Recent Posts - DAFNE Online

Mar 24, 2016

HelenP 218 posts

Marke,

Congratulations!!!!!

I am assuming this is your first pump as the TDD has reduced. I am not sure what system I would prefer to live under. We do have a new Prime Minister (Conservative) and they seem to be intent on making the user pay so we will see what happens after our next budget (3/5/16). The govt is putting pressure on the health funds not to increase charges to clients and the health funds are playing silly buggers with what they will pay and I suspect this pump deal is part of that. Interestingly when you check the site they tell you that they will pay unto $(AUD)550 for a blood glucose monitor so I am assuming they are talking about something like the (not yet released) Freestyle Libre!!! not a little Freestyle Optium Neo which are often given away free! The prices are govt controlled for political reasons so may not be indicative of the real cost.

Have fun and enjoy the new relationship! Warning...you can not hide from the download...it is all there!
Helen

Mar 24, 2016

marke 686 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Pump death?

sorry to come late to this party, but I now proudly possess a medtronic 640G ( god bless the UK NHS) and am in love with it. Like NovarapidBoi I am unlikely to get the CGM function since it is expensive and the NHS won't pay :-(
Sadly it has the same clip problems, mine has come apart once already after a week and the guy on the pump course with me actually broke the casing on his pump. The bit that the clip slides into ! They are sending him a new pump as they say its a design fault.
I can't comment on the download yet as the NHS has still to register us all with medtronic, however we all got a bayer meter that links to the pump via bluetooth and sends your BG's to it for the bolus calculator to set the right dose. This works really well and having the pump has made a huge difference to my insulin requirements. I would love the CGM as well but as I said until the cost is more manageable I'm unlikely to use it. Currently the sensors are Â£28 ($52 ) for 6 days, without any health insurance this is a lot of money. But with the Abbott Libre on the market and rumours of other similar systems to be launched we can all hope the prices tumble and we can all afford to use them.
I'm not sure how long I would have to wait for an upgrade will shall see over the coming years....

Mar 24, 2016

marke 686 posts

Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / Beer advice confusing

I would advise a lot more research into this to be sure, in my experience studying the affects of beer on your BG is always a worthwhile activity Very Happy

But seriously its the old maxim, everyone is different and the carb counter is just a rough guide, the only way to be sure is try it and see what happens.

Mar 24, 2016

Alan 49 284 posts

Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / Beer advice confusing

Yes, Dave - it is confusing. I always thought that the brewing process changed sugar into alcohol, so the stronger the beer, the less sugar it contained.

Mar 24, 2016

Dave H 3 posts

Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / Beer advice confusing

Hi
DAFNE carb counter suggests 1 CP for standard beer / lager but a massive 3.5 for a strong ale.
Logic tells me that stronger alcohol content will have bigger impact on delayed drop in BG, so frankly I'm having trouble believing this difference.
I'm a 3 week graduate so realise I'll have to experiment for myself, but all advice welcome.
My usual beer is 3.2 Â°, but when abroad I like local lagers which are invariably 4.5 to 5.

Mar 23, 2016

Phil Maskell 194 posts

Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / CP free lunch

Yeah I'd agree with people above, I'm trying to be low carb, salad for lunch, meat and veg for dinner, I find Tomatoes spike BG and peas, sweetcorn.

Before low carb I wouldn't count vegs or protein (they would be covered by QA for bread/potatoes etc...), but now that's all I eat I'm having to inject for it, not a lot admittedly. An old school carb free meal still needs a few units of QA, more if I have eggs.

Mar 21, 2016

HelenP 218 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Freestyle Libre/ Australia

Thanks Phil,
A decent coffee is about $AUD 4 so it looks like the cost of two coffees a day! That's a perspective!

I will keep you informed but I am assuming we will buy it under NDSS (National Diabetes Subsidy Scheme). These supplies are heavily subsidised to encourage us to use them.

Will keep you informed. Helen

Mar 21, 2016

cumberland 3 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Hello

Warwick said:
Welcome Cumberland. Take a look around and feel free to ask any questions that you have. We're always happy to try and help.

