New! Please advise

[Northstar2]

Hello all! Just joined to gain more knowledge from here.
Pin prick readings 18 and 25 after meals in the afternoon, one test done (25) without ketones on urine. GP prescribed one metformin a day. After 3 days still >33 taken in afternoon and 14 before breakfast. I have read there are other medications, but when do we panic and ask doctor for any changes?

 

[trophywench]

Hiya - need to ask you some things.

First one is - what led to your diagnosis?

Next one, assuming there's no need to panic - when has your GP said he needs to see you again anyway - what's his plan for you?

I'm slightly surprised you have both a meter complete with test strips and a pot of urine ketone strips - did the doc instruct you to only test at the times you quote?

He knows as well as I do that Metformin alone won't do much at all to begin with because it takes a while - up to 3 weeks before a person is likely to see any difference, as it needs time to build up in the body so it needs to be topped up on a regular basis ie every day, to get a chance to work at all. The light at the end of this tunnel is that for many people the side effects seem to die down in the same timescale, a couple or 3 weeks. If they don't or it's so intolerable you can't continue taking them after trying for a bit, then there is a 'slow release' version of the drug which is kinder to the innards. It's more expensive, but even so, it still only costs a few ££ so it's not the end of the world for the NHS budget - just there's so many people need metformin every little helps so they normally try the ordinary one first. Then as you say there are a plethora of other drugs, each type of which does something different in the body and who knows what you will need in the finish - each person really is different once we have diabetes and what works for one isn't going to be a stone blind cert for the next person. Try the easiest one first …… Like love - sometimes we may need to kiss quite a number of frogs before we find our Prince or Princess!

I think 3 days is a bit soon to panic however I don't like your BG meter numbers one little bit, so if there's no noticeable change by Monday morning you do need to see doc asap.

At any time in the interim if you start getting ketones - then panic, and ring 111 !

 

[Madeline]

Welcome 🙂

Can concur with Trophy, I’ve been diagnosed around 6 weeks now, and it took a good 4 weeks for the Metformin to get going, and the side effects to disappear. I’m afraid I’m too new to comment on anything else, but you’ll get amazing advice and support here.

 

[CathyB]

Hi @Northstar2, I also agree that it’s early days to see any major changes, I also agree that those numbers are a tad high. The metformin is only part of the support your body needs to manage this, the biggest impact will. Need to be your diet. Carbohydrates are the bad guys that push those numbers high, especially rice, potatoes, pasta and bread. Many of us do tolerate Burgen Bread which is a low carb soya and linseed alternative that is tasty as toast or a sandwich but you still need to limit the amount you have each day. Fruit is also a danger zone as most are high in fructose, a natural sugar, the rule of thumb is no more than two small pieces a day and completely avoid the tropical fruits as they are the highest in sugar content.
Exercise is the second part of the approach, it doesn’t have to be hitting the gym if that’s not your thing, I borrow my neighbours dog and walk for between 45 - 60 minutes as many days a week that I can, when I first started I could only just make it around the block 😳
All you need to know is here on the different threads so take some time to read as much as you can, then ask any questions you have. Best advice I got here was to remember it’s a marathon not a sprint!

 

[JMyrtle]

Watch the grapes as well, they are evil little sugar bombs😡

 

[Northstar2]

Watch the grapes as well, they are evil little sugar bombs😡

Just read your HbA1c scores...what do you mean discharged at 45? Do you mean no medication anymore? How about your BG meter scores?

 

[Northstar2]

Welcome 🙂

Can concur with Trophy, I’ve been diagnosed around 6 weeks now, and it took a good 4 weeks for the Metformin to get going, and the side effects to disappear. I’m afraid I’m too new to comment on anything else, but you’ll get amazing advice and support here.

- what are the side effects you encounter?

 

[Madeline]

Mine have mostly been confined to stomach - an increase in heartburn, and a weird cold sensation, like I’d swallowed a tube of toothpaste. It took a while to start working on my BG levels and get those down - so a few weeks until the headaches, faintyness etc went. Feel SO much better now.

