Have you dealt with hypoglycemia directly?

smittybuilt19

I am not diabetic. I do struggle with hypoglycemia. I have my first Dr appointment in many years this Thursday and this will be one of my discussion points.


Please share your non diabetic hypoglycemia experiences whether it be how it makes you feel or how you know it's coming or tips for avoiding bottoming out. I know very little about this except that it sucks and I'd like to be able to eat because I'm hungry, not because I'm getting sick.


Also, I definitely appreciate food suggestions but am more interested in your experiences as a whole. I can and have googled many times for helpful foods.

deksgrl

How I know it's coming: I haven't eaten anything in awhile and I start getting grumpy and annoyed. If I still do not eat, then I get further symptoms. You should make sure that you are getting enough calories overall, and make those calories spaced out over the day. Eat a combination of protein/carbs/fat each time you eat.

I'd like to be able to eat because I'm hungry, not because I'm getting sick.

Your body is telling you that you are hungry when you experience this. Do you not experience hunger aside from when you crash? If that is the case then that might suggest your hunger hormones are out of whack. Google "leptin" and "ghrelin".

TR0berts

How I know it's coming: I haven't eaten anything in awhile and I start getting grumpy and annoyed. If I still do not eat, then I get further symptoms.

Yep. Not me, but my wife. I can't begin to fathom how many times I've had to tell her to go eat something.

smittybuilt19

How I know it's coming: I haven't eaten anything in awhile and I start getting grumpy and annoyed. If I still do not eat, then I get further symptoms. You should make sure that you are getting enough calories overall, and make those calories spaced out over the day. Eat a combination of protein/carbs/fat each time you eat.

I'd like to be able to eat because I'm hungry, not because I'm getting sick.

Your body is telling you that you are hungry when you experience this. Do you not experience hunger aside from when you crash? If that is the case then that might suggest your hunger hormones are out of whack. Google "leptin" and "ghrelin".

Generally, no. I rarely feel hunger as I once did when I was a kid. Now it's just shakey, dizzy , and disoriented. I have looked into reactive hypoglycemia as, at times, I can eat and then feel the symptoms coming on not long thereafter.

deksgrl

How I know it's coming: I haven't eaten anything in awhile and I start getting grumpy and annoyed. If I still do not eat, then I get further symptoms.

Yep. Not me, but my wife. I can't begin to fathom how many times I've had to tell her to go eat something.

My man is learning. He used to call me Sybil because I'm like two different people, now when he sees my mood start changing he says right away, "we need to get you something to eat." To him there is never any hurry, he'll eat when he gets around to it, maybe in an hour, maybe in 5 hours. If I'm crashing, then I need to eat ASAP.

smittybuilt19

I did have some very serious hypoglycemic issues at the end of summer after I foolishly went from a bulk at 3300 cal/day to a cut at approx 2300 cal/day. Yea I don't quite remember those days. Turns out changing like that overnight was not a good idea.


Aside from that I don't quite understand my sugar lows. And sometimes it seems I can feel fine eating 400-500 cals but then feel like poop after eating say 700-800 cals in a sitting. <<both with consciously keeping simple sugars at a minimum.

auddii

Yup. I can be reactive hypoglycemic, and so I had to change the types of meals that I eat. I used to eat cereal for breakfast, but I'd crash hard. Then I started skipping breakfast, which worked for a while. Now I try to have a good mix of carbs, protein, and fat for breakfast (usually soy milk, peanut butter, and a protein shake).

Recently I started having problems with my blood sugar and they were happening more and more frequently. I had been doing relatively low carb for months, so I wasn't sure what it was. I got a blood meter, and I'd get lows in the 50s, but my blood sugar would never go high (it broke 120 once, and that was after a huge dinner, drinking, and dessert). I had several blood tests, and cortisol, thyroid, and A1C were all normal (in fact, A1C was on the low side, which matched me having a low blood sugar). I went to an endocrinologist, and she treated me like she would a diabetes patient. She wanted me to raise my blood sugar, so she'd have me eat snacks every time I tested low, and I specifically had to test every time I drove, and if it wasn't at least a 90, I had to eat a snack.

