Has anyone been as stupid as me?

[Eldorado]

I wasn't going to post this. I feel I've been so unspeakably stupid and I'm embarrassed about it, but it's a bit of a salutary reminder for all of us.
As Type 1's, we're all aware that alcohol lowers BG. On occasion, some of us probably forget. In my defence, last Sunday was a really really stressful day. The final straw was sitting for over an hour on the M25 in a traffic queue that seemed as if it would never end. It was one of those occasions when the only thing that will do is a nice glass of chilled white wine. I normally drink maybe one or two glasses a week, since giving it up completely a couple of years ago when I was on WeightWatchers.
So of course I had one glass and then as I had had one, I thought I may as well have another. Then, obviously, because it doesn't keep, it made sense to just finish off the bottle. Very nice too.
So the next morning I do my test. A little higher than usual, but not too bad. I injected less Humalog than my Expert told me and also injected the Lantus. What did I do then? Went back to bed of course. Got up half an hour later, went downstairs for breakfast and was suddenly zonked into the worst hypo I've ever had. I passed out and on my way down to the floor, smacked my cheek on the edge of the work surface.
So the left side of my face is swollen and bruised and I have the most amazing black eye. It's going to take ages to go, but already it does look better. But all the colours of the rainbow are yet to appear.
All in all, a combination of doing three silly things. It could have been worse. I could have fallen downstairs and broken something. But at the moment I just feel sooooooo silly and am soooooo cross with myself. Learnt the lesson tho.
It was a very nice bottle of NZ Sauvignan Blanc. Just the ticket!

 

[himtoo]

moral of the story...................drink northern hemisphere whites and you won't go south ( Bb-boom - )

and move to a bungalow ( only kidding -- hope you're feeling better soon )

 

[tim2000s]

@Eldorado, it's also possible that there was some impact from incorrect absorption of Lantus (dependent on how long you've been using it).

I have in the past had exactly the same thing happen to me - Wine, slightly high out of bed, took morning lantus and small rapid dose, and then whoosh, the landslip to hell as the Lantus didn't pool properly. I tested whether this was linked to fast or slow acting by not taking the fast and had the exact same thing happen but only with Lantus. Have a read of this thread for more details, but Lantus can and does do some strange things under certain circumstances:

 

[Eldorado]

moral of the story...................drink northern hemisphere whites and you won't go south ( Bb-boom - )

and move to a bungalow ( only kidding -- hope you're feeling better soon )

Hahaha. Thank you.

 

[Eldorado]

@Eldorado, it's also possible that there was some impact from incorrect absorption of Lantus (dependent on how long you've been using it).

I have in the past had exactly the same thing happen to me - Wine, slightly high out of bed, took morning lantus and small rapid dose, and then whoosh, the landslip to hell as the Lantus didn't pool properly. I tested whether this was linked to fast or slow acting by not taking the fast and had the exact same thing happen but only with Lantus. Have a read of this thread for more details, but Lantus can and does do some strange things under certain circumstances:

Interesting. I'll check that out. I've been taking Lantus for a long time, but a few weeks ago I split the dose, with very good results. I think my 'landslip to hell' was the combination of the three stupid things. If I'd done just one of them differently I'd probably have avoided it. Things seem so obvious in retrospect tho.

 

[noblehead]

Easy done @Eldorado, sure we've all made some stupid mistakes one time or another, hope your black eye soon disappears .

 

[Eldorado]

Easy done @Eldorado, sure we've all made some stupid mistakes one time or another, hope your black eye soon disappears .

Thanks Noblehead. Must be bliss to drink and the only thing to worry about is the hangover! Oh well. One of the joys .....

 

[Robinredbreast]

Thanks Noblehead. Must be bliss to drink and the only thing to worry about is the hangover! Oh well. One of the joys .....

