Day 1 proper carb counting :D

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SilentAssassin1642

SilentAssassin1642

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 1
Today's first proper attempt at carb counting:

breakfast waking bg 10.9 Had 30g porridge which worked out as 42.8g carbs. 2u correction and 7u novorapid (1:6 ratio). 2 hours later 13.0 :(

4u correction took me to 5.4 before lunch

Thats where I mucked up. I didn't have my little book to hand and completely overcompensated for everything bar my crisps :( overguessed on the toast and ended up having 9u for lunch instead of the 6 it should have been 😱 (trying out the 1:10 ratio which is what I worked out last night)

Later on...3.0!!!! Had some oj and a couple of biscuits before dinner.

Pre dinner 3.2 - had fajitas (or our version of them with mince and tomato sauce). Worked out as 65g carbs - as I don't have a demipen I rounded it up to a round 7u.

2 hours later 6.5 :D

Thank you so much for the help Adrienne! Here's hoping I don't muck up lunch tomorrow eh?

Next thing to buy is a pair of those snazzy digital scales!
 
Well done Sam! It's always tricky to start with, but you will become instinctively better the more you do it. Sounds like you've already learned a lot from your first day!🙂
 
Good luck with it.

As soon as you get the hang of it, you will notice so much improvement in your control and levels, and you'll feel so much more like YOU are in control, not the otehr way round!!
I dont understand why everyone doesn't follow this way of handling their diabetes. It makes perfect sense when you think about it!! 🙂
 
Zo Zo i think the prob is that they don't get told about it !! or is so daunting it becomes impossible...well done to all you carb counter xxx🙂
 
Brilliant Sam! The best thing that has happened here ( and i am sure you dont realise this) is that you managed to eat porridge and only get a 3mmols rise! Most people steer clear of porridge as its so hard to get right - so well done - your doing great and I am so happy that Adrienne is helping - she really is an expert on food and carbs.🙂Bev x🙂
 
am64 said:
Zo Zo i think the prob is that they don't get told about it !! or is so daunting it becomes impossible...well done to all you carb counter xxx🙂
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I know there are still many diabetes teams that dont tell their patients about it, and I cant understand that? It sems a really progressive way of dealing with diabetes as you are basically (as near as possible) replicating what a non-diabetic body does.
I am huge advocate of carb counting, and thats why its so good there are places like this where people can share their thoughts. That we can all go back to our diabetes teams and discuss things. :D
 
and this forum is making a difference and supporting its members in doing so
zozo i think your experience will be invaluable here xxx
 
ZoZo said:
I know there are still many diabetes teams that dont tell their patients about it, and I cant understand that? It sems a really progressive way of dealing with diabetes as you are basically (as near as possible) replicating what a non-diabetic body does.
I am huge advocate of carb counting, and thats why its so good there are places like this where people can share their thoughts. That we can all go back to our diabetes teams and discuss things. :D
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Hello. In 14 years of diabetes, I was never ever offered a carbohydrate counting course. This may well be because my original team was stuck in the dark ages. All other teams just didn't seem to want to help me or care enough to help me out of the huge rut I found myself in.

Unfortunately a lot of clinics and teams really don't care about it, or don't believe in it or whatever. And I can tell you that from first hand experience!

You know, the first time I really heard about carb counting was coming here on this forum! I mentioned it to my team at the time, and they didn't give me the time of day. I am hugely grateful to Adrienne for helping me get started, and also that I have a brilliant nursing team behind me at the moment who want to get me on their own version of DAFNE.
 
lovely too hear such positive news sam ...🙂
 
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ZoZo said:
I know there are still many diabetes teams that dont tell their patients about it, and I cant understand that? It sems a really progressive way of dealing with diabetes as you are basically (as near as possible) replicating what a non-diabetic body does.
I am huge advocate of carb counting, and thats why its so good there are places like this where people can share their thoughts. That we can all go back to our diabetes teams and discuss things. :D
Click to expand...

I think the problem seems particularly bad for those young adults who were diagnosed in childhood. Because their parents may have had to take control back in the days before carb counting was recommended, they continued with those methods, and it is only now that many of these young people (I can think of at least half a dozen members here) are learning about it.
 
