Why Don’t I Feel Worse?

About 3 hours after eating a rice dish for supper, my blood glucose is over 300. I feel perfectly fine and I am about to hit the gym and run 4 miles in 30 minutes, followed by weights. But, according to AI (below), I’m having a medical emergency. Sorry, but I think it’s way overblown.

“Yes, a blood glucose reading of 300 mg/dL is very high and potentially dangerous, and a result of 300 mg/dL after eating rice is a significant spike. Rice, especially white rice, is a high-glycemic index food that can cause a rapid rise in blood sugar after eating. You should contact a healthcare professional immediately for guidance and monitor for symptoms of diabetic ketoacidosis, as a level over 300 mg/dL can be a medical emergency.”

At 9 pm my glucose was almost 330, according to AI a “medical emergency.” I felt fine and hit the gym. At 250 lbs. and 55 years old, I ran 4 miles and burned almost 800 calories in 30 minutes. Then I lifted weights pretty intensely for about 15 minutes. Never once did I feel tired, sluggish, or at all off. Quite the contrary, I felt great. How can that be a “medical emergency?”

Now my glucose is about 100, as I head to bed, still feeling great, about to sleep like a baby.

@kenag
I am looking for a LADA thread

@pjbcorsi1955
Not sure there's actually a LADA thread in this community. Here's an article to talks about how many people with LADA are initially misdiagnosed as type 2.
https://diatribe.org/understanding-diabetes/lada-debunking-common-type-2-diabetes-misdiagnosis
In my case, I was diagnosed with type 2 even though I was exercising 5-6 times a week, had ~8% body fat, and was eating pretty well (did have a sweet tooth though). So, I was told to exercise more, lose weight, and improve my diet. And I was put on Metformin, Jardiance, and Ozempic. After loosing another 20lbs that I really couldn't afford to lose, a new doctor said "just looking at you, I can tell you're LADA. Here's your reference to an endocrinologist." Now that I'm off the drugs and put on insulin, I feel (and look!) much better.
So, given what the original poster was saying about their activity level and physical state, I felt it might be wise to look into diabetes beyond type 2 (I'm not a doctor, of course)

@kenag Interesting. Curious…did you feel bad before the correct diagnosis?

I’ve just never understood why I don’t feel any different whether my glucose is 350, 250, 150 or 50.

Nope. Like you, I felt fine. It’s the old “I was healthy until I went to the doctor.” My fasting glucose came back as 220 if I remember correctly. I was running and lifting and figured I was in great shape. Thankfully, insulin has largely brought me back to where I was. While assumed a T2, I was trying to bring down the glucose levels by near complete elimination of carbs and an < expletive> amount of cardio. I looked like I was undergoing chemo by end (friends stopped being subtle and said it to my face).
If I can, I’d like to help others avoid what I went through. On the other hand, I wouldn’t have been so grateful to go on insulin without that experience. I am so so much happier now.

Oh, and I should probably mention that I never "felt" any of those highs even after being diagnosed. I was immediately put on a CGM and given an "up to the minute" reading of my glucose. And bringing down that number became my daily task.

@kenag Thank you so much!!

To quote @shmerdloff ”how the human mind/body works is still a mystery and a miracle”. If something is off the mind/body tries to find ways to correct and adapt. This can explain why you don’t “feel worse”. It can also explain why you can feel relatively ok while other bad things are developing without your knowledge such as hypoglycemic unawareness that @celia16 was referring to. High out of range numbers can be leading to things like peripheral &/or autonomic neuropathy, diabetic retinopathy, chronic kidney disease (CKD) …..etc.
Since people come in all shapes and sizes with different activity levels, eating/drinking habits, exercise interests & abilities, various ailments…..etc the best thing to do is to work with a provider you know and trust to establish a target blood sugar range that suits you personally. There is probably no such thing as one size fits all. I like @shmerdloff ’s inclusion of pictures of 2 different vehicles. It remind’s me of what a Dr. once told me about types of Diabetes. “Type 1, Type 2, (LADA, Gestational, juvenile or maturity onset….) no matter. Diabetes is too much blood sugar and needs to be dealt with”. How this is done may be different for different people.

back to the motor vehicles: the front wheel alignment (caster and camber) might be off by only 1° or 2°. you won't know it steering the car. Over time, however, the ball joints, bushings, and tie rods will wear out and fail. Better to find the alignment discrepancy of a degree early, and fix it, before you lose the whole front end.
eg. I can see great for years with high glucose A1c, and then one day I can't. Should have stopped the cookies before the damage was done.👍