ive been on insulin for nearly a year now i have novo rapid after my meals and glargine at night i keep having to increase the amounts of both and am still not getting good results my fasting levels are about 10 and even after the nova rapid two hours later my sugars are over 11 but 4 hours later i find my sugars are dropping to around 4 i just cant seem to get it right i keep reading about carb counting but just dont undersand it, in all im lost just dont know what to do and i cant talk to my doctor about it as he just treats me like a silly woman, so any one got any advice please
help
- Thread starter meggit13
- Start Date
meggit13 said:
Hello Meggit, welcome to the forum. I am a T2 but not on insulin so can't help, but I'm sure one of our insulin using T2's will be along to help soon.
Oh dear meggit13 ! somebody,probably daisy will be along shortly to deliver the standard advice to newcomers.
You have come to exactly the right place for advice, lots of people on here with an astonishing amount of knowledge.
Welcome
Roy
You have come to exactly the right place for advice, lots of people on here with an astonishing amount of knowledge.
Welcome
Roy
daisy1
Legend
- Messages
- 26,457
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Tablets (oral)
- Dislikes
- Cruelty towards animals.
Hi meggit and welcome to the forum 
Here is the information that Superchip - Roy mentioned and I hope you will find it helpful. I hope a T2 insulin user will come along soon to answer your questions.
BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS
Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.
A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you’ll find well over 30,000 people who are demonstrating this.
On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.
The role of carbohydrate
Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.
If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.
The bad news
Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.
The good news
People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.
Controlling your carbs
The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.
There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:
Reduce your carbohydrates
A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.
The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.
Choosing better carbohydrates
Another option is to replace ‘white carbohydrates’ (such as white bread, white rice, white flour etc) with whole grain varieties. The idea behind having whole grain varieties is that the carbohydrates get broken down slower than the white varieties –and these are said to have a lower glycaemic index.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/food/diabetes ... rains.html
The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.
Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes
Eating what works for you
Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.
To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.
The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:
Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes
Access to blood glucose test strips
The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:
Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to blood glucose testing supplies.
You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic
Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PETITION CLOSES ON 31 OCTOBER 2012 AT 1029 SO PLEASE SIGN NOW
Please sign our e-petition for free testing for all type 2's; here's the link:
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/petition/
Do get your friends and colleagues to sign as well.
Here is the information that Superchip - Roy mentioned and I hope you will find it helpful. I hope a T2 insulin user will come along soon to answer your questions.
BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS
Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.
A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you’ll find well over 30,000 people who are demonstrating this.
On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.
The role of carbohydrate
Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.
If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.
The bad news
Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.
The good news
People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.
Controlling your carbs
The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.
There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:
- Reduce your carbohydrate intake
- Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates
Reduce your carbohydrates
A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.
The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.
Choosing better carbohydrates
Another option is to replace ‘white carbohydrates’ (such as white bread, white rice, white flour etc) with whole grain varieties. The idea behind having whole grain varieties is that the carbohydrates get broken down slower than the white varieties –and these are said to have a lower glycaemic index.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/food/diabetes ... rains.html
The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.
Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes
Eating what works for you
Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.
To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.
The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:
Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes
- Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l
- Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l
- Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
- 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l
Access to blood glucose test strips
The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:
- structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
- self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education
Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to blood glucose testing supplies.
You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic
Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PETITION CLOSES ON 31 OCTOBER 2012 AT 1029 SO PLEASE SIGN NOW
Please sign our e-petition for free testing for all type 2's; here's the link:
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/petition/
Do get your friends and colleagues to sign as well.
angieG
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 725
- Type of diabetes
- Type 1
- Treatment type
- Insulin
meggit13 said:
Hi meggit,
Can you give us a bit more information and we may be able to help.
How long have you been diabetic and did you go straight onto insulin? I ask this as you say you have been on insulin for nearly a year, if you are really a type 1 that has been assumed to be type 2 then it may be that your honeymoon period is over and you will need more insulin. I was labelled as a type 2 and tablet controlled for about 18 months until a GAD antibody test proved I was really a type 1 and I was put on insulin.
