Low blood sugar fixes

Hi All ~ I had a low blood sugar episode last night -- the first one since surgery, and I panicked. I woke up at 11:30, feeling shaky, sweaty, body demanding food, type feeling. It wasn't dumping, it was classic low blood sugar symptoms. So I made it downstairs and tested. My blood sugar was 72 -- not critically low, but you can't tell my body that! I immediately went into the eating mode (in that panic state of mind low blood sugar does) -- just eating whatever was handy and sounded like it would do the trick. So, I ate about a tablespoon of peanut butter, 1 cup of non-fat milk, and a fruit and yogurt cup (this last one was probably not a great choice, but I wanted the sugar. It has 21 grams of sugar!). I felt much better, and tested my blood 45 minutes later. It was 206!!!! This morning my fasting blood was 94, so I think I'm doing alright now. My question is, if you have low blood sugar episodes, what do you eat to remedy them immediately? I know I probably should have had a small glass of fruit juice, but it just didn't sound good. On another note, I'm not sure what brought on the attack, though I was probably high on carbs when I went to bed. Last night's snack consisted of 1 cup Rhubarb Crisp (made with Splenda), then unplanned, I had 1T raisins, 1 handful of Frosted Mini Wheats, and a SF fudgcicle. Any thoughts? Angie

Hey, Angie! I was always told to eat the equivalent of 15 grams of carbs to bring it up. So, 1 cup of milk should work all by itself without eating the other things. I also think it is wise to have some fat along with the carbs so a spoon of peanut butter along with it is a good thing so maybe 1/2 cup milk with 2 TBSP of PB. Personally, I keep those fake orange colored peanut butter crackers with me. I buy a box of them at Costco and those are my "emergency" food. Keep a pack in my purse, desk at work and glove compartment. I don't really eat them otherwise. They are my "just in case" food source. The worst thing to bring sugar up... would be chocolate. The high fat in the chocolate will delay the rise of blood sugar from the carbs/sugars in the item. As for what brought your sugars up and then down.... I'd say a combo of all you had. The rhubarb crisp (rhubarb has carbs and so probably did any crumb topping), raisins are high in natural sugar (just think how many grapes it took to shrink down into that small amount of raisins) but I'd say the winner is... DING DING DING... Frosted Mini Wheats!!! Our post-op systems can be very fussy with higher amounts of carbs and sugars. Our pancreases have been used to large amounts of sugars on our unhealthy pre-op diets and have lots of insulin producing cells and in some cases... too many. Our bodies sense carbs and can give off too much insulin driving sugars down to even unsafe levels. So far, I've only had 2 lows. Strangely they weren't related to carb intake. One was occurring along with a protein shake. Huh? Wha? I'm very careful about eating something every 3-4 hours to keep my blood sugars very level throughout the day. But I also realize that many longer term post-ops do this and still have sugar issues. I hope I'm not one of them. Hope you are feeling better today! Kathy

Thanks Kathy, I agree with the high does of carbs at the end of the night. I think it did me in. I know I've had other nights of high carbs, and I wonder if I've ended up just sleeping through any low sugar episode. Either way, it's not good. If it happens again, I will definitely try just cutting the milk and peanut butter down. I just get into that panic frenzy where I eat until I feel better, which generally means I've eaten too much because I haven't let my body find the food. So, I just have to slow down, calm down and be a little be more rational. I'm sure being half asleep didn't help control the panic frenzy I was feeling either. Angie

Oh believe me, Angie.... My first few lows being on insulin (was for 5 years)... I most definitely overcompensated and overate to get my sugars up since low felt so horrible! Plus one isn't the most clear brained with low sugars. I know my thought processes are in complete slo mo.... LOL! Kathy

Angie, I agree with Kathy's assessment. I've struggled with low blood sugar stuff all my life. It has improved greatly since WLS, and I'm sure it is because I eat so much less carbs now. But, it does still happen to me. We have to think about food as medicine...I know, I know, easier said than done! Good luck, Lori

Thanks Lori! You and I (and I'm sure many others) fight the devil carbs! ANG

Hi Angie, Sorry you had an episode. I have been having them too and when my blood was tested a couple wks ago it was 60, they notified me asap about the low level , I don't have a home test kit but may need to get one. **What helps me is to eat a cup of sf yogurt. I too eat pnt btr to help boost it up as well. I have recently been making a diced fruit salad that keeps for over a wk in the fridge and it helps me to eat that when I feel the shakes coming on. (Honestly I eat it 2x a day or more just cuz I love it so much ) I will post the recipie for the fruit salad later. Gotta jet out of here for now. Hang in there and watch the protein to stay up and get in the natural sugars help keep it level. Bless ya, Mary

Hi Mary, Thanks for the suggestions -- yogurt would be a good one! I like the Dannon SF/FF ones since they only have 60 calories. Please post your fruit salad recipe -- I would love to try it! Angie