Stress sucks as much as carbs for diabetics
LowCarbInScotland
Posts: 1,027 Member
Having gone from 310 combined units of long-acting and rapid-acting insulin a day to just 10 units of long-acting insulin over the last 3 months, I'm now seeing very clearly the affects of stress on my blood sugar.
My blood glucose is very steady most days, usually at about 100 fasting, never rising higher than 120 after a meal. Now, at the end of a week that featured mounting stress each day, with one hammer after another smashing into my life, I'm having blood sugar highs that equate with heavy carb consumption.
Despite increasing my insulin based on my blood sugars and what used to work for me, I woke up with a fasting blood sugar of 164 and even with a big dose of rapid-acting insulin with my zero carb breakfast, it's still 150. I admit, I didn't worry about my calories yesterday, and I went 100 over normal, but (a) that would normally not do much to me and (b) I only had 16 carbs.
Just thought I'd share, it's interesting to see what a devastating affect stress has on the body. I'm very disappointed right now as I will be significantly increasing my insulin further today, to levels that are higher than they would be if I'd consumed donuts all day yesterday.
But on the plus side, it's motivated me to head outside this weekend to go and explore the Scottish countryside and get some exercise.
My blood glucose is very steady most days, usually at about 100 fasting, never rising higher than 120 after a meal. Now, at the end of a week that featured mounting stress each day, with one hammer after another smashing into my life, I'm having blood sugar highs that equate with heavy carb consumption.
Despite increasing my insulin based on my blood sugars and what used to work for me, I woke up with a fasting blood sugar of 164 and even with a big dose of rapid-acting insulin with my zero carb breakfast, it's still 150. I admit, I didn't worry about my calories yesterday, and I went 100 over normal, but (a) that would normally not do much to me and (b) I only had 16 carbs.
Just thought I'd share, it's interesting to see what a devastating affect stress has on the body. I'm very disappointed right now as I will be significantly increasing my insulin further today, to levels that are higher than they would be if I'd consumed donuts all day yesterday.
But on the plus side, it's motivated me to head outside this weekend to go and explore the Scottish countryside and get some exercise.
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That does make me wonder how it affects those of us with insulin resistance, too. I'm not diabetic (pre or diagnosed), so it just makes me curious, because life has been dumping bucket after bucket of stress on me the last 4-6 weeks, and I can't seem to lose a thing. If I'm constantly in insulin/fat storing mode, it would make sense.0
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It certainly does! All types of stress affect blood sugar.
My daughter (T1D) was almost hit by a truck on her way to work one day. By the time she got to work, her blood sugar was very high even though it was totally fine when she left the house. It took ALL DAY to get it back under control, requiring many extra injections.
Every time she gets sick, it's a full time job managing the blood sugar, which will run very high and be very difficult to get down even if she's not able to eat because of being sick.
Stress affects all of us this way. But those of us that are insulin sensitive don't notice in typical ways. This is why when someone talks about being frustrated by lack of weight loss even though they are exercising A LOT and only eating 1000 calories or whatever, I try to mention the stress factor.0 -
KnitOrMiss wrote: »That does make me wonder how it affects those of us with insulin resistance, too. I'm not diabetic (pre or diagnosed), so it just makes me curious, because life has been dumping bucket after bucket of stress on me the last 4-6 weeks, and I can't seem to lose a thing. If I'm constantly in insulin/fat storing mode, it would make sense.
That's kind of why I thought I'd share. We all know stress is bad, but how bad is it and how does it affect each of us individually? What can we measure, outside of going to a lab daily or joining a research study at just the right (or wrong) time in our life? Because I have a point of daily measurement to refer to, I can easily monitor at least one side affect of stress. Interestingly, my blood pressure is doing great. Pre-meds (10 years ago) stress definitely affected my bp, I guess the meds are stronger than the stress.0 -
KnitOrMiss wrote: »That does make me wonder how it affects those of us with insulin resistance, too. I'm not diabetic (pre or diagnosed), so it just makes me curious, because life has been dumping bucket after bucket of stress on me the last 4-6 weeks, and I can't seem to lose a thing. If I'm constantly in insulin/fat storing mode, it would make sense.
Girl! Isn't that what I told you?
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That's very interesting. And, we all handle stress differently. By the way, the Scottish countryside sounds delightful. :-)0
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Sunny_Bunny_ wrote: »KnitOrMiss wrote: »That does make me wonder how it affects those of us with insulin resistance, too. I'm not diabetic (pre or diagnosed), so it just makes me curious, because life has been dumping bucket after bucket of stress on me the last 4-6 weeks, and I can't seem to lose a thing. If I'm constantly in insulin/fat storing mode, it would make sense.
Girl! Isn't that what I told you?
It is, @Sunny_Bunny_, but this was the same thing phrased from another angle, so it finally penetrated my noggin. That being said, since I ratcheted down the carbs intensely, and banished nearly everything with measurable sugar, my food control and sleep are getting better.0 -
Stress is a killer especially if we stress over stress.
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GaleHawkins wrote: »Stress is a killer especially if we stress over stress.
