In my 60 yrs of having type 1, I haven’t really had many severe hypos and I have had very few when I have needed help, maybe 8 times in my lifetime. It is very rare for me. I would have died this morning without my husband’s help. Maybe I am just getting too old for this. I have, for as long as I can remember, been worried more about high glucose levels than low ones.
It was my fault. For some reason my Tresiba is not kicking in as well as it normally does in the early morning, so I gave too much insulin around 5:00 and went back to bed. When I got up around 7:00 I was in the low 30’s and I assume I was rapidly dropping. I dropped to the floor and the next thing I knew my husband was feeding me. I slowly came around but have had a severe headache all morning and no energy. It took me a long time to make any sense about anything. This hardly ever happens to me and at almost 70, I seem to take longer to recover.
I am waiting for my CGM to arrive. Thanks to everyone who suggested that I get one. I still don’t think I need a pump, but who knows. I realize that if my dear husband hadn’t been around I wouldn’t be here to discuss this.
Marilyn, I am so sorry you were hit with this severe hypo. It’s such an upsetting event, both physically and emotionally. Take it easy for a few days and pamper yourself.
And give your husband an extra hug. He deserves it!
When you regain your energy, and I know you will, take a cold hard look at what happened and learn from this threatening experience. You can’t fix the past but you can use this knowledge to help in the future. You’ve got this.
By the way, basal lows are a breed of low unto themselves. They are hard charging, tenacious and resist active treatments.
I think she implied that her low was caused by an early morning correction of, I’m assuming, rapid-acting insulin. Typically any long-lasting basal insulin should never cause a serious low blood sugar (unless you’re on a massive dose) because it releases slowly
I am so lucky that my husband has stuck by me for over 50 yrs. At least I was able to return the favor by helping him with his 4 bouts of cancer in the past 9 yrs. We are fortunate that we really like each other.
Thanks for the reminder Terry, that I might need a few days to recover. Actually it was the Novolog that got me. I just took too much trying to avoid the dawn phenomenon. I really should have know better. I just hate to start the day with a glucose level over 80.
I don’t know why the Tresiba is suddenly not working well.
I jokingly told my husband that I wasn’t going to have diabetes in my next life, but then I would probably end up with something worse.
Hypos can be very scary. My first encounter with them was helping my maternal grandfather and I was only 5 years old while my grandmother was out of the house. I would pour a glass of OJ and put sugar in it and give it to him. I didn’t know it was prepping me for when my mom would diagnosed years later. Of course by then there were glucose tablets, and then glucose shots.
My very first hypo was at work and I didn’t know what was happening, but suddenly I was losing my vision and then my hearing. A quick thinking co-worker gave me a candy bar and got me back, but it was a horrible feeling. The next time it happened, I was home and my mom caught it and checked me and I was 41. I am apparently unaware when they come upon me.
I’ve woken up with the worst headaches and checked my BG and it’s in the 60s. Usually when I have a bad nightmare it’s cause of a hypo too.
I still don’t have a monitor and live alone. My doctor says it’s not necessary because I haven’t had an ER visits.
@Kate25 Living alone would be a strong reason to get a CGM just because it gives you a warning before you get there (hopefully). If you have to go to the ER to get one and you live alone you might not be alive to get it after the fact. I would push for one.
My endo put me on the Libre just because I was a type one and they were available and inexpensive. I asked for the prescription for the Dexcom because I had some drops that were harder to control right after my back reinjury. Nothing serious but I wanted the alarms, they put through the paperwork right away.
Kate25, I am beginning to believe that a monitor is necessary especially if you, like me, have hypo unawareness. I have never been hospitalized because of hypoglycemia and consider my type 1 fairly easy to take care of. Time consuming and worrisome, but not too difficult. I also wake up when low.
This morning I would have been warned with a monitor and I definitely needed that warning. I can’t imagine living alone with out a CGM. Maybe when I was younger I could have done it or if I kept a higher A1c. I disagree wholeheartedly with your doctor. It should definitely be your decision and it is none of her business.
I am searching for me an internist who familiar with endocrine issues. My current PCP is very behind the times even with me bringing her my blood glucose readings. She does not use computers at all, she still writes everything out including prescriptions and lab orders.
I’m so sorry to hear of your severe low. Those can be very scary. I’ve had my share of those in 28 years and, like you, I wouldn’t be here were it weren’t for family members. I’m so glad your husband was there to help!
I hope you get your CGM soon. I live alone and I think a CGM is essential for anyone who lives alone and uses insulin to strive for tight control.
I recently switched to the Libre because that’s all my insurance plan covers, which has no alarms, and within a week it was clear to me that I badly needed alarms overnight (even just in that one week I had several times where I/d dip low or go high and stay there for hours without waking up). I ordered a MiaoMiao to go with the LIbre so that I could get alarms overnight, and that plus xDrip on my iPhone has been working perfectly for me.
Do you keep glucagon around, just in case? Maybe the nasal glucagon now available in the US would be something to look into.
Yes, even with a Dexcom CGM warnings a hypo can still catch you. I went snorkeling in a rougher ocean last week and dropped really really fast 4 hours later. Thank goodness for the warning because I wasn’t expecting that and it was quick. I had to consume so much sugar to get it to stop.
We stopped and ate after snorkeling and I took insulin and I guess I had to take less than normal? I hadn’t had to make that adjustment before but I guess I worked that much harder that day. It’s a constant learning experience. I will be more watchful and make more adjustments for the “more work” snorkeling in the future.
PS I do always have a protein snack right after and that is all I’ve had to do before besides the decrease in basal rate.
I do keep glucagon around Jen, and if I hadn’t been responsive, I hope my husband would have thought about using it before calling for help. I have used it only twice in many decades and do try to keep a current one on hand, but we just don’t think about using it. He just told me that he had it all ready to use. I finally took part of an old pain killer left over from surgery to get rid of the headache that I haven’t been able to get rid of all day,
I am happy to hear that you have alarms now. So necessary. I am going to ask for a prescription for the new nasal prescription.
