How To Lower Your Blood Sugar When It's Really High

5/31/2016

This article is written for type 2 diabetics who need help coming down from a very high blood sugar during a single, isolated high blood sugar event.

If you want to try an stabilize your baseline, consider signing up for my Baseline Blood Sugar Challenge course.

THIS ARTICLE IS NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR REAL MEDICAL ADVICE.

If you're a type 2 diabetic and your blood sugar is high right now (greater than 300mg/dL for at least 6 hours), the first thing you should do is call your doctor. So, if you haven't called anyone for help yet, please stop reading this article and call your doctor. If your doctor is able to help, then you need not read on.

Also, if you are having symptoms of Diabetic Ketoacidosis, stop reading this article and go to the hospital immediately. Diabetic Ketoacidosis can kill you if left untreated.

But. If you're in a situation where your blood sugar has been high for an extended period of time, you could perhaps consider taking the following steps to solve your blood sugar problem.

Disclaimer: This is friendly, non-medical advice from a random diabetic person you don't even know, which is a very (very) poor substitute for real, actual medical advice. Use at your own risk.

First, you should try and lower your blood sugar without injectable insulin by completing the following steps:

1. Check your blood sugar. Write down the time and your blood sugar level.
2. Drink water (this doesn't actually lower blood sugar, but it helps flush sugar and ketones from your body, if you have them). Continue drinking water, but please don't make yourself sick.
3. Move. As in, walk. Walk around the block or walk in place or haul your ass up and down the stairs for 30-60 minutes. Walking helps your cells become less insulin resistant, which is what you need right now. Do NOT engage in high-intensity exercise, because strenuous exercise could make your blood sugar higher.
4. Take a warm (not hot) shower for 15 minutes (this helps the insulin flow).
5. Check your blood sugar again. Write down the time and the blood sugar level. Did your blood sugar go down after you walked and showered? Great! Repeat the above steps until your blood sugar is back into your target range.

If your blood sugar didn't go down, and if you can't get access to medical assistance, you could consider taking insulin just this once to lower your blood sugar, as long as you promise to call your doctor when s/he is available to tell them what you did. You'll probably get yelled at for using insulin without your doctor's permission, and for following advice you found on the internet. And your doctor would totally be correct to yell at you for doing this. Also, keep in mind that if you accidentally take too much insulin, you could die. Which would be very bad. So, be careful.

To fix your blood sugar with insulin, complete these steps:

STEP 1: GET THESE SUPPLIES AT WAL-MART
1. 1 bottle of Reli-On Regular Insulin ($26)

*This insulin costs over a hundred dollars at other pharmacies. Wal-mart sells it for $26. It's also not the best insulin for treating highs. There are better insulins out there, but most of the good ones require a prescription. This insulin, in most states, does not require a prescription.

2. 1 bottle of ketone test strips ($10-$20, depending on the brand)

3. 3 or 4 bottles of Powerade ZERO (you MUST get the sugar-free "ZERO" version or your blood sugar will go even higher)

4. 1 box or 1 packet of 30 unit (1/3cc) Syringes (needles)

STEP 2: FIGURE OUT HOW MUCH INSULIN TO TAKE

If your blood sugar is 300: Take 2 units of Regular Insulin
If your blood sugar is 350: Take 3 units of Regular Insulin
If your blood sugar is 400: Take 4 units of Regular Insulin
If your blood sugar is 450: Take 5 units of Regular Insulin
If your blood sugar is 500 or more: Take 6 units of Regular Insulin

STEP 3: CHECK KETONES
Use the ketone test strips (ketostix) to check if you have ketones. Ketones can be bad if they are present with prolonged high blood sugar. After you give yourself insulin and continue to hydrate yourself, your ketones should go away.

STEP 4: GIVE YOURSELF AN INJECTION OF INSULIN
This helpful youtube video will show you how to do it. Remember that on a 30 unit syringe, each line equals one unit. If you are using a 100 unit syringe, each line equals two units. This is why our instructions suggest 30 unit syringes. Less confusion. Please don't take any more than 6 units at a time unless your doctor says its ok.

