Question:
I am diabetic and I had surgery yesterday, no pain just a little discomfort ,
I take insulin four times a day and now at bedtime by blood sugar is 107 and I am supposed to take 60 units at bed time but I really think that is too much (my blood sugars have been 100, 102, 104) Naturally my doctor's office is close, has anyone else had this problem. — dyates2948 (posted on April 17, 2008)
April 17, 2008
Hi, maybe you should check back with your surgeon if your doctor who sees
to you diabetes is unavailable. My diabetic situation was resolved before
I left the hospital and I was reading (and have been) very normal (average
83), spent three days in the hospital after surgery. It would seem to me
that the release orders that were given when you checked out of the
hospital would reference this very issue. I hope all works out well.
Congrats on your surgery! Leslie
— LuvNSummer
April 17, 2008
Your sugar is not high and could be dangerous to be taking insulin for high
sugar. Maybe you should not take it or consult with the hospital before
administering. I never had diabetes before surgery but I do suffer with
very low sugar due to a gastric bypass. I get dangerously low and pass out.
That too can become a problem for a you since your surgery. Good luck to
you.
— nascar_angel_3_2003
April 17, 2008
Congrats on your surgery and welcome to the loser's bench.
As far as the diabetes goes, I would be very cautious about taking that
much insulin with a normal blood sugar level at bedtime. I too was a
diabetic but stopped taking oral insulin while in the hospital and have
never had to take it again. I recommend that you call your surgeon's
office- even though it is closed, there has to be a doctor on call. You
would have to leave your name and number with the answering service and
someone should call you back. If that doesn't happen promptly- keep trying
until you do get a call back.
Sooooo glad you are keeping a good eye on your blood sugars- take good care
of yourself.
Dawn Vickers, RN, BLC
— DawnVic
April 17, 2008
My sugars did not resolve as fast as YOURS did but in 3 weeks from my
surgery I went from 70 to 80 units of 70/30 Novalin a day with the
occasional boost of REGULAR insulin and 4 pills of Glucovance 5/500 daily
to NOTHING! I kept watching my sugars and kept adjusting my insulin and
medications at the advice of my wife who is a Nurse Practitioner. At the
END I was down to taking only ONE PILL of GLUCOVANCE and I had to STOP
taking THAT because I came home one day with the SHAKES and the SWEATS!
Before I was DIABETIC, I was HYPOGLYCEMIC! I KNEW what that feeling meant!
MY BLOOD SUGAR WAS TOO LOW! I checked it with the meter and SURE ENOUGH,
it was 53! I QUICKLY ate something sweet and STOPPED TAKING THE
GLUCOVANCE! My Sugars have been fine since as long as I stick with the
program and eat my proteins. The ONLY time I have a problem is when I eat
too much carbohydrates. Even THEN, the blood sugar levels only spike for a
short time and then drop back down to normal. I have been running about
114 an hour or so after a meal. These surgeries are a GODSEND! I HAD been
flirting with 200 points fairly consistently even WITH all the medication
BEFORE the surgery. I would NOT take the insulin or ANY OTHER medication
unless you NEED it. You can always LOWER your sugar fairly easily and it
won't KILL you right away if it is a little high. On the OTHER hand, if it
is too LOW, it WILL kill you. Err on the side of caution.
I hope this helps,
Hugh
— hubarlow
April 17, 2008
You really need to check with your doctor, but as for me the day before
sugery was the last I have ever had to worry about my sugar.. :) I no
longer have issues with to high of sugar any more :) one of the bonuses..
My question to you is if you had surgery yesterday why aren't you still in
the hospital where nurses can look out for things like that??? Or did you
have the surgery in one day???
And "normal" sugar is between 80-120 you are in perfect range I
would think.. but again talk with your doctor..
Take care..
God bless you
Paula
— japaad
April 17, 2008
When I went home the hospital had told me to resume all my prior
medications but I was just like you except my sugars ran around 130. I did
STOP all my insulin unless I was over 150 until I seen my Endocrinologist.
You have to be very careful and get a hold of your Dr. as soon as possible.
— lalabear110
April 17, 2008
60 units is way to much for any one, best thing to do is call your doctor
and get him to change it if he don't fnd another doctor. the most it took
was 52 units of 70/30 ad i was switch to nph and r and after surgery was
put only on nph.if you have any questions about it, please feel free to
email me
— Sheba
April 17, 2008
Please get a hold of your doctor right away and get an adjustment. This is
not unusual at all for diabetics to have a big change in meds after
surgery. They should have prepared you for this, and I encourage you to
get some education on these changes, a book, a class, something. Ask your
surgeon for help here. Thanks, and Congratulations! Patricia P.
— Patricia P
April 17, 2008
Yes it is very important to talk to your doctor; BUT because your doctor is
out, once in a while they have an on-call person or an emergency contact
number you might be able to call. I'm still on insulin 30 units 2 x daily
of long lasting which is down 70%. I was banded March 18. My blood sugars
were still high when I left the sugery center, in the 200 range. I was not
given any special orders on my release, just to start taking my meds again.
(I'm also on short-acting insulin when I take in carbs.) When my sugars
started being around 100 I cut my long lasting insulin in half (from 100 to
50); but I've been working with insulin for 10 years. I hope that helps a
little. I'm not saying to adjust it yourself; but if you do decide to be
careful until you can see someone. Do you have a diabetic office where you
can call the nurse and they could help you. I do. Congradulations! You
will feel so much better the lower the amount of insulin you take goes.
— jct001
April 18, 2008
Hi, you know your body best and have lived with diabetes probably for a
while if you are taking insulin 4 times a day. I was at about a total of
400 units/day - really - prior to surgery. From my prospective it seems
that 60 units at night really depends on what kind of insulin you are
taking. 60 units of lantus at bedtime is much different then 60 units of
Regular or Humalog. After surgery I started with very low amounts of
Insulin and slowly worked my way up until my sugars were where they need to
be. Currently, six months out and 100 lbs lighter, I am at about 1/4 of
the dosage I was at prior to surgery. Good luck!
— swaz
April 18, 2008
My insulin was taken care of before I left the hospital. I have been on
nothing since a week before surgery because of the liquid diet I was on. I
would check with your surgeon if the regular doctor who takes care of you
insulin is out. I would take care of it ASAP since you could have ALOT of
problems with it if not taken care of now. Good luck and hope that things
turn out well for you.
— Brenda R.
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