I think i might have hypoglycemia

ghost_whistler said:

And now the symptoms are coming back. I don't think eggs are going to do it. I feel just as I do after eating porridge

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Then if it was me, I'd be pushing for some more answers from your medical team about exactly what they think your problem is regarding hypoglycaemia. As I said earlier, some people simply can't go too long without eating. That's a slightly separate matter from Reactive Hypoglycaemia.

I know you said you weren't given much info about the results of your various tests, so maybe asking for a copy of the results with actual figures might be helpful. Then you could assess if your diet needed changing and, if it does, what would be the best way to,change it.

If your symptoms are really bothersome, it might also be worth asking if obvious general health screens were done in case your symptoms are being made worse by another medical condition.

I also recommend keeping a food diary. Find out what works for you.

I doubt there is much more we can do to help you. I strongly suggest you keep a diary of when these symptoms appear, in what circumstances, when and what you last ate. Then make an appointment with your doctor and show them to him. Beg and plead for a meter with strips on prescription so you can check your levels when you feel so rough.

ghost_whistler said:

For about 15 years I've had the symptoms of feeling really hungry very often and becoming weak and shaky and faint if I don't eat. I can't miss meals and struggle if I don't get to eat when I need to, as well as trying to manage my weight. Unfortunately I don't have an official diagnosis as the doctors have been completely useless in diagnosing anything, though they are keen to tell me it isn't diabetes. I've done finger prick blood tests which didn't seem to get any results. I've seen nutritionists who couldn't recommend anything remotely helpful other than the most basic "try and eat healthily" (well, obviously!), and I even did a test where I had a morning appointment with the GP who got me to drink a glucose drink before eating that day. They tell me the results don't yield anything, but the symptoms persist and it's really debilitating. I don't know what else to do. Eating healthily is difficult and expensive. I have insomnia (though very rarely do i wake up hungry). I've been advised to eat things like porridge for breakfast, but that actually makes my symptoms worse (other cereals are better - ironically as is something like a fried breakfast, but I don't have those if very very rarely for obvious reasons). I could go back to the GP but so far they've been worse than useless, and our service locally is suffering due to cuts. The first doctor i spoke to just said, in respect of managing, scoff a packet of biscuits if you're busy. Clearly that's bad advice, but if anyone can relate to what I'm saying I'd be grateful, thanks.

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Many years ago I had symptoms exactly like what you describe and after a glucose tolerance test I was told I had "reactive hypoglycaemia" and that in order to help control the symptoms I should "eat like a diabetic" and that there was a risk of developing diabetes later on .... and "later on" (about 25 years later on) I did. I was diagnosed with type 2 last year. There is a lot of great info on the diabetes UK website about a low carb diet - why not try it for a while and see if you feel better?

ghost_whistler said:

I'd love to know what the carb count on homebaked wholemeal bread is, as it's not mass produced muck you get in the supermarkets.

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Try google to look it up - but i think you will find its just about the same as most other breads. I'm sure many of us on this forum would like to eat bread but don't because it affects us badly. Same as spuds, pasta, rice, etc and all those other carbs.

ghost_whistler said:

Sure everyone can tolerate longer delays between meals, but if I don't eat I get all those hypo symptoms: i feel faint, anxious, my heart palpitates, i get that tunnel vision, etc. It's really debilitating. If this is just how I am then I'm not sure what I can do. I've been trying to get fit over the last month and a half, and a couple of times, running in the afternoon, i started to feel bad. One of these was what prompted me to post on here.

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Not everyone can have long delays between eating episodes. At Uni (many, many, mnay moons ago), I had a friend who was an absolute eating machine. Tall, skinny girl whose plates used to be piled sky high with everything, at every meal. Her food bills were incredible.

She had seen a number of specialists who could find nothing wrong with her. To this day, I hear via the alumni grapevine, that her eating habits are still as extreme - no middle age spread for her!

However, onto you.

