what is ratio since getting a pump

christie · #1 (**permalink**) 05-01-2006, 09:20 AM

i am t1 since 1983 and i'm on mdi of humalog and lantus,i even with lantus am on a rollar coaster of lows and highs.since i was diagnosed back then i was labeled as a brittle diabetic. so i've been considering looking into a pump although i have some reservations about them,but anyway my question for those of you who have a pump now and was once on mdi's what is your sugar ratio meaning how often if ever are you low(hypo)or high or where you are supposed to be. for me it seems like when i started on lantus it was godsend compared to humalin u but almost 2 years later it seems like it is'nt working great and then i take more humalog and then hypo.i already have hypo unawareness. thanks everybody..

Cinnabon · #2 (**permalink**) 05-01-2006, 09:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by christie

my question for those of you who have a pump now and was once on mdi's what is your sugar ratio meaning how often if ever are you low(hypo)or high or where you are supposed to be.

i already have hypo unawareness. thanks everybody..

Cristie,
My usual ratio is about 10 carbs to 1 unit of insulin. If im under 100 and Im eating 30 carbs, I wont need the complete 3.0 units, that it will usually take. It will take less to cover. When u test your BS before your meal, you will get a better idea. If I am above 100, lets say 110, I will need the full 3.0 units to cover 30 carbs.
If Im high, I can calculate, or if not estimate it w/ my correction factor. For me, every unit drops me 50 points. I simply add that to my bolus for a meal.

If u are getting Hypo unawareness, I would reccomend u to try running a bit higher than normal. This happens when u have too much of a tight control or too much insulin.

Hope this helps...

christie · #3 (**permalink**) 05-01-2006, 09:45 AM

i have tried the higher level for the unawareness it still happened for me sometimes its like i'm ok and then i'm out.i have no clue about carb counting and i'm math retarded so it would take me awhile to figure out all that,but what i'm asking is since getting a pump are ever low,or high or just basically in between? hope you are doing ok cinnabon!!!

poodlebone · #4 (**permalink**) 05-01-2006, 11:21 AM

I've been pumping for a year now. Before the pump (even with Lantus) I had many, many lows and I am also hypo unaware so that wasn't good. Since I started pumping I still get lows but they're not as bad and are much easier to treat. I'm still tweaking all of my doses/settings because I keep losing weight and it seems that every few pounds I lose I have to change everything.

My CDE recently made me change my targets to force me to run my BG higher for awhile, in hopes of regaining my hypo sysptoms/awareness. It's only been two weeks and I find I'm having more highs. Not just higher readings, but highs. I'm going to e-mail her about it today. Before the targets and basal rates were changed I didn't have too many high readings.

Cyborg · #5 (**permalink**) 05-01-2006, 07:04 PM

I've only been on the pump since Feb. 14th. Very appropriate, since I fell in love with my pump.

Ok, somebody slap me!

I've had many less hypos and many less spikes since being on the pump. In just 2 1/2 months, my a1c has gone from approx 6.9 to 6.2. I've lost over 30 pounds. I'm eating alot more carbs. I have more freedom. I'm not sticking a needle into my gut 50 times a week. I think you get the picture...

am1977 · #6 (**permalink**) 05-01-2006, 07:43 PM

This is a bit of a toughie

... I don't know how much my highs or lows decreased since having the pump. Actually, my control before the pump was better than it was after . I don't really understand that

, but I think that I was still honeymooning during my days of MDI...

I think as long as you are willing to make the effort, meaning testing more, keeping log of your sugars, eating well, and taking care of yourself, pumping can improve your control and make life easier too.

Good luck

Cinnabon · #7 (**permalink**) 05-01-2006, 08:16 PM

There has been much less trouble. If here is a hyper, there is always a reason, certain foods, an infection, or even that visit we get. The lows are hardly ever there. With the unawareness, its better to even take a unit less. My target was set to 150. W/MDI it was always a mission for me, but then again I was on the worst.. R & N.. blah. Try that and dont be scared to run a bit higher.. 140+, but this has to be for a few days, not 1 or 2 days.

