Way OT- how many of you take insulin?

I'm 63 years old in pretty good health,but my sugar runs around 200.My long time doctor retired and the new female doctor that replaced him wants me to go on insulin.She says my numbers should be under 100.I'm usually on the go,working at my farm shop or going to farm auctions and think doing insulin would be awkard for me to do.I guess they have those insulin pens you can adjust the dosage on.Not looking forward to it,going to the doctor next week.

oh-yea, the doc wants me around 100, easier said than done when you weight over 250,,, my doc wanted to put me on insulin also, i told her lets fill out papers for disabilty, cause i won"t be able to drive a semi,,, then other nurse tried "glipizde",, took me from 9.5 to 6.5 a1c,,, who says there isn"t a choice,,,

Ray,insulin is not a problem,They put me on Victoes with a pin neddle,once in the mourning,no problem.My insurance quit paying for it,so they put me on bydren and I take a shot once a week,My asi or ais{what ever} is 6.5.Also Im on a weight loss pill which helps.These medicines arent concidered Insulin,and I dont think they will affect your CDL

jimmy

I'm 200 pounds and am taking glimepiride and metformin now.

If your fasting blood sugar is running 200, you are not in "pretty good health". But most doctors will try oral drugs before going to insulin. If you're already on oral drugs and can't get your fasting below 200, the doc really doesn't have a choice but to put you on insulin. Unless, of course, you're willing to step up your exercise and improve your diet.

Fasting blood sugar isn't a very good test, although doctors like it because they're familiar with it and it's cheap. Your doctor should be checking your hemoglobin A1C before changing your medication. If you don't know what your last few A1C readings were, ask your doctor. If your old doctor wasn't monitoring A1C, then it's a good thing for you he retired.

Mark has it right. I have been on insulin for 20 years, 80 units of Humalog when I eat, 100 units of lantus @ bed time, have pens of both, use them when I leave the house, regular needles and bottles when @ home.

I keep mine under control with diet and Glipizide and Janumet. I have been on diet and tablets since 1987 and driving semi. I watch what I eat and check blood sugars every day.

Might be the best thing for you. over 30 years on insulin and have had an insulin pump for the last 8 years.
It's a way of life and beats the devil out of the alternatives associated with diabetes.

Victoza,injection and Glimepiride and Onglyza oral. Next A1C is Feb 28.

I was 37 when I was diagnosed with diabetes at 461 BS, a type 1 , not a type 2. Started out with 1 shot a day with NPH, then 2, then 3 and maybe 4. I was using NPH, Regular, and Ultra Lente. The last 10 or so years, I have been on the pump. You don't live your life around shots but the pump is not perfect. My BS runs between 50 and 350 and my A1C is aroung 7.5. I only average around 36 units a day of Humalog. I have been from 23 to over 600 BS and never passed out, I know I have been very lucky. I try to count carbs for my diet and about 10-15# overweight right now during the winter. My Dr wants me to run around 120 to 150 because of farming, climbing bins, etc. I have an insulin exemption Class A CDL. I am to test before driving and stay between 100 and 300 while driving.

For a type 2 that is running 200 is not good. They have more health troubles from the diabetes. I have friends on this new Lantis that are very level BS. I envy them that they are so level but everybody is different. Do the insulin or lose weight or whatever it takes to get your BS lower. The very best of luck to you. Things are so much easier today than 35 yeas ago but at 72 I am running out of energy more often.

Mine went over 100 after a 12 hr. fast they told me cut out all sugar so I did and it took a dive to 72 I working in the barn and was passing out. I made it back to house and took some sugar in to get back to just over 100 close call. When was on their sugar free diet my BS level was all over the place.
You need to get a good book on BS level because it goes up and down according when you ate last. It should be just under 100 after 12 hour fast. Then between 130 and 140 2 hours after eating. It's means a lot of Chevking until you learn how it runs. My hospital will give insulin if it's over 150 but I'm able to pretty much control mine by eating. And forget all that sugar free stuff I balance it out over the day. You will just have experiment for yourself. Remember if you don't control it you can be like my cousin in very bad health and blind. He didn't follow the rules. Keep in touch with the dr. On a regular visits.
Good luck Walt

I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes 12 years ago but was able to control it with excercise and pills but then cancer took away most of my pancreas along with other organs and now my blood sugar is way out of control, been taking 2 types of insulin 6 times daily but I think they are going to put me on an insulin pump real soon.

