? 2/8 Simon - in the greens all day; reduced PM dose by half. Anxious helicopter mom this evening.

KarrieK

KarrieK

Member Since 2019
Since Simon has been in the green for over a week (except for when I skipped a shot a few days ago I reduced his AM dose as his preshot was pretty low. Now his +3 is 38. I just gave him some HC food (FF gravy lovers) and will check him again in a little while. Should I have reduced his dose by more than .25? Seems to me I read somewhere that if he has been on a high dose perhaps I could have reduced him in a larger increment? I'm not thinking very clearly now and would appreciate some guidance. TIA.

It's been a day full of poking and now I am wondering what to dose Simon this evening. He was so low this morning that I probably should have cut back, but instead gave him only a .25 reduction and then at +2 he was 38! So, he had MC and HC food all day, and his + 11 was 65. Thinking I should reduce the evening dose even more?
 
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Maybe we can get some eyes on your thread by me commenting.
With a 38 at +2(per your SS) you may have to be a little more aggressive with testing and carbing him up.
 
Have you re-tested? Should be close to the 30min mark.
If you can keep your SS and thread title updated with current numbers.
38 worries me this early in the cycle.
 
KarrieK said:
He's now at 65 +3. Did I give him too much carb food?
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No. 65 is good. Simon responds really well to carbs:) As you gain experience, you'll learn how much MC or HC food to give to steer his #s a little, or more drastically. ECID. With my cat Moey, he generally needs about a teaspoon to go the other direction.
Don't feed him anymore and re-test in 30min. You want to get 2 rising #s that aren't food associated.
And drops below 40 are an automatic reduction. I think this rule still applies even though you just reduced. Someone will correct me if I'm wrong.
 
Thank you for your quick responses. I am in a mild panic mode (despite reading the sticky entitled "Don't Panic....") as I wonder what I should have done differently in regards to his AM shot. Also, I probably did give him too much HC food in my panicked state. He ate about 2 heaping TBLs of FF gravy lovers food. As you said, Ill have to learn how much carb food to give in situations like this.
 
KarrieK said:
Thank you for your quick responses. I am in a mild panic mode (despite reading the sticky entitled "Don't Panic....") as I wonder what I should have done differently in regards to his AM shot. Also, I probably did give him too much HC food in my panicked state. He ate about 2 heaping TBLs of FF gravy lovers food. As you said, Ill have to learn how much carb food to give in situations like this.
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You did wonderful Karrie! Mild panic is not necessarily a bad thing....it heightens your awareness. As long as it doesn't interfere with your well being or ability to cope:)

In regards to his AMPS I don't know what you could have done differently besides feeding him a higher carb food like 8-10%, to pad him a little before the insulin really hit. Sometimes this works but, other times it doesn't and gives you higher #s then intended. I'm still trying to find the balance with my boy. It appeared that Simon was heading up in #s judging by his +11 prior to AMPS. So trying to determine if you needed to carb him a little from the start would have been a difficult decision.
I'm not a SS reader unfortunately:oops::rolleyes: Hopefully one of the experienced folks will be along to offer some advice:)
 
One thing I thought of that you can start doing to help avoid such a drastic drop is getting a +1. If you know at +1 Simon is already dropping you can start to steer with MC or HC. Hopefully the HC wouldn't be needed at such an early time in the cycle. But, you have to be prepared for anything with these crazy kitties!:cat:
 
Briere Fur Mom said:
One thing I thought of that you can start doing to help avoid such a drastic drop is getting a +1. If you know at +1 Simon is already dropping you can start to steer with MC or HC. Hopefully the HC wouldn't be needed at such an early time in the cycle. But, you have to be prepared for anything with these crazy kitties!:cat:
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Just took a peek at Moey's SS - how do you give a .8 dose? I am struggling with the quarter increments - and I am on my 3rd different brand of syringe. And thank you again for your support! :)
 
KarrieK said:
Just took a peek at Moey's SS - how do you give a .8 dose? I am struggling with the quarter increments - and I am on my 3rd different brand of syringe. And thank you again for your support! :)
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I use calipers. Here's the link for dosing with calipers. It's a necessary tool for fine dosing. I also found out the hard way that syringes are incredibly inaccurate. You think you're giving a certain dose when in fact you can be giving more or less insulin depending on the inaccuracy of the syringe. Out of a box of 100 syringes, only 30 had correctly marked zero lines. I had so many mismarked syringes that using the calipers was the only way to make sure my dose was consistent. You may want to consider getting one. It takes the question of, "Did I dose properly?" out of the equation when trying to interpret your SS and Simon's reaction to different doses. Just some food for thought:)
 
Looks like that HC food wore off. Time to start carbing some more.