I've had some scary moments, but nothing to do with alcohol, as I very rarely drink ( maybe one of two over Christmas, but not wine, can't stand the stuff). Lucky you came to no real harm, thank goodness, hope your face doesn't take too long to heal Take good care now RRB

 

[Eldorado]

I've had some scary moments, but nothing to do with alcohol, as I very rarely drink ( maybe one of two over Christmas, but not wine, can't stand the stuff). Lucky you came to no real harm, thank goodness, hope your face doesn't take too long to healm Take good care now RRB

Thanks Robinredbreast. You're right. It could have been worse. If it had happened as I was walking down the stairs? Scary.

 

[azure]

Nasty! Hope you're feeling better soon. Hypos like that are terrifying.

I'd be suspicious of the Lantus too. I have a phobia about all long acting insulins as, before my pump, they gave me some horrendous hypos.

 

[Eldorado]

Thanks. I've looked at the thread recommended above about the funny effects Lantus can have. This is the first time I've had one, but it was the worst hypo I've ever experienced, by a long way. As I said tho, I blame the combination of three stupid things. I've been on Lantus for a long time, but I'll certainly be more aware from now on.

 

[mattpiano]

I'm pleased your experience wasn't as bad as it could have been, and if you learn from a mistake and live to put that learning into practice, then all is good.

I don't drink at all and I have very good hypo awareness, but I had a serious hypo in a supermarket in January, as a result of which I fell and suffered a traumatic brain injury. I had to have an emergency craniotomy that night for acute sub-dural haematoma and spent 5 weeks under sedation in intensive care, also getting pneumonia and having a tracheotomy.

Scary, but I'm lucky too. I've lived to see the frightening scan images showing how much blood was covering the left side of my brain, I have recovered with no visual field defects, and no loss of mental or physical capability. 6 months later my life is back on track, with the exception that I have to wait until November before I can re-apply for my driving licence, which I'm not eligible to have back until January - a year after the surgery.

I've heard it said that Type 1 Diabetes, and the pain it sometimes puts a person through, can make you stronger. I think that when we have the chance to, we just have to take that strength and move forward, hopefully with even better understanding of the condition.

All the best to you Eldorado. Take care.

 

[Robinredbreast]

Thanks Robinredbreast. You're right. It could have been worse. If it had happened as I was walking down the stairs? Scary.

Best not to think of that, yikes I hope you have a nice relaxing weekend.

 

[Eldorado]

I'm pleased your experience wasn't as bad as it could have been, and if you learn from a mistake and live to put that learning into practice, then all is good.

I don't drink at all and I have very good hypo awareness, but I had a serious hypo in a supermarket in January, as a result of which I fell and suffered a traumatic brain injury. I had to have an emergency craniotomy that night for acute sub-dural haematoma and spent 5 weeks under sedation in intensive care, also getting pneumonia and having a tracheotomy.

Scary, but I'm lucky too. I've lived to see the frightening scan images showing how much blood was covering the left side of my brain, I have recovered with no visual field defects, and no loss of mental or physical capability. 6 months later my life is back on track, with the exception that I have to wait until November before I can re-apply for my driving licence, which I'm not eligible to have back until January - a year after the surgery.

I've heard it said that Type 1 Diabetes, and the pain it sometimes puts a person through, can make you stronger. I think that when we have the chance to, we just have to take that strength and move forward, hopefully with even better understanding of the condition.

All the best to you Eldorado. Take care.

Goodness me, how dreadful. But you've come through it and survived. I hope stronger for it. You were fortunate not to have any lasting side effects. I admire your positive attitude. Do you know what caused the hypo?

 

[mattpiano]

Thanks Eldorado. Hard to be totally conclusive about what caused it. I had been rushing around a lot that day so maybe adrenalin masked the usual early symptoms I get.

 

[hollisterjanetaylor]

I once drank so much alcohol, throwing up and couldn't keep anything sugary down.
Had 3 days in hospital, oops.

 

[Eldorado]

I once drank so much alcohol, throwing up and couldn't keep anything sugary down.
Had 3 days in hospital, oops.

Oh dear. Bet you never did that again!