Connie in KC
01-14-2007, 06:16 AM
I have been on Glucophage and Avandia. The doctor has had me on 1000 mg of Glucophage XR and currently 4 mg of Avandia. I took it down to 4 mg because 8 mg caused me to gain an ungodly amount of weight (20 pounds without changing any eating habits) and I felt dragged out all of the time. Also, I went from being able to walk flights of stairs to the third floor without stopping, to having to stop several times when going up one flight. I simply couldn't summon the energy to go without stopping. Since I lowered the dosage, I finally have lost about 15 pounds of the 20.
My doctor sent me to a diabetes educator/dietician who thought that there were some other drugs that my doctor might want to try. In this dietician's practice, which was in a setting that specialized in diabetes treatment, she saw some other medication regimens that worked well. However, the last time that I saw my doctor, he told me that he wants me to go on Lantus. During my last appointment with the dietician, she spoke with him, about trying different medications, and he wouldn't budge. I raised my dosage of Glucophage, because I saw that 2000 mg is the optimal dosage, and my morning readings have gone down.
I see the doctor Monday, and I am concerned that he will tell me to find another doctor unless I start on Lantus. My question is this: If I go on Lantus to gain tighter control, will I ever be able to get off of it? I know my pancreas still makes insulin, because on infrequent times when I forget my medication, my levels go up to about 195 after a meal and take about 4 hours to get down to 140. I seldom go above 225, (at a wedding banquet) even if I overdo it with food. I seldom go below 120, even though I am extremely careful with my diet.
My doctor sent me to a diabetes educator/dietician who thought that there were some other drugs that my doctor might want to try. In this dietician's practice, which was in a setting that specialized in diabetes treatment, she saw some other medication regimens that worked well. However, the last time that I saw my doctor, he told me that he wants me to go on Lantus. During my last appointment with the dietician, she spoke with him, about trying different medications, and he wouldn't budge. I raised my dosage of Glucophage, because I saw that 2000 mg is the optimal dosage, and my morning readings have gone down.
I see the doctor Monday, and I am concerned that he will tell me to find another doctor unless I start on Lantus. My question is this: If I go on Lantus to gain tighter control, will I ever be able to get off of it? I know my pancreas still makes insulin, because on infrequent times when I forget my medication, my levels go up to about 195 after a meal and take about 4 hours to get down to 140. I seldom go above 225, (at a wedding banquet) even if I overdo it with food. I seldom go below 120, even though I am extremely careful with my diet.