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Unexplained Hypo - advice/ideas/encouragement please...

Heathenlass said:
A diabetic friend once said to me that she felt that being a diabetic was the loneliest feeling in the world, because her experiences felt like uniquely hers, and no words could ever express how it felt to her, or impacted on her life
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You friend never hung out with "stoners".. The 2.5 to 3.5 mmol zone is not far off a "Woodstock experience" when I compared notes.. :D
 
-Artemis- said:
Re the 20 minute lag - is that the case even with finger/meter testing? I know cgm & libre's are behind, but didn't know meters could be...
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Yes, Dr B said when he passed out recently in hospital with a hypo they intravenously gave him glucose and he came round, but it didn't show up in capillary (ie fingertip) blood for 15 mins. I th 15 mins to fingersticks, 25 mins to Libre in my experience.

I haven't had one of these horrible experiences yet. But of course it knocks your confidence. You poor darling!! Have you got girlfriends who will understand? Of course you want comfort.

Boys don't get it usually. As Signy says, they want to fix it, then move on. But don't let yourself resent it. Get the comfort from someone else. Mum?
 
Artemis, sorry to hear about your frightening experience.

I understand your worries about having a hypo whilst alone. I have a little boy who has just turned 2 and am pregnant again, my partner works away for month at a time so I do worry about what happens if I have a bad hypo when it just me and the little one at home as it could be dangerous for him.

I do what I can to minimise the risk of hypos and to make sure I can deal with them. I make sure that I have bottles of lucozade scattered all around the house and glucotabs in bags/pockets. I make sure I test regularly especially times like before bathing my son. If I feel uncertain overnight I set an alarm and test in the night.

I am lucky that I have good friends around me who look out for me. I don't talk about my diabetes with them lots but have made sure that they know what to look out for and what to do.
 
Jaylee said:
You friend never hung out with "stoners".. The 2.5 to 3.5 mmol zone is not far off a "Woodstock experience" when I compared notes.. :D
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It's funny you mention that... There was a guy who just happened to be in the shop when all this happened... And he was *amazing* - he said all the right things, kept me calm, and was just generally brill... Anyway, when I was 'normal' enough to ask him; I asked how he was so good at handling the situation: he said he'd been in loads of clubs/festivals where friends had taken too many drugs so was used to people being on the brink of passing out/panicking.... Lucky me for his previous 'training'! :-)
 
hels said:
Artemis, sorry to hear about your frightening experience.

I understand your worries about having a hypo whilst alone. I have a little boy who has just turned 2 and am pregnant again, my partner works away for month at a time so I do worry about what happens if I have a bad hypo when it just me and the little one at home as it could be dangerous for him.

I do what I can to minimise the risk of hypos and to make sure I can deal with them. I make sure that I have bottles of lucozade scattered all around the house and glucotabs in bags/pockets. I make sure I test regularly especially times like before bathing my son. If I feel uncertain overnight I set an alarm and test in the night.

I am lucky that I have good friends around me who look out for me. I don't talk about my diabetes with them lots but have made sure that they know what to look out for and what to do.
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Thanks Hels... Gosh it must be even more of a challenge being pregnant and having a little one.

It's not hypos in general I'm that worried about: I mean - I don't want them, obviously - but at least I normally feel those and never go below 3... It was the extreme suddenness of this drop, coupled with not feeling it *at all* that's freaked me out so much. I've just lost my footing/confidence - if that makes sense...

But I guess I just have to think it was some freaky fluke that hopefully won't happen again - or at least not anytime soon.

If you can do it with two small people, I'm sure I can too... :-)
 
LucySW said:
Yes, Dr B said when he passed out recently in hospital with a hypo they intravenously gave him glucose and he came round, but it didn't show up in capillary (ie fingertip) blood for 15 mins. I th 15 mins to fingersticks, 25 mins to Libre in my experience.

I haven't had one of these horrible experiences yet. But of course it knocks your confidence. You poor darling!! Have you got girlfriends who will understand? Of course you want comfort.

Boys don't get it usually. As Signy says, they want to fix it, then move on. But don't let yourself resent it. Get the comfort from someone else. Mum?
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@Jaylee and Lucy - that's really interesting re the lag... Another bit of the jigsaw.

... And thanks for understanding re the comfort thing: like I said I feel a bit pathetic - but I totally needed it since Thurs.... I've lots of friends, lots of great friends - but they live far away (I moved to the middle of nowhere just before I got diagnosed; ironically cos I felt so ill I thought a slower pace of life would help me feel better. And by and large I really think it's great for me: I live in amazing countryside with beautiful scenery and fresh air... But, it does mean I'm about an hour from friends - and also means I feel especially isolated at times like this).

As for mum: I love her dearly but she's not very 'mumsy' - if you know what I mean. When I told her about the hypo, the very first thing she said was 'gosh, staff in these stores really overreact don't they...' :-/
 
I think @Heathenlass has nailed it for the most part
as a male diabetic for a long time -I think I try not to dwell on the emotional side because if I did I would stop coping.
It is a real sh*t having a hypo in public (have had my fair share) but on the positive side how often do you go without having them?