That's for sure! That's why I'm taking a weekend roadtrip
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Dr Berg (yes, I know I've mentioned him before) has some very interesting videos on the impacts of various hormones on weight loss and the impacts of stress on hormones/weight loss. He basically says you will not lose weight if you have either insulin or cortisol (stress hormone) in your system. And I think it is the adrenaline reaction that causes your body to dump extra sugar into your system (fight or flight).0
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Stress upregulates cortisol, a hormone that increases blood glucose. Since stress isn't avoidable, you need healthy coping mechanisms.0
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KnitOrMiss wrote: »That does make me wonder how it affects those of us with insulin resistance, too. I'm not diabetic (pre or diagnosed), so it just makes me curious, because life has been dumping bucket after bucket of stress on me the last 4-6 weeks, and I can't seem to lose a thing. If I'm constantly in insulin/fat storing mode, it would make sense.
A firm and whole hearted Ditto... same here, even same time frame!0 -
Thanks @PaleoInScotland for sharing. Although many people say stress can stall weight loss without explaination. This is the first time I have read a reason /mechanism for how. Like @KnitOrMiss, I find this is a really useful way of understanding physically what is happening to us under stress. Time for some zen mindfulness meditation and yoga??0
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This rings true for me, and the mechanics make sense from a flight-or-flight standpoint. When I started LCHF, it was on the heels of a very tough year involving a death in the family, a tough pregnancy, buying and selling a house, my daughter starting Kindergarten and taking it really hard, and my husband changing jobs. The baby weight stubbornly stayed put until all those stressors were behind me and I started LCHF. I hadn't had much trouble losing weight following my first two pregnancies.0
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All makes really good sense... I want a road trip too! Just me, a good book on cd, no children, some snacks, alone, no children.... Did I mention no children?0
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Ah, that was a much needed break! My blood sugar is slowly coming back down without the need for lots of extra insulin. I have gained 5 lbs over the last week (with no carb increase), though hopefully it's just water weight as I sure as heck haven't eaten an extra 17,500 calories and I don't think my Quest Cravings PB cups did that to me. It's a bummer that cortisol can have such a devastating affect, even when you stay on track with your woe.
I just ordered a fitbit, as someone who's a bit obsessive about tracking and logging, I thought that would be the perfect motivation for me to finally get some exercise into my life. Since I can't eat the stress away, I figured I'd try and walk the stress away (and maybe eventually jog the stress away LOL).0 -
@nvmomketo, I'm right there with you on the no kids road trip!
@PaleoInScotland, I'm glad to hear things might be settling down a bit for you. Walking is great therapy in addition to calorie burning. I could use a walk, too.0 -
PaleoInScotland wrote: »
I just ordered a fitbit, as someone who's a bit obsessive about tracking and logging, I thought that would be the perfect motivation for me to finally get some exercise into my life. Since I can't eat the stress away, I figured I'd try and walk the stress away (and maybe eventually jog the stress away LOL).
Good solution! I applaud exercise as a stress reliever. It works on an emotional level, a physical-emotional level, and lowers your blood sugar on a purely physical level.
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GaleHawkins wrote: »Stress is a killer especially if we stress over stress.
this is so hard to get stopped! Worrying about worrying is just plain silly. High BP in the doctor's office but normal to low at home. They believe me so far. As my dh says, I can worry about anything!0 -
I'm happy to share that after two weeks, my body has adjusted to the current state of chaos in my life. My weight, blood sugar levels and insulin usage has returned to where it was before my body went haywire. Ironically this took the same amount of time to recover from as a carb blowout, which really puts the damage of stress into perspective for me.
A new heart disease study was recently completed on women (which is awesome as we don't receive the same effective care as men because our symptoms are so different), and though most of us probably know this, it reaffirmed that stress and depression are leading causes of heart attacks for women.
http://m.circ.ahajournals.org/content/early/2016/01/25/CIR.0000000000000351.full.pdf
I can say with certainty that my bad food habits are much easier to manage than my stress levels. I know when and why I'm making bad food choices, but there's rarely a clear line between the stress levels in my mind and the reaction of my body. Even though I may feel like I'm dealing with something effectively from a mental perspective, my body may have a totally negative reaction. There's definitely something to be said for achieving a strong mind-body connection, and for me, I know that exercise is the way to achieve that... which I'm finally working on.0 -
PaleoInScotland wrote: »I can say with certainty that my bad food habits are much easier to manage than my stress levels. I know when and why I'm making bad food choices, but there's rarely a clear line between the stress levels in my mind and the reaction of my body. Even though I may feel like I'm dealing with something effectively from a mental perspective, my body may have a totally negative reaction. There's definitely something to be said for achieving a strong mind-body connection, and for me, I know that exercise is the way to achieve that... which I'm finally working on.
Thx for sharing your insight.
It's a good reminder to try to stay mindful of things that may be weighing on you; even though you're not consciously dwelling on them, especially if you're tipped off by BP / BG levels that are high for otherwise inexplicable reasons.
As you've discovered, exercise (and dancing, singing, playing music, yoga... or anything else that's completely absorbing and enjoyable) can be like a magic trick.
PS I've also found kittens to be good stress antidotes, but unfortunately they're not really programmed for long, uninterrupted walks.....0 -
PS I've also found kittens to be good stress antidotes, but unfortunately they're not really programmed for long, uninterrupted walks.....
LOL I'm a dog person as I'm painfully allergic to cats and fortunately they're perfectly programmed for long walks. Our little dog passed away unexpectedly a couple years ago and she definitely provided incredible stress relief for me and not just because of the walking. I definitely believe in pet therapy, can't wait until we're in a position to be able to bring another dog into our lives
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In addition to adequate water, fresh air, sunshine and social exercise, don't short change yourself on sleep if you can help it. Sometimes sleeping more is the best way to restore health and lose weight in the process.0
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