STEP 5: MOVE, MONITOR, HYDRATE
1. Continue to move (walking is great!).
2. Continue to check your blood sugar every 2 hours for the next 8 hours. You may not see any results for about 4 hours. You have to be patient.
3. Do not eat anything that contains carbohydrates.
4. Drink Powerade Zero to help replace any electrolytes you may have lost.
5. Take a warm (not hot) shower about 30-60 minutes after taking the injection. This will help the insulin flow.
6. Continue checking ketones every 4 hours.
7. If you start to feel worse, or if you start having symptoms of diabetic ketoacidosis, get yourself to the hospital right away!
8. After 7 hours, if your blood sugar still isn't below 300, call your doctor or repeat the above steps again. Do NOT take another dose if you haven't waited the full 7 hours.

Remember, insulin is very dangerous and can cause severe low blood sugars if not used correctly. If you have a low blood sugar episode, treat it immediately with quick acting sugar.

Also remember that everyone processes insulin differently. Some people might find that the above dose worked really well to lower blood sugar, while others (more insulin resistant diabetics) may have blood sugar that won't budge with this amount of insulin.

I hope this helps you solve your single, isolated high blood sugar problem. And again, if you are looking for more help and support with blood sugar management (and if you need some motivation to get out of your diabetic rut), sign up for one of my BootCamp for Betics courses!

With Diabetic Love,
Kara

20 Comments

Author

Hi, I’m Kara. I’ve been type 1 diabetic since 1986. I’ve been attending diabetes camp since 1987. I’ve been a camper, a counselor, a staff director and training director at diabetes camps for the last 30 years. I have a regular day job as a technology consultant, and even though I like my day job, diabetes is my true passion. My late maternal grandmother had diabetes, and died from complications related thereto. Both of my grandfathers have diabetes, and so do my dad and my uncle. My little brother is hyperinsulinemic, which means that his pancreas is already overproducing insulin to counteract his body's insulin resistance. I hate diabetes! But guess what. Diabetics aren't doomed. There is a way to have diabetes and still live a long and healthful life, but, at times, it can be hard as hell. Like, really, really, insanely hard. But I’ve finally figured out how to lower my blood sugars and keep my A1C at a reasonable level. And it's not easy, and sometimes I screw up, but my method is totally workable for anyone who wants to fix their blood sugar, including you. And I want to share what I’ve learned with you, so that you can be healthy and feel better, too.

With Betic Love,
Kara

Categories

Karin Studer

11/5/2016 09:01:41 pm

Alan Bown

2/14/2017 08:14:25 am

Any reason you can not drink G2? Looks to have the same basic formula as Powerade Zero.

Kara Stiles link

4/2/2017 01:07:44 pm

G2 has about 12 grams of carbs per bottle, whereas powerade zero has zero.

Nikita Ziemer

3/26/2017 06:03:59 pm

The local Walmart here acted like I was asking for hard narcotics. Didn't sell over the counter insulin.

4/2/2017 01:09:05 pm

Unless you live in Alaska, the Walmart pharmacist has to sell you insulin. Go download and print the pharmacy friendly guide at this site and take it in to wal mart: http://www.bootcampforbetics.org/blog/when-you-cant-afford-the-insulin-you-need-in-order-to-survive

4/2/2017 04:10:22 pm

I just bought 2 bottles of insulin at Walmart in Tucson and the lady behind the counter got it and I paid for it. Simple.

janette

8/6/2017 04:12:51 pm

They do sell Novulin, Because i had a dog that was diabetic and we gave her the same shots. Now my sugar is 300 and i cannot get it down, i know working out lowers it but i need it really lowered a lot, I take metphormin and gliburide, I took extra to bring it down, still not down enough, it was 295, now 240

3/26/2017 06:06:01 pm

My Dr. increased my Lantus from 30 to 45. Next morning fasting sugar was 180! Up 50 pts. Next morning, up to 216! What is going on???

4/2/2017 01:06:50 pm

you could be experiencing some temporary or permanent insulin resistance. Or, the huge increase in Lantus could have cause a symogi effect - basically causing such a low blood sugar at night that your liver kicked in, shot a bunch of sugar into your blood, and saved your life. Sign up for the Baseline Blood Sugar Challenge (Diabetes 201) to learn more about this . An increase to 45 from 30 seems like too much of an increase.

Nicole brown

5/30/2017 10:16:54 pm

Is it dangerous when your blood sugar levels is at 300

Anna

4/29/2018 12:42:15 pm

I’ve been over 500 for a day.

