Reactive Hypoglycemia?
- Replies 17
- Views 25.1k
- Created
- Last Reply
Featured Replies
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.
A better way to browse. Learn more.
A full-screen app on your home screen with push notifications, badges and more.
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.
So after a couple of unpleasant incidents, I've done some digging, and as far as I can tell I have been suffering from reactive hypoglycemia (RHG). All of the symptoms I get are hypoglycemic (flushed/chills, nervousness, trembling, slight mental confusion, feeling like I'm going to collapse, etc., all coupled with a sort of panicky hunger -- "I have to eat NOW or I'm going to fall over!"), and it's relieved by eating (but only if I'm careful and eat high-Protein foods, carbs just make the swings worse). I'm curious if anyone else has gone through this with the sleeve.
Incidentally, some call this or confuse this with "dumping syndrome" -- they're not the same, but they may be related. Eating in a way that leads to dumping apparently can dump a lot of blood-sugar spiking food into your small intestine at once, faster than your body can properly deal with. So part of the "eat every two hours" thing is to eat smaller meals and avoid dumping. The Wikipedia article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reactive_hypoglycemia) mentions this.
I am not diabetic, according to NUMEROUS tests by my PCP (given my weight and a family history, it seemed like a good precaution). Apparently, RHG is very common for WLS patients about 15-20 months out (I'm ~19 months out). It's made worse by not eating lots of small, high-protein meals, by not getting enough cardio, and by consuming too much caffeine. I'm guilty on all counts, but it seems like caffeine is really the worst offender for me. I don't do well with moderation, and I've discovered that when I really go overboard on caffeine, I get bad RHG, often at night. Also, it seems to be the combination of caffeine and carbs for me -- I don't drink caffeine at night, but my nighttime meals lately have been carb-heavy (spaghetti, for instance), mostly for convenience. And it seems like my RHG is happening mostly in the evening.
So, I'm curious who else has struggled with this, and how you dealt with it. Unfortunately, since I changed jobs in mid-June, I'm not yet eligible for health benefits so I can't go see a doctor about this. That will be changing soon (next week, I think), but I really don't think this is an emergency condition, especially since I seem to be able to manage it by eating healthier, avoiding caffeine, and so on. Mostly I'm looking for support and advice