what does a hypo feel like?

[Northerner]

Well not strictly true. I've had I think 2 in the 3.6-4.0 range which I have caught before a meal and not felt low. I have tried to avoid hypos' at all since an A&E hypo in October last year.

Just looked at my meter software and in the past 6 months (conveniently, 1000 tests!) I have had 81 below 3.5 and 80 between 3.5-4.0. This equates to about 16%, with 8% 'true' hypos. 18% of my tests have been above 7.0, but this includes a lot that I would expect e.g. when I am testing before/after a run when I hope for it to be on the higher side. So, 66% of my tests have been in my target range, which I'm very happy about!

I'd say that, out of the 80 hypos, maybe half a dozen have been 'memorable' i.e. feeling a fast descent and a bit panicky.

 

[rossi_mac]

wow lots of different experienced noted.

At first I would feel the shakes come on pretty seriously, but only 6 months later, either I'm better controlled, but the shakes don't happen that much unless I'm real real low. so maybe I'm getting towards a state of hypo unaware? Of late I've thought that I've been low but I haven't been just been hungry! Find that unknowning feeling (hunger or hypo) quite annoying to be honest does anyone else get that?

I worry quite a lot when I could be low when I'm sleepy that I may be low and I won't do anything to counteract my hypo, as I'm tired, so I test and I'm not low? does that make sense? I read on here somewhere that people get lothargic when they are low.

I also find that I take a good 15 plus minutes to come around, and it is best to sit down and "not operate heavy nachinery"

 

[Northerner]

...Of late I've thought that I've been low but I haven't been just been hungry! Find that unknowning feeling (hunger or hypo) quite annoying to be honest does anyone else get that?...

Yes, I get that quite often, particularly before lunch, and you're right, it is annoying!😱🙂

 

[AJL]

unfortunately i have similar symptoms still 6 years in... just got used to it...i still get the shakes and sweats im afraid but i find the quickest thing to bring me out of a hypo is lucozade drink. the thirst normally comes on when you are too high.

It took me nearly 30 years before I tried Lucozade for low sugars - and it was the best thing that I ever did. For me Lucozade definitely works much more quickly than anything else for getting a low sugar back up and so reducing the length of time that I feel bad from the hypo - although I have found that sometimes it is trial and error as to how much I need.

 

[Heike]

You are all so lucky of being aware when go hypo. I only feel hypo when I am below 2 and then I feel really ill and nauseous. Only manage to drink some fruit juice then and go to bed. My husband is getting quite good of noticing when I'm hypo. Apparently I loose the ability to speak, words getting slurry and grammatically wrong. I once told him that every silver lining has a cloud 🙂.

 

[Patricia]

Wow, what an array of answers. I'm so grateful for this.

My son doesn't like fizzy drinks, which may mean he can't abide lucozade. But if some find it gives a quicker response, he may try it. It's waiting for the glucose to have an effect, as I say, that really undoes him.

 

[insulinaddict09]

Wow, what an array of answers. I'm so grateful for this.

My son doesn't like fizzy drinks, which may mean he can't abide lucozade. But if some find it gives a quicker response, he may try it. It's waiting for the glucose to have an effect, as I say, that really undoes him.

Im not a lover of fizzy drinks but its amazing what you will eat and drink while hypo!! i hate lucozade but there are lots of different flavours, the only one i can stomach is the lemon one which does'nt taste sweet but will stop a hypo in its tracks!! its worth trying to see if he likes any of them, even if its just to get his sugars up quickly in a couple of minutes rather than waiting longer. the glucose hits your system pretty much immediately and you dont need to drink bottles of the stuff either, although when hypo it is easy to over compensate and go too far the other way especially when eating!! 🙂

 

[Tezzz]

Wow, what an array of answers. I'm so grateful for this.

My son doesn't like fizzy drinks, which may mean he can't abide lucozade. But if some find it gives a quicker response, he may try it. It's waiting for the glucose to have an effect, as I say, that really undoes him.

Apologies if this sounds silly - have you thought opening the Lucozade and letting it go 'flat' in the fridge.

I haven't had a hypo yet as I am still on my first week of 1 a day 500mg Metformin. I have added Lucozade to the shopping list just in case when the dose goes up to 2 a day. 😱

Tez.

 

[Steff]

Apologies if this sounds silly - have you thought opening the Lucozade and letting it go 'flat' in the fridge.

I haven't had a hypo yet as I am still on my first week of 1 a day 500mg Metformin. I have added Lucozade to the shopping list just in case when the dose goes up to 2 a day. 😱

Tez.

how are you finding it tez on the metformin?
im in the same boat been on them week today

 

[insulinaddict09]

Apologies if this sounds silly - have you thought opening the Lucozade and letting it go 'flat' in the fridge.

I haven't had a hypo yet as I am still on my first week of 1 a day 500mg Metformin. I have added Lucozade to the shopping list just in case when the dose goes up to 2 a day. 😱

Tez.

i was on 3 metformin a day for 6yrs and was told you cant hypo on them. are you on insulin aswell?

 

[Steff]

sorry for butting in but as im in same situation on my part i am not on insulin

 

[insulinaddict09]

sorry for butting in but as im in same situation on my part i am not on insulin

To the best of my knowledge you can not hypo while taking metformin, as i said before i was taking them for 6yrs 3 times daily. As you will see from my status i am type 1, i was misdiagnosed as type 2 and only found out i was type 1 after a trip to the hospital with DKA.😡

 

[Steff]

im still in process of having any health care team at all so i cant say alot i aint had it that long, so its all books and know how that im using at the minute oh and common sense and this forum lol x

 

[Tezzz]

im still in process of having any health care team at all so i cant say alot i aint had it that long, so its all books and know how that im using at the minute oh and common sense and this forum lol x

I do BG tests twice a day since I was first diagnosed. The doctor put me on Metformin last Tuesday because I hassled him about the tiredness. He said take 1 500mg a day for a week then up the dose to 2 a day after a week.