Looking good there sam well done

I did try carb counting and it was not for me , thats not to say i cant control my diabetes without it,
 
Northerner said:
I think the problem seems particularly bad for those young adults who were diagnosed in childhood. Because their parents may have had to take control back in the days before carb counting was recommended, they continued with those methods, and it is only now that many of these young people (I can think of at least half a dozen members here) are learning about it.
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what this man said :D It definitely wasn't a big thing when I was first diagnosed...it seems that only recently its become the thing to do?
 
salmonpuff said:
Hello. In 14 years of diabetes, I was never ever offered a carbohydrate counting course. This may well be because my original team was stuck in the dark ages. All other teams just didn't seem to want to help me or care enough to help me out of the huge rut I found myself in.

Unfortunately a lot of clinics and teams really don't care about it, or don't believe in it or whatever. And I can tell you that from first hand experience!

You know, the first time I really heard about carb counting was coming here on this forum! I mentioned it to my team at the time, and they didn't give me the time of day. I am hugely grateful to Adrienne for helping me get started, and also that I have a brilliant nursing team behind me at the moment who want to get me on their own version of DAFNE.
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dont worry even here in the bexhill hastings area thereisnt any course the only one recently was done on the EDDY support group with Adrienne:(
 
I live in harrow and after reading this realised how lucky i have been. My healthcare team sent me on a special local course on carbohydrate counting when i was 14 (about 3 years ago), which was basically a simplified version of DAFNE
🙂
 
mattie said:
I live in harrow and after reading this realised how lucky i have been. My healthcare team sent me on a special local course on carbohydrate counting when i was 14 (about 3 years ago), which was basically a simplified version of DAFNE
🙂
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Yeah, I guess I just took for granted its what everyone did. We were also really lucky as it was taken as read when O was diagnosed that thats what we would be doing, and we have continued support from the dietician and the DSN.

I realise from reading forums as these that we are very lucky to have that. 🙂
 
there is one thing about being on this forum...you quickly learn that the differnce in standard in care is outragous!
 
i was quite lucky a couple of years ago - i found out about DAFNE, asked my team then got put on a year long waiting list. i kept badgering them about it, and about 3 months into my year long wait i got a call on a friday asking me if i could start on the monday as someone had dropped out of the course. i took it up straight away and am so grateful for it! DAFNE is amazing, it's not just about carb counting - i learnt more in that one week than i had learnt in my previous 17 years of being diabetic.

sam, so glad you're getting the hang of it!! xx
 
Great first day Sam. I'm still getting it wrong and I've been at it two weeks lol xxx
 
salmonpuff said:
Today's first proper attempt at carb counting:

breakfast waking bg 10.9 Had 30g porridge which worked out as 42.8g carbs. 2u correction and 7u novorapid (1:6 ratio). 2 hours later 13.0 :(

4u correction took me to 5.4 before lunch

Thats where I mucked up. I didn't have my little book to hand and completely overcompensated for everything bar my crisps :( overguessed on the toast and ended up having 9u for lunch instead of the 6 it should have been 😱 (trying out the 1:10 ratio which is what I worked out last night)

Later on...3.0!!!! Had some oj and a couple of biscuits before dinner.

Pre dinner 3.2 - had fajitas (or our version of them with mince and tomato sauce). Worked out as 65g carbs - as I don't have a demipen I rounded it up to a round 7u.

2 hours later 6.5 :D

Thank you so much for the help Adrienne! Here's hoping I don't muck up lunch tomorrow eh?

Next thing to buy is a pair of those snazzy digital scales!
Click to expand...

Hiya

Only just able to log on. This is a fantastic start. The way you have worded your message with the comments shows you are beginning to understand where you went wrong and how to correct it.

The 1 : 6 for breakfast may well be right. You started high so you were always going to be high, most people are insulin resistant in the morning anyway which is why you need more insulin ie the ratio is lower than during the rest of the day plus if you are high then you are even more resistent and your correction factor will be different than later on in the day, so taking all that into consideration you got it spot on.

You should aim to be within 2 mmol either way two hours later and you were. Ok this included a 2 unit correction so in theory that should have brought you down to say 7 mmol and if this was later in the day that may well have been the case.

You can only test the 1 : 6 properly when you start at a good number on waking.

Hope that helps.
 
smile4loubie said:
Great first day Sam. I'm still getting it wrong and I've been at it two weeks lol xxx
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Louise, if it makes you feel any better I am still getting it wrong some days and I've been doing it for 10 years !!!!! Unless you are a very lucky diabetic (if those two words can go in the same sentence 🙂) you will have off days.

You are doing really well as well. When you post your numbers they are good, much better than before. You just need to tweak a bit maybe and play with the ratios a bit. 🙂
 
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