BYETTA

[fiona35]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

Hi Everyone

I've finally noticed the weight loss and others have too so something must be happening!! I think my appetite had reduced since being on Byetta and I don't really eat between my meals.

My sugars are still a little high for my liking - around the 8's on waking and can occasionally pop over the 10 after a meal but I'm still on the low doseage so when I start the higher dose I hope that this will reduce my sugars further.

Thanks for everyones support over the last month especially you Dennis and your helpful tips, without this thread I'm not sure how I would have managed as I've certainly learnt alot more from you guys than what my diabetic clinic could provide.

 

[Helenwales.]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

Hello every one yesterday was my first day and i felt sick all day then i actualy vomited bad at tea time,today woke up did the injection and the nausia has vanished and i am feeling great and i have a low apatite i have not been craving in between meals so far good

 

[Dennis]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

Hi Helen,
That's good news, but just to check - they have started you on the 5mcg pen not the 10mcg?

 

[sussex]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

Hi I'm on my 2nd month using Byetta. Now on 10ml, I feel really great only two days of nausea and that was only slight. I was on a high dosage of Novamix and my weight gain specially in the stomach was high. I have lost about 7 pounds in weight mainly because of the appetite suppression in Byetta.I also take 4 Gliclazide and 3 Metformin a day.The only downside is constipation. What is a good laxative, I have used Fybogel in the past. Is this suitable for Diabetics.

 

[Dennis]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

Hi Sussex,
I'm afraid I can't help you on the constipation as it's not a problem I've ever had on Byetta.

However, I would suggest that you keep a very close watch for hypos. Byetta works by encouraging your pancreas to produce the right amount of insulin to deal with the carbohydrates in your meal. Gliclazide also forces the pancreas to produce insulin (but not necessarily the appropriate amount - it will just continue to force insulin production, whether needed or not, until the gliclazide wears off). So you could end up producing far more insulin than you need, resulting in a hypo. Generally anyone who is put on Byetta has their gliclazide drastically reduced, so if yours hasn't been reduced, please keep a careful watch for hypos.

 

[babbettes]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

HI IVE JUST STARTED USING BYETTA 2ND DAY IM FEELING FINE BUT HAVENT NOTICED A DROP IN MY GLOCOSE LEVELS YET DID ANYONE ELSE NOTICE IF IT TOOK A WHILE TO START WORKING

 

[fiona35]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

Hi Babbettes

When I started taking Byetta I noticed a drop in my sugars after the first injection but I'm not sure whether that is a one off or if it occured to others taking Byetta.

I have since noticed that my sugars are on the rise again but hopefully when I swap to the higher dose pen they will stabilise again.

Fiona

 

[Dennis]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

Hi Babbettes,
It may be a bit early yet. You have only just started so will be on the lower dose of 5mcg. After a few days you should start to notice a change as your body becomes more used to the Byetta. Some people see a change straight away - for others there is not much change for the first week or so. You will see a bigger difference when you switch from the 5mcg dose to the full dose of 10mcg. But you can't make that switch until you have been on the lower dose for at least 30 days.

Of course, you can help things along by reducing the amount of carbohydrate that you eat - doesn't need to be a huge adjustment, just cut down a bit on bread, pasta, rice and potatoes. Most of us are guilty of eating far too much of these starchy foods and not enough of the healthy stuff - then we wonder why our BG is too high!

 

[vivkaroo]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

yes i have for nine months was ok for six months then very illbloated stomache pains very bad sickness all day my specialist took me off it i lost 1 stone which bit has come back on i was so ill yes it can cause pancretitus my liver enlarged and went fatty my pancreus was making too many enzymes i was so ill believe me its not all its cracked up to be
your food stays in your stomache longer hence you dont feel hungry obviosly your gonna lose weight my portions were so small i got so ill i could not keep any food down at all i has a cmera down my throat it had enflamed all my ashosogus i am on stomache tablets now off my metformin and exanatide 10 mg twice a day have 2 glicklazide 80mg now a day and finally getting myself better lets face it it had not been trialed that long here maybe it didnt agree with me but i met 20 people on it who all said the nausia was the worst of all i would have my tea and bring it up no good i now eat healthy which i did anyway and would never try these again sorry about spelling not very good take care if you try it vivkaroo xx

 

[radioham]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

Been on it about 6 Mths now can't eat won't eat just feel sick all the time.. one way to get the weight down
take it moring and afternoon give me back my insulin any day

 

[Dennis]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

Hi vivkaroo,
Sorry to hear that Byetta didn't work out for you. Are you sure that what you experienced was actually pancreatitis and not something else? The statistics show that people on Byetta actually have a far lower risk of pancreatitis (4 cases per 100,000) than those not on Byetta (17 cases per 100,000).

