• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

Advice please: Could my Glucose monitor be wrong?

ZBZ

ZBZ

Member
Messages
12
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Hi guys, I'm new here I hope it's ok to post this here.
I have been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes for a few months now and am being treated with metformin. I have been feeling really dizzy lately ,and so tired. So my diabetic nurse gave me a monitor to test myself when im feeling bad. Yesterday she tested my blood in the clinic and it was around 6. I got home and set the machine up ( its a Bayer, contour next usb) so there isnt actually any set up involved. So anyway . . I test myself and get a result of 3.6mmol. A few hours later I tested again ( its a new toy and I wanted to get the hang of it) my result was 2.4mmol after a meal. then a few hours later fell to 1.6mmol :s Ive checked online and it says I should be really ill with this result. Could it be that it's wrong? Or Im doing it wrong? I feel fine. I dont want to bother the nurse by calling her just for it to be a wrong result. Any advice?
 
Hi
More experienced members will be able to give more advise but were your fingers clean and dry? Residue of soap or water will give a false reading.
Did your meter come with a special check strip? Or a control solution?

There is a video on this site to show you how to test.

I use my non-diabetic husband to do a 'control' test every few weeks to check monitor is giving OK readings.

If you have done all of these then I would go back to GP today as I have read that not all people feel the effect of hypo or hypers.
 
Those figures look far to low.

A reading of 1.6 should have you in a coma.

So go back and check with your nurse.
 
No, theres no check strip on it. You just put the strip in and it asks for blood. I prick myself and stick it on . . Does stress affect it, I am SO scared of pricking my finger ( which is probably such a lame thing to say here as you all are probs so used to it you think Im pathetic )
 
This is what I thought ( and read) little gray cat. I feel absolutely fine.

I cant get to the nurse now until monday. As long as Im feeling ok ( and eating properly) i'll be ok until then right? I have type 2 diabetes, which is usually high sugar isnt it? Should I try a different place to draw blood from?

Im sorry if these questions sound silly,
 
I agree it's bit strange but it's unusual for a meter to keep giving wrong results. You can get test solution for your meter from the manufacturer to check the calibration; just call them. Anything below around 4mmol can lead to a hypo but people vary a lot. I don't have symptoms until below 3.5mmol. It's unusual to go hypo on Metformin so it is strange. You could get your local pharmacy to do a one-off prick test at the same time you do one to x-check?
 
This is the video:


It's possible the battery might be low if it's been sitting in a drawer for a while or the meter may need to be calibrated.
 
When you get a low reading like that, drink some lucozade, give it half an hour to 1 hour and test again, you should have a higher number now. I have had low readings in the 1's before and felt perfect. Others say you should be in a coma! - different people vary allot but if below 3 - eat or drink something with sugar, i normally have lucozade and a digestive biscuit.

Test your partner / parent and see what readings you get.

good luck
 
Well I ate two pieces of toast and had a latte with 2 sugars in and its now 8.2 :s Im due to see my nurse in 2 weeks, but do you think I should see her sooner now? Ive been trying to tell them that I feel like **** at times,fall asleep everywhere etc but they say its all in my mind. Will this prove it to them? This has actually quite scared me tbh. I feel the nurse is more interested in me losing weight/cutting sugar out that the fact Im feeling dizzy. I had a anemia test this week, would this affect my blood sugar?
 
It's not usual for a Type 2 on metformin to have hypos, but another type 2 member @Scandichic recently had that problem, so it does happen. It may be wise to speak to your doctor.
 
ZBZ said:
Well I ate two pieces of toast and had a latte with 2 sugars in and its now 8.2 :s Im due to see my nurse in 2 weeks, but do you think I should see her sooner now? Ive been trying to tell them that I feel like **** at times,fall asleep everywhere etc but they say its all in my mind. Will this prove it to them? This has actually quite scared me tbh. I feel the nurse is more interested in me losing weight/cutting sugar out that the fact Im feeling dizzy. I had a anemia test this week, would this affect my blood sugar?
Click to expand...
@Indy51
Hi Zoe,
I hypod on metformin too. How many are you taking? My hubbie rang NHS health line and they sent the paramedic. I was advised to go to the docs (they refused me an appointment!) so I rang the hospital and the dn told me to reduce the dose age from 3 tablets to 1 and wrote to my doc. What diet do you follow? LCHF? (This is what I eat) . Also, to treat the hypo my hubbie had to give me a tsp of honey. Maybe get a small jar in! Hope this helps!
 
Im only one one metformin ( starting 2 this week ) erm I'm not really on any diet. The dietitions are being assey at the moment as I cant make the appointments 20 miles away ( im a carer for my son) All the nurse said was cut my fat and sugar out. If Im honest Ive not cut it out much. I've been in denial a bit about it all tbh.

I can't believe I'm being so honest with you guys. Ive not even told my friends Ive been diagnosed yet.
 
As your levels have increased, and the lows were from your very first self tests, I would be inclined to test over the weekend, on rising, before and 2 hours after meals. Along with that I would record everything passing my lips, and any exercise I took. I addition, test if you feel unwell.

From there, by Monday, you would be able to evidence any consistent lows or highs, and what you did or ate around that time, should you need to see your nurse urgently.

The only thing I would add is to ensure your meter is reading the correct date and time, or it just makes matching readings and diet/exercise records tricky, and you don't need any discussions clouded by trying to match data.
 
Did you put enough blood on the strip? Sometimes that can give low readings.

Also, meters tend to get more inaccurate at the edges of their test range (either very high or very low)

Is there a spare battery you could swap with? Just to try...
 
ZBZ this is a great place for getting stuff off your chest. Its nice to have a safe haven where you can let it all out without having to admit/talk about stuff in 'real life' I would say that carbs wont be your friend. With regards to the meter not sure whats happening there...maybe try changing the battery? Xx

Sent from the Diabetes Forum App
 
Back
Top