Experienced my first hypo....

[wiseguy]

and it was no fun at all!

My fasting numbers have been a little high lately so I thought I'd try a little experiment and acquired a Glipizide tablet (5 mg) from a relative. I took it at bedtime and about an hour or so later I woke up in a cold sweat and felt really weak and shaky. Did a test and it displayed a 47. Kinda freaked me out so I chugged down some iced tea sweetened with table sugar. I felt much better in about 20 minutes.

This is one stupid mistake that I will never repeat.

[sweetcheeks]

that happens to me when i drink alcohol......liver shuts off and blood sugar drops. I actually wake up hypo quite alot lately even without the alcohol.... I can tell when i wake up, shakey, cold sweat sorta, weak, and cannot speak hardly... drink some milk and eat a little debbie cake and all is well.

[ant hill]

This is interesting as a type one we have to watch our Glucose levels like a hawk as we have to take artificial insulin to get the balance that we desire as type two's have natural insulin to get the balance but meds are used to get the insulin to work effectively.
Also having to experience a low in a type two is not common as type ones do so if you are to continue to take this medication then you would have to take more tests and have some recovery strategy in place so to take the low like the type ones do.
Have you consulted this with your endo?

[princesslinda]

My non-compliant co-worker is on Glipizide 10 mg and can eat a huge carb-laden meal, take a pill and STILL manage to go hypo at times with that particular medication. I've never taken one myself. With your excellent diet/exercise control, if you did at some point need meds, you'd probably be much better served on something like metformin, which would help with the insulin resistance but have less danger of hypos (though I have been at 58 once when I missed a meal and had more physical activity).

[kgm0612]

Betcha won't try that experience again, Wiseguy! LOL

Sorry you had to experience a hypo that way.

Karen

[Julielouise]

Wow, that must of been scary. Thanks for the heads up so I don't try it. Glad it ended up ok and you learned a lesson.
Hugs-Julie

[MJB]

and it was no fun at all!

My fasting numbers have been a little high lately so I thought I'd try a little experiment and acquired a Glipizide tablet (5 mg) from a relative. I took it at bedtime and about an hour or so later I woke up in a cold sweat and felt really weak and shaky. Did a test and it displayed a 47. Kinda freaked me out so I chugged down some iced tea sweetened with table sugar. I felt much better in about 20 minutes.

This is one stupid mistake that I will never repeat.

How high were your fasting numbers, if you don't mind telling us?

I guess the moral of the story is not to take meds not prescribed for you.

The mistake was not "stupid"; it was a learning experience. :)

[slipperyelm]

Actually, I think it is kinda cool that you tried that. Had you intentionally taken that glipizide after an unusally large load of carbohydrates in order to counteract them? I know you usually are very careful with your diet.

If you are going to experiment, I would recommend that you always do that when you plan to be conscious so that you will have a greater chance to deal with the effects early. I imagine you are thinking the same thing now, eh?

I used to take 2.5 mg glipizide a day and was having a lot of lows. I understand that to mean that I still have a lot of insulin production potential. But that doesn't mean that overwhelming my system with insulin is a good way for me to control my T2. Nope, one of my chief opinions about dealing with my T2 is now:

I hate glipizide.

I was having hypos several times a week. Hate that glipizide stuff.

The very last time I took glipizide, I spent hours and a lot of test strips trying to get my BG back up. It was as if my pancreas just couldn't quit responding at a super rate. I had taken the pill around 4 p.m, if I remember correctly, and was still checking and eating glucose at 3a.m.

I would much rather inject a controlled, measured amount of insulin than stimulate the pancreas to make who-knows-how much insulin. But that is not what I do either at this point. Things have gone much smoother by going very low carb instead.

[xMenace]

This is one stupid mistake that I will never repeat.

How many times have I said that¿ :confused:

[volleyball]

Glad you survived. I guess you know how powerful those meds can be. People who refuse to take care of themselves need stuff like that. You in good shape means that those drugs can go crazy on you

[wiseguy]

Have you consulted this with your endo?
No, I have little faith in doctors and basically just use them to order tests for me.

With your excellent diet/exercise control, if you did at some point need meds, you'd probably be much better served on something like metformin, which would help with the insulin resistance but have less danger of hypos (though I have been at 58 once when I missed a meal and had more physical activity).
You're absolutely right. I just wanted to try something that is fast acting, unlike Metformin which can take weeks.

Betcha won't try that experience again, Wiseguy! LOL

Sorry you had to experience a hypo that way.

Karen
You got that right! I really feel for those of you who must take insulin and deal with the hypo threat on a daily basis.

How high were your fasting numbers, if you don't mind telling us?

I guess the moral of the story is not to take meds not prescribed for you.

The mistake was not "stupid"; it was a learning experience. :)
I try to keep really tight control so I'm unhappy if my fasting numbers go above 104 as they are usually below 100. For some reason, for a few days they were 110 and over. That's why I tried the Glypizide. Learning the hard way is never the smartest thing to do but it was definitely a learning experience.

