Help with overnight/morning basal rates

[Spiker]

Fast food and alcohol is a roller coaster, that night is not going to tell you anything about your basal or ratios or anything else.

 

[Janelle123]

What were the drinks?

I think you need to lower those basals. These lows are too low.

Zero sugar Jim Beams.

It was scary I was convinced I was going to pass out.

 

[Spiker]

What exactly are you using for your hypos? Because whether you use 10g or now 20g, it's not working very well. It's hard to tell if your 4:59am high is the delayed action of the hypo carbs, or your liver finishing with the alcohol and getting back to its "day job" of dumping glycogen.

 

[Janelle123]

Fast food and alcohol is a roller coaster, that night is not going to tell you anything about your basal or ratios or anything else.

I think I'm too scared to ever drink again. The weird thing is, I never had this problem while on lantus.

 

[Spiker]

What were the drinks?

I think you need to lower those basals. These lows are too low.

I would agree apart from the alcohol. I think the alcohol says we should draw no conclusions and take no actions from that night.

 

[Janelle123]

What exactly are you using for your hypos? Because whether you use 10g or now 20g, it's not working very well. It's hard to tell if your 4:59am high is the delayed action of the hypo carbs, or your liver finishing with the alcohol and getting back to its "day job" of dumping glycogen.

The first 60g was Sprite. The last 20g was a lolly. Maybe I have a digestion problem?

 

[Spiker]

I think I'm too scared to ever drink again. The weird thing is, I never had this problem while on lantus.

You are probably running much tighter basal now than you ever were on Lantus. Which unfortunately means much less margin for error.

I'm going to be crass and guess, since you are trying to conceive but you had 5 drinks, you probably had your period? So that may have been playing around with your blood glucose.

Are you taking any fertility drugs? They also really mess with your hormones.

 

[donnellysdogs]

Janelle
You need to basal test properly overnight.
Have a low carb meal at 5pm latest and make that it until the next morning. Then test every hour.

 

[Spiker]

Have we asked what insulin you are using in your pump? Is it the same QA insulin you were using before when you were on MDI? If not then that might be the explanation.

 

[Janelle123]

You are probably running much tighter basal now than you ever were on Lantus. Which unfortunately means much less margin for error.

I'm going to be crass and guess, since you are trying to conceive but you had 5 drinks, you probably had your period? So that may have been playing around with your blood glucose.

Are you taking any fertility drugs? They also really mess with your hormones.

No period but I either ovulated 3 days ago or yesterday. I take my temperature every morning and it rises after ovulation. It's a bit unclear this month though. It's fine to drink up until implantation which typically happens between 6 and 10 days after ovulation so I figured I'd be fine to drink. I wonder if ovulation has affected my blood glucose.

No fertility drugs.

 

[donnellysdogs]

Digestive prob wouldn't be the 1st thing to spring to mind. Just the alchohol and big mc adding to low levels you were having the night before and not getting sorted...

You need to do a serious basal test overnight...and to lower thos basal rates tonight by even just 0.025. As Spiker said in another post its easier to sort out slightly higher levels than lows...

 

[Janelle123]

Have we asked what insulin you are using in your pump? Is it the same QA insulin you were using before when you were on MDI? If not then that might be the explanation.

I'm using Novorapid which is the same as what I was using on MDI

 

[Janelle123]

Digestive prob wouldn't be the 1st thing to spring to mind. Just the alchohol and big mc adding to low levels you were having the night before and not getting sorted...

You need to do a serious basal test overnight...and to lower thos basal rates tonight by even just 0.025. As Spiker said in another post its easier to sort out slightly higher levels than lows...

I lowered them quite a bit last night to:
00:00 = 0.850
05:00 = 0.925 (changed to 5am instead of 3am since i get up about 2 hours later on the weekends - was that the right thing to do?)
07:00 = 1.100
08:00 = 0.775
10:00 = 0.525
17:00 = 0.700

I've also been running a temp basal of -10% since I started getting low last night

 

[donnellysdogs]

If you get up later at weekends you may well need a separate profile for those late mornings.
But this can be sorted out on a weeknight before next weekend.
Do you record your levels and basal rates down in a log book so if we asked you what your basals were today... Next week you could tell us?

I have 3 separate profiles currently. One when hubby works lates, one for my days off and one for when hubby works earlies.. All have different qtys of basals....you may wish to set up two profiles. One for weekends and you switch over Friday night and one for weekdays and you switch over Sunday nights... See photo.

 

[donnellysdogs]

Ok, tonight... Are you going out? Any reason why you cant eat at around 4-6pm latest? And just one food bolus? and do a proper basal test to sort out your weekends.

You need to sort out an overnight asap.

Ideally something low carb like meat and veg or salmon and a good salad. No potatoes. No bread. A nice steak or pork chops etc with beans, brocollii, asapagus, leeks etc... Just have a **** good proper meal without too many carbs and do a proper test over night.

Then these can be adjusted for the timings for your workdays.

Seriously you need to have a good meal, even if it was eggs, bacon n mushrooms etc. something that you like and is low carb and you can eat lots of. Then one bolus and then test hourly overnight (minimum).

 

[Janelle123]

If you get up later at weekends you may well need a separate profile for those late mornings.
But this can be sorted out on a weeknight before next weekend.
Do you record your levels and basal rates down in a log book so if we asked you what your basals were today... Next week you could tell us?

I have 3 separate profiles currently. One when hubby works lates, one for my days off and one for when hubby works earlies.. All have different qtys of basals....you may wish to set up two profiles. One for weekends and you switch over Friday night and one for weekdays and you switch over Sunday nights... See photo.
View attachment 13413

I have a record of all my basal rates saved on a spreadsheet at work. I set up a separate weekend basal profile last night. Obviously both my weekday and weekend rates still need some serious adjustments though!

 

[Janelle123]

Ok, tonight... Are you going out? Any reason why you cant eat at around 4-6pm latest? And just one food bolus? and do a proper basal test to sort out your weekends.

You need to sort out an overnight asap.

Ideally something low carb like meat and veg or salmon and a good salad. No potatoes. No bread. A nice steak or pork chops etc with beans, brocollii, asapagus, leeks etc... Just have a **** good proper meal without too many carbs and do a proper test over night.

Then these can be adjusted for the timings for your workdays.

Seriously you need to have a good meal, even if it was eggs, bacon n mushrooms etc. something that you like and is low carb and you can eat lots of. Then one bolus and then test hourly overnight (minimum).

I'm going out for dinner and then to the movies with a friend tonight. We are having an early dinner so it could be possible to still do it tonight depending if I can find something low carb on the menu. if not, I'll try this tomorrow.

 

[donnellysdogs]

Preferably low carb as it would make any errors in bolus ratios less! Thats my thinking but if not try to avoid pizza, pasta etc as this could extend beyond and distort later figures....

You done right to set up different profile and adjust...

You need to get through that movie without testing and relax!!!

 

[donnellysdogs]

Don't forget to treat the hypo and forget basal testing as such if you go below 4.0.
If no alchohol involved then try to treat any hypo with an initial 15g fast acting. People in UK tend to be told to have 3 glucotabs or 3 jellybabies I think.
I dont have either. I used to have either a cup of warm coffee with 2 sugars (immediately drinkable) or like you are having hypos overnight I would take a kids tommee tippee mug with milk and 2 sugars in or 3 maomi haribo pinballs. I keep these pinball sweets in a plastic open container on bedside table as they don't go yucky left in the open and they are easily taken.
The milk was lovely as I could still lie on my back and drink it from my tommee tippee childproof mug so I barely woke up.

 

[donnellysdogs]

How did the dinner and movies go?