Reactive Hypoglycemia

Does anyone have a doctor referral in the Houston, TX area that specializes in treating reactive hypoglycemia for RNY patients? I am 4 years post-op and began having noticeable symptoms earlier this year.

Are your symptoms really severe? RH is a very common side effect of RNY.  It usually can be easily controlled by diet.  Eating small, protein forward meals every 3 or 4 hours, eating healthy fats, and keeping the carbs low is the recommended diet.  Some of us have to eat a small protein snack, like string cheese, right before bed to stabilize our blood sugar through the night.  Have a packet of nuts or peanut butter crackers with you in case you feel shaky between meals.  You really only need to eat a few to start feeling better.

You don't treat RH the same way you treat diabetes.  With diabetes they tell you to drink OJ or take glucose tabs.  That is tto much sugar and will send you into an RH tailspin, creating a spike and then another crash.  A small amount of protein with a fat is the best (or a protein and a little bit of carbs) for regulating an RH attack.

Use the search engine ( magnifying glass in the upper, right, corner) and search reactive hypoglycemia.  You will get hundreds of posts from people on how they are managing the problem.

Thank you for the reply. I am using the types of snacks that you are recommending once I notice the symptoms. My concern is that I don't start having any warning symptoms until my level is already down to 35-45 and am just concerned that I may need some guidance.

Hi Rocky

I actually find the glucose tabs a savior.  If its a fast crash - and for me they usually are - the glucose quickly brings my sugar up.  I follow the dextab with protein for long lasting stabilization.

I keep the Dextabs ( glucose) in my handbag - golf bag etc for quick action.  A bite of a protein bar/hard boiled egg/deli ham keeps me stable after a crash.  For me they rarely seem to happen at home - which of course is so much easier to handle.  Thats why the protein bar in my bag.

Most doctors won't "treat" you for RH, other than dietary tips, etc.  It's not diabetes.  Follow the advice of the previous poster and you'll do fine. I usually only have attacks when I have eaten too much of something stupid.

Personally, peanut butter is my go-to when my sugar drops. 

Audrey

Thank you for the feedback. I will definitely add peanut butter to my list of go-to snacks!

Unfortunately i have the same issue and no notice until my blood sugar was inthe 30's. I am diabetic though and it is kinda trial and error. If i have a problem with a food in general i just have to avoid it. My problem is Mostly grains ( oatmeal, barley, grain cereals and potatoes ) i would log your symptoms then you can figure out what to avoid. Good luck

RH is easily dealt with via diet.  Eat protein first, limit carbs.  Get a blood glucose meter and use it.  You'll learn to recognize the symptoms and avoid the problem.  

For myself, I get "jittery", my hands tremble, and I get very irritable. Eating a protein meal takes care of this within 20 minutes.

Learn your body and you'll be able to deal with it.

I deal with severe RH. I learned to recognize symptoms when my BS starts dropping, before it gets to low. 

I also learned what food would cause that. Some foods -starches, grains, fruits, etc- even small qty - even when I eat that with proteins and fats - may trigger RH. 

Some of those are potatoes, grains -rice, wheat, etc.; high sugar fruits like grapes, banana, pineapple,  and so on.  For app 6 months I wrote everything I ate and I measured my BS after each meal, then 1 hr after the meal, and again 2 hours after. Yea, a lot of testing and poking. But I learned how many body reacts to different foods, and either eliminated that completely, or learn to limit that very drastically.  It can be done. 

Learning to recognize the symptoms and learning how to eat to avoid it is really the only thing available.  There isn't much a doctor can do as far as "treatment". There aren't any drugs to prevent it.

If you are 4 years out, though, and it just started happening recently, you might want to make an appointment with an endocrinologist to see if there is something else going on.

Lora