Humalog taking longer to work recently

[KevN]

Hi, I'm new in this forum.

I have been Type 1 Diabetic since 2013 and I have been on Humalog and Lantus for the majority of that time. I carb count and it's just over a week now and my sugar levels are suddenly on the erratic side. I feel as though I either have to take more insulin than previously and also it seems to be taking longer for my Humalog to start acting when I've injected before meals.

Has anyone else experienced this? Any advice would be appreciated. Thank you.

 

[Amity Island]

Hi, I'm new in this forum.

I have been Type 1 Diabetic since 2013 and I have been on Humalog and Lantus for the majority of that time. I carb count and it's just over a week now and my sugar levels are suddenly on the erratic side. I feel as though I either have to take more insulin than previously and also it seems to be taking longer for my Humalog to start acting when I've injected before meals.

Has anyone else experienced this? Any advice would be appreciated. Thank you.

Hi KevN,

I also used Lantus and still use Humalog.

Is it just the amount of humalog that has increased? or has it also affected the basal Lantus?

Could be a virus? Are your injection sites ok? Had a recent vaccination?

 

[trophywench]

Lots of us need more insulin in cold weather, so that's another 'could be'. How many of the 40+ possible reasons, have you ruled out so far?

 

[KevN]

Hi Jenny

I've never needed to increase insulin when it's been cold weather previously and I'm only ever aware that if I go to a hot country I have to change my insulin regime. I definitely didn't know there was 40+ possible reasons.

Thanks for your help and advice.

 

[KevN]

Hi KevN,

I also used Lantus and still use Humalog.

Is it just the amount of humalog that has increased? or has it also affected the basal Lantus?

Could be a virus? Are your injection sites ok? Had a recent vaccination?

Hi
It's just the humalog that seems to be affected as that is the insulin I take before each meal.
I've hardly been outside to catch a virus but I feel fine. I've not had any recent vaccinations and my injection sites seem to be fine. Thanks🙂

 

[Ljc]

Hi Jenny

I've never needed to increase insulin when it's been cold weather previously and I'm only ever aware that if I go to a hot country I have to change my insulin regime. I definitely didn't know there was 40+ possible reasons.

Thanks for your help and advice.

Here they are

 

[helli]

Have you changed your insulin and/or pen to check they are not faulty?

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Welcome to the forum @KevN

Sorry to hear your doses are playing up at the moment.

Have you done a fasting basal check recently? This can really help isolate whether your basal insulin is doing it’s job properly, and/or whether it over-reaches or falls slightly short at different times of day, depending on your basal needs and how in line they are with your basal insulin’s activity.

There’s a write-up if how to do that here

Basal Testing in Diabetes - Diabetes Support

Managing diabetes effectively requires constant monitoring and adjustments to ensure blood sugar levels remain stable. One key aspect of this management process is basal testing, which focuses on evaluating the effectiveness of basal insulin in the body. In this blog article, we’ll explore the...

www.diabetes-support.org.uk

It sounds like a real palaver, and will take a few days to work through... but when I first discovered the technique it massively helped me balance my doses and understand what was going on - eg when my meal doses were being adjusted to partly cover ‘best fit’ basal needs.

These days when my meal doses or correction factors start to drift, 9 times out of 10 it’s only a modest tweak to my basal profile (on pump, not injections now) that is needed to get things behaving again.

 

[stillgoing]

Please be aware that the list of 42 is only the top 42. Plenty of other to chose from. 🙂 Good luck and remember you can also contact your DSN for advice.