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May 19, 2011
ClaireH
14 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Levemir versus Lantus
Thing is I have done DAFNE and established 10 lantus was too high on a night and I walways hypo'd. SO we dropped to 6 and I've steadily built back up to 8 or 9. 8 gives me morning highs and 9 gives me a 1am hypo .... I am a tad demoralised 
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May 19, 2011
novorapidboi26
1,819 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Levemir versus Lantus
Everyone may feel different, but you would get used to the pump being there, and injections would be a thing of the past, no need to dial up, pull the cap off etc ,you just push a button and hey presto..............you can also get Bluetooth handsets that can tell the pump to deliver wirelessly, in case it was in an awkward position and you were eating out........... A just a case of weighing out the benefits to the hassle.......and workload.......... |
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May 19, 2011
AK
16 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Levemir versus Lantus My local Trust is expert on them and they asked whether I wanted one. For the general control aspect, I was tempted but for lifestyle generally I want to forget about injections from time to time, which would be difficult with a pump attached to you. |
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May 19, 2011
novorapidboi26
1,819 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Levemir versus Lantus
No problem.......... Are you thinking of getting/asking for one......? Is there a specific issue to be dealt with or is it general control....? |
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May 19, 2011
AK
16 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Levemir versus Lantus Thanks for your pump info, Novorapidboi. |
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May 19, 2011
novorapidboi26
1,819 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Levemir versus Lantus
Definitely sound like the Dawn Phenomenon, just after 3 am you body clock knows you will be getting up in a few hours so starts to release a cocktail of hormones, one of which is from the alpha cells of the pancreas, Glucagon, this increases resistance and also carry's a message to the liver that instructs it to release glucose from its stores in preparation for increased energy requirements when starting the day.......... Correcting at this time is fine, but having QA insulin on board may make the interpretation of your results harder to follow.........just keep increasing your evening Lantus dose, the only downside is Lantus dose changes take a few days to get going, so effectively, 3 days to get going, 3 days to confirm the doses effect, so time consuming....... As far as the correction goes, at higher levels you may experience higher resistance to insulin, so 1 unit may not drop your blood sugar by 2.5mmol/l, this may be the contributing to your even higher result when you wake as the correction has not been sufficient together with the effects of the Dawn Phenomenon....... |
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May 18, 2011
saxman
28 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Levemir versus Lantus
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May 18, 2011
ClaireH
14 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Levemir versus Lantus HIIm new here lol I have been put on a split dose of lantus now and am still have a nightmare getting the doses right Im having high in morning with normal BGs at 3am and if my 3 am test is high i correct then too and yet im still high!! Most frustrating to say the least Anyone else on split lantus? Claire x |
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May 18, 2011
saxman
28 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Levemir versus Lantus Thanks for the advise I will let you know how im getting on |
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May 18, 2011
MelissaF
56 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Levemir versus Lantus Ah well then it's early days and I think that you need to expect a fair amount of disruption when you change insulins.Definitely try the 3am tests first. It's a pain in the a*se but it will give you a much better idea of why this is happening and then help you to track results when you start to correct. At least with the Levemir you should see an effect from dosage adjustments more quickly than you would have done on the Lantus (if that's what you were on before?) |
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May 18, 2011
saxman
28 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Levemir versus Lantus Hi melissaf, I have only been on it since friday and i have posted my bg diary to see if anyone can see a pattern I will try a few 3am tests to see when my bg starts to rise first 
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May 18, 2011
novorapidboi26
1,819 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Levemir versus Lantus
3am testing is the first thing to do........if your sugars are rising overnight gradually, up your evening BI dose, and then 3am test for a few days, continue till you hold steady from evening test till 3am test......... If its rises from 3 am onwards it most likely dawn phenomenon and then moving the dose till later on at night may be an option... |
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May 18, 2011
MelissaF
56 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Levemir versus Lantus I guess, following DAFNE principles you should test at 3am for a few days to see what's happening. If you think that the high morning BG readings are due to your sugars rising overnight rather than as a reaction to overnight hypos then you should increase your eve BI dose?I had issues with very high morning readings on Levemir too. Interesting. How long have you been on it? Melissa xx |
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May 18, 2011
saxman
28 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Levemir versus Lantus Hi all, I have started having problems with high readings in the mornings,I am wondering should I try moving levamir bedtime dose or trying 3am test because my evening bg are normal but am are high,comments please |
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May 18, 2011
novorapidboi26
1,819 posts
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Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / Carbohydrate Counter Thanks for that...........
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May 18, 2011
Redstellaartois
3 posts
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Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / Carbohydrate Counter Found this online counter, has lots of foods in a searchable database.http://www.aminoz.com.au/food_nutritional_information.php |
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May 17, 2011
novorapidboi26
1,819 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Feeling hungover!!
Your method is right, only when you have done extensive investigation to build your confidence can you stray far from the set out principals.........especially when correcting before bed. My experiences of hypos have been that the liver will respond, but you can never guarantee the livers glucose stores will be sufficient at any time. I dont connect my insulin/carb ratios to correction, but use the level of my blood sugar to decide on how much 1 unit is actually going to drop my blood sugar, after testing I concluded tht with a blood sugar above 17mmol/l 1 unit only drops me 1 mmol/l, hence the large correction I would of taken....... |
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May 17, 2011
Nikki H-C
23 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Feeling hungover!! Thanks Redstellaartois, you're right, my correction dose was much lower than it should have been but as I was going to bed and can sleep through a hurrican or earthquakes, (having slept through both before) I correct less than I should at bed time in case of a night time hypo. Ive only just started to do corrections at bed time so am taking it carefully!! Not that I've ever had one, I'm convinced I won't wake up if I do!Novorapidboi26, you must be on a higher ratio than my 1:1.... Good that you are confident enough to correct properly before bed.... As before, Ive only just started to do correct at bed time so am taking it carefully!! Thanks everyone... not been this high sinse I posted this, thankfully!! I love this web site! 
