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Confused and very worried ......medication interactions....serious symptoms??

C

caring-for-mum

Active Member
Messages
26
Type of diabetes
Family member
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
As stated in my post in April about my mum (please read recap):-

Hi everyone, please can anyone help me with this as I am very worried about my mum. She is a type 2 diabetic (diagnosed last summer).
This past few weeks (also two months) she has not been feeling at all well....extreme sweating, very tired, nauseated, no energy etc. Her blood glucose is tested each day by myself and they have been good (5.7-6.1) upon waking. Her blood results from the GP have been good as her hba1c blood result has went from 56 last year to 43, as I have helped her as best I could. Her medication is Metformin 500mg 1 per day. She has been to her GP 3 times saying she does not feel at all well (as mentioned above) but the GP doesn't even examine her and just says "its your age".

Continued today:-

My mum was still not feeling well and went to see another GP. She seen a female GP who examined her and said "Your chest seems clear but I will give you antibiotics anyway". We were shocked at this and could not understand her "diagnosis".

So a week past and mum was getting more and more fatigued, dizzy spells, sweating and just very out of sorts. Last week mum got that dizzy and light headed that she fell against our front gate. She has a black eye, bruised body and still very shaky on it.

I got her to the GP (not her usual) who felt she no longer needed the diabetic medication (Metformin 500mg) as her HbA1c level had gone from 54 to 43 and she had lost some weight. He felt that the medication could have been causing these symptoms.

I did some research myself and I found out that mums diabetic medication and her blood pressure tablets interact with each other. Her blood pressure tablet was Lisinopril and this along with the Metformin cause a lot of the symptoms.

My questions are:-

(1) Has anyone else ever experienced this with medications?
(2) Does it take long to feel "ok" after stopping one of the medications?
(3) Is it safe to control Type 2 with diet alone?

Please, any opinions would be really really appreciated. Thank you so much.
 
I haven't experienced what your mother has experienced, so I will just answer no (3).

Yes it's safe to continue with diet only. My own GP won't let me have metformin anymore as my HbA1c is below 48.

Has you mother had her blood pressure checked recently? I sometimes get dizzy spells when my BP drops. I have lost a little weight and have cut carbs quite a lot and no longer need the BP tablets I used to take.
 
I cannot help, but I would like to say, that I hope your mum is feeling better soon. I am T2 diet only as I keep my sugar levels stable with LCHF diet. ( when I was taking Metformin I did feel very unwell) also I did have a lot of problems ..fatigue..muzzy..tied when I was taking statins ..but a lot better now I have stopped taking them.
 
Sorry to read of your Mums problems . I am also T2, diagnosed 2009 , almost 68 years old and have never taken medication as my diet and exercise regime keeps my HbA1c at a good level , so yes, as long as your Mum is seen regularly for HbA1c , there is no reason why she cant manage quite nicely on a good low carb diet .
 
Thank you all so much for taking the time to read my post and for replying. I am incredibly thankful and deeply appreciate it very much.
I am just so worried about her and I just fearing that something will happen. I am trying my up most best to care for her but I feel helpless. I hope that with the withdrawal of the Metformin that things will start to improve. She is seeing the GP on Wednesday and I am going to ask if she can stop taking her blood pressure tablet as her blood pressure has been excellent for years. Xxx
 
Its 3 days now from my mum has stopped the Metformin 500mg (1 per day) and she still is not feeling any better. Still very shaky, sweating, stumbling, light headed and incredibly fatigued.
I can see that other people one here are/were on Metformin 500mg 2/3/4 times per day and have been tolerating and coping ok. Where as mum was only 1 per day.

I don't want to be going "over the top" but could it be anything sinister? All mums blood work has come back clear, so would that rule out cancers etc?
 
caring-for-mum said:
Its 3 days now from my mum has stopped the Metformin 500mg (1 per day) and she still is not feeling any better. Still very shaky, sweating, stumbling, light headed and incredibly fatigued.
I can see that other people one here are/were on Metformin 500mg 2/3/4 times per day and have been tolerating and coping ok. Where as mum was only 1 per day.

I don't want to be going "over the top" but could it be anything sinister? All mums blood work has come back clear, so would that rule out cancers etc?
Click to expand...
Only thing I can think of is if they have checked for UTI? Left untreated it can also cause these types of symptoms. Have seen something similar with my mother and it took 3 courses of anti biotics to clear it.
 
It sounds like it is the blood pressure medication that is causing the symptoms, can you ask for her to be changed to another medication, also you should be able to borrow a blood pressure device from your surgery and take her bp 3 times a day for a week to see what her blood pressure is really doing. (My own mum had terrible side effects from a bp medication, in her case coughing and it took 4 or 5 visits to the GP before she got to see a GP who said straight away it was a side effect of the meds)

You should check with your doctor immediately if any of these side effects occur when taking lisinopril:

More common
  • Blurred vision
  • cloudy urine
  • confusion
  • decrease in urine output or decrease in urine-concentrating ability
  • dizziness, faintness, or lightheadedness when getting up suddenly from a lying or sitting position
  • sweating
  • unusual tiredness or weakness
 
Hi, do you have a monitor to read her blood glucose levels?