Based on that plan, I did not get any better, and I ate a TON of food; I could count on one hand the number of times I tested over 90 when driving without having to eat a snack. And there were times, I'd test low, eat a snack, drive to the store, spend 20 minutes shopping, then try to drive home. I'd still test low and have to have a second snack within half an hour of the first. There were days I'd get shaky and nauseous, and eating didn't help the symptoms. Sometimes when my symptoms were at their worst, my blood sugar didn't test low.

I ended up going to a general practitioner who had a completely different take on my symptoms. She though the constant snack with carbs to increase my blood sugar when driving was making everything far worse. And, even though my blood sugar would go low (even into the fifties), the chances of me passing out (what the endocrinologist was worried about) would likely be slim to none. So, she had me cut out those snacking carbs and instead incorporate more whole grain and complex carbs into my diet in snacks and meals. I eat 3 meals and at least two snacks a day. I stopped testing my blood, and I just accept the fact that it would be low.

Overall, things have evened out for me, although I'm not entirely sure what caused the symptoms in the first place. My guess is that I'm likely insulin "sensitive" as the doctor suggested. Essentially the opposite of insulin resistant, and I'm guessing going low carb caused lots of problems for me.

Obviously, my case isn't going to be the same as everyone else, but there are some take away messages. If you are hungry, eat before you start crashing. You will likely need both meals and carbs regularly through out the day, but meals and snacks should never be carbs only; be sure that you focus on protein and fats with a reasonable amount of complex carbs with each meal (reasonable is going to depend on your goals, what keeps you satiated, and your training level). Don't get in the vicious cycle of chowing down on simple carbs when you start getting symptoms; make sure there are some carbs but also protein and fat in your "recovery" snacks.

auddii

How I know it's coming: I haven't eaten anything in awhile and I start getting grumpy and annoyed. If I still do not eat, then I get further symptoms.

Yep. Not me, but my wife. I can't begin to fathom how many times I've had to tell her to go eat something.

My man is learning. He used to call me Sybil because I'm like two different people, now when he sees my mood start changing he says right away, "we need to get you something to eat." To him there is never any hurry, he'll eat when he gets around to it, maybe in an hour, maybe in 5 hours. If I'm crashing, then I need to eat ASAP.

Yup, I turn into a ***** when my blood sugar gets low; my boyfriend learned really fast when I needed to eat.

scubasuenc

Although I am diabetic now, I suffered from hypoglycemia when I was younger. Generally I got a headache and cranky. If I did not recognize it I would get dizzy and have even fainted.

Learning how it manifests for your body is key. I also recommend carrying a small snack with you, then if you feel yourself bottoming out, grab your snack.

SamanthaD1218

I used to be severely hypoglycemic. If I was getting close to a crash, I'd start getting EXTREMELY irritable. And it's funny because when I got like that, I didn't want to eat. I'd have to force myself to do it.

What worked best for me was having a schedule and sticking to it. I'd eat a snack between meals at the exact same time every day, even if I didn't feel hungry or grouchy. It was just better to preempt any sick feelings. Granola bars worked really well for me.

JJJJ25

I got it after an attempt at eating Paleo. I'm the first to admit I ate Paleo as a way of justifying anorexia - and I didn't do it "right" - I cut out all carbs and most fat.

I dealt with extreme low blood sugar when I started adding carbs back in - including a night where I fainted three times in a row trying to get back from the bathroom to my bedroom. My husband finally found me, but by then I'd cracked a tooth, split my lip, and bruised ribs from falling repeatedly.

I dealt with it by raising my carb intake over time, and at the first sign of shakiness take in a simple carb (candy is your best friend, but can also do dates or a banana), followed immediately by a complex carb (oats, potato, rice). The simple gives that burst of sugar so you don't crash and the complex helps the blood sugar stay level.

