And as usual I have many more questions than answers, and am more than intimidated by the task(s) of figuring my way through it.
I have been using an insulin pump for somewhere between 11 and 12 years (I think). For most of the last 10 years or so, my basal rates, insulin to carb ratios, and correction factors have been rock solid.
But all of a sudden, I’m not so sure anymore. I’ve had a whole bunch of days in the last month or so where my stuff is all screwed up, the major symptom being sky high blood sugars for no real good reason. I don’t know what to think!
Is all of this stuff really changing on me now? Why? Has this happened to any of you? Or could it be something else? Gum disease? Some infection somewhere that I don’t know about yet? Have I been sick (but feeling fine) for a month? What the heck is happening?!!
It is very, very frustrating. If my insulin needs are really changing, it is going to take a butt load of work to figure it out. It involves going back to the basics, working my way through the “Pumping Insulin” book, and testing all of my settings. I’m so not looking forward to it, but don’t know what else to do.
Suggestions anyone?
My brother has had diabetes type 2 for more than 5 years, and was on doctor’s medications since then. About 5 months ago, he was recommended by a friend to website:
http://www.secret-unmasked.blogspot.com , he followed the instructions given, and now he has stopped the doctor’s medications.
Very interesting info! I am not on the pump as yet. Hae been type 2 for 30+ years. Diet and exercise are my way of controlling hi’s.
I wish Scott the ery best!
Scott-
Haven’t you been through the ringer lately?!?!?!?
Well my son has had some of these strange and frustrating issues as of late. We have come across some less that adequate insulin and have had to pitch the vials and start with fresh.
I wish that there was a test strip for insulin!
Peace to you and yours-tammy.
I was going to ask if maybe you were stressed out but I see other people have mentioned it. So ya.. that’s the extend of my knowledge on that! LOL It seems that we are forever changing Tristan’s settings. But lately they have been good. Knock on wood 🙂 What we do is upload his pump to the minimed website and then I email my diabetes nurse. She logs in and figures it out. I haven’t even tried to attempt that by myself yet!
Hang it there, like another person said, if anybody can do it… you can do it! 🙂
Could it be a bad pump? Something in the calibration got messed up so the meter says it’s giving one dose when it’s really giving a different dose?
Hi Scott.
I took care of my diabetic mother for several years and it was a roller coaster ride for much of the time.
The biggest improvement to her health came after she started drinking alkaline ionized water, which has been used in Asia for approximately 30 years in treating diabetes & other serious diseases. Its antioxidant properties are a known benefit to our bodies.
Western pharma-centric treatments will likely never adopt it’s use, probably due to the lack of money to be made from it.
Anyways, there my two-cents.
I truly hope your health stabilizes and improves very soon.
Scott: I say UGH. Here’s what I’ve found that makes for these kind of what the heck? moments: weight changes and sub-optimal sites, along with all the other stuff you know and people have mentioned. I’ve had lots of the same over my 27 years of pumping. Lately I’ve abandoned my hips and stomach areas and only use my arms and shoulders. For years I couldn’t use my arms because of lipodystrophy from all the childhood insulin injections, but they’ve recovered and with this change, my latest A1C was 7.5% which is great for me, my last two had been 8.8 and 8.9. The absorption thing really makes a huge difference for me.
Scott,
About three weeks ago, I had the same thing happen. All of a sudden I was having out of range blood sugars. I was in denial for a while…thinking it was going to stop, but it didn’t. After about a week I finally raised all of my basal rates. I didn’t log and figure trends, I just changed all my rates. (I don’t recommend this, really. It was really just SWAG adjusting) My sugars got back in range. Then this week, I had a ton of lows (poor Dixie) and ended up turning all the rates down again. There was no reason for it. No illness, no unusual stress, no explanation.
I can’t figure it out.
Dam diabetes. Just know that there’s others out there dealing with the same crap.
I was pretty consistent for a few years and then my Carb:insulin ratio changed from 1:10 to 1:5 go figure, then a few years later, last April I went off Effexor lost a ton of weight and had to work on changing most of my basals. I never never log, omg, just cannot, but I did see consistent lows, so I did it in baby steps and would change a basal that was two hours before that low, and then worked on the next low that was always occuring.
Are your highs after a meal on a bolus, maybe you just need to change one of your bolus ratios. Are your highs just whenever? Perhaps you have some scar tissue. Before you insert your next site, feel around to see if there are any lumps. Aren’t you on Symlin? Are you sometimes not bothering with the Symlin, hence the high. Yep it is a never changing nightmare I have found.
Every day is different and it is not an exact science even though many endo’s make you believe otherwise, and then so called failure.
I think that is why they want us to test every two hours.
Dude, this happens to me every 4-6 months or so – either needing more or less during certain times of the day or just in general.
I move the rates, and things are restored to normal for a while. Sometimes after just a few weeks, the adjustments I made are no longer needed.
I have no idea why this happens. I just know that if I don’t figure out a strategy, I will be screwed until I do.
I hate it, but what options do I have. Run high or chase insulin all day? I think not. Good luck.
Dude. over the past 2 weeks I have seen nothing but highs. I increase my basals the other day (totally blindly too which is stupid I know) and finally I am seeing normal BG’s again. I thought My insulin was bad or my set was bad or I was sick or stressed or dying or going nuts!
I have no clue. I figured it was just cuz I am getting older but who knows.
I. Hate. it.
Scott, if anyone can do it, you can. I’ve been reading your blog and I love it and you’re the best!
No advice for you here since we’re about to tackle the same task ourselves. We go to Pump Training with Kacey today. Good luck figuring it out 🙂 (((Hugs)))
The best advice I have is to record your blood sugars and look for patterns, then focus your efforts on the places where you notice a pattern. If you can’t do it yourself (or if you just don’t wanna), send your numbers in to your doc and let him/her help figure it out. Often I can’t see the forest for the trees – meaning, I know I’m high all the time, but I don’t see any trends. My endo, however, can spot the trends from a mile away because she’s not living them. Good luck. Having rock solid basals for 10 years is impressive. They change about every two weeks for most women, depending on hormones, etc 😉 I’m sure you’ll get it figured out. Don’t be afraid to ask for help.
No suggestions – just a long distance hug. I know this must be really frustrating. I hope you find a solution (bad vial of insulin?) and get back to normal soon.