Type 3c - how were you diagnosed?

Hi @Jomar ,
If you're going low 3 to 4 hours after eating and don't take medication for your diabetes you might want to have a look in de reactive hypoglycaemia section of the forum.

How low are you going?

Tagging @Lamont D , he'll have some ideas.

Jomar said:

Hi. I have had chronic pancreatitis with endocrine and exocrine insufficiency for a long time. I have been fortunate up until now with my blood sugar, but I am now having problems with problems with low blood sugar. My hba1c is prediabetic at 46. I am fine if I don’t eat, which I don’t when I have pain from the pancreatitis and my appetite isn’t fantastic. But when I do eat, I tend to get lows 3/4 hours later. I do try to be careful what I eat and some days are better than others but it is a problem. My GP has written to my pancreatic specialist as she is unsure about this, so I am interested in other people’s stories.

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I do have stories of hypoglycaemia and being non diabetic, the lows happening after eating and three to four hours later.
And I really know from my experience how not eating is somehow better, because of those symptoms.
However, the pancreatitis is known to cause such symptoms.
The symptoms have intrigued me since my diagnosis. And it took quite awhile to get it.
Could you give us an idea about what your normalised in a day is please.
I say this because you may have an intolerance to some food, which may be why your body reacts to it.
I have Late Reactive Hypoglycaemia. I do not have pancreatitis.
Wether some other similar condition of your metabolism is causing more issues along with your pancreatitis.
I couldn't say.
I hope you get the reason for these hypos I know what you are going through.

@Jomar I may have issues with my pancreas. I have been suffering crippling bouts of pain in my upper right and middle abdomen. I am unable to tolerate fats or very likely metabolism them as I suffer from nausea and bouts steatorrhea after eating them. I also had some bad hypos for several years, sometimes in the low 2’s. I did increase my carbs, initially just before bed, which stopped the dreaded night time fasting hypos. I have since upped my carbs due to not being able to tolerate the fats as I am into fitness. Since upping my carbs they have become fewer. My Dr suggested I had brittle diabetes. I’m not sure if there is a connection. Yours could be Reactive Hypoglycaemia, mine wasn’t. I only say that because low carbs and fasting did not alleviate the hypos.
It’s not my gall bladder, which is just fine. My Dr is slowly ticking off the possibilities.
My liver is healthy, no fatty liver disease. I was put on Proton pump inhibitors, which I have been on a few times in my life due to peptic ulcer disease. I was tested for the gut bacteria helio pylori which was again negative. Over the years this is the fourth time I have been tested for H. Pylori . They tested me after I started the PPI’s so I‘m guessing I will be tested again. I did ask the Dr if the PPI’s would affect the H Pylori test, I know it would, but she said no. The Interesting this is the PPI’s allowed me to eat some fats again - full fat Greek yoghurt, but now I have stopped them, I’m back to not eating fats. PPI’s are great, but extended use is known to cause diabetes and other related disorders when your stomach has a higher PH.
So that was a bit long, some of it related some not, I guess I’m bringing it all up because I had unexplained serious hypos.

ed to add brittle and link

Jomar said:

Generally it’s 3-3.5, although had a really nasty one last week at 2.7, felt awful. Should say that it does go high in the couple of hours after I eat

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What do you eat ?

Jomar said:

Hi. I have had chronic pancreatitis with endocrine and exocrine insufficiency for a long time. I have been fortunate up until now with my blood sugar, but I am now having problems with problems with low blood sugar. My hba1c is prediabetic at 46. I am fine if I don’t eat, which I don’t when I have pain from the pancreatitis and my appetite isn’t fantastic. But when I do eat, I tend to get lows 3/4 hours later. I do try to be careful what I eat and some days are better than others but it is a problem. My GP has written to my pancreatic specialist as she is unsure about this, so I am interested in other people’s stories.

Click to expand...

Sorry don’t very often come onto the type 3c bit, though have it…how did you get on over last 2+ months? My BG has been all over the place too due to being put on a ‘new’ hypertensive drug, indapamide early December… Bgs just rose, in first two weeks, and stayed there so had to increase toujeo by 40% and Fiasp by much more…seems I no longer need the 1 unit of insulin for 10 carbs, but say 1.5-2 units, but rather inconsistently and can’t take all at once else end up with hypos…need to stagger it, and finding still reacting to what I have eaten 4+ hours later. Diabetic nurse has no understanding of what is happening, and yet to go to dr. as only just in full period that indapamide should be 100% working ( not, in the case of lowering BP!) so heavens knows what that conversation will be like….

I was diagnosed in March this year. I felt fine the night before I was admitted (16th March 2026). I simply couldn't breathe. The paramedics were called. I was taken to A&E. There the pain started. Taken to a surgical ward and then straight to ICU for 5 days. Back to the surgical ward, for 26 days! Was told I was Type 3c there and shown how to inject.

Discharged and waiting on having my gallbladder removed, in August. Gallstones caused this. I cannot get any headway with a succession of diabetic nurses who keep telling me to treat it as Type 1. They ignore when I say I am doing everything they have told me to do but cannot get my blood sugar stabilised. It's a nightmare.

At the moment, I have little to no quality of life. The public medical side of things has been awful. Now looking into seeing a private consultant.