Type 1 constant highs - HELP!!

It does seem mnaynof us are losing some control lately. Mine was rock steady until about two months ago. Now there's no rhyme or reason. Lantus is a wild card and mornings I need to split boluses multiple times before lunch. Too much correction and I go low then pop up. I need my ' food' bolus,mth and an hour later a 'stay steady' bolus then sometimes a small bolus 2.5 hours later !

I'm eating the same carefully measured and weighed meals everyday and now taking over 50% more insulin.

Are you adding correction doses to your meal dose? For some reason that doesn't work for me. I need to correct away from food. One of the best things I do is set a timer for one hour after I start eating bf and take a small dose. Then I'm steady. But after 2-2.5 hours I need a small dos etonstop further rising. I don't hypo either. Just steady this way. My control is good if I do this. Otherwise I just have a slow steady rise

My lantus is messed too. 2 units and I have a 20-25 point rise but then I'm correcting with small doses all day. 3 units and I do potentially hypo. No 1/2 unit pens in the US yet. Thankfully there is for novolog. I might add I eat small meals , vlc ( under 20 day) and moderate protein. I hav no clue where all this change came from. I do not want a pump but as of now am bolusing as if I have one. Small doses throughout the day. Too many injections for my liking but it keeps me steadier.

In all these situations @Dia.natty , your best bet is to go away and have a look at your basal requirements. If you do a proper basal test, as described here www.mysugr.com/basal-rate-testing/ , you'll be able to determine where the problems lie. I suspect that your basal insulin isn't quite right and that you need some adjustment, as basal issues generally throw everything else out.

The other possibility is that you are ill with something?

A basal test is definitely a good place to,start. If it was me, I'd also change my insulins too in case they had become ineffective for some reason.

Dia.natty said:

I have had type 1 diabetes for 18 years now and I have had good control all my life (I have just turned 21). Over the past couple of days my blood sugar levels have risen into double figures and not been below 12.0 (my normal is between 4 and 11). Now within the past month I have started to carb count correctly and my dietician has recommended I cut my lantus down to 20 units (originally 28). Now my highs are difficult to combat over the past few days and I don't know why. I use correction doses but it barely touches it. I have increased my lantus up to 25 and it has helped but I am still having to take correction doses even when I haven't eaten. Is this something someone else has gone through or any advice would be welcomed. I haven't had anything like this before and my hbA1c is between 7 and 8. I have good control up until 3 days ago. Also I usually take my lantus roughly around 8pm every day.

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When I get a sudden unexpected period of highs, it is usually an early warning of an illness such as a cold. My body is using more sugar to fight the germs. As you have done, I keep a closer eye on my BG and make adjustments.

My consultant reduced by Lantus, from what he said was making my A1c too low, down from 10 units x twice daily to 7 x twice daily, and I'm chasing the high sugars all day and night. I'm fed up with the number of correction extra bolus injections I'm having to do. He wants me running around 10's for a while to try and bring back some lost hypo awareness. Been T1 for over 50 years now, since age 4, so quite understand that I've lost my hypo awareness (but no other diabetes complications)
I had been running my blood sugars at around 3 to 5 for the last year or so, i got frightened when my dad (T1 also) dying suddenly from heart attack. I saw high sugars as the enemy, and I preferred being low, even though I put on loads of weight prob due to too much insulin. I see consultant again next month. I hate feeling too high, in double figures all the time. I have got some hypo warning signs back now, so I feel the experiment worked but now I'm increasing the Lantus up a unit at a time to get back to normal.
I've also been recording blood tests when I wake during the night (with chronic pain from Lupus) and I notice what I read must be 'dawn phenomenon ', so that is giving me even more unexpected highs to compensate for. More injections - yay

Sorry for rambling on....

Dia.natty said:

I have had type 1 diabetes for 18 years now and I have had good control all my life (I have just turned 21). Over the past couple of days my blood sugar levels have risen into double figures and not been below 12.0 (my normal is between 4 and 11). Now within the past month I have started to carb count correctly and my dietician has recommended I cut my lantus down to 20 units (originally 28). Now my highs are difficult to combat over the past few days and I don't know why. I use correction doses but it barely touches it. I have increased my lantus up to 25 and it has helped but I am still having to take correction doses even when I haven't eaten. Is this something someone else has gone through or any advice would be welcomed. I haven't had anything like this before and my hbA1c is between 7 and 8. I have good control up until 3 days ago. Also I usually take my lantus roughly around 8pm every day.