Angelique · #8 (**permalink**) 05-02-2006, 08:54 AM

I have been on my pump for 8 years and did notice a big change that I am more stable as a diabetic. I still have highs and lows as before but my overall levels are fine. My A1C when I got pregnant (not on the pump for the first child) was over 12. Then, during the pregnancy I was really careful and dropped it down to a 5 or 6 which isn't good either b/c I was having lots of low bg's. After the birth of my son I was all over the place with bg's and had to take up to 8 shots a day just trying to control it and the highs. I went on the pump to get in control and that has saved me from all the previous years of struggling to manage my diabetes. I will admit I was a little lazy with Diabetes pre-children and the pump and pregnancy made me stand up and take much better care of myself. The pump made a huge difference when I was pregnant with my dd, it helped me control the highs much better and I had way less of them.
I think if you go on the pump you will find your life and managing diabetes much easier and more that you are controlling the diabetes rather than it controlling you.

As far as what I take I don't know exactly the numbers but I want say I take almost 2 units per 15 carbs. I just know what it takes for certain foods, like a bowl of cereal I have to take 12 units and for a peanut butter sandwhich I only need 5.5 units. All foods are different for me and the way they react with my insulin. My system doesn't make sense to anyone else but it works.

RobB · #9 (**permalink**) 05-02-2006, 09:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by christie

i am t1 since 1983 and i'm on mdi of humalog and lantus,i even with lantus am on a rollar coaster of lows and highs.since i was diagnosed back then i was labeled as a brittle diabetic. so i've been considering looking into a pump although i have some reservations about them,..

I've been on a pump for 5 years. My control was pretty good with MDI but I had lots of nasty lows. When I started the pump, my control stayed essentially the same but the nasty lows were gone. I still get lows, but they come on more slowly and I can control them better.

I'm still learning how to best use my MM 715. I'm really doing good lately because I've done a better job with my basal rates, using the built in Bolus Wizard, using a great infusion set (QuickSet) and doing a better job of selecting infusion sites. I had been doing MDI for about 20 years and my abdomen had lots of scar tissue. This really affect ths infusion site. I'm doing much better by using areas less scarred.

Good Luck with your pump!

poodlebone · #10 (**permalink**) 05-02-2006, 09:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Angelique

As far as what I take I don't know exactly the numbers but I want say I take almost 2 units per 15 carbs. I just know what it takes for certain foods, like a bowl of cereal I have to take 12 units and for a peanut butter sandwhich I only need 5.5 units. All foods are different for me and the way they react with my insulin. My system doesn't make sense to anyone else but it works.

Doesn't your pump allow you to set insulin:carb ratios? Does it have a built-in bolus calculator/wizard? For me, those are essential features of the pump. Without them, I might as well be doing MDI still. I have three different I:C ratios set, one for each meal. I enter my BG, my total carbs (are you carb counting at all?) and the pump suggests the appropriate bolus. Sometimes I'll change it, depending on what I'm eating or what I'm going to be doing after I eat but mostly I do what the pump suggests.

psilocybin · #11 (**permalink**) 05-02-2006, 12:49 PM

im a 1:20 but im still honeymooning...and for some reason my correction factor for 1 unit is about 8mmol..im guessing the pancreas still kicks in the odd time

Angelique · #12 (**permalink**) 05-02-2006, 01:40 PM

Quote:

Doesn't your pump allow you to set insulin:carb ratios? Does it have a built-in bolus calculator/wizard? For me, those are essential features of the pump. Without them, I might as well be doing MDI still. I have three different I:C ratios set, one for each meal. I enter my BG, my total carbs (are you carb counting at all?) and the pump suggests the appropriate bolus. Sometimes I'll change it, depending on what I'm eating or what I'm going to be doing after I eat but mostly I do what the pump suggests.
__________________

I'm working on getting a new one hopefully that will do all that stuff. I got a 508 and had to wait for the warranty to expire, which it does tomorrow. lol