Advice on insulin

I was told that separate quick and long acting insulins are recommended now. The nurse and doctor refused to let me try mixed (at the start, I was worried about the injections, so wanted mixed as it would mean fewer injections). They said they'd only recommend mixed in extreme cases, if someone could not or would not use quick and long acting insulins correctly.

With a long acting insulin, there should always be some insulin present, background insulin, - I've no idea about the types of insulin you mention, but in my case this means I need to take 2x injections of my long acting (levemir) per day (I only do 1 at the moment, at 11pm, to be honest this is simply due to laziness, I cant be bothered to test to work out how to split the dose. This means the insulin runs out sometime during the day). Other types eg lantus last longer, so you only need one injection.

You already know how quick acting works, with meals etc.

Re: superseded insulins. If you find insulins where your control is good, I wouldn't worry about if they are the most advanced ones or not, just stick with what works for you.

Hi Stephie,
I'm surprised your doctor changed you from your basal/bolus regime to a mixed insulin.
I was on Insulatard and found splitting the dose gave me better results, maybe you should try that before considering a change to a long-acting analogue suchas Lantus or Levimir. Just because analogue insulins are the latest fad,and the most recent developement in insulin, does not mean they will be the best option, as many patients are discovering.
It is becoming increasingly apparent for many patients that lantus and levemir do not give full 24-hour basal coverage and can also cause many unpleasant and debilitating side-effects; suchas depression, joint/muscle pain, exhaustion, mood changes/swings, bowel/digestive disturbances, nausea, headaches, etc;
i don't know if animal insulin is available where you are, but that's another good alternative. Having been on all types of insulin over 22 yrs, I have finally achieved stable control on Hypurin Porcine variety, following a hellish 4 years on Lantus with dreadful side-effects, that I have subsequently discovered are reported by many many people .
Please think carefully before making a change and do plenty of research first. I was told analogues would be the answer to my problems, but that could not have been further from the truth.
Jus

Janabelle, just read ur above post, very interested in your current insulin (as wanting to change from lantus) do you use a short acting one? i take it that hypurin is long acting ?

thanks for anticipated answers

HI Ewen,
Sorry for taking so long to reply.
I take Hypurin Porcine Neutral before meals, it's the clear short/fast-acting sort; and Hypurin Porcine Isophane in an uneven split-dose morn & night- it's a cloudy intermediate/long acting insulin.
You can get more info on animal insulins from Wockhardt or the IDDT. Bovine insulins are also available from Wockhardt, some people get on better with them or mix both porcine & bovine varieties as they differ in action/duration.
Hope that helps
Jus

janabelle, thank you