Even people without diabetes have changes in their blood sugar levels on a daily basis. But if you do have diabetes and you wake up like that, you definitely shouldn’t leave this concern unattended.
If blood sugar highs happen only once in a while and it is easy for you to control it by exercising or insulin shots, then you have nothing to worry about.
You may have high blood sugar upon waking up because you went to a party last night and indulged with the sweets and pastries. Or the weather wouldn’t permit you to go for your morning run the day before.
If you wake up with increased blood sugar levels all the time and you have no idea what might be causing it, it is a must that you shouldn’t ignore this. Possibilities are very different. Maybe there’s a need to change your medication or your treatment plan.
When your blood sugar is too high, the condition is called hyperglycemia. You won’t feel very good when that happens.
When your situation stays like this for a few days or even weeks, it can cause weight loss, fatigue, nausea, frequent urination, blurry vision and more-than-usual thirst. Long-term blood sugar high can damage the blood vessels supply your eyes, nerve, heart and kidneys. This can lead to serious health problems. Also there is a higher risk of getting different infections.
The Cause of The Blood Sugar Spikes
There are many reasons why you are experiencing increased blood sugar levels.
- For Type 1 diabetes, there might be a lack of insulin before going to sleep. Also check your insulin pump, as you might need to replace it if it doesn’t work correctly.
- For Type 2 diabetes, your insulin might have lost its effectiveness.
- Stress from recent activities might be reason you are not sleeping well. That makes your body release more stress hormones.
As a result your organism don’t have such a high ability to make insulin anymore and that’s why your blood sugar gets so high. - You might have had less exercise than usual. During exercising your muscles “burn” the glucose in your body faster and that is what keeps your blood sugar low.
- You might have more than usual carbs intake lately.
- When you’re having the flu or a cold, your body starts to produce hormones that will help to fight with the germs, causing the flu. There hormones might lower your insulin’s ability and that is why your blood sugar gets high faster.
- If blood sugar spikes happen usually around 3 a.m, you might be experiencing rebound hyperglycemia or The Somogyi Effect.
Have you skipped your bedtime snack, by any chance, or taken the long-acting insulin? These make your blood sugar levels drop after you have already been sleeping for some time.
By then, your liver starts working to get your glucose levels back to normal by releasing stored glucose into your blood stream. Your liver might be doing this too enthusiastically and may result to high blood sugar levels. - Every night around 4 to 8 a.m, your pancreas starts working and releases a mix of hormones into your body. As a response, your liver releases glucose. This is called dawn phenomenon.
Don’t worry, everyone experience it regardless if you have diabetes or not. It’s your body’s natural biological rhythm. But when you have a diabetes, your body doesn’t produce enough insulin to balance all that glucose. That is why you wake up to a blood sugar rush.
Emotions Also Spike
Blood sugar spike can often cause the guilt feeling. In result, people can become depressed.
Don’t let the numbers determine your mood.
You might be thinking you caused the blood sugar spike, but try to understand that it is not your fault! You can’t always control your blood sugar.
It is not an easy job to manage your blood sugar and diabetes overall.
“You have to monitor your food quality and quantity regularly, exercise, test your blood sugar, and take injections or medications”
Psychologically it is not an easy task to deal with.
How Can I Prevent the Blood Sugar Spikes?
We have some tips for you, to better control your blood sugar from going too high:
- Watch your diet. Maybe you just need to eat less. A nutritionist can help you on this matter to determine what is the best nutrition plan for you.
Don’t be afraid to ask help. - Exercise. Your muscles feed on the glucose in your body. That is why exercising is a simple, healthy way to control your blood sugar.
But be aware, not to exercise when you have ketones.
This is a special kind of acid found in your urine. It can be very dangerous because it can infuse your blood sugar level even higher.
How to recognize if you have ketones?
Your mouth feels dry all the time, your breath smells fruity and you’re short of breath. You might also feel nauseous or even throw up.
- Take your medications according to the prescription. You might have to be using a different medication if your blood sugar keeps jumping up and down at night.
Seek your doctor’s help and let him advice you some other medication. After some time, it is only natural that you would have to change your medications. - Track your blood glucose daily. Make it your first priority to monitor your blood sugar level every day. Keep an eye on your results. Talk to your doctor about those results as well. If you’re having unexplained blood sugar rushes, then call your doctor now! Do not wait for the next regular appointment.
- Lower your stress levels. Different activities and relaxation techniques may help you get rid of the stress. Do them before you go to bed in order to sleep better.
Maintaining a consistency in blood sugar will make a big difference in how you feel.
Always keep an eye on your numbers, track your blood glucose levels and make sure you practice good diabetes management every day. If you have trouble managing all the diabetic health indicators above you can try Aronia or Insul-3X which help manage your blood glucose and triblycerides levels. both will help control your diabetes and diabetes-associated complications.
In case you experience many episodes of the unexplained blood sugar spikes, call your doctor immediately. You can avoid a lot of problems if you treat the hyperglycemia right on.
