Theophylline

[Guest guest]

Reading the posts from so many of you brought back another " remember when "

for me, and of course, it was another scary time.

I was seeing a different allergist back then, and this incident was actually

the reason I stopped seeing him. He had me on huge doses of Theophylline,

and I can't remember which one... I think it was Theo-Dur. I remember

taking a couple of horse pills three times a day. Back then I was SO ill

educated about asthma and the meds used to treat it that I had NO idea he

should have been doing bloodwork to check my levels.

I was going through a he**ish spell where I had horrid insomnia, unable to

sleep, and when I did sleep, waking up several times during the night

needing to go to the bathroom, and for the strangest reason, craving bread.

I would grab a couple of slices out of the breadbox on my way back to bed

and eat them as if I hadn't eaten in days. This was happening a minimum of

4 times per night. I was also on my " maintenance " dose of 60mg/day of evil

candy. I was also CONSTANTLY thirsty.

I remember speaking to my grandmother about the trouble and she was

absolutely shocked that I hadn't had a theophylline level check. (She'd

been an RN for over 35 years) She also voiced a huge concern about the

thirst and constant need to go to the bathroom. She told me at my next

appointment to tell the doctor that I needed bloodwork done. My Uncle was a

diabetic, so she checked my blood sugar for me and it was over 350!

I went home that night and suddenly felt horribly ill. I tried to call my

PC doctor because I couldn't stop vomiting. I actually had to hand my (now

ex) husband the phone and let him do the talking. The doctor figured out by

my dose of Theo that I probably wasn't metabolizing it properly and he told

me to stop taking it. Well, turns out it was too late. I was finally able

to stop getting sick, but later that night I had a seizure. Went to the

hospital and sure enough, my blood sugar was all out of whack from the combo

of evil candy and theo, and my theo level was at a critical high. If I'd

taken another dose, I might not have made it.

So, needless to say, I got a new doctor after that. I live about an hour

from Boston so I went to see one of the top specialists. I had to watch my

diet and blood sugars for a really long time and even needed to take Amaryl

a pill that some diabetics take to help drop their high blood sugars for a

few months. Eventually I worked out my diet well enough to stop needing the

pills, and now that I'm off of the evil candy I don't have to watch my carbs

as closely. I do still check my blood sugar once or twice a week to be on

the safe side, because the doctor said that eventually I will probably start

having diabetic trouble again thanks to all that evil candy over the years.

I have a new allergist locally that works with the pulmo doctor in Boston.

I see the pulmo in a supervisory capacity maybe twice a year and the local

allergist (a true Godsend) for my Xolair and flare ups. Both of them have

educated me SO MUCH about my asthma, the meds I've taken and take now, and

boy was I ignorant back then. I now have to list Theophylline as a

medication allergy in case I'm ever hospitalized under the care of a doctor

that doesn't know my history.

This new strand of " I remember when " has brought back so many memories for

me, made me recall of of the tried and failed meds, and has even shown my

fiancee (who I've shared many of the posts with) just how UNIQUE each person

is and how different treatments work for one person, but do absolutely

NOTHING for someone else.

Thank you to EVERYONE that has posted their memories, your experiences have

given me even more information. I hope this story might help someone. Please,

if you take theophylline, make sure your doctor does periodic bloodwork to check

your level.