The bigest problem I have had lately if the feeling like I am drunk as a shit house rat,my brain feels like its a sleep and I stagger when I walk.Exasution is in this too cause I am really week as a kitten.I finely ate some ice cream and a candy bar and started feeling better even tho I have had a couple of minor bouts of this when it hits I just go to bed and try to sleep it off.Yes,I called the doc and have an appointment for Tuesday.I did check my blood sugar and it comes in below or near as 100 when I test.My doc didn't seem to worried about it when I called. I have a nasty taste in my mouth too like real bad breath even tho I brush my teeth and use super pro mouth wash,I also keep pepper mints with me incase I need them.

Is this after you wake up in the morning Before eating a meal that your sugar is lower than 100 ?
You could be having a medication reaction, or could be getting ill with something too. Please have some blood work done and go to the doctor while you are fasting so they can do an A1C test and fasting glucose on you.

I have been testing in the morning right after I get up,it has been anywhere from 80 to 104,mostly it has been in the mid to high 80's.For it to be any higher than that I would have to eat something about 5 or 6 a.m. I test between 8:30 and 9:00 A.M.
I wen't to see my pain care doc for a follow up on my injection,he said the same thing about it could be the meds I am on.The meds he give me never bother me an do take care of the pain.He said one thing about the odd sleeping problems I am having that is the being tired a lot even tho I do sleep at night or think I do,with the exception of letting the girls out when they need to.He suggested I go to a sleep study just to make sure that I don't have some issue I am not aware of, I told him I would think about it..and I will.
Next Tuesday I an seeing my g.p. to check the rest out and change meds if need be as well as more blood work just to be on the safe side,I had some done two weeks ago that was just fine...at least they didn't call and say there was anything to worry about.

I do use a Brita Filter at home, I can taste the difference between it and a UV Filter unfortunately, but it is for sure better than nothing.

Now that I am up to my full dose of Metformin 2000MG a night, I feel like total crap in the morning. I have got to get past this part, cause I am tired of feeling bad in the morning. I have a job I need to be able to get up and go to.

Oh metformin sucks, for sure! Blech.

Necessary evil until you're all healthy!

I'm taking 500 m.g. of metformin 2 x a day morning and night,all I ever got out of it was quirky guts,just how do you feel that's making you feel difrent?I was wondering cause I could be having somthing going on and not realising it's from the metformin.

My guts all messed up, and I feel pretty nauseous in the morning. I also take 40mg of Lipitor as well at the same time, so that could play a part, but I am pretty sure its the Metformin.

Metformin causes some severe diarrhea for sure and to combat this my doctor prescribed another similar drug called Welchol. It helps combat the diarrhea believe it or not. I take 500 mg 2x day of both Metformin and Welchol together along with Lipitor and Trilipix for my cholesterol at night. I don't have any other side effects going on from any drug I'm taking, thank goodness.

I can't take metformin, it made me really sick and caused a great deal of pain.

I have however, taken Lipitor 80mg for a long time, and i have had to add COQ10 which helps me with muscle aches and memory. Doctors forget to tell you that you should take COQ10 with your cholesterol meds. It is a supplement you can buy over the counter.

I will look into the COQ10 and talk to my doctor about it. I don't really want to pop more pills if I can avoid it, but there is a chance we may have to add more pills to the list anyways as the metformin does not as of yet bring my numbers in under 200 like they should be.

I feel sick pretty much every morning due to metformin, however I always end up feeling better once I convince myself to get up, drink some water, and put something in my stomach. I don't really get muscle aches or anything like that from the Lipitor thankfully.

I have a new, awesome primary care doc who has immediately set me up with an in-house, special pharmacist/diabetic class...(unlike the delays and mess ups when I worked for the hospital and then the state Medicaid office...both of which couldn't get it together regarding employee benefits or diabetic supplies) ...

I've had two, one hour meetings with my pharmacist where she goes over my meds in consideration to my other health concerns, nutritional stuff, paperwork, etc...

