Do you always pre bolus?

[mum2westiesGill]

For me I really don't have the time to always be pre bolusing plus a few weeks ago I went longer than 15 minutes and ended up going hypo which has frightened me a bit so to keep it simple for myself I prefer to inject when my food is in front of me - is this ok?

 

[Sally71]

So don’t then, forget about what other people do. My daughter’s blood sugars would be much more stable if we could remember to prebolus for certain foods, but most of the time we either forget or haven’t got time to wait around. You have to fit the diabetes into your life, don’t let it control everything.

 

[Leadinglights]

For me I really don't have the time to always be setting alarms to pre bolus

But if that is what is going to help you get better management of your diabetes then you need to make time. It might mean you are spending less time stressing about it. Surely it would take no more time than putting a post on here.

 

[Kaylz]

Yes if I need to pre-bolus then I always do, I don't want spikes happening when I know I can stop them by taking my insulin 25 minutes before breakfast and 20 minutes before dinner, tea is the only meal I get away with not pre-bolusing

 

[mum2westiesGill]

So don’t then, forget about what other people do. My daughter’s blood sugars would be much more stable if we could remember to prebolus for certain foods, but most of the time we either forget or haven’t got time to wait around. You have to fit the diabetes into your life, don’t let it control everything.

Thank you @Sally71

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Yes it’s perfectly OK Gill.

Though you may have to accept some higher numbers where the food hits before the insulin is up to speed.

I generally find 15-20 minutes prebolus for breakfast and lunch is worth doing (it used to be 45 mins or an hour at one stage!).

Evening meals tend to be max 5 mins, but more often when the plate is in front of me.

This is the balance I’ve developed between results, risk, and ease of use.

 

[mum2westiesGill]

Yes it’s perfectly OK Gill.

Though you may have to accept some higher numbers where the food hits before the insulin is up to speed.

I generally find 15-20 minutes prebolus for breakfast and lunch is worth doing (it used to be 45 mins or an hour at one stage!).

Evening meals tend to be max 5 mins, but more often when the plate is in front of me.

This is the balance I’ve developed between results, risk, and ease of use.

Thank you - so no-one will shout at me then lol

 

[Robin]

Thank you - so no-one will shout at me then lol

Nobody should ever be shouting at you for making a diabetes management choice!
I quite often don’t prebolus before a meal when I know that ten minutes would give the insulin a bit of a head start, because I'm too busy finishing off the cooking and serving up. Sometimes, despite our best intentions, Life gets in the way!
Breakfast is a different matter. If I don’t take my insulin just before I get out of bed, I’m in double figures by the time I want to eat because of the Dawn Phenomenon, so I’ve got into a routine of taking my novorapid pen upstairs with me at night. That’s one case where it makes such a difference to me that it’s worth getting in the habit of doing.

 

[Jenny101]

I pre-bolus for breakfast and lunch - I'm usually setting an alarm on any gadget handy at the time. It's the same for baking anything - if I don't set an alarm I can almost guarantee a burnt result!!!!! 🙂

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Thank you - so no-one will shout at me then lol

Not at all! But you will have to remember that this was the strategy you decided was best for you when you are reviewing your results.

And if you begin to get frustrated by, for example, your mid-morning levels, when you know you are eating a breakfast that suits you, then you might decide to try 5-10 minute prebolus at breakfast. It’s always your choice, your diabetes, your decision.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

I pre-bolus for breakfast and lunch - I'm usually setting an alarm on any gadget handy at the time. It's the same for baking anything - if I don't set an alarm I can almost guarantee a burnt result!!!!! 🙂

Seems there’s a lot of us who are breakfast and lunch prebolusers

 

[Jenny101]

Seems there’s a lot of us who are breakfast and lunch prebolusers

I've just recently changed from pre-bolusing for my evening meal to bolusing after that meal - I was getting hypos only one hour after eating. The menopause with all of the changes in hormones really is changing the way my body works.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

I've just recently changed from pre-bolusing for my evening meal to bolusing after that meal - I was getting hypos only one hour after eating. The menopause with all of the changes in hormones really is changing the way my body works.

It’s a constant round of adjusting, readjusting, adapting and tweaking isn’t it!

 

[Lucyr]

I prebolus as often as I can, as I want the better blood sugars that gives me. There are times I don’t, eg this morning i had breakfast out and didn’t prebolus, but I then have to accept the spike i get after eating when I don’t prebolus. It’s a conscious decision of deciding not to prebolus.

 

[Bruce Stephens]

I prefer to inject when my food is in front of me - is this ok?

Sure. I sometimes end up doing that. I often try and have a quick walk after eating which can help (though that needs preplanning as I need a bit less insulin for the food then).

 

[Ali11782]

This has been an interesting thread to read, thank you @mum2westiesGill .
This was my start. I was a bit higher than I would have liked starting my breakfast because I didn't pre bolus and I haven't for my lunch. Thoughts?

 

[Deleted member 25429]

I always do especially breakfast

 

[Ljc]

I do both. With me it depends on the circumstances.
Ie if I’ve suddenly decided I want some toast and want it There and then, I prefer to eat hot toast, I would bolus afterwards that’s just one example.

Do what you feel happiest doing ok, it’s your diabetes no one else’s.
A Post meal bolus will cause more of a spike though. .

 

[rebrascora]

45 mins prebolus for breakfast. Like @Robin I inject as soon as I wake up and then have a routine which means that I potter about and have my coffee and catch up on the forum and then eat my breakfast. With a 15-20min prebolus period I would spike up to 15 and then come hurtling back down later, which I found unpleasant. Now you can barely see that I ate any breakfast ie a tiny blip on my graph instead of a mountain.... or more often there is a dip which coincides with breakfast as I am usually 7-8 overnight and then slowly drop to 4-5 when I eat breakfast and then climb to about 6. I discovered this timing by doing lots of finger prick checks before I got Libre, but Libre gives me the confidence to make it a daily routine. I don't think it would be sustainable to finger prick sufficiently frequently to prebolus that far in advance everyday, whereas I will scan maybe 5-6 times with Libre each morning between injecting and eating breakfast to keep an eye out for the best time to start eating, That may sound a bit obsessive but the Libre scanning is so easy that it is becoming almost as automatic as blinking
At lunchtime it is not so critical, so 10-15 mins but I don't worry too much about it as I have usually been active in the morning so levels will be dropping anyway..
Evening time, it depends on what my levels are when I go to bolus and what the meal is. I have discovered that Sunday Dinner works best with a split dose with no prebolus but half injected as I am about to eat and the rest about an hour later and I may need to do a correction 2-3 hours after that. If I am eating something pretty low carb then usually just before I eat is fine or if sufficiently low carb then I don't bolus at all and use the protein release from the meal to keep me steady through the night.

 

[pm133]

For me I really don't have the time to always be pre bolusing plus a few weeks ago I went longer than 15 minutes and ended up going hypo which has frightened me a bit so to keep it simple for myself I prefer to inject when my food is in front of me - is this ok?

I usually pre-bolus but I've stopped waiting until my levels drop before eating after waiting 2 and a half hours last week for my breakfast.
It's strictly under 30 minutes now.

Occasionally, I'll be happy to eat first but you have to remember that I'm pretty relaxed about temporary spikes.

My biggest issue is that if I pre-bolus, I can sometimes forget to eat.
If I eat first, I sometimes forget to post-bolus.
What helps me is to stick to a regular routine.
It sounds like you have the same problem so for you, bolussing at the same time you eat might well help.

Don't let anyone shout at you for your diabetes decisions.