QuestionGood Morning, just me again...
I would definately think he is diabetic from his symptoms, as I have had diabetes for 27 years. I check his sugar every so often, but now that you mentioned it, I have never checked it about 30 minutes after a meal. Whenever checked by myself or a doctor, fasting or not, his sugar runs between 80-89. But also, he does get up 2 times a night to void, possibly due to the beer. He was also diagnosed with bph, and has been on antibiotics for almost 2 months. He does not have that blue/gray tint to his skin, so maybe his pancreas has just slowed down, like you had mentioned, after larger meals. I have never seen anybody drink as much fluid as he does. Although, it was a habit from heavy alcoholism about 5 years back. Also, last spring, every so often, maybe a total of 8 times, he woke up dreaming he was voiding, and he almost did not make it to the bathroom. All signs of diabetes. The only thing that does not make sense is that he does not have much of an appetite. He is so tired of going to doctors and not getting answers. Maybe he will let me at least kinda do a test with him to see if he should aggress this situation with a doctor.
I can try testing his sugar after varied situations, maybe 20 minutes after a candy bar, then maybe about 1 hour after a heavy meal, things like that. I realize that in some pre-diabetics, instant sugar can also cause the pancreas to over produce insulin, and could give him a low blood sugar effect.
Any other suggestions you have would be appreciated.
Please understand, I am not avoiding him seeing a doctor, but he is hesitant anymore unless we have something concrete to go on.
Again, thank you so very much!
Susan
Followup To
Question -
Good Morning,
I have a question reguarding my husband. Every time he eats a meal, he needs to take a nap. It is affecting his weight, which was only 165 to start. He does not eat very much due to this sleepiness. He will eat right before bed. He has always had this problem, but in the last few months, it is much worse. He is struggling to keep his weight up. He has had so many blood tests, he is not diabetic, his thyroid is fine, his liver and kidney functions are fine. Although I do question the start of kidney problems due to the fact that they only tested the blood for that. He has taken 9-15 aspirins a day for over 12 years, due to headaches. He also has a seizure disorder due to a head injury. He is currently taking lamictal 100mg x 2, neurontin 600mg x 1 (which actually has the opposite reaction with him, it makes him a bit hyper), ativan as needed, he is hyperactive and no other medications work for him or are safe with his seizure disorder. He has high blood pressure. He does drink beer every evening which he should not do because of the seizure disorder.
I guess my question is this, are there any other disorders or things to check into that could be causing this problem. When he eats a meal, you can see the sleepiness coming over his face, mostly in his eyes.
Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Thank you!
Susan
Answer -
Hi Susan,
If the sleepiness is that pronounced right after eating, I would dispute the negative diabetes workup. He very well could have Insulin resistance as opposed to lack of Insulin production. He should have a 6 hour glucose tolerance test and fasting Insulin and C-Peptide. If this sleepiness is connected with a meal AND alcohol consumption, that could be the source as well. He clearly needs further work ups as this is not normal. One other thing that ahould be considered is a sleep study to see if he has a sleep disorder made worse by medicines and eating habits.
AnswerHi Susan,
He obviously has a complex medical history. I think if you want to check his sugar, you should do it 30 minutes, one and two hours after a sugar meal. That is the best way to find out about a diabetic problem. If he has it checked after a starch laden meal, it takes too long to convert starch to sugar so you wouldn’t get a good reading. With everything else going on, has he been tested for heart disease with a heart echo/stress test? This can also cause chronic fatigue. Alcoholism can cause heart muscle dysfunction.
Lots to think about.