They set me up with a prodigy meter and tiny lancet.
When I told her I was having trouble each morning getting the lancet right (sometimes using 3 strips before I got the meter to read correctly)...she gave me "soft touch" lancets...maybe I'm still doing things wrong but I still had trouble this morning. It frustrates me because my skin is already very sensitive from the Lupus. My hands hurt every morning when I get up...so I tried the lancet on my legs. That just results in tiny bruises which started looking like track marks, but not enough blood for my strips to pick up.

Then...
I think the Metformin is causing issues...but I'm willing to wait it out for a while
My primary care had put me on steroids...which the pharmacist says will mess with my numbers. She was disappointed that we can't get a baseline until I'm off the steroids.

I deal with chronic, intense pain almost daily from other issues...I can't tell if it's the Metformin causing my muscles to hurt so bad, and making me so tired...or is it the Metformin or IBS messing with my tummy?

According to my last tests, my liver numbers were off...then the pharmacist said that during the night, my liver will dump too much sugar into my system, so she wanted me taking the Metformin at dinner. But I've noticed I've been waking up in more pain than usual. Not sure if it's the meds??

Life has been good to me and I'm blessed to have found a great doctor and care team...I'm sure we will work it out. It's just a bit frustrating.

Holy heck Kenna, that is a lot to deal with all at once!

I would not want to give you any advice, as your issues probably play off of one and other...hard to pin point one thing that will help. But... I will say once again that metformin is not for everyone, i can't take it and i have a cast iron stomach!

Also you mentioned your blood sticks for your meter...i can only draw blood on my ring and small fingers, and if you stick on the sides about a quarter inch below the nails they bleed pretty good with minimal pain later, as you rarely touch those areas. I hope you are using something that springs forward and sticks you, rather than jabbing yourself...that is very difficult to do on a regular basis.

Blessings! (f)

Kenna,
My diabetic nurse has told me to stick my fingers on the right side of thumb then move to different finger each day then go back to the thumb again and stick the opposite side and do that same thing on opposite side of the other fingers, that way no one finger gets stuck more than once a week. you can use both hands that way. It lessens the issues with pricking the nerves on the bottoms of your fingertips and causing nerve damage. She says it's the correct way to take your blood sticks. And Ms. Tinkerbelly is right, they do bleed the right amount there and you can always squeeze your finger to get more blood out to soak up to read. Try that see if it helps.

And if you have IBS , taking metformin can cause it to be more of an issue in my opinion, because metformin is widely known for causing loose bowels by itself. So that can be a contributing factor you may wish to discuss with your doctor. But always eat when taking metformin because you don't want a sudden blood sugar drop.
I take metformin during breakfast and at supper time... so 2x a day for me and I make sure I take it when I eat or there shortly after.

I'm sorry you are going through so much, I wish there was more I could do, but that's all between you and your doctors and care team. I can't speculate anymore than I have. I wish you wellness Kenna.

I have to say if you feel that your metformin is making you sick or worse in some way then listen to your body on that and make your doctor listen. I ended up in the hospital for almost a week due to an intolerance to metformin. I kept feeling worse and worse and my doctors told me to just wait a few more weeks. Needless to say it didn't do me any good and I should have forced the doctors to listen.

I am taking insulin now and I am so much better. I feel alive again. I have the opportunity to eat all the right and healthy things and exercise right and maybe eventually even get off the insulin.

I went from Metformin to Metformin ER [Extended Release] and while it initially causes tummy problems, it seems to lessen [eventually]. My diabetic educator also told me that eating sugary stuff + metformin = increased tummy problems.

My liver enzymes were elevated last time they took blood for my A1C and the test after that, and then all was okay after they did a sonogram, etc. Tests came back clear.

I have an initial appointment in the next few weeks with a female doctor that specializes in OBGYN but also is a GP and familiar with diabetes. All-in-one for me and she is in my network so hoping she is pretty awesome. I've been haphazard with my meds but eating better than I ever have (with the occasional boba tea night) and getting back to exercise so I am crossing my fingers and hoping a lot my A1C has dropped from the 9.9 it has raised to.

