Blackcat76
Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1.5 LADA
Hi there ! I'm a type 1.5 lada lass who's a newbie at forums
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Hello
- Thread starter Blackcat76
- Start date
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Tdm
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Hello!
Are you new to diabetes or just posting? Either way this is a great source of info and, perhaps more important, fellowship.
How are you doing? Anything the could be better that the combined minds of this forum can help with?
Are you new to diabetes or just posting? Either way this is a great source of info and, perhaps more important, fellowship.
How are you doing? Anything the could be better that the combined minds of this forum can help with?
rebrascora
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Hi and welcome from me too.
Would you like to tell us a bit about your diabetes. Things like:-
When you were diagnosed?
What insulin(s) or other medication you take for it?
How you are managing? We all know it can be overwhelming at times, particularly when newly diagnosed, so don't be frightened to say if you are finding it tough. Hopefully we can reassure you that it gets easier, but even then we all experience spells when it is a struggle, particularly if other things in life add extra pressures.
The forum is a goldmine of knowledge, practical experience and empathy, so I am really pleased you have joined us and I hope you will feel the benefit of being here as much as I have.
Would you like to tell us a bit about your diabetes. Things like:-
When you were diagnosed?
What insulin(s) or other medication you take for it?
How you are managing? We all know it can be overwhelming at times, particularly when newly diagnosed, so don't be frightened to say if you are finding it tough. Hopefully we can reassure you that it gets easier, but even then we all experience spells when it is a struggle, particularly if other things in life add extra pressures.
The forum is a goldmine of knowledge, practical experience and empathy, so I am really pleased you have joined us and I hope you will feel the benefit of being here as much as I have.
SB2015
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Welcome to the forum @Blackcat76
Glad to have you here on the forum. If you are happy to do so it can help us when answering your questions, if we know an bit about how you manage your diabetes.
There is a wealth of experience to tap into on here, so fire away with any questions that arise, and know that no question is considered silly on here.
Glad to have you here on the forum. If you are happy to do so it can help us when answering your questions, if we know an bit about how you manage your diabetes.
There is a wealth of experience to tap into on here, so fire away with any questions that arise, and know that no question is considered silly on here.
Blackcat76
Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1.5 LADA
Hi and thank you for a warm welcome I'm 46 and
I was told in 2015 I was a type 1 lada and began insulin immediately. I'm also on 2g of Metformin a day. Ive got endometriosis, high BP and elevated sugar readings . I was told I was insulin resistant when I did DAFNE in 2017. I don't find my consultant helpful or supportive and I'm too scared to ring the diabetic team as I dont get on well talking over the phone. I've got a libre 2 which is good but I'm just not sure and think I've got diabetes burnout any ideas and help are most welcome.
I'm self employed also as a jewellery designer .
I was told in 2015 I was a type 1 lada and began insulin immediately. I'm also on 2g of Metformin a day. Ive got endometriosis, high BP and elevated sugar readings . I was told I was insulin resistant when I did DAFNE in 2017. I don't find my consultant helpful or supportive and I'm too scared to ring the diabetic team as I dont get on well talking over the phone. I've got a libre 2 which is good but I'm just not sure and think I've got diabetes burnout any ideas and help are most welcome.
I'm self employed also as a jewellery designer .
rebrascora
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Sorry to hear you are struggling and not getting much support. Good to hear you have had a DAFNE course, but better still that you have found the forum because there is so much more practical knowledge here.
Which insulins are you using?
Have you checked that your basal insulin dose(s) are as close to right as you can get them? Diabetes management can be very frustrating if your basal isn't correct because nothing makes much sense or has consistency if basal isn't holding you steady in the absence of food.
So pleased you have Libre. Would you like to post a screen shot of a typical day's Libre graph so that we can see if there are any obvious issues that we could help you with. Having more stable BG levels makes everything in life easier, not just your diabetes.
