Comment from: 35-44 Female (Caregiver)Published: January 22
I am a 44 yo mother of two. My Father passed away 2 yrs ago, due to heart problems caused by diabetes. I was diagnosed with Hypoglycemia 15 years ago. Yesterday evening b4 leaving work, I experienced the worse case in 15 years. I am on a fast (Daniel's fast w/my church), Started on the 1st of the year for 21 days. I have been eating fruits, vegetables and 100% juice. Thought, I would be fine. For lunch, I had nothing but a broccoli, baked potato w/ chives. Just added a little salt and pepper and a cup of tangerine. I started with a headache around 2:30 or so, it got worse as time went by. At 4:45, I started sweating, shaking, anxious, severe heart palpitations, tears were rolling down my face and I wasn't trying to cry I just felt so bad. My coworker gave me crackers with peanut butter and a doctor pepper. I couldn't shake this off. When I got home, I felt so nauseated, my stomach hurt so bad and I was so hungry, though. I was too weak to even fix a sandwich. It was the worse experience ever. I thank God, it passed.
Comment from: Lucky Lady, 55-64 Female (Patient)Published: January 22
I am a 56 year old woman, 5' 7" tall. In June I weighed 214 lbs and began a low carbohydrate diet. In the fall I started having severe headaches. I went to the doctor and she said I had a sinus infection, and prescribed antibiotics. After taking them, I still had the headaches. In the meantime, my husband was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. I was messing with his blood sugar monitor, and came up 26 once and 'lo' once. When I went back to the doctor about my headaches, I mentioned this to her, and she said I was probably going too low on carbohydrates. I also discovered that I wasn't eating enough calories, (shows the importance of tracking what you eat). After increasing both the calories and carbohydrates, my blood sugar tested this morning at 97. However, I am still having the headaches, but not a severe. Low blood sugar may not be the cause of my headaches, but I am so glad I talked to my doctor about it. I could have been much worse off than just a headache if I had continued with my eating habits.
Comment from: becca, 25-34 Female (Patient)Published: January 22
My father, my three brothers and I are all hypoglycemic. My dad (who learned it from his dad) calls it the weak trembles. None of us have ever known what is really was until recently. It had been a long day, and I had a three hour drive in front of me and I knew that I had to eat. Hadn't eaten anything all day except for an egg with toast and I could feel the weak trembles coming on strong. I stopped to eat, I took two bites of a fast food chicken sandwich and one sip of soda and my body freaked out. Long story short I ended up calling an ambulance and spent several hours in the hospital. I couldn't breathe and thought I was having a heart attack (I am a healthy 27). So humiliating to find why I went in. At Thanksgiving the family talked and I thought I would share our collective knowledge here no bread (ever!), before a physically demanding day eat fruit or something high in protein no pancakes, or waffles, or biscuits, etc. Peanut butter, honey, candy bars, ice cream are great immediate cures for the shakes during the day. Lay down if at all possible when the shakes come on. For me, the first sign that I need to eat is a cold sweat.
Comment from: 75 or over Male (Caregiver)Published: October 06
I am a physician with type II diabetes, age 84, and still work 12 hours five days a week. My diabetes is controlled with Amaryl and diet. I occasionally awaken with sweating, shaking, weakness and feel totally drained. I used orange juice, fruits, such as watermelon, and oranges, and other high sugar containing foods. I do feel drained for a couple of hours and then everything normalizes. I treat many diabetics, both type one and two, and have found that compliance with diet, medications, and exercise with weight control works wonderfully and gives protection to eyes, kidneys, and extremities against the devastating consequences damages to these organs without hyperglycemia.
Comment from: gilmanheather, 25-34 Female (Patient)Published: October 06
I first started having hypoglycemic symptoms when I was about 11 years old. I am now 30 years old. I would get really bad headaches, become shaky, moody, and tired if I waited too long to eat or if I had candy. My mom noticed it and took me to the doctor. They had me tested for hypoglycemia and said I had low blood sugar and to eat proteins. That's all. I have had to learn on my own how to eat. I have never checked my blood sugar and I need to start. I sometimes get headaches daily that will last all day due to not eating when I need to. I carry snacks with me and eat sometimes when I am not even hungry just because I can feel my sugar dropping. I know it is dropping because of the pattern I have seen over the years. I never knew there might be medicine I can take to help.
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Night sweats are severe hot flashes that occur at night and result in a drenching sweat. In order to distinguish night sweats that arise from medical causes from those that occur because one's surroundings are too warm, doctors generally refer to true night sweats as severe hot flashes occurring at night that can drench sleepwear and sheets, which are not related to an overheated environment.
Dizziness is a symptom that is often applies to a variety of sensations including lightheadedness and vertigo. Causes of dizziness include low blood pressure, heart problems, anemia, dehydration, and more. Treatment of dizziness depends on the cause.
Diabetes mellitus is a chronic condition characterized by high levels of sugar (glucose) in the blood. The two types of diabetes are referred to as type 1 (insulin dependent) and type 2 (non-insulin dependent). Symptoms of diabetes include increased urine output, thirst, hunger, and fatigue. Treatment of diabetes depends on the type.
