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lower sugar in 3 months or insulin

Frenchclass

Member
Messages
24
Location
Brittany
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Firstly I live and an being treated in France. I have been type 2 for over 10 year and initially controlled with exercise and diet. 4 years ago I was diaganosed with cancer from asbestos (mesothelioma) I was gived 5 year but treatment is keeping it at bay but I have low dose chemo every 3 weeks and have done for 3 years.
My sugar levers go very high with chemo, so obviously my A1C has crept up from low 7s to 8.5 but my last one was 9. I did have flu injection with last chemo which gave me flu symtoms for 2 weeks, I am also very tired often which makes exercise a trial, but I can do better, I am not overweight and I learnt enough in my initial years to know what I should eat and to exercise, but have been slack on this as I said.

I have just had 2 days testing in hospital, part of the treatment in France. All was OK apart form my A!C going up to 9, I am on metformin 850 x 3 a day due to my chemo. The doctor said I have 3 months to get it down or have to go on Insulin, which I really do not want to. I know I can exercise more, which is a great help and change my diet so I know I will get it down.
However he has given me Januvia 100 one a day as well as metformin, this has dropped my readings dramatically even in the first few days. I would normally be 8.5 to 10 in the mornings which gave me average A!C of 8, now I am 6 I have never been that low, but I feel bad and am having a job to eat an evening meal.

Questions.
Do I drop one of my metformins apart from the first week of chemo, so I eat and feel better as I feel I am taking too much medication.

If I have to go on Insulin will it be daily injections, weighing food etc.I really do not want to do this on top of putting up with my cancer treatment.

My doctor said with chemo 8 to 8.3 would be OK, so I really need to get back there.
 
Hi @Frenchclass Neither I, or anyone else on this forum can advise you on your medication, and whether you should or should not alter you prescription, so on that one please talk to your Dr.
Many people (me included) feel a bit 'off' when our Blood Sugars drop to a range that we have not experienced for a while. In time that will go away. As for eating, if you don't feel hungry, don't eat! Metformin is known as an appetite suppressant. Each time you eat you produce insulin. If you are Insulin Resistant then not eating will help you. That said, again please talk to your Dr first. Have a search for Jason Fung among others.
Hope it goes well for you, and you reduce your Blood Sugars
 
Regarding the exercise, I can well understand that with your health history and current challenges that may be hard to do. Some research has suggested that walking 10 to 20 minutes after meals may help post prandial bg levels. There is a thread about this in the exercise section further down. It appears people have benefitted from this even when the walking was at a moderate or slow pace. I thought that might be something doable for you on the way to more demanding exercise.

I spend weeks in France (Alpes de Haute Provence) on holiday every year. Whereabouts are you?
 
Hi Alex
I know I should walk the dog more often than I do as I did control with exercise in the past. Chemo really drains me but it is no exscuse. However, I usually have to lie down for an hour or so after a walk or mild chores as I just have run out of energy, but my levels are always slightly lower the next day. I just need to get my act together

I live in Brittany and work as an estate agent under a large company but am self, employed so handy I can choose my hours when I an really tired.
 
Hi Walnut
Yes I will go to the Doctor although it has only been a few days, I just wanted a bit of feedback on Januvia as it seems to be working well but I hate taking all that metformin.
 

Hi there, you say that you were originally controlled with diet and exercise, what diet were you you using? are there are further adjustments that could help in terms of reducing carbs and increasing fats ( except vegetable oils)
 
Hi Cherry
The diet was just cut out sugar and high carb food as much as I could and smaller portions, i.e. eat what I needed not what I wanted to eat. I had quite a normal diet but also swam 50 lenths 3 times a week. Once the exercise kicked in I really ate what I wanted within reason.
I have always been able to eat a lot and not put on weight but in later years half a stone made a differnce, so lot it again. I really am less active with the chemo, I do not really over eat, but know I can change my diet a bit which will help. The French are mostly slim as they have a bigger meal at midday, and we tend to eat our big meal at 7pm which is wrong, but try telling my partner that and she just loves to cook!!!
 
From taking Januvia I now have had low reading 6 to 7(prior 10 to 12 ) in the morning and at about 10 pm a similar reading. The problem is that at about 6 pm I get a bad acid stomach so cannot eat an evening meal, maybe a sandwich and a banana. I also get it in bed and have to take a tablet. I feel this is due to the new tablet Januvia which is working well, but i do feel I could drop one of the metformins which I have hoping it will not effect my stomach so much and my reading are still a lot lower than they were before.

It is difficult to talk to my dabetic doctor as I have to make an appointment and I have only just seen him. My A1C will be a lot lower in 3 months and because of my chemo he is happy with around 8 and I know it will be a low lwer than this going by my daily readings. I will see what happens when I have chemo on Friday an might well take the 3rd Metformin for the first week. I do not want to lose any weight so I have to eat and I do feel all the metformin is now affecting my eating too much.

It is hard enough having chemo ever 3 weeks, but I cope well I feel, but to have this low appetite and bad stomach as well makes it a bigger struggle so I am doing whatI feel is best for me, and sometimes we have to do that.
 
Good luck getting back to exercise. Like you I find with exercise I can eat well and my weight stays low. Dreading an injury as it would really change my way of life.
 
Bread and banana are high carb foods - there are far better things to have on the menu if you want to reduce your blood glucose levels naturally. If you want something light in the evenings then maybe an omelette, salad, Greek yogurt, rather than a heavy carb option.
 
A low-er carb diet should help more than stressful exercise. Stressful exercise puts my bgs up.
Try reducing carbs in your diet further and see if doctor is then happy to reduce metformin?
By the way, if one day you have no choice but insulin its not horrendous. I dont have to measure my food. Majority of Type2s arent as severely uncontrolled as most type1s. Our bgs change alot slower and we're able to catch hypos early if we test sensibly.
 

Hi Resurgam
Yes I realise they are high carbs but i felt so bad it was all I could face and my sugar readings are well down so just trying to keep my energy level up to face the chemo.
 
Thanks for all the replies and just to let you know that my asbestos cancer was diagnosed 4 years ago and I was given about 5 years to live as only 5 to 7 % of people with mesothelioma last 5 years, it is virtually incurable.
However I have had good results with chemo keeping it at bay and my specialists feels I have a few more years yet if it keeps up. If I can keep my A1C at a resonable level (8) to give me a little extra quality of life then I will be happy. Sometimes I do go off the rails so probably just needed a wake up call to get me back on track.
 
It is a lot harder to manage diabetes when other illnesses need priority. Luckily we have support of meds, if no choice, to get through the worse times.
I still haven't accepted insulin for life.
Only if I get told no insulin of my own or damaged insulin receptors due to longterm diabetes would I give up the idea of coming off insulin, eventually. But that's my personal choice. We all have our own difficulties, in life.
Multipal illnesses can be very very challenging.
 
I think you are being very courageous and also sensible. As I understand it, the effects of raised bg are mostly medim to long term. The occasional comforting banana is not going to sink your ship! We all have to set our own priorities and make our own compromises, day by day. Congratulations on your survival up to now. You must be doing something right! Also, cancer treatments have progressed out of sight and will doubtless continue to do so. I have an elderly running friend who was diagnosed with a blood cancer. Due to his GP's criminal neglect, it was diagnosed late, after a lot of damage had been done. Frankly, I thought he was a goner. But like you he has survived several years with intermittent treatments and his quality of life is good. He still rushes off on multiple foreign holidays per year and still participates in 5k parkruns, albeit more walking than running. I trust you too will be around for the foreseeable future, and continuing to participate in this forum. Good luck!
 
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