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Severe hypo was it something else?

adrian29459

Well-Known Member
Messages
77
Location
Newcastle, England
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
Just in need of some advice, I've had quite a traumatic morning. My dad has liver cirrhosis, getting worse each day, and this morning, for the second time he fell over getting out of bed at 4am. This made quite a thud and quite a shock as you can imagine. After seeing to him and making sure he was well to go till morning I thought good opportunity to test my blood. Came out being 13.1. Seems right since my blood was 13.4 at 11pm.

During the next hour I tried to get to sleep but couldn't with my mind going in circles worrying about my dad. I wake at 5am to find my mam talking to me telling me I had another fit (3rd in three weeks). Following a little hypostop I test my blood to reveal a reading of 13.7 - odd, usually I'm much lower.
I test again in 10 mins time, 14.2.

I'm awake the rest of the morning and test again at 6.45am - 17.0 and then again at 7.00am on a different tester and finger pricker - 21.0.

I would like to know why I fit despite my high blood glucose? I do have a number of potential reasons:
- Having low blood sugars a few times during yesterday.

- Shock from hearing and seeing my dad fallen out his bed.

- Last time I fitted was after having sultana bran for supper

- Worst possibility, me having epilepsy.

I think it could be shock, but its a first.
 
I'll bump your post up so that it doesn't get lost and hope a Type 1 will be around soon to answer. Pity it is holiday time.
 
Adrian, I remember your other thread Going Hypo and Beyond. When I read that I thought that your hypo "fits" may not be a result of hypos. I wonder if the fits really are hypo related, have you discussed this possibility (that they are not hypo related) with your Dr? If you feel they are related to hypos then I can't really think of what might have caused it. I wouldn't have thought you could have a fit as a result of that reading as it's nowhere near hypo level, unless your blood sugar was on a rapid decline. Have you ever used a continuous glucose sensor to get a picture of what your blood sugars are doing over a 24 or 48 hour time period? Sorry I can't be more helpful, I hope your dad is okay after his fall.
 
I second what Sophia says. Talk to your doctor, if he thinks its diabetes-related a continuous sensor would be the way to check it out. They can last up to about 5 days now.

It could be shock/stress, but if you talk to your doctor and he arranges some tests, referral to a neurologist etc, and this doesn't show anything, then reassurance should help settle things down. If it does show something, at least you'll be on the way to sorting it out.

Hope things get better for you and your dad
 
Thanks for the reassurance and advice. I'm going to try and see my diabetes doctor tomorrow in clinic. Last week I actually tried out at a CGM, throughout the week and had a seizure on the Tuesday while wearing it. Hopefully that data might help them but I've also trying to test every 1-2 hours. I record all in graphs and all my adjustments to bolus/basal rates. I'll try get all the data printed tomorrow. I really hopes its not epilepsy. And I especially hope I don't have a seizure this night, making sure I've had a carb-fibre rich cereal of shredded wheat.
 
Hello again. I never really got an answer regarding my previous seizure without being hypo. Today it happened again, woke up 7am with a blood sugar of 11.7, perfectly reasonable and I had planned to go jogging so I tried correcting the blood sugar with a reduced insulin dose of 1.5. I then woke at 7.30am on the floor with my mam treating me following another seizure. After the fit she tested my blood revealing a reading of 11.9.

I'm baffled why I'm having these fits. I seem to have had more fits since being on pump. I've been on pump since January but had 3 seizures in April and this one in May. I'm wondering whether its a problem with my brain or also whether its a fault with the pump. I'm called NHS direct and have an appointment with the local doctors. And also emailed my doctor at the diabetic clinic.
 
Adrian

I personally don't believe that your fitting is anything to do with a pump---unless there is anyway that the batteries from it could interfere with your brain signals...but (I'm not a health professional) I don't see that it could have anything to do with pumping....

Saying that-wearing up a pump, and still waking up to levels of 11, is quite high....I don't know what your hba1c was or what your control was prior to pump though, so you may be trying to bring levels down slowly....so I am not going to make any judgement call as such on that....

How does your Mum help you when you have had a fit? Is she treating you as if you were hypo? Or does she just stay with you until you are out of it....?

Are you having swings in your levels from high to lows?

I know that some people do seem to have a type of seizure with hypo's, BUT you don't appear to be having the seizures under hypo conditions.

I really think you need to get your HCP's to establish what these seizures are being caused by ASAP...
 
Most my wakeup blood sugar levels have been over 10 since the doctor increased my basal rates. I've been working closely with the doctor though, writing down all reading and trying to reduce them to between 6-8. My prior Hba1C was pretty good around 6, but that was before increasing my basal rates. Now its probably a little higher, maybe around 7.

I think when my mam found me I've just about finished fitting. She put a pillow under my head, I was just coming out of the fit a little confused. She then gave me a little hypostop in my mouth. Yeah she treated me assuming I was hypo.

Looking at yesterdays levels they were a little better than early days, a range of between 11 and 5, with most the days figures being 6. Though prior to this blood sugar levels have been a little more eratic just with higher blood sugars first thing in the morning. A few low blood sugars of 3 during the week.

I've managed to get an appointment with my minor injuries unit at my hospital. We'll see what they say.
 
Hi Adrian

I doubt very much that your insulin pump is the cause of the seizures so like littlesue has suggested, you need to get to see your GP and have some tests done to find out what is happening asap. It might be due to the way you move your neck in bed causing the bones to press on a nerve going up to the brain but only tests will be able to reveal this.

