Low blood sugar frustrations

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MSeel1984
MSeel1984 Posts: 2,297 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Ok so this applies to people with diabetes...somewhat of a rant.

I'm getting so frustrated with low blood sugars ruining my goals. Yesterday I was well under my calories (by more than 300) even after my evening snack of an apple with peanut butter. I was feeling really good about it.

I got into bed and suddenly felt horrible. Shaking, cold sweats. Checked my blood sugar and it was 38 mg/dL...for those of you that don't know, (my individual range) is 80-130 mg/dL for blood sugar targets...

SO this was bad. I had to correct it, obviously, but ended up with like a 98 calorie deficit.

It was still a deficit so I won't complain...but are there other diabetics finding that this has become an obstacle to your weight loss? It gets discouraging after a while. And yes-I have seen and spoken with my doctor about this-she actually accesses my MFP account to track my blood sugars and intake.

Replies

  • m60kaf
    m60kaf Posts: 421 Member
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    Low is often caused by your body handling a recent high. Try to keep level consistent, worry more about spiking, lows will take care of themselves
  • Dragonwolf
    Dragonwolf Posts: 5,600 Member
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    What's your total carb (not just sugar) intake like? Like m60kaf said, lows are generally caused by your body trying to stabilize a high (and highs are caused by glucose getting released into your bloodstream). You might want to try cutting back your carbs (which may include some of your fruit) and see if that helps.
  • keithgi
    keithgi Posts: 96 Member
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    I'm guessing you have Type 1. If so, try reducing your insulin a little. When I first started MFP I had the same problem. I reduced my basal rate twice and it took care of the problem.
  • Grimlock69
    Grimlock69 Posts: 197
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    Yeah, I know that feeling all to well. The lowest I've ever been was 45, so I can imagine how 38 would feel. I know it's tough, but when it comes to diabetes you have to figure out what works for you. Are you on insulin? You might have to cut back on the dosage. Feel free to rant anytime or talk about it anytime. I hate my diabetes with all my heart.
  • sbrBirdy
    sbrBirdy Posts: 224 Member
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    Do you take insulin?

    It is frustrating, but it can be done. Your number one priority HAS to be maintaining a healthy blood sugar level. Some days will be bad, but keep working at it and you will get there. I'm on insulin, and usually when I go low it's because I've miscalculated somewhere. So make a note of what happened, and learn from it. I try to stick to glucose tablets for correction - I know exactly how many to take to correct so I don't over eat, I'm not tempted to snack on them, and there aren't extra calories from fat or protein that I don't need.
  • kierstin1976
    kierstin1976 Posts: 123 Member
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    I have low blood sugar and eat several small snacks a day.
  • MSeel1984
    MSeel1984 Posts: 2,297 Member
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    What's your total carb (not just sugar) intake like? Like m60kaf said, lows are generally caused by your body trying to stabilize a high (and highs are caused by glucose getting released into your bloodstream). You might want to try cutting back your carbs (which may include some of your fruit) and see if that helps.

    Take a peek at my diary-that'll give you a good idea.

    I try to keep it to 50 gm/meal or so...I do carbohydrate counting and my insulin pump calculates my dose using my programmed insulin-to-carbohydrate ratio and sensitivity factor.

    Sometimes I adjust it based on foods I know are high glycemic index for me (anything with refined corn or rice is usually something I avoid...but some foods I just know spike my sugar more than others).
  • MSeel1984
    MSeel1984 Posts: 2,297 Member
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    I'm guessing you have Type 1. If so, try reducing your insulin a little. When I first started MFP I had the same problem. I reduced my basal rate twice and it took care of the problem.

    Yeah I'm on an insulin Pump. Usually exercise is a bit tricky. If I have a snack and my coffee (which is what I usually do-eat a nutrigrain or granola bar and have my coffee on my way to the gym), I typically turn down my basal rate while I work out and end up fine...like today, I didn't eat, just had coffee, so I suspended my pump all together and turned it back on when I got to work. blood sugar was 106 mg/dL. I had a no sugar added yogurt (18 gm carbohydrate-made with mostly natural ingredients and artificial sweeteners) and my sugar spiked anyway...

    Right now it was 159 mg/dL and I had some bing cherries for my mid morning snack. 0.8 units taken to cover the carbs because it may be a while until lunch and I don't want to get low.
  • MSeel1984
    MSeel1984 Posts: 2,297 Member
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    I have low blood sugar and eat several small snacks a day.

