I'm as mad as hell!!

I have been on Metformin for 5 years, the first 6 months on general release one with tummy troubles, then the slow release with no adverse effects other than this year I've become B12 deficient and so am now on an injection every 12 weeks for the rest of my life.

If you have any side effects with any drugs you should make sure that your GP checks if there is any reason for it, contra-intradictions with other medication or foods. Its hard enough being a diabetic without having a problem with the meds

Yetiandy said:

I've been on Metformin since 2007 and have spent time in hospital due to severe dehydration and diarrhoea I was going to the toilet up to 12 times a day when I told a doctor they said some people do go that many times so I battled though, eventually it became a massive problem again I wasn't able to leave my house for 5 weeks I had all sorts of tests to see what virus's I had, apparently none!! Then I saw my Doctor and told him I could not go on it was too much, I was getting 3 minutes warning before Armageddon, he checked my diet, then said "do you take metformin?" "Yes" I said well stop taking it he said 12 hours later peace and calm broke out I hadn't been this well in 9 years and I continue to be well.
Metformin was ruining my life and I didn't know it!!

Click to expand...

Same here, I was on metformin for about five years and my symptoms progressively worsened as the dosage was increased. It got to the point where I had to restrict where I went out and couldn't travel without checking out where toilets on the route. I stopped taking them in the end which my Consultant at the time was OK with. However, I got a new Consultant who tried to persuade me to go back on them despite my history with them. I still refused, I would never take them again.

Yetiandy said:

I've been on Metformin since 2007 and have spent time in hospital due to severe dehydration and diarrhoea I was going to the toilet up to 12 times a day when I told a doctor they said some people do go that many times so I battled though, eventually it became a massive problem again I wasn't able to leave my house for 5 weeks I had all sorts of tests to see what virus's I had, apparently none!! Then I saw my Doctor and told him I could not go on it was too much, I was getting 3 minutes warning before Armageddon, he checked my diet, then said "do you take metformin?" "Yes" I said well stop taking it he said 12 hours later peace and calm broke out I hadn't been this well in 9 years and I continue to be well.
Metformin was ruining my life and I didn't know it!!

Click to expand...

i had similar problem but my GP changed my tablets to Metformin SR (slow release) and now i feel much better and don't have to worry about leaving the house. I would urge anyone who has toilet issues to ask about changing over

In rough terms around one quarter of people can't tolerate standard metformin because of regular gastric issues that never 'settle down'. Of these about half can however tolerate the slow release forms. As for anything, tolerance can change with time.

The slow release version costs about a pound a packet more.

This side effect is so common that metformin should really be the first suspect considered by doctors for gastric problems for anyone that takes it. Maybe there is less appreciation about how severe they can be for some individuals.

I've taken Metformin for years. Your GP should go over the side effects you may encounter.

I became so ill on metformin,both normal and slow release, and at one point I thought I might have cancer but thankfully tests proved negative. Stopped taking Metformin, went on a range of tablets which caused a weight gain and have now ended up on
1.2mg liraglutide (Victoza) injection/day
Gliclazide 60mg once a day plus 10mg dapagliflozin once a day.
This combination has my Type 2 under control and I have never felt better. I have lost more than 10Kg in weight.
If your body cannot tolerate metformin tell your GP you are going to come of it and ask for a different diabetes drug or drugs. After all the aim is to make you as well as you can be and suffering with uncontrollable bowel movements several times a day is certainly not acceptable.

Oh my goodness. I'm so glad I read this. I've had exactly the same problems. I'm on insulin (Humulin) and slow release metformin. My nurse increased the dose to 2000mg a day and the symptoms were unbearable. She's now advised me to stop taking it. I really hope I see major improvement. I've put up with the pains and gastric disturbance for 8 years.

[i was put on Metformin when newly diagnosed and went off on holiday as booked, the tablets made me unable to go to the toilet for over a week, I had a massive swollen stomach, chronic lower back pain & could barely walk! Could not understand that this was the Metformin and thought I had caught some Asian bug! When I got home I went straight to GP and explained my symptoms and was told it was the Metformin. I could not believe a drug could make me so ill, I came straight off them and refused to take another drug but told Dr I would rather take my chances controlling the diabetes through diet. Luckily my GP was all for it and willed me to give it a go, I did, lost a stone in weight, & feel fit & healthy and lowered my blood sugar levels drastically....there are other ways, don't suffer taking a drug you cannot tolerate.

Wow sorry to hear so many of you have had negative experiences on metformin, I've had the opposite effect .
I've suffered over 20 years with irritable bowel syndrome and diarrhoea but since going on metformin I've been diarrhoea free , I'm on 500mg x 3 daily .

