I am an insulin-dependent Type-II diabetic. My sign that I have very low blood-sugars is sick feeling, weak, trembling and sweating. This often occurs in the middle of the night if I haven't had my bedtime snack!

I do eat a few potato chips, but then I cut back on other carbs & sugars (probably cut back too much). This causes my extremely low blood-sugar counts, and the above feelings.

I just have to remember that I must eat after I have insulin. It's a very fine line that us diabetics walk....

That's how I feel after pigging out on carbs. Flour-y and potato-y carbs make me sicker than if I ate a bag of sugar.

Why are you "pigging out on carbs" if you are diabetic?

Anger. Denial.

You should be immediately checking your blood glucose levels any time You feel anything out of the norm. Especially the symptoms you describe. It is extremely important to know what your reading is at those times. Whether it is very high or very low both extremes are very dangerous. You could be surging up above 300 and not know it. That's stroke range and get to the hospital range for anything above that so they can bring you down. The other direction is a sudden drop which can turn to diabetic coma quickly.

What medication are you currently on and how long have you been diagnosed?
I generally test my blood several times a day. Always first thing in the morning so I can get my fasting morning number, and usually after lunch, before dinner and 2 hours after dinner. All kept in a logbook journal I get free from the meter company or my doctor.

Diabetes is a disease that everyone who has it should be required to attend a series of classes at a facility just for teaching about diabetes, what it's doing to your body, and how many ways it can kill you. Plus extensive lessons about the food you eat and drink.
I was very fortunate to get to go to an excellent teaching facility, I had to attend classes every day, just like school, for a week and there were tests. We were assigned a personal nutritionists that kept in contact with us for many months. It was invaluable. I have a medical background, but I was so grateful for the educational experience.

Being angry and in denial is understandable, not taking care of your disease is deadly.

Have you gone through the house to clear out all (ALL) of the stuff that is poisonous to you? No pudding, no icy cokes, no white bread, no cookies, no white potatoes, no white rice, no white bread, no white pasta, no frozen dinners, no candy.... just as a good start. There are substitutes or alternatives for all of that.

I'll bet that between some of us here at the KT, you can obtain some decent guidelines to get you started on the right path. I know how worried you must be.

If you can find your way around GardenWeb, you can research how to lead a healthy life style with diabetis. It's not hard....you just have to do it, Deeby.

I don't know if your daily routine is different from what you post on some of the 'what's for dinner' threads, but I've often worried about you, seriously.

Raven, what a great opportunity you had for education about your diabetis. I was only able to spend an hour with a nutritionist and she knew far less than I did about foods.

I'm type II diabetic, and luckily my insurance pays for diabetic counseling, which takes the form of a meeting with a nurse who is a diabetic specialist at a diabetic clinic on a regular basis. I usually go every 4 months but have varied that going as frequently as 3 months or as far out as 6 months. The nurses at the clinic are also available to me as needed by phone or email. It's extremely helpful as it both gives me a place to ask questions, it gets my medication and glucose levels looked at regularly, and it keeps me accountable.

My guess is that the potato chips are not a specific culprit, but just happen to be a favorite item (a weakness) and that eating a few now and then wouldn't hurt you at all or cause symptoms, if factored into your diet. At the same time, you have to remember that they are empty calories. If you eat a handful of chips then you should cut out something else, and that something is probably far better for you than those greasy chips. Potato chip calories are made up way more of grease than of carbs. But, if you can't keep yourself from binging on them, then you are better off with them out of the house.

I also get those weak, trembly feelings when my blood sugar is too low. When it gets a little too high, I tend to get very, very sleepy. And it doesn't have to be anywhere near the 300 range that someone mentioned for that to happen. 175 can easily put me in an area where I'd have trouble keeping my eyes open. I have never hit 300, that I'm aware of, and it would scare me if I did.

I test my blood sugar usually first thing in the morning, and as someone else mentioned once or twice a day either at 2 or 4 hours after eating. The nurses at the diabetic clinic like to see readings from a variety of times. It helps them see how my meds are working. How high the numbers go after eating (2 hour mark is usually about the highest) and how quickly the meds pull the levels down (4 hour mark).

My daughters diet is ideal for diabetics. She only eats 20 carbs per day. We have a lady who works in our store who is diabetic and she eats a family sized bag of tostidos on her coffee break. LOADS of carbs, then she complains how sick she feels. I've quit feeling bad for her.

