Can anyone help??

[londonlady]

I was diagnosed type 2 eight months ago, age 41. Have been on Metformin 500mgs 3 times daily. My real worry is that I have not gained any weight in that time , despite losing 28lbs in the months prior to diagnosis. I know this is an unusual problem for type 2, which worries me even more!!!
I'm 5'2" and weigh about 95lbs...on a good day.
I feel great on the Met, control is good, last HBA1C was 7.4 (could be better, I know) and I wonder if I'm having high spikes or something which may be preventing weight gain.
Its really depressing...I'm wondering when it will stop. I'll be heading for the kids stores soon...not funny.Its ruining all the good work ...
L

[Cinnabon]

Oh boy.. u are a lot of Diabetics envy.. LOL.
How do you u feel? How many times do u test?

[londonlady]

lol...feel great. Test morning , usually around 5mmols, then 2 hrs post meals. Good mostly (under 9), but sometimes in teens, when I've eaten something high fat for example.
Isn't it funny how our body perception is soooo subjective! My family and friends think I'm half dead.
L

[Cinnabon]

lol...feel great. Test morning , usually around 5mmols, then 2 hrs post meals. Good mostly (under 9), but sometimes in teens, when I've eaten something high fat for example.
Isn't it funny how our body perception is soooo subjective! My family and friends think I'm half dead.
L
do u eat any carbs? When u mean in the teens, your BSugar is in the 200+?

[londonlady]

Yes, i do eat carbs...but don't count them!! I use the 40/40/20 rule. Haven't seen a dietician at all. Have learned most about diet from the net...and about most everything to do with diabetes.
Yes...I mean 200+ for teens
L

[jeggeman31]

Why did they say you are type 2 ? Have they done blood work to rule out type 1, or did they just Dx you as type 2 because of your age ?

[londonlady]

No, I've not had the blood work done to rule out type 1. In fact it has been suggested through a friend who is an endo that I might be.I haven't seen an endo either. However, the metformin does seem to be controlling things....maybe it the 'honeymoon' period?? The thought of being type 1 scares me rigid!!!

[jeggeman31]

No, I've not had the blood work done to rule out type 1. In fact it has been suggested through a friend who is an endo that I might be.I haven't seen an endo either. However, the metformin does seem to be controlling things....maybe it the 'honeymoon' period?? The thought of being type 1 scares me rigid!!!

Well I think your first step is to find a DR that will do the testing to figure out if you are type 1 or type 2. Yes the metformin may be working, however if you are in your honeymoon period, it will work ( please someone correct me if I am wrong). Type 1 is not that bad, but being new to this I could understand why it would scare you rigid. In talking with type 1's and type 2's and any onther that fall into our happy little group. I would choose type 1 over type 2. It is for the most part easy to control, and type 2 takes more steps and much more of a lifestyle change to control. However if you are type 1 or type 2. Just remember. Control your diabetes, Don't let it control you.

[Brenda A]

I was diagnosed type 2 eight months ago, age 41. Have been on Metformin 500mgs 3 times daily. My real worry is that I have not gained any weight in that time , despite losing 28lbs in the months prior to diagnosis. I know this is an unusual problem for type 2, which worries me even more!!!
I'm 5'2" and weigh about 95lbs...on a good day.
I feel great on the Met, control is good, last HBA1C was 7.4 (could be better, I know) and I wonder if I'm having high spikes or something which may be preventing weight gain.
Its really depressing...I'm wondering when it will stop. I'll be heading for the kids stores soon...not funny.Its ruining all the good work ...
L


Hello,
Most of the folks I know actually lost on Metformin, including me. It was the only one though, the others made me gain. If you are like most of us you will gain soon enough with this diabetes unless your thyroid is speeding you up. Good Luck

[labob]

My doctor warned me that it's common to gain weight on diabetes medications, but from what I can gather it's not inevitable. It seems to me that it's just one of those maddening things that depends on the individual -- at any rate, I sure can't figure it out. Here's my weight trajectory since my diagnosis in December 2005:

