Our kitty (Vladimir) wasn’t trained. He is just a very sensitive cat that seems to really be tuned into any changes in my body. Right before I was even diagnosed, he started sitting on the back of the couch right up against my head (which he never did before) and my boyfriend and I would joke that maybe I was dying and that was why he wouldn’t leave my side. I guess we weren’t wrong! We had another cat (Turbo) who was Vlad’s best friend, but she passed away from cancer a few years ago. A while later we got a new kitten (named Proton) for Vlad because he seemed so lonely, but she is a real jerk face to him unfortunately. When he tries to get on my bed, she chases him away, so that is why he hasn’t been alerting lately.
I believe the CGM I wore for a week (borrowed from my doctor) was a Dexcom. They had me come in there to meet with the rep who placed it on me and told me how it worked. Isn’t the Freestyle one where you still have to wave your phone over it to get a reading? If I were to go with one of these devices, I would prefer one that automatically tests and sends info to my phone (it is during sleep that I want the data the most).
Thank you for sharing your pet stories. I thought the pet already in the household was considered dominant, but with cats you never know.
You’re right, you do have to wave the Freestyle to get readings - no big deal overnight when I use it because I rarely sleep through anyway. There’s now a Libre2 that has alerts. The Freestyle holds data for you (there will be gaps if you’re out of Bluetooth range), and when you scan you see a graph of your glucose since your previous scan. I’m assuming - key word - that if you have a low number the Freestyle 2 will alert you without scanning, then you can do a scan to see what your number is. I haven’t used the 2 so I don’t know where you can set your alerts but I’m sure you can find details online. I love my Dexcom and am very happy with it. If you think you might want to go with it I would suggest getting the handheld receiver (I believe it’s optional). You can link it with your phone but on the forum I’ve read about occasional issues so it would be could to have it as a backup if you don’t want to use it as your main receiver. Just tossing that in as food for thought.
Actually, Vlad was always submissive to Turbo and seems to have stayed submissive. Proton is most definitely an alpha cat.
Waving over the Freestyle would definitely be easier than having to do a finger stick. I will look into that device also. I will just talk to my insurance and see which (if any) they would cover. thank you for all the info!!! It is greatly appreciated!
Hi and welcome to the forums!
I have bee a diabetic for about 45 years, used a pump for a little over 2 years, before thatused a split dose of levimir and a boluses with humulog for about 12 years. (various other insulin before that) About 3 years ago my long term endocrinologist retired and my new one wanted me to switch to some form of CGM, My A1c was 6 at the time but i was prone to some severe hypoglycemia. I took the information he gave me and called the various sales reps and looked them up online. Each of the sales reps took my insurance info and checked and were able to let me know what needed to get done to get the device covered. I didn’t go into this looking for a pump but it cut some of my out of pocket prescription costs (needles levemir etc.) When I ran those savings against the new costs
the totals weren’t that far off. I do remember that when adjusting the levemir the changes overall took some time to manifest… keep it at the same dose for a week or so before changing it again unless you run into some very sudden life threatening consequences. I am not a doctor though…
Good luck
Mike
Hi Mike! Thank you for the info. I will see what I can do about getting a CGM.
On another note, I did the “check your BG in the middle of the night” thing and this was what happened last night. An hour before bed (11pm), my number was 80, so just ate 1/2 a glucose tab. Number was 120 right before bed at midnight. At 3:30am it was 162, so gave a unit of Novolog and went back to bed. Woke up at 8 with 229 (yikes!). Right now I am doing 10units Levemir at 8am and 10units 8pm. Once I get that morning number down with Novolog, my numbers are in the high 90s or low 100s rest of day. Guess I will try 11units in pm again (even though last time I tried that my a.m. numbers were even higher). I really thought it was somogyi since I wake up drenched and usually with a headache, but that doesn’t seem to be the case.
On yet another note, is it normal to need so much Levemir even though I have been on a low carb diet for MANY years? I never cheat and like I posted before, my A1c’ s have consistently been in the low to mid 5’s. I also watch my fat intake (learned that lesson last year). I know everyone is different, but geesh! I have only had type 1 for 7 years (diagnosed at 41) and surprised at just how much Levemir I needed to get my numbers under good control even early on. Other type 1s that I met over the years that do low carb seem to need less long acting insulin. Thanks all!
Try not to compare yourself to others too much. Everyone’s body is different and needing a certain amount to stay in his control is just the way it is. BTW, have you noticed any difference based on where you inject? Location has come up in some discussions - I’m not sure about this one.
BTW2 you might ask about getting your thyroid checked. It’s not uncommon for people with diabetes to develop thyroid issues (although it’s not automatic and not “cause and effect”). My mom had thyroid issues and when I was diagnosed with underscore thyroid I thought it was hereditary - it wasn’t until I joined the forum and read something here that I learned the two might “run together.” Thyroid issues can be treated with oral meds - I have my level checked periodically. If you already take thyroid medication some of your symptoms could be due to the dosage. I’ve got some stuff going on now myself and asked my doctor to send orders for blood work.
Again, I’m not a doctor - just sharing a possibility.
I get a thyroid test every year (last one was last September). My endocrinologist adds that to the list of tests I get every 6 months, but every other time.
I also haven’t noticed differences due to where I inject, but I always inject in my abdomen (I just rotate sides and specific areas in the abdomen).
I try not to compare myself to others when it comes to insulin, but sometimes I just notice differences and just start wondering.