I hate glipizide.

I was having hypos several times a week. Hate that glipizide stuff.
At this time I also consider myself a member of the "I hate Glypizide" club.

How many times have I said that¿ :confused:
Yea, I meant until the next time. :)

Glad you survived. I guess you know how powerful those meds can be. People who refuse to take care of themselves need stuff like that. You in good shape means that those drugs can go crazy on you
Even some people who take very good care of themselves will need meds to control their BG levels. I'm just lucky enough to not be at that stage yet.

[Tabhill]

Having type I, experiencing reactions are somewhat common place - for me anyway. I have a million hilarious stories :T and clear memories of all but one of them (glucose was so low that I actually became quite lucid at 26 and was able to send the paramedics away). My husband and daughters hate these reactions but do share the humor of it with me in telling their version of the numerous bizarre occurrences. Now I keep a jar of M&M's in a dispenser near my bed and a dry, reserve shirt near by also (for me, the cooling off after the sweating is the worst - I can never seem to warm up). Hope there's never a next one for you.

[wiseguy]

Having type I, experiencing reactions are somewhat common place - for me anyway. I have a million hilarious stories :T and clear memories of all but one of them (glucose was so low that I actually became quite lucid at 26 and was able to send the paramedics away). My husband and daughters hate these reactions but do share the humor of it with me in telling their version of the numerous bizarre occurrences. Now I keep a jar of M&M's in a dispenser near my bed and a dry, reserve shirt near by also (for me, the cooling off after the sweating is the worst - I can never seem to warm up). Hope there's never a next one for you.
It's great that you can find humor in a bad situation. I suppose it's the only way to preserve sanity. I surely don't look forward to the time when I will need to keep a jar of candy near my bed, but when/if I do, I hope I can cope with it as well.

[princesslinda]

It's great that you can find humor in a bad situation. I suppose it's the only way to preserve sanity. I surely don't look forward to the time when I will need to keep a jar of candy near my bed, but when/if I do, I hope I can cope with it as well.


Rick, i'm sure if the time comes where you need to watch for hypos, you'll go at it with the same drive and determination that has allowed you to do so well in managing your diabetes thus far.

[dgrilli]

About a year and half ago I finally got a a new Doctor after relocating from another state.

Instead of insulin these General Doctors decided to give me oral medications instead insulin. I took Glipizide and this med did absolutely nothing for me. My BG continued to climb and climb. The Doctor was very angry with me and sent me a registered letter and fired me as a patient.

Within a day I was in the emergency room with a BG of 498 and very sick I had lost over 40lbs within a short period of time. The Emergency room Doc would not give me insulin but did give me a little tiny ziplock baggy containing a single tablet of Avandia. The ER Doc claimed that you must be 500 or more to get insulin and at 498 was not entitled to insulin or fluids.

About 4 hours later I got prescribed Insulin by a Doctor GP who agreed to treat me. I credit this Doctor with saving my life.

About 5 years earlier I was very high they said over 700BG and they gave me 90units of insulin first then again and I came down and went literally blind for the next 45 days, I was lucky gained my vision back.

I wonder would these cheap oral meds work in combo with injected insulin? I know they don't work if I don't inject.

I am deathly afraid of lows I have had 2 in the last 4 months and it seems like 4 ever to get my BG up usually I will force feed myself 4 tablespoons of honey and when I'm low I do not want anything it seems like I must force myself to take the honey or even eat or even drink soda. But I want those things when I'm not low or even a little high.

My question is will oral meds work with those who inject causing the injected insulin to work harder and better?

[ant hill]

About a year and half ago I finally got a a new Doctor after relocating from another state.
Have you got an type of diabetic that you are as i am thinking of a 1.5.

[dgrilli]

You know Anthill I always thought I was a Type 2 and my endo swore up and down several years ago that he had run the tests and plainly stated that I could try orals and that it will be a short time that I will be injecting insulin.

He was rather emphatic that was my fate.

So I'm suspecting he knew something I did not.

I'm positive for GAD. I did take a C-Peptide test after I had been injecting for a awhile and the Endo said that the test was probably not very acurate. Because I never halted injecting insulin or even fasted.

Yeah I probably will fit a 1.5 more than anything. All I know is that if my pump quits I really start to go high very quickly with a couple of hours.

I also will start to loose weight very quickly when the insulin is taken away but I get really sick also.

Oral never worked for me. But I wonder would they work while injecting, sounds like some here say yeah.

[Peggy]

I'm T2 and was started on Metformin 2 years ago. Alone, it didn't work so my family doctor added Glucovance to the Metformin. I had way too may hypos on the Glucovance so I was refered to an endo. He kept me on the Metformin, discontinued the Glucovance, and added a small dose of Novolog twice a day. My BS quickly came under control. I've had great A1cs and have had much less trouble with hypos. For me, the combo of the Metformin and the insulin does the trick!