At diagnosis, I started taking glyburide, Lantos and Humalog. One week later, the scale said I had gained 15 pounds (I swear I don't remember feeling or looking any different, and my clothes still fit, but that's what the doctor's scale said). I stopped taking insulin a couple of weeks after that (not because of the weight gain, but because my pancreas seemed to start working again, at least as best as it could) and the next time I weighed myself I discovered that I had dropped not only those 15 pounds but another 10 pounds to boot, so a few weeks after diagnosis I was 10 lbs. lower than my diagnosis weight. I eventually switched my oral meds to Actos (15 mg) and a reduced dosage of glyburide (1.25 mg/day), and I'm still at about 150 lbs. at nearly 5'9". I'm still tinkering with the meds -- I'm going to stop glyburide tomorrow because for the last several days my post-breakfast readings have dipped way too low, which I guess means the Actos has really kicked in -- but so far at least it doesn't seem to matter what combination of drugs I take. I still seem to be at the same weight, which appears to be my diabetic set point. Insulin seems to be the variable that provoked weight gain for me, but I don't recall seeing posts from the folks who are taking insulin that mention that weight gain from insulin has been a problem for them.

So good grief, who knows -- it all gets down to your individual metabolism, I suppose. I wouldn't worry about not gaining weight from the meds, but if I were in your shoes, I would try to gain at least a few pounds -- maybe for a bit you could increase your intake of "good" fats, like avocados and olive oil, which shouldn't increase your glucose levels or wreak too much havoc on your cholesterol. It's worth a try, anyway. Good luck!

[dbc]

No, I've not had the blood work done to rule out type 1. In fact it has been suggested through a friend who is an endo that I might be.I haven't seen an endo either. However, the metformin does seem to be controlling things....maybe it the 'honeymoon' period?? The thought of being type 1 scares me rigid!!!

Get to a Dr who organises the tests - far better to know what you're dealing with. I was originally diagnosed T2 - no blood work was done, then only after I changed Dr (who did the blood tests) was I correctly diagnosed T1. Changed to T1.5/LADA now. Like you I freaked out a bit at the T1 diagnosis..... I'm also honeymooning on metformin and I'm low carbing, also lost weight (wife thinks I qualify for starving refugee status) but otherwise pretty healthy.

Essential to have a correct diagnosis to fight/control this disease.

[dbc]

lol...feel great. Test morning , usually around 5mmols, then 2 hrs post meals. Good mostly (under 9), but sometimes in teens, when I've eaten something high fat for example.
L

For me again, fat/protein have almost no effect, but carbs - even the healthy ones like fruit etc send me up to9-10mmols at 2hours......

[shanda]

I'm just curious what it means to be "honeymooning on Metformin". I was diagnosed type 2 about 4 months ago and I take Metformin twice a day. I've read this term 'honeymooning' but I don't understand what it means in relationship to diabetes.

[Mark.R]

Just going off the beaten track a sec. London Lady.. is your name from the Stranglers song :wink: or are you actually in London?

[londonlady]

Just going off the beaten track a sec. London Lady.. is your name from the Stranglers song :wink: or are you actually in London?

lol...had forgotten the Stranglers had a song called that...I'm in London, England.

[dbc]

I'm just curious what it means to be "honeymooning on Metformin". I was diagnosed type 2 about 4 months ago and I take Metformin twice a day. I've read this term 'honeymooning' but I don't understand what it means in relationship to diabetes.

It refers to being diagnosed type 1 diabetic but still having (to some degree) a functioning pancreas, so either less injected insulin is required, or (as I am at the moment), no insulin. The disease is progressive, so a T1 will always eventually be totally dependant on injected insulin. The in-between stage is the honeymoon.

