• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

Type 2 Metformin side effects

Binky75 said:
I was on high levels of Atorvastatin when first diagnosed and got the the point where I couldnt walk up the stairs without shooting pains in my hips, knees and ankles. I changed doctors and the first thing they did was reduce my Atorvastatin down to 10mg a day and within two days things were back to normal. For me I HAVE to take my Metformin straight after eating otherwise the diarrhea hits the next day. My doctor also lowered the morning dose and that seemed to help a lot.

Hope that helps
Click to expand...

Hi, my dr has just agreed to a one moth trial without Metformin this will be followed by month without the statin, that way we should have a clearer idea of which direction I should follow.
Thanks for your help it’s much appreciated, cheers Bob...
 
ataxpc said:
Hi, your right the (Mediterranean) diet as is didn’t exist, however the diet sheet I was given back then was very similar. I have tried a fasting low calorie diet but it’s not for me, my sugars were all over the place, dr advised me to stop it.
.
Click to expand...
A low carbohydrate diet.. not a low calorie diet. It's the way a lot of us have got blood sugars under control without meds or insulin. I was wondering if you had thought of giving it a go. You'll need to watch out for hypos if you are injecting as it has been known to have speedy effects on blood sugar levels.
 
ataxpc said:
Good morning fellow sufferers, I've just had yet another sleepless night and I'm getting miffed.
I have been a type 2 Diabetic for more than ten years, at first like a lot of you, I controlled it with a strict regime of diet and excercise, sadly this did not last and I was put on Metformin, (I think this is where all my problems started).
Over the years my Metformin was increased (along with the side effects) and I was started on Insulin injections, my medication is now: 1500mg Metformin daily and Insulin at 58ml twice daily. My B/S are stable at between 5.0 and 6.5.
My side effects that started with Metformin medication include: very, very heavy sweating, joint and muscle pain, excessive gas, diahorrea and feeling tired and feeble all the time, (is it any wonder I can't sleep), all these symptoms have increased in intensity as my medication was increased.
I have spoken to my hard pressed G.P. about this, sadly he was more interested (and not surprisingly) in my heart.
Phew, now for my question, is there an alternative to Metformin?, I have heard that N.I.C.E. have supported three new drugs to support us, has anyone any idea if this is true? and if so what are they called?
I wonder, does anybody else suffer with my kind of side effects? and if so what do you do to ease the discomfort?
Thank you in advance and keep up the good work, this forum is brilliant...
Click to expand...
I had 5 year of hell on Metformin SR eventually stopped taking it, now on Nova mix 30 without any side effects really.
 
ataxpc said:
Good morning fellow sufferers, I've just had yet another sleepless night and I'm getting miffed.
I have been a type 2 Diabetic for more than ten years, at first like a lot of you, I controlled it with a strict regime of diet and excercise, sadly this did not last and I was put on Metformin, (I think this is where all my problems started).
Over the years my Metformin was increased (along with the side effects) and I was started on Insulin injections, my medication is now: 1500mg Metformin daily and Insulin at 58ml twice daily. My B/S are stable at between 5.0 and 6.5.
My side effects that started with Metformin medication include: very, very heavy sweating, joint and muscle pain, excessive gas, diahorrea and feeling tired and feeble all the time, (is it any wonder I can't sleep), all these symptoms have increased in intensity as my medication was increased.
I have spoken to my hard pressed G.P. about this, sadly he was more interested (and not surprisingly) in my heart.
Phew, now for my question, is there an alternative to Metformin?, I have heard that N.I.C.E. have supported three new drugs to support us, has anyone any idea if this is true? and if so what are they called?
I wonder, does anybody else suffer with my kind of side effects? and if so what do you do to ease the discomfort?
Thank you in advance and keep up the good work, this forum is brilliant...
Click to expand...
I will be very interested to see the outcome of you medication testing as I have all the same symptoms and have been put on sleep meds as I have been throwing myself with 3 to 4 hrs a night sleep
 
ataxpc said:
Good morning fellow sufferers, I've just had yet another sleepless night and I'm getting miffed.
I have been a type 2 Diabetic for more than ten years, at first like a lot of you, I controlled it with a strict regime of diet and excercise, sadly this did not last and I was put on Metformin, (I think this is where all my problems started).
Over the years my Metformin was increased (along with the side effects) and I was started on Insulin injections, my medication is now: 1500mg Metformin daily and Insulin at 58ml twice daily. My B/S are stable at between 5.0 and 6.5.
My side effects that started with Metformin medication include: very, very heavy sweating, joint and muscle pain, excessive gas, diahorrea and feeling tired and feeble all the time, (is it any wonder I can't sleep), all these symptoms have increased in intensity as my medication was increased.
I have spoken to my hard pressed G.P. about this, sadly he was more interested (and not surprisingly) in my heart.
Phew, now for my question, is there an alternative to Metformin?, I have heard that N.I.C.E. have supported three new drugs to support us, has anyone any idea if this is true? and if so what are they called?
I wonder, does anybody else suffer with my kind of side effects? and if so what do you do to ease the discomfort?
Thank you in advance and keep up the good work, this forum is brilliant...
Click to expand...
I struggled with Metformin and Cholopropamide 30 years ago. The latter was on a maximum dose and I couldn't take anymore. The Metformin affected me mentally. I became extremely angry and short tempered, to the point where I'll admit that I was potentially dangerous. I couldn't stand the stuff anymore and elected to go onto Insulin, despite being scared of needles. 30 years later, it was one of the best decisions that I ever made, second only to my decision to marry my wife, who has been monumental in my life and has supported me throughout my time with Diabetes and life's struggles.
 
