So today is a dreaded day for most of us, So today I started off my day with a whole grain waffle and sugar free jelly, plus my 8 units of levimer,went to my Thanksgiving with family had two plates turkey vege sweet potatoes and mashed one roll and half a pumpkin chocalate cookie. maple sryrup in the gravy even My family doesn’t cater to my condition being that It;s new even to me 7 months type 1. I hang out for a hour and a half after get my stuff together to leave check my sugars and I’m 80 go in drink 3-4 ounces o j before my drive home get home still feel a little low and ate some more sweets and juice. Check mt b s again 130. wtf! ??
It’s days like today I’ve had in the past that make me feel like I could have been miss diagnosed I’m over that theory now, after talking to a few Dr. and having them tell me even the 8-12 units i take would make any normal person sick so now I’m begining to think I’m a brittle diabetic maybe? I have yet to see a endo cause i dont have any insurance but working on it and it looks promising. Today is just one of those day’s I’m completely dumb founded. So any help or sugestions would be much appreciated, thank you and hope your holiday was fantastic !
Sounds like honeymooning. I was dx’ed about 2 1/2 years ago and still once in awhile spit out some of my own insulin. LOL A study done on type 1’s with over 50 years and no or little complications. It showed that even after 50 years some still made some insulin. A member, Richard V. was part of the study if I remember right. Don’t think he made insulin.
Are you just taking Levemir? Rapid acting insulin before meals?
You’re not a brittle diabetic. The honeymoon phase can be difficult when you’re producing some insulin. It’s sporadic & frustrating.
Did you test when you got home to know you were low? It’s important to learn how to treat lows without overdoing it. Basically, you need to learn how much 1 gram of fast acting glucose raises BG. It’s trial & error. The next time you’re low (not really low, just slightly low) eat something that has 1 gram of glucose. I use jelly beans because each one is 1 gram sugar. Test after 30 minutes to see how many points it raised you. Test again in an hour. Do it between meals when you have no food & no insulin, other than Levemir, in your system. Do this experiment several times & you’ll know how much you need.
For bad lows, eat some protein after the glucose correction is starting to work. The protein will help keep you level.
Hope you get insurance!
Hey Dannyboy…hope today is better. I don’t believe your a brittle diabetic. Like you when I was first dx’d I was taking about 12 units of Lanuts a day and just really controlling my carb intake, then after about 3 months I had one of those moments you just described! Figured I was misdiagnosed also…so I stop taking my Lantus and wanted to see what would happen (I’m not recommending this) and called my endo and let the nurse know that I think they are wrong. First day after I stop all seemed well, numbers were good and I got excited, but I only at about 20 carbs a meal. Day two, numbers were still pretty good. By day three I was over 200 and climbing and broke down to taking that shot that I didn’t want to take!!! I was so pissed that the doc was right and I was wrong! My endo explained that there is a carry over or residue effect from the Lantus that is why she thinks I did not go up that first day and that my body was still producing a little bit of insulin. I know where you are coming from as there were days that I had to eat in order to keep from going low, especially when I was doing physical activity. I can’t help but think you are in the honeymoon stage as they call it where your body is still making some insulin at times. I am thankful for one thing and that it seems I am very insulin sensitive so it doesn’t take much for me control my Bg’s. But like you I would struggle at times at the beginning when using a long acting insulin, as you can’t turn it off once it was in you. I’ve since went to shots with fast acting and now am on a pump and don’t really think about this stuff anymore as it is now just a part of my life. I don’t know what more to tell you other than this sucks and I know where you’re coming from but I can tell you this…It will get better and you will figure this out where it will not consume your day!!! Best of luck and I hope you get insurance soon and an Endo can be a big help! There are a lot of people here that can help answer your questions and I will help in anyway I can. Take Care ~Schmutz
stress for the majority of d’s raises their bg…but for me i plummet. could you have been having a stress response? (family totally stresses me out)
make a note of it in your log. then the next time you are having serial lows take note of stress level. it might be that you too have that response.
