Insulin, Yea or Nay?

Ashintheuk

Active Member
Messages
42
Type of diabetes
Reactive hypoglycemia
Treatment type
Insulin
I have put on weight since I was diagnosed back in 2012. I asked my Diabetes Nurse last week if she thought I could be Type 1 and she said, in her experience, I was not a "typical" type 1 diabetic. Once my units have been sorted, they said I will more than likely stop my gliclazide
Insulin resistance can be caused by a number of different things. It can be stress related, pregnancy, steroid induced etc. I paid for my own C-Peptide test and it came in low.
 

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EllieM

Moderator
Staff Member
Messages
9,338
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
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Insulin resistance can be caused by a number of different things. It can be stress related, pregnancy, steroid induced etc. I paid for my own C-Peptide test and it came in low.
Your profile says you have Reactive hypoglycemia? Is this correct? You might want to update it...
 

Ashintheuk

Active Member
Messages
42
Type of diabetes
Reactive hypoglycemia
Treatment type
Insulin
Your profile says you have Reactive hypoglycemia? Is this correct? You might want to update it...
I do, and my Diabetes presents in a way which has managed to baffle the medical professionals charged with my care. As they have figured, my basal insulin secretion phase is faulty. That is to say if I am fasting and sedentary I don't make any and will see big numbers, but when off the back of that I exercise, I do actually make my own bolus insulin. As I'm obliged to sit in a chair to do my job, I am unable to regulate my blood sugar levels. Switch to physical work and I see hypos. My consultant said to me that she would be able to manage my levels better if she amputated my pancreas and used a closed loop system (tongue in cheek, but I got the idea)
 
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Kivetonguy

Newbie
Messages
2
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Well as a type 2 myself, my GP is arranging an appointment with A DSN at the hospital with a view of getting me started on Insulin
 

bmac2560

Member
Messages
9
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
Hello. I have been type 2 since 2012 and have been taking combinations of metformin, gliclazide, trulicity and empagliflozin in varying doses and combinations over the years. I am currently taking the maximum dose of metformin and gliclazide plus one empagliflozin but my last hba1c was still 90. My diabetes nurse has said that my glucose level is dangerously high and she wants me to start insulin injections once per day. I'm a little wary of this because my understand was that once you start on it, there is no going back and I know my health is way more important but things like notifying the dvla and insurance companies is also something I've been thinking about.

Does anyone have anything which may help me to decide, one way or the other?

Thank you in advance :)
I found myself in the same situation recently. I was taking type 2 meds for about 20 years. Last year my blood sugar numbers started climbing. Despite tweaking my meds, the numbers became dangerously high. About 2 weeks ago I finally started on insulin. My doctor said it is not unusual for diabetics of 10 to 20 years to have this issue. It became clear I did not have another option. I have started on insulin and my numbers have dramatically reduced. In addition I have been able to get off of Tradjenta and have cut my metformin in half. I think you are right, there is no going back. The major issue for me is going back and forth between the U.S. and Europe. Unless I get a prescription in the U.S,, I will need to carry my insulin pens in a cold container.
 

type2newbie

Member
Messages
21
I found myself in the same situation recently. I was taking type 2 meds for about 20 years. Last year my blood sugar numbers started climbing. Despite tweaking my meds, the numbers became dangerously high. About 2 weeks ago I finally started on insulin. My doctor said it is not unusual for diabetics of 10 to 20 years to have this issue. It became clear I did not have another option. I have started on insulin and my numbers have dramatically reduced. In addition I have been able to get off of Tradjenta and have cut my metformin in half. I think you are right, there is no going back. The major issue for me is going back and forth between the U.S. and Europe. Unless I get a prescription in the U.S,, I will need to carry my insulin pens in a cold container.
I am now on 28 units of insulin in the morning and 18 units in the evening and I'm pretty much within range ~70% of the time, which is apparently what they aim for. Haven't cut out any of my other meds yet, so still taking Metformin and Gliclazide too. Diabetes Nurse tried to reassure me that going on to Insulin isn't a one way street but I'm not sure if I could ever get diet, fitness, weight etc to good enough levels to cancel out the need for 46 units of Insulin a day!
 

Ashintheuk

Active Member
Messages
42
Type of diabetes
Reactive hypoglycemia
Treatment type
Insulin
I was in pretty much the same place as you. Diagnosed as a T2 in 2007, went all the way through the oral meds, and in 2019 with my HbA1C above 100, My doc advised me the same. I resisted for about 3 weeks, but got nowhere with dietary changes. Going on insulin was a liberation. My HbA1C dropped to about 55, and the injections whilst a bind are a small price to pay to stay healthy. Insulin is stored at room temperature once started, and will last a month. To be honest, I would expect your insulin dose to be very low initially (below 10 units per day), and the pens are 300 units each, so will last a good while. I have a cool bag for carrying mine when I go to the Med, but in reality, it's not the problem people make it out to be if just going for a couple of weeks. It's prohibitively expensive in the states unless on a health plan, so I'd not be a fan of buying any there. I just took a couple of spare pens of slow acting when I went to Boston in 2019 for 10 days, and brought them back with me as I was only on about 8u then.
I'm now on 32U of basal, and carb count for the bolus at 1u per 10g of carbs if I get a spike after eating (10g of carbs is a digestive biscuit)
 

bmac2560

Member
Messages
9
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
I am now on 28 units of insulin in the morning and 18 units in the evening and I'm pretty much within range ~70% of the time, which is apparently what they aim for. Haven't cut out any of my other meds yet, so still taking Metformin and Gliclazide too. Diabetes Nurse tried to reassure me that going on to Insulin isn't a one way street but I'm not sure if I could ever get diet, fitness, weight etc to good enough levels to cancel out the need for 46 units of Insulin a day!
I had the same hope. I lost over 10 kilos and pretty much stopped eating any carbohydrates. It was not helping, and my numbers were getting worse and worse. My doctor told me that was not sustainable or healthy. Thankfully, I have been able to resume eating some carbs since I started on the insulin. Sometimes it is not our fault.
 
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type2newbie

Member
Messages
21
I was in pretty much the same place as you. Diagnosed as a T2 in 2007, went all the way through the oral meds, and in 2019 with my HbA1C above 100, My doc advised me the same. I resisted for about 3 weeks, but got nowhere with dietary changes. Going on insulin was a liberation. My HbA1C dropped to about 55, and the injections whilst a bind are a small price to pay to stay healthy. Insulin is stored at room temperature once started, and will last a month. To be honest, I would expect your insulin dose to be very low initially (below 10 units per day), and the pens are 300 units each, so will last a good while. I have a cool bag for carrying mine when I go to the Med, but in reality, it's not the problem people make it out to be if just going for a couple of weeks. It's prohibitively expensive in the states unless on a health plan, so I'd not be a fan of buying any there. I just took a couple of spare pens of slow acting when I went to Boston in 2019 for 10 days, and brought them back with me as I was only on about 8u then.
I'm now on 32U of basal, and carb count for the bolus at 1u per 10g of carbs if I get a spike after eating (10g of carbs is a digestive biscuit)
I read something the other day that they are putting an additive into insulin, so that it is easier to store and transport after first use. Not an issue for me as I'm on 48 units a day now. I also have a cool bag which I have transported my pens in and I take a couple of spares too
 

bmac2560

Member
Messages
9
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
I read something the other day that they are putting an additive into insulin, so that it is easier to store and transport after first use. Not an issue for me as I'm on 48 units a day now. I also have a cool bag which I have transported my pens in and I take a couple of spares too
If you don't mind my asking, what is the nature of your cool bag?