:praying:

My journey with diabetes has certainly been interesting. What I was originally told was Type 2 is actually Type 1. The doctor insinuated that because of their misdiagnosis originally with the meds they put me on it most likely made things worse for me. At this point I will be insulin dependent for life. She said there is really not much known as to how it happens. Since it runs in my family line it's a good chance that my genes caused it. I can own it though and say up until recently I wasn't a super healthy eater.

So going forward it is all about managing it as best as I can. I am eating more salad then I have ever eaten in my life. I am exercising a ton and just trying to be healthy in general. As always I say though listen to your body and if you feel something is off push your doctor to listen.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed for ya!
I had been on the extended release... but since my last post it caused me major issues, so they recently switched me to Actos. I'm not familiar with it but seems I'm tolerating it well so far. I don't wake up with so much muscle pain.... but with everything going on, it's hard to judge if pain is disability related or medication induced.

Just Monday my doc sent me for special tests on my liver ("numbers jumped high since last labs) and an echocardiogram on heart for recently diagnosed chronic tachycardia.

The last day of February, I met the new "Lupus doctor" (rheumatologist) who put me on antibiotics and wants to "dump me on" Plaquinil (spelling?)...

Today I got approved for a special pharmacy program where six of my nine meds will cost only $20 total....including the Actos and Lidocaine patches.

I can certainly say that my tummy sure is better on the Actos. ...The Metformin was so bad that I stopped taking it about 2 weeks before my follow up with my diabetes coach and doctor.

I do hope the Actos keeps my numbers down like the Metformin had. For years I've struggled with the thought of "I don't want to be as bad as Gramma was."...

At least I haven't been on steroids in a couple months...
And I've been trying hard to eat better, especially at breakfast.

They tested my A1C last week....I won't know the update until next follow up in 3 weeks.
I hope the month that I had to do the "on again off again" with the Metformin to control side affects, that it didn't drive my numbers back up. Dr. A will not be happy.

Without meds, my fasting is averaging 250. Since the A1C is every three months, I imagine not being on it for a month will have an impact.

I had managed to get my number down to 7.8 but then I was no longer being held accountable and not managing my meds well so it jumped up again. I just met with my new primary and she was very nice, she can fill my meds, and I went in for bloodwork for my A1C so we'll see! I am assuming they will call me because we never scheduled a F/U appointment.

I have never heard of the new med you're on but I am glad that you got them discounted!

Actos = Pioglitazone...I hadn't heard of it but am willing to give it a huge try. I know my coach is doing her best to help me have more "good days" instead of struggles. She knows what I go thru with my other heath issues and works closely with me to overcome barriers. Unlike one of my specialists who has been an ass (to say the least) about the new meds he switched me to, after insulting and contradicting the other specialist. (He even argued with me when I said I had too many prescribers, that I wanted to coordinate with my coach (who's a pharmacist) and Primary Care.)

Yes, I was very happy to get approved for my discounted RX's ...especially with the cost of the patches and Plaquinil...I've been very fortunate to have found an amazing Care Team who have helped me navigate things and cope.

There is currently a lawsuit regarding Actos and bladder cancer, so maybe look up what signs you should watch out for and just be cautious. I was put on Actos several years ago and i had problems with weight gain and stomache pain.

I am currently on insulin only, as i don't tolerate (or frankly trust) all the new medications touted as the next new "wonder drug".

Thank you, Ma'am. .Good information to know. My coach promoted Actos as "no side effects as like Metformin"...I'll mention this to her during our next meeting.

