Hungry? Hypoglycemic? Hope this helps.

Hmmm.... interesting... I've suffered shakiness, dizziness & panic attacks recently and just chewing, constant, anxiety over stupid stuff (and knowing at the time it was over silly things and still not being able to change the scared, worried, neurotic pattern.)  And then I went back to low carb... I've known for a long time that carbs and I aren't friends & that I presented these above mentioned symptoms when eating too much sugar... I've just never had a name for the symptoms...  I just have always solved my "mood" problems by going back to low carb basics and then, slowly, as the months go on, "forgetting" and going back to carbs... first low glycemic and slowly spiraling until I am scarfing pizza & Snicker bars in front of the television on a regular basis... and feeling like I was slowly going crazy in a sweaty, shaky kind of way. Bonus also, since December 26, since I went back to low-carb, I've lost 12 pounds.  LOL. PS-- Docs have never located the problem.  The fact that my entire family is diabetic seems not to be considered since my blood sugars are not high (42 on my Dad's tester one time.  I felt fine.  Dad freaked.)

Wow, 42 is REALLY low.  No wonder you don't feel well.  I get the anxiety as well.  I also get very irritable and irrational.  Sounds pretty much the same as you!  Congratulations on your 12 lb weight loss!  Wow, and just after the holidays.  

 

On a cool side note, we had a contest at work for who could lose the most weight during winter break, and I think I won $100!  I'll find out tomorrow.  Keep your fingers crossed! 

Wow, this is great info. thank you for reporting this to us.  I also can say that I understood it. LOL    It answers some of my questions.  I am also hopoglycemic. Buckeye Gal

I too suffer from this problem.  For a long time I thought it was just my blood pressure dropping.  Then a few months ago, during a physical at the VA my doc there mentioned Reactive Hypoglycemia.  So when I saw my PCP I talked to him about it and he set me up for a Glucose Tolerance Test.  Sure enough, it showed Hypoglycemia.  My fasting level was 111 and over the next three hours it was 211/52/92. Per my docs advice I contacted a Dietitian afterwards and have tried to follow her advice of sticking to whole grain carbs and plenty of protein.  However, even this doesn't always seem to work.  The other day I tested my sugar and it was 95.  I then ate a grilled cheese sandwich on whole wheat, whole grain bread.  The dietitian said that was a perfect meal for me with the right balance of carbs, protein, and fat.  However, 45 minutes later my sugar dropped to 28 and wiped me out for the day.  Eating more frequently and smaller meals seems to help reduce the number of episodes but not totally eliminate them.  My surgeon actually suggested staying away from any carbs as much as possible.  He said there is some thinking that the carbs trigger an excess production of insulin in people who have had WLS.

Hi Steve,

Your experience exactly mirrors mine.  I have become very interested in this because it seems to be so prevalent and has some very potentially dire consequences.  I've been reading books on carb metabolism and found some that warn that even "whole" grains are full of starch and can have a very high glycemic load when broken down.  I don't have the book titles here, but will post them later.  I found that the concept of glycemic load and monitoring that really has helped me.  I too have had bad reactions trying to cut off the shakes with a sandwich.  I suggest you keep some low carb ready made protein shakes on hand or reach for tuna or sliced chicken or turkey when you feel an episode coming on.  Hormel has a product called Naturals that is really good.  It is different deli meats, but they are not cured or preserved with nitrates which I really try to stay away from. 

Thanks for responding.  I am really interested in hearing from others with this problem because I think it may end up being a much bigger post op complication than anyone realizes, and we need to become as knowledgeable as possible on its cause and ways to control it without surgery!

 Take care!

Beatrice, I'm so glad I stumbled across your note.  I just posted an entry asking about WW.  I'm 10 months out and about 40-45 lbs from goal.  I've been experiencing hunger again and some obssessive thoughts about food.  It started right before the holidays.  I've continued to loose weight, but I'v e been so frightened and stressed about the food obsession and hunger.  After seeing your note, I know what my problem is!  I started adding more carbs and drinking more artificially sweetened drinks around the holidays.  I want to try the 5dpt..........but what is it?  Thanks so much for your post and a reply.  Tgarr

Thanks very much for posting this and you are right it is really more common than most people know because they don't know what to call it because honestly, with many other things, everyone reacts to low/high blood sugar differently. This is what I was told by my PCP and my endocrinologist. Your body outside and INSIDE changes drastically when you gain weight and sometimes permanently. Especially when it is over a hundred pounds. People can and do lose all of that weight permanently without surgery but it is VERY hard. Your internal organs ADAPT and change to keep you alive~ which is why some don't stay that way long without problems. One of these changes being the way your body FOREVER metabolizes food and your pancreas. It's sensitive. Your body learns to release more insulin than is normal because being overweight itself makes it very difficult for your body to use insulin... the body says "hey, we need more this isn't enough". That does not always change to normal with weight loss. Your body is afraid if it reduces the amt of insulin it won't be enough. So, whether you eat 10g of carbs or 10g of protein with 5g of carbs or 30g of carbs, your body, says ..."more insulin".. food is a comin' My type 1 diabetic autistic son refuses to eat most meat. Chicken nuggets and fish sticks is about it. He loves carbs~all of them. I have to give him protein bars, shakes etc. to get ANY into him at all. His endo and mine have given us hints that drop blood sugar to combat his high carb intake and lower the amount of insulin we have to give him.... hot baths, excercise, relaxation techniques. So that means that warm water, excercise, and stress can lower blood sugar too and has nothing to do with food/ protein...carb or otherwise. So, not only do we have to watch what we eat but WHAT are we doing and what stress is going on WHEN we eat. It's crazy.. :) His endo also said certain foods are treated differently by our pancreas. He said my son can experience a drop in blood sugar from PIZZA the NEXT DAY.. that's how long it takes the body to digest and for the body to react to it for him. Other foods are digested faster and the pancreas reacts quickly..its a science.. i swear. One I have not mastered since his diagnosis 3 years ago. Sorry for the book~just wanted to point out some things I was told and basically it's simple.. this is a side effect of being morbidly obese, treating the disease with surgery, but still having to live with the damage that has been done. Like many diseases we live with the scars and side effects of treatment. Inside and out. WLS is not the end of treatment. Education is key.

Heather,

Thank you so much for taking the time to give me all this information.  It makes a lot of sense.  I do notice that my blood sugar swings are much worse when I'm stressed.  As long as I eat almost no starchy carbs I don't seem to have any episodes, but honestly, I can't live like that all the time.  So I guess I'm going to have to find a balance.  I feel really lucky to have access to all the knowledge held by all the great people like you on this board.  BTW you look great!   What a drastic transformation!  Sounds look you've really had a lot to deal with in your life with your health and your son's.  It is great that you are willing to take time to share what you've learned.  

 

Take care and thanks again!

 

Thank you for the compliments and for posting this to begin with. Even doctors don't have it all figured out, they learn new things about diseases and issues right along with us. Having access to this site has been phenomenal to be able to share freely with so many people! I love it :)