Dori @wadawabbit, I can see two different “issues” that you want to talk about - 1) popping up to 200 after a meal, and 2) fear that your BGL will drop too low when/if CIQ makes a correction.
The #2, automatic corrections causing drop - plagued me a little. What is helping me there, I only made this change recently, and then bit-by-bit, was to change my Correction Factor [ISF]. currently, depending on time of day, my ISF range from 1 unit will drop me 65 mg/dl, to 1 unit will drop me 85 mg/dl. Avoid “hitting the bolus button” and giving yourself insulin without FIRST checking to see if and when CIQ might have provided a bolus. Insulin Stacking.
For seeing what CIQ is doing, I strongly recommend the t-connect app on your phone - I see you are now using a “smart” phone - I got one a couple of months ago. The App upon opening shows the most recent three hours, but by swiping from left-to-right, 24 hours come into view. Bolus are in three different colors depending why they were initiated; tap on any “bolus” and a screen opens giving details.
The #1 - going as high as 200 mg/dl.
There are several remedies here, but before doing something that will admit that diabetes controls you rather than your living your life and insist that diabetes fit in, ask yourself a few questions. Can I tolerate my BGL popping to 200 for a couple of minutes? If mine goes that high, it is OK as long as it doesn’t stay there. What I do to try keeping my BGL within a 50 mg/dl range all day long [at night, I am within 15 mg/dl]:
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Try to pre-bolus. This should be a little easier these days when we are eating at home. For both breakfast and lunch, I know what I’m going to make for myself, and know the carb count exactly - except for the size of the apple. Just don’t make the mistake I’ve made a few times - take my insulin and then get involved in a project that pops-up, like writing a long reply to a new email.
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Once your basal rates are set, go to work on your carb ratios. More on basal in next bullet. I have slowly increased my bolus ratios over time, once my basal was set, and wait at least two days between changes. Keep in mind, that your “history” plays a big part, what you have done [including basal] in the previous 2, 3, 4 hours.
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Basal, Basal, Basal: For me, the basal rate I have used between 9:30 and lunch can affect my IOB at lunch time as much as my 4 mile morning walk. You have to study your body. To observe how CIQ is playing on your basal rates, I very strongly urge you to look closely at the Daily graph in t-Connect or in Tidepool. (In some ways, I find this study easier with Tidepool.) It is very easy to see on these graphs if CIQ makes a basal increase, a basal decrease, or a basal suspend - including the exact rate set.
Other stuff: I don’t ask any doctor if I can change pump settings; this is something that both you and I understand better than an “outside” person. Even a top-notch Endocrinologist I was seeing who was profess or of endocrinology at the university medical school and himself T1D would only make suggestions to stear me in the right direction, but never set limits on “how much” a change. When he prescribed my first pump, he told me to figure out basal rates and carb ratios; the only caution was to have my total daily insulin about 30% lower than the total I was injecting. Now when I visit with a very good endo, she first gives me her eagle eye, observing my whole being and listening to what has gone on with me for three months. After that, she will then review any lab tests look any of my data reports I think important to discuss, and last of all, ask for my pump settings [I have six profiles on my pump] so they can be added to her data base.
I hope Dori, that this may be helpful, and not too much so as to confuse you. The other bit I should add, is don’t be afraid to make mistakes - but be careful and be conservative and avoid any hypoglycemic event. It has taken me a while, but with my wife’s encouragement, I can now easily accept that effective diabetes management is fraught with errors - my wife [54 years and she hasn’t left me] will just say"tomorrow will be different".