Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Gerri on September 6, 2010 at 8:24pm

For me, the difference between feeling lows & not being aware of them is how quickly I'm dropping. With slow lows, I don't feel them as acutely. I've felt dreadful in the low 60's & fine in the 30's. Like everything else, it's variable.

Experiencing this for just a few days isn't anything to worry about. Don't freak out.

The trick is, of course, is to test frequently & correct lows immediately. Frequent lows decrease awareness. People can regain their sensitivity to lows by having BG run a bit higher.

To answer your question, it was before the two year mark when I started noticing lows less.

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Permalink Reply by caprifoglio on September 6, 2010 at 10:02pm

Hmmm. Thanks for this, Geri! Definitely correct the lows right away. It's just that today's and Saturdays totally caught me off guard, usually I can detect things falling rapidly before it gets too bad...

I am noticing that there is a monthly pattern to this so far, you probably understand where I'm going with that. Highs about a week before, then days before rapid drops. I notice you're on shots too - does having a pump improve the possibility of detecting lows earlier? Just curious. It will be a while before I'll be eligible for a pump I gather, since my diagnosis was just a few months ago. Not that I definitely want to go on one, but wondering if a pump setup provides more of an advantage in terms of detecting rapidly falling BG...

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Permalink Reply by Gerri on September 6, 2010 at 10:14pm

I hear you, sister.

A pump won't have any effect on detecting lows earlier, or how many lows you have. Don't know if you're using Lantus, but I had awful afternoon lows using it.

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Permalink Reply by caprifoglio on September 6, 2010 at 10:17pm

Yeah I am using Lantus, but the lows always come in the evening. Again, rarely but definitely about this time. Well good to know the pump is not an advantage. I'm fine with shots and to tell the truth, I'm not sure I'd really want to know so much about everything that's going on every moment, lol! Ignorance, or some of it anyway, can be bliss...

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Permalink Reply by Chris on September 6, 2010 at 10:57pm

If u are using pump the good thing is you can different profiles in a day. As far as the lows are considered it depends
1. body weight: People with higher body weight have greater sensitivity to lows.
2. over a period of the body gets used to what it sees as the new normal. The only way to come out of it is maintain higher BS for a few months and then u will regain the sensitivity to some extent.

The morning lows are common with people who have had been taking Insulin for 5 or more years. One way to avoid is by taking a cup of milk, a fruit like apple before u hit the sack and then probably another glass of milk right after u wake up.

If u are having evening lows then trying having some salad about 3-4 hours after u have ur lunch or a glass of milk is good if u r busy with ur day schedule and do not get an opportunity to take a break.

lantus and basal insulin(in case of a pump) are supposed to meet the basic insulin requirements when we are fasting. These insulins do provide much steadier profiles compared to the earlier generation of insulins, but in terms of absorption rates they are not the same as the insulin produced by our beta cells.

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Permalink Reply by gbabe on October 13, 2011 at 8:58am

what about having almost all my lows when I'm asleep, usually between 2 - 3 in the morning??? I do take 10 units of Lantus every night at 9PM. What do you think??

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Permalink Reply by Natalie ._c- on October 13, 2011 at 9:45am

A bedtime snack of protein might help, because protein takes a long time to digest, and a significant amount of it is converted to glucose, but very slowly. That bit of glucose from the protein might well cover you. A bit of cheese or some yogurt might be just the thing.

If you were on a pump, you would be able to set your basal that covers that time period lower than your usual basal. The good part of the pump is that you can make tiny, frequent adjustments, but you have to have a pretty regular pattern in order to do that.

Hoping for the best for you! :-)

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Permalink Reply by gib on September 6, 2010 at 11:51pm

Well... A pump won't have any effect but it can helps you to increase stability with a good BG mean and so you can improve lows awareness.
Here in Italy a "hypoglycemia unawareness" is one of the possible requisites to be "a candidate" to have a pump (it's covered by the National Healt System so you must be "a good candidate").

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Permalink Reply by gib on September 6, 2010 at 11:38pm

I agree.
Yes, frequent lows decrease awareness. I had this problem in late 2009 and at the beginning of 2010.
My endo told me to run higher for a period. I had a strong insensitivity to lows so he said to try not going under 150 in that period.

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Permalink Reply by caprifoglio on September 7, 2010 at 6:40pm

And how did you feel during that time period? Did you feel too high?

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Permalink Reply by Michael Hutch on September 6, 2010 at 8:27pm

Listen to this podacast.
http://www.diabetespowershow.com/DiabetesPowerShow_75.html

These guys are great.
Alot of good tips in all their talks.

I found TuD from listening to their show.

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Permalink Reply by caprifoglio on September 6, 2010 at 10:02pm

Thanks Michael! I shall have a listen.

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