Palpitations are unpleasant sensations of irregular and/or forceful beating of the heart. Palpitations can be relieved in many patients by stress reduction, stopping cigarettes, and reduction of caffeine and alcohol.
Fainting, also referred to as blacking out, syncope, or temporary loss of consciousness has many causes. Often a person will have signs or symptoms prior to the fainting episode. Diagnosis and treatment depends upon the cause of the fainting or syncope episode.
Epilepsy is a brain disorder in which the person has seizures. There are two kinds of seizures, focal and generalized. There are many causes of epilepsy. Treatment of epilepsy (seizures) depends upon the cause and type of seizures experienced.
Insulin resistance is the diminished ability of cells to respond to the action of insulin in transporting glucose (sugar) from the bloodstream into muscle and other tissues. Causes of insulin can include conditions such as stress, obesity, metabolic syndrome, and steroid use. Some of the risk factors for insulin resistance include fatty liver, heart disease, strokes, peripheral vascular disease, high cholesterol, and smoking. Treatment for insulin resistance are lifestyle changes and if necessary, medication.
Encephalopathy means brain disease, damage, or malfunction. Causes of encephalopathy are varied and numerous. The main symptom of encephalopathy is an altered mental state. Other symptoms include lethargy, dementia, seizures, tremors, and coma. Treatment of encephalopathy depends on the type of encephalopathy (anoxia, diabetic, Hashimoto's, hepatic, hyper - hypotensive, infectious, metabolic, infections, uremic, or Wernicke's) are examples of types of encephalopathy.
The major goal in treating diabetes is controlling elevated blood sugar without causing abnormally low levels of blood sugar. Treatment for type 1 diabetes is with insulin, exercise, and a diabetic diet. Treatment for type 2 diabetes is first treated with weight reduction, a diabetic diet, and exercise. When these measures fail to control the elevated blood sugar, oral medications are used. If oral medications are still insufficient, insulin medications are considered.
Hypothermia is having a body core temperature of less than 35 C or 95 F. Most causes of hypothermia are preventable. Risk factors for hypothermia include age, mental status, medical conditions, and medications. Symptoms of hypothermia generally depend upon the severity of the condition. Treatment depends upon the severity of hypothermia. If not treated early, hypothermia can lead to cardiac arrest, coma, or death.
Coma is the inability to waken or react to the surrounding environment. The Glasgow Coma Scale is frequently used to measure the depth of coma. Causes of coma include trauma, bleeding, edema, lack of oxygen, poisoning, or hypoglycemia. Prognosis for a patient in a coma depends on the cause of the coma.
Seizures are divided into two categories: generalized and partial. Generalized seizures are produced by electrical impulses from throughout the brain, while partial seizures are produced by electrical impulses in a small part of the brain. Seizure symptoms include unconsciousness, convulsions, and muscle rigidity.
The risks for developing type 2 diabetes include family history, ethnicity, birth weight, metabolic syndrome, and obesity. Warning signs pointing to an increased risk for developing type 2 diabetes include irregular menstruation, impaired fasting glucose, inflammatory markers, and other risks. Gestational diabetes is also a risk factor for developing type 2 diabetes later in life. Prevention of type 2 diabetes can be achieved through a healthy diet (Mediterranean diet), exercise, weight control, not smoking, and medication.
Managing your diabetes is important. The goal of diabetic therapy is to control blood glucose levels and prevent the complications of diabetes. Information about exercise, diet diet, and medication will help you manage your diabetes better. Blood glucose reagent strips, blood glucose meters, urine glucose tests, tests for urinary ketones, continuous glucose sensors, and Hemoglobin A1C testing information is also provided in this article.
Drowning is a common cause of death and disability worldwide. In the US, it is the third most common cause of accidental death. Brain damage, pneumonia, ARDS, hypothermia, and spine fractures are complications of drowning. At times, there are discussions of wet vs. dry, or salt vs. fresh water drownings. Children and young adults are at most risk for drowning accidents. Medical emergencies in the water may lead to drowning (such as seizures, hypoglycemia, sudden cardiac death, or heart attack). Treatment of a drowning victim depends up on the severity of the injury. Prevention is the key to prevent drowning.
If you think you have a medical emergency, call your doctor or 911 immediately.
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I am a 44 yo mother of two. My Father passed away 2 yrs ago, due to heart problems caused by diabetes. I was diagnosed with Hypoglycemia 15 years ago. Yesterday evening b4 leaving work, I experienced the worse case in 15 years. I am on a fast (Daniel's fast w/my church), Started on the 1st of the year for 21 days. I have been eating fruits, vegetables and 100% juice. Thought, I would be fine. For lunch, I had nothing but a broccoli, baked potato w/ chives. Just added a little salt and pepper and a cup of tangerine. I started with a headache around 2:30 or so, it got worse as time went by. At 4:45, I started sweating, shaking, anxious, severe heart palpitations, tears were rolling down my face and I wasn't trying to cry I just felt so bad. My coworker gave me crackers with peanut butter and a doctor pepper. I couldn't shake this off. When I got home, I felt so nauseated, my stomach hurt so bad and I was so hungry, though. I was too weak to even fix a sandwich. It was the worse experience ever. I thank God, it passed.
Related Reading: diabetes | Hypoglycemia | headache