Tiredness! So fed up with being tired.

[robbieq]

Hi all,

My name is Robbie and I'm 28 years old. I was diagnosed with hypoglycemia about 9 years ago. No one has really given me any help with my diet and symptoms and I was hoping someone could give me some good advice here.

The good things are that when i swaped from white bread, rice and pasta to brown bread, rice and pasta my life improved a lot. I went from having 2-3 hypos a week, to maybe having 1 hypo a month. So that helped a lot.

BUT I can not defeat this tiredness that I feel ALL the time. I nap constantly because I am so tired and I feel like i live the life of a 90 year old. I can't go out with my friends as I am just so exhausted all the time.

I am wondering if there is any food or herb or anything that I can eat or drink that will help me defeat this alwful tiredness I feel all time. But of course it can't have much sugar in it as it drives my BS nuts and i don't want to go back to having all those hypos again.

Any advice would be desperatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Robbie

 

[KimSuzanne]

Ginseng is good for tiredness and also sounds odd but 'grazing' is good too eating little and often rather than big meals. I work in a physically and mentally demanding job which can be 15hrs a day and I find eating little bits now and again keeps me much more energetic and does relieve the tiredness

 

[bonerp]

are you sure you're not swinging the other way and your blood sugar is too high??

 

[robbieq]

Ginseng is good for tiredness and also sounds odd but 'grazing' is good too eating little and often rather than big meals. I work in a physically and mentally demanding job which can be 15hrs a day and I find eating little bits now and again keeps me much more energetic and does relieve the tiredness

- Hi, that sounds quite interesting but what sort of foods do you graze on? I find that I drink a lot more than I eat. I probbaly drink about 8 pints + a day (thats cordial drinks, I am tea-total) but i find drinking a lot easier than eating.

are you sure you're not swinging the other way and your blood sugar is too high??

- To be honest I havn't tested my BS for a long time. I used to have one of those machine sbut it broke. Do you know where I could get one which is reasonably priced?

Thanks for your reply,
Robbie

 

[Langlands85]

You should be able to get one from your diabetic nurse or else get into a superdrug or boots store or better still a pharmacist where youl be abe to get one for under a tenner.

 

[hanadr]

I have a friend, who is battling to get a diagnosis of hypoglycaemia, which she certainly seems to have, but the doctors say she's not low enough at BS 2.7.
She's decided that self help is the only thing and believe it or not, she finds the Atkins diet is helping more than anything else. It's counter- intuitive, but works for her.

 

[Russ]

Hello Robbie,

There's a Free Meter promotion on the Home Page of this site. Section 5 at the top. Have a look at it.

Good luck,

Russ

 

[DiabeticGeek]

To be honest I havn't tested my BS for a long time. I used to have one of those machine sbut it broke. Do you know where I could get one which is reasonably priced?

The machines are cheap you can get them from any high street chemist for £10-15, and they are often given away at clinics. The expensive part is the strips. If you are lucky and have a sympathetic GP then you can get them prescribed. However, many GPs are reluctant to prescribe strips to anyone who isn't on insulin. If you have to buy strips yourself, then your best bet is e-Bay - the going rate is about half the high street price.

Your situation sounds quite unusual. I see from your profile that you are controlled by diet alone - which means that you must be a T2, and yet you regularly have hypos. Now I realize that it is a myth that T2s don't get hypos, but it is quite unusual for diet-controlled T2s to suffer from them, and so that begs the question why? I suggest that you go and talk to your GP and ask him why you are getting hypos and why you are feeling tired. If he or she isn't helpful or supportive, then ask (or if necessary demand) to be referred to a specialist. If, as a T2, you have had diabetes for 9 years and are still getting symptoms then either it is not under control, or something else is causing the symptoms. Either way you need to get to the root of this. Do you know what your last HbA1C was? If it was much over 6% then you should probably do something about it, if it is over 7% then you need to get it down quite urgently. Many (possibly most) T2s find that a very low carb diet is the best way to control their diabetes. However, you do have to be careful about the hypos so I suggest that you investigate them before you make any radical changes to your diet.

 

[Daffy]

are you sure you're not swinging the other way and your blood sugar is too high??

- To be honest I havn't tested my BS for a long time. I used to have one of those machine sbut it broke. Do you know where I could get one which is reasonably priced?