I can imagine at the moment, you and your mum are going through a huge amount of stress with your dad's liver condition and that will not be helping your bg control. The cause of the seizures might also be stress related but who knows.......... Sometimes the human body deals with stress, anxiety in odd ways .............
 
Hi Adrian

Thanks for the responses to my questions...which inevitably lead me to more questions...sorry...

Are you hypo aware when your levels get down to less than 4?? Are your parents aware of any differences between the fitting and when you are hypo? For example, with me when Hypo, I can't string a sentence together(-worse than norma)l, AND also my eyes apparently go 'glazed'....Whilst fitting would your Mum be in a position to be able to test your blood at all before giving hypostop?? Just a little hypostop at levels of 11 could swing you quite rapidly higher even still, and then you are on a rollercoaster trying to get your levels back down again.....

Do you alter your basals and bolus by yourself, or totally under the guidance of the Doctors/DSN's? Have you got the confidence and knowledge to change them when you see patterns, or are you relying upon correctional doses afterwards and only acting on advice from the medical professionals?

I know you have a helluva lot to deal with at the moment with your dad, and your stress levels must be raised, and like iHs says this can all have an effect on your body.

I hope that you can get someone to assess your fitting as a matter of urgency....it can't be nice wondering what is causing you these instances of fitting, and the sooner you find out the causation the better.
 
I've wondered whether its stress related, but then it seems odd that it's only happened recently, theres been other stressed times. Not sure it'd be the bones in my neck pressing on a nerve, the fit I had yesterday morning happened while I was up and getting ready.

To answer further questions, my hypo awareness has reduced quite a bit in the past few years and I tend to notice more when my levels are at lower 3's or 2's. Usually my parents or others can notice I act a little silly when I'm hypo, and I go very pale. My mam could try to test my blood but she'd be a bit uneasy, I think she'd prefer to just give me hypostop. My blood sugars did rise following, up to about 14 but they soon dropped to normal.
Recently I have been getting guidance from the doctor, following it through and then making slight changes where required. I write down all my blood glucose readings (about 12), my bolus/corrections, basal rates and carbs I'm eating. While adjusting my basal rates I've been making sure to avoid doing corrections. I also draw up a small graph of the days blood sugars from 7am to 9pm.

So I'm out of hospital now. Came out yesterday at 11pm following 8hrs of waiting to see a doctor and consultant (Not quite urgency..). I managed to see both and they did various standard procedure tests on me, blood test, blood pressure, ECG, etc. They didn't have any answer. They suggested I could stay overnight and talk to the neurologist in the morning, only they weren't certain if he would have time to talk to me. I decided to leave and they said they'll be in touch, sending me an appointment for outpatients. There I'd get a MRI scan and see the neurologist. Right now I wait...
 
An update finally! I've not had any fits since the last one I described on May 7th. I've been on a trial using a new CBGM, the Medtronic Enlite. The device was very helpful and relatively easy to install, with each sensor lasting 6 days. I did find fault though with its accuracy reducing over usuage, especially during last two days. It was great to have the option to see my blood sugar at any point during the day, being updated every 5mins, without needing another finger prick. Its hypo detection was sometimes a little off but being able to see patterns, determine whether sugars are rising/falling slowly or quickly was very helpful. Now I'm back to finger pricking.

I finally got to see a neurologist on Monday. Its good and bad news I suppose, I know why I've had the last two fits (and any unexplainable ones in the past), the bad news being that I have epilepsy. They're gonna prescribe and put me on a small dosage of Lamotrigine which they'll gradually increase over time.

Hopefully the drug stops me having any more seizures. I've moved out my parents home into a house of my own. Just living alone but have my sister living around the corner and parents not too far away. I don't know why I've gotten epilepsy. Could of been the stress I felt with the current condition of my father and/or the build up of several seizures I've had each year.
 

Hi,

sorry to hear of your diagnosis, My ex-partner has epilesy and used to take lamotrigine which actually worked pretty well once built up to the dose that was required. She was diagnosed when 20yrs old and it first came about when she was on the bus and woke up to find she was in hospital, but now is seizure-free and drives too

Like diabetes, epilepsy can be quite hard to pin-point the exact cause/trigger. Many people have just one seizure then it never happens again.

I hope you get it all under control soon.

I'd love to trial a CGM but to be honest i don't think i need one, there are many others like yourself that use them to figure out things that seem impossible to solve! They may not work perfectly 24/7 but from what i've read they can be pretty good! but also expensive!
 
Thanks for replying. It makes me feel much better to hear about your ex-partner, especially now that she's driving. I think the sooner the better with these Lamotrigine tablets, especially now I'm on my own.

I might still get some CGM's for the future, like you say, they're expensive so I'd just buy a few for times when I need them like exercise events such as Great North Run.
 
I'm sorry to hear that you have epilepsy, but at the same time I am pleased that you have a diagnosis and can start treatment for it. My father had one fit following a car accident, he was given medication and never had another one since. I hope that you too will be able to control your epilepsy and feel confident about living on your own and being more independent.
 

Glad it makes you feel better, epilepsy can be controlled very well once you find your balance of meds. A woman at work has recently been diagnosed after having seizures on and off for a few years, she has a brain virus a while ago which wasn't good at all so they think thats what triggered it for her, she's also taking lamotrogine too aswell as a couple others to try find a good balance.

I think it's a good idea to buy them and save them for things like that. It's great you do things like that, it's not my diabetes that stops me from doing things like that, it's my general un-fitness :lol:

Good luck
 
Sorry to hear about your diagnosis Adrian, but as said before, at least now you have a diagnosis and a plan. It's great that you'd already gone several weeks without a fit even before the diagnosis.
 
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