[DeusXM]

So yeah I understood the long term ramifications, I just didn't think it would be so short term as 12 hour fast cuz every doctor I have ever been to asked me to do a 12 hour fast for them before I came to visit.

It depends. The standard diagnosis for T1 usually involves a 12 hour fast and then measuring BG. In an individual without T1, the fasting BG after such a long time would be around 72. Anything over 100 is indicative of diabetes.

The reason doctors can get away with doing this test as a DIAGNOSIS is generally because at this stage, you are entering DKA but still have enough residual insulin production to stay alive. T1 is a gradual transition.

Now that your diagnosis is confirmed, it is much more dangerous to carry out a fast WITHOUT having basal insulin. People with T1 can fast just fine should they wish, but you do need to still take your insulin. Otherwise your liver will continue to dump glucose into your blood, and your muscles have no way of intaking the glucose in your blood and converting it to energy. Insulin is essential for your basic survival; it's not just something you need when you eat.

But I fast once or twice a month for obvious reasons. I have to give my body a fighting chance to return to normal.

Fasting WITHOUT insulin is not the way to do it. There is absolutely nothing normal about starving yourself and also denying yourself a basic metabolic hormone. The best way you can bring your body back to normal is to first learn what a normal BG range is, and then take enough insulin to match your food intake and basal requirements to match that.

You need to take more insulin in general. How much more, I can't tell you. A doctor can. Please see a doctor. Given the information you've posted here and in other threads, I have to say there is something seriously wrong with how you are treating your diabetes. Unfortunately because of the severity of the 'wrongness', we can't help you because now we're in territory that's both medically and legally dangerous. You will need to see an expert who can look over your case history in accurate detail. We can polish up a few things but I don't think any of us can provide the solution you really need right now.

[hodgsonsurvivor]

Originally Posted by ****

14? - really?
14 is absolutely incoherent for anybody I know.
I mean 14 is flat out zero awareness of anything or anyone around you.
Has anyone else ever recorded a 14? - I think I have seen 20, but not ever 14. 14 means the paramedics are there feeding you glucagon.
I think you are not telling the truth.

I don't know how low the meter goes before it stops registering numbers, but I tested once and got a "LO". So, I think it's possible .

[Funnygrl]

Deus, I just love your way with words. You really save me a lot of time typing

[lugnut48]

Originally Posted by DeusXM

Yes, but the difference is that most of us aren't in denial as to the reality of situation.

.......

But you do need to face up to the reality of your situation for the sake of your health, otherwise when that day comes when we can all get off the jabs and the pills, you aren't going to benefit from it.

To play devil's advocate here - isn't denial a normal part of the process? I dunno - maybe it's just me but, I thought this is a rather difficult "disease" to manage, physically and emotionally. And no one here can say they've NEVER been "stupid" with their diabetes before; and if they do - I call BS on them. That or they've been silver-spoon fed and never had to work hard towards their "perfection."

[EeyoreButterfly]

But there's a difference between "stupid" as you put it and coming onto a board, asking for opinions, ignoring said opinions, argumentative and profane posts when people question your experiences or honesty, and just the sheer bizarreness of the posts.

Yes, denial is a part of the grieving process. However, when you post antics like this on a mesage board people will be tryng to help you get into a healthier place, and each person will have their own way of doing that.

[DeusXM]

To play devil's advocate here - isn't denial a normal part of the process?

Yes, of course it is. I never said that denial was weird or anything - I just said that people need to get past it as quickly as possible.

[Pool]

So a test to determine if you`re diabetic involves fasting for 12 hours then taking your reading???

I fasted for 12 hours & reading was 70.

Drank can of Coke after fasting.....Waited 2 hours and reading was 120.

[DeusXM]

It's one of the tests - anyone with an elevated fasting blood glucose (FBG) after 12 hours is likely to have diabetes. That doesn't mean that everyone with diabetes necessarily 'fails' the FBG test. When that happens, then the usual next test is the glucose tolerance test (GTT), which was the test you did when you drank the Coke. Most people with T1 will 'fail' the FBG test. People with T1.5 or T2 tend can fare differently on the FBG test, hence the GTT as another check.

[someone]

If your basal insulin is correct, ideally you should have better control without post meal spikes, etc. Essentially, fasting removes a variable.

[BenEBrady]

14!... This must have been an anecdotal revelation... Lowest I've ever been is 46 and I can testify to the fact that I was fairly well 'impaired' that low... I often heard "28 is too late", anything below 30 is severely life threatening. As for your body getting back to 'normal'? I have to question your rationality. You have to simply accept that your physical body will NEVER BE NORMAL AGAIN. Live with it. The fact is, your psychological 'body' will suffer greatly until you accept it.

[BenEBrady]

Ah... herein lies the problem... You are simply ignorant as to the proper methodology of correcting a low... and there's certainly no shame in ignorance.

If you are a type 1, you REALLY need to know BOTH ends of the spectrum... if you are too low, you need to correct this with GLUCOSE... not CARBS, you need a CONTROLLED recovery, otherwise you'll end up with BG readings like a yo-yo. You should carry glucose tablets with you at all times. I was diagnosed as a type 2, 7 years ago... and I carry them in my pocket every day. Anyone who is on insulin therapy in any fashion should carry them. They're cheap and more importantly, they are PREDICTABLE. Drinking a half can of soda or a glass of OJ are 'acceptable' methods, only because they are 'handy' but a methodology that is predictable is really the ideal solution.

Now, as I said previously, there's no shame in ignorance, however idiocy will kill you, even if you DO think you are being careful.

[Subby]

Hi Ben. My guess is that the 14 may well have been the result of quite a bit of tester error - they are not exactly the most accurate things around. They could easily have been 30 or 40 in actuality. There's just that inbuilt fuzziness we can't get around.

Since this thread type I tester has found out they may well, in fact, be type 2. They have recently had a negative result for a GAD test.

It's worth saying that here, as it casts a completely different light on this whole thread and the issue of fasting for type I tester (ironic name choice in the end!). Your comments about accepting the situation still hold, in my opinion.

[chgisgood]

Your BG's are abnormal. You have diabetes, 1 or 2 I don't know your age. It was an interesting test. Because it isn't ski high you are probable producing insulin still. You Dr. will tell you what to do, and you should do something!
Janice

[Gwyllem]

I fast every year on Yom Kippur and I get better every year. I look forward to it because that is the day that my bg drops to about 120. Ever since I've had this **** I've never gotten below that except when I rode my bike to work and back, then it went to 118 I think. I'll have to check my meter. But I fast on that day and it drops, so I know there's a connection between eating and bg level. I'm 5'8 and 175 lbs. I think I should get down to about 162 or so. When I got out of the army I was 152 lbs, but I was a kid then, too. So I'm shooting for 162 or so. I think I'm going to start running again. I see some of the posts and some of you are runners, so that inspires me. But every night when I go to bed I know I will wake up with bg level of 175 or higher. When I first started taking the Janumet I was hitting 145-155 in the morning and dropping off during the day.

[Gwyllem]

What are you drinking coke for?