Libre 2 with type 2

[Steve711]

Good Morning

I have just started using a libre 2 as i really want to get decent control of my diabetes and feel this should help.

I scanned my arm this morning before getting out of bed and got a reading of 7.7 then literally within 10 minutes of being up it was 8.9 and within an hour and a half 11.4 and this is with eating nothing.

Its now on its way down again but why would it do this with eating nothing ?

 

[Nick Cliff]

Hi @Steve711 there is something called "dawn phenomenon" which is basically your body gearing up to face the day. Blood glucose levels rise naturally to help you face the day ahead. I guess it's then fallen because you've done nothing else to require more energy, and not eaten. There are loads of things that cause blood glucose levels to change, not just eating. Using the Libre 2 to better understand what affects yours is a great idea. It certainly helped my understanding greatly (as well as confirming lots of stuff I'd been advised about but not seen). Will get clearer picture after a few days. Keep us posted on your findings! All the best. Nick

 

[Proud to be erratic]

Libre 2 is brilliant for revealing a fuller awareness of what your BG is doing, every minute should you choose to scan that frequently. It also can overload you with data that is not always fully explicable to non-medical folks (and sometimes not to them either!). So, at this early stage use Libre 2 to help you identify trends, rather than 'spot response'.

That said, there are numerous things that can affect your BG - 42 documented factors and still counting. During the night there can be something known as Dawn Phenomenum, where your body releases extra glucose in readiness for the coming day. Not everyone experiences this and before Libre most people were oblivious to the existence of this! Other people get a similar response immediately after getting out of bed, referred to as Foot On The Floor syndrome (FOTF). Again not everyone. Stress can elevate BG; as can being dehydrated. Anaerobic (very high intensity) exercise (or activity) elevates BG, as your body provides a surge of glucose to help the muscles manage that extreme activity. These are just a few of those 42 factors - and we are all different.

So be pragmatic, rely on Libre for trends; particularly if there are regular daily patterns. But be alert to not over-reacting; monitor but stay calm. As time goes by, you might see all sorts of unusual BG behaviour.

Good luck, enjoy your Libre but don't let it take over!

 

[Steve711]

Thanks Nick
I can see the information it gives should well help but we shall see as it gives me a chance to do something with that information.

 

[Proud to be erratic]

Hi @Steve711 there is something called "dawn phenomenon" which is basically your body gearing up to face the day. Blood glucose levels rise naturally to help you face the day ahead. I guess it's then fallen because you've done nothing else to require more energy, and not eaten.

Yes Nick, it's fascinating and can be counter-intuitive when BG rises and falls somewhat inexplicably. Once its risen (and let's ignore the odd erroneous reading) the glucose is in your system and needs insulin to move it on. If after waking one is moderately busy (active) then our body's natural resistance to insulin is lowered from that exercise and whatever insulin is around works better (more efficiently). So that probably explains FOTF rise and fall - but doesn't explain DP rising at, say, 4am and dissipation sometimes by 6am; at other times DP not dissipating until extra insulin arrives, whether from oral meds or injection. But how busy do we need to be to get the improved insulin performance? And why is that response varied on different days? Who, a couple of decades ago , talked about 'known knowns', 'unknown knowns (by inference thus are known!)' and 'unknown unknowns (those things we haven't even imagined)'.

Libre is revealing the middle group.

There are loads of things that cause blood glucose levels to change, not just eating. Using the Libre 2 to better understand what affects yours is a great idea. It certainly helped my understanding greatly (as well as confirming lots of stuff I'd been advised about but not seen). Will get clearer picture after a few days. Keep us posted on your findings! All the best. Nick

 

[silentsquirrel]

Yes Nick, it's fascinating and can be counter-intuitive when BG rises and falls somewhat inexplicably. Once its risen (and let's ignore the odd erroneous reading) the glucose is in your system and needs insulin to move it on. If after waking one is moderately busy (active) then our body's natural resistance to insulin is lowered from that exercise and whatever insulin is around works better (more efficiently). So that probably explains FOTF rise and fall - but doesn't explain DP rising at, say, 4am and dissipation sometimes by 6am; at other times DP not dissipating until extra insulin arrives, whether from oral meds or injection. But how busy do we need to be to get the improved insulin performance? And why is that response varied on different days? Who, a couple of decades ago , talked about 'known knowns', 'unknown knowns (by inference thus are known!)' and 'unknown unknowns (those things we haven't even imagined)'.

Libre is revealing the middle group.

Donald Rumsfeld