4/3 Michelangelo AMPS 154, +6/263 PMPS 240

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KPassa

KPassa

Member Since 2012
Previous Condo.

Michelangelo continues to be doing really well on the Levemir. I knew there would be a difference, but I just can't believe how much of a difference there's been!

Finally found a new place to live! So now all my free time will no longer be taken up with looking. :-D I have all next week off to move 9 years worth of stuff, so once that's all done with, I'll be back on here a bit more often. Once I move Mikey and Henry to the new place, I'm going to watch Mikey's numbers very closely. I'm even considering giving him a dose decrease for the first few days or so just in case he's stressed. Mikey is one of those odd kitties that seems to have reverse stress-induced numbers. Whenever we go to the vet, his numbers are lower than when he's at home and whenever I'm out of town and there are other people testing/shooting him, he also runs in lower numbers. ohmygod_smile And Henry isn't going to be too happy about the new place because he's going to become an "indoor" kitty...at least for the first month. The new patio is pretty fantastic and I think I might be able to turn it into a proper catio so Henry can go back outside! :mrgreen:
 
Re: 4/3 Michelangelo AMPS 154

Congrats on the new place!! I don't envy you about moving though. I can never figured out which I hate worse packing or unpacking. Lol

I know eventually I'm gonna have to pack up this whole crew and move them all as well which should be just a party. NOT!!! Its just a matter of where as Jon is set to inherit not only his father's house which is the house he grew up in but all the rental properties as well. His dad I think would love to see us move to his place when he's gone but I think for me at least would be a little creepy. Especially since the only good sized bedroom is the room that was his parent's room. There are a couple of rentals that are really nice but they also have long term tenets in them. My idea is to use the properties as security on a loan for our own place in the country, but at least for now Dad's in great health for a 95 year old so hopefully moving is a long ways off for us. Although I'm always teasing Jon that just about the time we finally get this place completely remodelled and just the way we want it, it will be time to move and start all over again.

Mel and The Fur Gang
 
Re: 4/3 Michelangelo AMPS 154, +6/263

Mikey, you're going in the wrong direction, Chump. Now I'm starting to wonder if my suspected fur shot this morning was real. It was my fault as I was in a rush because I was already late for work and hadn't even left the house yet so I didn't properly make sure the needle was seated. And we still haven't been having any more problems with the shots. A couple of times he's winced from the needle going in, but that was again user error on my part for sticking him wrong. Such a huge positive for both of us that the shots are no longer a dreaded event!

Moving is not fun. Which is why I haven't moved in 9 years! :lol: I'm expecting to be at this place for at least a couple of years, if not longer. I just stopped by there again today on my lunch and I just keep falling more and more in love with it!
 
Re: 4/3 Michelangelo AMPS 154, +6/263

Hi. Which insulin were you using before? I'm getting impatient with Max's instability on lantus and thinking of possibly switching if he doesn't regulate by the 6 month time. I'm not sure when that would be though as he started insulin mid November, stopped for 3-4 weeks in December and started again in January. Thanks.

Elise
 
Re: 4/3 Michelangelo AMPS 154, +6/263

I was using Lantus for the last year and a half. I wanted to switch to Levemir about 6 months in but I was (mistakenly) told by someone else that I should wait a year before considering a switch in insulin. By the time I realized I didn't need to wait to switch, I continued holding off on the switch because I wanted to use up my $25 per Lantus pen coupon. Once I found the Levemir coupon for $25 per pen for up to 2 years, I decided I needed to make the switch as soon as I finished off my current pen of Lantus.

You can check out on his spreadsheet the difference the switch has made in just his numbers alone. There's also the complete attitude adjustment for the better. He's always been a little tightly-wound and I wrote that off as him being a part-feral rescue kitten. Now, he's still skittish of course, but not nearly as wary or fearful. He also seems to just "feel" better all around and is no longer as grouchy or irritable. Plus, to re-emphasize, shot time has finally become easy for us. Before, twice a day, every day, Mikey would brace himself for the shot and I'd brace myself for the chase around the house, the cajoling, the apologizing (through treats and/or food), and the soothing of ruffled feathers for giving him the shot. Now, he's not even phased when I poke him. :-D This has also led to a significant reduction in fur shots because he's not pulling away every time and I no longer have to "get in, get out" quick-style any more.

Personally, I wish I hadn't waited as long as I did. If I were you, I'd switch him sooner rather than later. ;-)
 
Re: 4/3 Michelangelo AMPS 154, +6/263

Why are the shots easier? Is it only given once a day? I quickly looked at your ss and it looks a lot like mine. I paid $216 for my vial of lantus and have another one that was given to me waiting for us. I wonder if I should switch to it now to see if mine is getting old. I started it 11/16/13 so it's almost 5 months old but is clear. Thanks for writing back. I'm glad things are going better for you.

