I'm kind of stumped?

[peekawho]

After trying to get my husband to go to the doctor for over a year, he just finished all his bloodwork and has been diagnosed a diabetic.  They are prescribing him Glucophage.

I asked about testing his blood sugars, and the nurse? told me "oh, no honey.  He doesn't have to do that, these are JUST pills".  

He is just to come back in 3 months.  That's the sum total of our diabetic teaching.  

I'm a nurse and know better than to just say take a pill and don't worry about anything, so I will be testing his blood sugars.  Anyone have suggestions as to how often at first?  I doubt it's necessary to test way often, and I think he'll rebel if I make him test too much.  

But just as a recommendation, how often do you think he should check at first?  Twice a day?  Once he's stable on meds, just a few times a week?  

Thank you for any ideas/suggestions.  He's pretty stubborn so I don't know if I can get him to test at ALL.

[JDRF-Team-JW]

Hi peekawho,

As you may already know we are not medical professionals on this forum so please keep that in mind when advice is given.

I am a Type I diabetic and generally this forum deals with this particular type. I don't really know what the guidelines would be for a Type II diabetic but I agree with you that there's gotta be more to it than just "take a pill and come back in 3 months". You're right to be concerned and I applaud you for taking such good care of your husband. You said that a nurse told you he doesn't have to test, but what about the doctor? Your husband would benefit from seeing an endocrinologist if he isn't already. Also, I would discuss your concerns with the doctor and if there's no cooperation I would seek a second opinion. In the meantime I would have him check his sugar at least twice a day (morning and evening), but perhaps even more in the beginning (before and two hours after a meal), just to get an idea of how his sugars are. I am looking at this though from a Type I diabetic's perspective. The fact is that unless you test regularly and at verious times of day and night, you won't really know how the medication is affecting the blood sugar levels. That's why I suggest to test a bit more often at first and if everything seems fine then perhaps it's not necessary to test as often. And please speak with an endocrinologist and discuss your concerns.

Good luck and take care!

[annvuk]

My mother is a type 2 diabetic on the same medication and her doctor wants her to test at least twice a day and more if she is sick.  My son is a type 1 diabetic and he tests anywhere from 5-10 times a day.