Thanks for the welcome Warwick Very Happy

Mar 21, 2016

Dave H 3 posts

Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / CP free lunch

Hi
Maybe your BI isn't enough. Splitting it, but using same total amount, may no be correct approach.
I went to my DAFNE course 2 weeks ago and was convinced my BI was correct, as I'd had to fast for a minor procedure last year. At that time I was on a no carb (actually no solid food) 24 hours. I was able to drink bovril, tea or coffee with no milk and eat sugar free jelly as it contains next to nothing. I wouldn't suggest you do this for a whole day as I had to, but maybe trying it for half a day or part of a day might clarify your BI.
As it happenend I had to adjust mine down by a couple of units during DAFNE week.
Good luck!

Mar 21, 2016

Phil Maskell 194 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Freestyle Libre/ Australia

Helen,

In the UK its Â£50 + VAT (but we don't pay for that on medical items) for a single 14 day sensor.

Current conversion is 1 to 1.90 so I'm guessing Abbot will round it off about $100?

Let us know how much it is. If you guys get it considerably cheaper, might be worth the extra carriage.

Phil

Mar 21, 2016

Warwick 425 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Levemir

Not tried. Apparently it is called Novo Nordiskâ€™s Tresiba (insulin degludec). I'm more looking for something similar to Levemir that doesn't cause me an allergy and I would never remember to take it every second day. I just know I would inject it on consecutive days or forget for three days and get really friendly with the ambulance officers :-)

Mar 21, 2016

novorapidboi26 1,819 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Levemir

There is another all day, super long lasting basal out there............cant recall its name...........

anyone tried?

Mar 21, 2016

Warwick 425 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Hello

Welcome Cumberland. Take a look around and feel free to ask any questions that you have. We're always happy to try and help.

Mar 19, 2016

cumberland 3 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Hello

Just completed the DAFNE course in Cumbria, dropping in to say hello Very Happy

I found DAFNE to be a really informative course and have learned useful information all week long

Currently I inject 150u Humulin I, every morning and night, and my carb ratio is 5u Novorapid to each 10g carbs.

Going to have a look around the site

Tek care

Mar 19, 2016

Alan 49 284 posts

Topic: General Discussion / BGs before exercise

Thanks Warwick. I think I'll keep things as they are for the time being, but there are a lot of useful tips here - thanks everyone.

Mar 18, 2016

Warwick 425 posts

Topic: General Discussion / BGs before exercise

Hmmm, options as I see it are:

1) Keep the status quo.
2) Increase the time period between lunch and exercise so there is less QA around.
3) Eat some quick-acting carbs just before the exercise.
4) Have a low-carb lunch so that you don't need much QA which may assist the BGs to stay steady during the exercise.

Mar 18, 2016

Alan 49 284 posts

Topic: General Discussion / BGs before exercise

Hello Warwick, I usually exercise about two and a half hours after lunch.

My BGs go down by 5 or 6, so if I'm about 11 before I start I usually have some jelly-babies and a cereal bar afterwards to keep my BG from going down too far as my body recovers - that's about 2 or 3 CPs.

Mar 18, 2016

Warwick 425 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Levemir

I'm currently on Lantus, but was on Levemir for 15 months. It is my favourite basal insulin because as has been noted by other members, it clears the body after about 12 hours so is really useful for exercising. Making changes with Lantus can take 3 days before they really show up, whereas changes to my Levemir showed up almost immediately.

Unfortunately I developed an allergic reaction to Levemir with painful welts that lasted for about a week, so I've switched back to Lantus. f I hadn't had the allergic reaction, I'd still be on Levemir though.

Mar 18, 2016

Warwick 425 posts

Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / Trying to carbohydrate count

I agree that the Accuchek Aviva Expert really does help with this stuff.

Mar 18, 2016

Warwick 425 posts

Topic: DAFNE Online Mobile / Insulin dose

Where in the diary are you trying to enter 4 units?

Mar 18, 2016

Warwick 425 posts

Topic: General Discussion / BGs before exercise

How soon after lunch are you exercising Alan? If it is within a couple of hours, then your current regime is probably fine. If it is 4 hours or so, then perhaps take lunch a bit earlier, or exercise a bit later and take the correct insulin, or one unit less than what you would take if you weren't doing the exercise.

How far do your BGs drop during the 20 minutes of exercise?

Mar 17, 2016

Alan 49 284 posts

Topic: General Discussion / BGs before exercise

Wow, Phil - I'm not anywhere near your league! I limit myself to 20 minute sessions, but I do get out of breath and get the old heart pumping.