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check the use by date on your medication I have had simular occurence and found the insulins don't always last well when getting close to the date printed the vials

Dia.natty said:

I have had type 1 diabetes for 18 years now and I have had good control all my life (I have just turned 21). Over the past couple of days my blood sugar levels have risen into double figures and not been below 12.0 (my normal is between 4 and 11). Now within the past month I have started to carb count correctly and my dietician has recommended I cut my lantus down to 20 units (originally 28). Now my highs are difficult to combat over the past few days and I don't know why. I use correction doses but it barely touches it. I have increased my lantus up to 25 and it has helped but I am still having to take correction doses even when I haven't eaten. Is this something someone else has gone through or any advice would be welcomed. I haven't had anything like this before and my hbA1c is between 7 and 8. I have good control up until 3 days ago. Also I usually take my lantus roughly around 8pm every day.

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Same happens to me but only during the Christmas period when I don`t have much work to do. I also stop walking because of the bad weather. But as soon as I return to the normal routine, my blood sugar levels go back to as they were before the christmas period.

Some articles on why no food can make your blood glucose level higher:

Why Is My Blood Sugar High in the Morning?
http://www.webmd.com/diabetes/morning-high-blood-sugar-levels

Controlling the Dawn Phenomenon
http://www.diabetesselfmanagement.com/blog/controlling-the-dawn-phenomenon/

Rocky Morning Highs?
http://www.diabetesforecast.org/2008/sep/rocky-morning-highs.html

What is the dawn phenomenon that some people with diabetes experience? Can anything be done about it?
http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/diabetes/expert-answers/dawn-effect/faq-20057937

Somogyi Effect
http://www.diabetesselfmanagement.com/diabetes-resources/definitions/somogyi-effect/

I didn't read through all the replies yet, but I just wanted to mention that hormonal imbalances and stress are major factors in elevated blood sugar levels. Since insulin is a hormone, your mood can affect your BG and your BG can affect your mood. (And yes, I agree, it's not fair.)
When I go through periods of extreme highs and nothing's changed, I sometimes take Garcina Camboa. It's a diet supplement that can reduce blood glucose. I have them on hand for these situations and taking one every once in a while really helps.
It sounds like you are much more aware and precise about your control than I am, though, so before doing anything, check with your primary care physician.
Good luck.

Dia.natty said:

Yeah I've read that many are having similar problems. The only issue with mine is that even if I take many correction doses and meal doses it doesn't result in a hypo. My blood sugars just stay high and very slowly increase. It's just worrying me that I've lost complete control of it and I don't know why. Thank you for the reply.

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I have been type 1 for 48 years now and go through phases of being in control and then not. I am in one of the 'not' just now. I think some of the problem lies with my 'speedy' insulin, Humalog. I take it now (depending on my reading) 10 to 20 minutes before food, and this seems to help a bit. I think the problem lies in the fact that because my dose is so small that the 300ml vial of insulin is out of the fridge too long. You are supposed to change vials after about 3 weeks, if not I believe this can cause a problem. The other side to this is the dose itself - if you do a check with the pen you will see 1/2 unit, 1 unit and 1 1/2 doses bear no relation to each other in the amount of insulin being expelled. I have started taking doses 1/2 or 1 unit greater than my dose and not holding the needle in for the count of 7, but withdrawing it immediately. (I have also started to hold the needle in for a count of 10). I find it very hard to find a reason for the readings as I do and eat the same most days. I have become much more aware of the high readings over the last few months as the variability seems much greater and my readings generally seem higher.

Your basal insulin is too little never cut or increase it by big increments. Also I always had continues lows followed by highs when I used 1 dose of lantus a day

When do you go up on the lantus is it 18 or 20 hours after you inject?? Lantus doesn't cover 24 hours.