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Diabetic Seizures? Please help
Hi, my boyfriend was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes when he was 10, and he is now 26 - it is being controlled with injections daily. However, every now and then I wake up to find him seemingly awake, but he is just lying there with his eyes open, and if I talk to him he will look at me, so he can hear me, but he is verbally unresponsive.
This morning I moved his arm, to see if it would wake him up, but after the first time he froze up, and I couldnt move it again. Sometimes this appears to be a result of low blood sugar, but he will not take any sugar I bring him - even though he's looking right at me.
Any idea on what this could be? When i question him about it when he finally 'wakes up' he says he remembers nothing and that his ex ever noticed anything like it. Does anyone have any ideas? Thanks in advance x
This morning I moved his arm, to see if it would wake him up, but after the first time he froze up, and I couldnt move it again. Sometimes this appears to be a result of low blood sugar, but he will not take any sugar I bring him - even though he's looking right at me.
Any idea on what this could be? When i question him about it when he finally 'wakes up' he says he remembers nothing and that his ex ever noticed anything like it. Does anyone have any ideas? Thanks in advance x
I forgot to make a point about drinking. When you drink alcohol, it metabolizes in about 12hours and it actually LOWERS your blood sugar. There's not much need to worry if you're only having a couple, but if you're drinking a lot, you need to remember that in 8-12hrs, it's going to bring your BG way down so you should check your BG and eat a snack before bed. About 90% of my seizures have been after a night of drinking
This happens to me a lot. I am 27 and have had type 1 for 9 years. This just started happening to me about 5 years ago, but I get full fledged Grand Mal seizures. It's important to know this isn't epilepsy, this is 100% related to hypoglycemia. ANY person with such low sugars would experience seizures.
I keep multiple Glucagon "pens" around and my boyfriend knows how to use them and has in the past (note - using them is almost worse than having the seizure since it makes you extremely nauseous and you throw up for a good 24hrs afterwards).
The glucose gel or honey is an excellent option too - just remember that he will not remember a thing so try not to take anything too personally if he's not responding or if he even hits you. I did that while my b/f was giving me an injection - I kept pushing him away and he ended up almost sticking himself!
The best course of action, of course, is to NOT let him get to that point. While he won't die from the seizure itself, injuries can be had if he's NOT in bed - or even if he is. I've dislocated my shoulder, broke my arm, split my head and broke my two front teeth all from seizures.... they are not pretty. So because of this, I make sure I never go to bed without checking my glucose and making sure it's around 140mg/dL - if it's lower or if I have insulin on board, I eat a snack such as an apple with peanut butter.
He should also cut down his meal and correction boluses (injections) down a bit before bed since when he's sleeping (while he's fasting) is the time where insulin is most efficiently absorbed into the body. In other words, you need a little LESS insulin for things right before bed - you don't want it dropping too low. Everyone's BG drops in their sleep a bit.
Lastly, sweat is a great indicator. My b/f and I have a rule - if he wakes me up at 2am and tells me to check my BG, that means he is worried it might be low - so I wake right up and do it with no complaints. Not that it happens often, but the idea is better safe than sorry.
I keep multiple Glucagon "pens" around and my boyfriend knows how to use them and has in the past (note - using them is almost worse than having the seizure since it makes you extremely nauseous and you throw up for a good 24hrs afterwards).
The glucose gel or honey is an excellent option too - just remember that he will not remember a thing so try not to take anything too personally if he's not responding or if he even hits you. I did that while my b/f was giving me an injection - I kept pushing him away and he ended up almost sticking himself!
The best course of action, of course, is to NOT let him get to that point. While he won't die from the seizure itself, injuries can be had if he's NOT in bed - or even if he is. I've dislocated my shoulder, broke my arm, split my head and broke my two front teeth all from seizures.... they are not pretty. So because of this, I make sure I never go to bed without checking my glucose and making sure it's around 140mg/dL - if it's lower or if I have insulin on board, I eat a snack such as an apple with peanut butter.
He should also cut down his meal and correction boluses (injections) down a bit before bed since when he's sleeping (while he's fasting) is the time where insulin is most efficiently absorbed into the body. In other words, you need a little LESS insulin for things right before bed - you don't want it dropping too low. Everyone's BG drops in their sleep a bit.
Lastly, sweat is a great indicator. My b/f and I have a rule - if he wakes me up at 2am and tells me to check my BG, that means he is worried it might be low - so I wake right up and do it with no complaints. Not that it happens often, but the idea is better safe than sorry.
It's hypo. My 19 year old son, (diabetic since age 13), is the same. If I try to wake him up, he just stays asleep. Only happens two or three times a year, but it sure is memorable.
Many diabetics with hypoglycemia are non-reponsive to a voice. When you initiate treatment they often become combative.
My favorite "wake up medicine" is honey. I put some on my finger and wipe in onto his lips. He naturally licks his lips. When I try to do it again he starts holding my arm away, but still with his eyes closed. When I try again, he starts swinging. I've gotten really good at dodging! But I keep sneaking a little more honey onto his lips.
After he comes around I talk to him about it and he remembers nothing. I've talked to his doctor and he says that it's important to remember that "he's not himself".
Hang in there. You're really important to your boyfriend. You could save his life by being there for him, (with a spoonful of honey).
Many diabetics with hypoglycemia are non-reponsive to a voice. When you initiate treatment they often become combative.
My favorite "wake up medicine" is honey. I put some on my finger and wipe in onto his lips. He naturally licks his lips. When I try to do it again he starts holding my arm away, but still with his eyes closed. When I try again, he starts swinging. I've gotten really good at dodging! But I keep sneaking a little more honey onto his lips.
After he comes around I talk to him about it and he remembers nothing. I've talked to his doctor and he says that it's important to remember that "he's not himself".
Hang in there. You're really important to your boyfriend. You could save his life by being there for him, (with a spoonful of honey).
it sounds like a hypo, it can be difficult to get someone to take sugar when there low. you can get gel that you can rub on his gums, may take a bit of persistence! try to get him to check his blood sugar as well. the other thing is do you have a glucagen hypo kit in the house and do you know how to use it? if not this is very definitly something you should do. if you find him with no response at all you can inject it to bring him around. it must be scarey all this for you but the more familiar you become with it all the less hard it will be, take care, louise 65 ps. names of drugs may be different im in the uk. good luck your doing a great job.
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