Is it possible to have hypoglycemia and not be diabetic or have IR? My fasting glucose/insulin levels "are actually really low" my dr. said. So, I wondering if I have hypoglycemia? Should of asked, but I usually don't think of the good questions till after the visit and I have had time to process the information...If I don't eat every couple of hours, I get dizzy and feel like I am out of my body, kinda "stupid" and I have headaches.
I have hypoglycemia and in all likelihood I've had it since I was a teenager and just never realised it. Interestingly, hypoglycemia can be a precursor to diabetes.
It's worth getting a meter and checking your blood sugar when your feeling like it may be low. You can also get a glucose tolerance test done that should show if your body is not regulating it's insulin levels properly.
You mean the oral glucose tolerance test like what I had when I was pregnant with my daughter? Why that vs. the blood test I had? This is where I am confused. If I had low insulin levels according to my dr., wouldn't it show up as my insulin being regulated normally?
I was diagnosed with Hypoglycemia as a teenager. I was told that hypoglycemia was from not eating enough (like starving yourself) or it was a precursor to diabetes. I do believe my hypoglycemia was IR. So I think sometimes it can be IR, but I do not believe it is ever case. Just my opinion.
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I did a fasting blood sugar type test at my GPs when he was looking for answers and it came up normal, even after having been diagnosed hypoglycemia for over 10 years and exhibiting the same symptoms you are describing. He said it had probably gotten better, but I knew I still had to eat every so often or I'd feel really bad. When the Gyn. did whatever test they do for insulin resistance (it was some different test) it did come back that I had IR. My IR wasn't very bad, yet, but it is probably what had been diagnosed as hypoglycemia years ago. Apparently they have a few different tests and I'm not sure, but maybe some docs read them a little better than others when they are knowledgable and looking for PCOS. Anyway...good luck.
I have found that doctors are often very suspicious, especially when someone says they are hypoglycemic. I have done a bit of research on this because I have had it since I was a teenager. It can be brought on by starvation, malnutrition, a diet high in sugar, a diet high in alcohol, genetics, pregnancy, birth control pills, and many, many other reasons.
The symptoms you are describing is called Reactive hypoglycemia. It is actually very common, and more common in women with PCOS because the hormones that are screwed up in our bodies are the ones used to balance blood sugar. Most likely what you experiencing is not a blood sugar issue, but a reaction to the drastic DROP in blood sugar that occurs 2-4 hours after a sugary item. It is sometimes called a sugar "withdrawal". Your adrenalin shoots up to combat the withdrawal, and that adrenalin is the symptoms you are having.
Over time I have found my symptoms get worse. Pregnancy brought mine from mindly annoying, to almost debilitating. Any medication that messes with hormones, will increase your symptoms. That includes Met, BCP, ect.
It sounds like yours is mild and can be easy to prevent, assuming you are not on any medication. A glycemic diet has always worked for me. Most importantly, breakfast and lunch. Pop-Tarts are out for the rest of your life...that was a hard one for me!
Here are a few things you should do before asking your doctor for more tests. They have not been very successful at diagnosing reactive hypoglycemia because many doctors don't know how. They are supposed to give you a concentrated dose of glucose (sugar water), then make you sit in their office for 3 hours, then test your blood. I have a feeling some don't do this because it just takes so long. But no worries. There is really no need to be DX with it, unless you like getting denied health insurance. If you know you have it, and you know how to help it, you don't need a doctor to write it on your medical records.
Here's how you test it (I found this on a medical website):
Once you wake up, do not drink or eat anything (except water) for 5 hours. No meds, no vitamins, nothing. Write down your symptoms, if any. After 5 hours you may eat, or if you feel faint or ill, go ahead and eat a Zone approved breakfast when your symptoms begin.
If you had symptoms, you have what is called Fasting hypoglycemia which is extremely rare and you must see your doctor. Please be aware that taking any medications during this test will void the results. If you had no noticable symptoms (besides hunger, of course), then complete the next test.
For breakfast, eat a completely sugar-free, bad carb-free breakfast. Two eggs, water, whole wheat toast is the best. Do not use jam, do not drink coffee, and again, no pills. Wait 5 hours before putting anything besides water in your body. Write down your symptoms, if any. If you had the symptoms, ask your doctor. You may be allergic to wheat or some other item. If you had no symptoms, continue to the final test.