I have learned a huge amount from the experience of others here on the forum, which has given me the confidence to experiment on myself and find what works for me as an individual (most of the time anyway 🙄) and some of it has been quite contrary to what I have been told by my health care professionals, but they can't criticize me because it works for me. Gaining knowledge and feeling confident in my ability to manage my diabetes (even when I make mistakes... and we all do) has made my diabetes much less of a burden and to be honest I treat it more like a game with my Libre now.
Which insulins are you using?
Have you checked that your basal insulin dose(s) are as close to right as you can get them? Diabetes management can be very frustrating if your basal isn't correct because nothing makes much sense or has consistency if basal isn't holding you steady in the absence of food.
So pleased you have Libre. Would you like to post a screen shot of a typical day's Libre graph so that we can see if there are any obvious issues that we could help you with. Having more stable BG levels makes everything in life easier, not just your diabetes.
I have learned a huge amount from the experience of others here on the forum, which has given me the confidence to experiment on myself and find what works for me as an individual (most of the time anyway 🙄) and some of it has been quite contrary to what I have been told by my health care professionals, but they can't criticize me because it works for me. Gaining knowledge and feeling confident in my ability to manage my diabetes (even when I make mistakes... and we all do) has made my diabetes much less of a burden and to be honest I treat it more like a game with my Libre now.
Blackcat76
Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1.5 LADA
rebrascora
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- She/Her
That graph suggests that your evening Lantus is doing OK as you are in range through the night but the morning Lantus dose may not be holding you steady.... or your mealtime ratios need increasing. It is important to get the Lantus dose right before you mess with meal time ratios so it would be worth doing some basal testing through the day, by skipping a meal each day in rotation.... so skip breakfast one day and lunch the next and evening meal the next day and see what happens with your levels in the absence of food (and Fiasp of course) during those skipped meal periods. Your basal insulin should be holding you reasonably steady in the absence of food and meal time insulin. If levels appear to be rising when you skip a meal it suggests you may need more basal and if they are falling, you probably need less basal insulin (Lantus). It is important not to change anything until you have checked all 3 meal periods and then look at the overall trend over each meal period. If it is consistently rising, then a basal increase would be the way to tackle it. If it rises over part of the day and then falls the rest, then you might be best tackling it with a meal ratio change.
I will link more information re basal testing for you to read before starting it as my description above is just a very rough outline of the procedure. Obviously there is no need to finger prick when you have Libre to show you what is happening.
forum.diabetes.org.uk
Our bodies are not as uniform in their needs as you might expect, so it may be that you need more Lantus in the morning and less at night. As an example, I need 22 units in the morning (as soon as I wake up) to keep my levels steady through the day, but only 2 units at night and sometimes none at night if I have done plenty of exercise like today. Obviously that is a big difference between daytime and nighttime needs. Yours may be much more similar, but with that graph steadily rising during the day, it suggests you may need more during the day and that increase may mean you need slightly less at night as there will be some overlap.
If you are not confident in adjusting your basal doses then do discuss it with your nurse although personally I am a firm believer in experimenting to see what works for yourself, but it should always be done with one eye very carefully on keeping yourself safe, so any adjustments should be small and give it a few days to see how things settle and then if you need to, make another small adjustment, until you start to see better results.
Out of curiosity, do you take Metformin or has it been suggested as an option because those basal doses suggest that you may be suffering from some insulin resistance and Metformin can help with that. Exercise can also help to reduce basal needs along with weight loss..... both of which I am currently tackling because my weight has been increasing a bit just recently. I don't know if any of those things are applicable to you, but just something to consider. It can be hard to lose weight when you are using insulin and you need to understand how to reduce your doses as you lose weight or increase exercise, but Metformin might help.
Another thought.... do you inject all 71 units in one go into one site? I find splitting my 22 units of basal insulin into 2 injections of 11 units (one into each buttock... same needle) gives me better and more even absorption, so trying that for your daytime dose might be worthwhile to see if that change alone helps with your daytime levels, but perhaps leave your nighttime dose as a single injection and just see if you notice any difference to your daytime levels.
