Hi --

I am new to the forum! I was diagnosed with Type II diabetes almost 10 years ago, but until last month I was not on any medication.

I've done LC pretty consistently for several years, along with regular exercise. I slipped off the wagon this summer -- there was a stressful situation in the family so I handled it by eating :-(

My A1C soared to 8.1 and I couldn't get my BG's under 200 even when I went back on the LC program. So the doctor started me on Avandia, 4 mg twice a day, a month ago. The numbers didn't move much at all and I started to feel awful 3 days after starting the Avandia.

I went in for a physical last week (at that point I had been on the Avandia for 3 weeks) and he handed me a prescription for Glucotrol XL, 5 mg, at the end of the visit. I didn't realize till I came home and looked it up that it was a sulfonylurea, which I have always wanted to avoid.

Won't that just burn my pancreas out faster? I went ahead and started on it because I thought it was essential to get the BG's down.

I am being strict with the LC program again (basically Bernstein's 6-12-12 with maybe one small 3-6 gram snack after exercise.) My fasting BG's have dropped to about 155 (down from mid-200's 5 weeks ago). My fasting BG is usually quite a bit higher than my bedtime reading. Immediately after exercise I have been getting readings of about 90 --- and that is lower than I used to get after exercise, so I am attributing it to the Avandia and Glucotrol.

But I am really unhappy about being on any meds at all, and I am worried about the sulfonylurea in particular. Dr. Bernstein's book (which was published before Avandia was out) says he uses Glucophage.

I have felt bad ever since I started the Avandia, and I don't think it's doing much anyway. I feel a sort of full feeling in my chest and neck and head and I am "aware" of my heart beating, altho it doesn't seem to be racing. I would describe the feelings as symptoms of low BG, except that when I check, the numbers are not low. I told the doctor and he said he's never heard of that type of reaction, so he wanted to do a 24-hr holter monitor test and echocardiogram. I'm wearing the monitor right now.

Does anyone have any thoughts? Do you think the Glucotrol XL is ok to use for awhile? (Oh, yeah, I gained weight this summer. I was 195 last spring, and I went up to 215. I'm under 210 now, but I always lose very slowly, even on strict LC.)

Many thanks for listening to this newbie's concerns!
Marjorie