It is a shame your long term boyfriend is not as supportive as you needed but try not to have negative thoughts on this as often partners don't get it
like we do.
your real friends will get you for who you are
 
Hello fellow Artemis ;)

I think you've already thought of lots of possible reasons, but just 2 others I could think of that may contribute:
1. Are you still honeymooning? Any chance all that activity spurred your pancreas into producing a bit more than normal?
2. Do you see any patterns with your monthly cycle? I always run lower in that week, and have to dose quite a bit less especially when exercising.
Apart from that, I think sometimes random stuff just happens. I had a no good reason hypo just before Christmas, not as severe as yours but took several hours of treatment to get it back up - I still don't know why it happened, or why my normal treatment didn't work. I know that's not much consolation, and it must be scary being on your own, but this is just one incident - it sounds like overall you have great control, so if there isn't something systemic, it's just bad luck and not worth worrying over.
 
Sorry to hear about this. Unfortunately in my experience this stuff does just happen sometimes. I see you were diagnosed only last year so haven't experienced this before but it can happen.

I know this isn't going to help you but you really do just need to try and move on from it as otherwise you will be constantly worried about this.
Even with severe hypos where you become unconscious most of the time your body will eventually bring you round with no ill effects. It's not pleasant but it's one of the heavier crosses we have to bear

. I was also wondering about whether it could be a dumping of insulin due to the Honeymoon Period as someone mentioned above.

Just one little bit of advice though, if you feel like this again don't bother mucking around trying to do a blood test. Get your glucose on board first and then test. The priority is to get your levels up as quickly as possible.

Hope you have found some of this useful to you, the people here are great for friendly hugs and help
 
Auckland Canary said:
Sorry to hear about this. Unfortunately in my experience this stuff does just happen sometimes. I see you were diagnosed only last year so haven't experienced this before but it can happen.

I know this isn't going to help you but you really do just need to try and move on from it as otherwise you will be constantly worried about this.
Even with severe hypos where you become unconscious most of the time your body will eventually bring you round with no ill effects. It's not pleasant but it's one of the heavier crosses we have to bear

. I was also wondering about whether it could be a dumping of insulin due to the Honeymoon Period as someone mentioned above.

Just one little bit of advice though, if you feel like this again don't bother mucking around trying to do a blood test. Get your glucose on board first and then test. The priority is to get your levels up as quickly as possible.

Hope you have found some of this useful to you, the people here are great for friendly hugs and help
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That's good advice about not messing around with blood tests when you feel hypo. Get the sugar on board first and deal with resulting Highs when you feel ok-ish.
And cats have a sixth sense, they know you're hypo or have been hypo even if you don't tell them, mine does, and they look at you in a comfortingly spooky way, as if they're saying, "Hmmm! I know what's wrong with you, but hey, chill out." Think Cat Cafés!
 
I was high going to bed 7.4 and just woke up feeling a bit shaky at 3.1
Last nights dinner was chicken salad and a pitta bread with hot sauce and sour cream . The pitta caused the spike but this low isn't nice
 
Its easy to say.. I see it like cabin crew on a plane in trouble.. Get to know the "exits". Keep calm. Learn a set procedure with regards to hypo.
Treat first & look at the "black box" later... ;)

Incidentally. I just woke hypo. Though I feel fine now. Just tested 3.1. The "heads up display" map of France gone.. "Blood lag" there must be something in the air! :D
 
@artemis, the most important thing now is to get back on the train and carry on.

The way I've always seen it, you now know what it feels like, what to expect and how to treat it.

If you don't like the lag of glucose tabs, make sure you've always got a can of coke with you. Nothing I've found acts as fast.

As others have said, now you know the feeling, treat first, ask questions later. There seems to be a bit of a focus on maintaining 'normal' levels, but when reality bites, it doesn't matter if you end up a bit high, as long as you remain conscious and capable.

I spent a long time living on my own, and having been diabetic from a young age, was very familiar with what to expect, so had reasonable precautions in place. Do that and recognise the symptoms and you'll soon find there is much less to worry about.
 
Thanks so much for all your advice and words of encouragement. I like the plane exits strategy / analogy ;-)

With regards to treat first, test later - I one thousand percent agree. That's why in this incidence I was so freaked by it - cos I really didn't feel it :-(

Normally my hypo awareness is good - I start to be aware I'm dropping at anything below 4.5ish usually - very occasionally I've been in the 3's - but that's when I've been especially more active than usual, with insulin still on board at the same time. This one I literally just didn't feel until I was semi passing out... I also couldn't believe it was my blood sugars as I've never experienced such a dramatic drop like that... Even when I saw the white spots, I thought it must be my blood pressure (I've low blood pressure) - but I guess that was the lesson -- if I ever see the white spots again, I'll know...

