Type 1 diabetic in a pickle

[Terryson10]

I am a type 1 diabetic who is taking metformin and on MDI regime. I inject a minimum of 5 times daily and that's if i dont do any correction dosing.
My BGL is completely out of control at the min. I do DAFNE on a day to day basis and can do carb counting incredibly well, However my ratio at the min is around 1.75units to 10g of carbs and i have incredible difficulty with maths as i am also a person with dyspraxia.
So i decided to get a insulinx machine with a dose calculator on it. But hell no still no joy.
When i don't eat my bgs behave themselves but as soon as i eat sky high.
So i tried upping my ratio and i ended up hypoing all the time.

I am currently fighting to get onto a pump and am being made to do another DAFNE course as i done mine in 2006.
So now i feel **** about my diabetes and have started to comfort eat and don't see the point in testing anymore.
I know this is no good and my wife has no understanding of how i feel.

Can anybody suggest anything that might help??


Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

 

[hale710]

If you use a smart phone, download the DAFNE app. You input your ratios for each meal etc, then before you eat you input your BG and number of carbs and it tells you how many units to take! Nice and simple. It also calculates your corrections if required

 

[Terryson10]

R

 

[Terryson10]

I have an insulinx meter that does the same thing as well as weighing scales that work out carbs in foods. But my ratio is around 1.75units to 10 grms of carbs but i intake between 20-50grms of carbs per mealtime but the ratio sometimes works but not very well.
If i up my ratio i will be forever hypoing so i cant see a way round this problem.
I am insulin resistant on metformin however the gp wont up my metformin in case it increases my hypo's.

I am being assessed for a pump but need something that may help now.
Plus i can carb count and do DAFNE with my eyes closed


Sent from Terryson10 using DCUK App

 

[Terryson10]

I have an insulinx meter that does the same thing as well as weighing scales that work out carbs in foods. But my ratio is around 1.75units to 10 grms of carbs but i intake between 20-50grms of carbs per mealtime but the ratio sometimes works but not very well.
If i up my ratio i will be forever hypoing so i cant see a way round this problem.
I am insulin resistant on metformin however the gp wont up my metformin in case it increases my hypo's.

I am being assessed for a pump but need something that may help now.
Plus i can carb count and do DAFNE with my eyes closed


Sent from Terryson10 using DCUK App

 

[Terryson10]

I have an insulinx meter that does the same thing as well as weighing scales that work out carbs in foods. But my ratio is around 1.75units to 10 grms of carbs but i intake between 20-50grms of carbs per mealtime but the ratio sometimes works but not very well.
If i up my ratio i will be forever hypoing so i cant see a way round this problem.
I am insulin resistant on metformin however the gp wont up my metformin in case it increases my hypo's.

I am being assessed for a pump but need something that may help now.
Plus i can carb count and do DAFNE with my eyes closed


Sent from Terryson10 using DCUK App

 

[Terryson10]

I don't know why my fone has posted so many times


Sent from Terryson10 using DCUK App

 

[jeb]

Terryson10,

I have been a type 1 for nearly 58 years. The way my Mum worked out how to keep my blood sugars normal as a small child and I have done since is to remember it is all a case of balance. You can expect for your sugar to rise for about 2 hours after eating unless it is all protein or very low glycaemic stuff. You don't need to worry so long as it goes down again within the next hour or so. Look for low glycaemic foods. Things like celery you can eat to your hearts content for instance, there a loads of charts on the internet to tell you what they are. If you are active doing something energetic you will need to eat a bit more carb like a plain biscuit or a piece of fruit to avoid a sugar low. Perhaps you should spend a weekend doing normal activities around the house and seeing how much insulin you need to take to keep your sugars 4-6 mmol which is what I aim for, that being the normal range. If you get an infection you will need to eat less and perhaps take a little more insulin. My A1C is 5.4 or 5.6. So to put it succinctly, insulin requirement = food intake minus exercise so the more you expend energy the more food(not good as you will gain weight) or less insulin you will need. By the way, I have no complications from my diabetes.

 

[VickiT11979]

I think the book "think like a pancreas" might help you - it gives info on how different foods affect BG. Sorry, can't remember who wrote it though. I used to have some of this problem before I got my pump, and still have quite large variations in my BG 1-3hrs after food, even if I eat the same meal & do the same activity, but it is better with a pump. Hope you get yours.