Been fighting the idea of wearing a pump, logic says it's the next best step but I really don't like the idea of it.

If your doctor says to take insulin then you should do it, letting your diabetes get out of control has some really bad effects on your health.

12 units of Humalog twice a day and 60 units of Levimir before bed. Sugar averages 150-160 first thing in the morning and around 120-130 before dinner. Going to see the endocrinologist in a few weeks to see if we can get better numbers.

Last summer something stung me on the neck and it swelled up big time.I was in the hospital for 4 days while they gave me antibiotics before they drained it.They gave me 2 units of insulin a couple times a day.On the second day the night nurse gave me 30 units by mistake.Thought I was going to die.

my wife and brother are both type II - get your sugar down around 100. Although 200 does not sound high and you feel ok, it can be very hard on your kidneys and feet.

My wife has been diagnosed as being diabetic since she was 13...and she's now about to turn 52. She's on the pen during the day, and takes a regular injection at night.

When her blood sugar gets below 100, that's when she starts to "bottom out"...her sugar is best when it averages between 120-140. But I think everyone is different. Maybe a fasting sugar below 100 is OK, but on a normal day anything under 100 spells trouble for my wife.

Type II here, I take Glipizide and test my blood sugar twice a day, usually test at 70-90, certain foods will bump it up. Breaded fish sandwiches, french fries, pretzels; all are foods I have to avoid or limit. I generally watch my carbs, when I don't I see it in my blood sugar numbers.

Not yet, but I expect it is something I will have to do sometime.

I have been type 2 for about 10 years. For a long time, Metformin took care of the problems just fine. My A1C test results were always in the high 6"s, which my GP thought was excellent. Then about a year ago, for reasons unknown, my A1C score went up in the 9"s. My GP thought I would need to go on insulin then, but he agreed to send me to a diabetes specialist.

The specialist put me on a much more restrictive diet, had me go on an exercise program and also changed my oral medication to something called Kombigly. Taking the medication, being better about what and how much I eat and exercising more, my A1C results are back down to 7.0. I am supposed to change meds next month, but I don"t remember what the new one is called.

I test my fasting blood sugar first thing every morning. It varies somewhat depending on what I ate the night before and what time I ate it. I usually am at around 120, but sometimes it is a bit lower or higher. When I was sick with a sinus infection, my readings were a bunch higher, but after a few days I got better and the readings came down.

I always thought I had problems with LOW blood sugar at times, because all my life, sometimes I would feel incredibly hungry and would get shaky and not feel good at all. Eating something, especially something sweet would slowly make me feel better. So I always carry a few pieces of "emergency" hard candy to help me make it through such a problem. But since I got my meter, I have tested my blood sugar when I felt one of those "spells" coming on...and my blood sugar was NOT low at all. I have never seen my blood sugar readings below 100, which is "supposed" to be normal. My guess is that normal varies somewhat among people.

But usual fasting reading of 200 would really worry me. Diabetes can do all kinds of bad things to you, including loss of vision and circulation problems that can lead to amputations and all sorts of other maladies. Not good!

I would suggest researching doctors in your general area to find out who the best diabetes specialist is, and then go find out what that doctor can do for you. It might be some hassle: you might not get to eat what you like, you might need to do FORMAL exercise, and you might get by with oral medication.

Or you might need to start using Insulin. Which would not be the end of the world. I have several friends our age and older that have been on insulin for years. They have to test their blood sugar more often, but they say using insulin is do-able and a whole lot better than going blind or dieing. They are able to lead normal, fairly healthy lives.

I have heard that there are supposed to be other ways of using Insulin coming on the market besides shots, but I have not researched it. My GP, who is also diabetic, has talked about a system that uses a nasal spray, but I don"t know if it is available yet.

For your sake and your family"s sake, get this problem taken care of ASAP. It is unlikely that it will just go away on its own and waiting could cause damage that can not be repaired. Good luck!