What foods are you eating? I find if I eat higher carb stuff like muesli, rice, potatoes etc I need more insulin to cover them to get a decent 2 hour reading but then my levels can plummet at the 4 or 5 hour mark. The best thing to do with this I have found is to eat more fat with the meal as this smooths the peaks and helps my levels come down more slowly. It is all a case of trial and error.
I use a printed out sheet and enter on what my readings are, everything I eat and what I injected. Then I can look back and compare similar meals until I find the combination that works for me. It also depends what you are doing and how active you are after each meal.
For your fasting level, I take it you mean the morning one? Have you tried moving the time you take your evening glargine? I initially started taking mine about 11pm just before going to bed, but found I could get better control if I take it slightly earlier at around 9pm. I also find I get lower morning levels if I have a snack around this time too, very often a bit of cream with a sugar free jelly or low carb homemade cake (bit of a sweet indulgence) it does seem to help and I frequently get morning levels in the 4's doing this.
Hope some of this helps. Keep asking questions and experimenting. I've only been on insulin 3 months so I'm still very much in the learning curve but those are my findings so far, others may have far better suggestions.
Regards
Angie
i had been on tablets for my diabetes for years but i would get it all under controll and then it would start to spiral out of control again so doc decided i would be better off on insulin to be honest at first it scared the hell out of me and i just lost the plot compleatly ended up putting on weight and taking no notice of my blood glucose readings then went back to the doc and my sugars were way out of control again so he said just keep increasing the insulin levels slowly till i got the blood glucose readings we were aiming for which is all well and good but i have no idea of what im doing i know my eating habits are not good and somehow along the way ive started eating sweets again (yea i know very not good) so i understand sweets got to go (well maybe i will still have the odd sweet ) but its the basic meals i struggle on we are a meat and potato family i have increased the amount of veg we eat considerably and have cut back on the amount of rice and pasta dished out for a meal, so how do i work out how many carbs are in a meal as nothing is ever weighed its just dished up. oh im so confused and worried about it all now told my husband that i was going to chuck all the meds away and pretend it wasnt happening but apparantly he dosnt think that is a good idea
phoenix
Expert
- Messages
- 5,671
- Type of diabetes
- Type 1
- Treatment type
- Pump
Personally I did weigh all the starchy carbs when I first started using insulin. I had scales/calculator and carb counting book to hand at every meal. I was given strict amounts to eat at each meal and I was too scared to vary it. Actually it helped me to get an idea of how much insulin I needed for the normal amounts I ate. It worked well.
You don't have to weigh it for ever but it does help to realise how many carbs there are in what you are going to eat.
(actually I still weigh bread/cereal and potatoes; with potatoes I tend to weigh the whole lot and then when I take my portion out work out roughly how much I've got., rice and pasta really have to be weighed after cooking so except when we have guests I'll weigh mine in the kitchen)
Of course there are other carbs in veggies and sauces etc so you need to estimate them (again handy carb book in hand, or labels if you use anything that's prepackaged.
If that sounds too complicated (it is more complicated to write than to do :lol: an alternative method that may help you is to get the book carbs and cals. This has photos of different portion sizes with the carb counts.
If you look on their website you can download an index which will show you if the foods they include are the ones you eat.
http://www.carbsandcals.com/free-diabet ... -resources
One way of working out how much insulin to take at a meal is to try a variation on what I did.
Try to keep the carb content similar at each meal ie if you have 35g carb for breakfast, have 35 gs a day every day; If you have 45 g at lunch, have 45g every day. This shouldn't be that hard, we are mostly creatures of habit.
Write down your before and 2 hour after readings. You can then start to adjust your bolus insulin adjusting it one unit at a time. Aim for not more than about a 3mmol/l rise at 2 hours (your bolus insulin will continue to work so it will fall further by the next meal)
You also need to have a look at your basal insulin (probably should make sure that's right first... but you were worried about mealtimes)
ok not to sound stupid but which insulin is which i take a long lasting one and a rapid one so which one is bolus and which one is basal sorry to sound stupid but i have just been doing what the doc told me i really havnt looked into any of this till now