 

[iHs]

I have an insulinx meter that does the same thing as well as weighing scales that work out carbs in foods. But my ratio is around 1.75units to 10 grms of carbs but i intake between 20-50grms of carbs per mealtime but the ratio sometimes works but not very well.
If i up my ratio i will be forever hypoing so i cant see a way round this problem.
I am insulin resistant on metformin however the gp wont up my metformin in case it increases my hypo's.

I am being assessed for a pump but need something that may help now.
Plus i can carb count and do DAFNE with my eyes closed


Sent from Terryson10 using DCUK App

Hi terry

What insulin are you using...... is it Novorapid?

Although you have worked out that you need 1.7u for 10g carb, this is probably ok for the lower carb meals but not for the higher carb. You may find that you need to alter the ratio to give less insulin for the higher carb.

 

[Terryson10]

Yes i am on Novorapid and Lantus. With Metformin. I don't understand what you mean about doing less insulin for the high carb meals?
Please could you elaborate
)


Sent from Terryson10 using DCUK App

 

[Terryson10]

I think the book "think like a pancreas" might help you - it gives info on how different foods affect BG. Sorry, can't remember who wrote it though. I used to have some of this problem before I got my pump, and still have quite large variations in my BG 1-3hrs after food, even if I eat the same meal & do the same activity, but it is better with a pump. Hope you get yours.

I have read the book and it is by an american guy called Gary Schiener (not sure on the spelling). It did help pull control in tighter for a while.


Sent from Terryson10 using DCUK App

 

[Terryson10]

Terryson10,

I have been a type 1 for nearly 58 years. The way my Mum worked out how to keep my blood sugars normal as a small child and I have done since is to remember it is all a case of balance. You can expect for your sugar to rise for about 2 hours after eating unless it is all protein or very low glycaemic stuff. You don't need to worry so long as it goes down again within the next hour or so. Look for low glycaemic foods. Things like celery you can eat to your hearts content for instance, there a loads of charts on the internet to tell you what they are. If you are active doing something energetic you will need to eat a bit more carb like a plain biscuit or a piece of fruit to avoid a sugar low. Perhaps you should spend a weekend doing normal activities around the house and seeing how much insulin you need to take to keep your sugars 4-6 mmol which is what I aim for, that being the normal range. If you get an infection you will need to eat less and perhaps take a little more insulin. My A1C is 5.4 or 5.6. So to put it succinctly, insulin requirement = food intake minus exercise so the more you expend energy the more food(not good as you will gain weight) or less insulin you will need. By the way, I have no complications from my diabetes.

I wish i had the control that you have as you sound like u know exactly what your doing. Your mum sounds like she had figured out DAFNE before it had a name


Sent from Terryson10 using DCUK App

 

[robertconroy]

My take is even type 1s can benefit by learning the glycemic loads of foods. The main problem we face as diabetics (1 & 2) is that grains, and especially wheat, are the highest glycemic foods we eat on a regular basis. The only food higher is dried fruit. So really learning the glycemic loads of foods is the best weapon to keep our blood sugars in check. Carb counting is a joke, and a very bad one at that. All carbohydrates have a different effect on your blood sugar, not the same. So the type of carbohydrate has way more effect than the amount, to a point. The best book I've seen on glycemic loads of foods is by Dr. Fedon Alexander Lindberg called The Easy GL Diet Handbook. It's a small book you can take with you and costs $12 U.S. It's available through Amazon and many book sellers. This book is well worth the purchase and you will soon know more about diabetes than your doctor if you read it.

 

[Terryson10]

My take is even type 1s can benefit by learning the glycemic loads of foods. The main problem we face as diabetics (1 & 2) is that grains, and especially wheat, are the highest glycemic foods we eat on a regular basis. The only food higher is dried fruit. So really learning the glycemic loads of foods is the best weapon to keep our blood sugars in check. Carb counting is a joke, and a very bad one at that. All carbohydrates have a different effect on your blood sugar, not the same. So the type of carbohydrate has way more effect than the amount, to a point. The best book I've seen on glycemic loads of foods is by Dr. Fedon Alexander Lindberg called The Easy GL Diet Handbook. It's a small book you can take with you and costs $12 U.S. It's available through Amazon and many book sellers. This book is well worth the purchase and you will soon know more about diabetes than your doctor if you read it.

I will have a look for that book and have a read of it. I am aware of the Glycemic index but I am unsure of how much I know about it.
Probably not too much lol.
Thank you for your input