Here in the Kansas City Metro area we have a shortage of endos. I don’t mean docs claiming to treat diabetes, I mean actual endos! It can take over 3 months or more to get an appointment, even as an existing patient. I changed endos at one point b/c I was only being able to be seen once every year to 15 months. While her levels do need to be addressed, she is not having highs consistently and her levels do come down (according to her posts). With what most endos deal with, we all know that this is not considered an immediate danger situation. And I know here she would be told that if she feels it is an immediate danger situation and cannot get into an endo, then to go to the ER. For endos here in KC, that does not constitute an emergency appointment. I realize she has not been diagnosed, which could be another reason for the delay. She is probably a new patient appointment, which we all know is a longer appointmen time, and here are even harder to schedule. I am not saying this is right, or even the way it should be done, but it has been the reality here for years now. And I am talking from YEARS of experience in KC, of both myself and others with diabetes (type 1 and 2).
It would be interesting to find out if the shortage of endos is unique to our area, or is happening elsewhere. About 5 years ago we lost 2 of our best and most popular endos to the Mayo Clinic. And to my knowledge the practice they were in has not replaced them.
Is there an ER near you? Because you should go right away. I didn’t see an endo right away but my doctor treated my high BGs immediately. And called me all week end to check on me. Running in the 300s+ make you feel terrible and put you at risk for DKA. I hope you get help right away.
I am so sorry that… you’re being treated this way by your GP. At least you’re going to an Endo. It is NEVER okay to go very high, just because you can come down quickly… While you may not develop complications right there and then, if untreated, time does stack up against uncontrolled blood sugar levels… Listen, I know this person is a doctor, but doctors are not always right, and some doctors (just like car mechanics, and other professions), can be outright mediocre. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is! There is absolutely NO circumstance in which a blood sugar of 300 is not a cause for concern (regardless of how fast you come down)… Healthy people do NOT exceed certain levels of blood sugar, ever. There are few possibilities for numbers like this:
- You take way too much Niacin (Vitamin B1) or Vitamin C, on purpose, with supplementation, exceeding 4,500 mg…
- You have cancer.
- You have Diabetes – either Type 1 or Type 2, and every time you have a meal hugely loaded with carbs, or carbs and a lot of fat, you will have high numbers… (Maybe you can experiment with that. Test a fasting number – which by the way, the 169 is also very high – eat oatmeal, or rice, or some high carb meal, and then test at 75 minutes to 2 hours, and see how badly that affects you.) If you reacted like crazy, then you have Diabetes… And it NEEDS treating – there is NO waiting you can do on it… Research Diabetic diets, low carbing, etc, and start TODAY! This is a serious matter… and right now, time is on your side. Pleas, please, please, take advantage of it. It is not your doctor’s life, and health – it is YOURS. Diabetes is not something to be ignored… Love your life. Take care of your Diabetes.
Yes… agreed!
Consider that the high bg and the racing heart may be unrelated conditions. Ask the endo. Perhaps your GP can refer you to a cardiologist after conducting and EKG.
Even if you are soon diagnosed as a diabetic we can’t attribute every medical or physical condition we have to diabetes.
Terry
Tachycardia (racing heart) is one of the symptoms of DKA. If you had been in the 300’s for a while there easily could be some DKA. I remember DKA before my diagnosis 30 years ago… very definitely racing heart!
More generally tachycardia can also be because of electrolyte (esp potassium) imbalances too.
Yes… and if there is DKA developing, there will be ketones in her urine. She should get some ketone strips, over the counter, from the local farmacy or walmart (no need for a prescription for them), and if her levels are moderate to high, get to an ER right away…
I have had type1 diabetes for 30 years, and only recently have had that heart racing, semi-anxious feeling with glucoses above 200, with normal feelings returning as soon as it lowers. Anyone else here who experiences this sensation have diabetes for a long time? Thoughts on the matter: if it is long-term, is that it might be a form of neuropathy? Secondly, the heart is beating a lot harder to push that sugar sludge through the veins, and we might be feeling it - just as the heart beats harder to push glucose to the brain during a low sugar, perhaps we feel it as it pushes harder to remove the glucose during a high? I will try fluids; if that DOES help, and taking the pressure off the cardiovascular system works, it might give a clue. Anyone else try this?
As to the first poster, please look into your health; a high blood sugar, for whatever reason, should be checked. I have had many, many doctors in my past tell me that my 400 was fine, and I will see you next month. It is not fine. You aren’t feeling right or you wouldn’t be questioning it - go with your feelings and thoughts on the matter. The problem with diabetes is that you don’t see, or feel, the damage for YEARS, so many people ignore it and feel ok, and don’t even know that they aren’t at their best. It only takes one trip into the endocrinologist’s office, see the amputations, the blindness, the kidney machines, etc., to think it just might be a good idea to take care of yourself now and hopefully live complication-free. And what if it isn’t diabetes? You would have worried for nothing, and not taken care of a real problem. The gold standard for diabetes is an A1C, since it records the last 3 months. Anyone can have a normal fasting blood sugar. Anyone can have their blood sugar return to normal in a hour, even with diabetes, depending on activity and meal composition. The A1C will catch any and all problems that occurred 24 hours a day, for 3 months, and let you know what is really going on. And isn’t that what you are looking for? The truth?
And I agree with just about all of the above - ER now, other stuff later. The ER will check your glucose and ketones right away, as well as anything else.
Sounds normal. Not sure why heart beat depends on BG. Heart is happiest when BG is in the normal range.
that should read at the end “on ONE bg reading.” Sorry, typo!
When my bs is in th 300’s I get light headed, shaky and extremely sleepy. My only option is to sleep it off and hope for a better day tomorrow or shoot up more insulin. I cant remember if my heart raced or not, just weak and sleepy.
I used to have low symptoms when my bs went down to 70’s. easy to correct, but I am taking Meteprolol for blood pressure and it masks lows. Starting last february, 2010, I experienced my first real bad low. I noticed my typing speed slowed and I was having a little difficulty thinking. I thought it was just fatigue and planned on taking a break soon. my heartwas racing and then I noticed my legs felt very cold. I checked my blood sugar and i was in the 40’s. it took a snickers and a bag of corn chips to stailize me in the 90’s.
A racing heart can also be caused by an overactive thyroid. You should have the endo check your thyroid function as well.