New years eve 2014 my blood sugar went up to 30.4. I had been told by my doctor not to check my levels as I would panic but this day I did because I felt so ill. Over the next 3 months he increased my medication so that I am on 4 x 500 metformin daily and 4 x 80 gliclozide daily. Once my blood sugars were at a good level - average 6.5 - I was told to stop checking them regularly a.d told I cannot get test strips and lancets on prescription. I decided that for peace of mind I would buy my own supplies and check once per week. Everything has been fine until 27th December when it was 16.2. I have been testing once per day since then and only twice has it been below 10. Today it is 14.4. I am beginning to worry but given the doctor was adamant I should not home test do not know what to do. Any suggestions?
On the surface that is a high number, What were you doing/eating? When did you test? I handled my Big D for 10 years on Metformin. Then it changed and now I am on insulin. What I have learned is this keep a schedule, for eating, for medicines and pretty much everything else in your life. Every one is different and you are the only one that this impacts, So it is up to you to keep on top of the situation. I am happy with 5-6 in the mornings. After Christmas dinner I tested about 10. I knew why because of eating late the evening before. A day later back down. It is up to you to figure out what effects your machine, No one can tell you. Sure they say don't eat this or that. Personally potatoes do not effect me much at all. White bread or white rice and it is a guaranteed high spike. Wild rice not so much of a spike. I check my BS 3 times a day. Up to you but if you do not know the number there is little you can do to manage your beast.
Odd hi blood sugar reading would not concern me however there are many studies that show that the spike in the blood sugar is what causes the damage.
The current standard of management of diabetes is by looking at HbA1c. This looks at your blood sugar control over the previous three months .
Our surgeries don't prescribe the strips for testing blood sugar however they cannot refuse HbA1c test at least twice a year.
If your blood sugar reading is high most of the time than it may be time to make some changes to your diet.
Diabetes uk have done a course on this that may interest you, as has "curejoy".
Hope all this help, but if you need more help from someone who has fallen off the wagon more times than I can count, please ask.
Hello Gill,If i was you i would make appointment to see your diabetic nurse.
You need to check so you know what you can eat.Start by testing when you get up.then test a hour before you eat and 2 hours after i was told i should be between 5 and 10 no lower no higher.
I think you are missing the point. If it had been just an occasional blood sugar spike I would not worry - it is the fact it has been high now for over 2 weeks when there has been no change in diet. I know I am allowed 2 HbA1c tests per year but my next one is not due till April so is it safe to wait until then. Last January it clearly was not and I had to take my blood sugars 5 times per days until they were properly under control 3 months later at which point I was told not to take the tests again. 3 months seem a long time to wait when the blood sugar readings are continuing to rise
Yes, Kathleen I know what I need to do and when and what the levels should be - the problem is that both my GP and my diabetic nurse have told me not to take my blood sugars at all but to rely only on HbA1c which is 3 months away and I am concerned that my blood sugars will get completely out of control if I leave it till then, especially when there is no obvious reason for the spike.
What you are saying is true but it is difficult when my GP won't give me a prescription for lancets and testing strips when I am a pensioner and can't really afford that amount of money on a regular basis. He says I just rely on the twice-yearly HbA1c test which is not for 3 more months.
I brought my first glucose meter from Amazon the one that had the cheapest Strips and lancets.Isnt there another doctor you can see at your practice.I asked at the doctors despensary for a meter and they got me one.
Stress can also cause the sugar to rise has well.I see i have not answerd your question here either sorry.You could always take yourself of to A&E
it sounds as if all the rich food over christmas has made you high, i take what you take plus extra metformin during day and astigalatin, and over the christmas period my sugars were in teens, and was told by the diabetic specialist not the nurses or doctor to test 3 or 4 times aweek, as the astigalatin could cause hypos,
also if you are stressing over your sugars this will make it high too.
