Newly diagnosed, blurry vision since rapid bg drop.

Buffdaddy123

Active Member
Messages
38
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
My name is Owen, I am a 40 year old male (soon to be 41 I 2 weeks time)

I am a very newly diagnosed adult to Diabetes,

A quick overlay of my story,....

Drinking lots and urinating in night, but also for I was suffering with thrush regularly for a few months even though I was taking the medication to clear it each time,

Anyway last Thursday morning I was at my Parents house and knowing my Father is a Type 2 after explaining my symptoms to them they proceeded to do 2 BS tests on my finger....1 st was 22.4 2nd was 19.8, I did not feel unwell in any other way but went to see the Nurse.

She did a BS test a few blood tests, and told me to wait for results next day, so Friday came she rang me confirming I am Diabetic, I went down to her with Urine sample for Keytones...

Once I arrived and she tested it I was sent to Hospital to get a little insulin to get me over weekend as she didn't want to leave me over weekend,

So over weekend I have been eating well, doing regular BS tests myself as well as insulin..

Gradually going down, and Monday was told to up my 2 last insulins of the day from 2 to 4 units.... Did this and seems to be coming down ..

My reason for coming here for advice is I have found last night I started suffering with blurry vision, I didn't have any of this when I was up in the 22 area, and have read that this is normal to get this when you drop quite quickly, I am now down in the 9.2 this morning.

I really would just like reassuring that this can happen when dropping quickly, and that I did read correctly that your eyes do have to readjust to the lower pressure after being used to the high BS for so long,

After visiting the Nurse Wednesday i have now been taking Metformin 500mg once a day (but going to 2 a day today as not getting any side effects).

Can someone just reassure me that this blurry ness will gradually ease off..if i go outside its almost gone but indoors in lower light i need to use some reading glasses to see ipad books etc...

My readings for the last few days are as follows...4 tests a day Morning, Lunch, Dinner all before meals and before bed....

Fri / 17.7 13.4 16.2
Sat 11.4. 14.1 16.7 14.1
Sun 9.2 12.6 10.7 12.4
Mon 11.0 10.9 13.0 13.8
Tue 9.5. 11.9 13.5 10.3
We'd 9.4 11.4 8.1 5.3
Thu 7.0 7.1 8.7 9.1
Fri 7.6 8.1 7.6 7.2
Sat 8.2 9.6 7.3 5.9
Sun 7.8 6.4



These are my readings so far, I was on Novarapid (2) for first 3 shots of day, then Levemir (2) for 4 th of day, but from Monday 3rd and 4th doses were upped to (4) units

I hope this is easy to understand, many thx if you have taken the time to read all this for me
Cheers
Owen
 
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daisy1

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@Buffdaddy123

Hello Owen and welcome to the forum :)

Here is the information we give to new members which I hope will be useful to you. Carry on asking questions and someone will come along and help.


BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEWLY DIAGNOSED DIABETICS

Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.

A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you’ll find over 150,000 people who are demonstrating this.

On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.

The role of carbohydrate

Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.

If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.

The bad news

Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.

The good news

People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.

Controlling your carbs

The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.
There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:

  • Reduce your carbohydrate intake
  • Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates

Reduce your carbohydrates

A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.

The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.

Choosing better carbohydrates

Another option is to replace ‘white carbohydrates’ (such as white bread, white rice, white flour etc) with whole grain varieties. The idea behind having whole grain varieties is that the carbohydrates get broken down slower than the white varieties –and these are said to have a lower glycaemic index.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/food/diabetes-and-whole-grains.html

The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.

Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes

Eating what works for you

Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.

To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.

The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:

Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes
  • Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)
  • Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)
  • Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l
However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

Access to blood glucose test strips

The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:

  • structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
  • self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education

Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to bloodglucose testing supplies.

You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic

Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.
 

Buffdaddy123

Active Member
Messages
38
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi Catinahat, when you say you experienced the same do you mean with the close up vision blurring from dropping quick...did it subside after time?

And thanks for reply, been overwelming this first week, and i have got upset a couple of times, thats why i was just hoping someone else lost there close vision temporary to make me a little at ease,

I am now going to cut my carbs down a good deal and hope i can get the numbers down into the 6ish area.
And adding my second Metformin to my intake from today..

Nice to have found a great forum like this.
 

urbanracer

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Hi Owen, welcome to the club.

Yes, as catinahat wrote, blurred vision is normal while adjusting glucose levels. I did see someone write on these pages that if you bring your sugar levels down too quickly it can do permanent damage but I don't know much about the technical side of this.
 
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Buffdaddy123

Active Member
Messages
38
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi Urbanracer, thanks for info, well i am hoping and praying that it does rectify over time, and hope that i havent caused any permanent damage, when i go outside in daylight i can almost see clearly, but when i come indoors it goes off again.. very strange,.

Its crazy how i was walking around with a 22 BG level and have near perfect eyesight, but within 4 days of taking Insulin once i drop my BS level a bit my close up vision goes to hell...

I almost wish i had not started the medication, but of course i know if i left it i would have had more serious complications on the way and been a dead man walkin
 

Jo123

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717
I would be on to my gp first thing Monday morning about my blurred vision, I wouldn't be happy speaking to the nurse.

Sorry if this worries you but better to be safe than sorry.
 