    I do schedule snacks roughly 2 hours after my meals...so I'll have my snack on the way to the gym at 5:15 AM or so....when I get to work around 7:30, I have a no sugar added yogurt. Mid morning I usually have some pretzel sticks and low fat string cheese. Lunch is usually a salad with a piece of fruit (today it is a half a peanut butter and 1 tsp honey sandwich with baby carrots). When I get home, usually I don't have time to have a snack because I'm making dinner and packing lunches...but before bedtime I usually have a snack.

    I almost always spike in the middle of the night and sugar bottoms out around 4-5AM. Very...frustrating. My endo has adjusted my basal rate but it doesn't seem to be working.
  • fieryred0424
    fieryred0424 Posts: 48 Member
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    I actually have reactive hypoglycemia. this means if I eat something to high in carbs or like a bleached flour like white bread/crackers or potatoes my body overreacts the amount of insulin it actually needs and causes me to bottom out. Eating balanced is the key to manage any kind of sugar issues. My brother is also a type 1 diabetic and when he is working out or like when he started a new job that had him up and moving around alot more and lifting people (he's an EMT/Fire fighter) he had to adjust his insulin. You can feel free to add me and look at my diary as I try to eat balanced at every meal. Sometimes it doesn't happen but I try to have protein at EVERY mean... even my snack. You can get small amounts of protein and healthy fats from cheese. I actually spoke to a nutrionist when I was diagnosed with this and she helped me devise what I should and shouldn't eat at what times of the day so that I could keep my sugars in track and lose weight. When I started using MFP it really helped me to start tracking this even more than I already do.
  • MSeel1984
    MSeel1984 Posts: 2,297 Member
    Options
    Do you take insulin?

    It is frustrating, but it can be done. Your number one priority HAS to be maintaining a healthy blood sugar level. Some days will be bad, but keep working at it and you will get there. I'm on insulin, and usually when I go low it's because I've miscalculated somewhere. So make a note of what happened, and learn from it. I try to stick to glucose tablets for correction - I know exactly how many to take to correct so I don't over eat, I'm not tempted to snack on them, and there aren't extra calories from fat or protein that I don't need.

    Yeah-I'm on a pump...I'm learning from my miscalculations-and MFP is kind of no help in that regard (their carbohydrate estimates are too much on some foods) so i just do carb counting without using MFP for carbohydrate grams. I'm also using the notes section to document blood sugar levels and insulin dosing.

    I just hate that the lows are messing with my calories. I mean it's not like you have an option to treat a low blood sugar-it's gotta be done...but then it messes everything up :(
  • MSeel1984
    MSeel1984 Posts: 2,297 Member
    Options
    I actually have reactive hypoglycemia. this means if I eat something to high in carbs or like a bleached flour like white bread/crackers or potatoes my body overreacts the amount of insulin it actually needs and causes me to bottom out. Eating balanced is the key to manage any kind of sugar issues. My brother is also a type 1 diabetic and when he is working out or like when he started a new job that had him up and moving around alot more and lifting people (he's an EMT/Fire fighter) he had to adjust his insulin. You can feel free to add me and look at my diary as I try to eat balanced at every meal. Sometimes it doesn't happen but I try to have protein at EVERY mean... even my snack. You can get small amounts of protein and healthy fats from cheese. I actually spoke to a nutrionist when I was diagnosed with this and she helped me devise what I should and shouldn't eat at what times of the day so that I could keep my sugars in track and lose weight. When I started using MFP it really helped me to start tracking this even more than I already do.

    I'm pretty good at eating balanced meals. I typically have protein with my snacks-today is the first day I haven't in like a month. I've been pretty good about tracking and my sugars seem to be doing better. Usual A1c is around 6.5%
  • raystark
    raystark Posts: 403 Member
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    Ok so this applies to people with diabetes...somewhat of a rant.

    I'm getting so frustrated with low blood sugars ruining my goals. Yesterday I was well under my calories (by more than 300) even after my evening snack of an apple with peanut butter. I was feeling really good about it.

    I got into bed and suddenly felt horrible. Shaking, cold sweats. Checked my blood sugar and it was 38 mg/dL...for those of you that don't know, (my individual range) is 80-130 mg/dL for blood sugar targets...

    SO this was bad. I had to correct it, obviously, but ended up with like a 98 calorie deficit.

    It was still a deficit so I won't complain...but are there other diabetics finding that this has become an obstacle to your weight loss? It gets discouraging after a while. And yes-I have seen and spoken with my doctor about this-she actually accesses my MFP account to track my blood sugars and intake.