I did not have any rich food over Christmas, and even if I had why would it last 2 weeks? I am not under a diabetic specialist just GP and nurse who both say don't test as I am not at risk of hypos, however I do feel I am at risk of hypers. Apparently the NICE guidelines say you only need to check your blood sugars if you are at risk of hypos so even if is high for over 5 months which it was last time, it is nothing to worry about. Very confusing
I have actually got a meter from the hospital when I was in about extremely high blood pressure, and have bought strips and lancets, although they are quite expensive. My problem is what I am supposed to do when it is consistently higher than it should be, but both GP and nurse say I should not be taking it anyway so I am not supposed to know. Could anything go seriously wrong if I don't tell the GP or nurse or would I be safe to wait 3 months until April when my next HbA1c test is due.
You have to follow a diet. I have similar readings as you do and I tried for years to keep them down without success. It was only when I went on the most restrictive diet that I could finally keep the readings in range. That means drinking mostly water and just a little bit of something else a day. You should also exercise after a meal if you can, take a walk of a kilometer or more to lower the peak levels - which takes place about 40 min - 1h 20 min after eating. Measure the effects every specific food have on your readings 40 min - 1h 20 after having water + the specific food. So understand specific foods and how they affect you. And if your readings are high sometime, you need to do some exercises + drink water to try and bring them down - try walking up a steep hill. It is important to make sure your readings are stable before you go to bed - because there will be little activity for hours. Also take note, sometimes food is digested over hours! Slowly eat or drink just a little bit over hours. But diet and exercise should keep it down. Accept the pain of drinking mostly water. Mentally accept it. That is my experience. Water and excerise is your friend.
Your suggestion clearly works for you, Isaac, but I am afraid it has caused me to despair. I am 68 which does not help but more importantly I am very severely disabled. Both legs are paralysed and I suffer from a type of ME. In fact altogether I suffer from 14 medically diagnosed health conditions so I am only allowed to do half an hour of low intensity, low impact exercise such as swimming each day which is what I do. So if what you are saying is correct, I have no chance of ever getting my diabetes under control.
I am unfortunately not a medical expert, but perhaps if you stuck to certain foods it will help your situation. The point is you have to remain on a diet. Perhaps eat just a little bit at a time. How water helps you is that it makes you less hungry. If you drink drinks with too high sugar, it remains in your system and I've noticed it gives your sugar levels a lift-off effect. So try and eat foods that are low in sugar. You can drink milk, eat unsweetened yoghurt, chicken, meat, fish, a little bit of fruits, some vegetables. At least that is something. But I believe a diabetic can basically eat anything. If you want to eat a piece of chocolate, or anything sweet, eat it, but keep your diet down to 95% of the good stuff and perhaps 5% of the sweet stuff a week. I think you will make it with dieting. Just keep it up, I'm sure you will gain congrol over the disease and your diet, without the strenuous exercize.
Then you need to go see another gp in the surgery or even ask at the despensary i to am a pensioner and i get mine from the doctors
It would be difficult to go to another doctor in the surgery as this one is a diabetes specialist and all the other doctors in the practice refer ME back to him for diabetes related questions. I also cannot go to the dispensary - by which I presume you mean the pharmacy - because I would still need a prescription for the lancets and testing strips in order to get them for free. By the way is yours type. 2 diabetes. Also, I have to say that I have 7 friends with diabetes registered with 4 different practices in the area and all say that the GPs here will not prescribe blood testing monitors and testing strips for type 2diabetics. Clearly there is not a nationwide agreement as to who can get monitor and strips, and who cannot.
You should keep us a bit up to date if you can about your situation and your progress and the medical advice you have received. Some other things you can try: drink diluted fruit juice with water and ice cubes. Quite nice.
I don't know what else I can tell you.
In my personal view now, I think you mustn't let high values persist for days on end. You should perhaps use more medicine to bring it down. It is clearly that it seems in my view as if your body or part of it shuts down if the values remain too high for too long and once it is under control, it might stay there. So I would use a higher dosage once or twice to bring it down immediately. Diet alone don't seem to stem the peaks or accelerations or lift-offs once they take place.
Hello Gill.if i had blood sugars has high has you do i would want to know you need to be in control of your diabetes not the doctor or the nurse and i would keep checking my blood glucose.There must be something your eating thats making it high do you eat a lot of carbs like potatoes,bread,pasta or rice.or are you eating something that has a lot of sugar in it(without knowing it) please try not to worry that can put your levels up.I can`t exercise like i used to. if need be make appoinment and go see the doctor.