[stormie]

My Doctor decided to reduce my Metformin dose from 1000mg to 500mg a day, but did not bother to tell me (hint Dr : I'm a sentient human being ). This was on a repeat prescription, I did not notice the medication change, so I have been taking twice as much. It was bundled with some other medication I take, so did not notice.

On monday, I realised I had taken my last tablet, but could not work out why ? , thought I had lost a box or something. Finally worked it out when I saw the prescription.

Problem I had I was due to go on a business trip Tuesday afternoon, four hour drive, staying over night ,returning Wednesday (just got back actually) . Took the repeat prescription to the Doctors surgery explained the situation and asked them if they could get the DR to sign it.

They said they will try after surgery (1pm), rang, no luck, he's too busy, explained the situation again, they will try after baby clinic (3pm)

I really did want to get off for 3pm because of 4 hour drive , so rang again. Nope it's over run , he wont get chance till 5pm

Decided to wait till 5pm, nope, he has over run again. Rang again at 6 pm, sorry he's gone home

So worst of all worlds, no medication, arrive at the hotel at 10pm

Just remind me, who is paying who's salary ?

Good news is , I went carb turkey for the duration and blood sugar was 4.2 (76) , when I got home, with no meds for 36 hours.

 

[moon]

How frustrating - but serious kudos on kickin' some carb butt.

 

[stormie]

How frustrating - but serious kudos on kickin' some carb butt.

really made me think, I'm lowish carb, but what a result with none (not sure if I can do it everyday)

But I'm not sure how Metmorfin works, does it build up in the body, or just works for 24 hours ?

Doctors dont tend to explain medication

 

[Patdart]

Congratulations for going 'no carb'. To Heck with your doctor. Good thing met builds up in your body so you still had some onboard to help you out. Good thing it wasn't BP med or some such that doesn't!

 

[Shanny]

Yeah, metformin does build up in the bloodstream, so you had some onboard to see you through, but that doesn't give your doc a leg to stand on - he still acted very high-handed in not notifying you of the change, and not being available for a renewal.

I doubt that I could go zero-carb for very many days, but I don't have much trouble keeping under about 40g per day. I need my celery to carry all the peanut butter, cream cheese, etc., so those add up to a few carbs a day.

And my applause for handling this the way you did - those are glorious numbers!

 

[stormie]

Yeah, metformin does build up in the bloodstream, so you had some onboard to see you through, but that doesn't give your doc a leg to stand on - he still acted very high-handed in not notifying you of the change, and not being available for a renewal.

I doubt that I could go zero-carb for very many days, but I don't have much trouble keeping under about 40g per day. I need my celery to carry all the peanut butter, cream cheese, etc., so those add up to a few carbs a day.

And my applause for handling this the way you did - those are glorious numbers!

rather bizarrely, I ran for a mile on Bodmin Moor and eat two poached eggs for breakfast. Neither of which would have occoured pre-diabetes

 

[WV Mom]

Reminds me of a diabetic couple who got stuck in the snow for three days. Their bg ended up just fine because they didn't ingest any carbs. (Not that anyone wants to starve for three days or go zero carbs, but it can work.)

To learn more about your prescriptions, your best bet (if you were here) would be to ask your pharmacist. I have a pharmacist daughter (and a doctor daughter and a physiotherapist daughter), and I've learned that pharmacists are amazingly well trained. People tend to think of them as pill counters, but they're not.

 

[Shalynne]

I wonder if the dose change was intentional. Of course, since I've been sentenced to Medical Admin Hell, I may be projecting. Hope you get hold of this guy soonest, if only to fire him!

 

[VeeJay]

...pharmacists are amazingly well trained. People tend to think of them as pill counters, but they're not.

I'll ask the pharmacist before asking a doctor. Drs don't know everything about every drug they prescribe - so the pharmacist is the best resource for information. They also will flag drug interactions that drs aren't aware of. Yes, they are great.

 

[Strawberry]

I'll ask the pharmacist before asking a doctor. Drs don't know everything about every drug they prescribe - so the pharmacist is the best resource for information. They also will flag drug interactions that drs aren't aware of. Yes, they are great.

I agree. Pharmacists are much better at explaining things about the drugs than my doctor ever thought of being. Where would we be without them?

 

[Shanny]

I agree. Pharmacists are much better at explaining things about the drugs than my doctor ever thought of being. Where would we be without them?

We'd be sunk over here. It took us years to find a trustworthy pharmacy that I didn't have to watch every minute to catch their mistakes. And now that we're several years into the relationship with our reliable one, there are many times we come through the door, the clerk gets our meds, and one of the pharmacists comes over to explain something for us. These are the guys who sit down with us at the end of every year to help us choose the best Part D coverage from the myriad insurance companies, and they'll even do our online applications if we like. I can't say enough about having your pharmacist involved in your care. It's just like having an extra doc!

 

[tony0611]

Where would we be without them?

Where else ? Either google or this forum

 

[Patdart]

My best one died in Dec. and his son is just not the gatekeeper he was. He avoided me having problems for nearly 40 years by catching prescriptions that I was allergic to and calling the doctors about changing the meds for me. I grieve the loss and have had to become a better watcher as a result. I clearly feel I owe my life to him...may he RIP. My last gift was a form he got at his last workshop telling me the drugs I should avoid that are sulfa 3rd generation derivatives. I still have it and use it and mention to my docs all the drugs it leads me to when I research them online. It tells me to avoid some drugs for HBP, and lots of other common drugs and some penicillin children that even my docs have not known were derivatives. They are too young to remember sulfa drugs and penicillin drugs.

 

[Guest]

And now that we're several years into the relationship with our reliable one, there are many times we come through the door, the clerk gets our meds, and one of the pharmacists comes over to explain something for us.

I also have a great pharmacist. If you are getting something for the first time, they have several tiny booths where they sit you down and make sure you understand everything you need. This in a tiny pharmacy, but then it doesn't waste space with clothes and make-up and huge displays of diet powders etc. And it's open every day of the year! Oh, and it provides a methadone service. Very service-oriented. And it's 5 minutes' walk away.