And hello radioham,
As above, there are some people who's bodies just never adjust to byetta. Presumably you were started on the 5mcg dose? If you are now on the 10mcg dose and struggling then why not ask your doctor to drop you back to the 5mcg dose for a month or two. Many people have tried this and when they go back up to 10mcg they cope with it a lot easier. It appears that too often doctors rush patients on to the maximum dose before the patient has had enough time to acclimatise to the medicine.

Fortunately there are 700,000 patients in the US and now several thousand in the UK who have found enormous benefits from Byetta.

 

[Helenwales.]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

Hi Helen,
That's good news, but just to check - they have started you on the 5mcg pen not the 10mcg?

Hello yes Correct 5mcg pen,I am feeling great no sickness last few days,i tend to eat quite a big breakfast in the mornings as i am quite hungary Toast 2 rounds,bakes beans,banana maybe a yogurt too,as by lunch time i am not very hungary so lunch today was an apple and salmon sandwich i had to force it down me.
I will eat around 6pm this evening and it will be Jacket potato small one,and cheese salad on the side maybe pear or some sort fresh fruit,my bloods are good too below 6,this morning it was 3.4 and i felt good.

All in all i am feeling great on this but i hate the fact that i am injecting Lizzard Venom it realy upsets me as i hate reptiles,i am looking farward to a good loss of weight for my health and it be nice to wear a size 14 jeans that is my aim anyway,I call it the miracle drug as i am never hungary or craving chocolate it does not bother me at all.

I will keep you updated on my progress last weigh imm 18 stone 1 pound, i am due to see my Diabetic nurse at the hospital this coming Thursday!!!!!!

 

[Dennis]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

Hi Helen,
That's good news - you seem to have acclimatised to the 5mcg dose very well.

Although we often refer to Byetta as "lizard spit", what we inject has never been anywhere near a lizard. The hormone that was discovered in the saliva and tail of the Gila monster is called exendin-4. This is very similar to the GLP-1 hormone in our own bodies that is responsible for telling the pancreas to start producing insulin in response to a meal. It is because it is only similar and not identical that our bodies sometimes find it difficult to accept and try to expel it (hence the nausea). As the body gets used to the artificial hormone, it tolerates it, so the nausea wears off.

There wouldn't be enough Gilas in the world to make all the Byetta that is prescribed (over 700,000 patients in the US), so they have developed a synthetic version called exenatide, and that is what Byetta is made from. So don't worry - you won't develop scales and a forked tongue!! - but if on holiday you feel a sudden urge to bask in the sun on a rock, then let us know and we can all worry.

 

[thepominlaw]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

Saw my diabetic nurse on Monday, byetta is doing great, no weight loss but sugars now averaging 5.

Much better than my previous average of 14! :shock:

Had no ill effects at all except a number of hypos (probably something to do with the 4 x gliclazide tabs i have a day) None really bad though......

Started on the 10ug Byetta pen yesterday ....... sick as a dog

Oh well thats progress i suppose.

 

[Dennis]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

Hi Pominlaw,
Unfortunately nausea is very common when people move up to the 10mcg dose, even sometimes amongst those who didn't suffer on the lower dose. The good news is that it is generally short-lived, more so if you had no nausea on the lower dose.

Now that you have had the Byetta dose doubled it is ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL that your gliclazide dose is reduced. If that does not happen then you could suffer an extreme and potentially fatal hypo, by which I mean not just the light-headedness, jittery feeling, sweating, etc, but progressing very rapidly from there to a coma. If you feel any hypo sensations while you are on the maximum dose of both Byetta and gliclazide, then you need to take something to counteract it immediately so make sure you always have a sweet drink or glucose tablets with you.