Thanks for your reply,
Robbie[/quote]

Telephone LifeScan and ask for one. They will send you one free of charge. I had a meeting with a rep last week and they give the machines away, any of them so ask for a nice posh model that has all the bells and whistles.

 

[robbieq]

Hi guys,

Thanks for all your great responses. It's always to know people are out there who are interested in listening to my problems, my GP is not interetsted or does she seem to have much knowledge about hypoglycemia. If it was just diabetes alone she would help, but for some reason hypoglycemia seems to be stilla big unknown, or people are unwilling to help.

I have a friend, who is battling to get a diagnosis of hypoglycaemia, which she certainly seems to have, but the doctors say she's not low enough at BS 2.7.
She's decided that self help is the only thing and believe it or not, she finds the Atkins diet is helping more than anything else. It's counter- intuitive, but works for her.

My level was below 3 when i last did the test (10 years ago) and my Dr said the exact same thing. I am quite underweight so when ever my level goes below 3 i have ALL the symptoms of a hypo. But the Dr still wont help as my level isn't "low enough" yet I know exactly how bad I feel.

Thanks for the advices about getting a meter, I will look into to see if I can get one from the resouces you supplied.

Can anyone tell me some more about this atkins diet? Does it help with tiredness?

Does anyone find that eating anything in particular relieves their tiredness.

Thanks all for your support.

Robbie

 

[fergus]

Hi Robbie,

I don't know if anyone will 'fess up to doing the Atkins, but I know from my own experience my energy levels improved greatly when I went low-carb some years ago. Before then, I'd suffered the wide fluctuations in blood sugar that many experience on a diet high in starches. Either extreme of blood sugar levels will leave you feeling very short of energy.
Once my glucose levels became stable, my energy levels soared and these days I run and cycle long distances. Anyone who tells you you have to have carbs for energy is talking through a hole in their head if you ask me.

All the best,

fergus

 

[Thirsty]

Robbie, have you considered finding a different doctor? It sounds as though your current GP isn't terribly good.

 

[robbieq]

Hi guys,

Thanks again for the advice.

Hi Robbie,

I don't know if anyone will 'fess up to doing the Atkins, but I know from my own experience my energy levels improved greatly when I went low-carb some years ago. Before then, I'd suffered the wide fluctuations in blood sugar that many experience on a diet high in starches. Either extreme of blood sugar levels will leave you feeling very short of energy.
Once my glucose levels became stable, my energy levels soared and these days I run and cycle long distances. Anyone who tells you you have to have carbs for energy is talking through a hole in their head if you ask me.

All the best,

fergus

Fergus, could you let me know more about the atkins diet and the sorta things you ate which gave you energy I would be very interested in trying a few diets which would give me energy ( which i am dying to have)

Robbie, have you considered finding a different doctor? It sounds as though your current GP isn't terribly good.

Thirsy, well she is a family Dr and she has known me since birth so I am quite hesitant to see anyone else. Those that I have seen (such as a dietitian) was rubbish as well. Her recommendation was basically to eat an apple with breakfast and thats as far as her advice went. Luckily it was "Hypoglycemia for dummies" which recommended leaving out all white bread, rice and pasta for all brown which did completly turn my life around. Now I am just struggling with the energy levels. Sure thats all dietry controlled as well.

Thanks all,
Robbie

 

[DiabeticGeek]

Robbie, have you considered finding a different doctor? It sounds as though your current GP isn't terribly good.

Thirsy, well she is a family Dr and she has known me since birth so I am quite hesitant to see anyone else.

As I suggested earlier, ask to be referred to a specialist. It is no slight on your family doctor - no one can expect her to have extensive experience with specialist areas like this, that is why specialists exist. It really does sound as though your case is quite unusual. As a diet controlled T2 you really shouldn't be hypoglycaemic, but since you are then that needs investigating.

 

[DiabeticGeek]

If you are interested in giving the Atkins diet a go, then there are many books on it (try Amazon, or your local bookshop). Atkins Nutritional Inc. also have a web site at: http://www.atkins.com. One word of warning, though, they are a large multinational company that sell a very wide range of products. This doesn't necessarily make them bad (indeed many people find their programme helpful) but don't loose site of the fact that they are there to sell you stuff!

