Type 2 Suddenly Getting Low Blood Sugars

Hi folks,
I've been type 2 for about 6 years now and if I'm honest I never really done anything about it for 4 years. Treatment started with diet only then 1 x 500 metaformin then 2 then 4 metaformin then add a januvia 25 then up to januvia 100 and after fighting the weight loss my eyes started to need retinopathy 6 monthly checks.
I decided that was enough and started to lose weight losing 3 stone but no benefit. Eventually I was given 10mg Empagliflozin and with my nurses blessing a low carb 800 cal diet. after 3 months my Hb1Ca was down from 78 to 56.
I've lost another 4 stone and my sugar finger pricks are consistently 6.1 /6.2. I've still got 2 months to go to my 6 monthly Hb1Ca test but these last few days has seen my finger pricks down to 5.2 2 and 4 hours after a meal. this morning I felt the symptoms of a hypo so had some fresh orange juice and 2 hours later it was still only 5.1.

Nothing else has changed except I have now hit 19 stone, losing 7 stone since Jan the 1st this year.

Obviously if this continues I need to see my nurse but any ideas as to why this is suddenly happening? my weight loss has been consistent and nothing at all has changed tablet or food wise.
My profile says insulin dependent. I AM NOTON INSULIN.
TIA.

helensaramay said:

Did you take a reading to confirm your symptoms were a hypo?
Or could it have been a false hypo?

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Lamont D said:

Are you still taking meds, Januvia and Empagliflozen?

If so, you may need to speak to your GP about dosage.

Have you had any readings below normal blood sugar levels of 4mmols?

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Hi.
I didn't take a reading to confirm an actual hypo but I had all the usual symptoms. sweating, blurred vision, fatigue, falling asleep so I took the orange juice which my nurse said would raise my sugar by 2 to three points.
About 3 weeks ago I had 1 reading of 3.7 but felt fine and actually chuffed at it being low until I read about it not to go below 4.
I am on all the meds outlined above and thus it had crossed my mind that I was / am taking to much prescribed meds. It just shook me to think this was so sudden over these last 2 days or so and more so today when I have been on the empaflogozin since December 17.

After posting the original post I had a meal of sausages, eggs and mushrooms and my sugar was 5.0 within 30 minutes of eating which seemed odd as after eating my numbers have always gone up by at least 3 points.

I have just this moment, 22.50.23 secs don e a finger prick reading and it is 5.2 so I guess I have got to a level of weight that needs a med review.

I will contact my nurse tomorrow and see what she says then report back here.
Thanks for your help.

Hi folks
since the last post I have spoken to my nurse and she suggested that Imight be taking to many drugs no the weight has dropped. We decided to stop the sitagliptin ( Januvia) and go in to get my Hba1C done then follow up with her the following week for the results. Since dropping the sitagliptin I have had no problems and my sugars have returned to 6.1, 6.2, 6.0 for the last 3 days.

I am still on the low carb diet of 800cals a day avoiding as much sugar as I can and importantly for me sweetner. In the early days I replaced sugar with the same amount of sweetner and wondered why my weight / bloods were not changing... duh sweetner is carbs.. I've also cut down on drinking cows milk after seeing that it is 4.9 % carbs.

Apart from this last week of problems I have been really well on the meds and losing weight steadily which is a good way for me now.
LAMONT D.
The empafligrozen did drop my sugar fastish from 78 to 56 within 3 months of starting them but I was told that my surgery does not provide Ketone meters unless there are signs on ketoniosis but I was aware of the symptoms anyway as a frind of my wife has a son who is T1 and he often has to get hospitalised for this.... maybe he needs my nurse..

I was going to do a test now but I found some nuts 20 minutes ago... At least they were not in biscuits, chocolate of Costa muffins... sigh.

Out of interest I wonder if this episode is a response to a reduced amount of fat in my liver hence it is starting to work better which means the drop in sugar numbers due to the meds being too much.
I mention this because I had a lot of MRI scans on my back 6 years ago and the thick lines of white all around AND in the spine were fat. I know visceral fat, in the liver and waist goes first and my waist measurement has dropped at least 10 inches, 25cm, my BMI is reduced by over 10 points and my body fat has reduced over 18 % this year. My blood pressure is the next one to look at as it is in the normal bracket before I take the BP med so that is a question for my nurse also. Maybe reduce or stop them..Empaflogozin and whilst the side effects looked very scary I can only say it has given me a huge boost and now I can see the BP normal, the sugars becoming normal, the weight dropping off, the body fat reducing... I would like to think that this drug could be a good diet / health drug when the price comes down.

At the moment I am on 1 x 10mg Empafligrozen in the morning with 2 x 500
Anyway, thank you so much for your help and input on this topic and I hope to stick around for a good while and be more active on the forum.

Alan.

bamba said:

That's not really surprising as the only significant carbs present in that meal is the 'filler' in the sausages.

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Not in my home made sausages. Generally they are touching 95 to 97% meat and taste gorgeous, but yes I understand the idea. Thanks.

Edited by Mod for language

dawnmc said:

ok, where's the recipe photocopier, you have to share. Where's your name from, I do hope you haven't choked any chimps!

Quote edited by Mod

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Im out at the moment but I will post the recipe later.
Of course I have choked a few chimps in my day.

Actually coming from Hartlepool where we famously "hung the monkey" in the 18th C we are known as the monkeyhangers.. updated to chimpchoker..