But please, please, please, either get an urgent appointment with your doctor to get your gliclazide dose reduced, so just take things into your own hands and halve the gliclazide dose - and then tell your GP what you have done and why.

 

[thepominlaw]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

aint technology great replying via my phone so excuse the typos.

Gliclazide has been reduced still not enough though sugars havent risen above 3.9 today. Going to ask if i can take 2 gliclazide instead of 3.

 

[jansouth]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

Hi there
Thanks Dennis for suggesting I post to this discussion. I just wanted to say that I started Byetta and am now on my sixth day. I had two years where diet only worked, and then Metformin for four months. I have worked very hard to lose weight this year, and have managed to lose 2.5 stones. I have attended the diabetic nurse regularly, and she has been wonderful. When my weight started to stall again, as it always does, she really championed me being put on Byetta, becuase it helps with weight loss, apparently.

My fasting blood glucose was always high, and could be 10 in the mornings. After starting Byetta, I am now reading at 6.8. My appetite has decreased, which suits me fine ! The diabetic nurse did say that one lady she has on the drug has lost 12KG very quickly, but she did say that her food intake had been very high previously.

So far, no nausea ( I am still on the 5mg dose as yet) but a little diarrhoea, which I expect will settle.

From my reading, I see that this drug has been discovered from a species of lizard, so to all lizards out there, a hearty thank you !!

I will update when I have been on byetta a little longer, and when I start the 10mg dose in three weeks time

Good luck and good health
Janet x :wink:

 

[Dennis]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

Hi (again) Janet and welcome from all us fellow lizards.
You certainly seem to be settling well on Byetta and I am sure that it will help with your continuing weight loss. In fact it is so successful at encouraging weight loss that it has been known to be prescribed to non-diabetics in the US as simply a weight-loss aid. You should find that the diarrhoea problems disappear quite quickly because one of the functions of Byetta is to slow down the rate at which food passes through the digestive system. Many find that this slowing-down process has the opposite effect!

Keep us informed as you go along, and remember that if you really want to help the weight loss along then have a look at how much carbohydrate there is in your diet and see if you can reduce it, even if it's only a case of one less potato, or fewer chips or a spoonful less rice or pasta than you would normally have on your plate! It may not sound a lot but you would be amazed at the reduction even a simple change like that can have on your blood sugar levels and your weight.

 

[jansouth]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

Hi Dennis
Tomorrow is my first full week on Byetta, and I have to say that so far so good. Yesterday the diarrhoea has been much less troublesome, which is heartening!

One thing I have been trying to find is a carrying case for the syringe. I travel quite a bit for work, and I note that on the USA sites you can register with Amylin / Eli Lilly, and they send you a free welcome pack, which includes a hard case, with room to store your needles as well. Can't find any such thing on the UK sites.

Tomorrow will be my first away - day since starting on Byetta. I will be away for 6 am for the drive from Manchester to Hereford, so will have to work out the timings of the injection to allow for the meetings when I am there. Evening meal is easy, but I don't usually eat when I do one of these trips, so a little juggling is needed here !

It's been a learning experience these last few weeks. I am a nurse, and I have responsibility for 400 patients and 500 staff, and yet when it came to myself and my own health, I realised I had not taken the time to care for myself. All that has changed now, and I am actively monitoring my own health much closer. I agree about the carbs, and I try and avoid bread, and potatoes as much as possible, and it certainly does make a difference. Now that the Byetta has made me less hungry, I try and not have any carbs at all, to be honest, as my body just doesn't handle them well.

Thanks for the encouragement. It helps just to know others face the same health challenges

Good luck and good health
Janet

 

[Dennis]

Re: Anyone use Byetta?

Hi Janet,
As the Byetta doesn't need to remain refrigerated once you have started it, you could just keep in in the box and plastic tray that it comes in. The tray has compartments alongside the pen slot that are designed to take different sizes of needles, and I find I can fit about a week's worth of needles in the compartments when travelling. I did ask the Lilly UK helpdesk about travelling kits but they confirm these are only available in the US, much to their annoyance.

I think I might write to Lilly in the US and ask why we Brits are being treated as second class citizens when it comes to freebies!