I know there's several people here who take metformin (for different reasons)

My question is, how exactly does the doctor know what dosage of metformin to prescribe, when to increase it, or decrease it?

Is the doc's change due to blood/lab work, or due to you stating your benefits or side effects?

I originally was on 500mg 1x day, but it was hard on my stomach. Eventually the doc tried me on Glumetza which I thought was great, but it was teir III on my health ins and too much $$, so doc put me on Metformin XR 500 (time release).

How would I or the doc determine if this should be increased to say... 850?

experiences anyone? thanks

They change the dosage when your Blood Sugars go up and stay high, or lower it when they go down. Also they change people too the XR, because of the side affects, there is less with the XL, and also when taken it is extended release, so you get coverage for a longer period of time, 12 hrs.

Oh one more thing don't ever cut a XR pill in half........

never have but have thought of it - thanks for telling me. Not that I plan to, but why is that?

I have been taking met since may of this year. My doc started me out at 500/day and worked up to 1000. i think they start at low doses bc of the ridiculous side effects that come with it. In my case, the doc does blood work each month and looks at some levels and increases it depending on that. i think it may vary depending on why exactly you are taking it.

What side effects though? Are you experiencing certain ones?
The ONLY side effect I ever had was the upset stomach, thus why I switched to time release and now I dont get the upset stomach. Otherwise, its like taking a 'tic tac' to me.

becca, I had a lot of GI side effects from the met when I first started it. I could only eat jello for about two months and it sucked. But i think everyone reacts differently to it, so maybe you are a lucky girl. I also take some other meds with the met, so they might have contributed to me feeling sicker than normal.