9 month honeymoon period over, on to Carb counting

[cezli84]

So i went to see my DSN today and she has set me up with carb counting. I have taken peoples advice and got the app for carbs & cals as well as "think like a pancreas". I have also asked about the daphne course which i will be going on too. Im ready to take control!!

 

[azure]

I find my digital scales indispensable for carb counting (weigh pasta, cereal, potatoes, etc) It takes all the guesswork away.

Carb counting will soon be second nature to you, and you'll find you make your own carb values list in your head

 

[June_C]

Sorry to hear the honeymoon is over. I'm coming up to 6 months and keeping my fingers crossed it lasts for a bit longer

Oh and wishing you success with the carb counting.

 

[Juicyj]

Good news glad to hear it, it will help massively learning about counting carbs as you will have so much more control over your insulin requirements, in time you will instinctively know about what carbs you are eating. Be aware of the lesser known carbs, I would happily drink a couple of lattes a day and not inject, however I now know that these also need to be counted, so just check everything to start, good luck

 

[CarbsRok]

Really pleased you had a positive appointment today Now you have the tools and power to begin controlling your diabetes. Don't worry or get to upset when the road becomes a bit bumpy at times, I've never met anyone yet who has managed perfect control

 

[Andy-Sev]

5 months and counting for me but with my fasting numbers creeping up slowly. I decided to go through the motions of carb counting right from the word go and thankfully now it is second nature for me to weigh and check everything which hopefully will make my transition over easier when it comes.

 

[cezli84]

I had decided to start with my tea tnyt. My bm was 10.2 so worked out what i needed to take and ate happily. Unfortunately, about half hour ago, i started to shake and feel sweaty so i checked my sugars. It had fallen to 3.1, pure orange at the ready!! I havent had a proper hypo for weeks so this was horrible. I have just checked again an im back in range. I feel deflated now. The ratio i was told is 1 unit for every 10g carbs, is this the lowest it can go or can i do 1 unit per 20g to prevent another hypo?? Xx

 

[TorqPenderloin]

I had decided to start with my tea tnyt. My bm was 10.2 so worked out what i needed to take and ate happily. Unfortunately, about half hour ago, i started to shake and feel sweaty so i checked my sugars. It had fallen to 3.1, pure orange at the ready!! I havent had a proper hypo for weeks so this was horrible. I have just checked again an im back in range. I feel deflated now. The ratio i was told is 1 unit for every 10g carbs, is this the lowest it can go or can i do 1 unit per 20g to prevent another hypo?? Xx

Your carb ratio is specific to you. It may be 1unit:10g carbs, 1u:50carbs, or even 2 units:1 carb if you had significant insulin resistance.

After a heavy workout my carb ratio can be as high (numerically) as 1unit:30g carbs.

If your pancreas still makes some insulin (or even if it doesn't) it's very possible that 1 unit of insulin could cover 20-50g of carbs.

 

[cezli84]

Your carb ratio is specific to you. It may be 1unit:10g carbs, 1u:50carbs, or even 2 units:1 carb if you had significant insulin resistance.

After a heavy workout my carb ratio can be as high (numerically) as 1unit:30g carbs.

If your pancreas still makes some insulin (or even if it doesn't) it's very possible that 1 unit of insulin could cover 20-50g of carbs.

Thank you, that makes sense. Not everyone is the same i guess x

 

[azure]

I had decided to start with my tea tnyt. My bm was 10.2 so worked out what i needed to take and ate happily. Unfortunately, about half hour ago, i started to shake and feel sweaty so i checked my sugars. It had fallen to 3.1, pure orange at the ready!! I havent had a proper hypo for weeks so this was horrible. I have just checked again an im back in range. I feel deflated now. The ratio i was told is 1 unit for every 10g carbs, is this the lowest it can go or can i do 1 unit per 20g to prevent another hypo?? Xx

Don't be deflated. Diabetes is a tricky beast to master. Even the best carb counter in the world will have values that are too low or too high sometimes. And this was only your first time!

Two things occur to me:

Did you factor in a correction dose when calculating your insulin? If you did, it could be that your correction dose is slightly off.