As it happens, for some late onset T1s, metformin helps in the honeymoon period by reducing liver dump - which is the liver pushing glucose into the blood in response to a perceived low blood glucose state, but which is really low levels of insulin fooling the body.

[shanda]

Thank you dbc :)

Now I understand what that means, your explaination was perfect, thanks!:girl:

[londonlady]

Thank you all for your replies...you have been incredibly helpful. It makes me so glad we live in the age of the internet. This condition must have been so isolating beforehand. I now feel I have information I can work with and feel so much more reassured and supported.
L

[kimbo]

Hi londenlady,I too lost a lot of weight before I was diagnosed 13 months ago,I expected to gain weight but have for some reason lost more.I have not worked for a year ,so i am less active and eat more regular than I did.I dont think the diet has a anything to do with it because I have not had to give up much,I had a reasonable diet before.
For some reason my weight can go down one day by 3 Ib then its back on again the next.I am also a bit concerned,at 48 you dont normally drop to your teenage weight.I take 2000 mg metformin and 180mg gliclizide.
As for the blood test to confirm which type of diabetes ,I dont think they exist here in the uk,I was suspect t1 and i think they decided on t2 because the meds were working although things are not so good at the moment.

[londonlady]

Hi Kimbo,
Now that sounds very like me!! I never had the c peptide test, and to be honest, didn't push for it as I'm grateful the meds are working, and want to have faith in my Dr. He has proven to be right so often when I've questioned his choices before. He does allow me to question him quite happily:saint:
I'm really struggling with having the body of a teenager in a middle aged woman.. ...might have imagined that would be nice in the past, but the reality is :rolleyes: quite different. Our whole femininty is bound up in our womanly curves!!...and they have literally dropped away before my eyes.:laugh:
Seriously tho, the real worry is that I might have missed something, and that there was something else serious underlying all this....diabetes is not serious enough already, huh????
G

[Brenda A]

My doctor warned me that it's common to gain weight on diabetes medications, but from what I can gather it's not inevitable. It seems to me that it's just one of those maddening things that depends on the individual -- at any rate, I sure can't figure it out. Here's my weight trajectory since my diagnosis in December 2005:

At diagnosis, I started taking glyburide, Lantos and Humalog. One week later, the scale said I had gained 15 pounds (I swear I don't remember feeling or looking any different, and my clothes still fit, but that's what the doctor's scale said). I stopped taking insulin a couple of weeks after that (not because of the weight gain, but because my pancreas seemed to start working again, at least as best as it could) and the next time I weighed myself I discovered that I had dropped not only those 15 pounds but another 10 pounds to boot, so a few weeks after diagnosis I was 10 lbs. lower than my diagnosis weight. I eventually switched my oral meds to Actos (15 mg) and a reduced dosage of glyburide (1.25 mg/day), and I'm still at about 150 lbs. at nearly 5'9". I'm still tinkering with the meds -- I'm going to stop glyburide tomorrow because for the last several days my post-breakfast readings have dipped way too low, which I guess means the Actos has really kicked in -- but so far at least it doesn't seem to matter what combination of drugs I take. I still seem to be at the same weight, which appears to be my diabetic set point. Insulin seems to be the variable that provoked weight gain for me, but I don't recall seeing posts from the folks who are taking insulin that mention that weight gain from insulin has been a problem for them.

So good grief, who knows -- it all gets down to your individual metabolism, I suppose. I wouldn't worry about not gaining weight from the meds, but if I were in your shoes, I would try to gain at least a few pounds -- maybe for a bit you could increase your intake of "good" fats, like avocados and olive oil, which shouldn't increase your glucose levels or wreak too much havoc on your cholesterol. It's worth a try, anyway. Good luck!


My doctor put me on symlin in hopes of countering some of the weight gain from insulin. I gained a lot in the 3 years that I have been taking insulin. My mom gained a lot too. My doctor says most folks do gain with it and some quite a bit. I also have thyroid failure to make matters worse. I gained with the pills but some of it was fluid.