Won't go down!!

wizardinblack

Member
Messages
18
My blood sugars have been crazy the past few days, I don't know whats going on. They're around 20 after my meals and just wont go down to anything reasonable despite taking more insulin than I usually do for my meals.. i've not ate much at all today ( an egg & toast for breakfast and a baked potato for lunch) and there stuck at 17 at the moment?? I'm not unwell (that i know of) Just waiting to hear back from my diabetes nurse but i'm not sure she'll be able to shed any light on this.

Is it possible for my insulin to stop working (Novorapid)? I have changed vials thinking my old one had gone bad? not injecting into any lumps or dodgy sites. Any help would be appreciated!
 

stewpid

Active Member
Messages
37
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Is this a conspiracy to bump off a few diabetics under the Governments spending cuts review? See my latest contribution on the "Lantus stopped working" thread. Seems odd to me that quite a number of people are having the same problems with BG control.
:?
 

Dollyrocker

Well-Known Member
Messages
223
Have you tried varying your injection site? Could be fatty build up that is stopping the insulin being absorbed

What basal insulin are you on? You may need to look at increasing your dose or doses, how many unit s and of what insulin are you taking?
 

wizardinblack

Member
Messages
18
I have moved my injection site to my stomach as i was getting lumpy sites in other places, but i dont have any on my tummy. I inject all over it so i dont get the build up. I'm on Levemir 34 units at tea time. It seems to be after meals that they rocket.
 
Messages
3
Have you always been on Levimir? It seems like a lot of units. I am on Lantus and I can't seem to get down below 22 units long acting.

With your after meal blood sugar readings - are you testing straight after you eat or two hours after? If you test two hours after and the blood sugar is the same as it was prior to eating then it is a good indication you are taking the right amount. I have slowly started to find out that certain foods ie pasta make my sugars go sky high but the insulin works faster so now I take my insulin (Novarapid) directly after pasta meal so that it starts to work in time, I also take a lot more insulin for pasta and potatoes than I would say rice or chips. Do you also do portion / carb control ie. 10 grams equals so many units of insulin? If you do, has this regime changed in recent years? Are you exercising more / less than usual?

The only other thing I can think of is that you are a bit stressed or not sleeping as this can affect blood sugars? If not and all the above can be ruled out then you need to maybe make a food diary and seeing what your sugar levels are before and after each meal. BTW what are your readings beforehand? They should be between 4 - 7 mmol. Mine I like to be around 5 or 6 mmol but any higher than that just before I eat a main meal and they go too high even after 2 hours because they were too high to begin with.

Checking your blood sugar levels just before a meal and making sure they are at the correct level should be mandatory although I admit I don't always do it but nowadays feel ok. Doing carb counts and adjusting insulin according to portion size also. In hindsight of course this seems very easy but it is a big game of balance (and after 17 years I am still struggling believe me).

Hang on in there.
Rach
 

wizardinblack

Member
Messages
18
Yeah i've always been on Levimir, I have highered it by a few units and my bloods today were actually alot more controlled. I am going to have to just experiment with the levels I think.

I am testing about an hour after my meals- i know it's abit soon but sometimes if i am still hungry and I test my bloods and there high it puts me off having something to eat? I am waiting to start a carb counting course at the end of the month so hopefully that will teach me a few things as i'd like to be able to portion control my meals.

Before my meals they are around 6-11, I know they are quite raised but i've only been on 4 injections since christmas, when i was taking novomix it wasn't helping at all, but with this i've managed to get my hba1c down from 12.7 to 8.9. (Still high but i'm nearly there!)

Thanks Rach!
 

Glen

Well-Known Member
Messages
66
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Dislikes
Diabetes, DIY, winter,
I've had days when my numbers won't go down. Sometimes it's takes 30+ units of Novorapid to get things back in check. I have no idea why it happens.
 

moonstone

Well-Known Member
Messages
205
It's a possibility that you have an infection that you're unaware of - I think you could discount or prove this theory by testing for ketones? If there's ketones then you might have something going on that you don't yet know about. My sister had an infected ovary for god knows how long, she had no idea, so these things can happen.
 

wizardinblack

Member
Messages
18
Yeah I keep checking ketones it's fine. They seem to be alot better now, but not perfect, i am having hypo's here and there but it's just trying to guess the right amount at the moment!