QPR4Me said:
I struggled with Metformin and Cholopropamide 30 years ago. The latter was on a maximum dose and I couldn't take anymore. The Metformin affected me mentally. I became extremely angry and short tempered, to the point where I'll admit that I was potentially dangerous. I couldn't stand the stuff anymore and elected to go onto Insulin, despite being scared of needles. 30 years later, it was one of the best decisions that I ever made, second only to my decision to marry my wife, who has been monumental in my life and has supported me throughout my time with Diabetes and life's struggles.
Click to expand...

Bless you
 
heli2010 said:
I will be very interested to see the outcome of you medication testing as I have all the same symptoms and have been put on sleep meds as I have been throwing myself with 3 to 4 hrs a night sleep
Click to expand...

Hi, as I continue with the trials I shall be updating here, probably weekly, thanks for your interest, cheers Bob...
 
ataxpc said:
Good morning fellow sufferers, I've just had yet another sleepless night and I'm getting miffed.
I have been a type 2 Diabetic for more than ten years, at first like a lot of you, I controlled it with a strict regime of diet and excercise, sadly this did not last and I was put on Metformin, (I think this is where all my problems started).
Over the years my Metformin was increased (along with the side effects) and I was started on Insulin injections, my medication is now: 1500mg Metformin daily and Insulin at 58ml twice daily. My B/S are stable at between 5.0 and 6.5.
My side effects that started with Metformin medication include: very, very heavy sweating, joint and muscle pain, excessive gas, diahorrea and feeling tired and feeble all the time, (is it any wonder I can't sleep), all these symptoms have increased in intensity as my medication was increased.
I have spoken to my hard pressed G.P. about this, sadly he was more interested (and not surprisingly) in my heart.
Phew, now for my question, is there an alternative to Metformin?, I have heard that N.I.C.E. have supported three new drugs to support us, has anyone any idea if this is true? and if so what are they called?
I wonder, does anybody else suffer with my kind of side effects? and if so what do you do to ease the discomfort?
Thank you in advance and keep up the good work, this forum is brilliant...
Click to expand...
Dear fellow sufferer, as you are feeling tired and feeble all the time with joint and muscle pain, I would get your doctor to check your Vitamin B12 levels as these can drop as a side effect of being on Metformin long term
 
ataxpc said:
Hi, my dr has just agreed to a one moth trial without Metformin this will be followed by month without the statin, that way we should have a clearer idea of which direction I should follow.
Thanks for your help it’s much appreciated, cheers Bob...
Click to expand...
Although I felt better after stopping the statin and metformin, it took quite some time for all the effects to subside - more than a month. The pain which hung on in my leg lasted 18 months, then one day I woke up and realized it was gone.
The memory loss has reduced with lots of rereading - but I find it so hard to learn anything new now. It is so annoying when I used to be able to remember words and tunes so easily. I will never really need to know the big speeches of Mark Anthony or King Henry which I learned at school - but I could reel them out even after 40 years - but not after Metformin and Atorvastatin.
 
LisbethE said:
Dear fellow sufferer, as you are feeling tired and feeble all the time with joint and muscle pain, I would get your doctor to check your Vitamin B12 levels as these can drop as a side effect of being on Metformin long term
Click to expand...

Hi and thanks for the advice, I’m going to give it a check, cheers Bob...
 
SZB2357 said:
but how can one control cholesterol without statins....my readings were very high when my statins were stopped for two months once
Click to expand...

Eat a low carb diet. Low carb and high good fat helps lower cholesterol over several months. Your triglycerides will lower and HDL(good cholesterol) will rise. Try it, you will find your blood sugars much better controlled.
 
If you're still eating high carb whilst on metformin, that can lead to the issues you describe. Lower the carbs and ask for slow release metformin.
 
bulkbiker said:
Well the first thing you need to know is whether you should be "controlling" cholesterol at all. For older women a higher reading is considered protective.
Click to expand...
Actually it was not only that my Total Cholesterol was high with no statins but my Triglycerides were high too.....how to lower the triglycerides at least if not the total count?
 
Back
Top