[duckie310]

My darling fiance currently has a blood sugar value of 527 and is insistant that:

a) - he's perfectly fine
b) - he always runs a bit high
c) - it'll go down fast
d) - there's nothing wrong

he didn't even have a blood glucose monitor, i had to take mine over to his house.

he's also experiencing excessive dry mouth, fatigue (fell asleep twice at work yesterday), depression and also has been experiencing of 'can't feel his feet'

then tried to tell me its all as a result of it being so hot out so soon (he works outdoors)

8 years ago he discovered he was a diabetic when he went into a coma with a blood sugar level of 2000. Since he survived that he thinks 500+ is no big deal.


he also thinks i'm overreacting - am i?

[HeatherP]

You ARE NOT overreacting, and maybe should call an ambulance or get him to the hospital. 500's is ketoacidosis and he needs to get his sugar down ASAP. If he won't take some insulin on his own, then he needs to see a doc immediately!

I hope he listens to you,
HeatherP

[Belinda]

Heather is right...he needs INSULIN and fast....You are great for caring normal range is around 120 anthing over that is considered high by my docs standards

[Oradev]

CALL 911 NOW! What does he think he's doing? Tell him the longer he keeps it high the worse he's going to be!

[duckie310]

we've been fighting all day over this... i work for doctors and i was talking to one this morning in tears.

He is insistant that his blood sugar will go down quickly. I was hoping to test his ketone level this evening, but was unable to get a test strip. I may have to stop tonight to look.

About the only thing i can do to get him to listen right now is to ask why he wants to deliberately and slowly kill himself. If he continues this he won't make it to our wedding next may.

he is a very stubborn sicilian.

one question though. I monitor my blood sugar because diabetes runs in my family, and I've been told that I'm pre-diabetic (my levels stay around 98-110 so i like to believe that i'm not) how fast does blood sugar drop on its own? he swears his comes right down. I can't see that happening without severe complications fromt he change.

I know i'm really knew here and have yet to even introduce myself.. but thanks for the help. Its appreciated on a hard day

[am1977]

well, there's no way to know if he's in ketoacidosis or DKA unless he tests for ketones and he has moderate to high amounts. I would definitely check that out. That said, I would agree with the others here that he should be in contact with his MD at the very least. Also, he should be taking his insulin, drinking water or non-cal. beverages, and perhaps some protein to bring his levels down. He should also continue to test frequently to make sure that his blood sugar is on the way down.

I know this is difficult for you. You must feel like you have your hands tied here, there's nothing really you can do except encourage him to take care of himself and seek medical help. He ultimately is the one who has to make decisions regarding his health. I hope that he will see the light, so to speak, and at least give his DR. a call.

Let us know how it goes. I hope things get better.

Andrea

[Harold]

The others are right and if he was being screened or in the docs office they would be admitting him. He obviously is in denial and does not take it seriously, and that is the first hurdle to get over. Well has his bg's gone down yet? They should have by now.

I've really had no luck in getting people to help themselves when they refuse to.

[duckie310]

i have no idea if they've gone down yet. He's been with family all day, his sister just had a baby adn the whole italian family is up. I had another commitment adn got out of it, lol

expect to see him around 9 or 10 tonight and will test blood sugar again and test his ketones if i can find ketone strips before the stores close

[duckie310]

one more question? i can find BG levels f or general quidelines. is there a general idea of how much BG values can change after eating? this way i have more info to argue with (i love info, i'm an analytical info junkie).

[Harold]

You might show him what the first item under Complications. The same site implies if it is stays over 180 you don't have enough insulin. See

Have seen my own levels drop 40-50 points in 15 minutes, but have never seen any stats of what is expected or normal.

[duckie310]

lol, i;ve had more than one person tell me to point out that particular complication. I may do that later tonight as well as point out that he may not be able to have children. He very much wants kids and since his sister just had a baby.. its on his mind more.

what really makes me mad when i think of it, is that he avoids mushrooms loike the plague because they induce gout.. but this is a minor issue compared to that??

[dpav]

as far as Ketoacidosis. You can smell ketenes in a person on their breath. If you smell anything like Fruit Flavored Certs, That is right, Exactly like Fruit Flavored Certs, he is reeking with ketenes. He will be in serious danger. You wont need to test with a ketostik. The odder will be the primary odder no matter how bad ones breath is. If it is there he is in danger of comma and death. 577 is way too high. Also sugar levels do NOT go down on their own. They need some assistance, either insulin or an oral pill of some kind.
I have gone through Ketoacidosis 6 times in my youth. I know from where I speak.
I hope all goes well
Take care
Don

[duckie310]

tested his blood sugar levels last night 1-2 hours after he ate dinner and a few minutes after eating watermelon. Imagine my joy to see that the number won't even register on my tester. I called the company and they told me that anything over 600 is displayed as 'HI'.... not ketone test done because the only store over there do not carry them or were closed by the time i got there. Before the result was displayed he already told me he wasn't going to the ER.

this morning i took a fasting level test and it was 391. Not great, but a lot better. I told him he needed to keep getting it down. It kind of freaks me out that it dropped that much though.

he asked me last night what he had to do and i reminded him of all the basics to get it down. minimal sugar, nor white flour, no fruit or fruit juices.. focus on eating vegatables and more protein and keep monitoring.

his doctor has apparently told him that his sugars will run high and that anything under 200 is good. While i don;'t agree (i intend to work to get it to 120-140 average) i told Joe that iwould back off if he kept it at the doctor recommended level.

My next step is to get him to authorize his doctors office to discuss his care with me as well. and if i'm really lucky... to finagle himto going to the doctor next saturday

[kcwinter]

Good luck duckie. Go to the doctors office and when they call his name just get up and go with him. Just tell him its good to have someone go with him in case he forgot something the doctor tells him. I still go with my boys and my dad. If the doctor need me to I step out of the room for those personal things.

[Harold]

As high as he has been he needs to be referred to an Endocrinolist that treats or better specializes in diabetes. Do go with him as KC said and be pushy to get him what he needs.