Same here I took 1500mg of metfarting for 3months ended up not wanting to be far from a loo, so stopped taking it, then when seeing a doc 4 weeks later she said "if you don't take the met, you will go into a hypoglycemic coma and die" they really don't know what they're talking about. The best advice was given to my mother by her doc. in 1970. REDUCE CARBS IF YOU WANT TO LIVE WITH TYPE 2. and she did for nearly 40years with no problems from diabetes and no meds and just a urine tester.

My doctor was very understanding about Metformin. I was on the standard one but I was getting really bad indigestion and bloating I felt like I would explode so straight away she changed me to the slow release one and the indigestion and bloating stopped However I did have another problem on the slow release ones that they almost completely took my appetite away I had always had a good appetite so it was just not me not want to eat also because I was not eating enough I lost weight that I did not need to. My doctor told me to reduce the dose from the 2000mg a day I was on to a level that restored my appetite. I had to take it down to 500mg once a day before my appetite came back and my doctor was happy with that she said any dose is better than none for it's protective heart benefit

Yetiandy said:

Thank you

Click to expand...

i've been on it 3 years and its been bloody hell! reassurance that my visit to my GP will be justified next week.

I never took my Metformin. Instead I did the Newcastle Diet, lost 3 stone in 8 weeks and am no longer type 2 diabetic

I would thoroughly recommend it to everyone. A mere 8 week detox to get your life back

There are many, many different drugs that can be prescribed other than standard metformin.
No GP should say i"its that or nothing"..... there are a list of processes for GP to follow according to NICE guidelines. If they fail to follow them, complain or change GP.

Also if you are intolerant to any drug. Please report side effects to the MHRA yelliw card website.

Pinkorchid said:

My doctor was very understanding about Metformin. I was on the standard one but I was getting really bad indigestion and bloating I felt like I would explode so straight away she changed me to the slow release one and the indigestion and bloating stopped However I did have another problem on the slow release ones that they almost completely took my appetite away I had always had a good appetite so it was just not me not want to eat also because I was not eating enough I lost weight that I did not need to. My doctor told me to reduce the dose from the 2000mg a day I was on to a level that restored my appetite. I had to take it down to 500mg once a day before my appetite came back and my doctor was happy with that she said any dose is better than none for it's protective heart benefit

Click to expand...

Yes great for protecting the heart

My mother had the same problem. I knew she'd been investigated for various things that might be causing her uncontrollable diarrhoea. She was refusing to go anywhere for a while as she was too worried. Chatting one day it came out that her doc had doubled her metformin dose and then she realised the trouble started at the same time but she was unaware it might be a side effect and doctor had never mentioned it as a possible cause so she'd not made the link. How crazy when they know it's a side effect to waste time and money for everyone on 'investigations'. I said try not taking the met or taking only half the dose ( she has seemed fine on 500g a day). Bingo all her troubles went away! She is trying to eat lower carb instead - I'm having trouble weaning her off cake though. She is not a typical type 2 being only about 7 and a half stone so can't lose any weight or she'll disappear. Just goes to show I guess that causes for type 2 are many and varied. I guess I'm lucky that because she had it I got tested despite not having any symptoms beyond seeming to gain weight more easily despite no change in eating habits or lifestyle (was never overweight) so by low carbing can hopefully never get any problems and never need metformin.

Metformin is the oldest and least harmful of the diabetes drugs, you can stop taking it without any significant side effects, other than a raised level of blood glucose.
So don't hesitate to stop taking it experimentally if you are suffering severe gastric problems.
Metformin on average drops BG by 10%, whereas following a controlled carb diet will return most type 2 diabetics to normal BG ranges.
Stop listening to your doctor/nurse as if they know more about how you feel than you do! They are only human.

Kat100 said:

Yes great for protecting the heart

Click to expand...

As well as the cardio benefits it looks as if it is also protective against some forms of cancer. I saw my endo this week for an issue not diabetes related. He advised me not to come off Metformin despite by normal range blood sugars. He also said that, if I could tolerate it, I should increase my daily dose from 1500 to 2000mg. Fortunately, I have not had any GI problems with standard Metformin.

Doug

Yetiandy said:

I've been on Metformin since 2007 and have spent time in hospital due to severe dehydration and diarrhoea I was going to the toilet up to 12 times a day when I told a doctor they said some people do go that many times so I battled though, eventually it became a massive problem again I wasn't able to leave my house for 5 weeks I had all sorts of tests to see what virus's I had, apparently none!! Then I saw my Doctor and told him I could not go on it was too much, I was getting 3 minutes warning before Armageddon, he checked my diet, then said "do you take metformin?" "Yes" I said well stop taking it he said 12 hours later peace and calm broke out I hadn't been this well in 9 years and I continue to be well.
Metformin was ruining my life and I didn't know it!!

Click to expand...

Glad you got it sorted mate. A lot of people seem to have problems with Metforminl