ETA: It's important not to feed too much MC or HC food in one sitting. You want Simon's appetite to stay up. He doesn't need to get too full or else he won't feel like eating when you need him to.
 
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When dealing with low #s, we like to test at least 30 minutes after giving MC/HC food. The effects from the food can wear off quickly.
Just trying to make sure Simon doesn't need more of a food bump and he's safe:)
 
You're getting the hang of this now. Just need to stop those 40's and get him to surf in the 50's and better. If you're not testing 20-30mins after giving MC/HC it's very important to get that test. You can steer him after getting that test and avoid the 40's. So carb him and re-test in 20-30 mins and we go from there.

ETA: If I'm reading the SS correctly Simon's at +6 post shot so he should begin to come up some. But that doesn't stop the need to be vigilant and keep testing/carbing as needed.
 
Just tested him again (about half an hour after the MC's) and he's back down. 46. I gave him a heaping TBL of gravy food. Will test again in 20 -30. Poor guy. Thank God he's been tolerant of getting his ear poked. So far.
 
KarrieK said:
Just tested him again (about half an hour after the MC's) and he's back down. 46. I gave him a heaping TBL of gravy food. Will test again in 20 -30. Poor guy. Thank God he's been tolerant of getting his ear poked. So far.
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Good job keeping him safe Karrie. He'll forgive all the pokes:smuggrin:
Is he acting ok?
 
You're both doing a great job here today! Thanks Briere for helping out! I think on the weekends there's less traffic on the forum - so it was great that you were there for Karrie!

Karrie - you'll want to stay on top that Simon today - sometimes we call it 'helicopter' mom - hope he comes up with the help of those carb foods...looks like he's reluctant though! WOW!
 
Today's low numbers were probably the result of the depot of the 2.5 unit dose. Which is clearly too full. One option is to drain that depot a bit by doing a one time BCS tonight, which would be a half or two thirds dose.
 
I'd nudge him a bit more with some more MC/HC(w/e you're working with) and re-test in 30 min. He's having a hard time maintaining #s above 50. The 52 is still a little too close to the 40s to stop carbing and testing.
 
I gave him another small portion of gravy food. Thankfully he is acting fine - maybe a little wary, as I keep dragging him out from his favorite napping spots to poke him. Yes, I have been a major "helicopter mom" all day! My husband and I had plans to get out for a little while this afternoon but I did not want to leave the house - Simon is more important!

I have been wondering about the evening dose, so thank you @Wendy&Neko for that advice. I'll keep posting updates and decide at PMPS how much to give - and will definitely ask if unsure!

Thank you both again for the support. It's been a stressful day. My other kitty (Simon's sister) has cancer, and she's looking rough today. I read somewhere on here that it's important to include a reminder to breathe deep during times like this, so I'm going to go walk around my yard for a little while and do jus that.
 
KarrieK said:
I gave him another small portion of gravy food. Thankfully he is acting fine - maybe a little wary, as I keep dragging him out from his favorite napping spots to poke him. Yes, I have been a major "helicopter mom" all day! My husband and I had plans to get out for a little while this afternoon but I did not want to leave the house - Simon is more important!

I have been wondering about the evening dose, so thank you @Wendy&Neko for that advice. I'll keep posting updates and decide at PMPS how much to give - and will definitely ask if unsure!

