In a bit of a mess....

NancyE · Jun 30, 2015

Hello I'm new and having some problems that I hope some of you could help me with. I've been diabetic for 25 years. Diagnosed anyway.
This all started because my hba1c went up to 8.6 and my general practitioner said it needed to come down. I was on Metformin for many years until it started backfiring on me and giving me what felt like gallbladder attacks. So I had to go off of it and my bgs went way up to 18-19.
I'm on Diamicron, Januvia and Invokana 100 units of levemir and about 20 units of humalog a day.
So after getting the news from my doctor I thought no problem I'll just go low carb and get things straightened out. I used to eat this way until the Diabetic Education Clinic told me that I was going to harm myself by not eating carbs and they said I needed to start eating them again... I've been put on more and more medication for the last 10 years and all was fine until I could no longer take metformin.

I have cut carbs gradually and was very happy to let go of the Invokana because there were so many horrible side effects. Then I cut the insulin down until I was just on the two meds. At first I could not go under a bg of 7 because I felt like my heart was going to pound out of my chest and my family figured out I was low in potassium. So it's all okay now. I was happy with being in a steady 6-7 bg for a few weeks until... my bg's started upward again with a full low carb diet. I still take the 2 oral meds and back to the 100 units of levemir a day plus about 10 units of humalog... while low carbing, high fat diet.

I don't understand what is going on.. how can my bgs go up when I'm not eating any carbs?
This has never happened and the low carbing has got me on track a couple of times in the past. I know now that this has to be the way I eat for the rest of my life. I have some neuropathy, fatty liver, multiple cysts on the kidneys and fibromyalgia.

With the past experience with professionals in canada I'm hesitant to ask for help.
Anyway any thoughts would be appreciated...
TY

frenchlady · Jun 30, 2015

NancyE said:
Hello I'm new and having some problems that I hope some of you could help me with. I've been diabetic for 25 years. Diagnosed anyway.
This all started because my hba1c went up to 8.6 and my general practitioner said it needed to come down. I was on Metformin for many years until it started backfiring on me and giving me what felt like gallbladder attacks. So I had to go off of it and my bgs went way up to 18-19.
I'm on Diamicron, Januvia and Invokana 100 units of levemir and about 20 units of humalog a day.
So after getting the news from my doctor I thought no problem I'll just go low carb and get things straightened out. I used to eat this way until the Diabetic Education Clinic told me that I was going to harm myself by not eating carbs and they said I needed to start eating them again... I've been put on more and more medication for the last 10 years and all was fine until I could no longer take metformin.

I have cut carbs gradually and was very happy to let go of the Invokana because there were so many horrible side effects. Then I cut the insulin down until I was just on the two meds. At first I could not go under a bg of 7 because I felt like my heart was going to pound out of my chest and my family figured out I was low in potassium. So it's all okay now. I was happy with being in a steady 6-7 bg for a few weeks until... my bg's started upward again with a full low carb diet. I still take the 2 oral meds and back to the 100 units of levemir a day plus about 10 units of humalog... while low carbing, high fat diet.

I don't understand what is going on.. how can my bgs go up when I'm not eating any carbs?
This has never happened and the low carbing has got me on track a couple of times in the past. I know now that this has to be the way I eat for the rest of my life. I have some neuropathy, fatty liver, multiple cysts on the kidneys and fibromyalgia.

With the past experience with professionals in canada I'm hesitant to ask for help.
Anyway any thoughts would be appreciated...
TY

This might help. http://www.diabetesselfmanagement.c...blood-glucose-management/strike-the-spike-ii/

frenchlady · Jun 30, 2015

frenchlady said:
This might help. http://www.diabetesselfmanagement.c...blood-glucose-management/strike-the-spike-ii/

You see, you may be eating the 'wrong' carbs. There are good carbs and bad carbs. Carbs with a low GI are much better for you than those with a high GI. Simple carbs raise the bg quickly and spike. Complex (high GI) carbs take much longer to process through the body and don't cause such severe spikes and therefor no severe lows either. If you can get a copy or look on the i internet for the low GI diet, it usually lists those foods and their GI numbers. You can try this. https://www.bda.uk.com/foodfacts/GIDiet.pdf
Good luck but don't try and treat yourself. You should talk to your diabetes specialist, if not your doctor, do you not have a nurse specialist that you can talk to?

frenchlady · Jun 30, 2015

frenchlady said:
You see, you may be eating the 'wrong' carbs. There are good carbs and bad carbs. Carbs with a low GI are much better for you than those with a high GI. Simple carbs raise the bg quickly and spike. Complex (high GI) carbs take much longer to process through the body and don't cause such severe spikes and therefor no severe lows either. If you can get a copy or look on the i internet for the low GI diet, it usually lists those foods and their GI numbers. You can try this. https://www.bda.uk.com/foodfacts/GIDiet.pdf
Good luck but don't try and treat yourself. You should talk to your diabetes specialist, if not your doctor, do you not have a nurse specialist that you can talk to?

