Super frustrated lately. I just can’t seem to get my guy back into those good — blue & dark green — numbers. <sigh> Here’s Nico’s older thread links, if you’re curious: https://felinediabetes.com/FDMB/thr...-amps-526-5-312-pmps-209.241437/#post-2723404 AMPS: 392. +5: 227. PMPS: 347.
Nope. I’m so frustrated I’m near tears tonight— I feel like somehow it’s my fault he isn’t getting better numbers. Nothing has changed except it’s the last tiny bit left in his original vile of insulin. But, according to some it isn’t necessarily “old” or diminished in potency. Necessarily. Do we need to start talking dose increase here? Or, wait even longer? This is cycle 7 of 2.25u now. What do you guys think? ..I do recognize that he is better than he was (red/black— now pink/yellow), but it seems a bit flat. He’s set for tonight, but would love to hear your input for tomorrow. Please, and thank you. @Shelley & Jess @JanetNJ
Well, better then moving up. Speaking of things moving, any chance she’s constipated? My cats numbers get stuck when, eh hem, she is stuck. Lol
Done and done. His AMPS was 397. He just isn’t moving.. super weird. Hopefully 2.5u will do it for him; I’ll keep an eye on him today.
AMPS, 397. +3, 361. +7, 290. PMPS, 393. +3, 271. +7, 134. @Deb & Wink @Shelley & Jess @JanetNJ its bizarre how he isn’t moving, like at all, even with a dose increase to 2.5u this morning. Especially when he is usually my little Superball! With the new vial tonight should I dose 2.5u again, or 2.25u? I monitor pretty closely overnight if needed.
@Deb & Wink @Shelley & Jess @JanetNJ PMPS, 393. (So over this!!) 2.5u NEW VIAL of insulin shot. Fingers & paws all crossed— please illicit some response... ANY response!! — side note: how do I notate the new vial started on his spreadsheet? Wish us luck overnight!
@Deb & Wink @Shelley & Jess @JanetNJ so far so good... PMPS, 393. +3, 271. +7, 134. AMPS, 265. +4, 394. +8, 269. PMPS, 256. +3: 208. +9: 59.
Look at that nice low blue!!! Then the bounce. I know it's frustrating Em, to see those bounces and wait for them to clear. Hang in there.
My bouncy boy is back, it seems. A green overnight and pink this morning! +9: 59. AMPS: 357. +7, 92. +9: 160. PMPS: 506. @Shelley & Jess @Deb & Wink @JanetNJ just an update: I was planning on doing just a +7 for Nico today to let his little ear rest a bit between pre-shots, but his +7 was 92. And as he has a history of a late nadir I decided to get a +9 to make sure we are not still headed down; I don’t believe we will be, however. Time will tell. Hope y’all are enjoying your Saturday!
Oh Boy! I see that Nico got yet another green BG number this am, 1/23/21. Look for him to bounce again.
There’s the bounce. PMPS, 506. Although, his +4 was 252. I’m gonna keep a watchful eye on him tonight. Seems fast.
Indeed. BUT. We are headed in a downward trend at the moment, so I’m hopeful we are clearing it shortly. I think we just, unfortunately, we hit one right after the other and haven’t fully recovered. Fingers crossed!! PMPS, 234.
All paws crossed here for Nico. That PMPS of 234 is pretty nice! Stay low Nico old boy. Please. You'll feel better.
It is, but again I feel it could go either way.... only time will tell. I’ll test before bed, in the meantime — CUDDLES. Cuddles always help. Nope. Slooooooooow descent. +3, 212. Why all the yelllow..??? +10, 222.
A string of flat yellows often means a bounce is clearing, you could be in for an active cycle today. Nadirs are often later in bounce breaking cycles. Have a look back at your PM 01/02, AM 01/04, AM 01/06 & AM 01/08 cycles when he wasn't in the middle of a bounce, or clearing a bounce - during 'good' cycles your lows/nadirs came in early in between +4 and +6. Fingers crossed for a good cycle today
Starting the day with an AMPS of 314. We shall see... although I’m not feeling terribly optimistic. I’ll keep a watchful eye on him this afternoon.
@Shelley & Jess CALLED IT. The return of the green with a late nadir. +8, 69. Happy dance (but prepared for an interesting evening, just in case)!!! @Deb & Wink @JanetNJ
Those nadirs can vary so much, and they don't always stay the same time from cycle to cycle. We wish they would. But it does help to look for patterns, and Shelley helped you by mentioning a few instances of some of Nico's past patterns. With such a bouncy cat, you have more than your share of "interesting evenings". I know you are using the more aggressive MPM dosing method, but you may want to think about shaving the dose just a tiny bit. Not a full 0.25U dose reduction, but a "skinny" 2.5U dose ( or you could think of it as a fat 2.25u dose). Your choice Em, since you are there and can observe Nico better than we can. Keep the dose the same if you want. Nico hasn't officially earned a dose reduction with the MPM method. But I bet he was close or even under 50 earlier than that 69 at +8. They sure do. Wish my former feral colony cat Dancer was a bit more "cuddly". At least she comes upstairs with me and sleeps on my bed for a while each night. You'd think after 10+ years of living with me, she'd be a little bit more snuggly. But nope. Life on her terms, and I take what I can get.