I still deal with it, but I'd say it was only extreme and scary for about 8 months. Now it's more like I get HANGRY and need to eat, but I'm not afraid of fainting.

deksgrl

Generally, no. I rarely feel hunger as I once did when I was a kid. Now it's just shakey, dizzy , and disoriented. I have looked into reactive hypoglycemia as, at times, I can eat and then feel the symptoms coming on not long thereafter.

It's definitely something to check with your doctor about.

Aside from anything your doctor recommends, you might experiment with meal timing, maybe you need to eat something every 3 hours. Also, as I said earlier, you might want to make sure you balance your macros (carbs/protein/fat). For example, if I have something that is just protein, I feel a little nauseous unless I also eat something with carbs with it.

smittybuilt19

Gah I wish I weren't typing on a phone, I'd love to ask more questions. Thanks so much y'all for sharing you experiences. Please do continue.

jkoamalu

Yup. I can be reactive hypoglycemic, and so I had to change the types of meals that I eat. .

Same here. I find that if I eat a lot of white carbs (breakfast cereals, white potatoes, white rice, etc.), I crash several hours later. I don't get the grumpies, but instead get very shaky and feel a little sick to my stomach. For me, eating several small meals a day helps a lot.

MissKalhan

I get *****y as all hell when my sugar is low, if I don't eat I get dizzy and prone to fainting. I just eat through out the day, keep some little hard candies on me in case they're needed. Lots of water and be sure to get a bit of everything in each snack (carbs, protein, fats) also everything multigrain is always a good go to.

smittybuilt19

So, will this likely be a lifelong issue that needs to be managed?


Also, I would love to carry a glucometer for curiosity's sake, however my extreme needle phobia barley allows me to type the word glucometer.

FatFreeFrolicking

How I know it's coming: I haven't eaten anything in awhile and I start getting grumpy and annoyed. If I still do not eat, then I get further symptoms. You should make sure that you are getting enough calories overall, and make those calories spaced out over the day. Eat a combination of protein/carbs/fat each time you eat.

I'd like to be able to eat because I'm hungry, not because I'm getting sick.

Your body is telling you that you are hungry when you experience this. Do you not experience hunger aside from when you crash? If that is the case then that might suggest your hunger hormones are out of whack. Google "leptin" and "ghrelin".

Generally, no. I rarely feel hunger as I once did when I was a kid. Now it's just shakey, dizzy , and disoriented. I have looked into reactive hypoglycemia as, at times, I can eat and then feel the symptoms coming on not long thereafter.

I have SEVERE reactive hypoglycemia. I also have insulin resistance. I take Metformin for both RH and insulin resistance. I have to eat every 1.5-2 hours (whether I'm hungry or not) or else I start crashing. I usually crash every 2 hours no matter what I eat. When I'm crashing, I have bad brain fog, dizzy, lightheaded, can barely walk, migraine, blurred vision, shaking, sweating, heart racing, difficulty speaking. When I crash, I drop into the 40s and 50s which is extremely dangerous so my endocrinologist tells me to drink 4 oz. of juice because that will get my sugar up the fastest. Then I eat something high in protein to counteract the carbs/sugar in the juice.

Try to avoid refined carbs. No cookies, cake, muffins, etc. Stick to complex carbs only… brown rice, whole grain bread, sweet potatoes, quinoa, etc.

You will begin to learn the foods you can tolerate and the foods that you can't. I personally can't tolerate pasta at all. It causes me to spike high and drop low very quickly. More than normal I should say. When I eat pasta, I spike into the 180s and plummet into the 40s within 45 minutes of eating.

Do you currently test your blood sugar?

wanderingpilgrim

My husband found out he had this about 11 years ago. Boy, did it explain a lot! If he didn't eat, he would become very tense, impatient, shaky, maybe get heartburn, headaches, become very irritable and then crash....not pretty. A few weeks ago he fell hard and lost consciousness on his hallway floor; my gut reaction is that it was a hypoglycaemic attack.