Look at this too:- http://www.the-gi-diet.org/lowgifoods/

NancyE · Jun 30, 2015

frenchlady said:
You see, you may be eating the 'wrong' carbs. There are good carbs and bad carbs. Carbs with a low GI are much better for you than those with a high GI. Simple carbs raise the bg quickly and spike. Complex (high GI) carbs take much longer to process through the body and don't cause such severe spikes and therefor no severe lows either. If you can get a copy or look on the i internet for the low GI diet, it usually lists those foods and their GI numbers. You can try this. https://www.bda.uk.com/foodfacts/GIDiet.pdf
Good luck but don't try and treat yourself. You should talk to your diabetes specialist, if not your doctor, do you not have a nurse specialist that you can talk to?

Hello and TY for answering... I don't really eat carbs. I keep them very low under 30g a day. That's why I don't understand why my blood sugars are high.
The Doc I see is in a different city and I don't have transportation. The Docs here believe in a high carb diet and taking lots of meds, which isn't working for me. I'm going to see my general practitioner tomorrow to see if I can get some help, where I can get to by bus. I'll tell him I have cut my carbs and am low carbing to see what he says. he tends to be more open minded than the specialists.

donnellysdogs · Jun 30, 2015

Same in UK too with docs n nurses pushing high
Carbs!

Without seeing an example of what you eat say on an average day it may be because many people have to bolus for food such as eggs... Although they have no carbs in them I still have to count them as having 4g per egg.

NancyE · Jun 30, 2015

donnellysdogs said:
Same in UK too with docs n nurses pushing high
Carbs!
Without seeing an example of what you eat say on an average day it may be because many people have to bolus for food such as eggs... Although they have no carbs in them I still have to count them as having 4g per egg.

Interesting okay and I also eat lower starch veggies...
I guess I'm more upset that I let things get out of hand. I should have stayed low carb all of these years. Eating high carb abd taking many meds can't be good for your body. ...

donnellysdogs · Jun 30, 2015

Totally agree. I have lower carbed for best part of 50 years. Indroducing bread n porridge as I was advised too was an awful thing for me to do.

I have since been diagnosed with slow colonic transit and bread, pasta, rice etc causes me huge problems.

They then were wanting to ply me with laxatives and enemas before referring to London specialist. However I found the cause of my probs and add flaxseed and chia everyday to my foods and it avoids ant other medicines and referrals to London.

It seems to me that everybody in NHS just wants to oky you with medicines instead of listening to patients.

NancyE · Jul 1, 2015

I have the constipation thing too but mine has never been really figured out. So I take stool softeners, milk of magnesia and lactulose as needed. They think it's a problems with the nerves and sometimes everything just shuts down...but that was just a guess by the doc. I keep getting told to eat more fiber but that just adds bulk to everything else that doesn't want to move. I will try the chia seeds. I'm allergic to flax.

Just made a lovely batch of low carb cheesecake ... it's my go to if I start feeling deprived and there will be loads of food out today being Canada Day

btw your comment about having to take bolus for eggs helped me a great deal. I don't feel like something is wrong or I'm doing something wrong now! So just plodding along

Brunneria · Jul 1, 2015

Hi,

I'm wondering if you have increased your protein to compensate for dropping carbs? If we eat higher protein, the extra can often be converted to carbs by a process called gluconeogenesis.

If this rings any bells, there are some very experienced T1s who will be able to advise you.

AndBreathe · Jul 2, 2015

Vis-a vis, your constipation, @NancyE; are you drinking enough? I find I need to really make the effort to drink loads, and I mean loads of water with this lifestyle. Obviously, that's amplified even further in this heat.

Sorry that doesn't necessarily help with your core query.

NancyE · Jul 2, 2015

AndBreathe said:
Vis-a vis, your constipation, @NancyE; are you drinking enough? I find I need to really make the effort to drink loads, and I mean loads of water with this lifestyle. Obviously, that's amplified even further in this heat.
Sorry that doesn't necessarily help with your core query.

I used to drink more and am getting back into it. When I was taking Invokana it really messed me up in that it has diuretic effects but messes with your bladder so it's hard to pee... lol So I got out of drinking as much as I should...
Good reminder.... ty

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