of a frustrating few months since my first vaccine in Feb and still a little way to go I think to get back to normal.
I am not the only one to notice this problem but some others have had the opposite with levels going low after the vaccine and having to reduce their basal insulin.
Anyway, just something to consider if your problems with your levels started occurring not long after the vaccine.... if you have had it.