? 3/12/18 - Luci - AMPS 194, 2+115 -started 2.25,3+78,4+42,5+4,6+92, 8+222,PMPS339

I expect Luci to dive into the lagoon today and it looks like she's nearly there at 2+ - the question is how to keep her there without getting hypo? It seems like every time I start feeding her HC or MC food to prevent the deep dive she soars back up - how do I get her to surf? How does one hold a bouncy cat under 100 but over 50 for more than 2 or 3 hours?????

 

Try giving LC now and check in 30 minutes. If she continues to drop, try LC again. It's all about experimenting.

 

Thanks! LC already on board and she's gone back to her nap - which I so rudely disturbed her from to get her first 2+. I'll be checking again in an hour - watching closely today
3+ at 78 - finally in the Lagoon! I'm excited...now the challenge is to get her to surf and not deep dive! She's eating 5% carb FF beef pate. Will check again in an hour.

 

Luci's at 52 now - fed her 9% FF Flaked Tuna feast - hope she'll stick around here a bit longer and not go lower...

 

Time to catch a wave Luci!

 

Stay steady, Luci!!

 

She's at 42 now, just fed her a tablespoon LC + teaspoon of MC - hoping to hold her steady or creep up a bit - would love to see her slide up to 50+ a few...this girl isn't in the habit of doing that - when she starts to climb she soars - get the parachute ready.

 

When do you plan to test again? Luci does like to be dramatic.

 

Just tested again - at about 35 mins - she's back to 57 - a tiny bit of MC - mixed with LC - may have done this. Will test again in an hour - would love to teach her that this isn't a bad place to be.

 

Did you note what you fed to get Luci back up to 57 on the SS so it's there to see next time you need to keep her safe, but not send her up to the moon?

Are you going to take the reduction or think about doing 3 reductions under 50 since Luci doesn't hold her reductions well?

 

I did not note on the SS. I keep a notebook by the testing towel to write time of BG and what kind of food and how much. I can also add to SS.

Hoping the next BG will be under 100.. with a bit of LC food.. fingers crossed

 

That can help other people give you ideas or suggestions on what to change if you continue to have trouble with Luci's bounces after giving MC or HC at certain times.

 

And here we are, back up to 222 by +8 ...she stayed in the lagoon for about 4 hours - how can I keep her there longer - without going too low?

 

Can you help me understand please, what this means? Am I going to take 'the reduction' or think about doing 3 reductions under 50? Luci indeed doesn't hold reductions well at all...what can I do to help her stay under 100? Even if she stayed a bit longer each time? How does that happen with a girl like this - apparently doesn't think green is her color at all

 

First, could you update the subject line so people know Luci is back out of the danger zone.

Feeding the curve. Try to give her a bit more carbs earlier on so she doesn't drop so low. She was at 52 at +4, meaning she still had some part of the cycle to go before nadir. At that point, I might have tried MC to prevent that drop to 42. Might even have done that at +3 because she was dropping so fast. Then she might not have bounced so high. Without seeing the food notes on the SS, I can't see how the food might have changed the cycle. Too much carbs after nadir might shorten the duration, also causing a zoom up to higher preshots.

As for the reduction, with newly diagnosed cats, they take a reduction if they go below 50. But if over time you find a cat is not holding the reduction and contantly increasing/decreasing around a given dose, it can help to wait until kitty goes under 50 three times at a dose (or under 40 once) before taking the reduction. That means they get to spend more time at a dose where they are seeing green, and hopefully get more used to spending time in normal numbers.

 

I've done this - only to have her bounce back out of it sooner...did you see the SS from the last time we had her in the greens?

 

Do you mean reducing the dose of insulin? Luci is not newly diagnosed - as she was diagnosed in November 2017 - doesn't seem new to me. I'm not sure what you mean. Thanks for your help/advice. It's been very frustrating with Luci - every time I add insulin she drops for a time or two...but then returns to her old ways - lots of 200's or higher...very few lower numbers. I thought the point of all of this was to try to get her under 100 - and keep her there.

 

Our definition of "newly diagnosed" is kitties who have been diagnosed less than a year ago, so Luci fits that definition.

Yes, the point is to try to get her under 100, and get her used to those numbers so she won't bounce as much. It's a process, it takes time. One option for you tonight is to stay with the 2.25 unit dose and wait for her to drop 2 more times under 50, on different days. With the higher amount of insulin, she should be spending more time in green. But you will have to experiment with amount of carbs early in the cycle, and at different times, to see if you can prevent her from dropping so fast at the beginning of the cycle.

 

If you try the 3 under 50, it might help her spend more time in greens. You test a lot, so you have that on your side to keep her safe. Looking at your recent data, when she drops, she likes to drop early. One suggestion, if your preshot is 230ish or lower, get a +1 and a +2, see where she is going. If she is blue at +1, feed her for sure! You’ll have to experiment with what carb level and how much is overkill, but you have to try to slow her down, likely earlier in the cycle. Asia liked to drop quick and early on Lantus as well. There were times I gave her lots of carbs at preshot because I had a good idea what I was in for.

Also, add the 42 to your SS so you know when and where that happened and what you did before and after that number.

 

Should I feed her MC or HC if she is at blue at 1+? Luci eats after every poke - it's just a matter of what to put in her dish.

 

Depends if she's dropping from her preshot number. Bigger drops means more carbs to slow it down, especially early in the cycle. It will be trial and error to see what Luci needs exactly.

 

That’s something you’ll have to play around with and see what works for her. HC might be overkill, MC might not be enough, you’ll just have to find out for yourself. If Asia dropped early in her cycle (+1 or +2), I needed big guns because she still had a ways to drop, but I’ve seen other cats, a few bites of low carb food at a drop and they are surfing!

 

I'll try an MC tonight if she's in the blue at PMPS - I'm always exhausted when she gets into the green - it makes me very nervous and of course I test more - and watch her like a hawk. She's all cool, calm and relaxed and I'm a nervous wreck - and at the end of the day exhausted from the antics. I'll do my best to try to make a good judgement call tonight. At least I'm prepared for all levels of BG...

 

It’s because she’s not spending a lot of time there so you can’t really predict how it can go. The more time she spends in green, you’ll start to get used to her patterns and know better how to deal with them. On Lantus, I knew a green preshot could mean a hectic +1 through +4, not always, but it was a sure sign of funny business. If she dropped from a high green, not even a big drop, but 10 or 20 points at +1, I loaded her up with carbs!

 

Luci has never had a 'green' preshot..not even on her best day. She's wearing me out

 

Not yet!

It took a couple months before I saw one or two and even longer before they came with any frequency. Hang in there, it’s frustrating when progress seems slow, but you’ll get there.