I have porridge made with 3 dessert spoons of oats and water only for breakfast (I am getting used to this liquid cardboard instead of a fry up now 🙂) and something as healthy as I can get from the canteen (read greassy spoon cafe) at work - e.g. 2 poached eggs on dry brown toast with tinned tomatoes. A normal low-ish fat evening meal like pasta and tomato sauce or grilled chop minus the fat with loads of veg, 2 boiled potatoes and a drizzle of gravy. And if I get the munchies between meals I have a raw carrot.

Since the tablets started at 1 a day my BG has droped to ftom 8.0+ in the morning to 5.6-6.0 and in the late afternoon ftom 11-15s to 4.5-5.5. So it appears something good is happening. My concern was if I went on 2 tablets a day the levels would drop even more. Perhaps I should ask about having one 850mg slow release tab a day. However if it is not possible to hypo on Metformin perhaps I should take two 500mg tablets a day to get the waking BG down to the 4.x's.

I have some books and this forum to get advice from as I too haven't had an appointment with the diabetes clinic yet, that is next on my hastle the doctor list (along with getting BG test strips on prescription). I did get a letter to have retinopathy photographs so that's the next thing on the to do list.

So can anyone here tell their experiences with the upward change of Metformin dose?

Tez.

 

[Vanessa]

hi Tez

My situation was very different to yours in that metformin alone wasn't sufficient so soon ended up on gliclazide too. Therein lies the difficulty - we all react differently so the best thoughts I can come up with is to build up slowly and keep monitoring your blood glucose to see the impact

 

[insulinaddict09]

I do BG tests twice a day since I was first diagnosed. The doctor put me on Metformin last Tuesday because I hassled him about the tiredness. He said take 1 500mg a day for a week then up the dose to 2 a day after a week.

I have porridge made with 3 dessert spoons of oats and water only for breakfast (I am getting used to this liquid cardboard instead of a fry up now 🙂) and something as healthy as I can get from the canteen (read greassy spoon cafe) at work - e.g. 2 poached eggs on dry brown toast with tinned tomatoes. A normal low-ish fat evening meal like pasta and tomato sauce or grilled chop minus the fat with loads of veg, 2 boiled potatoes and a drizzle of gravy. And if I get the munchies between meals I have a raw carrot.

Since the tablets started at 1 a day my BG has droped to ftom 8.0+ in the morning to 5.6-6.0 and in the late afternoon ftom 11-15s to 4.5-5.5. So it appears something good is happening. My concern was if I went on 2 tablets a day the levels would drop even more. Perhaps I should ask about having one 850mg slow release tab a day. However if it is not possible to hypo on Metformin perhaps I should take two 500mg tablets a day to get the waking BG down to the 4.x's.

I have some books and this forum to get advice from as I too haven't had an appointment with the diabetes clinic yet, that is next on my hastle the doctor list (along with getting BG test strips on prescription). I did get a letter to have retinopathy photographs so that's the next thing on the to do list.

So can anyone here tell their experiences with the upward change of Metformin dose?

Tez.

When i first went on metformin i was on 1 tablet for 1st week ,2nd week 2 tabs and by week 3 on 3 tablets , the only thing i noticed was that i felt constantly sick and had an upset stomach on them but after a week or so that went and i was fine. My sister-in-law was on them at the same time and had the same problem with sickness etc. If you read the leaflet enclosed in the tablet box you will see that it is one of the tablets that does'nt cause hypos, there are a few that do though. Looking at what you eat it does'nt sound like you eat much.. is that because of the tiredness, are you feeling sick with the metformin? After i had been taking it for a couple of weeks i felt 100 times better, not tired thirsty and ill or the time. let us know how you get on when your dose is upped.

 

[tracey w]

I always remember being present on a general ward when someone unexpectedly went into cardiac arrest. It was all hands on deck, and the defib machine was wheeled in, etc. Such a scrabble, and intense. The patient in question was saved -- it was impressive -- and right afterward, all the medical team just collapsed with cups of sweet drinks, wiped out for some time.[/QUOTE]


this brings back memories of nursing, many moons ago 🙄 I worked on a medical ward where there were frequent "situations" happening, we would all go into overdrive, alarms ringing, running around, but everyone had their job and knew what to do.........you find inhuman strength too, i remember hauling a very heavy lady out of the bath all by myself ( i was only 7 stone in those days!),. But afterwards i had the most intense headache, aching legs and would be soo tired. ADRENALINE! Much the same feelings i get after some of my hypos too

 

[Patricia]

Interesting, tracey w -- it's all about adrenaline, isn't it?

Hypos still must be the most enormous pain though, however you slice it...

 

[aymes]

I feel shakey, usually I find that i can't write properly, then my heart starts racing, if it's a really bad one then i will start sweating. I am also very thirsty, which is my strongest symptom. I can drink a can of coke in one go and still want more. it's different to the thirst of a high.

I find other people having hypos harder than my own.

You know, I don't think I've ever witnessed someone else having a hypo, although I dont really know other diabetics 'in real life' so I guess it's just something I haven't had much opportunity to come across.

 

[tracey w]

You know, I don't think I've ever witnessed someone else having a hypo, although I dont really know other diabetics 'in real life' so I guess it's just something I haven't had much opportunity to come across.

me neither. Going off subject a bit, witnessed someone taking insulin right infront of me at next table is staff canteen the other day........felt amazing, so not alone somehow!