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Hey guys

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J

James B

Active Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 1
Hi I’m really struggling with things at the moment. I have reduced my basal insulin for 24 to 18 and I feel really dizzy all the time and also find that I need insulin at breakfast but come lunch time around 12:30 I’ll eat a sandwich and have 4 units and by 5 pm I’m dropping into the 5.3 I’ll then eat a snack with carbs without insulin and I’ll still drop unless I eat a lot of carbs then come dinner tome at 19:00 I’ll be around 6.3 I’ll calculate the carbs in the meal well at this point just for stuff like rice and pasta and by the tome it’s bedtime I’m around 5 again and have to eat more to make sure if don’t go below 5 during bedtime and then I wake up and I feel dizzy and tired again and start the whole thing again. It doesn’t matter what I do I always drop low and it’s hard to work out the dosage when I’ll eat 23 g of carbs in the form of a pasty take 2 units as my ratio is 10g = 1 unit and I’ll drop low. I feel like at this point I’m not even diabetic I can’t go on like this I’m really stressed out and frequently feel so tired and that I can’t concentrate what’s going on? I feel like I can’t call the diabetic team to ask cuz they’ll just say it’s the honeymoon period but that doesn’t help me when I’m trying to work out if I need insulin with something or not. Please help I just want to go back to my normal self but feel like everything I learnt doesn’t apply anymore cuz my blood glucose just does it own thing I’ve not been above 7 between meals and only twice above 10 after eating since about 2 weeks into the diagnosis. I hate this I don’t feel like myself and I feel like there’s no answers and that I’m truly alone.
 
I’d like to add diabetic team took me from 24 to 20 and told me if I keep going low to take it down to 18 I’ve been on 18 basal for one day
 
If I add exercise into the mix I got way to low and have to eat jelly babies and the wait around for the sugar to go up and eat a belvita I struggle to get the blood sugar up to 7.0 before exercise I don’t want to be eating constantly I want to lose some weight but I’ve actually put weight I lost back on I can’t deal with this anymore surely it’s better to be to high than it is to be low..
 
What's your BG at bedtime, and in the morning pre brekkie, now, James? and just remind me what basal insulin you're on?
 
It sounds like your basal insulin is still too high. It can vary with the weather/seasons so it is not unusual to need to adjust it from time to time. Basal needs can vary hugely.... there was a lady on my DAFNE course who had been diabetic for 50 years and only needed 3 units of Lantus and that caused her to hypo almost every night and have mid teen readings during the day, so it is not the amount of insulin you need which makes you diabetic or not.... just the fact that you need some.
If you feel that more adjustment of your basal insulin is still required in a day or two and you are not confident to do that yourself then contact your team and they will guide you.
Which basal insulin are you on? If it is one of the longer acting ones like Tresiba it will take several days for the change you made down to 18 to take effect, so you will need to be a little patient. If it is Levemir then you should see results the next day.
 
Are you drinking plenty.... headaches are often down to dehydration and with diabetes it is really important to drink plenty particularly during this hot, dry weather.
 
If I don’t eat anything after my dinner it’s about 5 tonight it’s 7.1 but I ate a lot tonight a breakfast bar and some Mexican snack mix, I could see I wasn’t going to rise after eating pasta with 58g of carbs taking two units. Usually wake up around 7. Based on last night I went to bed at 5.8 and woke up this morning at 6.6 but when I took my basal at 8 just before I was 7.4. I’m on abasaglar basal insulin 18 units
 
I’m drinking a lot more today I noticed I’ve drunk about 3 litres of water today and usually drink about 2-3 a day usually it can’t be normal to feel like this day in day out I don’t feel happy I’m feeling very down the past few days and nothing seems to work I don’t wanna keep eating constantly why can’t I be like it was before where i could get away with eating what I eat now and not feel my blood sugar dropping surely that’s what the insulin is suppose to mimic
 
When your basal insulin dose is correct, you will feel better and you will not have to eat all the time to keep yourself in range. You need to discuss this with your team. I have been like that today myself, just kept topping up with some fruit here and there to keep me in range..... I will be reducing my basal insulin tomorrow and that should do it for me, but if you haven't been on a course to learn how to adjust your insulin then it really is best if you talk to your health care professionals.
 
