New and feeling like I’m never gonna get there.

[Chris04]

It will be interesting for you to take a look at how they work for you. The ‘baseline’ suggestions you have been given

1u = 10g carbs
1u = 3mmol/L drop in BG

also generally have an expectation that

10g carbs = 3mmol/L rise in BG

But these are just general guides, and part of improving your diabetes management involves a bit of experimentation and seeing how those are actually working for you in practice.

For instance... you may discover that at breakfast for you

1u = 8g carbs or...
1u = 12g carbs

Which is not quite so easy to work out in your head! But if you generally eat the same breakfast each day you can do the sums on a calculator and just use that dose 🙂

If you would like some help and support with this style of diabetes management thereis a free online course you can do called BERTIE

Bertie Diabetes

www.bertieonline.org.uk

Thank you. I will.

 

[Chris04]

Hi @Chris04 Welcome to the forum. Sorry you have needed to join but it is a good place for help, advice and support.

One thing I do is have a 15 min alarm after treating a hypo. I get very impatient with them, especially if I am busy. The alarm makes me wait and avoids me testing too early and then over treating the hypo and shooting up after. It still seems like an age, but really helps.

I do this. I set the alarm then it scares the life out of me lol.

 

[Chris04]

Thank you everyone. I will try and take onboard everything you have said. I attended an online webinar today by Freestyle Libre. Talking about keeping your BS in the green. Apparently it should ideally be there 70% of the time....mine is 25% at the minute. Granted that is with the infection. I am trying very hard...and trying to learn as much as I can. I really appreciate all your help.

 

[SB2015]

Thank you everyone. I will try and take onboard everything you have said. I attended an online webinar today by Freestyle Libre. Talking about keeping your BS in the green. Apparently it should ideally be there 70% of the time....mine is 25% at the minute. Granted that is with the infection. I am trying very hard...and trying to learn as much as I can. I really appreciate all your help.

Chris as a newly diagnosed it would be a miracle if you were managing to get 70% in range.
This takes time and there are plenty of us that will wobble from this frequently.
With an infection it is even harder to achieve and levels just go bonkers.
Be patient. This is a marathon not a sprint.

Just keep asking questions. Tap into the experience on here.
I know that I have learnt most of what I know about my D management from others on here.

 

[leonS]

Perhaps she had very big hands.

Thirty grms of nuts contains about 1-3 grms of carbohydrate depending on type (cashews contain a bit more at 6 grms). This is not going to be all quick acting sugar either.

So don't try this at home!

A hypo is a hypo no matter how you got there. The body will respond to a hypo and raise the BG by releasing hormones to make the liver pump out glucose. This may be what was happening here.

 

[Bruce Stephens]

Thirty grms of nuts contains about 1-3 grms of carbohydrate depending on type (cashews contain a bit more at 6 grms). This is not going to be all quick acting sugar either.

So don't try this at home!

It was a group meeting with a couple of the DSNs and the dietician did roll her eyes a bit at that, saying that it wouldn't work for many people.

 

[Chris04]

Chris as a newly diagnosed it would be a miracle if you were managing to get 70% in range.
This takes time and there are plenty of us that will wobble from this frequently.
With an infection it is even harder to achieve and levels just go bonkers.
Be patient. This is a marathon not a sprint.

Just keep asking questions. Tap into the experience on here.
I know that I have learnt most of what I know about my D management from others on here.

Thank you for your encouragement ...I was feeling a bit down earlier but I’m fine now.

 

[SB2015]

For the first two weeks I was just given a target of stay in single figures if you can.
They don’t rush into getting lower levels as your body needs to adjust back to ‘normal’ after a big shock fo DKA?

As I learnt more I gradually got more idea of what I was doing. I quickly realised that the more I ate the higher my levels went, so started to think about carbs, and adjusting the Bolus (Novorapid) doses. you are already well down that road.

You are doing very well, and you are not alone. Folks in here will help in any way that they can.
Give yourself a pat on the back and just keep the questions coming.
We are here for you.

 

[Chris04]

For the first two weeks I was just given a target of stay in single figures if you can.
They don’t rush into getting lower levels as your body needs to adjust back to ‘normal’ after a big shock fo DKA?

As I learnt more I gradually got more idea of what I was doing. I quickly realised that the more I ate the higher my levels went, so started to think about carbs, and adjusting the Bolus (Novorapid) doses. you are already well down that road.

You are doing very well, and you are not alone. Folks in here will help in any way that they can.
Give yourself a pat on the back and just keep the questions coming.
We are here for you.