This was his regular cycle: Get up: have a coffee. No breakfast. Not hungry. Nope, really, I'm good, not hungry. When I would make him a lunch, it would come back uneaten. Sorry, can't, no time. Cranky, impatient. Shaky. Felt on edge. "Need a coffee". Fair amount of sugar. Let it kick in. Ahhh- sugar high. Uh-oh, now the crash...tired. Want to relax. Unwind. Further bad choices. Come home. Starving! Over eat. Drink wine, etc. Sugar, sugar, starch, sugars.

When he was mindful of his symptoms and working at change, what seemed to work best was when he watched his caffeine, starch and sugar intake. I wouldn't doubt that exercise & proper rest helped some, but it was mostly a change in his diet that kept him even keeled. Eating proteins and fibres throughout the day were the ticket to calm in his life. His quality of life was definitely better when he ate those foods every few hours.

I hope you'll embrace it; there seems to be quick & easy response if you're in tune with your body! All the best.

aylajane

I am not technically normally hypoglycemic, but I have the bottom end of normal blood sugar most of the time (i.e. 70-80 on waking and most of the day). My only suggestion is to avoid stevia in anything... Stevia is great for diabetics because it doesnt spike your blood sugar like sugar does, but also because it can lower it. I switched to stevia last year for about a month (because everywhere you look people say how it is a "natural" sweetener and how good it is for you compared to the alternative artificial ones). For that month, I nearly blacked out every day after lunch, and had several dizzy spells throughout the day. I finally caught on that it was after drinking my tea (i drank a few bottles a day, sweetened with stevia)... Tested my blood sugar when feeling bad and it was anywhere between 40 and 60. I quit using stevia and all is back to normal!

Something to think about at least!

wanderingpilgrim

Quoting FatFreeFrolic:
"I have SEVERE reactive hypoglycemia. I also have insulin resistance. I take Metformin for both RH and insulin resistance. I have to eat every 1.5-2 hours (whether I'm hungry or not) or else I start crashing. I usually crash every 2 hours no matter what I eat. When I'm crashing, I have bad brain fog, dizzy, lightheaded, can barely walk, migraine, blurred vision, shaking, sweating, heart racing, difficulty speaking. When I crash, I drop into the 40s and 50s which is extremely dangerous so my endocrinologist tells me to drink 4 oz. of juice because that will get my sugar up the fastest. Then I eat something high in protein to counteract the carbs/sugar in the juice.
Try to avoid refined carbs. No cookies, cake, muffins, etc. Stick to complex carbs only… brown rice, whole grain bread, sweet potatoes, quinoa, etc.
You will begin to learn the foods you can tolerate and the foods that you can't. I personally can't tolerate pasta at all. It causes me to spike high and drop low very quickly. More than normal I should say. When I eat pasta, I spike into the 180s and plummet into the 40s within 45 minutes of eating. "



This is SO familiar, and I agree 100% that those same food choices helped my husband.

FatFreeFrolicking

Yup. I can be reactive hypoglycemic, and so I had to change the types of meals that I eat. I used to eat cereal for breakfast, but I'd crash hard. Then I started skipping breakfast, which worked for a while. Now I try to have a good mix of carbs, protein, and fat for breakfast (usually soy milk, peanut butter, and a protein shake).

Recently I started having problems with my blood sugar and they were happening more and more frequently. I had been doing relatively low carb for months, so I wasn't sure what it was. I got a blood meter, and I'd get lows in the 50s, but my blood sugar would never go high (it broke 120 once, and that was after a huge dinner, drinking, and dessert). I had several blood tests, and cortisol, thyroid, and A1C were all normal (in fact, A1C was on the low side, which matched me having a low blood sugar). I went to an endocrinologist, and she treated me like she would a diabetes patient. She wanted me to raise my blood sugar, so she'd have me eat snacks every time I tested low, and I specifically had to test every time I drove, and if it wasn't at least a 90, I had to eat a snack.