By the way, you don't have to inject into your buttocks, your thighs or stomach or wherever you currently inject is fine as I appreciate that reaching to jab your bum can be challenging and you need a bit more flexibility and dexterity than other sites. It is just my preference for my basal insulin. I do it whilst lying in bed which makes it easier. 🙄
Anyway, those are just some things that occur to me and might be worth experimenting with to see if you can improve things a bit. Only change one thing at once and give it a few days before you change it again or change something else, otherwise it can all get very confusing.... and always keep hypo treatments close to hand wherever you are when you are particularly when adjusting insulin doses and especially by the bed.
I will link more information re basal testing for you to read before starting it as my description above is just a very rough outline of the procedure. Obviously there is no need to finger prick when you have Libre to show you what is happening.
Basal Testing Made Easy
Here's a link for basal testing, which will hopefully clear up the myths for anyone starting on their pump journey http://diatribe.org/issues/13/learning-curve Plus this might help as well. http://diatribe.org/issues/26/thinking-like-a-pancreas
forum.diabetes.org.uk
Our bodies are not as uniform in their needs as you might expect, so it may be that you need more Lantus in the morning and less at night. As an example, I need 22 units in the morning (as soon as I wake up) to keep my levels steady through the day, but only 2 units at night and sometimes none at night if I have done plenty of exercise like today. Obviously that is a big difference between daytime and nighttime needs. Yours may be much more similar, but with that graph steadily rising during the day, it suggests you may need more during the day and that increase may mean you need slightly less at night as there will be some overlap.
If you are not confident in adjusting your basal doses then do discuss it with your nurse although personally I am a firm believer in experimenting to see what works for yourself, but it should always be done with one eye very carefully on keeping yourself safe, so any adjustments should be small and give it a few days to see how things settle and then if you need to, make another small adjustment, until you start to see better results.
Out of curiosity, do you take Metformin or has it been suggested as an option because those basal doses suggest that you may be suffering from some insulin resistance and Metformin can help with that. Exercise can also help to reduce basal needs along with weight loss..... both of which I am currently tackling because my weight has been increasing a bit just recently. I don't know if any of those things are applicable to you, but just something to consider. It can be hard to lose weight when you are using insulin and you need to understand how to reduce your doses as you lose weight or increase exercise, but Metformin might help.
Another thought.... do you inject all 71 units in one go into one site? I find splitting my 22 units of basal insulin into 2 injections of 11 units (one into each buttock... same needle) gives me better and more even absorption, so trying that for your daytime dose might be worthwhile to see if that change alone helps with your daytime levels, but perhaps leave your nighttime dose as a single injection and just see if you notice any difference to your daytime levels.
By the way, you don't have to inject into your buttocks, your thighs or stomach or wherever you currently inject is fine as I appreciate that reaching to jab your bum can be challenging and you need a bit more flexibility and dexterity than other sites. It is just my preference for my basal insulin. I do it whilst lying in bed which makes it easier. 🙄
Anyway, those are just some things that occur to me and might be worth experimenting with to see if you can improve things a bit. Only change one thing at once and give it a few days before you change it again or change something else, otherwise it can all get very confusing.... and always keep hypo treatments close to hand wherever you are when you are particularly when adjusting insulin doses and especially by the bed.
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Welcome to the forum @Blackcat76
Sorry to hear you don't find it easy with your consultant - it can be so tricky if those relationships aren't very supportive or productive.
There are some suggestions tips for improving your diabetes management, including making the most if your appointments here:
www.diabetes.org.uk
Which includes joining the forum - so you're one step ahead already!
Keep asking questions on the forum and comparing ideas with folks here - nothing will be regarded as too obvious or 'silly' 🙂
Sorry to hear you don't find it easy with your consultant - it can be so tricky if those relationships aren't very supportive or productive.
There are some suggestions tips for improving your diabetes management, including making the most if your appointments here:
Looking after your diabetes
Managing your diabetes, making changes and fitting the demands of diabetes into your lifestyle can be challenging at times.
Which includes joining the forum - so you're one step ahead already!