Ok....so today was humbling and a bit scary.
Recently Doc put me on a double dose (20 days instead of 10) of steroids. Because it messes with my sugar levels they also increased my Actos.
This past weekend I had a really great physically able time. It was awesome! The steroids help with inflammation, bone pain and the nerves in my legs....
But today, apparently, I paid for it.
I didn't eat right over the weekend... but it wasn't terrible stuff. ...this morning my fasting sugar was 208...the highest I recall it ever being. After breakfast and meds, I got really sick. By noon it was only down 3 points...after that, I had to lay down in a dark room because of my busting headache and exhaustion. Sick to stomach, terrible hot flashes and soaking sweating...got up around 4 or 5....did chores, checked sugar again....237!!! The highest I've ever recorded!
Had dinner of nice salad topped with a bit of chicken salad. Sooooo yummy and fresh. My tummy did finally settle. But I am still feeling like I've been fighting the flu and the damn headache. Thank god the hot flashes and gut cramps stopped.

I took an extra Actos tonight in hopes it will help tomorrow...
I have a big day of chores and working with the new additions to the farm tomorrow...
Thank you for listening...it was really scary and I couldn't reach my health coach.

As you are aware, steroids can really mess with your blood sugar short term...actos is a medicine that takes a while (4-6weeks) to react properly with your body, and will not make up for a higher number simply by taking more short term. Once you stop taking the steroids your numbers should go back down to a more managable level. An interesting side note...you can actually get type 2 diabetes from long term steroid use!

Exercise, low carbs and LOTS of water will help get your numbers back down when steroids are in use. Your kidneys will suffer damage when your blood sugar is over 200 for an extended period of time, so you are right to be concerned if your numbers remain high, especially overnight.

I am not a doctor, nor do i play one on tv...so please get ahold of your coach for help when you can.

Blessings to you(f)

Thank you very much MsTinkerbelly. You are above awesome! I sincerely appreciate your support.
It's been a tough day. I hurt from pain caused by other disability so in combination with how sick I got today, it was terrible hard to exercise but I honesty did try...especially in the morning and before noon when I had to tend to my new baby goats (that are soooo fun to see play and I enjoyed giving them breakfast)...I did other yard chores, tried to cut tree limbs and honeysuckle for the babies and did 2 loads of laundry until I couldn't take the headache any longer and laid down.

Dinner was refreshing...but damn, I didn't know that about the Actos not helping to bring down a spike. Sigh....
My health coach only works at the clinic part time and as a Pharmacy Professor as her other job. ...I'll call the nurse tomorrow because my head is still splitting and numbers have jumped to 241 instead of going down.
Thanks again! Especially for such a quick response.

Being diabetic is a royal pain in the a**,so far I have gone from a 7 in my a1c test to a 5 on the last one I had. Even though I am keeping the numbers way down ...95 to a 100 most times in the morning then the highest I have been is 170 only one time and it scared me to no end that it would really get out of hand. I had baked cookies with splenda but they had fresh coco in it as well, I didn't feel bad just the numbers threw me for a loop, I ate six over the day but was active and did drink plenty of fluids. Today I am going to my first diabetic session at the hospital with a group of folks, my doctor has never set me up with one so I ended up calling the diabetic association to get with these folks...I do hope I get somewhere with this cause where I don't micro manage my meal plan I am careful for the most part, plus I exercise as much as I can without blowing my back. Today was a screwy day when getting out of bed I tricked into muscle cramps that kept on for ever to the point I thought I would end up in the E.R. but I got hold of my Doctors office plus took a 500 mg Robaxin pill ad a couple of pain pills I was due for anyway. I have to much to do to waist a day dealing with this, all I did was roll out of bed then "BAM" it hit, getting out of bed is the only way this starts so far. Who knew getting up in the morning could be such a trick.

Yes. It is a royal pain in the ass. I do admire you for assertively sticking to your own plan (not micromanagement) and keeping your numbers as low. I can't wait for the day when mine are around 100-120.
I struggle sometimes with my food plan especially on high pain days. And it seems every time I see the Doc, they are changing my meds...recent additions are Neurontin for nerve pain, steroids, Prazosin and the increased Actos. On high pain days I can barely manage to get a decent breakfast to take my meds with. I'm happy the steroids help with a bunch of the pain and inflammation...but I hate the trade off with sugar levels.