Well yes it is James, but that's when you aren't fairly newly diagnosed and have already got your basal insulin nailed down exactly where it needs to be for your particular body and because no two bodies are the same, that's absolutely individual in every case.

I think Abasaglar, being an insulin glargine, usually takes up to 3 full days to see the whole effect of any increase/reduction in dose. Today was day One, so it will be Wednesday before you properly know what the reduction to 18u has made - patience is needed! This is a marathon, not a sprint and you can't change that fact - sorry.
 
Hi @James B I remember how stressful those early months are. It’s not your fault and I promise you it will get better.

@trophywench Gives good advice above about waiting to see the effect of your basal change. I’d hope reducing that would help you. You could also try having your evening meal a little earlier eg 6pm so that the bolus insulin for that is at the end of its action when you go to bed. If you need a bedtime snack, that’s ok and not unusual.

If, after your basal reduction, you’re still having issues, then there are plenty more options to try, so don’t get down. The headaches could be disturbed sleep. I had a lot of that after diagnosis. It’s a big life change. It took me months and months to get used to things, but each month that passed saw an improvement. You’ll be ok - honestly you will.
 
rebrascora said:
Are you drinking plenty.... headaches are often down to dehydration and with diabetes it is really important to drink plenty particularly during this hot, dry weather.
Click to expand...
As i read down to your post i was thinking, this was probably not diabetic related but down to not drinking enough, the dizziness sounds like low blood pressure along with headache are classic symptoms of dehydration.
I drink around 6 to 7 litres a day, probably a little more when its really hot, im not sure 2 to 3 litres is enough.
 
@brisr949 Wow, Adam, that is a lot! I believe 2-3 litres is the recommended amount of fluids per day but doubt I drink that much myself... however, unlike the OP I'm not having problems with headaches and dizziness.
 
Im guessing my poor BG control is my problem, but still 4 ish pints a day only works out as a glass every 2 hours, is that really enough?
 
brisr949 said:
I drink around 6 to 7 litres a day, probably a little more when its really hot, im not sure 2 to 3 litres is enough.
Click to expand...

I think 6 to 7 litres might be more than is required. https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-...nd-healthy-eating/in-depth/water/art-20044256 suggests 3.7 for men and 2.7 for women, with around 20% in food. (That's not to say that drinking more is bad. The weather's relatively hot and dry, so I imagine we'll all be drinking a more than usual.)

As a general rule, for most people the recommendation is to drink when you feel thirsty. (Obviously being unusually thirsty can be a sign of high BG, so watching that is important for us.)
 
If we needed to drink more than the recommended amount there could never be any work done in the commercial world! Going back to when places had canteens if you were office you got one teabreak morning and one afternoon, factory floor didn't get one so you had to have a drink if you went to the loo, cos drinking fountains would be installed nearish to where the other plumbing was, not on the factory floor.

Typists in general weren't allowed to drink anything and work simultaneously - too many accidents with expensive printed stationery and spilt drinks.
 
One other reason i think i drink more is salt, its my kryptonite.
If i have say one piece of kfc a couple hours later the thirst is that bad i can stand at the sink and do 3 pints in one go and even then sometimes i have to go back for more, not sure if this is normal as ive never spoke to the docs about it as im starting to feel like dot cotton so i never bother speaking anymore.
Adam.
 
Maybe that’s a mouth sensitivity @brisr949 ? I don’t know if it’s the same thing but I hate most ready meals because they’re relentlessly and unpleasantly salty. If I eat them, it’s like I can’t get rid of the ‘I desperately need to drink’ feeling in my mouth.

I really wish they’d make ready meals without salt and let us add our own. After all, if you’ve got access to a microwave, you’re likely to have access to a salt cellar too.
 
I cant eat them either for that very reason.
Thank you for the reassurance that its not just me, in a kind way if that makes sense.
Adam
 
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