New to diabetes

I'm a late onsetter too! This forum has been extremely helpful over the past 6 years. Like you (and probably everyone on here!) there are times when I obsess over levels and kick myself when they are off.

One thing I found useful early on was working out the impact of when I inject alongside how much. For example, at breakfast I need more insulin and I have always had to inject around 25 minutes ahead of eating. Meals later in the day require less insulin for me and I tend to inject a few minutes before I eat, sometimes in the evening I would split my bolus (half up front and then the remainder about 30 minutes later) - keeping an eye on my Libre to see what it was doing. As @rebrascora says, a lot is trial and error and no two Type 1s are the same. Keep in touch with your DSN as far as possible if you're going to try things like adjusting timings etc. Personally I would never change my carb ratio or bolus insulin without running it past my diabetes team first.
 
mashedupmatt said:
Do you have a half unit pen (Novopen Echo)? - I personally am on 1:10 but of an evening do a bit less - so 1 to every 15-20g carbs - having a half unit pen allows you to do this and take 1/2 units - definitely worth asking for one if you haven't got one - I was on Novorapid and didn't find it to be that rapid! It lasted a lot longer in my system than what I'm on now (Fiasp) so more lows whilst it was still working around 4hrs afterwards (Fiasp only lasts about 3hrs for me) - not that I'm suggesting a medication change (I'm certainly not qualified to do that!) but maybe worth speaking to your healthcare team about
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Not got half pen, hospital said lasts about 4 hours
 
Inka said:
Ok, so, presuming your carb counting is correct, it sounds like you need less insulin for your tea. To do this, you’d have 1 unit to 12/14/15, etc grams of carbs.
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Yea going to try that tomorrow night
 
Lots of people’s ratios change quite often, eg due to the seasons, the temperature, weight gain or loss, and any number of random things @Ivostas66 If you cautiously change a ratio and it doesn’t work, you can just change it again. So many other things are affecting our blood sugar (42+) so it’s always a work in progress so to speak!

I definitely agree that the newly diagnosed should seek advice or run things past their team first though.
 
Ivostas66 said:
I'm a late onsetter too! This forum has been extremely helpful over the past 6 years. Like you (and probably everyone on here!) there are times when I obsess over levels and kick myself when they are off.

One thing I found useful early on was working out the impact of when I inject alongside how much. For example, at breakfast I need more insulin and I have always had to inject around 25 minutes ahead of eating. Meals later in the day require less insulin for me and I tend to inject a few minutes before I eat, sometimes in the evening I would split my bolus (half up front and then the remainder about 30 minutes later) - keeping an eye on my Libre to see what it was doing. As @rebrascora says, a lot is trial and error and no two Type 1s are the same. Keep in touch with your DSN as far as possible if you're going to try things like adjusting timings etc. Personally I would never change my carb ratio or bolus insulin without running it past my diabetes team first.
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I also take more at breakfast, spoke to nurse today and to change my ratio
 
Woodywoodpecker said:
They said they don’t have any
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They can get your GP to prescribe one (plus a spare, in case of failure) - and should do, particularly if they are advising you to change your ratios - by using half unit adjustments it is safer to do so
 
Wishing you all the very best with the tweaks to your evening ratio (and with getting a 1/2 unit pen!) - let us know how you get on - and if you do need any more advice, fire away - we're all rooting for you - you are definitely not alone
 
mashedupmatt said:
Wishing you all the very best with the tweaks to your evening ratio (and with getting a 1/2 unit pen!) - let us know how you get on - and if you do need any more advice, fire away - we're all rooting for you - you are definitely not alone
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Thank you so much. Think I lack confidence at the moment, always second guessing if I’m doing the right thing. Been a bit off a struggle as suffer with anxiety but getting there
 
Type 1 is a big learning experience @Woodywoodpecker It’s a hard job being a pancreas and it takes time to learn. Even then, perfection is impossible. We just try to do our best. Your confidence will grow gradually as the months go by.

There are a couple of books often recommended for Type 1s on this forum:

Think Like a Pancreas’ by Gary Scheiner.

And Type 1 Diabetes in Children Adolescents and Young People by Ragnar Hanas.

Think Like A Pancreas is American but I liked the chatty style and it contains some great information, as does the Ragnar Hanas book.
 
The half unit pen is the NovoPen Echo. It is a reusable pen which you get insulin cartridges prescribed for rather than the disposable Flex Pens you have now. The Echos are really great pens and have a last dose reminder on the base so that if you can't remember if you took a dose, you can check to see how much the last dose was and how long ago. They are much better for the environment and give you finer dosing options and the cartridges take up less space in the fridge. I have them for both my Fiasp and my Levemir and I love them.
 
A late welcome from me, another late starter (aged 53). It takes a bit of getting used to and is a steep learning curve for us all.

YouHave already had lots of tips and I am another vote for getting hold of half unit pens. These are reusable and make it a lot easier to tweak doses. As others have said a lot of us find we need less insulin for evening meals than for breakfast. Other things also impact our glucose levels so it is a case of just doing the best that we can.

Keep the questions coming. Nothing is considered silly on here.
 
Having used Novorapid for the last 25 years, in my body, it lasts over 4 hrs although it does definitely tail off after the first 3, and by 4 it's negligible, BUT still active. But then there's not masses of me (though there used to be less :D) and every one of us is different anyway, so how long it lasts for you is entirely up to your own body - not what it says on the tin. 'About 4 hrs' is 'give and take' - not precise.

If you seek to control your blood sugar perfectly - please, please, stop !! That can only lead to madness because in truth - the very best all of us can do, is try to manage our BG the best we can for as long as we can. 🙂:care:
 
rebrascora said:
The half unit pen is the NovoPen Echo. It is a reusable pen which you get insulin cartridges prescribed for rather than the disposable Flex Pens you have now. The Echos are really great pens and have a last dose reminder on the base so that if you can't remember if you took a dose, you can check to see how much the last dose was and how long ago. They are much better for the environment and give you finer dosing options and the cartridges take up less space in the fridge. I have them for both my Fiasp and my Levemir and I love them.
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Think that would be good for me. They told me at hospital nothing for half unit, if taking 45 carbs 4 if in range 5 if not
 
trophywench said:
Having used Novorapid for the last 25 years, in my body, it lasts over 4 hrs although it does definitely tail off after the first 3, and by 4 it's negligible, BUT still active. But then there's not masses of me (though there used to be less :D) and every one of us is different anyway, so how long it lasts for you is entirely up to your own body - not what it says on the tin. 'About 4 hrs' is 'give and take' - not precise.

If you seek to control your blood sugar perfectly - please, please, stop !! That can only lead to madness because in truth - the very best all of us can do, is try to manage our BG the best we can for as long as we can. 🙂:care:
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I’ve had the madness, think just trying to be perfect isn’t working. I thought I had to be 100% in range with libre, I now know 70 and above.
 
Woodywoodpecker said:
Think that would be good for me. They told me at hospital nothing for half unit, if taking 45 carbs 4 if in range 5 if not
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It's clearly wrong that there's nothing for half units so I'm not sure why they'd say that. You do need to get a reusable pen, so it's slightly more involved than the disposable pens. The half unit pens are sometimes regarded as "for children", I think, so maybe that's part of it. Most likely they just didn't have one to give you and disposable pens are easier.
 
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