[aimster1mo]

So I have a lazy stomach. I'm supposed to take a fast acting insulin when I eat. Sometimes though my body's not ready for the insulin because my food's not moving in a normal fashion and it results in a crash a hour or so after I eat. Later, I spike because when the food finally starts moving the extra insulin's not there anymore to cover it.

My question...........
Instead of just taking the insulin with my meal couldn't I check my sugar a hour or so after I eat and take it then only if it looks like I need it?

 

[Guest]

I've wondered about the same thing Amy. I don't know about you... but I find it's unpredictable. I don't always crash in less than 2 hours after a meal... but sometimes I do. My endo mentioned to increase my fast acting insulin only when I notice BGLs going higher, he doesn't want me to touch basal dosage... but to be honest I'm a bit too scared to do that when I can crash suddenly on my current dosage. It's certainly tricky having a stomach that doesn't digest properly. But if you take insulin an hour after eating you could still possibly crash really couldn't you? I'm not sure how to work it out either.... because I don't really know what my stomach is doing.

 

[foxl]

Read Think Like a Pancreas and Using Insulin -- both terrific technical books. The term is peak matching -- you want your peak insulin to match your peak BG.

You might try timing your insulin somewhat later and see if it helps. I peak at 45 min so actually need to take mine earlier -- I determined that my peak is very regular then, by testing. LOTS of test strips.

 

[aimster1mo]

Yes it is unpredictable and quite the balancing act.
Mine said basically the same thing about the basal dosage.
It would take some experimenting as for how much to actually take of the fast acting to get me to the level I need to be but it can't be any worse than it is now for me. I may or may not crash regardless.
Foxi, thanks I'll check those books out. They sound very informative. Right now I keep a log for the clinic Dr. and the Endo. They both want to see readings but for different times so testing is no big deal. I'm doing it all the time anyway.

I've wondered about the same thing Amy. I don't know about you... but I find it's unpredictable. I don't always crash in less than 2 hours after a meal... but sometimes I do. My endo mentioned to increase my fast acting insulin only when I notice BGLs going higher, he doesn't want me to touch basal dosage... but to be honest I'm a bit too scared to do that when I can crash suddenly on my current dosage. It's certainly tricky having a stomach that doesn't digest properly. But if you take insulin an hour after eating you could still possibly crash really couldn't you? I'm not sure how to work it out either.... because I don't really know what my stomach is doing.

 

[Jen]

You might try splitting your boluses, 1/3 when you begin to eat, then 2/3 about 30 or 60 minutes after you start. (I do mine 2/3 about 20 to 30 minutes before a meal, then 1/3 30 minutes after.) I went through a few weeks of testing every 15 minutes for several hours after a meal to determine what my general BG profile was for a specific combination of food. The 2/3, 1/3 scheme really made a difference.

Jen

 

[aimster1mo]

That may be a good option as well Jen. That would catch what goes through the now and then the later.
Did I mention I have 4 different types of insulin in the fridge?
They've made me feel like a lab rat here lately.

You might try splitting your boluses, 1/3 when you begin to eat, then 2/3 about 30 or 60 minutes after you start. (I do mine 2/3 about 20 to 30 minutes before a meal, then 1/3 30 minutes after.) I went through a few weeks of testing every 15 minutes for several hours after a meal to determine what my general BG profile was for a specific combination of food. The 2/3, 1/3 scheme really made a difference.

Jen

 

[onaughmae]

Thats one reason I have found the pump to be a huge advantage. Very often when I bolus for meals I chose the dual wave option which allows the pump to deliver a portion of my bolus reight away and the the remainder of it spread out over the length of time I set it for. For instance, when I eat something like pizza, I will usually set it to give me only 30% of my bolus immediately and the rest I spread out over 2 hours. That has been the best way for me to cover that particular food. Takes a bit of testing to figure it out, but sure makes life easier

 

[aimster1mo]

That gives me another option to consider. Thanks Pam. It's good to see I'm not the only one with these problems.

Thats one reason I have found the pump to be a huge advantage. Very often when I bolus for meals I chose the dual wave option which allows the pump to deliver a portion of my bolus reight away and the the remainder of it spread out over the length of time I set it for. For instance, when I eat something like pizza, I will usually set it to give me only 30% of my bolus immediately and the rest I spread out over 2 hours. That has been the best way for me to cover that particular food. Takes a bit of testing to figure it out, but sure makes life easier

 

[ColaJim]

if this problem is the result of using a fast acting bolus, then maybe you should review REGULAR which has about twice the acting time, i find it perfect for beans and other slow acting carbs. but even Regular will not cover super greasy carbs like pizza.

and it is 1/3 the price at Walmart, no prescription required!

ColaJim

 

[breezeonby]

So I have a lazy stomach. I'm supposed to take a fast acting insulin when I eat. Sometimes though my body's not ready for the insulin because my food's not moving in a normal fashion and it results in a crash a hour or so after I eat. Later, I spike because when the food finally starts moving the extra insulin's not there anymore to cover it.

My question...........
Instead of just taking the insulin with my meal couldn't I check my sugar a hour or so after I eat and take it then only if it looks like I need it?

Do you have gastroparesis? I have that and take rapid acting insulin after I eat. I take azithromycin before meals to help speed up the digestion. I have severe nausea and take Zofran to help with that. I am under control with the exception of having a day or 2 per month when my digestion stays slow despite the medication. You could try and take your insulin and hour after eating, but take your insulin according to how many carbs you take not what your reading is. You won't get a very accurate reading taking your insulin according what your reading is an hour after you eat. Just my opinion.

 

[Guest]

just had a weird experience.... I was busy this morning and grabbed a small pasta that had vegies and meat in it for lunch... Normally I'm fine with pasta and I get good BGLs afterwards. But 3.5 hours after eating I'm sitting on 13.6 so I gave myself some more quick acting (5 units) and an hour later I tested at 14.3.... wt? I think it's the last time I buy a ready made dish for take-away! What's more is I don't know why quick acting is not working very quick? This just gets ridiculous at times. I'm not sure whether my liver is dumping perhaps considering I haven't eaten for 4.5 hours..... or could it be that my stomach is dumping?

 

[aimster1mo]

ColaJim I've been on that already and it didn't work well for me. It's part of my fridge collection.
Breeze, yes that's what they say. I'm just gonna have to keep playing with it and pricking I suppose. Now that I see so many doing it different ways I feel more confident in experimenting.

Do you have gastroparesis? I have that and take rapid acting insulin after I eat. I take azithromycin before meals to help speed up the digestion. I have severe nausea and take Zofran to help with that. I am under control with the exception of having a day or 2 per month when my digestion stays slow despite the medication. You could try and take your insulin and hour after eating, but take your insulin according to how many carbs you take not what your reading is. You won't get a very accurate reading taking your insulin according what your reading is an hour after you eat. Just my opinion.