Time for medication?

[meg]

Hello all,

I read this forum regularly and have found it most helpful.
I was diagnosed 2 years ago T2 (early stage) + reactive hypoglycemia. I'm 53 yr old female and am treated for high blood pressure and high cholesterol and I have to work hard to keep my weight under control.
Because of the lows I have not taken any medication and until a bout of Flu 4 weeks ago have managed with diet and exercise.
For the last 4 weeks fasting has been from 8-10 (144-180) and 2 hours after meal readings 12-15 (216-270), I rarely see a good number now, diet and exercise aren't helping much
I can't see the Endo for another 5 weeks so the nurse at the Diabetes Clinic wants me to see a Doctor tomorrow for medication. I feel I've done my best and knew this would happen one day. What can I expect, I'm a bit worried.
Regards, Meg

[ADE]

Hi Meg,
Give your body a chance to recover from that flu bugs. Your high numbers most likely are from that. Soon when you're able to recover fully, you should be able to see lower numbers like before. Take care.

[Peter Lee]

Yes I agree. My experience is that it can take two weeks after recovering from a bad cold for my numbers to come back to what I'm used to seeing. If I were you, I would give it a month - viruses can hang on without you feeling ill, but their effect shows in the numbers. If after that time your numbers don't come back down, then you should certainly see your doctor and get something done.

All the best.

[meg]

Thanks for your valued replies, it makes sense to wait a little longer............
One thing that concerns me is that my fasting numbers have been getting higher since last year, usually 7.5-8.5 (135-153) and I try various snacks before bed, it seems to help a little. How long can glucose levels run high before damage starts to show? I become very tired and emotional when my numbers run high.
Thanks again, Meg

[seacomp]

How long can glucose levels run high before damage starts to show?
That's not a meaningful question. The damage you may do to your body today from high levels might not show up as cardio-vascular problems, eye problems, kidney problems, foot problems, etc. for 1, 5, or even 10 years. They will show up eventually, however.
A "I'll do it until it hurts" approach, does not work with diabetes.

[4519]

seacomp hit on something that makes this treatment very difficult. "....A "I'll do it until it hurts" approach, does not work with diabetes......" We, as humans, seem to not really get the idea that something is bad for us if we can't see it, feel it or see some results from what we do. Probably all of us are guilty of once in a while over indulging and thinking that it won't hurt us, it is just one time. The problem is the damages we suffer don't usually come back to us in the short run. Yes, we might have some very poor feeling days when we go high or low, but the real damage is in the blood vessels and the nerves and we don't feel that, not for a long time. I heard it stated not too long ago on a medical site that, "Every day we are out of control we damage ourselves a little more." Maybe not an exact quote, not my strong point. The way I hear it described is when you are high the damage can be ever so slight at the cell level, but that adds ups over time and then we feel it big time. I would prefer it hurt some when I went out of range. I wouldn't do that to myself, yet I will go out of range knowing that it is hurting me in the long run because "Is it really hurting me in the long range just his time?" kind of thinking. My doctor even tells me that sometimes we just have to go ahead and eat certain things once in a while, that's just life. Well, it might be, but the proper thing he should say go ahead eat certain things once in a while we have to hurt ourselves sometimes, that just life. My sister-in-law died from complications living that way. She was good during the week and lived how she wanted to on weekends. She died in her 50's. Setting aside a day to splurge some is like setting aside a time to beat our head against the wall becaues its fun to do it. Meg, it will be worth the efforts to keep your numbers down, especially if you feel poorly when they rise like that. There are things to overcome to keep them lower, like ourselves, but it is can be done.

[meg]

These replies have made me stop and think.
Regards, Meg