I'm probably 50 years older than you - so that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!
Have you done any racing? Cycling is a great sport, you should try it.


Mar 24, 2016 HelenP 218 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Pump death? Marke, Congratulations!!!!! I am assuming this is your first pump as the TDD has reduced. I am not sure what system I would prefer to live under. We do have a new Prime Minister (Conservative) and they seem to be intent on making the user pay so we will see what happens after our next budget (3/5/16). The govt is putting pressure on the health funds not to increase charges to clients and the health funds are playing silly buggers with what they will pay and I suspect this pump deal is part of that. Interestingly when you check the site they tell you that they will pay unto $(AUD)550 for a blood glucose monitor so I am assuming they are talking about something like the (not yet released) Freestyle Libre!!! not a little Freestyle Optium Neo which are often given away free! The prices are govt controlled for political reasons so may not be indicative of the real cost. Have fun and enjoy the new relationship! Warning...you can not hide from the download...it is all there! Helen

Mar 24, 2016 marke 686 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Pump death? sorry to come late to this party, but I now proudly possess a medtronic 640G ( god bless the UK NHS) and am in love with it. Like NovarapidBoi I am unlikely to get the CGM function since it is expensive and the NHS won't pay :-( Sadly it has the same clip problems, mine has come apart once already after a week and the guy on the pump course with me actually broke the casing on his pump. The bit that the clip slides into ! They are sending him a new pump as they say its a design fault. I can't comment on the download yet as the NHS has still to register us all with medtronic, however we all got a bayer meter that links to the pump via bluetooth and sends your BG's to it for the bolus calculator to set the right dose. This works really well and having the pump has made a huge difference to my insulin requirements. I would love the CGM as well but as I said until the cost is more manageable I'm unlikely to use it. Currently the sensors are Â£28 ($52 ) for 6 days, without any health insurance this is a lot of money. But with the Abbott Libre on the market and rumours of other similar systems to be launched we can all hope the prices tumble and we can all afford to use them. I'm not sure how long I would have to wait for an upgrade will shall see over the coming years....

Mar 24, 2016 marke 686 posts	Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / Beer advice confusing I would advise a lot more research into this to be sure, in my experience studying the affects of beer on your BG is always a worthwhile activity But seriously its the old maxim, everyone is different and the carb counter is just a rough guide, the only way to be sure is try it and see what happens.

Mar 24, 2016 Alan 49 284 posts	Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / Beer advice confusing Yes, Dave - it is confusing. I always thought that the brewing process changed sugar into alcohol, so the stronger the beer, the less sugar it contained.

Mar 24, 2016 Dave H 3 posts	Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / Beer advice confusing Hi DAFNE carb counter suggests 1 CP for standard beer / lager but a massive 3.5 for a strong ale. Logic tells me that stronger alcohol content will have bigger impact on delayed drop in BG, so frankly I'm having trouble believing this difference. I'm a 3 week graduate so realise I'll have to experiment for myself, but all advice welcome. My usual beer is 3.2 Â°, but when abroad I like local lagers which are invariably 4.5 to 5.

Mar 23, 2016 Phil Maskell 194 posts	Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / CP free lunch Yeah I'd agree with people above, I'm trying to be low carb, salad for lunch, meat and veg for dinner, I find Tomatoes spike BG and peas, sweetcorn. Before low carb I wouldn't count vegs or protein (they would be covered by QA for bread/potatoes etc...), but now that's all I eat I'm having to inject for it, not a lot admittedly. An old school carb free meal still needs a few units of QA, more if I have eggs.

Mar 21, 2016 HelenP 218 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Freestyle Libre/ Australia Thanks Phil, A decent coffee is about $AUD 4 so it looks like the cost of two coffees a day! That's a perspective! I will keep you informed but I am assuming we will buy it under NDSS (National Diabetes Subsidy Scheme). These supplies are heavily subsidised to encourage us to use them. Will keep you informed. Helen

Mar 21, 2016 cumberland 3 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Hello Warwick said: Welcome Cumberland. Take a look around and feel free to ask any questions that you have. We're always happy to try and help. Thanks for the welcome Warwick

Mar 21, 2016 Dave H 3 posts	Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / CP free lunch Hi Maybe your BI isn't enough. Splitting it, but using same total amount, may no be correct approach. I went to my DAFNE course 2 weeks ago and was convinced my BI was correct, as I'd had to fast for a minor procedure last year. At that time I was on a no carb (actually no solid food) 24 hours. I was able to drink bovril, tea or coffee with no milk and eat sugar free jelly as it contains next to nothing. I wouldn't suggest you do this for a whole day as I had to, but maybe trying it for half a day or part of a day might clarify your BI. As it happenend I had to adjust mine down by a couple of units during DAFNE week. Good luck!