One other thought - have you read Dr Bernstein's Diabetes Solution? In some ways this is similar to Atkins, but it is specifically designed to manage diabetes.

 

[robbieq]

If you are interested in giving the Atkins diet a go, then there are many books on it (try Amazon, or your local bookshop). Atkins Nutritional Inc. also have a web site at: http://www.atkins.com. One word of warning, though, they are a large multinational company that sell a very wide range of products. This doesn't necessarily make them bad (indeed many people find their programme helpful) but don't loose site of the fact that they are there to sell you stuff!

One other thought - have you read Dr Bernstein's Diabetes Solution? In some ways this is similar to Atkins, but it is specifically designed to manage diabetes.

Hi, thats great info. Thanks very much. I'll have a search on amazon and check it out.

Thanks again,
Robbie

 

[gillyh]

I'm always tired too. In addition to other symptoms - bloating, stomach spasms etc. Found out that I now how IBS. So maybe it could be that?
I've always been 'tired all the time' and the doctor wouldn't listen till I also got the other symptoms. So go to your doctor and talk to them about it. :?

 

[Sammi]

PLEASE DO NOT DO THE ATKINS DIET!!!!!!

The Atkins diet is not a good diet for anyone but for people with Diabetes or Hypoglycemia it is really bad. Excluding any major food group is bad. Eating high fat foods like cream, cheese and too much red meet is bad. And anything that makes your breath smell and you know its not doing much good for your insides!

I really think the best thing to do is get a meter. Feeling really tired can happen for two main reasons - high blood sugar or low blood sugar. There is a third which is bad nutrition in general meaning that you are not getting enough vitamins and minerals etc from your food. You really must get a meter. You can get them free or for around £12-15 from Boots. Once you have one, go see your doctor, expalin the problem and tell him you need a prescription for more test strips so that when you are overcome with that tiredness, you can check your blood sugar. If you are low, eat something - carbs are best (eg a sandwich) or something sugary followed by something more long lasting. IF your sugar is too high, go for a long walk and drink some cold water to help bring your sugar levels down. I also think your doctor should recheck you - excessive tiredness and drinking lots could be a sign of more being wrong.

If you want a diet, you should try the low GI diet. Foods with a low GI, help keep your blood sugar more even, avoiding such huge swings in energy. There are loads and loads of books on this. Can't recommend one off the top of my head but I would suggest going to a good book shop, browsing through until you find one that should work for you.

And my last suggestion is exercise. I know when you are feeling so shattered, exercise seems like a ridiculous idea but honestly, it can really improve your energy. 20-30 minutes at the start can give great results.

I hope these ideas help and please don't do the Atkins. Over a prolonged period, it can make your organs break down. For a very short period, upto 2 weeks to lose some weight before a big event, you can get away with it but in the long term, it's evil.

 

[p_mc]

check how the Ginseng sits with any medication that you may be taking .... I know I read somewhere, something about Ginseng affecting some diabetic drugs. Can't remember where though :?

vague news over

 

[DiabeticGeek]

PLEASE DO NOT DO THE ATKINS DIET!!!!!!

The Atkins diet is not a good diet for anyone but for people with Diabetes or Hypoglycemia it is really bad.
...
Over a prolonged period, it can make your organs break down. For a very short period, upto 2 weeks to lose some weight before a big event, you can get away with it but in the long term, it's evil.

Do you have any direct experience with the Atkins diet, or are you basing this upon the vilification that has been piled upon it by parts of the medical profession and some of the popular press? I don't have any experience with Atkins myself, so I am fairly neutral about it. What I do know, though, is that the science is still quite controversial (some very respectable studies provide evidence that it is safe, others have claimed that it is harmful). It certainly isn't fair to say that "it can make your organs break down". Some studies have found evidence that it is beneficial to diabetics - especially T2 - and some people do seem to find it helpful.

As is often said on here, everyone is different - Atkins could well be right for some people. If anyone is interested in trying Atkins then I would urge them to find out all they can about it, and make their own informed decision as to whether or not it is right for them. However, I don't think that it is helpful to describe it as evil or give it this sort of blanket condemnation. If you do have any personal experiences to base your concerns on then please post - I am sure that people will be very interested.