In your opening post, you say your symptoms are better when you have a cooked breakfast. Do you have eggs with that?

Do you have a slow cooker and/or a freezer? During winter, I love my slow cooker, and love the delicious, unctuous things I can make for next to nothing. Last winter, I set my challenge to stop buying premium cuts of meat, and to try some of the more "old fashioned" cuts and recipes.

If you have a freezer, you can freeze a portion or two, to mix things up. If you can't freeze, then cooking enough for a couple of meals just means repeat deliciousness.

It's not something you can guess at - it's best (at the beginning) to weigh everything and keep a food diary and note how each food affects you. And, when your doctor (hopefully) gives you a monitor - or you buy one - you, by testing, will then see which carbs affect you most and how how body reacts to them.

Don't be fooled by so called healthy carbs, I once very nearly ended up in hospital because I was drinking lots of 'healthy' fresh fruit and/or veg smoothies and homemade seeded bread with most meals. For diabetics there really isn't any such thing as a good or healthy carb as they all turn to glucose and raise our blood glucose.

ghost_whistler said:

I want to, but it will at least have to wait until i next do my shopping as I don't have much in the house that's not carb.

I'm just not sure how much protein/fatty stuff I need to eat.

According to this site anything up to 130g of carbs is moderate, per day. I don't think that's far off what I eat now.

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You don't need to eat any carbs.
You are testing your body to see if it responds adversely to carbs.
If it does react adversely, that's when you need to sort out a diet for life.

At the moment, you can eat anything you want to, so long as it's not carbs.
Eat as much or as little as you want to of anything else.
You can live off anything for a few weeks, your body has enough reserves to cope for several weeks.
If nothing changes, you need to find out what actually is wrong.

If you are reactive hypoglycemic, that's when you need to start worrying about a proper diet.

If you need to eat all the carbs in your house first, that's fine, but you need to accept that you will obviously feel the way you normally do until you finish them.

ghost_whistler said:

I'm still sceptical of the claim you don't need carbs entirely.

However my body seems to be reacting adversely to carb free/lower carb meals. Is this normal? What do i do in that case because I can't function like this.

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Ah well, if you believe you need carbs, that's really down to you to decide.

As to the rest, no one can diagnose you over the internet, you need to go back to your doctor.
But, I would mention, it probably took me about 18 months to get on top of my type 2, I think you may have to accept it will take longer than 2 meals, and not feeling full may be something you have to go to bed on occasionally.

Experiment. Keep a food diary and find what works for you. What breakfast, when to snack, etc, etc.

We're all individuals

ghost_whistler said:

I'm still sceptical of the claim you don't need carbs entirely.

However my body seems to be reacting adversely to carb free/lower carb meals. Is this normal? What do i do in that case because I can't function like this.

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Many, many people find when they cut their carbs down, their bodies object for a couple of days. Our bodies like rhythm and habit, and our livers can release glucose in order to keep us in that "comfort zone". Many find they have a few days of discomfiture whilst they break out of that "comfort zone".

Chopping and changing isn't helpful to anyone, no matter what it is that afflicts them.

ghost_whistler said:

I think speaking to the GP is probably the best thing at this point.

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I understand your frustration. It is difficult to find answers. I'm sure all you want is to feel better.
We are all individuals and there is no answer that fits all. A good start is to go to your GP.

ghost_whistler said:

I think speaking to the GP is probably the best thing at this point.

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Yes, do that, see if he will let you have a good glucose monitor.

Ok, I'm not gonna give you advice but tell you how it was for me in the first few weeks.

