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My 1st ketosis experience ?

anna29

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Location
Preston Lancashire
Type of diabetes
Type 2
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Hi all.
Last night awoke at 3.45am ... not feeling quite right !
After just lying feeling limp mentally n physically I dragged myself up to take my BG level .
[sat up in bed] was 4.2 but wasnt shaky or anything , had banging headache with sore throat n earache
I slowly realised this tho - It was a gradual awareness thing!
My husband woke up then to tell me he could smell a real STRONG smell coming from me ,
I was both shocked and bit insulted to tell the truth [ charming!!! I was thinking ]
I sat up for the next hour wondering what ? - what? was going on . . . ?
Eventually I started to eat 4 dextro tablets , and then felt so thirsty staggered up to the bathroom
to drink 3 huge cups of water! This just kicked in and was so sudden .
Then felt better - and drifted off back to sleeep .
At 9am hubby came in to tell me he thought the smell was very strong cider apples / pear drop smelling!
Has this actually been my 1st ketosis experience???
Am only 3 weeks into my new insulin hypurin porcine isophane, take 24 units twice daily.
I woke up feeling weird and not quite right, then sudden chronic thirst whilst eating 4 dextrose tablets, n hubby wakes up and tells me I stink!
Am still knackerd from it too ... Is this normal ?
Is this 'what' actually happened?
What is/are the correct things to do [if] this ever happens again?
Am still learning as I go along here!!!!
Anna.x
 
Ketosis, caused by eating low-carb and your body burning fat, can produce a pear-drops type smell on the breath. Ketosis itself isn't generally harmful.

Ketoacidosis, the dangerous one, is I believe usually accompanied by high blood glucose readings. Your description of your other symptoms sounds to me more as if you were going hypo.

But I'm Type 2 and not on insulin; a Type 1 could probably advise you better.

Viv 8)
 
Hi.
Thanks for your post viv.
Better explain things more .
I did only have a boiled egg plus small "crustless" quiche salad for my evening meal last night. [low carb and deliberate too!]
As am sooo weight gain concious and phobic, as my DSN knows ! [keep reminding her of this fact...]
I do work hard with my food plans and regime.
My last nights BG levels were higher than the normal 14.7 [but as had taken my insulin didnt worry over it]
Was bit stunned to see the 4.2 they were this morning at 4.15am tho ! :shock:
Have had cramping stomach ache too the last 3 days, thought it was my bowels playing up?
I took my 24 units insulin at 7pm as I normally do , this covers me for the night as a background basal.
Hubby said it was a really STRONG smell and it was THIS that wakened him as I never smell like this... !
[I was still insulted 'like!' ]
I can only and do eat small liter bite meals. Little n often keeps me fuelled up nicely I find.Plus keeps my weight
stable...
Never ever had this kind of experience before .
Had a shower and will drown myself in perfume later! :lol:
Anna.x
 
Just want to say i don't think it's down to low carb, I was admitted in 2010 with ketoacidosis and I don't low carb.
 
Hello Anna

If you haven't got any do go to a pharmacy and get yourself some Ketostix as they will determine the level of keytones in your urine. Usually urine will be a dark yellow colour and yes you will smell a bit. Are you drinking a glass of water every hour to flush the keytones out of your body? That usually works as well as getting bg levels ok again.

Maybe tonight get up at 2am and test your bg to see how low it has gone and if it has dropped a bit too much you can eat a small carb snack.
 
Hi.
Thanks for the reply iHs .
Apppreciate it as am 'new' to this ketosis stuff !
Will try n wake up at 2am [am knakered up today ] n test then.
Does your 'wee' smell too ?
Only hubby says the strong smell was coming from my breath !
Actually do have some ketostix that my GP provided me with, but with feeling so strange
I completely " forgot" to test using them! silly I know . . .
Am drinking plenty today, but it was a 'raging thirst' this early morning [never had it so bad before]
With it being my 1st experience , I should be wiser if ever there's a next time .
Anna.x
 
yes urine will smell as well....... something like rotting fish I believe.

Use the Ketostix to measure the level of keytones and if its not all that high, then drink water every hour and make sure bg levels are ok. When DKA is on the cards is when sickness accompanies the keytones at a high level and the bg levels also remain at a high level. That's when a trip to A&E is urgently needed otherwise drowsiness and falling into a coma type state can happen.
 
Anna... what you describe sounds like hypo symptoms.

If you are on a low carb diet then the presence of keytones and associated symptoms is not something to overly concern yourself with if you are still maintaining good blood glucose control and injecting insulin..

DKA (the dangerous one!) is caused by a lack of insulin.. as your body can't burn glucose it begins the process of burning fatty acids.. at the same time insulin also regulates the release of glucose from your liver.. as you have no insulin you liver begins a glucose dump.. this raises blood glucose levels... at this point your body is now processing sugar into your urine causing you to constantly go to the loo... this dehydrates you and forces your body to flush other essential minerals such as potassium, calcium, phosphate, etc ... consequently your body can not process the keytones via urination and they quickly overwhelm your system. No body is 100% sure why but at some point this causes Cerebral edema (brain swelling).. this can be fatal.
 
 
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