How many pill are too much

[lisailor]

My endocrinologist wants to add more pills to my routine. I am taking actos and janumet (combo of januvia & metformin)

HA1C is now 7.2 after adding janumet. How discouraging being that it was 6.8 before the janumet, but I did go off amaryl because I landed in the hospital with hypoglycemia

She suggests starlix or prandin. Still reading up on all the meds.

I am so tired of all the pills. Is insulin the answer? Not insulin resistant after having Cpeptide test.

[catherine2282]

How long have you been diabetic? After a certain amount of years your pancreas will just stop producing insulin because it's worn out from producing too much un useable insulin (because when it doesn't work it'll just pump more and more into your system iirc).

So if you've been diabetic for 10+ years it's definitely time to try insulin. A LOT of doctors use it as a last LAST resort and sometimes it's hard to get them to switch you on it. My dad basically had to TELL his internal specialist that he was going on insulin and that's that. He was on more pills than you with very poor sugar control (after being diabetic for 8-ish years) despite eating a balanced diabetic diet.

If you're scared about being on insulin, don't be! I'm type one and have been giving myself 5 shots a day since I was in my teens. It's painless, easy and as long as you eat appropriately you should be fine hypo-wise.

My suggestion is to be a bit more assertive/forceful with your endo if you haven't already been and make them understand you mean business! This is your health you're talking about, and it's important to be your most dedicated advocate!

GOOD LUCK!!!

[SamQKitty]

The C-peptide test does not, as far as I know, measure for insulin resistance but rather measure to see if you are producing any insulin.

In type 2 diabetes, there is usually a combination of insulin resistance plus some reduced insulin production. Both of these factors can vary greatly from person to person. Catherine is absolutely correct that the longer you have T2, the more progressive it is in terms of reduced insulin production.

Having said that, however, if you stopped taking the amaryl because of hypoglycemic events, you may not want to start on insulin just yet. Hypoglycemic events are not at all uncommon when taking insulin. I suspect that's why your doctor is trying to manage this with oral medication, rather than putting you on insulin. I would also recommend that if you go on insulin or back on the amaryl, that you test more often so that you can determine what causes the hypoglycemia (increased exercise? less food? stress?) Once you get a handle on that, it becomes easier to avoid extreme hypos and you'll learn the symptoms and test earlier, when you can treat it yourself with some sort of sugar (fruit juice, glucose tabs, hard candies, etc.) BEFORE it gets so low that you need to be hospitalized.

Whatever you do, you need to get your A1c back down. 7.2 isn't exactly TERRIBLE, but it's not terrific either.

Ruth

[Oleander53]

I am on Janumet 50/500 twice a day.............the regular metformin did not agree with me. This is doing great.

I had a 2 hour Insulin test........my fasting was 17 and my 2 hour was around 68. So I am definately insulin resistant.........I never had a Cpeptide...
My bloodsugars are normal...

A1C is 5.8

Jamunet is agreeing well with me.......luckily my insurance pays for all but $25.00

Hope this helps..............Oleander

[Coravh]

Originally Posted by SamQKitty

The C-peptide test does not, as far as I know, measure for insulin resistance but rather measure to see if you are producing any insulin.


Ruth

Hi Ruth.

The c-peptide test can, in fact check for insulin resisitance. If you have a high c-pep, this means a lot of insulin production. And if your blood sugar is even slightly elevated with high insulin production, that indicates insulin resistance. I learned this just the other day, actually.

Cora