 

[Northstar2]

Hi @Northstar2, I also agree that it’s early days to see any major changes, I also agree that those numbers are a tad high. The metformin is only part of the support your body needs to manage this, the biggest impact will. Need to be your diet. Carbohydrates are the bad guys that push those numbers high, especially rice, potatoes, pasta and bread. Many of us do tolerate Burgen Bread which is a low carb soya and linseed alternative that is tasty as toast or a sandwich but you still need to limit the amount you have each day. Fruit is also a danger zone as most are high in fructose, a natural sugar, the rule of thumb is no more than two small pieces a day and completely avoid the tropical fruits as they are the highest in sugar content.
Exercise is the second part of the approach, it doesn’t have to be hitting the gym if that’s not your thing, I borrow my neighbours dog and walk for between 45 - 60 minutes as many days a week that I can, when I first started I could only just make it around the block 😳
All you need to know is here on the different threads so take some time to read as much as you can, then ask any questions you have. Best advice I got here was to remember it’s a marathon not a sprint!

-Hi! Thanks for the advice! So do you only have metformin as medication?

I understand about diet and exercise. Problem is he needs to put on weight as he lost a lot after a surgery. Noted about exercise...But my my worry is what to do now with these readings when you said it will still take time and when shall we need to ask help.

 

[Northstar2]

Mine have mostly been confined to stomach - an increase in heartburn, and a weird cold sensation, like I’d swallowed a tube of toothpaste. It took a while to start working on my BG levels and get those down - so a few weeks until the headaches, faintyness etc went. Feel SO much better now.

Do u only have metformin only as medication as well?

 

[Madeline]

Maybe an idea to ring GP, or out of hours if you’re worried?

I’m on 500mg Metformin twice a day, started on one a day then upped to two after a week. Plenty of fat in the diet will get some weight back on.

 

[Northstar2]

Hiya - need to ask you some things.

First one is - what led to your diagnosis?

Next one, assuming there's no need to panic - when has your GP said he needs to see you again anyway - what's his plan for you?

I'm slightly surprised you have both a meter complete with test strips and a pot of urine ketone strips - did the doc instruct you to only test at the times you quote?

He knows as well as I do that Metformin alone won't do much at all to begin with because it takes a while - up to 3 weeks before a person is likely to see any difference, as it needs time to build up in the body so it needs to be topped up on a regular basis ie every day, to get a chance to work at all. The light at the end of this tunnel is that for many people the side effects seem to die down in the same timescale, a couple or 3 weeks. If they don't or it's so intolerable you can't continue taking them after trying for a bit, then there is a 'slow release' version of the drug which is kinder to the innards. It's more expensive, but even so, it still only costs a few ££ so it's not the end of the world for the NHS budget - just there's so many people need metformin every little helps so they normally try the ordinary one first. Then as you say there are a plethora of other drugs, each type of which does something different in the body and who knows what you will need in the finish - each person really is different once we have diabetes and what works for one isn't going to be a stone blind cert for the next person. Try the easiest one first …… Like love - sometimes we may need to kiss quite a number of frogs before we find our Prince or Princess!

I think 3 days is a bit soon to panic however I don't like your BG meter numbers one little bit, so if there's no noticeable change by Monday morning you do need to see doc asap.

At any time in the interim if you start getting ketones - then panic, and ring 111 !

1. He has a condition with his pancreas. When he was discharged from hospital BG was 8. We just wanted to check during a consultant appointment and did BG test. When found high they asked as well for urine test. First time we went to GP they just referred him for the Hasb1c test and scored 42. However when we came back to consultant she still questioned why they didnt prescribe anything with those BG readings. They Contacted GP and at last prescribed metformin.
2. Actually there was no plan given by GP. He was the one who even asked for BG meter to test at home. Sorry I wasn’t with him so not really sure what happened. We don’t have urine tester at home to test again for ketones. Panic with Ketones? Does everyone else here check that too? Is it not expected?
3. You mentioned at least a 3week effect, but why you said come back to GP Monday if no changes?

 

[Northstar2]

Hiya - need to ask you some things.

First one is - what led to your diagnosis?

Next one, assuming there's no need to panic - when has your GP said he needs to see you again anyway - what's his plan for you?

I'm slightly surprised you have both a meter complete with test strips and a pot of urine ketone strips - did the doc instruct you to only test at the times you quote?