I was dreadfully ill, my brain didn't and couldn't function without the desire to stuff myself silly with carbs or any sweet things or rubbish junk food!
It took a fasting test after about two months later to clear the fug and alleviate the symptoms, it took me a few weeks after that to feel good and notice that I was truly feeling better at all! By then, the weight was dropping off me and my energy levels rose to really good levels. In all my diets started in 2001. For a decade they were still full of carbs, and we're killing me, of that I'm certain! It wasn't till just over three years ago that I started very low carb. That took weeks and I was very wary, like yourself, and worried, and anxious, and scared for myself. I couldn't think straight, what would happen to me? I had to go through the carb flu, where I thought that even eating no carbs, was not working. Eventually, over a couple of months fighting this condition and being resilient to all those really nice sweet things, I came through and have never gone back!
All the symptoms were my body telling me that the foods that were healthy, were actually killing me!
@Brunneria has been at this a lot longer than me, and she has never encountered a medical practitioner that has got it right for her, even my endocrinologist has had to study how I reacted and change his mind on how I treat the condition and how food can be so bad for you. Carbs of any type are bad for me!
I have a tablet that changes my glucose into glucagon to help me not hyper. So I don't hypo! This does help but it is no cure, it is still there, if I don't behave, it would come back and I would be very ill. Control is the key but you have to get there first and it does take time.
Fasting helps, I thought like you that I had to keep filling my face because I have felt like this for a couple of decades, it's a symptom! Fasting and eating a lot less is good for me. I'm weird, my body is definitely better when I've not ate. I can only eat when I want, my body is not demanding food no more.
I think you want instant relief from the symptoms, it won't happen!
I think it's the symptoms that is clouding your scepticism about how your body reacts, if you don't like eggs then don't have them, I have a milk intolerance because it's a form of glucose/sugar. I'm not lactose intolerant! Go figure
You have to find your own way of eating at the cost of what you can afford. As others have said, you do have to shop around and find the cheap cuts and bargains.
Planning ahead will help, a food diary when you get a monitor because how can you discover what's happening?
Stress to your GP about how you feel after food.
Stress to him about the symptoms and about Hypoglycaemia even ask him to get more tests, more bloods and find you a referral to an endocrinologist.

Believe me, low carb works. How you do it, is your way and how you tolerate food!

Best wishes.

ghost_whistler said:

Sure everyone can tolerate longer delays between meals, but if I don't eat I get all those hypo symptoms: i feel faint, anxious, my heart palpitates, i get that tunnel vision, etc. It's really debilitating. If this is just how I am then I'm not sure what I can do. I've been trying to get fit over the last month and a half, and a couple of times, running in the afternoon, i started to feel bad. One of these was what prompted me to post on here.

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What you have described in your post are classic symptoms of hypoglycemia. It would of course be best to have that confirmed with the relevant medical test. Unfortunately that would be rare. Most of us live with that for decades before eventually being diagnosed with T2D.

The simplified view is that the amount of carbs and proteins we take produce an exaggerated/excessive insulin response. This may be 5-10x higher than usual. This causes a sharp/significant glucose drop, and our insulin resistant brain with impaired glucose uptake is sent into a panic mode. It is screaming to be refueled.

The solution is to fuel our brain adequately without the roller-coaster effects. As others have suggested, low carb high fats ketogenic type diet is recommended. Getting to and maintaining ketosis is the key to providing our brain with stable supply of ketones and be functional in a low glucose condition.

Alternatively you may consider supplementing with tablespoons of virgin coconut oil or MCT. To keep our brain fueled.

While short term intermitting fasting, 24-72 hour fasting may also be helpful, its suitability depends on our age, fats level and general medical conditions.

I found these studies to have been helpful in providing the context of fueling our brain correctly in order to function normally in a low glucose condition
Can Ketones Help Rescue Brain Fuel Supply in Later Life? Implications for Cognitive Health during Aging and the Treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease

http://l.fahttp://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnmol.2016.00053/full

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Medium-Chain Fatty Acids Improve Cognitive Function in Intensively Treated Type 1 Diabetic Patients and Support In Vitro Synaptic Transmission During Acute Hypoglycemia

http://dx.doi.org/10.2337/db08-1557

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All the best.