And a couple of you asked if I could still be honeymooning... It's possible - though I was diagnosed two years ago now... I never quite know how you're meant to know if you're still honeymooning? Anyway - it's certainly another possibility as to the mystery of the why.

As for cycles - I do definitely follow a pattern - but I'm actually in the part of my cycle where I'm most insulin resistant - which was another reason I was baffled...

Anyway - it's approaching a week now and I'm beginning to shake off the 'fear' I think... Not least of all thanks to your kind/helpful/thoughtful posts, thank you x

- and on the plus side, I coincidentally have an appointment for an assessment for the pump next week... Which I think can help reduce the hypos a bit... So fingers crossed...
 
Ooh, yes! The pump can help hypos for sure. Mine reduced once I went on the pump, especially the nighttime ones.

I'm glad you're feeling a little happier in yourself now
 
Hi Artemis

Really sorry to hear what happened; I guess the problem for people without diabetes is that there's no way they can understand what it's like. Even so, you don't have to understand to give someone a hug, and I'm sending some virtual ones!

A couple of things: I wonder whether, having had the amount of exercise you did, and then continuing with errands and shopping, you never quite gave your muscles time to cool down completely, so your insulin uptake was still faster than usual. There's quite an interesting article at http://www.gssiweb.org/Article/sse-90-diabetes-exercise-and-competitive-sports (sorry, new to this site and not got the hang of posting links yet!). I'm aware from my own experience that the effect of exercise can last for many hours.

I think the scariest thing is that feeling of not being able to rely on your own body. Despite having to monitor all the time, we take a lot of things for granted about how our bodies will just keep working and when it doesn't happen it's frightening. My worst experience of that wasn't to do with diabetes but the day my back just seized up altogether when I was in my very early twenties, ending up in hospital. Once I'd recovered I was fearful of going out alone in case it happened again, and that knocked my confidence for a while. I got over it and I'm sure you will, it just takes a little time and it sounds as if you're on track already. As far as diabetes is concerned, Type 1 for 30 years, only one hypo I couldn't deal with myself and I'm still mystified by the days when I do everything right and the readings are high or low - bodies are complicated!

I'd be interested to know what made you decide to use such a slow-acting bolus insulin; for me, the truly fast-acting insulins were revolutionary ad reduced errors and hypos. Still, if you're looking at a pump that would be a big help.

Good luck and there's lots of support for you out there!
 
I would suspect is what has happened is that your Isophane gave a bigger kick than normal due to the exercise AM and the continued exercise PM IE walking around the shop.
Isophane is an insulin that needs feeding at certain times of day. Mid morning, mid-afternoon. So you fed it mid afternoon but didn't feed the hypo that was brewing (4.9 hunger)
Hope you are feeling better in yourself now.
 
hh1 said:
I'd be interested to know what made you decide to use such a slow-acting bolus insulin; for me, the truly fast-acting insulins were revolutionary ad reduced errors and hypos. Still, if you're looking at a pump that would be a big help.
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Hi @hh1 - welcome to the forum and thanks so much for the virtual hugs! Thanks for the link too - I'm gonna take a look just after I've written this :)

You got it spot on re the trusting the "process" etc - its exactly the thing that knocked me: the testing and injecting and carb counting etc I can deal with - if I can vaguely rely on the outcome - but to have something so out of the blue happen.... well, it sucked :(
- but - the cliche of time healing is true: its a week today and starting to feel less petrified - even if I am testing about 50 times a day - to be sure....! :D

As for your question re why I use the slower acting insulins: a few reasons - partially cos I didn't respond well to Lantus or Levemir at all - I was OK with novorapid (I think) - but both the basal's seemed to make me feel like c*ap - I was constantly achey, very low, gained a dramatic amount of weight and generally not great. On top of that, my hypo awareness was awful on the new ones.... I'm not sure if it was the novorapid or backgrounds - but I'd often be in the 3's and not feel it at all. On the porcine - apart from this delightful occasion - I nearly always know if I'm even approaching a 4.... but of course, now my confidence has been knocked in that now too :(

The other reason I like the porcine is because I naturally tend to eat lower carb/low GI - not cos of the diabetes - I've always eaten that way. My meals tend to be "dense" - like lots of nuts or hummus - things that release slowly.... so with novo I'd often find myself hypoing in the first hour after eating, only to be three or four hours later.... this is a worry for me actually - as I think to go on the pump I will have to switch back to Novo... at least initially when they give me the pump - I think trying to convince me to give me a pump and let me use porcine will be too far of a stretch; though I know people do.... so I don't know how I'm going to get over the meal thing: 'cept I think that you can split doses and other clever things like that?

.... I'm also curious to know why you found the newer insulins to reduce hypos? :) .... Ive heard a few people say that the hypos on porcine were awful - but - again - apart from last week - I've always found the warning much more reliable on porcine....?

Are you on a pump now too?
 
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