I think i might be hypoglycemic?

The other day I mentioned on this blog that I've been having dizzy and weak spells.  I thought that maybe this time it was a virus, due to my Father in law going through something that sounded similar to mine. 

But now I'm not so sure.  It's still going on and it's not getting better.

I  have had this same type of problem for years now, just some months it happens, and other months I don't notice it.    A couple of years ago, a friend of mine told me it might be an inner ear problem when I asked about it.  Another told me she thought I might be anemic.  Another told me I might be hypoglycemic. 

All of these symptoms I have tried to ignore it for so long, but it has come to a point where I am just too dizzy at times (and stressed out) to really function right, and I felt like I needed to figure out what was going on.  

I went to the doctor today,  my blood was taken, and the doctor told me to go home and test my blood sugar levels every hour for 6 hours after eating.

I ate a small meal and then took my blood sugar levels...I was shocked to see "35" was the number displayed, as I had just finished eating, and the range is supposed to be from 80- 120.     I am not sure, maybe the test was wrong.  I didn't retest though.   My father in law gave me a half a coke and suggested I drink it to bring my suger levels back up a bit.

The next one I took, the test came out to say 259.   This was 1/2 hour later.    That one half of a coke dramatically raised the levels, apparently.  I tested again to make sure, and it was still about the same.

The next hour, it was 188.

Then 115, 138, 120, and 131.   

Then I finally ate supper, and two hours after supper, my blood sugar was 148.

Does this sound like a cause for concern?  Are any of you diabetic and know any more about this than I do?    Tomorrow I will be taking these results to the doctor to see what he thinks, and to see what my blood tests showed.   

Side note: The last 2 days I have not eaten any sugar (except that coke, and probably small amounts in foods), because I need to cut down....after having these dizzy spells I have been trying to find a solution, and I have noticed my sugar eating habits have been excessive lately.  I have been a sugar addict. Literally.   And if I am becoming hypo- or hyper -glycemic, this is exactly why I need to stop ingesting so much sugar.    

Plus, I have found research that shows that hypoglycemia and diabetes can cause miscarriage or stillbirth, and that really worries me as well...in fact, this was the information that made me decide to finally go to the doctor about this. 

I'll update as soon as I know the results!

 

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  • 6/18/2007 11:56 PM JM wrote:
    Gosh Bethany, I hope everything is okay. I wish I could help. Dan, my boyfriend, his mom is diabetic, and I don't know anything about it... It seems like 35 is really low and that with just drinking a half a coke it would raise so much... Good luck!
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  • 6/19/2007 12:01 AM JM wrote:
    I was curious what hypoglycemia was, so i typed it into google... I found this site... Maybe it would be helpful to you.

    http://www.answers.com/hypoglycemia&r=67

    Good luck!
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  • 6/19/2007 7:02 AM Megan wrote:
    Hi Bethany. I've been a reader for quite some time, but this is my first post...I'm 21 and have been dealing with hypoglycemia for years, though I'm not diabetic. My sugar hardly ever goes above 75, no matter what I eat. B/c my sugar never goes up to a dangerous level, I only test when I can feel my common symptoms occuring. For me, the most prominent is the dizziness, then I immediately start sweating from the top of my head and I break out in a cold sweat, almost in a sweeping motion down my body. There are a variety of glucose tablets at your local supermarket. I carry these with me everyday - they are a Godsend. As much as I love Coke, it just doesn't do it for me. Milk is also very good at raising your sugar, mine anyway. Drink a full glass with some high sugar cookies or a snack. Now if that doesn't do it, chew a glucose tab! Good luck!
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  • 6/19/2007 7:13 AM Bethany wrote:
    Thank you, JM, for the information. I think there is a difference between hyperglycemic and hypoglycemic...but I didn't know there were two different types till yesterday. One of them is high blood sugar and one is low blood sugar, I think.
    I'll be sure to keep you posted.

    Megan, thank you so much for your reply. My grandfather has what you have...he has to keep glucose tablets around to keep his blood sugar levels high enough. I'm not sure whether my first test result was accurate or not....I may have done it wrong. All of the other tests seem to imply that I'm going the other way, to high blood sugar. I have a feeling it's because my sugar intake has been too excessive (too much cookies, cokes, and other such goodies).
    I don't know....but thank you so much for the suggestions! My father has a different type than my grandfather has...he has to inject himself with insulin every day to regulate his diabetes. I don't know what type that would be though. It's all very confusing. lol
    I'll be sure to let you know what happens at the doctor!
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  • 6/19/2007 7:15 AM Sarah Bailey wrote:
    Hi Bethany,
    I am sorry to hear you are going through this. When I get low blood sugar I get the way you describe, dizzy, shaky and can't concentrate. It is scary. Too me your numbers do seem to either be VERY low or VERY high, there really doesn't seem to be an in between for you. I have been gestational diabetic two times and borderline once and been on insulin my last pregnancy. Not fun, but my son was healthy. I too am a sugar addict, it would be easier if all the fast food places would close down overnight including Tim Hortons's (I LOVE their Iced Caps) so I wouldn't have that temptation. I am overweight so that poses a risk as well as having the GD almost 3 times. Diabetics can have healthy full term pregnancies-my babies never seem to want to leave LOL Feel free to email me if you have any questions and maybe I can give you some insight into daily carb consumption. The one thing that helped me was to eat no more than 45 carbs during lunch and dinner and only 15 carbs for breakfast and snacks. Feel free to email me. Keep us posted.
    God bless,
    Sarah
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  • 6/19/2007 7:38 AM Bethany wrote:
    Sarah, thank you so much. I will most likely contact you for meal ideas then, (I really appreciate your offer!)if it does turn out that the doctor finds my results significant too. Thank you for the encouragement about pregnancies. It does worry me thinking that maybe my miscarriage was caused by something like this...but then again, the doctors said it was a Chromosomal thing and I don't know for sure if that would be caused by that or not? Ah I shouldn't think about that though. I just want to make sure that any future pregnancies will be safe. I don't want to hurt any babies that I might conceive. One thing that worries me is that my period ended 2 weeks ago, but I started bleeding yesterday, just like I was having a period...then it stopped. It wasn't like a spot or two, it was like a normal period, but it stopped. I am very confused as to what was going on there. so I am definitely going to be checking this out and if it turns out I am hypo or hyper glycemic, or even diabetic, I will be making some major diet changes.
    It's worth going without sugar to make sure my babies are safe.
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  • 11/11/2007 12:16 AM Ann wrote:
    I hope everything is ok.I know couple of friends with type I diabetes. They watched their diet and exercised regularly. No more diabetes. In my opinion, diet and exercise is the best medicine.
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  • 11/12/2007 9:42 AM Bethany wrote:
    Thank you for the tips, Ann! I know of people who have handled it that way as well.
    Reply to this
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