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Metformin

S

Sharron1

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
The saga of my diabetes has now spread to the lovely pharmacist I went to collect my new drug Ezitimbe, he checked my record and then gently but incredulously asked me why with my Hba1c numbers I am still taking Metformin. I gave him the shortened version of my annual attempts to get it reduced. He gave a sigh and remarked,'... what a lazy surgery...'

Happy New Year
 
Sharron1 said:
The saga of my diabetes has now spread to the lovely pharmacist I went to collect my new drug Ezitimbe, he checked my record and then gently but incredulously asked me why with my Hba1c numbers I am still taking Metformin. I gave him the shortened version of my annual attempts to get it reduced. He gave a sigh and remarked,'... what a lazy surgery...'

Happy New Year
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Just tell them you're going to stop? Take the bull by the horns and get them to agree it.

They can't make you stay on it.
 
Sharron1 said:
The saga of my diabetes has now spread to the lovely pharmacist I went to collect my new drug Ezitimbe, he checked my record and then gently but incredulously asked me why with my Hba1c numbers I am still taking Metformin. I gave him the shortened version of my annual attempts to get it reduced. He gave a sigh and remarked,'... what a lazy surgery...'

Happy New Year
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Well they’re not coming round shoving the tablets down your neck, if you don’t want to take it just stop. Time it for a few months before annual a1c due if you want to see the impact then just tell them what you’ve done.
 
Lucyr said:
Well they’re not coming round shoving the tablets down your neck, if you don’t want to take it just stop. Time it for a few months before annual a1c due if you want to see the impact then just tell them what you’ve done.
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I got what I wanted, it was just hard work for no sensible reason. I can now put this nonsense to bed
 
dannybgoode said:
Just tell them you're going to stop? Take the bull by the horns and get them to agree it.

They can't make you stay on it.
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I got the reduction and as far as I am concerned it's a pleasing result for me
 
I take one Metformin twice a day and would like to stop.
I inject 10 units Insulin as soon as I get up and another 4 or 5 about 1600z if I
am going out for an evening meal (About twice a Week)
 
Sharron1 said:
I got what I wanted, it was just hard work for no sensible reason. I can now put this nonsense to bed
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Good to hear @Sharron1

Do you think your surgery might revisit your original (and slightly confused) diagnosis?
 
everydayupsanddowns said:
Good to hear @Sharron1

Do you think your surgery might revisit your original (and slightly confused) diagnosis?
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I somehow doubt it. I am stuck with it. Incrementally reducing metformin seems to be a more positive way of managing it. Give or take a rant every so often o_O
 
Sharron1 said:
I somehow doubt it. I am stuck with it. Incrementally reducing metformin seems to be a more positive way of managing it. Give or take a rant every so often o_O
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It's going to be interesting to see how high the A1c rises without the Metformin. From what I vaguely remember the minimum effective dose of Metfartin of 1500mg reduces the A1c by 1.5% in old money and about 10 in the current EMA recommendation we use. So you might go up to the early/mid 40s ??
 
Burylancs said:
It's going to be interesting to see how high the A1c rises without the Metformin. From what I vaguely remember the minimum effective dose of Metfartin of 1500mg reduces the A1c by 1.5% in old money and about 10 in the current EMA recommendation we use. So you might go up to the early/mid 40s ??
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Does that apply to all people, even those without Type 2 diabetes? It seems very likely that @Sharron1 does not have T2 diabetes and never has had it.
 
Burylancs said:
It's going to be interesting to see how high the A1c rises without the Metformin. From what I vaguely remember the minimum effective dose of Metfartin of 1500mg reduces the A1c by 1.5% in old money and about 10 in the current EMA recommendation we use. So you might go up to the early/mid 40s ??
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That is very interesting. I am also curious. However I am still taking 2 tabs (1 am and 1 pm). Last year with a reduction of a single tab there was no increase in my number. Time will tell. Although the Ckinical Pharmacolgist in the surgery, did mention the possibility of an increase towards the early 40s which is in line with your infotmation.
 
