Diabetes Community

1. Get educated
I googled, "How to Control Hypoglycemia" and got 4,800,000 responses...Here's the first one:
http://www.drugs.com/cg/non-diabetic-hypoglycemia.html

2. Do the things to help arrest the condition, naturally. Exercise, healthy diet, no alcohol, no smoking, lose weight, get plenty of rest.

3. "...i don't know what they will say next or not help me..."

Understand this...Nobody is gonna care more than you so help yourself, first.

I have fibro and that doesn't cause my sugar to go up or down. I am well controlled.

I have controlled my low sugar for over 2 years now. I do eat right i keep gaining weight what i was asking was about insulin resistance that i was just diagnosed with. Asking for any tips help ect until my apt. thanks

I said my fibro gets worse around my periods and blood sugar ( periods the cause. Not fibro effecting my sugar. Good your well controlled. I have have been having a rough time getting my fibro controlled because i can't take much meds. to many bad side effects! But hoping endocrinologist can find the main cause why i know have insulin resistance added to my low blood sug i have had for 2 years.

A major factor in insulin resistance is belly fat. If you are overweight, this could be the problem and weight reduction should be a priority consideration. I read about someone who virtually overcame her fibromyalgia symptoms using vitamin D. She was prescribed a weekly dose of 50,000 IU of D3 by her physician. In error, the pharmacy labeled her directions as 50,000 IU per day. The error was discovered after 30 days but not until the patient reported that her symptoms had subsided and had all but disappeared. This PubMed article (click on link) also states that vitamin D deficiency has to be considered in the treatment and management of fibromyalgia.

Sorry I am late responding - after your doctor appointment. You did not say how low your blood sugar was going. I have been diabetic for 20 years (I have been on insulin for 14 years)and I have a coworker with a daughter that overproduces insulin and gets sugar lows, so I am familiar with both sides of this issue. First I would ask if you have a glucose meter. You need one if you do not have one. If your insurance will not cover a meter and test strips, Walmart has them for a reasonable price. Personally I have found that even now I cannot tell if my shaking and sweats is due to low blood glucose or anxiety. I usually get low blood sugar symptoms when I am down around 60 mg/dl but I can also get them around 80 if my glucose is falling rapidly. In either case you need to treat for low blood glucose.
There are a few products that directly affect insulin resistance - such as Actos however these products also prevent your liver from supplying glucose when your glucose levels drop and can make you hypoglycemia progress to lower values even quicker than now. There are a lot of different systems involved in balancing the glucose levels but determining which system is causing the problem is complicated and may take a lot of time.
My suggestion is probably the first one you got from your doctor. Watch your diet. If you eat a large meal with lots of carbs (even slow digesting carbs) you glucose can rise to a very high number because of your insulin resistance. You should check your insulin levels at 1 to 2 hours after a meal. If they are high (over about 250 mg per dL) you may well have a low about 4 or 5 hours after the meal. The best way to avoid this is to use more protein at your meals with a small amount of complex carbs from vegatables like green beans. You need carbs so obtain them from small snacks of complex carbs throughout the day half way between meals and at bedtime. Only complex carbs at bedtime nothing with sugar. You need to check your gloucose every 2 or 3 hours when you first start this method because for some people it doesn't work and may make it a little worse. For most people it will work and should help you a lot until they figure out what is going on and if there is any other way to treat it. Each person is different and so you will need to do a lot of testing in the beginning while you vary your diet. Also keep track of which foods you eat. I have found that some low glycemic foods cause my glucose readings to increase rapidly while other high glycemic foods do not. Everyones body is different so you need to experiment with various foods and do the testing afterwards. Don't believe that everything you read applys to you, we are all different. Don't skimp on testing to save a few dollars. It's your life and you're worth it. Good Luck.

My blood sugar spikes when I eat and quickly plummet to below 60, My doctor says I have diabetes 2 but I believe like you my problem is hypoglycemia. I also have Fibro and RA. I've had a gastric bypass and have now gained 50 lbs of the 100 I lost. Apparently I am in the small minority of GB patients whose pancreas reacted badly to the surgery. Howeve3r there are others in my family with diabetes 2 controlled by metformin. Metformin does not help me at all. What helps me is that I take Acarbos with each meal. I need to take glucose tabs if I forget the Acarbos and my blood sugar goes too low. I can tell my sugar is falling because I get confused and dizzy and light headed. Keep doing research online and asking question because I am confident you can get a handle on your problem.

Hi, Rachg810!

Please discuss Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) with your gynocologist. All the symptoms you are describing fit. I was diagnosed about 15 years ago. Your GYN needs to do blood tests on your to get a complete work up on all of your sex hormones - the levels will be off if you have PCOS. Treating with Metformin 1500mg/day will normalize your hormones for 84% of PCOS patients within 3-4 months. If you are diagnosed as PCOS it probably means that you were not ovulating either and the Metformin can help you to do that by normalizing your hormones. Metformin does not cause hypoglycemia in non-diabetic patients. If you have PCOS, it is vitally important to your future that you find out now. Good luck - can you post an update? I'm only seeing your post now and it's already over a year and a half since you posted.