I have recently been officially diagnosed as insulin resistant, have suspected for a long time and have been PCOS diagnosed for years. My fasting insulin was 28 and was told is should be 10. SO yes i got put on metformin again. actually gained weight on it last time and had a few of the side effects but am willing to give it another try since i am now about 40 pounds heavier. oh yeah i said i had a question, didn't i! has anyone been told about when to take it? Does it make a difference if you take it at night or in the morning? I know to take with food, but they never said anything else. I am especially wondering about as we increase dosages (he wants to get up to 1500-2000) do you take them all at the same time or break them up through the day and then again better at night or morning? just wondered if anyone had any thoughts!! Thanks in advance for any input!

My doc had me starting on a 1k dose for 2 weeks (500mg in the AM and 500mg in the PM- one with breakfast, one with dinner). After two weeks I was to double the dosage. So now I take 1k with breakfast and 1K with dinner. I really wouldn't take the metformin on an empty tummy. Also during the first 3 weeks I had some side effects, but it went away by the 4th week.

thanks for the info! I will probably split it up like you are once i get above the 5oomg dosage, which i start tomorrow. So far side effects have been minimal but embarrassing (lots of gas) Not a good thing when you have to squat a lot! OKAY TMI I'm sure, sorry! Do you feel like the drug helped you loose once you got up to full dosage?

I take 1000mg am and pm too - always with meals.

I take one pill in the a.m. and one in the p.m... I haven't had any problems with the intestinal stuff since I switched from the regular to extended release. My mom takes 5 pills a day, 3 in the morning, 2 in the evening, and she tolerates it. I would guess if you're on a higher dose you would want to split it up, but go with what your dr says..

I have been on it for 3 months. I take 500mg. in Am and 500mg. in Pm. My insulin level was 40, which dr. said was at least 4 x too high. I had already lost 60 lbs. when he put me on it. I have not noticed any faster weight loss with it. In fact, I am losing slower now, but just may be because I am very close to goal weight now.

What the met does varies from person to person. I know there are some who don't react well to it and they had to switch meds. In my case it helps take the edge off my weight loss plateus, but it makes my thumb joints very sore and I've lost 50% of the strength in my hands as a result (rare side effect! no worries!). This isn't really a problem because I have a very strapping finace to open jar lids for me. My acanthosis nigricans has also started to fade slightly over time since I started taking it, also some of the hirsutism is starting to receed but I'm also on spironolactone (so less fuzziness could be from either meds or the combination of them- I have no idea which but I won't complain because its working!)

Sounds like there is no clear cut answer on this one, once again everyone is different!

Lillybelle you got me on the insulin level - 40 and you still managed to lose 60 lbs - fantastic!!! How did you do it? Low Carb?

I tried taking 1000 at one time over the weekend and got pretty nauseated so am splitting morning and evening now. Does anyone notice changes in mood with metformin? Since my kids i have been having depression issues and at times severe mood swings. i am currently off all "mood altering" drugs and want to keep it that way, but i was borderline posessed yesterday and woke up today feeling all is right with the world again. Weird!

Finally heard back from the doc and they said split and try to keep dosing 10-14 hours apart and always take with food. they were not too hip on b12 supplements for mood swings but i am taking some anyway. don't seem to be as wrung out with taking it so that helps. thanks for all the info!

I found out Monday (04/17) that I had PCOS. (I had never heard of it before.) So you can imagine my surprise & ~EXCITEMENT~ when I heard that this syndrome can cause all of the things I had! Fat around the middle, mood swings, skin tags, hairy toes (EWW!!) I thought I was just icky. My husband and I have been together for 7 years and NO munchkins yet. (We don't try NOT to have babies... I was wondering why it was so hard.)

So... I have been instructed to start Metformin this weekend. 500mg (once daily for 7 days) then 500mg (twice daily for 21 days) then 850mg (twice daily for ???) Any tips or tricks? I know I have to eat before. Anything else?

I take 1500mg. My doc wants me to take 500mg 3x a day, one after bnrekky ,lunch and dinner. The timing I find difficult its just so hard getting all thse tabs in on time. I also take spiro and vitamins so Im always swallowing something.

Rach3kids, i know what you mean about always swallowing something, At one point in my life i had gotten up to twelve prescription medications and swore i rattled when i walked!! What makes it hard is the taking something in the middle of the day, especially when you have to take it with food. I am on much less meds now but still have two i am supposed to take throughout the day and found a timer watch helps me. now if i could just find one that will hold the pills too i'd be in great shape!!

Morningstarlet - kind of seems wrong to say welcome to the gang when you are dealing with such frustrating stuff but it is good to know you are not alone!!! One suggestion i would make not really about the meds but to see how you are dealing with them is to do some journaling about what you are experiencing. I have such a hard time with timelines when doctors start asking me about how long has this or that been going on and end up sounding like and idiot! So i have started keeping a chart where i can quickly list what i took and a little about how i am feeling and some of the little stuff that goes on. I am also tracking my blood sugar and weight on the same chart. As for the med itself I am feeling like I am adjusting to it fairly quickly and i hope you will do well as well!