[Nalin1]

Hello to general physicians/diabetologists on this forum,

My mother is 72 and has been diabetic for more than 10 years. She also has high BP.

Her diabetes and BP went out of control only once in August 2018 and she spent three days in hospital. She suffered from a mild stroke in the brain (which MRI revealed) during that period.
But both are well under control now. The BP is constantly in the range of around 140/80 or thereabouts and Hba1c levels are between 6 and 7.

The tables that she is taking are:

Glycomet Forte GP2 (before breakfast and dinner)
S-numlo 2.5 mg at night
Ecosprin and shelcal at night

Her concern now is that she sometimes has constipation issues, bloated feeling in the stomach and feels somewhat drowsy for a major part of the day.

For constipation no allopathic medicines worked. Hence tried castor oil and figs (soaked in water overnight) which has given reasonably good results. Hope it is permanent remedy.

The bloated feeling/acidity is off and on. When she takes PAN D before breakfast, seems to work. But is PAN D dangerous to take on long term?
We even had an endoscopy done and the result was fine.

And for the drowsy feeling almost till evening (most days of the week). Is that because of all these medicines? Is the BP tablet responsible for that? When it does its work it causes side effects?

She sleeps quite well. All other tests like thyroid, blood count, ECG, calcium, Vitamin B12 are all normal.

How do we get rid of the drowsiness and bloated feeling in the stomach forever?

[archat68]

Originally Posted by Nalin1

How do we get rid of the drowsiness and bloated feeling in the stomach forever?

I hope the kidney function is normal. Both high BP and diabetes affects kidney function. Increased creatinine may cause drowsiness, lack of appetite etc.
Have the doctors got it checked. The acidity may be due to intolerance to aspirin /ecospirin.

Disclaimer : I'm not a doctor

[Aditya_Bhp]

Originally Posted by Nalin1

constipation issues, bloated feeling in the stomach and feels somewhat drowsy for a major part of the day.

How do we get rid of the drowsiness and bloated feeling in the stomach forever?

Amlong has a tendency to cause constipation in some patients, you may have to consult a doctor to change the drug. The feeling of bloating can be due to constipation.

Regarding drowsiness, you will have to ensure she is not going to hypoglycemia, also rule out electrolyte imbalances, adjust diet accordingly.

Its better you consult a doctor as she is elderly and had a history of stroke in the past.

[Nalin1]

Thanks to both for your replies.

Kidney functioning is fine. She is not going to hypoglycemia at any time. Electrolytes and creatinine levels are also fine.

Just switched to Ayurveda and treatment has started. The doctor feels the drowsiness is due to infarct in the brain which was detected in the MRI scan and will continue to treat the same.

[Udai.Sharma]

Originally Posted by Tejas@perioimpl

Are there any medical professionals on this forum? If so please post. Atleast our members can get a free consultation here!

Strictly no soliciting clients though!!!

My scope of specialization:
General Dentistry
Gum Disease (periodontology/ periodontist): involves treating loose teeth, bleeding gums, bone grafting, gum grafting, etc.
Implantology: replace missing teeth
Sports Dentistry


@MODS: if you consider this a waste of server space or inappropriate please delete. I'm just trying to provide free community service and patient education here.

Hi everyone ! I am an Orthodontist based in lucknow. My speciality deals with correcting malaligned teeth and jaws. Will be happy to answer any questions or help out members in any way.

[Aditya_Bhp]

Originally Posted by Nalin1

Just switched to Ayurveda and treatment has started. The doctor feels the drowsiness is due to infarct in the brain which was detected in the MRI scan and will continue to treat the same.

Isn't Ayurveda based on clinical diagnosis? Why should the ayurveda doctor opine on an MRI, for which he is not trained and secondly it is against his principles. I suggest you to stop experimenting with multiple doctors and systems and waste money.

Stick to either one, General Medicine or Ayurveda, I will give you an example why you should not mix or stop one treatment suddenly. Your mother is not developing new thrombotic infarcts in her body because she is taking Aspirin. The effect of a single dose of Aspirin lasts for 7 days. Now if you stop taking Aspirin, then in 7 days, your mother will start developing new thrombus. So she should take Aspirin for life except if asked to be stopped by a doctor just before a surgery.

Now, Ayurvedic medicines are made by mixing herbs and other substances, these medicines have a tendency to ferment and produce Alcohol, which is alright, as a little alcohol does no harm. Now the thing here is, you are combining Aspirin with this Alcohol, there is documented evidence of significant interactions between Aspirin and Alcohol. The interactions cause things from Gastric ulcers to Renal failure. This is just a common example. There are many more.

So my advice is, either you stop General Medicine completely at your own risk, and switch entirely to Ayurveda or avoid using Ayurvedic medicines when using Modern Medicine drugs. Mixing them will lead to more harm than good.

[carboy]

Doctors/Diabetic patients - Few questions about Diabetic Supplies

1) Glucometer - I noticed that the Morepen BG-03 Glucometer & it's strips both cost much less than other brands. Any reviews on these? Are these reliable enough?

2) BioCon Insupen EZ - it's cheaper than the Novopen 4. Is it as easy to use as the Novopen 4?

3) BioCon's Insilin Biosimilars - Insugen-R (fast acting) & Insugen-N (NPH) are supposed to similar to Novo's Actrapid HM & Insulatard HM Penfills. They also cost around 30% less. Are they as good?

