Should I Bolus after a shower and set change?

SiGreenwood

Member
Messages
18
Every morning I get up and have breakfast and then go for a shower, have a shave etc.. and then get ready for work. Typically I will be off the pump just before I get in the shower and re-connect after I've had a shave, about 20 minutes. However, if I also do a set change I am off the pump for about 30 minutes. At this time in the morning I am on a Basal rate of 0.4 U.Hr.



What I am finding, especially if I do a set change is that 2 hours after I have taken my Basal and eaten I'm getting really high readings. E.g



@ 06:30 my BG was 5.8, I ate 40g of carb and took 4 units as a Bolus

@ around 07:30 I disconnected for a shower and set change

@ around 08:00 I reconnected

@ 08:30 my BG was up at 11.5.



I know that if I don't eat in the morning and do a series of fasting tests my BG never goes up by more than 1 mmol and I know that my Insulin:carb ratio in the morning is 1 unit:10g Carb. I also know that the breakfast I had this morning while I was on MDI would never have raised my BG by more than 2 mmol.



So what is causing the highs? Could it be that if I'm off the pump for 30 minutes I'm missing out on 0.2 units of Bolus and this combined with my BG rising, because I've eaten, is causing me to go high.



Should I take 0.2 units as a Basal just prior to disconnecting or just after reconnecting for the 30 minutes I'm off the pump for the shower and set change?

Another thing I had thought (but I haven't seen on fasting days) was that at 05:30 my Basal goes from 0.325 to 0.4, could this increase in insulin in my system be triggering other hormones in my body and releasing glucose into my system.
 

jopar

Well-Known Member
Messages
2,222
I would try giving the basal that you miss when showering either before or when you reconnect, it's a case of trial and error to find what suits you best..

Another thought is, perhaps a TBR could also be used when you reconnect...

If this is ony happening when you are changing your sets, some people find that leaving the old set in situ for 1/2 hour or so prevents a BG rise..

If on fasting you don't have any problems with going from 0.345 to 0.4, then I would think that hormones kicking in isn't a problems..
 

cally

Well-Known Member
Messages
232
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
I always do a fixed prime of 0.7u after a shower. Thats the same fixed prime as I use after putting new cannula in.
If I disconnect for a long bath or a swim, say 30mins to an hour, I give the missed basal as well as a fixed prime when reconnecting. It seems to work for me.

Its all about trial and error really.
 

PumperSam

Newbie
Messages
1
This may be a completely redundant question but have you tried eating and bolusing the same CHO without doing the shower and disconnect?
If you're still running high after the same time period that the shower etc takes, then that could indicate that your carb ratio needs tweaking. Good luck.
Sam
 

dipsticky

Well-Known Member
Messages
171
Dislikes
Hypocrites and two faced people.
Surely if you take a shower that's gonna put your Bg up, or have I missed something here ?

D.