Also, did you test two hours after eating? How long after eating was your hypo?

 

[ElyDave]

Your carb ratio is specific to you. It may be 1unit:10g carbs, 1u:50carbs, or even 2 units:1 carb if you had significant insulin resistance.

After a heavy workout my carb ratio can be as high (numerically) as 1unit:30g carbs.

If your pancreas still makes some insulin (or even if it doesn't) it's very possible that 1 unit of insulin could cover 20-50g of carbs.

Very much so, my daily normal ratio is 1U:25g carbs, on the pump, was lower on MDI. But that does vary depending on exercise etc as quoted.

I'd say I'm still in honeymoon phase almost 3 years later so it can be prolonged fairly well. Keep active, count accurately and don't go mad with the carbs - if you pancreas is already struggling why overload it more?

 

[cezli84]

Don't be deflated. Diabetes is a tricky beast to master. Even the best carb counter in the world will have values that are too low or too high sometimes. And this was only your first time!

Two things occur to me:

Did you factor in a correction dose when calculating your insulin? If you did, it could be that your correction dose is slightly off.

Also, did you test two hours after eating? How long after eating was your hypo?

I did not factor in a correction and also was bout 2.5hrs after eating xx

 

[himtoo]

hi @cezli84
glad you have started with carb counting
sorry you had a hypo first time trying it

but important thing is you learn from it and make adjustments as you go !!

the offer to meet up is still there whenever you want

all the best !

 

[azure]

I did not factor in a correction and also was bout 2.5hrs after eating xx

Ok. This is just what I would do in those circumstances, but if it was me I'd be thinking that my insulin to carbs ratio was wrong for that meal because you started too high yet still went down too low. 1:10g is a common starting place (and easy Maths!) but it may be that you need less insulin for the amount of carbs you ate.

You could speak to your DSN about changing your ratio (for that meal) if you're unsure how to do that.

The final thing to say is just double check you counted the carbs right. I'm not saying you didn't, but that's a sensible thing to check

 

[Garr]

Hi @cezli84 . Keep a really detailed log of all your readings, food, exercise etc so you can keep reviewing it and spot patterns and adjust. There's an online carb counting course that might help. (On my tablet and don't know how to copy and paste on it)
www.bdec-e-learning.com
....or maybe I do, if only I knew what I did....

 

[Juicyj]

Hiya Cez,

As Azure has said it depends on what carbs you eat and how you calculated it, so record it all to start with, it helps explain the highs and lows afterwards. I used Diaconnect on my phone, it's really straightforward but easy also to email results to my Nurse so she can see what i've done too, helps with tweaking your ratios if they are not right. If the ratio of 1 unit to 10 carb units isn't right try the 1:20 and let us know how you get on ?

It's trial and error but do not feel deflated at all, that's just the hypo talking, you are mastering a great art here, it will take time to get it right

 

[Kazza63]

I did the dafne course a couple of years ago and it really changed my life. Before that I felt totally at a loss about my insulin and how much to take with a meal. I now count carbs all the time and feel in control of my diabetes rather than it controlling me.

 

[Claire007]

I find my digital scales indispensable for carb counting (weigh pasta, cereal, potatoes, etc) It takes all the guesswork away.

Carb counting will soon be second nature to you, and you'll find you make your own carb values list in your head

Can I ask which digital scales you have?

 

[azure]

Can I ask which digital scales you have?

Certainly They're Salter kitchen scales. They're square, stainless steel ones with two buttons - an On-Zero-Off and a Unit one. They weigh a max of 5000g in 1g increments. I got them from Argos. I tried to find a pic for you but they don't seem to have them any more.

I chose them because they have a variety of units - grammes, pounds, ounces, fl.oz and ml. Most importantly, they're accurate. I had another brand before these and they were horribly inaccurate, so I ended up ditching them and getting these.

 

[IZ THE LEG END]

So i went to see my DSN today and she has set me up with carb counting. I have taken peoples advice and got the app for carbs & cals as well as "think like a pancreas". I have also asked about the daphne course which i will be going on too. Im ready to take control!!

Good luck... I see my DSN tomorrow for the same thing...