I'm taking 500 mg of metformin twice a day then working out as much as I dare without doing more damage to my back. If my Doc knew what I ate sometimes she would lay the golden egg. Today I ate a small bowl of honey nut cereal, two slices of whole wheat toast with pnb on it and an orange plus coffee straight up. I keep fiber one bars around of I want a sweet snack only 90 calories and 17 carbs is doable, I check the diet food area for anything that will work. I am a grazer and don't often sit for a meal so several small meals work best for me. Apples and oranges along with low call yogurt keep me going. In case of emergency I keep glucose pills with me right along with my extra test kit.I play on multiple pool teams so I need to keep things balanced as bar food is a touchy thing cause its not something I really need. The only issue I have with metformin is it sqiggs my guts now and again.

After a huge struggle, I finally got my numbers back down to 147 (recorded at midnight) ...this was several hours after dinner of a no-carb salad with a bunch of meat and eggs for protein and much more water than I'm accustomed to. Since today was a high pain day, I did as much exercise as possible between the cool morning hours of 6:30-7:30...pacing myself as I fed all the farm critters. Then unfortunately I was hurting so bad I had to go back to bed a while after breakfast of block cheese, water and meds....I gave my Cherrios to the baby goats. They enjoyed them as much as I do...but I guess from here on out, I can't have my favorite cereal or hot oatmeal because of how high the carbs are.

I spoke with my Aunt (a medical professional as well as long term diabetic, and she cared for my Gramma for 15 years through her struggle with very chronic, extreme diabetes)...told her about the Actos...she said it seems my body isn't reacting to it like it should and she recommended I ask Doc to switch me to Glipiside...this is another med I've never heard of.

It's been a hard two days...much thanks to those here that helped me cope.

Glipiside is a great medication; the brand name is Glucotrol! It is an older medication that i took for YEARS in the extended release form, and it worked really well. The problem with the Doctor's these days is they are focused on metformin and actos...along with a few other new "wonder drugs", and sometimes refuse to prescribe Glipiside.

I'm glad your number was lower at midnight, but what was it fasting the next morning? Our bodies do a "sugar dump" in the wee hours of the morning which can increase those numbers drastically. Also, i am sorry to say that the milk in cheese will sometimes raise blood sugar as well. Try to keep some hardboiled eggs around as a quick source of protein when you are not feeling well enough to cook.

Bumping because this is a good thread (and I feel like I need to post somewhere to try and keep myself in check) :)

I'm a type II diabetic that has been on long acting insulin (Lantus) for a while now. I'm also on metformin. My sugars were still high on those two meds, so I was put on a short acting insulin to be taken before meals (Novolog).

As a side note, I had been on a medication that had a side effect of high blood sugars. I got off that medication and slowly but surely my insulin levels have gotten out of whack and I am experiencing a lot of lows. I've been in touch multiple times with my diabetes nurse specialist and I thankfully see my primary care Tuesday.

We've lowered both my Lantus and Novolog several times and I'm still having lows every day. Usually at night. Sometimes multiple times. It's exhausting. In the past 24 hours I've had lows of 37, 46, and 59. What scares me most is at 37 I wasn't even feeling symptomatic. I'm afraid of not waking up and going into a coma. We bought glucose tablets, orange juice, and candy today to be prepared and I'm going to set an alarm so I can check my sugar in the middle of the night. Frankly, I'm scared.

I called my mom who is a diabetic and a nurse and her opinion and she said discontinue the fast acting insulin until I can talk to my nurse on doctor. I agree with her. I'm just going to try and ride it out this weekend. I'm feeling incredibly defeated though, like I'm doing everything asked of me and it's just not working.

How do you all deal with lows? What do you eat /drink? Has anyone else struggled with daily extreme lows? Any words of support? I need a boost!

