Based on his recommendation of early use of insulin and being in a email group of early adopters of insulin, after being diagnosed as diabetic in 1997 and quickly adding 3 other oral meds to the original metformin to try and control my a1c back in 2001 even on a strict low carb diet, I asked my PCP to put me on insulin. His response is once on insulin, you never come off…which is true in most cases. But I persisted. He sent me to an endocrinologis. At the time, my A1c, on 4 oral meds, was 7. He walks in the room and at the same time, I said, I want on insulin and he said, you need to be on insulin. We were of like minds. In other words, he was not of the opinion it needs to be the last resort. Neither does Dr. Arturo Rolla, an endocrinologist in Boston. Insulin is a valuable tool in the toolbox, just as WLS is. Do we save it as the last resort? No, we try not to knowing it’s often best used before the patient gets so bad off nothing helps.
But thanks to the DS, I didn’t stay on insulin, I’ve been off it for almost 11 years. But if my metformin in no longer able to control my diabetes, I will not hesitate to go back on insulin as I know it’s side effects are easier on me than throwing all the other oral meds into my system.
