Need Your Thinking Caps. What's Happening To Me?
I trust the collective wisdom here more than my doctor to shed some light. Two days in a row I had staggering afternoon lows, unlike anything I've experienced. EMS left a few hours ago. Thankfully, my husband was home to call EMS because I was unable to speak or move. He tested me. BG 37, which has never left me near comatose before. Ok, here's the strange part. I had taken Apidra 7 hours before the low. None should have been available to cause a plummet. Also use Levemir. If I accidentally took two Apidra shots (sure I didn't), I would have been dead before I hit the floor. I'm careful about rotating injection sites & take small doses, so I don't think it was a scar tissue absorption delay. No exercise to account for a low either.
EMS injected IV dextrose because glucagon would have taken too long. A minute or so later, I was able to talk. BG went to 315 after the dextrose & then dropped to 223 10 minutes later & then to 175 after I ate crackers with peanut butter & is holding at 175. Needless to say, I'm terrified to take a correction to bring it down.
Thanks for your isights!
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by Gerri on -
Get me the poison dart gun! That's great. Helps to have a picture of the demon.
-
Permalink Reply by David (dns) on -
He looks a bit like an escapee from the Harry Potter stories.
-
Permalink Reply by Trudy on -
Hi Gerri. If you wind up thinking that basal played a role in these lows, you could actually split your dose of Levemir into three shots. I have to do this because after almost 20 years of Type 1, I still make some insulin from about 11:00AM to 3:00PM, and have to have a minimal amount of Levemir during those hours. While taking those three doses is a real nuisance, it does fit in with the small input, small problem idea. I've been waking up low for the last few days, and just lowered my nightly dose by 1/2 unit which worked. At any rate, good luck, and I'm really glad you're OK now.
-
Permalink Reply by Trudy on
-
The time remains the same all year; the amounts get lower and lower over the summer. Right now: 8:00AM, 1 1/2 units; 3:00PM, 1 1/2 units; 9:00PM, 4 1/2 units. I use a Levemir pen, so I have to use syringes now rather than pen needles.
-
Permalink Reply by Gerri on
-
Thanks, Trudy. I use less in the summer also. Wow, you don't use much basal.
-
Permalink Reply by Trudy on
-
Hi, Gerri, your thread continues on! I woke up to 50 BG again this morning, so my nightly Levemir will have to be reduced once again, this time to 4 units. I've never had to take so little basal! It's so hot, so early, maybe that has had some influence on all our basals. While I don't take much Levemir at a time, if I skip one shot accidentally, I have a major disaster; just taking it late is a minor one. Well, thankfully you sound as if you're doing very well now, so Cheers!
-
Permalink Reply by Gerri on
-
Hi Trudy,
Maybe we have super ultra potent Levemir:) I'm going to try your three dose regiment this weekend. Lowered the morning dose twice since Wed. Overnight is still the same number of units.
-
Permalink Reply by Stuart on -
Hello Gerri:
Take a breath. You are alive.
The fact its happening in the same time frame consistently suggests it is one issue. Consider cutting back on the short acting coverage PRIOR to that specific time frame?
Eat far more than usual in that time frame. Fat, protein AND carbs. Should extend the breakdown better. All you want is for it not to happen for a couple days, and in time not for a week, then longer. Buy you some time to figure out...
The insulin is probably double covering, overlapping somehow. For right now, consider cutting back meningfully in that time frame. Redundant safety measures.
Stuart
Advertisement
REsources
Groups
From the Diabetes Hands Foundation blog...
Congratulations Diabetes Advocates Scholarship Recipients!
The Diabetes Hands Foundation and Diabetes Advocates Program is proud to announce and congratulate the members of DA who were granted scholarships to attend diabetes conferences in 2013! Thanks to a generous grant from Novo Nordisk, in 2013 we were …Continue Reading
La Familia de EsTuDiabetes Sigue Creciendo
El Centro Nacional de Prevención de Enfermedades Crónicas y Promoción de la Salud en el Estados Unidos encontró que a partir de 2002-2009, el 11,8% de los hispanos mayores de 20 años, que viven en los EU, viven con diabetes …Continue Reading
TuDiabetes Team
DHF STAFF
 Manny Hernandez(Co-Founder, Editor, has LADA)
|
DHF VOLUNTEERS
Lead Administrator
 Bradford (has type 1) |
Administrators
 Lorraine (mother of type 1) |
 Marie B (has type 1) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
LIKE us on Facebook
Spread the word
This site complies with the HONcode standard for trustworthy health information: verify here.
© 2013 A community of people touched by diabetes, run by the Diabetes Hands Foundation.
