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Hyperglycaemic this morning and after exercise

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Seagal75

Member
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Sorry to post again so quickly but I'm a bit alarmed at my BG readings today. I was diagnosed yesterday so not fully clued up.

I tested this morning after coffee (no sugar) at 14.3. I've just been on a slow 5k and thought that would lower it, but I am now reading 14.9 mmol.

Is this cause for concern? Other than that I don't feel sick, just a bit tired. I haven't eaten today so far.
 
The levels are higher than they should be but as you are very newly diagnosed and not yet clued up, it isn't concerning.

Firstly, the morning test should be immediately on getting out of bed (after washing hands of course). Anything you do after getting up, whether it be rushing about, showering, whatever, is likely to raise your levels.

Secondly, exercise also has a habit of raising levels both during and immediately afterwards (depending on a few factors). Best to leave it an hour after finishing to see what happens then. I have never done a 5k run/jog in my life, but even more strenuous housework raises my levels. It is worth continuing though because we all know how good for our general health exercise is.

Thirdly, early morning fasting readings are notoriously unreliable because of our livers. Livers will always send stored glucose to the bloodstream when they believe we are in need of extra energy such as on waking, during exercise, in times of stress etc. It is quite natural and not a lot we can do about it. It is known as the Dawn Phenomenon, although it can occur at any time, not just dawn. If you do a search for this you will find many threads about it. It is annoying!

Use your meter to test out your reaction to food. This is the important thing initially. Test before you eat and 2 hours after first bite. The rise from before to after should be no more than 2mmol/l, preferably less. If you also keep a food diary including portion sizes and record your levels alongside, you should see patterns emerging that will tell you if you have eaten too many carbs. The more carbs, the higher the rise will be.
 
Hi Seagal75 & welcome to the club!
You did not say whether you had eaten & do you take insulin, before your morning walk?
I take insulin 5 times a day & it is still difficult to keep my BG within range. If you did eat & took insulin before you walked, it is still a "work in progress" to see how your body reacts to insulin, so how much you need for carbs, etc. And if you are Type I, your body's reaction may change as natural insulin production may be decreasing for some time.
Don't be too worried in the early stages, a learning curve to come - but you will learn from the Forum that in spite of the many challenges, people with diabetes do live extraordinary lives & do incredible things too!
 
It is great that you have found the forum, and great that you have started testing, but it really is too early for you to spend too long worriting about high blood glucose levels that are probably a hang over from before your diagnosis.

The stress and excitement of your run may have pushed them up a bit too. :)

I saw elsewhere on another thread that you were only diagnosed a couple of days ago, and with the HbA1c you mentioned there, your blood glucose levels have been high for a while. Probably months. Your body will be used to it, and will have adapted to it as 'the new normal', so it will take a while (days? weeks?) for it to regain the 'old normal' after you get your carbs under control. :)

If you are already lowering your carbs, and already exercising, then I would just keep testing, keep eating to your meter, and gradually you will find that those blood glucose readings come down.

Keep posting. And please don't worry about posting too often. The more you read, the more you post, then the more you learn - and that has to be a good thing, doesn't it? :D

But give it some time. Type 2s usually respond to dietary changes very well, and many of us can control our D like that, others need meds, but a few are mis diagnosed and turn out to be type 1s, so if your numbers don't start slowly reducing on Low Carb (after enough time) then we can help you to ask your doc the right questions to go about some other tests. :)
 
Thanks everyone. That's put my mind at rest. Really interesting to hear about the dawn phenomenon and after exercise.
I'm not on insulin - was prescribed metformin, but am reluctant to take them after everything I've read. I've started low carb eating today and will see how that goes after 2 weeks.
Thank you xx
 
Hi and welcome :D
I take metformin and have no side affects, i was diagnosed end of march have a review 22/6
 
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