Nocturnal Hypo

[aileenmoore00]

Hi everyone, I woke to my alarm this morning feeling a bit dazed so I tested my bloods using my libre sensor and I was hypo and it turns out that I’d been hypo all night. I haven’t gone into work because I have the worst headache and feel quite sick. I’m worried because I didn’t wake up during the night and normally if my levels are low or high I constantly toss and turn so I know something is off. Is this dangerous has it happened to anyone else?

 

[SamJB]

Yep, happened to me a few times. Nighttime hypos are definitely the worst kind, I always get headaches and feel pretty bad the next day. Although, I've never had a hypo that finished me off in the night.

One thing I've found, though. Is that if I put a libre on before bed, it tends to report lower than usual that night. I've also seen it report low readings if I've been sleeping on that arm all night

 

[Juicyj]

Hello @aileenmoore00

Sometimes we don't wake whilst hypo, although the body has a good way of telling us we need to, sometimes we don't become fully conscious, also to note that the libre can be inaccurate when reporting night time hypos if you've been applying pressure to the sensor and sleeping on it, i've had reported lows on the libre however woken without the banging head and hungover feeling so I know i've not been that low, but the fact you've woken feeling ill does indicate you went low. Our DSN's want us to avoid them as they can be dangerous during sleep as you could go much lower and require medical assistance, hence why caution in avoiding.

The important question to check now is what caused it ?

 

[Deleted Account]

The symptoms you describe certainly sound like a night time hypo.
However, not all headaches and sick feelings are caused by low BG (e.g. they are also the symptoms for a migraine or eye strain).
In my experience, night time hypo symptoms last until about 2 or 3 o'clock in the afternoon.
If you are still feeling rough into the afternoon, I would suggest seeing a doctor.

 

[Knikki]

If your worried about night time hypos then it might be worth looking at getting a little bit of kit called a MiaoMiao or Blucon (they turn the Libre Sensor in to blue tooth transmitter) which when setup with either xDrip (Android) (there is also Glimp) or Spike on iOS would allow you to configure alarms on your phone, for if you want to know about Low or Highs.

And yes Lows during the night have hit me too and I feel rubbish in the morning.

 

[Lamont D]

During my constant hypos before diagnosis, which I wasn't aware of, the night time was of disturbed sleep, really weird dreams, and as you say a bad day ahead, always tired, lethargic, tetchy, anger and so on. Anxiety was prevalent during this period.
Spent most of the night walking around, just couldn't sleep!

 

[HAlyssa]

My sister has had severe night time hypos, she has had seizures numerous times and quite a few times in the last few years she’s had episodes where she has dropped so low she hasn’t responded to glycogen. Her doctors have said hers are down to hormone changes and thats going to be how her diabetes is for the rest of her life. They just suggested more checks and changed her for injections to a pump which seems to have helped. Contact your diabetic nurse for advice.

 

[tim2000s]

Hi @aileenmoore00 - first question is - when you awoke and scanned to see a 3.3, did you test your blood. It's a well known side effect of Libre that when it reads hypo it tends to read lower than blood really is. Abbott also say "don't rely on it" when reading low and tell you to do a fingerprick.

Secondly, although your waking symptoms sound like those of the "hypo hangover", if you've typically run at a higher level, you can get them without being technically particularly low.

Finally, spending overnights between 3.5 and 4 on a libre sensor isn't something to worry too much about. We've now seen plenty of evidence from non-T1Ds that shows that overnight, glucose levels do drop lower than during the day, and many of these people see that a flat line between 3.5 and 4 is much more normal than people realised.

 

[Aestire]

I think the way it dropped and the amount of time for recovery was a little unusual, but everyone's body is different. I suffered heavily from BS drop at night, especially since becoming pregnant. I just have an additional meal before bed, high in protein and usually some milk which holds me for about 6-8 hours during the night and I wake up and eat before it starts to drop again. Maybe try adjusting your eating pattern, or talk to your doctor about the drop and see what he would suggest to help it.
Best of luck to you, I'm sorry you had an awful hypo attack.

 

[Klw44]

Hey! I have had this as well but I always wake myself at 2am and about 4am to check and it said 2.7 on my monitor but in actual fact my blood was 5.4. Always check on your meter during the night if it says hypo and you don’t feel like it as when you lie on your libre sometimes it can give wrong readings. Also if you have a low blood sugar during the first 2 hours of a new sensor, the libre can be extra sensitive and say you’re having hypos when you’re not for the next 48 hours! (I panicked initially so asked On a forum and asked my nurse and this is what came back!)

 

[tom2pin]

Hey, newbie RH diagnosis here. I too am having worst symptoms from waking. I've tried eating nuts/coconut oil before bed but still wake up with anxiety/weakness/nausea. @Aestire mentions eating high protein before bed, I'll give that a try tonight!
I don't have a monitor yet (hopefully get one soon) and I've started the Keto diet so fingers crossed.

Also while I'm here! If I feel worse in the morning, would anyone suggest eating vegetables with breakfast and maybe much lower carb and high protein in the evening? It seems to make sense now I'm writing it. Will try that tomorrow.

I've been a healthy eater for years but feel this may have been worsened with depression and sleep medication which I'm now realising can affect bs.

 

[Lamont D]

Hey, newbie RH diagnosis here. I too am having worst symptoms from waking. I've tried eating nuts/coconut oil before bed but still wake up with anxiety/weakness/nausea. @Aestire mentions eating high protein before bed, I'll give that a try tonight!
I don't have a monitor yet (hopefully get one soon) and I've started the Keto diet so fingers crossed.

Also while I'm here! If I feel worse in the morning, would anyone suggest eating vegetables with breakfast and maybe much lower carb and high protein in the evening? It seems to make sense now I'm writing it. Will try that tomorrow.

I've been a healthy eater for years but feel this may have been worsened with depression and sleep medication which I'm now realising can affect bs.

Hi and welcome to the forum @tom2pin.

The probable cause of you waking with either hyper symptoms or maybe hypo symptoms is either because of a glucose dump just before you wake or because you went hyper before bed, the time without food has triggered a hypo.
Until you have your glucose monitor, I can only guess.
This is because you have just been diagnosed. Your body over the next couple of months will adjust to how you want to approach stopping the hypos from happening.
It is all about food and drink, what your body can cope with. Too much carbs and you will trigger a hypo.
I would read the threads on the forum to gain knowledge of what happens when you eat and the reactive part of the condition.
What dietary advice have you had?
What tests have you had?
What meds are you on?
Any other conditions that would cause other dietary restrictions? Such as I have lactose intolerance, and spuds are the worst thing I can eat!
I never eat before bed, at least three hours before, I know then, that I'm not going hypo.
I never eat in the morning, or if I do its a hearty full English breakfast, obviously without the carbs, I fast most days, until late afternoon, then I have a couple of very low carb meals in a window of about five to six hours.
It is an individual condition, so you do have to find your own personal balance of protein, fats (very important) and what carbs you allow yourself for your nutritional needs.
I ate healthy, dietary advice from my healthcare practitioners, it would have been disastrous consequences for me if I would have continued!
Healthy for someone else may not be healthy for us!

Again welcome, ask any questions you have, it is a condition that can be controlled.
Because of a continuous Keto diet, I have not had a hypo for over six years now!

Best wishes