Reactive Hypoglycaemia & ME

[Guest guest]

Hi everyone,

I am posting here after being surprise at the lack of interest in

what I had to say from both MEactionUK and MEsseage-UK. The

information below is posted from actual experience and is not posted

to sell anything or promote anything – it is purely from my

conscience. I would hate to see people unnecessarily going through

the same experience as my wife and I endured for 7 years. Please read

the following it may be helpful to at least a couple of you.

I was a carer of a ME sufferer for 7 years and went through what most

of you went through. During the time we even managed to be looked

after by Professor Pinching at St Barts in London (He was convinced

my wife had ME). It cost my wife her job and 7 of the best years of

her life (23-30). All the symptoms led to the diagnosis of ME.

Luckily for us I have a job that has taken us to many different

countries, so we have seen many different doctors - in 1999 we ended

up living in Turkey. The advantage of this is that you don't get

the 'blinkered' medical view that comes in any one country. The

doctors in Turkey did not take Sophie's (my wife) illness as being ME

and spent 2 months carrying out a series of tests that eventually led

to the diagnosis of Reactive Hypoglycaemia (RH).

The important thing to realize is that RH can be proved beyond

reproach by drinking a glucose solution after 12 hours of fasting and

then monitoring the blood sugar level over the next 4 hours (although

some UK doctors do not believe it exists). This is a simple test

(although it will make a sufferer very ill) that all ME patients

should go through when first ill (in my humble opinion).

As a result 7 years after being first diagnosed with ME my wife was

able to start to treat herself through a very strict diet. After 6-12

months she was able to say she had a normal life and 2 years later we

had our first child.

Has anyone else with ME had the 'glucose tolerance test' for reactive

hypoglycaemia?

The symptoms for RH are the same as ME but there is a real test for

it. Please read through the attached web-page to do a self assessment

on your symptoms.

http://www.webplace.ca/hg/quest.html (please note that my wife did

not have all the symptoms mentioned in the questionnaire and also had

many other symptoms that are not associated with RH but more usually

associated with ME – sore throat, swollen glands, etc…)

If only 1 of you are diagnosed incorrectly with ME when you have RH

then I would be happy in the knowledge of that person facing the

possibility of feeling well for Christmas 2003. Remember that I am an

ex-carer and if you have RH then the treatment will be only a severe

change in diet - i.e. it cannot be solved with drugs (I'm not selling

anything but giving away my experience).

Please have a look at the self evaluation questionnaire.

THE SYMPTOMS OF ME AND RH ARE SIMILAR – THIS COMBINED WITH THE UK

MEDICAL PROFESSION QUESTIONING THE EXISTENCE OF RH LEADS ME TO

BELIEVE THAT SOME OF THE SUFFERERS OUT THERE ARE SUFFERING FROM RH

NOT ME – even a respected expert can get it wrong (and don't get me

wrong I do respect Professor Pinching at St Barts. for his acceptance

and willingness to treat sufferers of ME).

If anybody wants to discuss this further please send me an email - I

would be more than happy to help.

Best regards,

Andy Malcolm