I sit there frozen, not from fear or temperature, from a low blood sugar. I first awake at 3 am sweating uncontrollably. This is a first sign its a major low. I attempt to get up and get sugar and only reach the floor next to the bed. There, in confusion and disorientation, I look periodically at the clock to see how much more time I have until unconsciousness.
Its now 4:15am. I finally have enough focus to yell for my wife that is 4 ft away.
I wait.
She awakes and gets me sugar.
For an hour and 15 minutes I sat drenched in sweat frozen unable to help myself. Most of my brain function is unavailable, only that 1 focused attempt.
For 30 years I have been a diabetic, that was the first time I both feared and respected it. I will continue to be a student of the disease.
Yup! Yup! Yup! Experienced it once while at the ranch deer hunting!! OMG!! Scary doesn't begin to explain what you feel. We were both lucky someone was with us. And you are correct: It does give you a new-found respect for our disease.
marty
1. I try not to give myself any insulin after dinner and I eat around 6pm and go to bed around 1030pm, that way there is no active insulin in my system. I always check my BG right before I go to bed 2. If possible, get a CGM. It is amazing, its alarm has woken me before when I am low at a manageable number like 60.
Brian, your episode brings back many bad memories.
I second the CGM suggestion. I have had mine for almost two years, and have had very few unmanageable lows since getting it. My husband is now able to sleep all night without having to call 911 for help, or sit up for a couple of hours waiting for me to come around.
Very scarry that stuff u talked about. Thank goodness for ur wife. I've been a d for 38 years now and had more than my share of those lows that ur talking about. My husband's the one that catches me. What really ticks me off (aside from not getting out what my mind is thinking it usually comes out bla-bla-bla) but the one that really upsets me is when I tell (in my mind) my legs what to do & they do the opposite.
I can understand that very well. Even though I haven't had a low nearly that bad. I feel a low will get me before complications from the highs. But I must try to kept better check on my BS.
Glad you had someone there Brian. I had an episode like that once while I was on the road and by myself. I think I came through it better because I was a T2. I got to the fridge and drank OJ. Woke up with the jug of OJ in my lap and could not even remember getting it.
Brian always have jelly beans or glucose tablets handy. If during the day I drink OJ but I carry jelly beans with me at all times. I went so low once when I was new the next thing I knew I was in the ER they brought me back with some purple goo..now it is jelly beans.
Reed Jellybeans are great if u can still swollow and all but I've had times that only a gluagon shot wouldbring me back up. My dr prescribed me a sot of gluagon that I keep in the refrigator. Brian ask ur dr about a gluagon kit to keep at home for some of those really bad lows.
Mark I got the gluagon kit b/c of that. I got choked quite a few times. Back when an ER guy told me after I came too to keep some cake frosting (that decorative kind???) in a tube just for a case like that. He said that cake frosting would desolve in ur mouth and get asorbed in ur body. If u had nothing else to squrt some of that in ur mouth and wait for like 15 or 20 minutes.
Yes according to what the pharamist told me when I 1st got it it's suppost to be refrigated but if not refreagiting it works then as my mom used to say "If it's not broke why fix it???" LOL! I will tell u this though if it's in a refreieator it tends to last for MUCH longer. I have used some that was up to 2 years out of date and it worked just as well as some that was in date.
OK, I checked the package and it said room temperature, but I guess it wouldn't hurt to refrigerate it. Since using the DexCom my blood sugars have been so much more manageable that I haven't needed any help with lows. But I figured it wouldn't hurt to keep a kit on hand, just in case.
