Question for ladies on the pump

[cheryl]

I just got over my period last week, and also the same time is when my grandmother passed away, but still my bgs are wacked out from here to next Tuesday.......

Every month they are so I what I have been doing is just taking one to two units of humalog when i have my friend and have to eat low carby and i hate that because you know you are hungry when you got your period it bites....I know I could of rose the lantus but it seemed my levels stayed normal at night and then the rise all day long if that makes any sense.

So my question is should i screw around with the basal rates when i have my period or the bolus, cause now I can set a temp basal for so many hours and then have it go back to normal for night time.....I really do think it is my basals because I starved myself a few times already when I am on my period and the levels do go up and how much of an increase do any of you do?


Cheryll

[GrammyByer]

Hi!
I think that you should set a pattern A basal rate for when you have your period. Talk it over with your endo - perhaps increasing each basal by .1 or so will do the trick.

[LancetChick]

Monthly hormones increase insulin resistance, sometimes by a LOT, so you need to increase both basal and bolus. It varies with me, which is a pain, but some people really are able to have an A and B basal rate. If you don't increase your basal, you end up chasing highs with "a unit here and there" until the cows come home, and you still end up high. Hormones need to be ambushed.

[RLK]

I increase both, and actually use about 4 different basal rate profiles and bolus ratios over the course of a month. I just keep adjusting things upwards by 0.05 or 0.1 unit/hour at a time until I get "normal" BGs. It's taken alot of trial and error and rate testing, and being on the pill again has made things more predictable, but it's been worth it to have better numbers.
Cheryl, you commented about having to low-carb because of hormones- have you tried taking your bolus 15-20 minutes before you eat? I spike like crazy after meals when the hormones get involved, and pre-bolusing has really helped me have normal numbers after eating. Just something that you might try....
Good luck!

[xMenace]

Document as well as you can. You may have different needs each time: some months a 10% increase and others a 100%. I suggest that the first day should indicate how the whole period will behave, but test often.

[camjen1]

I don't see a big difference when my friend is in town but I think it wouldn't hurt to have pattern A set to those few days when we are such a joy to be around. :D

[Emm]

I'm not on the pump, but I increase my Lantus by just one unit a day - I split my Lantus and just take that extra unit in the morning.

I do need more novorapid for a few days too, but I've never taken the time to work out how much more... I jab more because I eat more too, so it'd be a tricky thing to work out - especially when hormones are all over the place and I'm a bit less inclined to work things out!

Exercise makes a big difference to me with a period - settles BGs down as well as making my PMT symptoms a lot better.

[cheryl]

Thanks you all, I figured as much to do something when I was on the dreaded 22 units of Lantus, I would still have to take an extra unit of humalog when I was on my period, From what I was noticing about my trend atleast with lantus, is that it will keep me stable at night, like when I have my period, I stay level, but then when I wake up that is it, I am going high.......so I figured when I am on the pump I would start upping the basal, and what not during the day, I already keep track when I am lazy I need to probably have 2 extra units of Lantus for the day so that would be a 10% increase, I have paying attention to everything so I know around where I would set basal patterns but my period I am at a loss..............and the one saying is right hormones need to go totally insulin resistant and it sucks...

Cheryl