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silentsquirrel said:
Does that apply to all people, even those without Type 2 diabetes? It seems very likely that @Sharron1 does not have T2 diabetes and never has had it.
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It is all very messy. Just taking these baby/incremental steps with surgery is (for me) the better way forward , and then see what happens. I pick my battles.
 
I totally get why it's so difficult to challenge medical professionals, they have so much power over our lives, particularly if you live somewhere where you don't have the option to switch surgery. Or for people for whatever reason are not in the right place to do so, mentally.
I've had to learn to manage my own health and not rely on medical professionals because of the times I've been bullied, misdiagnosed, given the wrong advice... I spent my childhood and young age thinking I would die young...but it wasn't true.
My GP prescribed metformin which I agreed to at the time but then I decided not to take it. I'm not just being stubborn refusing to treat my diabetes, I want to give diet and exercise a go but I will take metformin if BG doesn't go or stay down. When I have my review in February I'm prepared to justify my decision and not take any BS from whoever I'm seeing (in a nice way, I'll agree with whatever they say and just tell them I'm trying my way first).
To make it absolutely clear, I'm not telling anyone to stop taking medications. I know what I'm doing, I test myself several times a day, if my average BG wasn't going down I would be taking meds. I just want to share my experience.
 
Burylancs said:
It's going to be interesting to see how high the A1c rises without the Metformin. From what I vaguely remember the minimum effective dose of Metfartin of 1500mg reduces the A1c by 1.5% in old money and about 10 in the current EMA recommendation we use. So you might go up to the early/mid 40s ??
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My hba1c did not change much when I stopped Metformin. 1000mg to 500mg and then 500mg to nothing. Seems to vary between 36/37/38. (It actually dropped after stopping the last tablet)
 
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harbottle said:
My hba1c did not change much when I stopped Metformin. 1000mg to 500mg and then 500mg to nothing. Seems to vary between 36/37/38.
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Had zero effect for me.
 
harbottle said:
My hba1c did not change much when I stopped Metformin. 1000mg to 500mg and then 500mg to nothing. Seems to vary between 36/37/38. (It actually dropped after stopping the last tablet)
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The minium effective dose is 1500 and the usual dose is 2000. 2500 is sometimes seen but doses ov er that have no advantage. 1000 and 500 are loading doses and not particularly effective on A1cs so you were taking an ineffective dose and unsurprisingly it had little effect.
 
Burylancs said:
The minium effective dose is 1500 and the usual dose is 2000. 2500 is sometimes seen but doses ov er that have no advantage. 1000 and 500 are loading doses and not particularly effective on A1cs so you were taking an ineffective dose and unsurprisingly it had little effect.
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If you have little insulin resistance then metformin won't have much effect.I got rid of insulin resistance by clearing fat from my liver, and so going from 2000mg to 0g metformin had no effect.
 
I've seen research shown a dose as low as 500mg has an effect on a1c and fasting glucose. The improvement seems to increase linearly up to 2000 then falls. (I've seen research showing .9% for 500mg and 2% for 2000mg, but there doesn't seem to be any consensus as different studies rarely seem to agree - one Japanese study shows a low dose can be quite effective in non-obese patients)

The effective dose is going to be based on the patient's needs.
 
Eddy Edson said:
I got rid of ... by clearing fat from my liver.
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That's what I did.

At diagnosis the GP said your BG is far too high, start taking Metformin at once. Your iron (ferritin level) is also far too high, I'll arrange an ultrascan asap to assess your liver. The radiologist confirmed I had a fatty liver, just as Prof Taylor had described in Life without Diabetes, Type 2. She said 'Treat it by diet'.

One week of a protein and vegetable VLCD and my FBG was back to normal. Three months later HbA1c was 39, ferritin was 50% down, and a second scan showed my liver was normal. I never opened the pack of Metformin.
 
I’m guessing going from 83 to 36 in a matter months by losing weight quite rapidly helped me as well.

Although I am still confused why despite a hba1c of 83 my initial fingerprick tests were in the sixes and sevens.
 
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