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Suddenly having lots of hypos...

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Pinkjessi21_

Member
Messages
16
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Hi I have type 1. Diagnosed 2 and a half months ago. Have been doing really well on levemir and novorapid, counting carbs etc although haven't been on the dafne course yet. I have been very well controlled on 8u levemir at night then a ratio of 1.5:10 for breakfast then 1:10 for the rest of the day. Snacks up to 19g carbs without needing insulin. Ive started having hypos a lot more in the last week. Mainly mid mornings but I woke last night feeling low and bm was 4.1 and tonight I've just had a hypo. I have put my morning ratio down to 1:10 and cut my levemir back to 6u. Shall I just keep dropping my levemir back by 2u at a time? Its the weekend so my dsn is not around.
 
As a generalised rule of thumb if you are low specifically between 2-3 hours after a bolus then your bolus needs changing... At all other times it's your Basals.

You haven't said whether you are going low 2-3 hours after eating or what is making you think it's your Basals but I hope this general rule of thumb helps you...
 
donnellysdogs said:
As a generalised rule of thumb if you are low specifically between 2-3 hours after a bolus then your bolus needs changing... At all other times it's your Basals.

You haven't said whether you are going low 2-3 hours after eating or what is making you think it's your Basals but I hope this general rule of thumb helps you...
Click to expand...
Thank you for your reply. It is happening 2-3 hours after food usually so I guess I should maybe try 1:15. I have cut back to 4u levemir tonight. I'm guessing this is the 'honeymoon period' kicking in.
 
Have you got 1/2 unit pens??

Are you using a meter that calculates carbs and bolus's such as the Expert Meter? Because you don't have to increase or drop from 1 to 15 to say 1 to 10 vice versa... With a bolus advising meter such as tbe Expert one you could change from 1 to 11 or 1 to 14 or 1 to 16 etc.....

Keep in contact...
 
I went through the same thing a couple times around the same time you did. If its going low overnight then yes you should reduce your basal, though also make sure you're at around 7-8mmol before going to bed too. Sounds like you do need to reduce your bolus too, sadly it's just a case of trial and error. Be aware of exercise too, particularly in the warm weather. When I was working my 30 minute walk to work in the hot weather meant I only needed one unit with my 60g breakfast! Good luck :)
 
Another thing to be aware of is if you are female, your monthly cycle can have an impact on your BG levels. Personally I run a lot lower during that week, so often have to reduce doses temporarily. The only advice I can give is to test lots, don't make changes based on one result but look for patterns, and talk to your DSN as soon as you can.
 
I have got a half unit pen but haven't started using it yet as I wanted to use all of my flexpens up first. My meter is a accucheck aviva. I have gone to 4u levemir now and have had good levels today. Thanks for all the helpfull comments everyone.
 
Pinkjessi21_ said:
Hi I have type 1. Diagnosed 2 and a half months ago. Have been doing really well on levemir and novorapid, counting carbs etc although haven't been on the dafne course yet. I have been very well controlled on 8u levemir at night then a ratio of 1.5:10 for breakfast then 1:10 for the rest of the day. Snacks up to 19g carbs without needing insulin. Ive started having hypos a lot more in the last week. Mainly mid mornings but I woke last night feeling low and bm was 4.1 and tonight I've just had a hypo. I have put my morning ratio down to 1:10 and cut my levemir back to 6u. Shall I just keep dropping my levemir back by 2u at a time? Its the weekend so my dsn is not around.
Click to expand...

Hi Pinkjess i21

This may be due to your "honeymoon period". Nobody understands why, but for a period of time injecting insulin somehow stimulates the pancreas into prodcing some insulin for a period of time. When I did my DAFNE course there was a young guy of about 19 on the course with me, and he played a lot of sport. He was on tiny doses of insulin compared to the rest of us, some of us having been diabetic for 20+ years - and in my case - for over 30 years. He'd even been able to come off insulin altogether for a short period of time. The other side of that is that when the "honeymoon" is over, some people find themselves taking 2,3,4 times the overall dose of insulin they had before. That doesn't mean you're doing anything wrong at all. It's just the way your condition is working and is absolutely typical. In my case my overall dose doubled in the space of a couple of weeks. Apologies if I'm telling you or anybody else things you already know. Nobody ever explained about this period to me, and I worried for years that I'd mismanaged my diabetes. Then I saw an article in the Balance Magazine explaining all about it. In the intervening 30+ years I can't actually say the communication - even from DSNs - has necessarily got any better. I meet other diabetics regularly who aren't well-informed about their own bodies. Some patients don't want to know (whihcI understand), and some health professionals don't communicate well - or are so overworked they overlook things - which I also understand. We're all himan beings. Good luck! I hope that the excellent comments and advice in the various forums and on the website overall are helpful to you. We're all "experts by experience" in what it's like to deal with diabetes in the real world. All the T1s and T2s live with it 24 hours a day 365 days of the year. We don't knock off at the end of our shifts. Between us all, the peopel that visit the website regularly have millions of years experience dealing with it. Whatever problems you have as time goes on, somebody will have come across it before you and will have found a solution. Their solution may not work for you, but it will give you some things to consider. And as time goes on you'll be able to share your expereince with others too. So keep on posting and asking questions when you need to. Clear answers and good communication is the very least you deserve. All the best
 
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