Wayne E Roth link

6/7/2017 06:18:42 am

My sugar stay high an would like to bring it down l am on pills an insulins but they don't do the job very well thanks

8/6/2017 04:15:19 pm

get to a specialist, trust me please, my friends ran high all the time like that and her blood eventually turned thick and she dropped dead one morning, its nothing to play with. ( I am going thru the same frustration of getting it lowered) My brother in law had weight loss surgery even though he wasn't very big , size 36 jeans, now size 30 but he was taking so much insulin, now diabetes free!

Candy

6/13/2017 08:22:37 pm

It's been around 10 days my blood sugar spike up to 367, i'my having all kinds of symptoms, but I hate needle, what else can I do til my app with doc 25th.

guido

7/20/2017 12:32:12 pm

you could die? that's an alternative to needles

Ginny

7/25/2017 11:34:35 pm

My mothers hospice doctor has said I should not worry about my mothers blood sugar. She actually told me not to worry unless it hits 1000. Yes, I said 1-0-0-0 three zeros. I feel this doctor is smoking crack. At the hospital she was being administered insulin, hospice took her off all medication. I had to fight to get her Glipizide back, at 1/4 the dose her PCP had her on. 5 mg twice a day. The lowest her blood sugar has been in the last week is 312 today she spiked up to 547. I am at wits end. I want her off hospice so I can get her to another doctor who is not trying to kill her...
Any suggestions for real foods I can feed her that will help besides cucumbers and boiled eggs?

Sherry

9/20/2017 10:48:29 pm

Hi Ginny, I know somewhat as to how you feel. Let me assure you that Hospice is not trying to kill your mother, they should be offering comfort to help end of life to be easier. Since you said Hospice I will assume your mother must be terminal or have a condition that modern curative medicine is no longer doing any good? Did you have any say about your mother entering Hospice? My Mother is currently in at Home Hospice going on 1 week now and I have been her caretaker. Her sugar has been high for some time . Yesterday it was 491 and tonight 536! Hospice has told me to only give her Lantus at bedtime. I had a hard time with doing not much of anything else, but when you realize your mother is coming to her last days comfort is the best option. When I was able to work I was a nurse in Geriatrics so I understand why my moms sugar is going up and up. With my Mother she's been diabetic since her mid 30's,she developed heart disease in her early 50's which lead to poor to now no circulation in her leg. 2 months ago her left leg was amputated followed by the same infections in her right leg that progressed even faster.She was in rehab but was sent to the hospital 2 weeks ago because of increased infection. The next day she went into Cardiac arrest from sepsis, she was dead but the Dr's performed CPR until they got a heart rate then put her on life support they were pretty certain she would pass away if life support was stopped, which was my decision to do. Within 24 hours she was still breathing, actually her vital signs became better, she became alert and was talking with little confusion.But there is really nothing more medically that can be done for her is why she is in Hospice now. The best foods you can prepare for your mother to try to keep her sugar from going higher are whole foods that are not processed like fruits and vegetables, lean protein,whole grains, fish such as salmon, mackerel, lake trout, halibut, and albacore tuna.oatmeal,. Hope this helps you some.Also, if you are not happy with the way your mom's Hospice team is treating her.. if you have not already, request an appointment with the Hospice Social Worker and explain to them your concerns how you would like her treated for her high blood sugar. It's just really baffling to me how you said you had to fight with them to get her Glipizide back, Hospice should really be listening to what you want for your Mother and what's best for her, not giving you such a hard time over Glucose meds. Best wishes for you and your mother.

Nicole

10/6/2017 06:29:05 am

first, you should get her out of that hospice care facility right away! second, protein + fats is like magic for diabetics. try to give her something with a lot of protein and a good amount of fat.

i hope that helps... my heart is with you & your mom. :)

Penny

11/9/2017 09:30:16 pm

I am very confused by this post. Hospice is for patients who are near death. Why is her blood sugar a concern when she is actively dying? Am I missing something? Where I live patients are only admitted to hospice when death is imminent in the next few weeks, at most, months.

Valerie

5/13/2018 06:15:31 am

My blood sugar rises to close to 600 when I do thinks like walking the dog or cleaning the house. If I sit around it’s 180ish. This just started a month ago. My feet now are constantly freezing. I get vertigo and double vision. Normal weight and non smoker. When I ask my Dr anything he just says it’s because I I’m diabetic.

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