1/20 Xander - AMBG 214, +2 177, +5 254, +8 228, +11 164, PMPS 237, +1 318

[Brianna & Xander]

First thread from over in the welcome forum.

Hey everyone,

I apologize if any of this hasn't been done correctly - I'm trying very hard to follow the rules but I'm also tired and overwhelmed.

Xander has seemed to be doing great since the switch from a mix of dry and wet food to basically entirely wet. Although I leave a small amount out for him overnight (and take it away during the day), he hasn't eaten any dry food since overnight on Friday.

His overall numbers have seemed to get quite a bit better so I've been happy about that.

My question is mainly just wanting to get an idea of what's going on right now and how I should be proceeding. I'm a very anxious person and really struggle with ambiguity and not being sure what the right move is so I'm just hoping for some clarity. But please be gentle with me; my mental state has been awful through this and especially the last week or so.

I've done a ton of reading so I know that some cats have a later nadir than others. So far on the Lantus it seems like Xander's is usually around +4-6, but there haven't been that many cycles to base that on.

Today he was much lower at PMBG than usual (214). While this isn't under 200, I was going to have to leave for a few hours and he was continuing to drop. Usually his number has settled pretty high in the last several hours of the early morning and by PMPS. Based on the sticky here and due to the combination of this being unprecedented for us, and that he was continuing to decrease, and that I had to leave, I decided to skip the dose.

He got down to 175 at about 9:50 AM (+13.25) and I thought this was finally his nadir. But then after going back up to the mid-200s for most of the day, he dropped down to 161 at 6:45 PM (+22ish). I have no idea what that means. Was this actually his nadir, almost 24 hours later? Or was this something else?

At 7:30 he was still in the 160s and since this seemed very unpredictable to me I decided to skip the dose again, but right about at PMPS time he started increasing pretty rapidly so I decided to give a half dose. By the time I had the syringe and Xander ready it had increased enough that I would've been relatively comfortable giving 2, but based on how unfamiliar this whole day was to me I'd probably have been worried all night.

I know that I'll almost certainly have to start being comfortable with dosing at lower numbers, but since I don't really understand the mechanics of what happened today I didn't feel comfortable with it. I also don't have syringes with half units, but since we just got this box of 100 we can't really afford to buy another box that has them right now, so micro-dosing would be difficult. Could someone please help me understand what this was, what I should do next time and why it isn't/is safe to dose even if he seems to go down so late in the cycle or even way later in the day without an AM dose?

I'm on my way to bed and I know it's the end of the day and we're only supposed to have one thread per day but I'm hoping to have some clarity for the morning dose so I'm not stuck wondering what to do again like I was tonight. Please let me know if I should just immediately start a new post in the morning and link back to this one, replying to any responses in the new thread lol

Thanks all for your help.

 

[Angela & Cleo]

Welcome Brianna and Xander,
I don't know if it helps, but everything you're feeling seems pretty normal to me. This is just the beginning, I promise you that managing feline diabetes gets a lot easy with time and experience.

Based on the sticky here and due to the combination of this being unprecedented for us, and that he was continuing to decrease, and that I had to leave, I decided to skip the dose.

Good job! With time, experience and more data, you will be able to shoot any number over 90 if following SLGS or 50 if following TR.

I think what you saw today was the effect of removal of the high carb dry food.

 

[Tim & Pookey]

You got this Brianna!

 

[Staci & Ivy]

Hi Brianna, please don’t apologize. We all understand how overwhelmed you are feeling. As Angela said, it’s very normal to feel as you do.
It takes time to learn what’s going on and learn what will work for Xander.

It’s actually ok to leave some low carb food out during the day. It’s just recommended that 2 hours before your next cycle preshot so the Amps or Pmps won’t be influenced by carbs and you will know if it’s safe to give insulin by being not too low.

I feed a small snack at +1,2,3 for Ivy in both cycles as the insulin is taking effect and onsetting. It helps her to prevent a big dive (unless she’s in a bounce breaking cycle), then she’s got more speed and I may have to give her a little higher (medium) carb to try to slow her down a little bit such as 12%).

There’s a lot to learn but keep it asking questions and keep reading and people will be happy to help you along. It’s the best way to learn. Try to make a new post each day so we know what’s going on with you and Xander.

Wishing you lots of good luck and hang in there. It gets easier the more you learn and the more you understand what he’s doing in his cycles.

 

[Diane Tyler's Mom GA]

. I also don't have syringes with half units, but since we just got this box of 100 we can't really afford to buy another box that has them right now, so micro-dosing would be difficult

You can buy the Relion Syringes at Walmart they are really affordable. You need to go into the store to buy them
if you have a Walmart by you , you can get these , then I'll give you another place to order them from
You can get the syringes with half unit markings at a Walmart. Their ReliOn Brand syringes of 0.3 cc (30 unit) capacity come with half unit markings. Cost $12.58 for a box of 100
This is what the packaging looks like: either box is fine
They won't say it half unit on the box but the are . open then and look before you leave the store, can't be ordered on line , need to go into the store.
Some members have said the 8mm ones are being discontinued , if they have a few boxes of them get it, if not the 6 mm ones are fine
@Brianna & Xander