For breakfast, eat a normal american breakfast, something sugary. Sugar cereal or pastry, a cup of coffee with sugar if you want, just don't go overboard. Again, no medications or pills. Wait 5 hours and write down any symptoms. If you have symptoms, you can eat after you have noted all the symptoms. If this is the first time you are having symptoms from these tests, you have reactive hypoglycemia. The symptoms usually last 15 minutes then pass, but pass also if you eat a Zone approved meal. The difference you will find with RH as apposed to Diabetes is that having some sugar will only increase your symptoms. You must eat a Zone approved diet to balance your hormones. A granola bar in the purse is a neccessity with this condition. A peice of candy will not help you.
If if had no symptoms with these tests, your symptoms are probably brought on by your medications and you can bring that up with your doctor, but they probably won't have a good answer for you. You can PM me after you find out which kind you have, as I have lots of experience with RH.
Thanks techlady, I will do those and ask any questions if I have them!
Oh, and I feel like this all day long, even after I eat. Once it starts, it doesn't go away. If I don't eat, it gets worse, but usually unless I eat sugar all day long, I always have it. When I eat sugar, like yesterday I ate nothing but candy, cookies, icecream and felt great for the first time in ages...
I never get an official dx of "hypoglycemic" when I do the regular medical tests. But I know I go hypoglycemic! Brain fog, tired, grumpy (snarling!!!)
I finally got a glycose meter and use it to check myself in lots of different situations. The docs were sceptical...but what I found out was that I go really "borderline"...blood sugar drops just to the lowest limit of "normal." And I don't feel good at that point, even if it's officially normal. The meter really helps me control how I feel, if I'm low I can eat something (fast sugar-like a bit of orange juice- with some protrein) and prevent a major crash. I also eat IR, and that has helped alot. My blood sugar doesn't bounce around so much. I'm pretty sure it's reactive hypoglycemia.
Techlady's experimental "tests" are a great idea, thanks for sharing. I'm going to try them out and see what happens.
Well, after doing all those tests, I must not have it. I felt the same every day I did them, and the only symptom I got if any was a raging headache, and it was later in the day, after I had eaten after the initial fast. I was looking up my symptoms, and I feel stupid because I think I have tension headaches. My symptoms are to a T with them...and I think I get dizzy or lightheaded because my head hurts so bad. I am journaling what I eat and my headaches to make sure it isn't a food allergy as well. Of course I am also discussing this with my dr. but it just seems that I get no where unless I am the one who does the research and goes to her and asks for specific tests...sigh. Thanks soo much for your help!
hm. I'm curious. I tried the tests and nothing, but like you said brynnasmommy, I get sick if I don't eat. My results for the Fasting Glucose Tolerance Test came back normal. The only thing I can think of it that some days my body is more able to handle the fluctuations??
Pal, so you found getting a meter helped? Did it cut down on the times you felt sick?
Have either of you ever fainted while feeling like that?? Sometimes I do. It's strange though, cause it comes and goes. Somedays I'm fine no matter what my eating pattersn are, somedays I skip lunch and around 3ish drop to the floor.
Tech Lady, does this sound like anything? (I'm not going to my doctor about this because he'll tell me it's in my head the sonofa...)
Hi, I just found your questions, sorry this took so long. Yes, I found the meter was very helpful when I was first trying to figure out what was wrong. All the official tests came up ok, but I knew I had a history of PCOS and felt horrible sometimes -- which I was pretty sure was probably insulin related. I've never actually fainted, but got serious about trying to figure this out when I had two glasses of wine on an empty stomach at a party and felt so bad that all I wanted was to fall through the floor.
Are you really really really tired sometimes after you eat? I'd typically be so tired after dinner that I'd crawl into bed at 9pm.
See if you can borrow a meter, ask a drugstore, they may have a "loaner." I used it about 4 times a day for a couple of weeks just to see what my pattern was like. Then I got so I'd only check when I felt bad, you can stop a low blood sugar attack pretty fast (by eating!) if you catch it in time. The meter has saved me lots of times. I especially use it now when I'm not on my normal daily routine (like when I travel.)
What helped me the most, though, was starting to take Met. It seems to level out my blood sugar and controls it better than I could even using the meter.
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Hypoglycemia and NO IR? 