I can’t do it anymore.......!!! PMPS, 477. It’s infuriating. We get one good number then like twelve bad ones. Every.single.time. @Deb & Wink @Shelley & Jess @JanetNJ literally hitting the wall here tonight
Ok, the PMPS was high, the BG went sky high after that low green mid-day, but how was Nico feeling and acting? Did Nico get any food or treats when he dropped down to that low green? Brainstorming a bit here, of things you could try. 1. Eliminate the Dr. Elsey's Clean Protein. I know it's supposed to be low in carbs, but maybe Nico is reacting negatively to it. The carb calculator I use says it's 7-8% carbs. 2. Double check to make sure there is no "contraband" food that Nico might be getting to. From another pet, from someone else in the house sneaking him food, from anything left out on the counters of the kitchen or elsewhere, no food dropped on the floor, etc. 3. Maker notes on which flavor of the FF you are feeding. Make notes on the SS of the + times when Nico gets fed. Trying to find patterns there. The only other idea I had is to try one of the depot type insulins, Lantus or Levemir. The gradual release of the insulin from the "depot" storage area under the skin could help to even out the BG levels. Please don't bash your head against the wall Em, because we wouldn't want to see you with a concussion.
@Deb & Wink @JanetNJ (@Shelley & Jess too!) I appreciate you. Last night/yesterday was hard — and 100% me projecting — so when it came time for the evening routine I'd sorta had enough. I’m much better this morning (or today, I guess now I should say)! Clearly Nico is as well I’ll try not to post when I’m having a freak out, and definitely no concussions needed. As far as how Nico is actually feeling and acting, he is his normal, goofy, cuddly self. Completely. His vet wants to give it until after his next curve in March to perhaps start Lantus instead. It was what was proposed right from the start, but after discussing options we decided to go with Prozinc because of its cost effectiveness, and if it wasn’t the right drug for him we could always switch. I think that’s a good timeline, see what happens between now and then. At +6 today he was 115, so I’m also going to test a +8 and maybe a +10. I want to keep an eye on that nadir for sure. I’ll post them here as they happen. Hope y’all are having a healthy, happy, and productive Wednesday! AMPS: 243. +6: 115. +8: 89. +10: 117. PMPS: 198.
Freak outs and frustrations are to be expected Em. Please go ahead and post when you just can't stand it anymore. We'll always listen. Always. You are almost doing a curve yourself today. The only 2 times you didn't get a test were +2 and +4. Every bit of data helps to see what is going on. Including how Nico is feeling. We may focus on the BG numbers a lot here, but what else is going on is important too. The 5 P's and appetite are great clues. Wish you could come to my place and hang out for a while and chill. It's plenty cold enough with the snow we got today. Plus, the power went out here for a bit. No power, no heat, no internet. But I turned the heat up as soon as the power came back and charged my cell phone. P. I. T. B. not to have heat this time of year. So, are you expected a bounce by any chance?
Not too shabby of a day, but mama Em is tired.. AMPS: 338. +8: 113. PMPS: 174. @Deb & Wink @Shelley & Jess @JanetNJ
Man alive, I cannot knock him outta the 3s today.. sheeshhhhh! AMPS: 311, +2: 333, +7 304. At least we are getting closer - haha!
@Deb & Wink the streak hasn’t been broken yet.. 324 PMPS <shakes head> LOL @Deb & Wink UPDATE: We broke the streak!! +2.5 137 <happy dance>
Just seeing this. He’s below 50 at the moment. +5, 40. He’s acting totally normal, but gave him some Temptations treats anyway. Gonna test again in a little bit, rinse/repeat, until he comes up some. Em’s gonna be one tired girl tomorrow.. Thinking this is definitely gonna earn him an immediate dose reduction (2.5u to 2.25u) for the am. I’ll keep you posted.
Tested, but now it’s more like +6.5 as I posted a little after the fact before. 48 with treats given. Just gave him a few more. Do I need to test every half hour??
Em, doesn't matter if he's acting totally normal or not. They can be fine one moment and seizing the next. Please don't take these lime greens lightly. You need to feed the 40's and test frequently until you see the BG rising to safe levels. Has he eaten any wet food?
I don’t believe he’s eaten any wet food, but I can offer some now. His normal, or a gravy one? What levels am I looking for to indicate “safe??” Now I’m worried...
Okay well it’s a bit more than that (I’d say a tablespoon, maybe), so his next test should be markedly better.. How soon should I retest?
He'll be okay. And probably a little over carb'd now. Next time reach for the wet food first and test every 20 to 30 minutes until you see the numbers rising. Of extra concern here, that 40 came 'early' in the cycle, the insulin still hadn't reached it's peak.
Right. That was my concern too. Next time a little less wet food— live and learn! He’s on his way up now, 82.
So assuming I should test again in like ten minutes. What number is high enough to try to catch at least an hour or two of sleep? — just in case I lose you to dreamland.
I will never say no to more tests. Let's see what kind of rise he's got going. Will be good information to refer back on to determine what/how much to feed next time. And then get some sleep
Test (and feed if needed) every 20 minutes when in lime green numbers until you see the BG begin to rise to safe numbers. Then continue to test until you are satisfied Nico is out of danger - includes taking in to consideration where you are in the cycle and what you fed LC/MC/HC, wet or dry to bring those numbers up.
Thank you for this. I’m not sure I know the difference between MC and HC, so I will have to do some research on those today— see what my options are. We are safely supremely high now so not to worry. AMPS, 407. And dose decreased to 2.25u. Hi-ho, hi-ho, it’s back to bed I go.. <whistles>
Making progress... +4, 377. Our new thread is up too. Happy Saturday @Deb & Wink @Shelley & Jess @JanetNJ!!! https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/nicos-making-progress-1-30-amps-407-4-377.242334/