In 2012 I was morbidly obese. I did the glucose tolerance test and I was told I was prediabetic. I lost a lot of weight and I felt better. In 2005 I started feeling sick and in 2009 I went gluten free and felt better. In 2013 my symptoms returned and I realized it was sugar.
So in December I went for GTT but it came back normal and so did my A1c but my post meal sugar was 200+. So I first tried glucophage. I have lost 26 pounds before going on glucophage. I tried once a day(500 mg) and it didn't do much. I increased it to 2 500mg and I stopped losing weight and gained 2 pounds but it was water weight. Then all my symptoms came back but my sugar was normal. I also started losing weight again. I know it is a sugar issue because I had eczema, eye floaters, foot blisters, dry skin and some other things that did improve.
So the doctor just added galvus. My sugar levels are normal but I still feel sick. I just get very sick from eating. I have a few bites of food and I'm short of breath, heart palpatations, nausea, I'm anxious, I have a dry mouth, my skin looks like small veins have risen to the surface and it looks red/purple but blotchy. I have tested my urine and I've seen leuckolytes, nitrites, protein, glucose, ketones and blood. It is only like that for an hour after eating.
What could be causing my symptoms? It feels like low blood pressure and when the glucophage was working I didn't get that. Any advice?
Hello and :welcome: but sorry you have to join us.
Your post meal blood glucose figure is unfortunately shouting "diabetic" regardless of what your A1c result said. (Do you have that figure?).
Whilst Metformin is a reasonable first step in helping, I'm not so keen on your doctor's second choice. Leaving side effects to one side (for now), the DPP-4 inhibitor drugs basically push your pancreas to generate insulin. Rather like red-lining a car engine that's already got a cracked cylinder head - not sure it's a good idea?
However, the one useful step you can certainly take is to look hard at the carbohydrate content of your diet. Your issue isn't caused just by "sugar". All carbohydrate in our diet turns to sugar, so that's where we need to attack.
But blood in urine isn't a classic diabetes issue. You do need to discuss that with your doctor for further investigation.
In the meantime, use the forum. Here you'll find a bunch of ordinary folk who are coping with this beast - and giving it a good run for its money. Join us and in a few months, you might be having a run too - without getting out of breath.
I believe it was 5%. My understanding is that the A1c is your average blood sugar but it's only my post meal sugar that is high. I was checking my fasting sugar before I went to the doctor and it was normal but getting higher daily.
My symptoms are getting worse daily. My mom is a nurse and told me to limit carb intak to 20 grams daily so I did that and I felt worse. I eat some complex carbs and I feel sick. My diet was full or carbs/sugar before my symptoms got worse. I was gluten free so my diet was low on carbs and I always had problems with sugar but I though it was from the gastric bypass.
I told my doctor I don't want to try many oral agents. I feel way to sick to spend time looking for pills. It's scary to feel this sick with no means to feel better. My doctor said give the galvus a week and it that doesn't work we will go to insulin. I was under the impression that the I have blood in my urine because my kidneys were under strain from having high blood sugar.
I will look around now. I'm very new to this so reading this board has helped a lot.
A 5% HbA1c is good for a diabetic although on the high side for a non diabetic.
As you say, it maps to an average value and with diabetes generally your post meal figures are the first to go adrift and you might enjoy good fasting numbers for quite a while and those would help keep your HbA1c down.
The endocrine system is a complex package of interactions between kidney, liver, pancreas, thyroid .... and issues in one area do tend to strain other organs.
Given a free choice between Galvus and Insulin, I'd vote with the insulin but using it effectively does need more thought and care than simply swallowing a pill at the right time.
I was noticing before I went to the doctor my blood sugar was getting higher on less food and it was taking longer to go down. I think I had issues with phase one and now phase two.
Why would you pick insulin over galvus? Does galvus cause beta cell (that is what it is called?) burn out? I have a question about insulin. I get sick before my sugar gets high. So would I have to take a fast acting insulin before eating? Or would the long lasting insulin let me eat then I take the fast acting?
This is very much a personal opinion, so take it as that. I have no medical qualifications or evidence to back it up.
My readings since I was diagnosed three and a half years ago, suggest that many doctors think that, yes, stimulating the pancreas to produce insulin accelerates beta cell burnout but that's not my main concern.
All these drugs depend on one thing - a functioning pancreas. So if your pancreas isn't capable of delivering, they can't deliver. Ok, lets say they can deliver. My questions then become "how much" and "when". Neither gets a straight answer.
Now consider insulin. It's more or less what our body produces naturally and whilst there are some issues, they're no-where as sinister as the issues that the oral medications offer.
Next, after a bit of testing, you can know pretty exactly what impact a given dose of insulin will have and more or less when it will deliver. This is particularly true if you accept the model of dosage suggested by folk like Dr Richard Bernstein - Diabetes Solution
My sugar levels are better but I don't feel better. I know my sugar gets high I just haven't timed it right. I think that because my dry mouth, frequent urination, heartburn and a few other things have come back. I'll make N appointment to see the doctor. I would prefer not to be sick in the first place (wishful thinking) but I need something that will work. I'll call the doctor.
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