Treating lows before bedtime :(

Hi guys,
We are recently diagnosed (1 month) and my son has been having lows continuously for the last few nights right before bed. How do you deal with a child (who starts school tomorrow) who is now WIDE awake from the rule of 15 and the sugar? We start getting him ready for bed (he’s 8) at 8…test him, give Lantus, realize he is low and give juice. It has been taking 2 juices and peanut butter crackers to bring him up (we are calling endo today to see if we can change his ratios), now he can’t sleep :frowning: Any tips, tricks, or other advice :slight_smile: Thanks so much! So grateful for this group!!

hi @KRCMommy,

very often, we start making insulin again right after diagnosis and right around when blood sugars are being controlled by insulin. this is called “honeymoon”. during this time it is common to need little or zero insulin, but this honeymoon will not last very long. some people begin to think that t1d is “going away” but it isn’t. I don’t know what kind of short acting insulin your son using, but it could be the dinner shot (whatever he’s doing 3 hours before the low) that is adding to the trouble. if he’s not using any short acting insulin it’s trickier, most likely add carbs+ protein and/or fats to dinner.

get with the endo or CDE, make sure you are comfortable with what is changing and why, and let us know how you are doing. take care!

Thanks! He is taking Humolog after each meal…it makes sense that his dinner dose needs to change! Thanks so much, I’m calling his endo now :slight_smile:

I just wanted to let you know that when my BG is low I CAN NOT SLEEP. I guess it is how my body reacts. Definitely frustrating at times but once I start to doze off, I know my BG is heading in the right direction. For me, the # is below 75 or so when I can’t sleep. I’m just mentioning this because it took me years to realize this. So if he ever says “I’m not tired” when he should be, just keep this in mind.

I’m always inspired by the little Type 1 warriors. :wink:

to add to this, if I go below 75 in the night while sleeping - I wake up!

Jason in Orlando
@cunninghamnicole763

in general, when you go very low it produces a huge adrenaline response, called “fight or flight” response. most people do wake up, thank goodness. it is when/if you don’t wake up, that’s a problem.

What about treating lows in the wee hours of the night? My 6-yr old (Dx’d 6 mos ago) generally has good sleep habits. In the last week, though, she’s woken me up three times because she “felt shaky.” It’s happened a few times before this, but always isolated incidents. This is the first recurring string of these.

First time, she was 72. I figured that was lower than you want to be at 3am, gave her a snack, and she went back to bed. Before breakfast was 135. A couple nights later, same deal, at 4am this time. Sugar’s at 82. I give her a smaller snack, back to bed, she’s 139 before breakfast. Last night, 3am again. Sugar’s at 92. I tell her she’s fine and we both need our sleep, and send her back to bed. Pre-breakfast sugar was 111.

Obviously if she really is low, I’m thrilled she woke up and got me, rather than staying unconscious and dying! But I know my daughter, and there is a real possibility of her crying wolf because this is a good way to get special attention.

A CGM would help, but without going there, what’s your sense of how low is too low at 3 or 4am?

FWIW, her sugar seems to rise before waking rather than fall, and she was running high recently (ended up with a cold), so she may very well have felt low at 92, just because she’d been high for a week or so prior.

Any thoughts would be appreciated!

Speaking of, how low is too low at 3 or 4am? In other words, where do you just go back to bed v. having a snack first? No CGM here, so looking for a guideline if my newly-Dx’d daughter wakes up in the middle of the night above hypoglycemic, but below … what?