Need Advice BEFORE I Give Insulin!!

Hi again!
I tested Nemo pre food and shot and he was 171. He's still trending down. I took a +3.5 at 3:30 and he was 250. I don't know if I should test him again in alittle bit, he ate about 15 min ago, and then figure out whether he gets insulin or not. What do I do?

 

Do you have the numbers to update your spreadsheet? We really depend on the data before we can give much in the way of helpful advice.

Since you already fed him, that adds to the confusion....if you get a Pre-shot that you're not sure about shooting, it's better to not feed and test again in 20-30 minutes so you know if the numbers are going up without the influence of food. Now that you've fed him, we won't know how much an increase in numbers is due to the food and how much might be due to the last shot wearing off.

 

Ok I didn't know that. More mistakes on my part. He's down to .5 since my major mess up 2 nights ago. I don't know what to do..

 

Are you able to test tonight as long as necessary and have all the supplies you need like strips and HC food?

If you do, it'd probably be OK to shoot the .5 but I can't stay online tonight to watch out for you.

If you do, you should get a +1 and +2 so if you need to intervene, you can do it early.

And don't worry about making mistakes....we all did it!! You can't know what you don't know!!

 

I do have the HC food but way low on test strips after the other night. I'll just hold off cause I don't want to mess him up again! He got down to 37! That was scarey. Like everyone says better high than low. I'm working on getting a human meter and more strips. I picked up a Relion Premier Blu tonight but Marje suggested looking for one that takes less of a sample. Thank you for your help!!!
Ps. I'm so sorry about China! Prayers and hugs to You!!

 

We are testing in 10 minutes. I will be awake for a few hours after that, as my schedule is bass ackwards from obsessing over Boozle.

 

Absolutely....better safe than sorry!!

Thank you. I miss her terribly. I feel like I should always be doing something but then I remember

 

It's great to know other people that obsess over their furry kids!

 

I went thru the same thing in March. Nemo's sister had cancer, but before that was figured out she always needed meds, to be cleaned etc. Sending you HUGE HUGS!!

 

Have you read the other posts on this board?......LOL

We're a bunch of crazy cat ladies....and darn proud of it!!

 

The only place I know of where being a crazy cat lady is an awesome thing!!! Woohoo!

 

I wasn’t able to post last night and don’t like to play Monday morning QB but I would like to post some thoughts for the next time around as there will be one.

On this forum, we suggest even new members shoot a number above 150 so you could have easily shot, fed, tested last evening (if you had had enough test strips), guided the numbers if you needed to do so. You can’t really judge whether he’s dropping or not if the last test you had was at +3.5. When we try to determine if we are shooting a dropping number, we usually have a mid cycle number and a +10 or +11.

There is a difference between a dropping number and a second dip. Lantus is known for giving a second dip at the end of the cycle which means the kitty nadirs, comes up a bit, and then dips again at the end of the cycle but the second dip is not usually lower than the nadir. Contrast this to a dropping number which is when numbers drop throughout the cycle so that the lowest number is at the next preshot.

For new members, it’s safe to shoot a second dip provided you are able to test and have all the supplies you need. (BTW, most of us keep a good stack of test strips in stock; I never had less than 300 at any given time). New members should use the guide that if they have never shot below 150 before, they should stall without feeding, and post for assistance. If they have data and have shot below 150 before, then they can use their best judgement on shooting a second dip depending on the lowest number they’ve shot above 50 (human meter) or 68 (pet meter). For example, if a new member has shot a 100 before but never shot any green numbers, they might still want to stall without feeding and post for help.

Insofar as shooting a dropping number, members with data and an understanding of their cat’s onset, nadir, duration, can shoot dropping numbers above 50 (human meter) or 68 (pet meter) to take advantage of carryover and overlap. They absolutely must be prepared to test early so they will need supplies and be available and able to test and feed. Quite often, members will stall and stall and numbers will continue to drop. If the first number is safe to shoot and they have data, supplies, etc., it’s best to shoot and feed the kitty so numbers will rise before the next onset.

It’s extremely important that you fill in the SS. No one can give you solid suggestions without seeing the data. While it’s not a requirement for you to complete it, I would be concerned about any member giving advice that can’t see what’s going on with Nemo. For me, without a SS with data filled in, I won’t give dosing advice as safety is my number one priority and I won’t risk the safety of another member’s cat by guessing at what I think a dose should be.