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Constant hypo’s

T

Tugba

Well-Known Member
Messages
57
Hello all,

Today I had rice, potatoes and aubergines for dinner. Took my usual insulin and around 5.5 hours later my BG was 12.5. I tested half an hour from that time and it had gone down to 7.2.

I have been experiencing this for the last couple of days where I eat and inject normal insulin as per usual.

How can my BG still be reducing after 6 hours of taking insulin? I have even lowered my basal but am very confused...

Thank you in advance!
 
Tugba said:
How can my BG still be reducing after 6 hours of taking insulin? I have even lowered my basal but am very confused...
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My first guess would be that the culprit is still your basal. What kind are you on, some take longer to adjust than others. Are you able to ask your clinic for advice?

On the other hand, what is your bolus? Some last longer than others?

And finally, any other significant changes in your life? Self isolating, more or less exercise, weight change etc etc?

Edited to add : are you actually going hypo though, 7.2 is the upper end of normal?
 
Insulin can have a "tail" that lasts in some people up to 6 hours. When I was still in my honeymoon stage that could happen to me. Some insulins are worse than others about doing that in some people.

But like @EllieM said 7.2 is not bad. I aim for lower than that. Her suggestion of testing your basal rate is a really good idea. Or you could be experiencing insulin resistance and it's kicking in later. Hopefully it's not that.

You might feel like you are hypo because you are not used to more "normal" numbers, because you are too high still a lot of the time.
 
I dont consider myself hypo at 7.2 but it always happens thereafter! (Sorry guys - just replying to you all) i am now at 5.7 despite the fact that i had sweets before going to bed.

I have been type 1 for 6 years, self-isolating, take novorapid and Lantus. It’s just so annoying!!! I keep bringing my sugars up just for them to keep coming down again..
 
@Tugba I bet your basal amount is off then. Do a basal test. Your blood sugars should stay stable if you don't eat and don't take any bolus for food. If you have to eat just to raise your blood sugar level and you didn't recently have any insulin, it's a sure sign you are just keeping too much insulin in your system all the time.
 
my rapid insulin seems to last around 5 hours if your still dropping 5/6 hours later i would say check basal again do some testing hope you sort it out.
 
Thanks guys! I have started to lower my basal intake. Such an art it is to manage this really im going to drop one unit a day and see how it goes.. i bet i’ll go high now.
 
I found Lantus to be really unpredictable as a basal insulin (I was on it for 14 years but never paid much attention to my levels). When I started trying to control my Type 1 diabetes 6 years ago I still had big problems, even with a low carbohydrate diet. I switched from Lantus to Tresiba around 5 years ago and it’s made a huge difference for the better.
 
Tugba said:
Thanks guys! I have started to lower my basal intake. Such an art it is to manage this really im going to drop one unit a day and see how it goes.. i bet i’ll go high now.
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Rather than just adjust your basal without really knowing what is going on, I strongly suggest you do a basal test (as others have suggested above).

https://integrateddiabetes.com/basal-testing/
(the units used are American, but you can convert them easily by dividing by 18)

Here is a UK basal test instruction from the Alderhey
https://alderhey.nhs.uk/application/files/1115/1731/1979/Basal_Rate_testing.pdf
 
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My clinician is so useless.. i can hardly ever get a DSN appointment either. Maybe I should enquire with my GP?
 
Tugba said:
My clinician is so useless.. i can hardly ever get a DSN appointment either. Maybe I should enquire with my GP?
Click to expand...
Yeah I’d definitely go down that route. When I started on Tresiba it was NHS funded but restricted – only my diabetic specialist could prescribe it for me. Now though GPs can prescribe it too so you should be fine. Just be sure to chat with a healthcare professional about dosing requirements as it may well be different with a change of insulin.
 
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