OK, this has never happened before. I woke up with a bg of 86, ate 22g of carbs with no insulin. Two hours later my meter said 373. More checks gave me 149, 182, 165 after a battery change, and 202 on a different meter. I feel slightly hypo. Help?.
Sometimes I could swear I am hypo to only check and be high you may be experiencing the same thing. Most of your readings are in the same range other than the random 373. A lot of times I can check back to back and get two different answers usually within about 20mg of eachother.
Thanks Lil. I’m going to an intro to pump class tomorrow, hopefully I’ll straighten out my wildly varying bg. I think until I get my pump I need to treat for how I feel, not what the meter says!
Did you wash your hands befoe you tested? I know that I have made that mistake before and when I described the situation to my CDE, she asked if I had washed my hands. So when it happened the next time, I washed my hands and tested only to find out she was correct. I had just made a snack for my son. I realized just how important it is to test always on clean fingers.
I have, on occasion, had a totally out-of-range BG on my meter. I then test again, and if the second test is way off from the first, I test a third time, just like you did. The 149, 182 and 165 are not all that far off from each other, and given the lack of accuracy of meters (plus or minus 20%), give you a rough idea of where your BG is. You NEVER get an absolutely accurate reading from a home meter. But your BG was probably around 165, which was the middle reading you got. (You could average them, but I’m too lazy!)
Feeling hypo depends on where your BGs have been. If you’ve been running in the 300’s, then a 165 would feel low. But if you’ve been running in more or less normal ranges, then it shouldn’t feel low. Except that for me, sometimes I feel low when I’m actually just hungry, or for no reason at all. If treating made you feel better, then good, except that you would then need to watch to make sure you didn’t go too high.
Nobody ever said diabetes would be easy!!
why in the world did you eat 22 grams of carbs with no insulin when you woke up with normal blood sugar? 86 is not a hypo.
Easy? HAHA! I find that I feel hypo if I go under 90. If I feel hypo and bg is normal/high, it means I’m crashing. This is one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. harder than my breast cancer. I’m tired of having to not drive cause I’m lightheaded for hours after a hypo, tired of crying all the time (I’m usually not a cryer), tired of doing what I’m supposed to do and still not having good results.
Tomorrow I go for intro to pump class, hoping I choose well and can get things under control.
Barbara
Good thought Christine, thanks. I don’t remember if I did.
ok before you respond i’ll preface this by apologizing if this came off as insensitive. i think that it’s a good idea to lower your fasting/baseline BG level so that you are comfortable in the 70s and 80s, because i think a lot of the best-controlled diabetics spend a lot of time there. this will obviously take time but will be well worth it if you can get there.
Well, I hope the pump will help, but it’s a lot of work, and not a miracle machine. I’m guessing, from what you said, that your BGs are all over the place. First priority is to regulate – follow a routine, and eat similar amounts of carbs for each meal, and log your BGs to find patterns. The pump won’t help if you don’t know your patterns. You need to figure out what your basal needs are (the class will help, but a lot of the work is up to you). The goal is to level out your fasting BGs and then find out how much insulin you need for carbs and how much you need for corrections. You can’t do that when you’re bouncing around.
I sure hope you have a good doc and CDE to help you. I’ve been on the pump for 12 years, and I love it, but it’s no picnic, either. Best of luck to you!
I don’t expect the pump to be easy, or without a lot of work. Yes, tg I have an awesome doc and CDE. Didn’t mean to imply that it would ‘fix’ everything magically. I need to stop posting when I’m so frustrated, sorry.
My target bg is 120, my i:c ratio is 1:11
well, there’s your real problem. highs are inevitable when your target BG is so high. i’d aim for something like 80-110 and i think most others in the forum would agree. you shouldn’t accept a target of 120 just because a doctor told you that’s where it should be, and a pump isn’t going to do anything for you if you don’t keep your fasting BG low.
A pump would do a world of good for you. YOU will have more control of your life than your diabetes dictating it. Changing to the pump will make your day so much more flexible and many of the goals much more achievable with minimizing lows or slowing down the onset of lows so you can catch them before it’s too far gone. It can be a little overwhelming in the beginning, but keep at it and use your manuals, DVDs and the customer service with the pump company. It will eventually feel normal and easier. And don’t apologize for your feelings. This is the place to let them flow without worry. Good luck!
Forgot to mention that a better fasting glucose can be obtained by being better able to target the hours at night that might be causing a rise in the fasting ones…different basals for different times. It’s great!!!
I’ll second ultravires - 86 isn’t a hypo. 86 is a perfectly normal fasting BG. Why do you have your target set at 120? That’s a fab post-meal number but high for a fasting number!
Also, be aware that lotions can affect your bg readings.