Switching from lantus to levemir has been quite a bumpy ride. I find myself spiking even with a split dose. Some days are good though, others not so much. I was only taking 22 units of lantus which worked okay, now on levemir i have to take like 20 in the AM and 15 at night. Is it normal to need to increase insulin dose when switching from lantus to levemir, or is it the timing that i need to tweak??
Hi andrea. When I switched from Lantus to Levemir, I needed the exact same amount. I don’t think that I can offer any suggestion other than to discuss this problem with your doctor.
I tried Levemir and even at more than 3X the dose of Lantus I had been taking I couldn’t make it work for me… I switched back to my regular dose of Lantus after about 3 weeks and everything was fine again. I know I didn’t have a bad lot, as I used Lev from two different batches.
I felt throughout my trial that I was constantly chasing highs caused by not enough basal insulin… for whatever reason Levemir just didn’t work well for me and I wasn’t willing to keep increasing the dosage to make it work - my control over that time was horrible. My endo seemed to suggest that there is a small percentage of people who just can’t use it because it doesn’t work… and there are some who need bigger doses than other insulins, and there are others who notice no change in amount at all.
I’m pretty much a diabetic “dummy,” which is why I come to TuD to learn, learn learn. All I can tell you is that when I switched from Lantus to Levemir I felt a whole lot better right away. I don’t know why, but the levemir just “felt” less “harsh,” and to me it also doesn’t sting like the lantus did or give me huge painful red bumps at injection site. I was on 16 units lantus once a day, now 9 units levemir every 12 hours.
I also use Novolog. My endo said be careful not to let the Lev and the Nov “mix” together because they can cancel each other out, so I don’t inject Nov near where I inject Lev. I use the left side of my body for my Lev and my right side for the Nov. I have no idea if my doc is right, just passing on what he said.
Best to you, Gina
Hi Andrea - I was on Lantus then got switched to Levemir to try to fix hypos. The night-time hypos went away but Levemir gave me a bigger problem: it was totally inadequate for my early morning needs. On Lantus I usually woke up at 80-100; on Levemir, it was 120-140. I also had to take twice the amount of Levemir compared to Lantus.
Levemir made me so unhappy and insecure that I came up with a new meaning for the word Levemir:
‘leve’ from French ‘élever’, to elevate
’mir’ - from the German, first person dative, meaning ‘to me’
That’s how rotten I felt with the morning highs.
In the end I couldn’t take it anymore and went back to Lantus.
But I know other people who are perfectly happy on Levemir. There is no ‘correct’ way of doing things. You aren’t doing anything wrong, you just need to experiment and find out what is right for you. It’s just a question of working out which insulin works better for you, and in what dosage. Good luck!
yeah i think i may be in that small percent of people. my lantus control was pretty good, i switched because i thought it may have been holding me back from weight loss. i exercise, eat extremely low carb and with lantus i felt a constant bloat. the levemir has been helpful in that sense…i do find to be less bloated, but i know that blood sugar control is more important. any advice in that department?
I am like you. I recently switched from Lantus to Levemir and I have noticed I needed more. I feel like my burns it quicker if that makes sense. I was on Lantus for 3 years and I was ALWAYS bloated and retained water like crazy. Since switching I have notice a instant change with all that, I can see my collar bone again, lol. So in my case I would rather just take a lil more insulin that has fewer side effects…
If there was no reason why you switched then consider switching back if you want to take less…
i am so glad to see this comment, Rye! I switched mostly for the weight loss. I eat healthy and exercise i only need to lose a few more pounds, increasing lantus always caused more bloat and gain for me. i will increase my levemir but will that too lead to weight gain? what is your experience?
I have noticed that even though I take more Levemir it hasnt increased my weight. I have a small upper frame and no matter how big I ever got I could always see my collarbone, well while on Lantus I couldnt and since switching my collarbone had re-appeared. Also on Lantus I would gain like 4 pounds in a day and once I gained like 12 pounds over two weeks! It eventually came off but then it would do it again, it was so frustrating. I know doctors swear by its what your eating but I dont believe that. I know I had more side effects on Lantus, my body never retained fluids like that before I was on it and its not doing it since getting off of it…For me its worth taking more insulin that has fewer side effects
I would try it out as a trail period to see how it effects you. If by your next doctor visit its no difference between the two then go back to Lantus to take fewer dosage.
thanks so much. i think i may need to take 20 units am and 20 units pm while lantus was only like 20 units total. but i am willing to try. what are your levemir doses and do they fluctuate?
I found that although Levemir was a lot flatter for me than Lantus, it did not last 12 hours for me. I actually take mine 3 times a day – every 8 hours instead of twice a day. I know Trudy also takes hers 3 times a day and I know another non-TuD person that does 3 a day also. The more you take, the longer it will last. Part of the reason why you need more is it is not lasting for you. I know from doing basal testing, mine lasts a little of 7 hours. I fill in the gaps with fast acting. I do my basal testing for 24 hours and get a pretty flat line doing the 3 shots.
Did you use one or two shots of levemir per day?
Could you provide more info about the time of injection and the reason for using uneven dosages for day and night?