Thank you both again for the support. It's been a stressful day. My other kitty (Simon's sister) has cancer, and she's looking rough today. I read somewhere on here that it's important to include a reminder to breathe deep during times like this, so I'm going to go walk around my yard for a little while and do jus that.
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You're an incredible mom for keeping Simon safe. I'm sorry to hear about your civvie. I'm glad you're there to provide her with all the TLC needed. Prayers for you:bighug:
These sugar kitties have a keen ability to know when you have plans. You must make sure not to discuss anything regarding activities outside of the house, out loud, with your DH. But, then sometimes your thoughts and texts aren't safe either:banghead::rolleyes::p

Take a breather, walk away for a lil bit. Someone should be here if you need help. Just make a new post.;)
 
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Uh oh...I saw your other post - but will reply to this one - we're only supposed to post one thread per day.

I would not recommend shooting tonight. He's been precariously low all day and I think Wendy may have suggested that earlier in this thread that you shoot a third or less of a dose tonight (BCS = Big Chicken S**T dose)....If it were me I'd probably skip tonight....let that depot drain.

If possible, can you delete your other post?
 
Ooops, I didn't know about the one thread a day rule. So much to learn. I am scared to give him more insulin, but also scared to skip. So, I guess that does make me a BCS.
 
That’s pretty low although influenced by the previous dose. Do you have plenty of supplies and high carb food? Being so new I would maybe shoot a lower dose tonight. See where he’s at shot time. @Wendy&Neko @Sienne and Gabby (GA) what do you think?
 
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Sue and Luci said:
Uh oh...I saw your other post - but will reply to this one - we're only supposed to post one thread per day.

I would not recommend shooting tonight. He's been precariously low all day and I think Wendy may have suggested that earlier in this thread that you shoot a third or less of a dose tonight (BCS = Big Chicken S**T dose)....If it were me I'd probably skip tonight....let that depot drain.

If possible, can you delete your other post?
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Not sure how to delete a post - also some have commented on it. Sorry. I won't do 2 a day anymore - guess I should have just changed the title. Still wondering what to do at shot time! Will test him again in 20 minutes and decide then....maybe.
 
KarrieK said:
Not sure how to delete a post - also some have commented on it. Sorry. I won't do 2 a day anymore - guess I should have just changed the title. Still wondering what to do at shot time! Will test him again in 20 minutes and decide then....maybe.
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As I mentioned - I would NOT shoot tonight. OR per Wendy's recommendation you could give a small dose - she mentioned one-third of your usual dose.
 
Let me tag a few others
@Marje and Gracie
@carfurby
@Bobbie And Bubba


It sounds to me like you should give him another reducie (according to TR anything below 50 is an automatic reduction at next cycle- but I’m still fairly new to this so I’ll wait till someone else responds!)

maybe he’s going into remission?! I’ve seen SS look similar to this and they just keep going down on the dose until it’s OTJ! I’m keeping high hopes for Simon!

I would also keep notes if you can in the spaces to the right on the SS. It not only helps you, but even helps some of the experts on here! Just things like how he’s doing that day- energy level, food intake, if anything happens like a barf or runny poo. Even saying when you fed.
 
Ya I would say delay the shot a little until someone can help you. Just know that next shot it’s has to be the most 15 minutes from the last cycles time, and you can keep adjusting it until you get back to your time (let’s say in the event you have to delay a bit)
 
KarrieK said:
Still wondering what to do at shot time! Will test him again in 20 minutes and decide then....maybe.
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I would def. listen to Sue and Luci. Wendy rec a BCS which is better than nothing....if it were me, I'd skip. The only thing holding Simon up earlier today was you food propping. If you got into the same scenario tonight could you stay awake all night w/o sleep and food prop? Or could you take him to an emergency vet if you couldn't prop his #s up enough? Not worth the risk to Simon imo:)

ETA: I'm glad you got some advice on the other thread. Be safe sweet Simon!:cat:
 
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tiffmaxee said:
That’s pretty low although influenced by the previous dose.
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Agreed, that would be a back to back reduction. One option is to do a greatly reduced dose tonight, to drain the depot, then go back to the regular dose tomorrow morning.
 
Now he is at 94. Still recommend to skip? He hasn't had any carb food for a few hours - has eaten some pure protein food (the home cooked I make for him and his IBD/cancer sister). I can continue to stall and adjust as I don't work tomorrow. However, the points you made are resonating with me so I'm not sure what to do. The 94 was a bigger increase than I expected.
 
