i have asked a gazillion questions about basal and bolus, but heres one more. i lowered my basal dose cuz it was a bit too high, but the way i was used to it-as acidrock says, running it hot. anyway, now im on two units less. now i cant eat ANYTHING without a shot of bolus-still 1 unit for 30 gr of carbs.
my question is, is this how its supposed to be? if youre dose is set right, are you unable to eat anything without a bs rise? am i doing this right?
Yes, once out of the honeymoon, most of us do need bolus to cover food. My guess is you were covering some of your food with your basal which is not the most efficient way to go.
You said your basal was a bit too high and "now im on two units less"-
That is a lot of less in my world...maybe you lowered it too much. When I do adjustments I start small rather than extreme changes.
Yeah, that's set perfectly. If you're eating without bolusing, I think your basal can go down a notch. I have been stunned by how responsive my BG is to the most miniscule changes in dosing, the .025/U basal adjustments will produce significant changes in me, and I'm still like 190ish lbs, not exactly dainty!
A correct basal would have nothing to do with your bolus for eating. If your basal dose is set right, you would not even need to eat at all and your bg would be in your preferred range.
I am unable to eat anything without a bg rise, if I don't bolus for those eats.
I don't know if you are doing this right or not, but I would have some real trouble if I lowered my basal 2 units...it would likely cause my entire TDD to increase from corrections.
Just reiterating what others have said - I used to have my basal set a tad high, and could get away with bits of carbs here and there without blousing. It wasn’t until I did some basal testing that I realized my levels were off. It took some getting used to, having to bolus for absolutely everything - I’d gotten away with being lazy, having higher basal levels than I needed. Just took being more mindful of all the bites I took!
If your basal is about right you shouldn't be able to eat too many carbs without a bolus. But I can sneak in a small piece of dark chocolate (2 carbs with a lot of fat) and just ride out the 10 point rise. I also don't worry about a small handful of almonds or a piece of cheese. If I'm running a little on the low side, I'll eat a green salad without any bolus and figure that I'll gradually creep up to around 100-120. It's a game of inches.
i have been t1 for like a year and a half and spent a long time in honeymoon i think, or im lada, and i guess i have been really lazy, depending on the basal to get me thru. my timetable for work and exercise makes it a bit difficult to bolus for lunch, so i guess its time to start being hungry again....thanks for the info.
The only thing I can eat without bolusing is a hard boiled egg white.
Sounds like you have it about right. Basal and bolus insulin serve entirely separate and distinct purposes. Basal insulin is intended to keep your BG stable in the fasting state. Bolus insulin is meant to counteract the BG rise that comes from food. So if your fasting BG is where it belongs, but you need bolus insulin when you eat, then things are working as they are meant to.
its so ridiculous that it took me like a year and a half to get this right and also to REALIZE only when i had this right that this was SUPPOSED to be like this! a little slow here...so now i can cycle home from work (about 25 minutes) and my bg hardly moves-thats pretty awesome-better than being low every evening! not so cool to not be able to stuff my face with carbs.