Strange Blood Sugars

[Katie8]

Hi everyone,

I'm new to the forum but was looking for some advice.

I'm Type 1 diabetic and have been for 15 years now - I was diagnosed at age 11. I'm currently working from home because of Coronavirus so trying to get into a new routine and keep my blood sugars under control as over the years I have been a bit up and down but trying to get my HBA1C down from 77.

I have been trying to test before every meal, calculate my carbs (as much as I can) and take my insulin about 10-15 minutes before I eat as advised by my doctor. I've been trying to spot any patterns and adjust my ratios or Levimir doses but I seem to be getting nowhere.

Recently I've had a problem with high readings before my lunch. I've been up early for work, taking my Levimir dose (I take 2 doses a day 1 in the morning and 1 before bed) and usually my readings at this point are between 7 & 9 mmols. I've been calculating for what I'm about to eat and taking the insulin 10 minutes before, then every test before lunch is sitting between 12 & 15 mmols. I changed my carb counting ratio to 1:5 to see if this would help but it doesn't seem to make a difference. I had adjusted my Levimir dose in the morning too but then I found I was having more hypos late afternoon/before dinner.

It's really getting me down and is so frustrating because it seems no matter what I do to fix it nothing works. I have trouble getting in any contact with a diabetic nurse/consultant at my hospital and wasn't sure whether my GP would be of much help.

Any advice would be much appreciated as I'm running out of ideas on what to do and really want to work on bringing my HBA1C down.

Thank you and hope everyone is well and coping in lockdown!

 

[Bexlee]

Hi @Katie8 I’ve been having similar issues - high readings.

Have you recently started a new insulin pen possibly? I’ve had a “bad” box. After talking to pharmacy at my Dr and the nurse they they suggested a new supply. I started a new pen from a new box yesterday tea time and levels are coming back towards normal. Maybe worth a go?
Take care

 

[Inka]

....usually my readings at this point are between 7 & 9 mmols. I've been calculating for what I'm about to eat and taking the insulin 10 minutes before, then every test before lunch is sitting between 12 & 15 mmols.

I find getting up early causes ‘stress’ on my body and makes it more likely that my sugars will need more attention and often more insulin.

But what I suggest most of all is having your breakfast bolus earlier and testing two hours after breakfast.. Move your bolus gradually earlier 5 mins at a time. I find that if I bolus 10 mins before breakfast, my blood sugar can go up to double figures BUT if I bolus 30 mins before breakfast with the same amount of insulin, my blood sugar will be 6 or 7 two hours later.

Bolusing at the correct time and testing 2 hours after meals is the way to go IMO @Katie8 Youll probably find you need to bolus most in advance for breakfast and less in advance for other meals.

 

[eggyg]

Would you usually be more active at work? Less activity can often mean higher BGs. Also, if you’re human like the rest of us, have you been tempted to snack whilst being at home? You may be taking more carbs in than you think.

 

[J.A.M.]

Hi Katie8,

Well done for attempting to improve your readings, and having the motivation to post on this forum for help which isn't easy to do. You sound like how I was a few years ago, and I specifically changed three things (became calmer, started using a CGM, and changed to a pump) and I haven't look backed since and my HbA1c results went from 9% to now 6.9% but I know I can get this even lower but I've become a bit lazy recently.

You might want to try different types of food too. I always used to eat things with a lot of carbs and always got frustrated when my levels didn't drop. I changed my diet a lot, which was strange and uncomfortable at first but it made a massive difference. Don't change everything over night but just small things here and there to see if it makes a difference.

The key to getting different results, is that if you keep doing the same thing you will get the same results. Make small changes and be prepared to be uncomfortable at first but you will be rewarded in the end with results you like.

Good Luck 🙂

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

You are doing all the right things @Katie8

Sorry you are having such a frustrating time

The idea of checking more carefully around breakfast is a good one, but in your shoes I think the first thing I would be checking is my basal insulin.

there’s a really good write up of how to go about that here: http://www.diabetes-support.org.uk/info/?page_id=120

I find that if my basal is out by just a little, all my mealtime doses and corrections really start to misbehave, and it can be really hard working out what’s what with all the insulins working over the top of each other.

Fasting basal checks are a bit of a faff, but I find I haven‘t have to do a ‘full set’ all that often - once I had it more or less nailed down once, a little gentle tweaking was generally enough every month or so, until things went a bit more out of whack again.

Good luck, keep at it, and let us know how you are getting on.