what would you define as "out of control" control?

[e||ement]

tell me...when or with what numbers would YOU define "out of control" blood sugar?

[foxl]

Fastings or pre-meals consistently (80% or even 50%?) over 120 would upset me.

Or, post prandials over 200 more than once a week would also upset me.

Just off the top of my head, since you asked.

[fgummett]

I would call "out of control" as BG numbers tending to fall outside the normal range most of the time, possibly with wild swings from highs to lows, and without any predictable pattern(s) to rely on.

[sarahspins]

I would call "out of control" as BG numbers tending to fall outside the normal range most of the time, possibly with wild swings from highs to lows, and without any predictable pattern(s) to rely on.

By that definition almost any T1 could be labeled "out of control" at times.

I'm not sure I like that.. I have good days where nothing goes wrong, and #'s are great, and there are bad days, and it's not always in my full control - there's just far more to it than most people realize. Even pumping and wearing a CGM every day is not perfect.. I honestly think it's VERY unrealistic to expect that.. but one should be prepared to handle "anything" that they run into.

Should a diabetic be labeled as being out of control if a bad infusion site leads to a 350+? That can and does happen relatively quickly.. and I don't think many people realize that. What if that type of high is caught quickly and managed it within a few hours.. does that make it different? Who decides? Is it just a blanket "oh, anyone who ever sees 300+ is just a bad diabetic!"

I think there's a fine line between managing your disease well, and being labeled as "controlled" or "uncontrolled"... I really don't like or appreciate the labels.

I think honestly the only situation where I would feel okay describing someone as uncontrolled is when they CHOOSE not to try, or care about what their BG is... but what about someone who is TRYING, yet still struggling.. is that fair? I don't think it is.. because there's just so many variables.

[fgummett]

I meant no offense Sarah :)

I fully expect that if you had a failed infusion site and a 350+ you would know exactly what to do to get your BG back under control... therefore I would say that you *are* in control.

If Subby doesn't mind... it seems from his posts that he is constantly struggling to establish repeatable and dependable control patterns BUT I'd never suggest that he is an uncontrolled D... in large part because he seems to have a reliable toolbox of management techniques/approaches to fall back on.

I agree with your last statement... it is more a state of mind... am I on top of this thing (even if it at times it is a twisting, squirming, unpredictable beast) or have I given over my control to the beast.

[inkvisitor]

Yeah, I would define out of control as behavior more than numbers. Not testing and correcting/making adjustments.

Numbers can be all over the place but if you are at least checking them often to know this, and making necessary adjustments, then you are controlling it.

[TommyC1]

I'm always in control.

If I gave up, (sometimes it's quite tempting) if I slid back into serious denial and didn't do what I could to maintain, then I'd be out of control.

But sometimes my control is better than other times.

I happy with my control when my fastings are between 70 and 120 and my 2 hr post meals are below 140 and I'm not going low. If I get all three for a week I have a party!
Mostly I just go one day at a time and try not to think of all the parties I didn't have.

[rak1978]

I have felt very "out of control" lately. Not for lack of trying though. It just feels like I'm in a war with my body. For me, out of control means that I cannot get my blood sugars stable regardless of my efforts. Here are my readings from yesterday....141,184,121,192,55,274,137. For a while now, I've been fluctuating between the mid 50's to the high 200's on a daily basis, with extremes of 35-400. I would define this as out of control. Ahhhhh...
This is a case of the disease controlling me, not me controlling the disease. Out of control! Just venting.:(

[rostkowb]

With my present situation, my sugars are slightly below normal. Due to an unpredictable environment and complications, I am having difficulties but adjusting as recommended. Since my insulin change (Humilin to Humalog/Lantus) it is going to take some time for me to recognize the new set of symptoms during hypos and hypers. Humilin was more predictable but took longer to act. Example, a high blood sugar would be countered with one dose. By the time the sugars went back down, it was 3 to 5 hours easy! I would also counter that with some physical activity to help decrease time for sugars to get back to normal.
But as posted above, there are many variables that play with this. It all depends on the situation a diabetic is in at that specific time. How I manage (control) my sugars is be as proactive as possible....keeping all supplies at hand in all situations and administering them accordingly to sugar readings! Is this considered in control?