Howdy

[Snowie]

Hello,
My name is Micha and I'm getting on towards being an old biddy 🙂 I am having problems at the moment with carb/sugar counting. I've managed quite nicely for the last 25 years or so but lately I'm getting into a either a lot of Hypo's or Hypers. I use Humulin basal and Novarapid as rapid. I usually try to keep my food (mainly granola with fully skimmed milk) to around 12g of sugar from carbs. What used to take 6-7 units of rapid now needs 25 units. I know the disease progresses but does this leap seem too much? My DN says not to worry but the fact that nothing has changed (I am immobile due to breaking my neck) worries me. I don't have an Insulin pump as I'm set in my old ways and thought after 40 years I would know what I was doing! Hope someone can help and again.... hello /wave

 

[rebrascora]

Hi and welcome.

So pleased you have found the forum because it helps enormously to be able to connect with others facing the same challenges and to compare notes.

Firstly can I ask do you have a Libre or other sensor system to track your BG levels or are you reliant on finger pricking?

Sorry to hear you are battling highs and lows and I wonder if some basal testing might be in order to check if your Humulin is holding you steady in the absence of food and NovoRapid..... When was the last time you adjusted your Humulin doses and do you inject it twice a day or just once? I assume we are talking about Humulin I?

It may be that your basal needs have changed and your NR is now having to shore up the deficit. Basal needs can change for a whole host of reasons including hormonal changes and looking at your profile I see you are a woman of a similar age to myself and perhaps that is having an impact..... Or perhaps Covid or the Covid vaccine has caused an increase in your insulin needs? This happened to me after the first Covid Vaccine 2 years ago when my basal insulin needs pretty much doubled in the 2-3 months following it and then levelled out and have remained about the same ever since. Thankfully this was after my DAFNE course so I was able to identify the problem although it was still disconcerting increasing my doses every few days/week until it settled again.

The other thing to note is that you mention 12g of sugar from carbs. Just to clarify..... you are counting total carbs and not just "of which sugars" carbs? 12g seems like a very small amount of carbs for a bowl of Granola with skimmed milk.
What brand of granola do you use and what size portion?
Have you ever had an intensive education course like DAFNE (Dose Adjustment For Normal Eating) or whatever your local equivalent is? It sounds like a carb counting course but in reality it is about so much more including identifying when your basal insulin doses need changing and keeping yourself safe with insulin in a whole host of everyday scenarios.

We have a saying here on the forum, that you need as much insulin as you need and that will be different for everyone. I know sometimes I am a bit resistant to increasing it when I need to but I think as long as your weight is reasonably stable and healthy then you have to accept that your body needs what it needs. Finding the balance with your basal dose(s) is key to stability though and then adjusting your meal time insulin ratios if necessary once your basal is right. If my basal doses are wrong my diabetes is frustrating and I feel like I am fighting it, but when my basal doses are right, it is all just so much easier, so that would be my tip to start with looking at your Humulin. If you don't have Libre or other CGM then I would encourage you to ask for it on prescription because it makes basal testing so much easier and will also help to keep you safe if you are getting unpredictable lows.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Welcome to the forum Micha @Snowie

It’s not unusual for insulin needs to fluctuate from time to time, but I can see why you might be concerned by a big change like that.

Has it crept up gradually over a long period? Or has the change happened all at once?

Have you gained much weight at all (don’t feel you have to answer that… but additional weight can increase insulin resistance)

Do you weigh the granola? I find it very tricky to estimate by eye, and not much extra can boost the carb count. And what is the total carb content (not just ‘of which sugars’)?

Good that your DSN in in touch, and seems quite relaxed about it 🙂