Started Byetta yesterday and .........

When I took it I felt v.nauseous for several hours after the injection, even after the first one, but I think it's different for everyone: some people probably don't feel anything, others probably feel really ill, some feel bad straightaway, others after a while and some never at all...hopefully you're one of the lucky "feel fine" ones

Natalie x

When I first started I noticed the nausea about 2 hours after injecting, 6 days on and the nausea is still present but I understand that the nausea affects women more than men, I don't know if that applies to you or not.

Perhaps you will be one of the lucky few not to experience any side effects, great news on your sugars coming down.

Hi John and welcome to the lizard spit users club!

Sounds like you may have got away with the nausea - if you are going to suffer then it tends to be pretty immediate. As you are on gliclazide as well as Byetta you will need to keep a very close eye on your sugar levels. Gliclazide works by forcing the pancreas to produce insulin, regardless of whether it is needed or not. Your pancreas will only stop insulin production once the gliclazide wears off (usually at around 4-6 hours). Byetta also triggers your pancreas to produce insulin - so you could end up over-producing insulin, with resultant hypos.

When patients who are already on gliclazide (or any of the other sulphonylurea meds) are put on Byetta, the first thing their doctors usually do is to reduce the gliclazide dose (usually by half). As the Byetta gets to work and your blood sugar levels fall, you should find that you will need less and less gliclazide and will probably be able to come off it completely within the next 6 months. If your doctor hasn't reduced your gliclazide dose then perhaps you should question why not, because you are currently getting a double hit of insulin.

The Byetta user guide leaflet is pretty good so if you are following their instructions then you are doing it properly. There is also a very good website http://www.byetta.com that has more information that you might find useful.

12mm is the longest needle you can get. As you know, you have to inject below the fat layer so if you are very obese then it should be ok. Most people use the 8mm needles. But whichever length you have make sure they are 31 gauge - these are the finest gauge and are painless to inject. Some of the larger gauge needles feel like you are injecting with a rusty drainpipe!!

Let us know how you get on - and please keep a watch for hypos.

Hi John,
That's a relief - your surgery does seem to be on the ball - but still keep a watch for hypos.

DVLA are only interested in byetta if you have a group 2 licence. See this link:

http://www.dvla.gov.uk/medical/Treatmen ... atide.aspx

If you are a car driver then they don't need to know. But it is a good idea to check on the DVLA website occasionally because they have changed their minds about byetta 3 times this year alone.

If your insurance company already knows that you are diabetic then you don't need to advise them about your medication unless you become insulin-dependent. If you haven't told the insurers about your diabetes then you must do so as soon as possible. In 99% of cases they don't do anything except make a note on your record. But if they don't know that you are diabetic and you were to have an accident of any kind, regardless of who is at fault, then they can refuse to cover you on the basis that you have witheld information that might have influenced their decision over whether to insure you. You don't want to give them a get-out clause!