Mar 21, 2016 Phil Maskell 194 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Freestyle Libre/ Australia Helen, In the UK its Â£50 + VAT (but we don't pay for that on medical items) for a single 14 day sensor. Current conversion is 1 to 1.90 so I'm guessing Abbot will round it off about $100? Let us know how much it is. If you guys get it considerably cheaper, might be worth the extra carriage. Phil

Mar 21, 2016 Warwick 425 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Levemir Not tried. Apparently it is called Novo Nordiskâ€™s Tresiba (insulin degludec). I'm more looking for something similar to Levemir that doesn't cause me an allergy and I would never remember to take it every second day. I just know I would inject it on consecutive days or forget for three days and get really friendly with the ambulance officers :-)

Mar 21, 2016 novorapidboi26 1,819 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Levemir There is another all day, super long lasting basal out there............cant recall its name........... anyone tried?

Mar 21, 2016 Warwick 425 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Hello Welcome Cumberland. Take a look around and feel free to ask any questions that you have. We're always happy to try and help.

Mar 19, 2016 cumberland 3 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Hello Just completed the DAFNE course in Cumbria, dropping in to say hello I found DAFNE to be a really informative course and have learned useful information all week long Currently I inject 150u Humulin I, every morning and night, and my carb ratio is 5u Novorapid to each 10g carbs. Going to have a look around the site Tek care

Mar 19, 2016 Alan 49 284 posts	Topic: General Discussion / BGs before exercise Thanks Warwick. I think I'll keep things as they are for the time being, but there are a lot of useful tips here - thanks everyone.

Mar 18, 2016 Warwick 425 posts	Topic: General Discussion / BGs before exercise Hmmm, options as I see it are: 1) Keep the status quo. 2) Increase the time period between lunch and exercise so there is less QA around. 3) Eat some quick-acting carbs just before the exercise. 4) Have a low-carb lunch so that you don't need much QA which may assist the BGs to stay steady during the exercise.

Mar 18, 2016 Alan 49 284 posts	Topic: General Discussion / BGs before exercise Hello Warwick, I usually exercise about two and a half hours after lunch. My BGs go down by 5 or 6, so if I'm about 11 before I start I usually have some jelly-babies and a cereal bar afterwards to keep my BG from going down too far as my body recovers - that's about 2 or 3 CPs.

Mar 18, 2016 Warwick 425 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Levemir I'm currently on Lantus, but was on Levemir for 15 months. It is my favourite basal insulin because as has been noted by other members, it clears the body after about 12 hours so is really useful for exercising. Making changes with Lantus can take 3 days before they really show up, whereas changes to my Levemir showed up almost immediately. Unfortunately I developed an allergic reaction to Levemir with painful welts that lasted for about a week, so I've switched back to Lantus. f I hadn't had the allergic reaction, I'd still be on Levemir though.

Mar 18, 2016 Warwick 425 posts	Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / Trying to carbohydrate count I agree that the Accuchek Aviva Expert really does help with this stuff.

Mar 18, 2016 Warwick 425 posts	Topic: DAFNE Online Mobile / Insulin dose Where in the diary are you trying to enter 4 units?

Mar 18, 2016 Warwick 425 posts	Topic: General Discussion / BGs before exercise How soon after lunch are you exercising Alan? If it is within a couple of hours, then your current regime is probably fine. If it is 4 hours or so, then perhaps take lunch a bit earlier, or exercise a bit later and take the correct insulin, or one unit less than what you would take if you weren't doing the exercise. How far do your BGs drop during the 20 minutes of exercise?

Mar 17, 2016 Alan 49 284 posts	Topic: General Discussion / BGs before exercise Wow, Phil - I'm not anywhere near your league! I limit myself to 20 minute sessions, but I do get out of breath and get the old heart pumping. I'm probably 50 years older than you - so that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it! Have you done any racing? Cycling is a great sport, you should try it.