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May 17, 2011
MelissaF
56 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Levemir versus Lantus
Hi BMR, Just seen your post - it was me who started off this thread. I think, as NRB says, there's no hard and fast rule for everyone as everyone's body reacts in completely different ways. I tried for 5 months on the Levemir and couldn't get any sort of balance at all so went back to the Lantus in the end which suits me much better. My results are a lot more consistant and a lot more predictable and I find it much much easier to apply the DAFNE principles. I have no problem with it lasting for the full 24 hours but I think that the only negative point for me is the waiting for 3+ days to see results to dosage changes. No way around that I think. From the research that I did, I've found that Levemir works very well for a large amount of people but I've also found a fair percentage of people that it hasn't suited at all who have experienced the same problems that I did and that you are now. I think that it's widely recognised that, with Levemir, it's fairly usual to have to up your doseage so, if your doc put you on it to reduce units then that seems strange. Maybe you should discuss further with them. Maybe there were other reasons though? Personally I found that my levels veered between very high and very low with particular problems with very high morning readings. As I mentioned, I found that results were very unpredictable with patterns being very hard to spot and therefore treat. I also had real problems trying to work out how to split the two doses - nothing I did seemed to work. I would keep in constant contact with your HCP and keep talking through everything with them, ask for the reasons why they changed you and take advice in trying to sort it. Sometimes these things take a long time to sort but I understand your frustration with such high levels. See what happens with an increased dosage though. If you (and they) feel that you have given it a good enough trial and you still feel that it's not working for you then it may well be that the insulin just doesn't suit you and you need to switch back to something else. Your instinct is probably a pretty good one but obviously give it a good attempt first as it may settle and improve. I got very frustrated as I was communicating weekly with my nurse who was telling me that she had never heard of anyone experiencing problems on Levemir before and that I should just keep trying. This went on for months. In the end I made the decision myself to switch back. I mentioned my problems a few weeks ago to my consultant at a clinic appointment and straightaway she said that she had heard of several of her patients experiencing similar problems which was a bit frustrating. Let us know how you're getting on. Good luck with it. Melissa xx |
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May 17, 2011
novorapidboi26
1,819 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Feeling hungover!! I would of taken 14 units to correct that 19.8, even before my bed................
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May 17, 2011
Redstellaartois
3 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Feeling hungover!! Hi, when my BG is high I feel really rough, furry mouth, foamy tongue, sickly, thirsty so I guess its kind of like a hangover, without the fun the night before. Only other comment I would make is that your 2u corrective dose seems low. On the basis that 1 ratio (so 1 unit if you're on 1:1) will bring your BG down by roughly 3, I would have done 4u to bring it down by 12 to 7. JWo is right, the odd high won't do too much harm, we all get them! bw Linzi
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May 17, 2011
novorapidboi26
1,819 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Levemir versus Lantus
I wish I could answer all your questions but I cant as I have never had or used one, but I have spoken to many who have, this is where I have got my information. I will try and answer some though: I believe you can carry it in pockets as well as clipped on to trousers, for the women clipped on or position in the bra is an option also, there are also pouches available for purchase. If I had a pump I would imagine it would get annoying, but I assume this feeling may disappear quickly.... Pumps are waterproof, so the shower and swimming is permitted....a change of cannula may be needed after long exposure to submersed condition..... Using the pump on Holiday is essential, as users would not go back to MDI just for a Holiday, however a current issue I have heard discussed recently is how to keep tubing and reservoirs cool in hotter climates.... The stories I have heard from people is that control is much better, perfect even, but this can change just as quick if your background/basal needs changed, which they do from time to time, this means lots more testing, overnight etc...and this can make users feel out of sorts as they try and investigate their new doses.....so like MDI, but if control is really good then you hit a bump in the road, then the effects may be felt more intensely..... I would assume that wearing the pump does restrict some positions, but it depends where the cannula is inserted, if its in a position where it and the connecting tubing is unaffected by movement it will be fine, but as I say, I cant speak from personal experience...... The overall consensus from me, is that the pump is a wonderful device, and if you really need it, then you can get one........you will already be used to the constant testing day and night through your failed attempts to gain control through MDI, so this will make the transition much easier to the pump....... Are you thinking about inquiring...........? What are the your chances at your clinic........? Where are your current problem areas......? |
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May 17, 2011
saxman
28 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Levemir versus Lantus all of AKs questions go for me too. I have been reading about the pump and wondered if it would be better for me, i already do lots of tests and carb count but my bg levels are either low (hypo) or spiking |
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May 17, 2011
AK
16 posts
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Topic: General Discussion / Levemir versus Lantus Do you still use a pump, Novorapidboi?How do you carry it around eg in a pocket? Does it restrict what outfits you can wear? Do you ever get sick of it? Presumably you can't wear it in the shower/swimming? Do you use it on holiday? Even though it's harder work, is the control much better? Have you ever knocked it out by mistake? Does it restrict what positions you can sleep in? Thanks! |