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Type 2 & no test strips

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This thread is now closed. Please contact Anna DUK, Ieva DUK or everydayupsanddowns if you would like it re-opened.
mum2westiesGill

mum2westiesGill

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 1
My MIL is Type 2, Dx 2010 & taking metformin once daily. She seems to cope ok with everything but....

Just recently her GP has said she won't be issued with any more test strips.
She won't ever have a hypo while she's taking metformin.
Also the GP said what is the point in making her fingers sore by keep pricking her fingers.
She will have her test when she goes for her 3 monthly appointment.
She just has to go by how she feels.

Any comments are welcome.
 
Others will be able to give better advice than me, but one of the arguments for type 2 having test strips is it helps us to know how different foods affect our levels.

It is less likely that a type 2 in metformin will hypo but not impossible, even non diabetics hypo sometimes.

Hope everything works out
 
I would seriously consider a change in GP, as that's a wrong attitude to take. I was told by my GP that a T2 diabetic is less likely to have a hypo than a type 1. But that doesn't mean they will never have one at all.

I've been told to check my BG levels once a week as I am well-controlled but even so, I have to keep a record of all BG readings and present them to either my GP or diabetic consultant and nurse. It is not as your GP says, a matter of waiting for your next check up to determine what BG levels your MIL has.

As for that finger-pricking explanation from the GP. What a nonsensical excuse that is. I've been told what fingers to use lancets on and when. It has to be done, no matter what.

Dump that GP and find a better one. As they're making excuses.
 
Gill here's a question - what does Mum do with the readings she currently gets from her strips?

If she adjust what she eats or goes for a bit of a walk if she's high or something well fair enough that's exactly when the NICE Guidelines say the GP should prescribe strips. But if she tests, just says Good or Oh dear, and then forgets it, that's when no, she shouldn't get test strips, because they ARE a waste of money.

I'm not saying that to be nasty, I'm sure you know by now that the NHS just don't explain to most T2s that they CAN actually do something.
 
Caroline said:
It is less likely that a type 2 in metformin will hypo but not impossible, even non diabetics hypo sometimes.
Click to expand...

I had what I now know was a severe hypo, 15 years before being diagnosed! 😱 OK, the circumstances were very unusual (it was an extremely hot day, I just didn't feel like eating), but even so...
 
How often did your MIL test? Sounds like quite a bit if the GP thinks that she's got sore fingers!

Whether your MIL really needs test strips is dependent on whether she has good BG control or not. If she is finding that her tests are all fine and that there is nothing to worry about, then there is less need for regular testing.

In my case, my BGs are behaving properly. Consequently, my current pot of 50 has been going since September ..... 2011!! I still have ten or so strips left.

When I spoke to my new GP about this. He said that he won't be prescribing any, but if I drop him a note when I need them, he'd be happy to oblige. A bit daft, but I don't mind that.

On the other hand, if her readings are all over the place, then there is a greater need for testing .... or a greater need to sort her diet out (I'm not judging here, by the way, just pointing out the possibilities).

Andy 🙂
 
It has to depend on why she started testing in the first place. I am T2 and have never tested and don't particularly want to now. If I just started testing, I would not understand the results! I have never had a hypo, on Metformin and don't expect to ever have a hypo. As long as my HbA1C results are coming back and showing no cause for concern, then I am not worried.
 
I have been on Metformin for over 4 years and was recently put on Gliclazide as well and whilst Metformin might not cause hypos Gliclazide can but still my surgery won't prescribe test strips for type 2 non insulin dependant diabetics;their reasoning is that people might use them and not make life style changes!
It is wonderful to be treated like an idiot!!
 
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