It is a little funny, but I am a perfectionist and that is one of the reasons why I keep such tight control. I know I am not supposed to let a bad number get me down, but to me, it is like taking a test in school every time I check my blood sugar…got to get an “A” So waking up to numbers in the 200s is an “F” and that just doesn’t sit well with me. I guess I should cut myself some slack at least once in a while huh? Thanks again for your advice!
Definitely cut yourself some slack , but also figure out what to do to get your numbers back where you want them. If you can get that CGM, then you’ll have a much better idea. Was the 200 because you needed more insulin, or was it because the 1-unit correction was too much, you went low, and your liver dumped to save you while you slept? (And if it was, then “thanks, Liver!”)
I mean, you’ll never know what that one example was for sure, but if you can get some trends over time, you’ll have a better basis on which to try a change.
I posted earlier about my number before bed, middle of sleep, and then morning last night to this morning, but I will do it again tonight. Was a bit low an hour before bed, so took 1/2 a glucose tab, so want to do it again tonight and hopefully without any glucose tablet before bed.
Tonight’s “experiment” is already messed up because I didn’t get a chance to eat dinner until 10:30pm and that is not a normal occurrence for me.
Will talk to doctor about the CGM on Monday.
Ok, so I tried raising Levemir or again (up 2 units from my normal dosage) and 267 at 8a.m.! This is the 2nd time I tried 2units more and this is the 2nd time my numbers went up even more. I know I have to give it a few days, but whenever I adjusted up in the past, my numbers didn’t go higher they would go down, but gradually over a few days. Frustrating.
Before I started using a pump I set my alarm clock for 4 AM. That was when my blood sugar started rising every morning. I took an appropriate dose of fast acting insulin at that time. I usually had a number very close to 100 at breakfast. Now that I am using a pump I can set individual basal rates for several times, day and night,. I set a higher basal rate for 6 AM that keeps me from having high blood sugar at the time I have breakfast.
My number was 115 this morning, so much better. I just talked to my insurance company about getting a CGM, but it ends up falling under Tier 6 in my formulary and will be quite expensive. I would be ok paying that, but right now the company I work for isn’t doing too well, so looks like I will have to stick to finger sticks. Not happy.
Just had doctor prescribe me Freestyle Libre 2. Got voucher from Abbott for free reader and 1 sensor. Even though my insurance copay for the sensors is high, I will only use the device when I am having issues, so cost will be a lot lower.
Hi all, so now my blood sugar was low (low 50s) at 3am (woke up drenched and shaky), so took a quarter of a glucose tablet and went back to sleep. At 5am, my BG was 74 and without doing anything more (just drove to work), my BG was 109 about 40 minutes later. I didn’t get the Libre 2 yet because my pharmacy was out of stock, so I should get it today.
I did finally get my time of the month (late about 2 weeks due to perimenopause), so maybe that is why I went low instead of high this time…have no clue if I should stick to the same pm Levemir dose that I have been doing or go back down. Like I already posted, my morning BG yesterday was 115, but it started going up A LOT after breakfast and became difficult to get back down (not normal for me). When my numbers were hitting 200 in the am, after getting that number down, my numbers were great all day. Hopefully the Libre 2 will help me figure out how to get my numbers back to where they were before. I am wondering if I will have to readjust my Levemir to go along with my now massively wavering hormones? That won’t be easy. Fun stuff!
You may have mentioned this earlier but have you tried adjusting the timing of your insulin? It might help to give it a “head start”. I hope the Freestyle helps you figure things out!
Hormones are crazy town. And it’s not like your body sends you a memo letting you know which nights next week you’ll be having surges, either.
Definitely use the Libre when it comes, and try to make peace with the fact that you’re just not likely to have the kind of control you’re used to while you’re going through the change.
Wishing you a swift and straightforward transition, but in case that’s not your experience, I’ll also send comfort that you’re not alone. A relative of mine (who shall remain nameless, since I didn’t ask if she’d mind my sharing her personal health details on the internet ) had hot flashes for two or three years, which completely sucked. And then an honest-to-goodness twenty years of nice, easy, clearly post-menopause . . . after which she started to have hot flashes again. That second round was relatively brief, and went away on its own, but talk about crazy town! She doesn’t have T1D, but I’d bet her insulin needs were changing pretty unpredictably during that time.
Dealing with those unpredictable surges on the front end (entering puberty) is why we switched from MDI to the Tandem. Its “Control IQ” adjusts my daughter’s insulin based on her Dexcom readings while she sleeps, so she can avoid the insane highs and lows that go with unpredictable hormone surges.
Don’t get me wrong: she still has bigger swings than you’re used to. The technology is conservative by design, and obviously doesn’t want to send you too low in your sleep. But it’s WAY better than we could do with shots, and we don’t have to wake up in the middle of the night to do it.
So that’s the sales pitch, if your transition ends up being longer or rockier than we all hope. Regardless, remember that you promised to start cutting yourself some slack. You’re doing great managing a difficult-to-manage disease, and you should be proud!
So waking up to numbers in the 200s is an “F” and that just doesn’t sit well with me. I guess I should cut myself some slack at least once in a while huh? Thanks again for your advice!
, but also figure out what to do to get your numbers back where you want them. If you can get that CGM, then you’ll have a much better idea. Was the 200 because you needed more insulin, or was it because the 1-unit correction was too much, you went low, and your liver dumped to save you while you slept? (And if it was, then “thanks, Liver!”)
) had hot flashes for two or three years, which completely sucked. And then an honest-to-goodness twenty years of nice, easy, clearly post-menopause . . . after which she started to have hot flashes again. That second round was relatively brief, and went away on its own, but talk about crazy town! She doesn’t have T1D, but I’d bet her insulin needs were changing pretty unpredictably during that time.