[dbc]

Any other T1.5s experienced this? I'm not yet on insulin, due to a happy (??) accident of very early diagnosis and diet change.

A1c are slowly creeping up (6.5% 3 months ago), so Dr is starting to talk about insulin. The question is what type of regimen. So he wants a detailed bs profile log with notes of food eaten etc for the next appointment. No problem, been doing this for 3 weeks now. (Fingertips look a bit like pincushions, though...)

Problem is the readings are all over the place.... Eating the same meal at the same time each day can result in a bs rise (1HrPP) of 0.5 up to 2.5mmol! The 2HrPP varies just as much. Makes it difficult to plan an insulin shot and avoid going hypo.

Presumably it's due to my pancreas producing insulin in "fits & starts", but I'm finding it pretty frustrating.

[trailrunner]

I sooooo totally understand! I have a great example, for mothers day my family makes me wonderful waffles and whipcream, milk, stawberrys. I'm thinking gonna totally need insulin for this, but lo and behold 2 hours later 97 ! BUt 2 days before after having a lean cuisine pizza, 2 hours later 180! grr frustrating! I just don't get it . I wish I had I had some predictability.

[Funnygrl]

I sort of went through the same thing. I had a hard time getting diagnosed because my highs were so erratic, but my a1cs were creeping up.

I started using insulin just to correct highs. Then I started using insulin at every meal. My carb ratio started out at 1 to 60, then creeped up over the course of a month to 1 to 20.

I was on insulin about 2 months before I needed basal insulin. Lantus was added.

I did that for 2 weeks before going on pump.

I'm not saying this is typical, but it's the path I followed and it worked well for me.

You may notice once you start insulin you seem to become more insulin dependent. This isn't so much that your beta cells are being killed by it, but more that they feel they can take a break cause the reinforcements are in. I find if I skip one shot or disconnect from my pump for an hour my blood sugar shoots up, but if I disconnect for longer it starts coming back down. My theory is my resting beta cells are realizing reinforcements not there, wake up!

Anyways, good luck!

[Simon]

When you eat can be as important as what you each. A late meal will need more insulin than one on time as your liver will be inhibiting the insulin. If in doubt I just dose for the smallest rise and live with it being too little half the time. With practice and testing before the mael you can spot when you need more.

[lottadata]

Originally Posted by dbc

Any other T1.5s experienced this? I'm not yet on insulin, due to a happy (??) accident of very early diagnosis and diet change.
<snip>
Problem is the readings are all over the place.... Eating the same meal at the same time each day can result in a bs rise (1HrPP) of 0.5 up to 2.5mmol! The 2HrPP varies just as much. Makes it difficult to plan an insulin shot and avoid going hypo.

Presumably it's due to my pancreas producing insulin in "fits & starts", but I'm finding it pretty frustrating.

I have found it very tough to get meal-oriented, fast insulin working because my pancreas produces insulin which, though it doesn't do the job very well, does kick in eventually. Fortunately, basal insulin is a lot easier to work with.

A basal lowers the "floor"--your blood sugar when you aren't eating, and if you have them, it takes some of the pressure off your beta cells so that they can do a slightly better job at meals.

I also am finding that when I add a meal insulin to the basal, I do better with very small doses of Regular, which is slow acting rather than Humalog which is fast. I can't match the peak with either, and don't try, but the small dose R will help mop up whatever my own insulin can't. I treat it more as a "fast basal" rather than a bolus insulin.

I have a problem with analog insulins, and when I have used Humalog, it seems to push UP my 1st hour spike, possibly by generating antibodies. Whatever it is, my bgs were actually rising at 1 hour with Humalog, which doesn't happen with Regular.

[angelic]

Hi All,
I just got diagnosed with a probably MODY kind. I hv been diabetic for about 10 years now. Levemir (Basal) is not doing any good so my endo added Novalog 5 units with each meal alongwith Levemir.
I'm feeling very depressed today and feel have lost the strength to fight with life anymore. I'm sure you all also have family and small kids.
I have definitely seen difference adding Levemir to my routine.. I'm more energetic and positive than I ever was. My endo says it will only improve further with the addition of fast acting insulin.
What you guys say ?

[Simon]

Is the Novolog making you depressed or is it just the thought of having to inject with every meal? Certainly it's true that I have days when I could scream and tear my hair out for not having a cure but it's amazing what you can cope with over time and good days outnumber the bad.

[Cyborg]

Originally Posted by angelic

Hi All,
I just got diagnosed with a probably MODY kind. I hv been diabetic for about 10 years now. Levemir (Basal) is not doing any good so my endo added Novalog 5 units with each meal alongwith Levemir.
I'm feeling very depressed today and feel have lost the strength to fight with life anymore. I'm sure you all also have family and small kids.
I have definitely seen difference adding Levemir to my routine.. I'm more energetic and positive than I ever was. My endo says it will only improve further with the addition of fast acting insulin.
What you guys say ?

If you are really type 1.5, thank goodness, they finally found out! It's only gets easier now. Yes, it means more insulin, but it also means that it opens the door to more foods, and a potentially less rigorous diabetes treatment routine. I was misdiagnosed as type 2 for several years. IMHO, it is much easier to control your diabetes as a type 1 than a type 2. Hang in there, it gets much better...

[Funnygrl]

MODY is progressed. I'm not sure what strand you have, but Mody 3 almost always requires more and more insulin as you age. Adding the novolog may be a pita, but it will make you feel better. And like Cyborg said, once you learn to count carbs, you'll have diet flexibility.