largest alc drop

[carolyn]

What is the largest drop in your a1c between 2 visits? I'm due mine in the next few weeks. It was 11.4 last December. I've been trying very hard and I am nervous about test. Carolyn

[KCP]

My largest drop was from 13.4 to 6.9. I switched from Premixed to protophane and rapid. worked a treat.. :D

[Eddy]

At DX: 12.9%
4 mo later: 5.3%

It took lots of monitoring, some experimentation, and a few scary hypos to pull off. (I'd felt so miserable pre-DX, and so much better when I experienced normal BG numbers again, that I attacked my values _very_ aggressively. Not everyone agrees with that approach.)

The second 5.3% was easier. Now I've cut back on testing, from 15x/day to 9x/day average; I've yet to see how much that affects my control.

With your next test coming in a couple weeks, you'll have some of the "old" values (that contributed to the 11.4) included in the "new" as well.

It sounds as if your BG is averaging 18.5 or so. Granted, everyone is different... but I find that it's harder to bring down and stabilize a bad week than it is to stay in control during a good run.

IOW, although good numbers are important, I'd argue that consistency comes first. If you're having huge swings, worry about those before A1c. If you're not having wild ranges, congratulate yourself on that. :) Then move on to the next battle.

Good luck, hang in there, and keep us posted.

Oh, and try not to worry about the A1c. I've gotten nervous before the past couple A1c tests, and ended up having bad 10-day runs immediately prior to each. Feh.

[David_S]

over 14 at diagnosis and 6.2 after a few months

[wiseguy]

14.4 at diagnosis and 5.3 three months later.

[shabbie]

hi carolyn,

i know you have worked hard at trying to acheive better numbers, i beleive it will pay off this time for you ;)

[Emm]

I never had anything dramatic... my a1c was somewhere around 9 when diagnosed and it took me ages to get it below 7. I now sit around 6.1 - 6.3, thanks to Lantus and the information I've picked up in forums / blogs!

Good luck - let us know how it goes! Feels like a big exam eh? I hate the few days before my A1c- my BGs always seem to go nutsy high in those few days!