Keep asking questions on the forum and comparing ideas with folks here - nothing will be regarded as too obvious or 'silly' 🙂
Blackcat76
Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1.5 LADA
Thank you so so much for your reply. Yes I am on 2g of Metformin that I take with evening meal. You've given me a lot of insight into things I'd not thought of trying thank you so much I will give these a try and see how the basal levels go xThat graph suggests that your evening Lantus is doing OK as you are in range through the night but the morning Lantus dose may not be holding you steady.... or your mealtime ratios need increasing. It is important to get the Lantus dose right before you mess with meal time ratios so it would be worth doing some basal testing through the day, by skipping a meal each day in rotation.... so skip breakfast one day and lunch the next and evening meal the next day and see what happens with your levels in the absence of food (and Fiasp of course) during those skipped meal periods. Your basal insulin should be holding you reasonably steady in the absence of food and meal time insulin. If levels appear to be rising when you skip a meal it suggests you may need more basal and if they are falling, you probably need less basal insulin (Lantus). It is important not to change anything until you have checked all 3 meal periods and then look at the overall trend over each meal period. If it is consistently rising, then a basal increase would be the way to tackle it. If it rises over part of the day and then falls the rest, then you might be best tackling it with a meal ratio change.
I will link more information re basal testing for you to read before starting it as my description above is just a very rough outline of the procedure. Obviously there is no need to finger prick when you have Libre to show you what is happening.
Basal Testing Made Easy
Here's a link for basal testing, which will hopefully clear up the myths for anyone starting on their pump journey http://diatribe.org/issues/13/learning-curve Plus this might help as well. http://diatribe.org/issues/26/thinking-like-a-pancreas
Our bodies are not as uniform in their needs as you might expect, so it may be that you need more Lantus in the morning and less at night. As an example, I need 22 units in the morning (as soon as I wake up) to keep my levels steady through the day, but only 2 units at night and sometimes none at night if I have done plenty of exercise like today. Obviously that is a big difference between daytime and nighttime needs. Yours may be much more similar, but with that graph steadily rising during the day, it suggests you may need more during the day and that increase may mean you need slightly less at night as there will be some overlap.
If you are not confident in adjusting your basal doses then do discuss it with your nurse although personally I am a firm believer in experimenting to see what works for yourself, but it should always be done with one eye very carefully on keeping yourself safe, so any adjustments should be small and give it a few days to see how things settle and then if you need to, make another small adjustment, until you start to see better results.
Out of curiosity, do you take Metformin or has it been suggested as an option because those basal doses suggest that you may be suffering from some insulin resistance and Metformin can help with that. Exercise can also help to reduce basal needs along with weight loss..... both of which I am currently tackling because my weight has been increasing a bit just recently. I don't know if any of those things are applicable to you, but just something to consider. It can be hard to lose weight when you are using insulin and you need to understand how to reduce your doses as you lose weight or increase exercise, but Metformin might help.
Another thought.... do you inject all 71 units in one go into one site? I find splitting my 22 units of basal insulin into 2 injections of 11 units (one into each buttock... same needle) gives me better and more even absorption, so trying that for your daytime dose might be worthwhile to see if that change alone helps with your daytime levels, but perhaps leave your nighttime dose as a single injection and just see if you notice any difference to your daytime levels.
By the way, you don't have to inject into your buttocks, your thighs or stomach or wherever you currently inject is fine as I appreciate that reaching to jab your bum can be challenging and you need a bit more flexibility and dexterity than other sites. It is just my preference for my basal insulin. I do it whilst lying in bed which makes it easier. 🙄
Anyway, those are just some things that occur to me and might be worth experimenting with to see if you can improve things a bit. Only change one thing at once and give it a few days before you change it again or change something else, otherwise it can all get very confusing.... and always keep hypo treatments close to hand wherever you are when you are particularly when adjusting insulin doses and especially by the bed.
Blackcat76
Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1.5 LADA
Thank you all for replying. I've got some solid advice and support here which really has helped me feel less hopeless! I'll be checking basal levels and adjusting basal to see how that goes. I do need to incorporate some gentle exercise as I suffer with a few mobility issues also thank you all so much x
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