**** Honeymoon

[DarthDiabetes]

So I know it has only been a month or so since DX: but really....I need to find a way to deal with the honeymoon better. Sure I take only a sniff of insulin ( 1 novo at meals if eating 45+ carbs, 0 at meals if low and or planning a run afterwards, 1 lantus at 9pm ) but nothing is ever static, same meal can result in a swing of 50 or more.....

I know I am complaining here, but I really am a details guy....just want a carb ratio that works....not this all over the board, sometimes pancreas helps sometimes it does not....

rant over.

[Jamison]

I was diagnosed a month ago too (2/3/08). Right from the beginning, I was assigned 1 unit of Novolog for every 15 carbs. I take 15 units of Lantus before bed every night. My blood sugars have been pretty normal, i guess soon I will get an A1C test and I would guess it should be in the 4% area.

[betty6333]

hi, my son is currently having some of the same issues..... everyone tells me that it is not going to get stable as far as something that won't change for a few months and that we have to deal with.... per chance you find a way to figure out the workings of the pancreas let us know....... he was very stable for a month or so and then we have gone to having to give incredibly small doses for large amts of carbs or he would drop under 60 very fast. good luck
!

[morrisma]

The honeymoon can be very unpredictable and because the beta cells are working better sometimes and worse at others it can be very frustrating. One possibility is to eat the same thing every day for a few days (oatmeal, tuna sandwich, gardenburger, plus veges anytime) and test rigorously to see how those foods work with you. Then try another menu for a few days. Repeat until you find the patterns. Boring but useful. I'm sure there will be other suggestions.
Mike

[Stuboy]

you think your A1c will be in the 4% area???? Just how low are your sugars most of the time??? Most of us have to work really hard just to get a 6%!

You will never have consistancy with this disease, that's something you will have to get used to. It will take years to understand all the foods you eat and how they affect you at different times of the year, difference temperatures, stress levels and all sorts, there are so many factors that can go into how much insulin you need for how many carbs. Its not gonna be 1 ratio fixed for the rest of your life, constant changes need to be made to keep tight control.

It's test test test. You might try logging your BS, carb intake and insulin, this i guarantee will help you gain better control.. simply for the fact that you always know what's going on and you can make fine adjustments based on your results, it also gives you the ability to look back and see what insulin you took last time for a particular meal and how it affected you, then make any adjustments that might be needed.

Good luck...

[DarthDiabetes]

It is just slightly easier for me now, most probably because I am just getting used to the whole darn thing more. It sucks by the way, as much as I know I can do all this ****, it still sucks.

Averaging probably 13-15 tests a day, working my running back into my life as well. Amazing how much 22 minute 3 mile run can have on blood sugar.

I read a lot here, thanks for all the topics.

[UpNorth]

It gets easier and more predictable once the honeymoon is over... My honeymoon was **** and it was a relief when i finally had to do everything on my own, knowing that X units will cover Y grams of carbs or correct me with a certain numbers... During my honeymoon i could go from 15mmol/l to 3mmol/l in an hour because i had injected insulin to cover a meal and correct the high, but then my pancreas decided to splurt out some insulin too:mad: That was a pain in the *** to put it mildly...

[thomasb]

i do think i'm still honeymooning after 15 months with the d. Like upnorth i can drop from 10 to 2 in an hour sometimes. And i'm still on a total daily dose of around 9 units. try creating a eating plan and eat the same things, it helps me. also, i do low carb usually, it's just easier to control...

[dbc]

i do think i'm still honeymooning after 15 months with the d. Like upnorth i can drop from 10 to 2 in an hour sometimes. And i'm still on a total daily dose of around 9 units. try creating a eating plan and eat the same things, it helps me. also, i do low carb usually, it's just easier to control...


Ditto I'm with Thomasb & UpNorth. ALthough it nice most of the time to have a partially functioning pancreas, when it goes in fits and starts (which it's doing right now, 4 hypos in the last 3 days), I almost wish it'd finally pack up :(

And low carbing is the only way (for me) to get some stability.

[DarthDiabetes]

When you say low carbing you mean?
I ask because I have been making adjustments for certain, always way less then before, but currently to take 1 unit of novolog I don't have to limit carbs, I have to make sure I eat at least 35-40 or I will just go way low 2 hours later. If I don't take the 1 unit, well then I will spike over 200....shrug

[UpNorth]

It was such a relief when my honeymoon ended, and it only lasted for a month or 2, can't really remember LOL I find it so much easier to be in total control instead of partly relying on something you can't know if it's gonna work or not...

[dbc]

When you say low carbing you mean?
I ask because I have been making adjustments for certain, always way less then before, but currently to take 1 unit of novolog I don't have to limit carbs, I have to make sure I eat at least 35-40 or I will just go way low 2 hours later. If I don't take the 1 unit, well then I will spike over 200....shrug

Less than say 50 carbs total per day. Lots of salads & green veg, moderate yellow veg, no potato/rice/bread/pasta, lots of protein - meat, cheese, and go easy on the fruit.

The above is the norm, but I do allow myself the occasional treat - like 2 slices low-GI bread/toast, or small serving icecream. But at the moment it's difficult to know how much apidra to use for these as the pancreas sometimes kicks in, sometimes doesn't :confused:

[soso]

I am still in honeymoon phase, almost 4 years from dx. I started off on very low carb (ala bernstein <30g per day) lots of exercise...
as I began insulin I upped my carbs to 60-100 per day, still did a fair whack of exercise but not to the same intensity. Although I have seen my own production go down down down, I still have some left and I am trying to eke it out as it has been shown that c-peptide(byproduct of our own insulin production) has a protective role within the body.
It is as been pointed out an upsy downsy life and constant vigilance is the way of it....
one thing I do to avoid the highs to very low syndrome is, if I am eating something a bit unknown or going to be doing some exercise that might cause me to tank is that I take a bit less insulin than I think I need (say 3u instead of 4) and then test at 75 mins and give a little more if I think my bg is climbing too high...more shots, but this has saved me from lows many times...esp as I do a lot of hilly hikes, which can be murder ... sometimes my bg will stay perfect during the hike and then climb when Iam done, so sometimes that extra unit has to be given at 3 hrs pp even.

[Dimes]

I think I am still in honeymoon after 4 months, but in the last couple days I have had trouble keeping below 7.. so I upped my insulin at lunch.. and wouldn't you know it.. I'm in hypo city! Guess my honeymoon decided to kick in today.. Sorry for venting in your thread.