    As another type 2 diabetic I feel your pain. I hate going hypoglycemic like that. I have got as low as 25 in the past when doing insulin. I refuse to take any meds for diabetes these days. Have dropped over 60 pounds since Jan1 and avoid carbs like the plague to keep my bg level somewhat normal. When I was doing insulin I would keep a little tube of the glucose tabs you can find at any pharmacy with me. A tube in my truck, a tube in the house. They are 4 grams of pure glucose, 16 calories. One of those would usually get my bg level up where it needed to be without a bunch of extra calories.
  • Nutrition1st
    Nutrition1st Posts: 216 Member
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    bump
  • Dragonwolf
    Dragonwolf Posts: 5,600 Member
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    What's your total carb (not just sugar) intake like? Like m60kaf said, lows are generally caused by your body trying to stabilize a high (and highs are caused by glucose getting released into your bloodstream). You might want to try cutting back your carbs (which may include some of your fruit) and see if that helps.

    Take a peek at my diary-that'll give you a good idea.

    I try to keep it to 50 gm/meal or so...I do carbohydrate counting and my insulin pump calculates my dose using my programmed insulin-to-carbohydrate ratio and sensitivity factor.

    Sometimes I adjust it based on foods I know are high glycemic index for me (anything with refined corn or rice is usually something I avoid...but some foods I just know spike my sugar more than others).

    Your diary setting is either private, or friends-only. I can't see it unless you open it further.

    Are you using Glycemic Index, or Glycemic Load? That may also be a contributing factor, as Glycemic Load takes serving/portion size into account (watermelon is a common example - high GI, but low GL, because it requires eating a lot to actually get a significant amount of sugar from it; conversely, slow-releasing carb sources have a relatively low GI, but a high GL). It might be worth using GL in your calculations and see if that makes a difference.

    50g/meal, plus what you have for snacks, probably puts you between 150-200g/day, right? Have you tried aiming for something a little lower, such as around 100/day? Or, alternatively, eat low-carb in the afternoons and evenings (so your higher-carb meals would be breakfast, morning snack, and maybe lunch)? You might want to talk with your doctor, of course, but it might be worth looking into.
  • Sharonks
    Sharonks Posts: 884 Member
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    I second glucose tabs. I'm T2 on met and amaryl. The amaryl sends me hypo quite often. I carry glucose tabs with me. I have been in the low 40s several times and it has only taken me 1 or 2 to get me up to the 70s. Then I eat a protein/carb snack to help get me into the 80-90 range without overshooting. Worst thing you can do is to be bouncing up and down overshooting into high, taking more insulin to go down, then dropping.

    Exercise seems to be so variable. I'm actually afraid to run outside since I can suddenly go hypo. When I'm on the tm I can get off, deal with my bg, eat etc without having to worry about walking home or worse yet, to the car and trying to drive home.

    It may take some more experimentation to figure out how much insulin you really need according to the type of workout you are doing or it may just be one of those things that happens randomly.
  • keithgi
    keithgi Posts: 96 Member
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    I'm guessing you have Type 1. If so, try reducing your insulin a little. When I first started MFP I had the same problem. I reduced my basal rate twice and it took care of the problem.

    so I suspended my pump all together and turned it back on when I got to work.

    I try not to suspend my pump (unless it is an absolute emergency) as it leaves 'gaps' in my coverage. Is it possible that these suspensions are causing your spikes? When you got back to work your glucose seemed to be ok (106 mg/dl) but spiked later after the yogurt. I'm guessing you gave a bolus for the yogurt, but the gap in the basal rate may have caused the spike. Just a thought...
  • ElizabethRoad
    ElizabethRoad Posts: 5,138 Member
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    Yesterday I was well under my calories (by more than 300) even after my evening snack of an apple with peanut butter. I was feeling really good about it.
    Why are you eating so little? You should try to meet your calorie goal, not go way under.
  • froeschli
    froeschli Posts: 1,292 Member
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    Yesterday I was well under my calories (by more than 300) even after my evening snack of an apple with peanut butter. I was feeling really good about it.
    Why are you eating so little? You should try to meet your calorie goal, not go way under.
    That's what I was thinking...
  • Becomeone2
    Becomeone2 Posts: 3
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    :angry: I had the same problem last week. it was very much differetn than ever before. I was seeing bright lights with my eyes closed and then black hole all in a matter of 30 mins. I didn't know what was happening until i tested my glucose. I had taken my shot right before bed.i told my doctor that i decreased my insulin 10 units and try to eat some sort of carb before going to bed to hold me over the night. It has put a damper on exercise be cause it drops and i have to be ready with some sort of fruit and there are times lately when I just don't workout because I know I'm 1500 or below. Recalculations were set at 1920 and that hard to reach some days.

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