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Advice About A Night-shift And Meds

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goatfell

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Hi all,

My first post on the forum, so a great big HELLO to everyone :)

I wondered if anyone could offer any advice about a one-off night shift I am going to be doing next week.
Usually, I work a standard 9-5 day, but next week I'll be going to work one morning at 9am, finishing at lunch time, going home and then returning to work at 11pm and working through the night until 6am.
I then have the day off to catch up on sleep.

The plan for going home at lunch-time the day of the night shift is to get some sleep before the night shift - but I doubt I'll get more than an hour or two, what with the kids being off school...and I'm struggling to come up with a plan about which meds to take and when...

I normally take Humalog 3 times during the day and then Humilin I before bed.
Can anyone offer advice on when I should take my Humilin I around this night shift? Should I take it at all?

I did something similar many years ago when I spent the whole day at Disneyland Paris with the family, before driving them all home through the night....I can't remember how I worked my meds, but I can remember that it wasn't enjoyable at all...

If anyone has done anything like this before, I'd really appreciate any advice.

Thanks
Steve
 
Welcome @goatfell :)

What type of diabetes do you have?

Even if you're working a night shift, you would still need your basal/background insulin. I've worked nights before and found I needed more basal even though I was awake and more active.
 
Thanks Azure.

I have Type 1 diabetes.

So you think it'd be best to take both insulins as I work through the night?
I'm definitely not going to be too active - clicking a mouse and typing on a keyboard is the only work I'll be doing :)
 
goatfell said:
Thanks Azure.

I have Type 1 diabetes.

So you think it'd be best to take both insulins as I work through the night?
I'm definitely not going to be too active - clicking a mouse and typing on a keyboard is the only work I'll be doing :)
Click to expand...

If in any doubt about what to do, you should speak to your DSN.

Obviously, only take the bolus insulin (Humalog) if you eat or if you need to correct, but the basal insulin's job is to work away in the background to keep your blood sugar controlled. You may find that the stress/change of being awake when you're normally sleeping, puts your blood sugar up. Or, of course, it could work the opposite way and make you lower then normal. So be prepared for all options.

Make sure to test lots during your nightshift. Keep hypo treatments near and maybe take some extra snacks too in case you need them.
 
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