He knows as well as I do that Metformin alone won't do much at all to begin with because it takes a while - up to 3 weeks before a person is likely to see any difference, as it needs time to build up in the body so it needs to be topped up on a regular basis ie every day, to get a chance to work at all. The light at the end of this tunnel is that for many people the side effects seem to die down in the same timescale, a couple or 3 weeks. If they don't or it's so intolerable you can't continue taking them after trying for a bit, then there is a 'slow release' version of the drug which is kinder to the innards. It's more expensive, but even so, it still only costs a few ££ so it's not the end of the world for the NHS budget - just there's so many people need metformin every little helps so they normally try the ordinary one first. Then as you say there are a plethora of other drugs, each type of which does something different in the body and who knows what you will need in the finish - each person really is different once we have diabetes and what works for one isn't going to be a stone blind cert for the next person. Try the easiest one first …… Like love - sometimes we may need to kiss quite a number of frogs before we find our Prince or Princess!

I think 3 days is a bit soon to panic however I don't like your BG meter numbers one little bit, so if there's no noticeable change by Monday morning you do need to see doc asap.

At any time in the interim if you start getting ketones - then panic, and ring 111 !

Thanks by the way...a lot

 

[Northstar2]

Mine have mostly been confined to stomach - an increase in heartburn, and a weird cold sensation, like I’d swallowed a tube of toothpaste. It took a while to start working on my BG levels and get those down - so a few weeks until the headaches, faintyness etc went. Feel SO much better now.

He has headaches but that was present even just before we discovered high sugar readings. It has been 10th day since he started metformin and he just started feeling sick today with 3x loose bowels, which he didn’t experience since.

 

[Madeline]

GP to allay any worries really. I’m not in any position to advise, lovely.

I got an upset stomach on Metformin too.

 

[trophywench]

Sorry - I didn't notice 'Carer/Partner'. Ketones usually indicate that one is an emergency when accompanied by huge BG meter readings - and 33 is huge - it is supposed to be a lot closer to 5 !

Please tell us more though - about what surgery the guy had to his pancreas, since a fait bet of people who've had to have a certain part of their pancreas surgically removed, become diabetic, and it quite frequently behaves more like Type 1 diabetes, though in fact it isn't actually either Type 1 or Type 2. It also frequently only responds to injected insulin rather than Type 2 medications. He must be feeling absolutely vile with readings that high.

But - I'm not a doctor. However - for the sake of about a fiver - could you nip to a reasonable sized pharmacy in the morning, get hold of a pot of urine ketone strips and see what results his wee shows - don't need to collect it, business end of the strip can be passed through the stream, mid flow.

 

[Northstar2]

Thank you for the advice! 5 is so beyond normal readings! I’ve read a normal person has 11 as normal after meals. We asked 111 before he got the GP prescription and said it’s nothing to get admitted. So really not sure...we were not told to be checking ketones as well but maybe we’ll just call 111 for advice

 

[eggyg]

Hi there, do you know what surgery he had? Whippel (removal of head of pancreas) distal pancreatectomy ( removal of tail and body) or other? I have had distal 11 years ago and no matter how’ much diet and exercise or Metformin he takes it probably won’t work, believe me I know and my numbers were nowhere near as high as that. I would call 111 and ask for advice but you must have all the details of his surgery. To be honest even GPs don’t know a lot, if anything, about pancreatic induced diabetes. Jenny is right, you need some pee sticks as a matter of urgency. I am not saying this to worry you unnecessarily, it’s really important. How is he feeling in himself? Elaine.

 

[trophywench]

Thanks eggyg - this is the point I was attempting to get across without me putting the fear of God into the situation - I just feel we only have half the story here and it's so difficult to know what to suggest - could well be barking up entirely the wrong tree. Anyway, I won't have access to the forum for the next few days - so hopefully the gentleman will have got some useful medical help by the time I get back.

 

[JMyrtle]

A lot more good information has been added since my post but you asked for clarification of my readings.
As I understand it a GP will not routinely prescribe Metformin for a patient with a HbA1c of 60 or less without giving them the chance to reduce it naturally by changes to diet and weight first.
In my case my GP gave me year " no sugar, no cakes, no biscuits,no sweets, no chocolate, go on the internet and come back in a year"
Happily I found this forum and the fact that I could ask for a HbA1c test after three months, a year and three further tests later my HbA1c is now 45 ( apparently anything under 48 is now considered to be normal) I am off the diabetes register and don't need another blood, foot or eye test for a year.
I take four meter reading a day, rising, before my main meal, two hours after and upon retiring, my daily average is under 8.0 and the practice nurse has told me a daily average of under 8.0 is within normal levels so provided I am careful what I eat and test regularly I am in remission.
I will always be diabetic because if I reverted to eating the amount of carbs a non diabetic can safely eat my readings would again be too high but I now have my blood glucose under control and that is the name of the game.