Based on that plan, I did not get any better, and I ate a TON of food; I could count on one hand the number of times I tested over 90 when driving without having to eat a snack. And there were times, I'd test low, eat a snack, drive to the store, spend 20 minutes shopping, then try to drive home. I'd still test low and have to have a second snack within half an hour of the first. There were days I'd get shaky and nauseous, and eating didn't help the symptoms. Sometimes when my symptoms were at their worst, my blood sugar didn't test low.

I ended up going to a general practitioner who had a completely different take on my symptoms. She though the constant snack with carbs to increase my blood sugar when driving was making everything far worse. And, even though my blood sugar would go low (even into the fifties), the chances of me passing out (what the endocrinologist was worried about) would likely be slim to none. So, she had me cut out those snacking carbs and instead incorporate more whole grain and complex carbs into my diet in snacks and meals. I eat 3 meals and at least two snacks a day. I stopped testing my blood, and I just accept the fact that it would be low.

Overall, things have evened out for me, although I'm not entirely sure what caused the symptoms in the first place. My guess is that I'm likely insulin "sensitive" as the doctor suggested. Essentially the opposite of insulin resistant, and I'm guessing going low carb caused lots of problems for me.

Obviously, my case isn't going to be the same as everyone else, but there are some take away messages. If you are hungry, eat before you start crashing. You will likely need both meals and carbs regularly through out the day, but meals and snacks should never be carbs only; be sure that you focus on protein and fats with a reasonable amount of complex carbs with each meal (reasonable is going to depend on your goals, what keeps you satiated, and your training level). Don't get in the vicious cycle of chowing down on simple carbs when you start getting symptoms; make sure there are some carbs but also protein and fat in your "recovery" snacks.

Insulin sensitivity is insulin resistance.

smittybuilt19

How I know it's coming: I haven't eaten anything in awhile and I start getting grumpy and annoyed. If I still do not eat, then I get further symptoms. You should make sure that you are getting enough calories overall, and make those calories spaced out over the day. Eat a combination of protein/carbs/fat each time you eat.

I'd like to be able to eat because I'm hungry, not because I'm getting sick.

Your body is telling you that you are hungry when you experience this. Do you not experience hunger aside from when you crash? If that is the case then that might suggest your hunger hormones are out of whack. Google "leptin" and "ghrelin".

Generally, no. I rarely feel hunger as I once did when I was a kid. Now it's just shakey, dizzy , and disoriented. I have looked into reactive hypoglycemia as, at times, I can eat and then feel the symptoms coming on not long thereafter.

I have SEVERE reactive hypoglycemia. I also have insulin resistance. I take Metformin for both RH and insulin resistance. I have to eat every 1.5-2 hours (whether I'm hungry or not) or else I start crashing. I usually crash every 2 hours no matter what I eat. When I'm crashing, I have bad brain fog, dizzy, lightheaded, can barely walk, migraine, blurred vision, shaking, sweating, heart racing, difficulty speaking. When I crash, I drop into the 40s and 50s which is extremely dangerous so my endocrinologist tells me to drink 4 oz. of juice because that will get my sugar up the fastest. Then I eat something high in protein to counteract the carbs/sugar in the juice.

Try to avoid refined carbs. No cookies, cake, muffins, etc. Stick to complex carbs only… brown rice, whole grain bread, sweet potatoes, quinoa, etc.

You will begin to learn the foods you can tolerate and the foods that you can't. I personally can't tolerate pasta at all. It causes me to spike high and drop low very quickly. More than normal I should say. When I eat pasta, I spike into the 180s and plummet into the 40s within 45 minutes of eating.

Do you currently test your blood sugar?