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noblehead

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Certainly mention the blurry vision to your diabetes team @Buffdaddy123, but as said already blurry vision in the first few weeks of diagnosis is quite common and usually settles down after good bg control is achieved, welcome to the forum btw :)
 
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Ambersilva

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715
Type of diabetes
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Insulin
Buffdaddy123 wrote:

Its crazy how i was walking around with a 22 BG level and have near perfect eyesight, but within 4 days of taking Insulin once i drop my BS level a bit my close up vision goes to hell..

Hi @Buffdaddy123

I am normally a spectacle wearer to correct long vision. In the weeks before diabetic diagnosis I had wonderfully sharp vision with no need for correction lenses. Within a few days of injecting insulin, blurred vision took over. I couldn't even see the black hands on my white faced bedside clock. Over the weeks I returned to my original prescription lenses. However. my vision still improves as my blood sugar rises.
 
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Buffdaddy123

Active Member
Messages
38
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
Thanks for the above replies and hello to you all too.

I have mentioned it to my Nurse and she said its normal and will get better, but what got me worried was that it was just the close up thats gone and not the overall vision..no one ive found seemed to localize their symptoms to close field blurring.

When in my Asda yesterday i mentioned it to an optician while i purchased a pair of reading glasses and he seemed to think that the vision will not come back fully back if any !...he said its normally the overall vision that goes blurry so i may be stuck with it, this is why i am a little anxious, its strange if i go outside in daylight it seems to come better and i can read receipts and letters ok compared to low light.

On my most recent BG test i was 6.4, if i could start staying at these levels i would be happy
 
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Dizz

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114
Type of diabetes
Type 2
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Tablets (oral)
Hello Owen, I was diagnosed about 4 weeks ago and my vision has gone blurry too - just nearsight though, which sounds just like you. I mentioned it to my doctor on Tuesday and she confirmed it is perfectly normal and will gradually subside, so please don't panic!
 
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Buffdaddy123

Active Member
Messages
38
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
Thanks for that link Cat, that looks promising, i will go a few more days and hopefully if i get my levels a bit lower i may see improvement. I suppose this only happened Tuesday night so im only at the 5th day and i am taking insulin so maybe there is just "normal" side effects going on.

I appreciate the time you are spending on me, its great that there are people around like you kind folks on here to help people like us x
 
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Ambersilva

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We usually see better in bright light because the iris reacts to the brightness making the pupil smaller and gives a long focal length. In dim lighting the iris opens to let in more light and gives a short focal length.

Just like a camera lens, the smaller the aperture, the longer the focal length with more of the image in sharp focus. With the tiniest aperture most of the image will be in sharp focus to infinity. To obtain a photographic image with the subject in focus but with the foreground or background blurred we open the aperture wide for a short focal length.

As we get older the system works less efficiently and we need help to keep things in focus.
 
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Buffdaddy123

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Messages
38
Type of diabetes
Type 2
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Insulin
Thx for replies Ambersilva and Dizz,

Dizz have you noticed if you go outside it gets better to, so if im looking at a book indoors its blurry, then if i go outside the book comes into focus..And did your Doctor seem concerned at all or just like its normal...

Ambersilva thanks for that detailed explanation, very informative
 
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Dizz

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114
Type of diabetes
Type 2
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Tablets (oral)
Thx for replies Ambersilva and Dizz,

Dizz have you noticed if you go outside it gets better to, so if im looking at a book indoors its blurry, then if i go outside the book comes into focus..And did your Doctor seem concerned at all or just like its normal...

Ambersilva thanks for that detailed explanation, very informative
Yes, I hardly notice it outside, and no, my doctor wasn't at all concerned - she didn't even feel the need to look into my eyes, she said it is quite normal and not to worry it would resolve itself in time (amount of time varies though). I have a pair of reading specs from the 99p shop and can read perfectly with them!
 
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Buffdaddy123

Active Member
Messages
38
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
Yes ive purchased some myself, so you are exactly like me, blurry vision up close viewing, which seems better outside, and good distance nomal vision all times, how long did you have it or have it? are you on insulin like me ?
 
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Dizz

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Messages
114
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
I'm not on insulin, I'm on Metformin and Gliclazide and have cut back on carbs and sweet foods. My BG has come down a bit slower than yours but I first noticed it about 2 weeks ago so hopefully it will normalise soon. My distance viewing is fine too.
 
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Buffdaddy123

Active Member
Messages
38
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
Ah, Dizz, its so good to hear from someone with exact same issue as me, i must admit ive been worried and also have had a couple of breakdowns today..i know man up!!
just think things got on top of me today, but i am feeling a little more positive for now from what you have said. thank you, and good luck to you too.
 

Dizz

Well-Known Member
Messages
114
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Ah, Dizz, its so good to hear from someone with exact same issue as me, i must admit ive been worried and also have had a couple of breakdowns today..i know man up!!
just think things got on top of me today, but i am feeling a little more positive for now from what you have said. thank you, and good luck to you too.
Aww darlin' don't worry, it's horrible at first, so much to take in. Have to say I do wonder why doctors/specialist nurses don't warn you about this eyesight issue, like you I was really worried at first but was so relieved to find others here on this wonderful forum that had suffered the same. And then as I say, my lovely doctor has confirmed it's nothing to worry about.

Try and get some sleep and try not to panic, it's not all bad even though you might think it is right now. x
 
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