? 10/28 Mikey AMPS 354 +3 236 +6 206 PMPS 521

[Mikey’sDad]

Seeing black again and bouncing has not stopped?

ok- on another site, I was told he is on too high a dose and to come down to 200 because he was unstable. ( I went there because it had been 6 hours without a response on here)

and on this site it was suggested I increase because he has had been in 10 cycles . If he is bouncing so horrifically why would I increase. Should I not wait till he stops bouncing to increase

at 2.0 and 1.75 his numbers seemed less bouncing? No black and few 400’s-

I am very confused I see the vet next Thursday.

thanks
Thomas

 

[Sue and Luci]

Which dosing method are you following?

I see no reason to lower the dose, in fact it looks like you're ready for an increase.

Don't sweat the black numbers, bounces are normal and part of their adjustment to occasionally seeing a lower number that they're not used to.

I was told he is on too high a dose and to come down to 200 because he was unstable.

What other site said his dose is too high?

 

[Sue and Luci]

( I went there because it had been 6 hours without a response on here)

If you have a question - PLEASE use the ? mark in front of your question - rather than just posting the BG readings - if I weren't checking for unanswered topics I would not have stopped in to see your questions. You can edit out your numbers (which look fairly normal for new kitties) and write it out like this: ? HELP! Is the dose too high?

 

[Mikey’sDad]

He is on the SLGH protocol
A Facebook site Feline Diabetes Support Group suggested the return to 2.0
It just looked like his numbers were so worse than when he was in lower numbers and the bounces were horrific -
Thanks,
Thomas

 

[Sue and Luci]

He is on the SLGH protocol
ok, please add that info to your signature and at the top of your Spreadsheet - otherwise I'll forget by the next time I'm here and will ask you again. Thank you.

A Facebook site Feline Diabetes Support Group suggested the return to 2.0
That FB site is renowned for giving bad information (like 'resetting' insulin to achieve some better numbers??? ) Please drop that FB group and join this one for better support - it's the sister group to this forum:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/felinediabetes

It just looked like his numbers were so worse than when he was in lower numbers and the bounces were horrific -

I understand that it seems alarming that the numbers appear 'worse' now - however bounces are normal and are to be expected. When cats are diabetic for an unknown amount of time they become accustomed to high blood glucose. Their bodies adjust and think this is the norm. We know after we start treatment that we need to help them and help get those numbers down - however the reactions to this assistance are often wild swings in their blood glucose numbers.

Please try not to focus too much on the high numbers - but focus on the lower numbers. When Mikey gets a number like he has recently seen some low blues - even some mid-range blues - keep in mind that these low blood glucose readings are very FOREIGN to his body. He hasn't seen anything like those kinds of normal readings and his liver dumps all the stored glycogens into his blood stream to handle the perceived crisis.

Keep in mind - the lower numbers are not NORMAL for him. But he will be. It takes time and increasing doses to get enough insulin into his system to balance things out...after a while the bouncing will reduce - although there's no guarantee he won't throw a high number out now and then. Look at Luci's SS - she went low last night - and today, guess what? High numbers. And we've been at this for four years...her body still sees those low number as a threat and dumps the store glycogens...and hence when I check her numbers, she's high and going higher - we take a pokie break on days like this.

So hang in there Tom. Try not to despair over high numbers - the low lows when you get there will just about give you a heart attack. Save your energy for those times and prepare yourself and your kit for when it happens.


Thanks,
Thomas

 

[Mikey’sDad]

Thanks, I will attempt to be less worried.
I sent my my spread sheet to my vet and I am sure she thinks I am a whack job. She will call me this weekend for our monthly chat about Mikey. She is amazed that there are folks who are that diligent as folks on this forum ,as so many folks just give insulin and will not check BG.
I will add SLGH to my signature

thanks

 

[Sue and Luci]

so many folks just give insulin and will not check BG

And those are often the folks who get into serious situations involving trip to the emergency room with a very sick cat! Can you imagine giving medication to a child without knowing what's going on - especially when it comes to administering insulin - if for any reason BG is too low you could be giving the last thing they need and then feeling awful about it after the fact. I know I would. I've gone so far as to advise folks that if they cannot test, they shouldn't give insulin. The focus around here is safety...and the safest thing to learn to do is test, test, test. Without it you're driving blind...dangerous under any circumstances.

Don't worry about what your vet thinks...it's you and Thomas that's important in this effort. You're the one holding the syringe so it's on you to do the best thing you can for Thomas.

Glad to hear you can relax a little about those nasty ole high numbers while you guys work your way through these early days. It takes time, lots of time. Please be sure to look at other people's condos and their Spreadsheets to see how things are going for them. I found that very helpful in the early days.

 

[Mikey’sDad]

Yes, I cannot imagine just giving insulin and not testing.
So, just to be clear, even though he is still bouncing , I should increase his dose and NOT wait a bit more time till he settles a bit. I want to see what the vet thinks and she will call me on Sat afternoon
I will start Mikey on Sunday.
I do hear what you are saying about me being the guy with the needle, makes sense

thanks
Thomas

 

[Sue and Luci]

So, just to be clear, even though he is still bouncing , I should increase his dose and NOT wait a bit more time till he settles a bit.

Since you're using the SLGS method - you need to wait a week before changing the dose just to make sure with all the other changes that may have been implemented that you're not missing a good dose - however after looking at your SS, I see no reason not to increase by .25.

If you're able to test routinely, no dry food being given is there any other reason not to be able to switch to TR and therefore be able to increase more frequently (as often as every three days)...I moved on to TR soon after starting since Luci met the basic criteria (no dry food, I was working from home so able to test)...I figured why have her sit in the higher numbers for so long?

Same with Thomas, I don't see many numbers that would lead me to believe he's getting too much insulin, just the opposite. So if you do decide to follow TR you may see even more bounces, however, you may also see some of those lovely greens too.

Does Thomas have other health problems that you're going to discuss with your vet? Vets typically know so little about feline diabetes - unless he/she is an endocrinologist I wouldn't wait to see what they have to say.

 

[Mikey’sDad]

Actually, he does get PureBites treats and if I run out of them I resort to Wysongs dry whicb is low carb, but not a meal.
I think I will stick with SLGS protocol for Mikey.
I am Thomas or Tom and Mikey is the cat I should rename myself Mikey’s Dad on the profile but I think I am stuck with Thomas
He is healthy, great blood panel. Good teeth and gums

thanks

 

[Sue and Luci]

LOL! Sorry about that - it's early or late...and I didn't read the sig well enough to discern although you do have it clearly written that Mikey is the cat!

I get the same thing...people ask me questions as if Luci is the writer...

If you're more comfortable with SLGS by all means stick with that dosing method...even so, you've had enough days (I believe) on this dose, you could probably increase.

You can change your signature/profile - just go up on the right hand side and open up your menu underneath your name - I had to change my after a few weeks as it was very confusing! I didn't know what I was doing at the time...finally figured it out...seems like it was easier on everyone when I used both our names so that's what I ended up with.

Have a great day Tom! Give Mikey some scritches for us and tell him, no more bouncing - at least not for today

 

[Mikey’sDad]

Will do! It is a rainy Baltimore day! It is a pumpkin spice latte and biscotti kind of day. I did change my name to Mikey’sDad . Thanks for all your help