Insulin and weight gain

[Stevie2tone]

Hi everyone,

Am starting insulin very soon after being on Diamacron and Sitagliptin not working. Have lost a lot of wight over the last few years which I thought would help, (clearly not!). Diabetic Nurse told me to expect some weight gain now I am on insulin. Any one tell me how much to expect, clearly I am concerned about this after loosing so much in the first place?

 

[noblehead]

You may at first Steve but once you get your bg levels sorted you can work with your HCP's at ways in which to lose it again. I'm type 1 and managed to lose two and half stone by cutting back on my calorie intake and increasing exercise a little, so far after 2 years I've managed to keep it off so it is achievable.

 

[Stevie2tone]

Thanks noblehead

I am trying to stick to a low carb diet so hopefully that will help. Try as I might, I cannot stop dreading the weight gain it seems to take over everything

 

[anna29]

Good post and points raised!
I too was and 'still' am weight gain phobic with being so tiny in frame
most of my life.
Was terrified to go onto insulin as "knew" it fat stores the glucose!!!!
Argued intensly with my DSN/GP/CONSULTANT over the facts of this...
After several meetings 1-2-1 with my DSN it was agreed that I would go onto
basal insulin "only".
As they had had me using victoza prior to this as my body accepted and tollerated it well...
Sadly it alone wasnt enough to get my blood sugar levels 'down'.
Insulin is a pain to use if weight loss has been achieved and then "know" it can
fat store as the mechanics of it do this!
As nigel above, points out using a low carb daily eating plan combined with activity
will "keep" the weight steady.
Insulin DOES work to control the raised/too high blood sugars, I was loathe to trust it
when they kept nagging me to go onto this. From the sheer fear and dread of the weight gain risk
Steve I REALLY DO KNOW how you must feel with the dreading feeling!
As a type2 my DSN did say the balance of weight control/loss is far harder for us to maintain with the
risk of the insulin resistance, this fat store's around the tummy and central body.
It is a battle that is there for us everyday, it took them over 12months to encourage me to "give in"
and go onto insulin.
The very fact that it HAS worked and improved the quality of my life as I was so ill prior to using the insulin
gives me the incentive to work hard at maintaining my diet/eating/activity lifestyles...
It DOES get easier with time and dosen't seem as overwhelming scary too much hard work anymore!
Hope this post helps you.
Please do let us know how things go.
Anna.

 

[Stevie2tone]

Well 5 days since starting the Lantus injection 10mls nocte and so far everything seems to be going ok. Am still taking Sitagliptin and Diamacron orally, which I must say I was suprised at having to doth both oral and injection medication.

Am trying to keep myself as low carb as possible but with such a hectic life as mine it is proving difficult at times. I know it may sound daft but the weight gain seriously does make me not want to do this. I have been told to "man up" over this so have just stopped commenting on it but after loosing over 6 stone it has made such a difference to me and it does concern me that it called all go back on. I don't sit around on my backside all day and am involved with so many different projects as well as working full time I really don't have the energy or the time to go to the gym. Hopefully being this active in my lifestyle and watcging what I eat will keep the gain down as slow as possible.
I do realise this just sounds petty and shallow but feel this is the only place I can discuss this without being told I just being stupid

 

[Stevie2tone]

Well my good start did not last long.... have felt the wieght going on and it was mentioned today at work

I am low carbing, watching what I eat and yet it still happened and now really fighting the feeling of stopping the insulin to halt any more gain. The comment at work didnt help, hit me like a sledgehammer. I know people are probably thinking that being a guy it shouldnt bother me that much. But haing spent a majority of my life being so big, to over the last 3/4 years being a darn site slimmer it made such a difference and dread going back to how I was.

 

[Unbeliever]

I believe that part of the problem is that "they are not honest wih people.I remeber reading a document issued by the Australian NHS to Drs surgeries about allowing the surgeries to tnitiate insulin thrapy in T2s.

This was a very enlightening document. Our equivalents are nothing like so clear and direst.
It is recommended that patients are not told the whole truth. For example they should not be old about weight gain because this migh deter them. On the other hand HCPs should be careful not to blaanly lie as his might render hem liable to litigation.
The ineresting bit was that if paients did not gain a cerrtain amount of weight within the first few months {can't remeber he amount} then the insulin was not working and should be increased. This is somewhat diffferent to the story I have been old.

Regarding the oral meds plus insulin- I know eactly what you mean and his led me to refuse insulin a few years ago when my bgs appeared to be rising. I was told that I would have o continue taking all my meds as well as insulin and i might evenually be allowed o drop one of the glimepiride depending upon my results.

This errified me, The Practice DSN who old me this had aleready shown hereslf o be less han conversant with T2 medication.
I was lterally afraid for my life. I think there are some far oo simplistic views arounfd both weight gain with insulin and about mixing oral and insulin therapies T2 drugs don't all work in the same way. The assumption was hat insulin and glimepiride would evenually cause hypos and i could then reduce my glimepiride gradually. In the event I had o drop all my glimepiride at the same ime because I began low carbing. I can only imagine what the consequences of aking it with insulin might have been.

if you are on oral meds and insulin then obviously you must sill be producing some nsulin. In these cases the insulin production is
inconsistent. This makes it very diffficult to control with a combinaion of therapies..
I imagine it will ake some time for things to settle.
Let the HCPs know how you feel. I don' blame you for feeling depressed. If you keep on at them and express your concerns they may watch your progress more carefully and reduce your meds or insulin to help your weight stabilise.
I always think it is difficult enough to manage either oral meds or insulin. Mixing them would be a nightmare.
I hope you manage o get someone to take your worries seriously. It must be very upseing to regain all the weigh you had lost and for people o comment pon it publcly when it is not your fault.

I remeber how i felt when medcaion made me gain weigh for the first time in my life.
You don't need o "man up". It should not be inevitable. make hem help you!