Unfelt Hypos - enjoy them!

One evening, a few years ago, I was at home watching "The Mask" with Jim Carrey and Cameron Diaz. It was around 8:30PM and earlier on I had eaten my eveing meal - what it consisted of I cannot recall. As I continued to watch the film, I saw that 8:30 had become 9PM, and knowing I would soon be taking my night-time injection, I wanted to check my blood sugar level so that I would know just how much insulin to inject.

So, still keeping one eye on the film, I stabbed myself, exsanguinated my as-yet-never-to-play-guitar digit, and awaited the result from my glucometer. Within 30 seconds I was surprised - somewhat pleasantly, I might add - to be informed by my now-friendly digital machine that I was "Low". I say surprised because I didn't feel any different than if I had registered a 6 or even a 12. To put it another way, I felt absolutely fine.

There was no hunger, no trembling, no shakes, no sweaty palms. There was no panic-induced dash to get something to eat, no need for help, no inability to focus, not even an increased heart-rate - even watching Cameron Diaz, who could do that to most men!! (Maybe there was something wrong with me.....). In fact, I continued to watch the remainder of the film, unhindered by any hypo symptoms whatsoever. It wasn't until we were rewinding the tape (yes, it was a while ago!) did I even remember that about an hour previously I had been informed by my glucometer that I needed something to make my blood sugars rise. However, at this point I still felt fine, so more out of curiosity than necessity I checked my blood sugars again.

This time, the reading was 7.4mmol/l (155mg in America and parts of Europe).

How had this happened?

Why had this happened?

Why didn't I feel low?

Well, at the time that this particular incident occurred, I had had Type 1 Diabetes for about 20 years. In those 20 years, I had had umpteen hypos, most of which I had felt the strength of. However, one effect of having to go through these numerous attacks on my body was that having had so many hypos, my body had built up an 'immunity' of sorts, a certain tolerance for them. My body could 'handle' them without having to inform my mind that I was having a hypo.

I had grown used to them.

It's true. Many people who have had diabetes for a lengthy period of time (or even for not that long) have either had or will experience this phenomenon. In fact, it is quite common among those of us with Type 1 Diabetes, even if it isn't always widely known.

If we are unaware that we are unaware, these can pose a threat to us. We could be going along one minute, feeling fine, only to be looking dazedly around us wondering what's going on the next.

Because I am aware that unfelt hypos exist out there, I find it useful to check my blood sugars frequently, not because I want to be a goody-two-shoes, endocrinologist's lick-arse, but because I don't particularly want to have to be dragged from within yet another hypo with a syringe in my arm or leg, or worse, having to try to get myself out from a particularly strong brand of hypoglycaemia.

This is the main disadvantage of building up an immunity to lows - not even knowing that we are low (at times). However, there are certain benefits. One is the fact that we can actually taste the food we put into our mouths, and actually might even get the chance to enjoy the flavour of chocolate or ice-cream or whatever it is that we use to remedy the situation. There is also the added bonus that we may actually retain some dignity by just going about our business of fixing what is not quite right without having to beg or plead or grunt for help from those around us, not all of whom know what to do (or even want to help). We don't have to make embarrassing spectacles of ourselves in a quest just to get a drink of milk or juice into us, and we can feel relaxed as the potion quietly and efficeintly does its job.

As someone once said to me: "Enjoy your hypos!" I think I know now what he meant.