Thank God I have never seen numbers in the 200-300 range either!
My diabetes education was all paid for with my insurance. My wonderful doctor wrote it as a prescription and we discussed it with my insurance and they had no problem covering it, I think most insurance will if it is properly coded and prescribed. Definitely ask about it anyone that is diabetic, it is never to late to get a refresher course or a first time course.

I also get very very sleepy if I get up into the 175-180 range.
My morning numbers are always quite a bit higher than norm because I have dawn effect which we have not been able to correct no matter what I snacked or did not or when etc. Unless I get up at like 3am and snack then go back to bed and that is not happening LOL. I do the recommended snack before bed which helps a little. It is just how our bodies work when we are sleeping that make us all different.

So many people think omg if I am diabetic I have to take shots every day. That is not true. I have been diagnosed for many many years and still have never had to take a shot, it is controlled by pills. Some day I certainly may make the change over to one of the shots or insulin by injection. But it is far less painful than it used to be! They are creating new diabetes drugs frequently. In fact I just printed out some info this weekend about the FDA approving a new oral drug for type2 called Jardiance. Not long ago Invokana came out.
Lots of options these days.

Everyone's disease is different yet similar, we have to make our own path through it in the best way we can with good medical guidance.

I can certainly understand and sympathize with what you wrote ....."then she complains ..... I've quit feeling bad for her."

I also am a type 2 diabetic.Was diagnosed last feb 2013.I followed the dr's orders,went on just a pill ,metformin,went to the classes,changed my eating habits and got it back under control and in the process of that lost 48 #,I get my A1C tested every 3 months and so far so good since january of this year.

I am no longer on meds,but still test my blood a few times a day,still watch what i eat,in fact i have a pad on my kitchen table and i write down everything i eat and drink..No one told me i had to do this,but for me it works,makes me accountable for my actions,i also write down my numbers and what i weigh.

I DO NOT want to be one of those folks that don't follow the rules,then end up losing their eyesight,limbs etc.Nope won't be me if i can help it,i like life too much for that.
Kathi

Deeby, if you have diabetes, I hope you were joking about your breakfast consisting of diet Coke. Actually, I hope you were joking even if you don't have diabetes.

Kathi, that is so smart of you. Not easy, I'm sure, but what a reward you have! I've known lax diabetics like the ones you mention, who have had their toes or feet amputated, lost their eyesight, etc. Horrible, and in many cases preventable.

kathi, my former neighbor, about 10 years ago, took the same route as you. Her doctor wanted her to begin taking the oral diabetes medication but she made some changes with a determination that truly impressed me. Well, I wasn't impressed she argued with the doctor so vehemently, but she was right in the long run. She had always been an excellent and nutritious cook (even though widowed 30 years now, she cooks for one 3 times a day), but she took and still takes the diabetes wellness classes, began testing her levels, started walking, lost some weight. When they say include all the colors of the rainbow on your plate, she does that ;) Seldom potatoes, pasta, white rice, but prepares sweet potatoes, brown rice, whole wheat pasta.
Enjoys her balanced meals and 2 appropriate snacks each day.

She was 87 in May and still doing great with no diabetes medication, only lifestyle changes. And quite proud of herself, with good reason :)

Deeby - I would follow all of the advice provided. Serious diabetes is in my family - but I do not have it - thankfully. My husband had a vitrectomy on his eye and he was the only patient (out of a huge number) visiting the eye specialist who was not diabetic - and many of the patients were not old but were suffering from blindness and loss of limbs. I remember the syringes my great-aunt had to use back in the 1950s - and the thought is still in my mind. While great strides have been made in the treatment of diabetes, the end results will often be the same if you don't take care.

I do understand that you are in denial and angry as anyone would be - but you will feel worse if you don't get it under control. I agree - just don't have the offending products in the house if you are not able to resist them. I have several allergies - my husband does not. I know how my body will react if I eat some of the food that I make or buy for him - but at least I will not go into a diabetic coma. It is hard when there is another household member who is not limited in what he/she can eat. I have to seriously watch the purines and oxalics - and preservatives (salt is the devil - and yet I have perfect blood pressure) - but then salt is considered "natural" so I read labels very carefully.