Your mother could be having low blood glucose levels.

The symptoms are similar and the meds could be dropping them to that level.

Don't rule nothing out as she could have developed something like Hypoglycaemia or hypothyroidism.

If you are not satisfied, ask for a referral. To see an endocrinologist.

I had similar symptoms and the GPs I seen didn't have a clue!!!
 
We have a BP monitor here at home, so I think I will start taking her blood pressure 3/4 times per day until we see a GP on Wednesday. The only medication mum is on now is Lisinopril 10mg, Fluoxetine 20mg and Nexium 40mg (for acid reflux). The Metformin 500mg has been removed this 3 days and her symptoms are still the exact same.

I was in tears earlier on and I got myself into an awful state as I started reading up on her symptoms. A lot of them pointed to Pancreatic Cancer? I got into such an upset state as my mum is my best friend. Mums blood test results all came back good (full blood count, white cell count etc).
 
caring-for-mum said:
We have a BP monitor here at home, so I think I will start taking her blood pressure 3/4 times per day until we see a GP on Wednesday. The only medication mum is on now is Lisinopril 10mg, Fluoxetine 20mg and Nexium 40mg (for acid reflux). The Metformin 500mg has been removed this 3 days and her symptoms are still the exact same.

I was in tears earlier on and I got myself into an awful state as I started reading up on her symptoms. A lot of them pointed to Pancreatic Cancer? I got into such an upset state as my mum is my best friend. Mums blood test results all came back good (full blood count, white cell count etc).
Click to expand...
Try to stay strong. A lot of the symptoms could also point to a UTI .. Is your mum taking any over the counter medicine ?
 
Good evening Enclave. I thank you so much for reading my post, it means so much.

The only OTC medicine mum was taking was Nytol Herbal. This has been from about December/Jan. Along with that, I was giving her (but no longer) was Berocca vitamin 1 per day, but that was all.

Mum left in a urine sample in a few weeks ago when she had to get the yearly check up for her eyes, feet etc. A specialist nurse comes in and does this once a year. We didn't get any word back, so we assumed that it was alright. Xx
 
I had a very elderly aunt that had a few UTI and it did sound a lot like your mums symptoms.. She became frail, disoriented, confused ....not like her normal self at all ... It was amazing how she bounced back to her normal self once she had the right treatment. My aunt live to be 89 years young before she left this world .. I have my fingers crossed for you.
 
I would have reservations about the nytol, as it has side effects for lots of conditions.
Your mother needs a blood glucose monitor, to test her blood glucose levels. Not a blood pressure measurement.
I would definitely ask for a referral.
I would have thought that the blood tests would have picked up any cancer or pancreatitis. Don't worry too much, it will probably something not as bad as that!
 
I hope with all my heart that, that could be the cause and we finally have the answer and treatment. Poor mummy is just not herself at all and it breaks my heart. I am taking her over on Wednesday morning, so if its ok I will let you know.
I am going to monitor her BP (3 times per day) and her blood glucose (3/4 times per day) until she is seen.

I really can't thank you all enough for putting my mind at ease. I really do hope that its nothing sinister and just something that can be easily treated. Xx
 
Read up on the best way to take blood glucose readings and the timings.

We usually recommend before eating and one hour and two hours after first bite.

The before eating is her fasting level.
The one hour is the spike, (normally!)
The two hour, should be no more than 2mmols higher than her fasting level.

If it is, then whatever food or food item is not good for her.

In my experience, having no control of fluctuating blood glucose levels is usually what makes people have those same horrible symptoms. Control is the key to a healthy life for diabetics.

Hope this helps.
 
Hi. Metformin only rarely causes bad side effects so it is more likely to be the BP pills or something else. BP pills at higher doses have a range of side effects but it sounds like none of the GPs have taken her worries seriously?
 
Hi Daibell, sorry I am only replying. My mum has been on this BP medication for a few years now and never suffered symptoms like this. Thats what is worrying me. I took her BP this morning when she woke up and it was 137/67 and her BG (upon waking up) was 6.1.

I got myself into a state last night thinking cancer of some description but I'm sure that they would have been some find of "marker" in the blood tests that her doctor ran.
 
Hope mums a bit better today .. Just a thought is mum drinking enough to keep from dehydration.. You can tell if some one is dehydrated by taking the loose skin on the back of her hand near her thumb and gently pinching her skin .. If the skin returns quickly to its normal position she's ok .. If it stays in the pinched position then she is probably dehydrated.. Dehydration can cause lots of problems ..confusion ..dizzy..unstableness .. Some people do seem to stop drinking for no apperant reason (auntie did this occasionally)
 
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