This week has (unfortunately) seriously solidified the fact for me that winter is very much here with rain and cold, heaters on and the winter duvet making its debut appearance on the bed. I’m normally a stoic sort of person with a healthy appreciation for winter because it reminds me how much I absolutely love summer with the swimming, biking, tramping and BBQs but this year I would have been quite happy for summer to keep on keeping on!
Part of my aprehension this year, other than the cold weather, is because I normally have to muck around a fair bit going through a total reshuffle of my night time insulin because I suddenly discover myself high or low ALL THE TIME. I would go from taking 16 units of lantus to 14, to 15 and so the roller coaster would continue but this year I’m on a pump so it’s a different kettle of fish entirely. It took me what seemed like an absolute age to get the basal rates correct when I went on the pump in september before I finally settled on the 5 basals that I needed so I have been waiting, interested (and worried to be honest) to see how similar or dissimilar, easy or hard this change over process was going to be compared to last year. So, about 3 weeks ago my levels went from reasonable to bad to atrocious with me having a 2.1 and a 23.4 in the same day among I don’t know how many other highs and lows. It was a little like they just fell off a clilff!
I’ve been a bit crook for the last 3 weeks too though so I’m totally sure of how much of this is all due to the change in season vs. being sick but either way it’s doing my nut! You know how it is when you do everything you can and it just doesn’t work so I’ve resolved this week to try to be nicer to myself and go back to stratch with my basals. I’m figuring at this point that the easiest thing to do rather than get more and more frustrated with myself is (to quote many a sports coach) to go back to basics.
Not having looked into it too much on the net, I would be interested to know whether anyone else has hit this issue cos I’ve heard of it before and could perhaps someone out there could offer some advise cos I’m feeling like I’m sinking a little bit.
- Aaron
Posted in Hypos & Hypers, Slice of Life
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4 comments have been made on this post
Nic wrote
Hey Aaron, I can honestly say I’ve never been tuned in to my blood sugars long enough to compare year to year – obviously this year I have actually been a good diabetic for roughly a whole year but with the pregnancy thing happening now it’s game on for exactly the sort of BGs you’ve described…. the other night I tested my sugar before dinner, with no insulin on board – it was 6.4. Took my insulin and started eating my pasta meal… no more than 20 mins later I felt low and tested – 1.9. So strange – but that’s pregnancy for you I guess!
I hope it settles down soon.
Nic
Chris wrote
Hi Aaron, guess I would be doing basal rate tests again. That, I think, is the best way of getting back to reasonable stability.
Aaron wrote
Thanks guys
I know what you mean Nic, sometimes there just isn’t any logic eh and great minds must think alike Chris cos that is my plan. I’m starting today to retest the whole lot and so far so good. I went to bed a 7.2 and woke at 7.3 didn’t eat breakfast and went down to 3.0 so I need to change em obviously.
A
Simon wrote
I’m fairly new on the pump and have already found that establishing correct basals is all very well until they do their usual fluctuations due to illness, stress, change in workload, etc., etc. I think you are right, the only way to cope with this is go back to the start, but perhaps with constant record keeping it might be easier to react next time it happens?? (Here’s hoping).
Incidentally, Nic, your comment about the low of1.9. Was the pasta durum wheat by any chance? This is something I encounter a lot. Slow release carbs (like durum wheat) mean you are at risk of going low when the insulin starts working. Spreading the bolus out over as much as 8 hours can help but I think trial and error is the only way here. Basically you want to avoid your insulin working before the carbs have hit your bloodstream…
Hope that helps!