First time basal (Lantus), 2 units – how fast /how much should I be dropping?

Treatment Insulin
1

Hey all,

I ve finally taking the "plunge". I m a LADA with some left-over beta cell function, so far I managed ok just with low carbing and small amounts of bolus.
But for the last three days I ve been battling a cold and found it very hard to ever get lower than 140mg/dl. This is also my fasting BG now)
Even when I havent been eating for hours my numbers would steadily climb back up to 140/150 after the bolus wore off.
I read that as a clear sign that I wasnt producing sufficient basal insulin anymore (also since I m sick and not moving around much my numbers are higher I presume), so I injected 2 units of basal (lantus) at 8 o clock pm.
I measured just before I injected and was 130.

Now only two hours later I m down to 94.
I have absolutely no feeling yet about how basal insulins like lantus work but I am a little weirded out by this "fast drop". Obviously I cannot keep dropping at this rate or clearly my dose was too high...but then again I injected only 2 units. So is it normal that lantus first drops your numbers significantly but then "levels out"?

Should I be waiting it out and keep measuring to get a clear picture what the lantus is doing without any interference or have dinner without a bolus?

At what number should I be treating and if so, should I just treat with fast carbs (glucose) or something that lasts longer?

How fast does lantus drop you and could it be estimated by how much 2 units would lower the BG on average?

Thank you for your feedback!

julez

2

lantus has a little kick but it's supposed to keep you stable - it may kick in and drop you a bit, especially if you still have some beta cell function. i started out with only 2 units too. did your endo rx this lantus regime? were you advised to take before bed? what did you wake up to this morning, how's it working today? you said you took it at 8pm but your post is from today at 2pm, so i'm not sure about the times here?

3

I wouldn't expect the Lantus to take you down much more than 35 points and I certainly don't think it will take you below 70. Of course, you'll find out soon enough. If the lantus takes you a little low (between 65 and 70) you might take one glucose tab and a couple of carbs worth of something more substantial like unsweetened Greek yougurt. If you find yourself dropping quickly and/or hitting the high 50s, I would suggest treating with glucose tabs.

4

oh i m in Europe, Germany – so this is very very recent information ;)
I literally took it 3 hours ago now. It is 10.30 pm here right now, so I my first fasting on lantus will be tomorrow morning...

5

Lantus is pretty forgiving. Just starting with a tiny dose like two units is a good idea. Best to adjust dose based on your fasting numbers if you take it in the evening. I started taking lantus again recently when I was sick too… It helped for that time then I’ve been able t taper off back to zero again now