I have 30 years experience being diabetic type 1 and I came running down here to my computer to put in a comment that I am certain most diabetics are being made FAT by far too high an amount of insulin being taken…and your message was the first I clicked on and I see that you have been told something “inappropriate” by your doctor…
What do you mean that amount would make someone “sick”??? Obviously you are saying the doctor was implying that 8 to 12 units was a very low amount, as if huge amounts were normal and that the majority of patients he/she treats are taking quite a bit more and that they would feel sick if they took that little….right?
Well, take it from a person like me who has 30 years experience of being a type 1 and I say that 20u daily is too much for me and that 15u for my size body, which used to be my average, for years, is better and that you are being advised poorly. That means that you are being told to take what I have taken and I am totally dependent. So, it is not a small amount. However, I do know that Levemir seems to require more. I take Lantus.
Your doctor is making comparisons to amounts taken by patients who have developed serious insulin resistance and who may be twice your body weight.
Use me as a better example. I’ve been type 1 for 30 years and I know from my c-peptide test that I am 100% dependent on insulin. My range of insulin is 4 to 20 units daily and when I have taken more in the past year, hoping it would result in more energy, all it did was make me gain weight. If I were more active, 12u would be my total daily, so it is not too little. It is actually probably a wise maximum amount for a person my size in order to stay slim. I take 100% of my insulin needs. And when I am very active I drop the insulin level to 50%. So, I totally disagree with your doctor that 8-12u is “little.” In reality it should be my maximum, when I’m active, and I am 100% dependent. So I think your doctor has experience with the type 2 population of diabetics. I would say that your doctor is comparing you to the wrong group. Does he/she treat people who are 250 lbs?
I think what Danny meant was in reference to him believing he was misdiagnosed. His doctor assured him that he was a person with diabetes because 8-12 units of insulin would make a " normal person sick," which indeed it would.
I agree, this is related to honeymooning. My numbers were so low for awhile initially that I thought I didn’t actually have diabetes. My doctor had to point out that my bs was great WITH insulin…even though it was only 7 units/day, it made all the difference.
Your numbers from yesterday were great, try to enjoy them if you can! Brittle diabetes doesn’t really exist. What you are experiencing seems very normal for a new T1. Just check your blood sugar often and enjoy those beautiful numbers you are seeing.
wow thanks so much for all the support !!! it’s a huge relief to get information from everyone, thank god for all of you and the internet ( its been my doctor for the most part) anyhow thanks again i cant express how much getting info from others helps. Did any of you feel rather fatigued ??
Are you not getting deep green vegetables?
Do you have to cook for yourself and so rely on soup and sandwiches?
Are you taking high quality supplements?
Possibly you avoid red meat because it is too much trouble to prepare.
Please don’t consider an all beef hot dog as red meat. I once flinched when a study gave bad ratings to health outcomes and blamed it on red meat, but they had included deli meats and forgotten that if people eat at fast food places, the results that are bad have more to do with the carbs and fries eaten at the same time.
I do eat lean cooked red beef almost daily and have used a George Foreman slanted grill that is still working with 7 years use. I only recommend the one with removable plates to make cleaning super simple.
Getting to like low sodium V8 juice to have a 1.89 litre container in the fridge available even for low blood sugar reactions, means that I get the vegetables without needing to be a cook.
Your range there isn’t that bad. Smart idea to have a little carb before driving at 80. The 130 isn’t that bad given the carb bomb that juice tends to be. “Brittle” is a word that has pretty much gone out of use in the diabetes field. If you had gone from 80 to 300, that would be a concern. If you are a recent diagnosis, and 7 months is pretty recent, you are probably still producing some viable insulin. Until things settle down, it’s a good idea to check frequently. If you are uninsured that may be a bit cost prohibitive. I hope you can get into see an endo fairly soon. (I can’t fathom that in this country we have people who are kept out of the health care they need because of insurance. I wish you all the best.)