[Nalin1]

Originally Posted by Aditya_Bhp

Isn't Ayurveda based on clinical diagnosis? Why should the ayurveda doctor opine on an MRI, for which he is not trained and secondly it is against his principles. I suggest you to stop experimenting with multiple doctors and systems and waste money. re combining Aspirin with this Alcohol, there is documented evidence of significant interactions between Aspirin and Alcohol. The interactions cause things from Gastric ulcers to Renal failure. This is just a common example. There are many more.

So my advice is, either you stop General Medicine completely at your own risk, and switch entirely to Ayurveda or avoid using Ayurvedic medicines when using Modern Medicine drugs. Mixing them will lead to more harm than good.

Thanks Aditya for all the info. I double checked with the Ayurveda doctor about your points and she assured that there will be no interference.

My mother completed a 9 day treatment at the Ayurveda centre and is continuing with the medicines prescribed. There is a marked improvement in her overall health.

[Samurai]

I get severe pain in the biceps and shoulder area, when I lift my arm in the forward direction with palm facing up. Elbow is not bent. If I do the same with palm facing down, there is no pain.

I am unable to drive since yesterday, since gear changes are very painful. Any idea about this?

[blacksport]

I suffer from a seemingly extreme kind of anxiety, and more importantly, hypochondria. It has been with me for quite a long time, but I have never tried to address it before. And there was a time when I never felt it was abnormal.

The biggest of problems I face preventing me from leading a normal life are these:

Travel: The anxiety attack starts several days before the actual travel date. And the thought of what lies at the destination, things that can go wrong (including health troubles) make me postpone or cancel the travel. But once I get in the vessel (flight, bus etc) it mostly goes away.

Exams/Interviews: I have left those days behind, but still this used to be a problem.

Social anxiety: Am an introvert. Public speaking is a big nightmare to me. Also meeting women, starting conversations etc.

And then there is my hypochondria. Not an hour goes when I am not worried about my and my family's health. I spend hours and days worrying about some symptom which ultimately turns out to be nothing or something trivial. Yet something new turns up the very next day.

I googled, and I see that there are some medicines and therapy. But I have a feeling that these kinds of issues are not really treated in this part of the world. Psychiatrists treat bigger mental problems, and then there is that stigma attached to visiting a psychiatrist.

Is this a condition that usually has a cure? Or is it better to avoid situations where I would encounter anxiety? Is there a pill that I can pop and get rid of my hypochondria at least?

[KL01toKA03]

I suffer from severe headaches when I inhale smoke (burning paper, incense sticks or cigarettes) or when exposed to bright light for some time (if I open curtains at noon for some time, or when I drive at night).

I have been managing this with Naxdom 500 based on the advice of a neurologist (he said it could be migraine). Any problem with continuing this in the long run. I get headaches once or twice a month on average.

[arindambasu13]

Originally Posted by Samurai

I get severe pain in the biceps and shoulder area, when I lift my arm in the forward direction with palm facing up. Elbow is not bent. If I do the same with palm facing down, there is no pain.

I am unable to drive since yesterday, since gear changes are very painful. Any idea about this?

I had similar symptoms at a point in the past and it turned out to be tendonitis, an inflammation of the tendons in the shoulders. After few weeks of exercise and rest, this finally went away. This sounds like something similar, so please do consult an orthopaedic specialist.

Originally Posted by blacksport

Is this a condition that usually has a cure? Or is it better to avoid situations where I would encounter anxiety? Is there a pill that I can pop and get rid of my hypochondria at least?

Not sure about there being a pill, but its basically conditioning the mind that ultimately helps and addresses the issue at its root cause. You might want to consider going to a counsellor who is experienced at dealing with social anxiety issues.

[carboy]

Originally Posted by blacksport

Is there a pill that I can pop and get rid of my hypochondria at least?

I am not a doctor. But Benzos are usually prescribed for anxiety. However, they are not good medicines to take. They are addictive and have withdrawal issues when you try to stop taking them - there are rehab clinics dealing with benzo addiction. Other than that, some Beta Blockers are also used for social anxiety etc.

Increasing your activity will help with anxiety (gym, exercise etc) - keep yourself busy. Counseling with a psychologist may also help - look for good recommendations.

I used to have severe anxiety long back (many of the things you mention). It got cured by circumstances. After working in highly structured jobs for many years, I got into a job which was utterly chaotic - there was way too much stuff to worry about. Somehow this had a reverse effect on me. I totally stopped worrying about anything job related which did not matter for that day. Even if a work related disaster was impending in 3 days, my mind blocked it - I would automatically worry about it only on that morning it was supposed to happen and not earlier. This also spilled over to my personal life automatically. I don't think about problems of tomorrow anymore - problems of today are all I worry about. But I am not sure if this can be developed consciously - for me it happened due to circumstances.

[archat68]

Originally Posted by blacksport

Is this a condition that usually has a cure? Or is it better to avoid situations where I would encounter anxiety? Is there a pill that I can pop and get rid of my hypochondria at least?

Consult a Psychiatrist and a counselor as per his recommendation. These conditions are quite treatable with medications and counseling.

[Aditya_Bhp]

Originally Posted by blacksport

I suffer from a seemingly extreme kind of anxiety, and more importantly, hypochondria. It has been with me for quite a long time, but I have never tried to address it before. And there was a time when I never felt it was abnormal.

Since you are from Bangalore, kindly go to NIMHANS and speak to the doctors there. Psychiatric issue require vocal counselling initially.