I'd start feeling irritable, shaky, and weak like I was about to die if I didn't relieve it by eating and that made me horribly anxious because some times it took hours and even days to come out of that feeling, even after eating high protein/fat meal every 2-3 hours. But that's why it would always come back because what I was eating was its actual cause, just like a coffee addict needs their coffee or they start feeling horrible.
Yes, the test strips of the name-brands are ridiculously overpriced. The target brands is the cheapest and seems to work just as good. You don't even have to draw that much blood. Only the size of a pinhead is all you need.