Lantus vs Humolog

[sugardumplin]

Here is my situation. I am supposed to take insulin every morning or everynight. I do not. Because my sugar might be high when I am off of it, but shortly after I get back on it, it goes low. Maybe a week later. So a week of dedicated insulin in the mornings, causes me to go to the 60's. Which might not be very low to some of you but it is low to me. I get the shakes really bad and I don't feel well. And I don't like it. So, the past three months I have been off and on my insulin. My PCP has told me I need to either be on it or off it. So, I am still getting on and off it at my leisure. :mad: I feel like I am my own doctor and I shouldn't be. So anyways, I think I shouldn't be on Lantus. I think I should be on Humolog. But I am not even really sure of what that is, But I imagine it is something you take right before meals. My sugar level only explodes when I eat something. I wanna be on byetta only cuz I heard the side effects are weight loss. Who doesn't wanna be on something that has a side effect of weight loss. Anyways, your opinions are welcome. My question is this, Has anyone else had trouble staring out on Lantus and then switched to humalog or byetta?

[Simons70]

It would appear to me that you are trying to compare apples, ornges and pears.
Lantus is a long acting insulin. It lasts 24 hours for me.
Humalog or Novolog and short acting insulns, maybe three or at most four hours.
I check my bloodsugar before each meal and take an appropriate amount of Novolog.
At night I check my bs and take Lantus about 9:00 p.m.
We are different in another way and so maybe I should not have answered your post. I am type 1.
Good luck.
simons

[xMenace]

You can reduce your Lantus dose too.

I agree you probably should take it always. That A1C is a disaster waiting to happen. Humalog or Novalog/Novorapid are fast acting and designed to treat food intake. Your Lantus is a basal insulin and is designed to treat sugar released by your liver which it does 24/7.

[princesslinda]

Crystal, I think you'll have some satisfactory answers once you see your endo and find out once and for all whether you are T1 or T2. After this is determined, I feel like they'll know which meds will serve you best. You hang in there...I can imagine how frustrating all this is for you.

[sugardumplin]

I can see it now, I will drive you all crazy with questions....
How am I to know which kind of insulin treatment I should be on? I think I should be on one of those log ones because I only go high with my levels after I eat something.

[Hikeandbike]

Just my opinion, if your sugars are high only after eating then I would assume you should be on a fast acting insulin such as humalog. Assuming further, I would think that your prone to be type 1 but see your endo and have the usually battery of tests to be sure. I do not produce much insulin and am insulin resistant so thus I need a long lasting insulin which is lantus (basal) and a fast acting insulin which is humalog ((Bolus). Even if you are not type 1 but 2 insulin is very effective controling your blood sugars. It is very important to get your basal dose dialed in so you are not chasing highs and lows with your bolus dose.
Rich

[lilituc]

How much Lantus are you taking? It sounds like your dose might be too high.

[sugardumplin]

How much Lantus are you taking? It sounds like your dose might be too high. as of right now, I am not taking any, when I was taking it, I went all the way up to 26 units, then had a low that caused me to get off for a while (personal choice). then my doc made me get back on (10 units in the morning or evening whichever i choose- since i dont want to die in my sleep, i choose morning), which everytime I start to get low, I get off. And then I get high, and I get back on...see the pattern here? :D

[lilituc]

as of right now, I am not taking any, when I was taking it, I went all the way up to 26 units, then had a low that caused me to get off for a while (personal choice). then my doc made me get back on (10 units in the morning or evening whichever i choose- since i dont want to die in my sleep, i choose morning), which everytime I start to get low, I get off. And then I get high, and I get back on...see the pattern here? :D

So you were having lows on 10 units? Were you on any other medications?

[sugardumplin]

So you were having lows on 10 units? Were you on any other medications? yeah, 60. but this is after about a week of taking it every morning like my doc wants me to. i take a lot of stuff right now. septra for urinary tract infection prevention, fish oil/vitamin e, womens daily vitamin, chronium picolinate, actos plus met.

[lilituc]

yeah, 60. but this is after about a week of taking it every morning like my doc wants me to. i take a lot of stuff right now. septra for urinary tract infection prevention, fish oil/vitamin e, womens daily vitamin, chronium picolinate, actos plus met.

Hm, I dunno. Some sulfa drugs can cause lows, plus you're taking metformin and actos, so it's not really clearcut. I was going to say that if 10 units of Lantus is too much, you're probably not Type 2. It sounds it's more complicated than that, though. You're going to see an endo soon, right? I'd ask for a GAD65 and a c-peptide just to see what things are like.

[Hikeandbike]

When you are taking lantus in the a.m. what are your fasting levels?

[sugardumplin]

When you are taking lantus in the a.m. what are your fasting levels? - i bounce up and down between 80-130. no rhyme or reasoning to it. doesnt matter what i ate the night before, it does its own thing. i hate my insides right about now. i think triganometry is easier than this.

[muse]

My doctor told me that sometimes it helps to divide the Lantus dose into two parts, one at bedtime, and one in the morning. That way, you get a more even "spread" and it may help with the extra low lows.

And Lantus is very maleable - my doctor does not like this, but I only take Lantus on the weekends when I go out to eat. The rest of the time, I do no insulin at all, because my blood glucose readings tell me I don't need it. So, testing early and often will also help you. I test 3 times per day, even if it costs me more, because testing is less expensive than the co-morbidities of diabetes.

But what my doctor says is not really the issue. This is something you need to discuss with your doctor. Just lay out the problem, they will help.

Muse

[Hikeandbike]

Hmmm.....maybe a little DP goings on. Like Lilituc said, get a Gad65 and C-peptide to see whats really happening. Maybe a little protien snack before bed might not be bad. Most importantly, don't worry:) , see your endo and keep pluggin away, it will get easier.
Rich

[BlueSky]

... shortly after I get back on it, it goes low. Maybe a week later. So a week of dedicated insulin in the mornings, causes me to go to the 60's. ...
Insulin doesn't do this. Lantus starts working a couple of hours after you inject it, and it is all finished a day later. Something else must be going on to increase your insulin supply and/or make you more sensitive to this insulin. I agree that you need to get clarity on your diagnosis. Discuss it with you endo and insist on being given full information. Good luck. ;)