Briere Fur Mom said:
I would def. listen to Sue and Luci. Wendy rec a BCS which is better than nothing....if it were me, I'd skip. The only thing holding Simon up earlier today was you food propping. If you got into the same scenario tonight could you stay awake all night w/o sleep and food prop? Or could you take him to an emergency vet if you couldn't prop his #s up enough? Not worth the risk to Simon imo:)

ETA: I'm glad you got some advice on the other thread. Be safe sweet Simon!:cat:
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What is a BCS?
 
Threads should be combined now.

If you give any dose tonight, the depot could still make the first part of the cycle "interesting". Factor that into your decision making.
 
Thank you @Wendy&Neko . Trust me, I will never start another thread in the same day again :banghead:. I am leaning towards a greatly reduced dose (like 1 unit) as I can manage checking him during the night tonight (my sleeping habits suck) and really hate to miss a dose altogether. As I just remarked to my husband, if this wasn't such a serious process it actually be interesting. But it's mostly stressful right now. Thank you again and I will post his next reading.

BTW, someone used the acronym BCS (Big Chicken ****) when referring to the fear of shooting a low number.
 
Gave him 1 unit (which is less than 1/2 a dose) an hour later than his "normal" shot time. I wasn't sure how to denote that on the SS. Will keep checking him thougout the evening and overnight. Will definitely keep some MC food out during the night as well. I sure appreciate everyone' support during this trying day :nailbiting:
 
KarrieK said:
an hour later than his "normal" shot time
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Remember when shooting later than normal shot time...you have to adjust your shot time back 30 min per day or 15 min per cycle in order to get back to original shot time. So for example if your normal shot time is 8pm and you shot at 9pm then tomorrow AMPS would be 8:30am PMPS 8:30pm. The following day you'd be back on schedule. Or you could do the 15 min per cycle(which equals 30 min per day) to get back to original shot time. Hope that made sense.
I'm not sure about denoting the time diff on your SS. I have a shot time column so, have not encountered that problem. Maybe someone else can help out with that or look at other's SS perhaps.
 
Karrie, a favour to ask of you. While I merged the threads, I didn't change the subject title from this mornings. Could you update it with tonight's data? We don't like seeing a subject line end with a BG of 44, and nothing afterwards. :eek:
 
Wendy&Neko said:
Karrie, a favour to ask of you. While I merged the threads, I didn't change the subject title from this mornings. Could you update it with tonight's data? We don't like seeing a subject line end with a BG of 44, and nothing afterwards. :eek:
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Of course. Hope that is OK. There is so much data from today I thought better to summarize with a simple title. Let me know if you think something else would be more appropriate. Thank you!
 
If I may ask now (albeit somewhat premature) what dose should I give him tomorrow AM? That is, assuming he will be in a typical shot range.
 
I'm just copying/pasting what Wendy said earlier from reply #34 :
One option is to do a greatly reduced dose tonight, to drain the depot, then go back to the regular dose tomorrow morning.

If you don't get a "direct" answer about your AM dose tonight, try posting your question early tomorrow well ahead of Simon's shot time. Be sure to include a question mark(drop down menu) in your title to get attention.
Have a great evening Karrie. Be good Simon...no more shark chasing for you!!
 
KarrieK said:
If I may ask now (albeit somewhat premature) what dose should I give him tomorrow AM? That is, assuming he will be in a typical shot range.
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What a day! Good job Momma testing and steering!
As long as he’s in a safe number this AMBG, I would shoot the reduction dose of 2.25 units assuming you can still monitor. The BCS last night should have helped to drain the depot. The cycle yesterday was still under the influence of 2.5 dose so, that’s why it’s being suggested for you to not reduce again.

Remember you shot late last night so you’ll be shooting later this morning. You can either shoot 1/2 hour earlier this AM and then 1/2 earlier tomorrow morning or shoot 15 mins earlier each cycle until you regain your schedule.

To have your SS reflect 1 hour late, in the cell with the units shot, you would add @ + 13. Then you and any one else looking at the SS knows you were one hour late. All the other numbers stay where they are.
 
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