[Jamison]

Last night, I had my first really major low where I was unaware of what was going on. I dropped my girlfriend off at her house and she could tell that I was acting a little strangely so she told me to come in and she gave me 2 little fun size pieces of chocolate. I'm guessing 5 carbs apiece. Then, I left and I only remember pieces of my drive home, like every 5 minutes I remember a glimpse of what happened. Then, I remember I was headed into a curb and swerved at the last second and hit my front right tire against it pretty hard. Then, as I made my way back home, I don't remember much and I took a route home that I have never driven on. Also, it was a stickshift so I was incredibly surprised that I didn't have any trouble shifting or stalling out with this extreme low. When I got home, I had about 80 carbs and my blood sugar rose to 175. I just hope something like this never happens again.

[foxl]

I take it you do not keep glucose tabs in your pocket or glove box? I would go get some, ASAP.

Chocolate has fat and does not absorb quickly enough.

Drive safely -- lucky you were not hurt, or pulled over as drunk.

I just read an article on the merits of carrying glucose tabs by David Mendosa. They are cheap, readily available, easy to carry, and do not go stale. Hopefully this won't happen to you again, but be ready!

[Jamison]

I had raisins with me! It just didn't occur to me that's what I needed in my body. Also, on my way home I was wolfing down dried apricots. That's why I was aware of where I was when I was almost home.

[foxl]

Originally Posted by Jamison

I had raisins with me! It just didn't occur to me that's what I needed in my body. Also, on my way home I was wolfing down dried apricots. That's why I was aware of where I was when I was almost home.

Oh, wow -- you were out of it, poor kid. Been there ... scary indeed.

[DeusXM]

Seriously, you should not have driven in that state. You should have waited until you'd recovered fully from the hypo. What you did was incredibly dangerous. I'm glad you're ok, but remember that doing things like this tarnishes us all and is the reason people with diabetes have to go through extra hassle to get driving licenses.

[GeishaGirl]

Originally Posted by DeusXM

Seriously, you should not have driven in that state. You should have waited until you'd recovered fully from the hypo. What you did was incredibly dangerous. I'm glad you're ok, but remember that doing things like this tarnishes us all and is the reason people with diabetes have to go through extra hassle to get driving licenses.

The problem with being in that state is that you don't realize you ARE in that state. You know something's wrong, off, whatever, but you're not cognizant enough to know what's going on.

I remember being on the road and talking to my hubby on the cell phone because I couldn't remember which exit I had to take (keep in mind, I was going home, so I take this exit every day!). He realized I was low and tried to make me pull over, but I had nothing in the car so he kept me on the phone until I'd gotten to the exit and reached a 7-11.

Moral of the story: I had NO idea I was low -- I just knew I forgot my exit and I was very very upset and agitated.

[Mindstorm]

It's true he should've thought twice, but tell me how somebody is supposed to think twice and think clearly in a situation like that?

Most of us have been there and sometimes it can get to a point where you are just operating on autopilot and unable to make decisions for yourself any more. That's why these incidents happen, not because the diabetic is being a reckless fool, but because the diabetic is dangerously ill and can not identify this for themselves.

If anything, the one person who is just slightly at fault would be his girlfriend for not asking him to test before letting him hit the road. I don't know if I should even say "I fault her" though, as she probably figured some candy would be enough to fix the problem. Being more on top of your numbers/testing like crazy may have avoided this, but sometimes lows are just unavoidable.

Terribly sorry to hear that you dealt with something like this and I'm glad you're alive after all that. Maybe it's time to test before you drive for a while in case you're going to be encountering a string of lows? Or, if you've got good insurance and will be able to keep decent insurance coverage for the foreseeable future, see about getting a continuous glucose monitoring system. Argue that you have hypo unawareness issues and that increased testing has still led to incidents, and you need such a system for your own safety.

Best of luck to avoiding these issues in the future.

[Subby]

I see no reason to blame anyone here. It's a learning process. The GF for not preventing driving? Come on. We need to take responsibility here.

Here's the lesson you should take like a branding to the arm: Learn to test the moment you feel funny OR if you don't know how you feel OR if someone else says you are acting funny. If you have times you are unaware of your hypo (which is what you are describing) then you need to test each and every time you drive.

I really shouldn't need to say this, but you didn't come to that conclusion in your original post so it's bit worrying. You're scared - but I'm worried.

There is no other way. Test more, at the times you know you need to - and at those times you don't know if you need to.

[xMenace]

Glad you made it OK Jamison.

One cannot blame you for your inaction. When you're hypo, your brain doesn't work well. Making these "bad" decisions is not only normal but expected.

The thing to learn from this, and I have done what you've done too many times, is to prevent them from happening again. ALWAYS test before you drive. ALWAYS assess your BG trends before you drive. You may test normal, but honestly ask yourself how confident you feel about where your BG will go over the next hour or so. If you are low or non confident about your trend, pop the tabs!

I did this very thing yesterday and today as we took a two-day road trip. I actually stuffed my face with an apple and cherries when my sugar was 6.0 mmol/l (98 mg/dl) because I felt really hungry. I suffered a high, but we arrived safely.

Test, don't guess!

[EeyoreButterfly]

Definitely get glucose tabs! Gels and liquids are okay, but they tpically come in one serving bottles. The tubes of tabs containg between 3 and 4 servings depending on how many you take at one time, and you can buy giant jars to refill with. They are great in situations like that. Also, if you don't carry your meter with you, you need to start doing so.

As others have suggested, you also need to start testing anytime you even *think* you are low, and before each and every drive. CGMS is also a good idea to look into if you have insurance. Most people get denied at first, but if you push it they will probably cover it. You are very lucky that you were not hurt. That must have been scary indeed.

I would also look at this as a learning experience for your loved ones. Your girlfriend was in the position to potentially stop you from driving but obviously did not realize the danger. Let your good friends/family know that if you act strange to ask you to test. They can be a great help if you trust them.

[sarahspins]

Originally Posted by Mindstorm

It's true he should've thought twice, but tell me how somebody is supposed to think twice and think clearly in a situation like that?

By making a habit of testing EVERY time you get behind the wheel... I honestly think that any diabetic who fails to do this should lose their license... no exceptions.

[TommyC1]

OUCH!

Been there. Done that. Got some dents in my truck to show for it.

You got lucky.
You didn't kill anybody and you are really scared.

Scared is good.
Let your fear motivate you to figure out how you are going to prevent this from happening again.

I had to change my insulin and up my testing quite a bit.
I keep mints in my truck and when in doubt I eat first and ask questions later. The mints are 3 grams of carb each so I know that three of them will generaly pull me up to a good range without sending me crazy high. Gluco tabs are like that too.
My wife knows what I'm like when I'm low. She'll take my keys if she needs to. Just as if I was drinking.

But for me the main things were getting off of the NPH and frequent testing.

You have got to figure out what will work for you.
Soon.
Before your luck runs out!

Tommy

[Tattoo azz]

i've been there too, now tho i test EVERY TIME i drive and if on a long journey i will test every 1.5-2 hrs and i ALWAYS carry glucotabs with me and have choccy bars in the glovebox, it's just a matter of training yourself in the right practices. Maybe asking your girlfriend to check with you if you've tested could help as well? Once you've done this a few times it becomes second nature, honestly. Good luck and take care
Azz

[Jamison]

Since then, I have been testing every time and carrying glucose tabs everywhere with me. I haven't had a single low below 65 so it's working out very well. I wish I knew to do this before.

[Subby]

This is a good thing, Jamison, life may not be smooth all the time but if you can get through and learn with nobody getting hurt, it's a good thing.