The people that advise stopping the insulin before meals are giving you good advise. Do you test before you take the before meals shot? I have found that if my bs is less than 100 before meals, I get low blood sugar if I inject. I usually inject 2 hours AFTER meals based on a sliding scale. Your doctor can give you a sliding scale, and I have also found them on-line. i've done it so long I just automatically know how much to take.

It is scary, and yes exhausting to have low blood sugar...multiple times a night would be awful. I'm wondering if you even need insulin? Since you are not taking the medication that causes high blood sugar, maybe medication would be enough? My wife got off metformin which never lowered her properly, and is taking a combo of Jardiance and glimiperide that has gotten her well within normal limits without all the stomach stuff associated with Metformin.

Definitely have many small meals, with hi-protein like nut butter or cheese...you need protein to keep your bs on an even level without the highs and lows. Being vegaterian can make it hard to get enough protein, try adding a handful of black beans or chickpeas to a dish to add a little. You can drain a can of chickpeas, coat them with a little cooking spray and your favorite spices, and roast them in the oven for a yummy crunchy protein filled snack.

Just a few thoughts...I'm glad you are seeing your doctor soon.:bunchflowers:

Thanks MsTinkerbelly.

I had been taking the fast acting insulin before meals according to a scale depending on both my blood sugar and what I was going to eat. But it was just too much obviously.

I think I do need to be on something because since I stopped taking the insulin my numbers are on the higher side. Much safer than sugars of 37 so it's doable for riding out the weekend, but not where I'd want to be long term ideally.

I'm thinking of asking my nurse and doctor about a non insulin option when I speak to them. Both my parents are on bidureon sp? and doing quite well. My mother struggled a lot regulating her blood sugars with insulin as well.

I am trying to eat more often right now, and am doing the cheese and nut butters thing. Beans are a good idea to start adding to my meals.

I set my alarm to check my blood sugar at 5am just in case and it appears stopping the fast acting insulin took care of the overnight lows. I will wait until Monday and Tuesday for a solution.

Thanks for your response!

I just wanted to say I haven't had any lows since I stopped the fast acting insulin!!! THANK GOD.

Wonderful news!

Hey CCB, how did your appointment go with your primary doctor?

I'm back... and feeling better
 

It's been a very long time since I've posted, but I have good news. I was diagnosed with T2 in March 2011. My mom died in 2006 from complications of type 1. I was on metformin for several years but went on insulin injections in March 2004 when my a1c was 12. I had relapsed in my recovery from binge eating disorder. I went to local outpatient and got back on track with mindful intuitive eating. I since have gone from 12 to 5.8 a1c and from 316 to 246 although weight loss is not my main focus anymore and health is. They have decreased my Novolog from 6 to 4 units and might be decreasing it more come March. I'm feeling better but scared of relapse so I commit to recovery every day. Hey, anyone using a CGM out there? I got the Dexcom G5 Continuous Glucose Monitoring System and have yet to start it but know it will really help because I have ADHD and routinely forget to test....

This where you phone can help you! There are many apps. Care zone. Health choice. Vitality. Just type in apps ( apps to help remind you to take your meds.) And wahhh lahhh! They have alarms, incentives, some even have group conversations that you can get involved with. Some even give you coupons to help bring down the cost of meds. For my app. Work incentives and bonus points to cut my insurance cost has been a blessing and kept me on track to take my meds on time daily. Which is the key for my success as well as reminding me to eat, grab a snack, and how much sleep I should get. My A1C went from 13.7 to 4.9 with the help of my (New Doctor) I'm not much of a fan for technology. But the world of free apps has been an amazing change on how my health has improved dramatically. Good luck!

I'm using an app from my dr called MyChart that has an area for inputting medical data. My dr uses it to see where my levels are. I was using Diabetes Kit but had tech issues after the iOS upgrade to 10.0.2. Emailed them for support. That's why the CGM is so important, it will send all data to my phone automatically. I need reminder apps though so thanks for the suggestion! Need reminders for testing, checking levels and sending in my data....