The short explanation
Please take her to an emergency department now or call 112. A meter reading of HI usually means her sugar is above what the meter can measure. Together with vomiting and drowsiness, this can be a sign of a dangerous diabetes emergency, such as diabetic ketoacidosis or a hyperosmolar state. These cause severe dehydration and chemical imbalances in the blood and need hospital treatment urgently. Do not try to manage this at home by giving extra medicine or waiting to see if she improves. Hospital teams can give fluids, insulin and other treatment safely while closely monitoring her.
What depends on your situation
The parts of this that change from woman to woman. Uncertainty is stated, not hidden.
- Infections, such as a urine infection or pneumonia, missed diabetes medicine, or other illness often trigger these emergencies.
- Take her medicine list, glucose meter and any recent reports with you.
- If she is conscious and able to swallow, small sips of water are reasonable on the way, but do not delay going to hospital.
What this answer cannot determine
The boundary of online education. These need a clinician who can see you.
- This cannot tell you exactly what is happening or how severe it is. She needs urgent tests and treatment in hospital.
Questions for your clinician
Take these with you. You can add any of them to an appointment card.
- What caused her sugar to go so high?
- Is there an infection that needs treatment?
- Does her diabetes treatment need to change?
- How can we prevent this in future and what are the warning signs?
When to seek help
Clinician-approved guidance for this topic. When in doubt, being seen is never the wrong choice.
Emergency — call 112 now
- Call 112 or go to the nearest emergency department now if her meter shows HI or very high readings with vomiting, drowsiness, confusion or deep breathing.
Get help the same day
- Even if she seems to improve, she must still be seen by a doctor today.
Raise it at a routine appointment
- After she recovers, book follow-up with her diabetes doctor to review her treatment and sick-day plan.
Sources
The evidence this explanation is built on.
- Diabetes MedlinePlus (US National Library of Medicine)
- Type 2 diabetes NHS
- Preventing diabetes problems National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIH)
Who wrote and reviewed this
Every AskHer answer names its author. A clinically reviewed answer also names the clinician who signed it off — if no clinician is named below, it has not been clinically reviewed.
- Author
- AskHer Editorial (AI-assisted draft) AskHer's editorial team — not an individual clinician Works in English, தமிழ், हिन्दी
- Clinical reviewer
- Nobody yet No clinician has signed this answer off, and no person on the editorial team has read it yet. That is what the “Written with AI assistance” label means. It is queued for an editor to read, and then for a clinician who works in this area. The sources it was drafted against are listed above.
- Review status
- Written with AI assistance — not yet reviewed by a person
- Last reviewed
- Not yet reviewed by a person
- Version
- 1
Correction history
Substantive changes are listed, not quietly edited away.
No corrections have been made since this answer was first published.
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