Yes, most of what I am talking about is with severe lows… I’m guessing low mid 30s range. My brain becomes more and more useless as I drop below that. I also think you’re right about the passing out part— about getting panicky because of feeling close to passing out. I also have somewhat recently developed bad nausea with these types of crashes, and that might be what that’s about.
Yes.
So this is another very bad symptom for me but also one I’ve learned an interesting thing about. My tongue and lips do go numb, but it will also go all the way down my throat. And I get an awful taste when it does that. Burnt onions. That’s what I think of. And it is so awful, I can’t put anything in my mouth because it all tastes like that. That particular symptom can last for up to an hour or longer after a crash is done. That symptom is also the most demoralizing of them all. It just really blasts any positive thinking that might be trying to surface. The interesting thing though, is that I learned about the earlier tingling that it seems to be less about how low I’ve gone and more about how prolonged the low has been. Because I track what my sensors are doing, I was able to learn this during a couple of tests where I tracked my numbers through a low. That tingling often was a late hitting symptom of a very shallow low rather than a sign that I am still dropping. In one particular case, my blood sugar never dropped below maybe 64, but it was an extended period below 70… I finally got the tingling just as my blood sugar rose back up past 70, and it lingered for some time.
I have no idea if it could be true for anyone else or if it’ll be true for me ever again, but it has motivated me to give myself a bump when I start getting just below threshold.
This has been my exact thinking lately, and it’s what got me into the whole sensory overload stuff to begin with. All of this stuff coming in is usually nothing more than a little overwhelming or maybe a little tiring, but with low glucose-related impaired mental processing ability, it’s more like an attack.
I’m going to get myself a big helmet, a baton, and some Kevlar and go squat in my local Food Lion grocery store during the next crash. Finally, a solid plan.
EH had a low today that the CGM didn’t catch. Said he was at 89, which isn’t an issue in his book. But he texted me and said he felt like he was going to cry (I’ve known him for 25 years, he has cried three times. He’s accepting of crying, but it’s not his bag.) I was like “wait! That thread on FUD! Test your blood sugar!!!” And he was at 60. So he ate some candy. And felt better.
When I suggested a sticky, maybe the term on this forum would be wiki? (Sticky on other forums is a post which sticks on top of the stack, for handy reference). Some sort of reference type entry on the topic would be handy, but maybe the thread mentioned by @Michel covers it already.
Applauding not only your self-awareness but also and most importantly for this community, your ability to articulate as I’ve never read what your experience of lows is like. It might not mirror everyone’s experience, but you’ve managed to hit the highlights (or lowlights) of the experience in its different forms. Just so beautifully done. Your detail is spot on. It’s posts like this that make individuals, me included, feel less alone in the process. Thank you for naming these aspects of a low with such specificity (and art!).
Please tell me you write in other areas of your life.
@Nickyghaleb , you put words to how I feel my lows that I don’t think I could articulate myself. I get those black circles, and my head gets heavy. Something that I get paranoid over is that my mouth starts to feel weird - numb, bloated, disabled. I’ll know I should be eating to treat the low but I get to thinking “am I going to choke on this chalky glucose tablet (or piece of candy)?” Depending on just how low I am and if I’m trending lower, sometimes I’ll just put the treat in my mouth and try to feel it with my groggy-feeling tongue to make sure I can even swallow.
I start feeling my lows once I get lower than 70. Someone asked above about low feelings changing over time. And I’m thankful that I’m hypo-aware, but I wish that as I’m more in control I’ll grow to be a little more functioning if I’m 65 and stable.
Thank you, @Irish. This was such a nice comment, it actually got me through something tough the other day. That’s what I call a gift.
I do, and it’s been a powerful medicine… most powerful right up until I needed insulin. I’ve written since childhood, and now I put it all here and in my Facebook group. Between the two groups, I’m pretty full up, but I couldn’t ask for a safer, warmer community. It’s all been a gift.
And nice to finally meet you. I’ve seen evidence of you around here but have not yet had the pleasure.
You know, most of what I’ve done has been for me, and I’m honestly not sure what of that is particularly… upbeat. If I ever come across something share-worthy, I’d be very happy to post.
Double dog dare accepted. Just to see what you’ve got. What are we digging up? Poetry? Inner musings? I’ve got it all, and you are going to regret starting this once I start posting.
I actually had to come up with a safety plan in order to walk into Target. I swear I think it’s the lights. Or the products. Or the children. I crashed into their jewelry display one time. And bought half the store another. I’m both their best and worst customer thanks to diabetes.
I’ve written since childhood, and now I put it all here and in my Facebook group. Between the two groups, I’m pretty full up, but I couldn’t ask for a safer, warmer community. It’s all been a gift.
If I ever come across something share-worthy, I’d be very happy to post.