No I don't test. Will you have to eat every 1.5-2 hours for the rest of you life?

smittybuilt19

Also, oatmeal whether instant or rolled oats sends my sugar levels down the ****tter. Which sucks, I love oatmeal.

kenzietate

How I know it's coming: I haven't eaten anything in awhile and I start getting grumpy and annoyed. If I still do not eat, then I get further symptoms. You should make sure that you are getting enough calories overall, and make those calories spaced out over the day. Eat a combination of protein/carbs/fat each time you eat.

I'd like to be able to eat because I'm hungry, not because I'm getting sick.

Your body is telling you that you are hungry when you experience this. Do you not experience hunger aside from when you crash? If that is the case then that might suggest your hunger hormones are out of whack. Google "leptin" and "ghrelin".

I have had this hypoglycemia for years until this past summer. If I went even 3 hrs without eating something, I would start getting what my husband calls "hangry" and then if I didn't eat right away at this point then I would get shaky, tired, and weak feeling. But I would literally have to force myself to eat because I would feel so sick that I wouldn't want to eat.

I finally figured out that the simple carbs I would eat to feel better right away would hasten the next crash. So I started having things like almonds, peanuts, and cheese sticks on hand for when I would start getting angry. That would help me feel much better for a lot longer.

I started watching my carb intake and keeping it under 75 g/ day and then later under 20g/day and I stopped having the episodes all together. Then I got pregnant and they came back at times for different reasons lol.

I do have insulin resistance which I am sure makes a difference in all of this!

deksgrl

No I don't test. Will you have to eat every 1.5-2 hours for the rest of you life?

It seems an easy solution, even if you have to do it the rest of your life. But do look at your food diary and see if maybe too many simple carbs and sugar might be the problem, as some people are pointing out.

smittybuilt19

I also tend to start feeling symptoms when I am engaged in face to face conversation and have to focus on what the person is saying. Same thing when speaking to a group.

TR0berts

Also, oatmeal whether instant or rolled oats sends my sugar levels down the ****tter. Which sucks, I love oatmeal.

Try eating more protein with your oatmeal. The protein should help balance things out. Personally, I like putting protein powder in my oatmeal - after it's cooked. You may prefer eggs on the side - whatever works for you.

auddii

Insulin sensitivity is insulin resistance.

Sensitivity is the opposite of resistance.

Sensitive - "quick to detect or respond to slight changes, signals, or influences."
Resistance- "the ability not to be affected by something, esp. adversely."

LoveMyLife_NYC

I used to suffer from this too! I had to eat a source of protein every 3 hours or so whether I was hungry or not, and if I ate carbs, I always paired it with a protein source. After a while, I really started keeping track of calories and macros. I still eat 5 mini meals, or 3 meals and 2 substantial snacks. I set my macros to 40/30/30 (c/p/f). When I look for a snack, I always look for the higher protein option.

It got a lot better when I really started paying attention to how much I ate and what kinds of foods I put in my body. Losing weight and regular exercise helped too. I still find my sugar is most likely to dip in the late morning, so I just make sure I eat twice before a morning workout.

It's nowhere near as bad as it used to be. My sugar used to crash once or twice a day, but since I made some diet and lifestyle changes, now it might dip low (but not dangerous or to the point where I'm sick) once every 2-3 months. And when it does crash, I can usually pinpoint what caused it. My sugar is never stable after eating someplace like McD's for about a day, or like I said above, not enough fuel to last through a late morning workout.

smittybuilt19

I don't mind the eating every couple hours if that's what has to happen. Just wondered if that would be considered "normal". Like I say I'd like to be able to one day eat again because I'm hungry not because it's time.

Its a fine line watching calorie intake and making sure not to bottom out.

auddii

I also tend to start feeling symptoms when I am engaged in face to face conversation and have to focus on what the person is saying. Same thing when speaking to a group.

That actually sounds like a nervousness thing, and several hormones can have similar reactions to those that happen during low blood sugar. I can get similar reactions from having lidocane at the dentist (it has epinephrine in it, and I react badly to it), too much caffeine, etc.