Thank you so much. I weighed and counted everything tonight ...and I’ve just had a hypo. If I’m reading this right, because it’s happened a few times at night, I may have to reduce my carb to insulin ratio before evening meal. Would that be right?

 

[SB2015]

Good morning @Chris04 . In general when analysing what happens to my levels I tend to blame any weird results within four hours of a meal in my carb ratio. Outside that time I would be looking at my background insulin.

For my carb ratios I was started on a ratio of 1:10, but found I needed less than that. So I took my ratio up to 1:11, and so on until it was right. Not sure what your Maths is like but putting the carb number up will mean you end up with less insulin. I also find I needed different amounts of insulin at different times of the day. I range from 1:10 in the morning to 1:14 in the evening, but remember we are all different. I also found that reducing the amount of carbs I ate at meals (when we started counting carbs we realised just how many we were eating!!) the doses of insulin were smaller so if I got things wrong with carbs or if my ratios were out a bit it had less impact on the smaller doses.
I may have gone into overload so will stop.
(Who needs Sudoku to keep the brain active when you have T1!!)

At this stage Chris, keep in close contact with your DSN. They are there to help you and will want to keep a check on things. When is your next follow up appointment?

 

[Chris04]

Good morning @SB2015. I have been trying to contact her for weeks. She last said to me..phone me next week and we’ll see about increasing your Toujeo. I rang and left a message but she didn‘t reply. I phoned again after I took the infection because my ketones were up and left a message telling her but she still hasn’t replied. Her message on the answering machine has changed to say they are busy but will deal with things in order of priority. I guess she’ll get back to me when she can. Other than that I don’t have any appointments.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

According to the packet I happen to have by me, 4 Jelly Babies are 21g (so 3 would be around 15g).

Yes I think when I did some weighing once of the JBs in the larger bags they were 5-6g each, so 15-18g for a trio.

There are also smaller JBs in the little ‘funsize’ bags though which might be more like the size you were thinking of @trophywench ?

 

[SB2015]

Good morning @SB2015. I have been trying to contact her for weeks. She last said to me..phone me next week and we’ll see about increasing your Toujeo. I rang and left a message but she didn‘t reply. I phoned again after I took the infection because my ketones were up and left a message telling her but she still hasn’t replied. Her message on the answering machine has changed to say they are busy but will deal with things in order of priority. I guess she’ll get back to me when she can. Other than that I don’t have any appointments.

I do remember that they felt I was trying to run before I could walk just after my diagnosis, and they wanted me to ‘slow down’ a bit. However ....

If you get no reply on Monday, I think I would try emailing the consultant or at least copy him in to an email you send the DSN. I didn't realise for a while that here they are in the same part of the hospital. Sometimes I find this approach prompts a response from one or the other. However I realise it may be different where you are. Just keep trying.

 

[Chris04]

I do remember that they felt I was trying to run before I could walk just after my diagnosis, and they wanted me to ‘slow down’ a bit. However ....

If you get no reply on Monday, I think I would try emailing the consultant or at least copy him in to an email you send the DSN. I didn't realise for a while that here they are in the same part of the hospital. Sometimes I find this approach prompts a response from one or the other. However I realise it may be different where you are. Just keep trying.

Possible. I don’t think I’ll email though cause I don’t want to pester them. I’m sure she’ll get back to me at some point. You guys are helping me a lot anyway. My levels are staying up round 23/24. Ketones are 0.1 though so i’m not panicking. I take extra insulin and I have a hypo so I’m just trying to get the adjustment right. The infection hasn’t gone so I will have to ring GP in morning to see if i need yet more antibiotics. Thanks again.

 

[trophywench]

Your BG is 23/24? That's horrifically high! You can't go on like that.

For God's sake ring the hospital!

 

[SB2015]

Chris if your levels are in the 20s don’t wait for them to ring you.Get some help.

I am amazed that your ketones are as low as they are.
You are yo-Yoing at present from high to low. You need help to to get that oscillation lower.

 

[Chris04]

When Dalrihada sent me to hospital last weekend, the doctor there, once levels had come down, said not to worry about my levels’s going high as long as my ketones were ok. I will try and get the nurse again tomorrow and see what she says. Thank you everybody.

 

[trophywench]

You've mentioned this dalriada a couple of times - what is it?

 

[NotWorriedAtAll]

You've mentioned this dalriada a couple of times - what is it?

I googled it and I think it is an out of hours GP service in Northern Ireland.

 

[trophywench]

I googled it and I think it is an out of hours GP service in Northern Ireland.

Ah - Bing told me it was an ancient name for part of Scotland! We may all be part of the UK, but the health service in NI is nothing whatever like it is in the other 3 countries.