My gf is, and I’m curious about it. How bad is it? What can it do to you? Hers is non-diabetic. She has had headaches for a while, and no one can figure out whats wrong with her. Could this have something to do with it? I realize that this isn’t a doctor forum but it seems like a treasure trove of info for the past few months i’ve spent lurking on it, and her trips to the doctor have been more or less unproductive.
Does anyone have any info that could be helpful to me?
The OP is looking for shared experiences, not the specific answer to a specific question.
So, let’s move this to IMHO, where we have posters who can do just that.
samclem GQ moderator
Sorry about that. I posted on General Questions but looking back I realized that I’ve never seen a question like that on that forum, so I decided to leave it and let the mods do their job. Thanks.
The only extent of diabetes/blood sugar experience I have is with a diabetic cat. Does she monitor her blood glucose with a home monitor? Because if she really is hypoglycemic, perhaps a monitor will allow her to head off symptoms if she can catch that her blood sugar is dropping. It’s pretty easy to test once you learn how. I like the Freestyle monitor because it’s small and you only need a small amount of blood.
I know that if a CAT’s blood glucose gets too low, it can result in a very dangerous situation.
DISCLAIMER: I’m not a doctor and as I said I only have experience monitoring a diabetic cat. If she should want to try a monitor, she should consult with her doctor about what constitutes a hypoglycemic incident and what she can do to prevent it or minimize the attack.
I’m a diabetic, so I’ve had hypoglycemic episodes, and I have a couple friends who were hypoglycemic while they were running cross country in high school, but their episodes became less frequent when they weren’t running competitively. I have another friend who thought she had an ulcer because she was throwing up before bed and when waking up, but nope – hypoglycemia.
The symptoms of low blood sugar vary from person to person, but the most common are a headache, shakiness, and irritability (at least in my circle of hypoglycemic friends). There are a bunch of others, like being hungry, numb face and lips, mood swings, and nausea. You can watch out for these things when you’re with her, because sometimes when a person’s low, they have no idea and aren’t thinking very rationally.
Things generally smooth out when you’re eating regularly spaced meals through the day, which helps keep your blood sugar levels even. If she’s having the headaches consistently at the same time, and they’re associated with her glucose levels, then her doctor will probably suggest she has a snack at that time. A glucometer might not be a bad idea. She’d be able to test her sugar throughout the day and track any patterns – “Oh, look! I’m getting headaches at three-thirty every day, and that’s when my blood sugar drops. I’ll have half a sandwich at 3 o’clock, then.”
Hypoglycemia is easily manageable, as long as you’re in good health otherwise and you’re eating healthily and regularly. It’s something you have to keep on top of, but it’s not a death sentence or anything.
Heart On My Sleeve, it’s not good when people’s blood sugar levels get too low, either. Your brain doesn’t like it very much. Severe insulin reactions pretty much suck.
I have it and mine is also non-diabetic. For years they thought I was anemic but blood tests never showed anything. I had depression, headaches, fainting spells, shakes, dizziness, intense sugar cravings, headaches and fatigue. I was constantly falling asleep during class even though I had gotten plenty of sleep the night before. I mentioned my insatiable lust for sugar to a coworker and he suggested I might be hypoglycemic. I immediately changed my diet accordingly and the next day I was wide awake for class. The school nurse confirmed my suspicion and when I called my mom to tell her I finally figure out what was making me tired, she told me she was just diagnosed as hypoglycemic the week before!
I keep mine under control by eating a bunch of smaller meals instead of a few big meals. I carry sweets and energy bars with me at all times in case I can’t get to food and my blood sugar levels start dropping. It’s not a problem at all. The hard part is not eating as much sugar as I want to.
Thanks a lot for the info. I’ll talk to her about it. Miss Purl, my gf also runs cross country. Shes pretty serious about it and her school has a big xc tradition so they run really hard. could that make it worse (not that theres any chance of her stopping)?
Cross country just takes a lot out of you, and my friends weren’t eating enough to put it back in. They checked their sugars and ate a snack before and after races and practice, and that kept problems down. Out of season, they’re still hypoglycemic, they just don’t have as many low blood sugars because they aren’t pushing their bodies as hard.
I don’t know if cross country makes it worse, i.e.: more severe symptoms, loss of the ability to catch lows in time, etc. I only know they have fewer lows when they aren’t running 5+ miles a day.
Out of curiousity, Danja, how old are you and your girlfriend? She is eating every day, isn’t she? I had a lot of conversations with girls during cross country in high school about how they had to eat at least two meals every day, and no, a bag of Doritos and a glass of water does not equal a meal – are you trying to make yourself sick?
I’m 15, she’s 16. I know, I know, we’re young. I still care. She’s not stupid about nutrition and she’s definitely not anorexic. She doesn’t have a big appetite but I think she eats enough. Defintiely more than 2 meals a day and she snacks. She does drink coffee and eat candy which I’ve heard makes it worse. She’s also a vegetarian, but I doubt that affects it. She says she gets headaches after she eats too so I guess those are caused by something else…they’re a fairly recent addition.
Anyway, I’m not asking you to play doctor. I just wanted to know what I need to know about the condition just in case there were some inside things that basic googling hadn’t told me. Thanks a lot for the info.
Sorry for bumping this but there was one question I was hoping would get answered but my thread dropped down too fast. Could vegetarianism have any possible affect on this? This might be a stupid question but I approach problems from all angles.
Danja, being a vegetarian doesn’t necessarily make one prone to hypoglycemia, but eating the right foods is important.
I am vegetarian, and had a year long bout with hypoglycemia several years back. Basically, I was working too much, stressed, and exhausted, not eating as well as I should have. On top of that, had a case of the flu, then a middle ear infection. I’m a small person, with a high metabolism, and that was enough to cumulatively wear out all my physical reserves. It’s really scary, you get shaky and feel as if you’re totally out of gas and might die, which pumps up your adrenaline even more, depleting you even more. I’d imagine that intense running could do the same, especially if GF is a small person.
I recovered by buckling down and eating really nutricious foods, in small meals every three hours. Heavy on whole grains with complex carbohydrates, and good quality veg sources of protein, with a liquid iron supplement. Sugar, white flour and coffee are detrimental, they give a short term boost, then a big drop in blood sugar, the whole cycle starts again. For a long distance runner, good hydration and carbs before a run are especially important.
I’ve had little problems since, occassionally if I’m working too hard. I am also more likely to have slight episodes at certain points in my menstrual cycle: hormonal levels seem to have something to do with it.
Hope this helps.
Oh, to add, I only had to eat every three hours for a few months, until I built my strength back up. Now, it’s the usual three and a snack , but important not to skip meals.
Thanks a lot for the help. I really appreciate it.
I’m one (non-diabetic). If I don’t eat for several hours, or if I eat something sweet like a donut or a candy bar without something substantial to digest along with it, I’ll get tremors, lightheadedness, and break out in a cold sweat. As a result, I’ve given up non-diet sodas and sugar in my coffee, only have sweets after a fat- or protein-heavy meal to slow down absorption, and try to carry around a few pieces of hard candy in case my blood sugar plummets, while I try to acquire a decent meal.