Hi, I’m trying to tweek my pump myself to get a better knowledge of how things work. I’ve been having low BS between 12:00 a.m. and 3:00 a.m. and my basal is already set at .05. Other than not giving anything at all I cannot go lower. Do I need to change my ratio etc…? Just not sure. I’m getting better control, just not the overnight.
Here are my current settings:
12:00 a.m. - .05 (this is the setting that cannot really go lower and not sure what to change, I cannot change in lesser rates than .05 or 1 units)
4:00 a.m. - .65 (It seems that I have a bit of a dawn effect here)
7:30 a.m. - .95
2:00 p.m. - .50
Carb Ratio 12:00 a.m. - 20
6:00 a.m. - 15
Sensitivity - 50
Target 100
I appreciate any advice or help you may be able to give.
Can you change the ratio before 12am? Lower it starting at 10pm? That way you are getting less the 2 hours before midnight and might avoid some of those lows.
I agree with Kari, what’s your ratio before you turn it down @ midnight? Is it closer to your DP adjustment? I have a bump before I get up too but only like .15U/ hour. I think that if you turn it down earlier but maybe not quite as much it might smooth things out? Like calculate your total dose between say 9:00 PM and 4:00 am and split it up more evenly? If you have a higher rate to cover dinner/ nighttime snacking, you will have “Basal On Board” or perhaps bolus leftovers that might be causing the lows? Getting rid of that stray insulin might be very helpful!
It also occurs to me that if you are turning into a pumpkin at midnight, we should call this “The Cinderella Syndrome”!
Thank you. I had thought about lowering my basal rate around 10:00 p.m., but didn’t know for sure. My ratios are set at 12:00 a.m. 20 AND 6:00 a.m. 15. My lows are closer to midnight, 2 or 3 a.m. I really appreciate the support. The Cinderella Syndrome is cute, but I’m tired of turning into a pumpkin. I want to be the princess where my sugars are the glass slippers. I will try the 10 p.m. change and see how it goes. Thank you for the encouragement and insight!
it actually seems like you don’t need that carb ratio at 12am unless you are eating that late on a regular basis. That really shouldn’t affect overnight. I think I would try lowering the carb ratio earlier because you might be getting too much insulin with anything you eat later on in the day and are not feeling the effects untill you hours later. That happened to me sometimes. My pump trainer thinks that I am overcompensating my lower basal with too much insulin at meals and that causes some problems for me overnight. I am actually on a sensor for the weekend to try to figure that out. If things get to funky I always try to get into my trainer for help. If you can’t figure this out with your endo or on your own I would get into your trainer asap.
