[baltbob]

Was traveling this week to west coast( I live on east coast) and was fine the first couple of days.Had a pretty good breakfast the 3rd day and went to a training class. During a break walked thru the lobby and by the time I got to the elevator felt shaky and weak. By the time I got to my room and I could hardly stop shaking enough to do a test and had dropped to 50. Had my wife get some orange juice and someone else had some glucose tablets but took a while to get my numbers back up. This is the first time that I felt this way. The next day the same thing started to happen but I was quicker to react once I got into the low 80's. How low do you go before you can actually pass out.Still do not know why this happened and would appreciate any help. Was just diagnosed two months ago and my A1c was 10.9 Had new test two weeks ago and have dropped to 8.7 My doctor is very pleased with the results. I was full of confidence the last month or so since I was doing so great. Is this disease this unpredictlbe???? Thanks

[pdxdennisj]

I have gotten down into the low 40s and was indeed confused and unsteady. I suspect the tolerance for lows varies with the person.

[Eddy]

I'm glad you remained conscious. My first 50-ish excursions caused me great consternation and panic: I, too, thought I was going to pass out.

Since then, I've had a couple sub-20 hypos. My first was while I was awake. My second occurred while sleeping; I awoke off-the-meter.

I'm afraid that you will see a fair amount of day-to-day variability. Whether you run higher for a safety margin, or skirt the low numbers to avoid spikes, is ultimately your judgment call. I try to hold my numbers in "normal person" range, because that's where I feel and operate the best.

Also: Everyone is different, but I've found { 7Up | Sprite | Sierra Mist } best for stopping hypos. They work their magic completely within fifteen minutes. Orange juice takes twice as long, or even longer.

Glucose tablets? I don't know. I never even finished my first bottle, due to all those nasty dyes.

[RobiJo]

It can depend on the person. Though most with hypo awareness feel pretty rotten in the 40's and below. I've been walking and talking at numbers in the teens. I seem to be okay as long as I'm awake. All of my "pass outs" were seizures and happened at night. Haven't had one since 1995 thank goodness, as I've changed insulins since then and have grown into waking up at night when low.

Since you're not sure why you went low I'm assuming you're Type 2?
Always a good idea to keep juice (I like capri suns) or regular pop and/or glucose tabs with you at all times. I don't feel like chewing on things when I'm low, so I only use tabs as a last resort. Granted this is easier for us purse carrying ladies.