Elise
 
Re: 4/3 Michelangelo AMPS 154, +6/263

Nope, still given twice a day. With Lantus, however, Mikey always reacted to the Lantus going in. I tried every trick in the book and he never really had a problem with the piercing of the syringe but always with the injection of the Lantus. They say that the Lantus "sting" shouldn't really be noticeable at lower doses, but Mikey for sure noticed! Since Levemir doesn't have a "sting," it's proven to me that Mikey really could feel the Lantus whenever I'd inject him because he doesn't ever react now like he used to. No wincing, running away, hiding, swiping, flinching, etc....

If I were you, since you got the second vial free, I'd either pass it on to someone here through the Supply Closet or see if DCiN could use it and switch to Levemir anyway. That's how much of a difference this switch has made for us.
 
Re: 4/3 Michelangelo AMPS 154, +6/263

Levemir is a neutral base so there is no sting with it like there is with the acidic base of Lantus (I'm also a Levemir user). The curves are much flatter with Levemir. The trade off is that Levemir's onset is later and the nadir is also later. My Autumn also saw a dramatic personality change after she was switched from Lantus to Levemir. She was vicious while on Lantus to the point I almost rehomed her to keep the peace with my other animals. Once we switched to Levemir she's a cuddle bug and one of the sweetest little girls you'll ever meet.

Mel and The Fur Gang
 
Re: 4/3 Michelangelo AMPS 154, +6/263

I started reading about levemir and it said it is not good for lethargic cats which Max is. He has been that way since he got pancreatitis and it has gotten worse in the last year. He sleeps so much and isn't interested in much of anything. He gets hungry and usually comes to me for some cuddle time but not in the last week again. I find myself worried about him all the time. How much later is the Nadir? Right now I find myself testing Max at 1:00 a.m. much of the time. Some nights I'm testing until 2:30-3:30 but that's just when he goes green at night. He tends to do that rather than during the day. Sorry for hijacking your condo KPassa.

Elise
 
Re: 4/3 Michelangelo AMPS 154, +6/263

It's perfectly all right to hijack, especially since it's on the virtues of Levemir. ;-)

Mikey usually nadirs around 8-12 hours after a shot now. I still test him around +5-7 on my lunch break but that's more to see if he's trending downward from pre-shot than to catch his nadir. Since I'm home from work around 6 and he doesn't get his PM shot till 8, I can usually pinpoint his AM nadir around the time I get home from work, which is a comfort for me because now I don't have to worry about him going too low while I'm at work as much.

The only downside is that I do have to test him in the middle of the night if/when I wake up for a bathroom break because he usually won't start going low till around 3 am. It's more nervousness on my part nailbite_smile because I don't feel he's at the "right" dose just yet so I think that worry will dissipate the longer I've been using the Levemir. Who knows! With his history of being diagnosed at 6 month old, he might never be able to ever get truly "regulated," but at least we're closer to that goal than we ever were on Lantus.
 
Re: 4/3 Michelangelo AMPS 154, +6/263

And I'm not sure about the lethargy? Never heard of that warning before.
 
Re: 4/3 Michelangelo AMPS 154, +6/263

Autumn just turned approx 19
they don't get much more inactive than a 19 year old retired barn cat turned house cat lol. Autumn nadirs at her next preshot although Cassanova who is also a Levemir cat nadirs at about the same as Lantus around +8 ish. But since onset isn't until around +5 for Autumn I can easily shoot a green preshot because she'll rise for another 5 hours easily.

Mel and The Fur Gang
 
this is an interesting thread. hello all. just wanted to say i enjoyed learning a new word...catio!! i want 1!!! grrr nightie...
 
So glad you found a new place KPassa and can have that worry off your plate. I think moving is very, very worst-est! Glad you love it cause that will make the moving worth it to end up in a nice situation. And the bright side is it will help you de-clutter. Something I find I need to do periodically or the stuff just builds up and up (not saying I'm that great at de-cluttering in the first place... I need to be forced but it feels good when it's done ;-) ).
 
Even though we aren't yet moving the "big stuff" (TV, beds, Internet, etc...) till this weekend, Mikey has definitely been feeling stressed. He's resorted to camping out under my bed for most of the day again and he's also earned himself another decrease back to a fat 1.5u. Not sure if that's from stress/lack of eating or because the Levemir is doing some amazing things.

I've finally determined that I'm going to need a storage unit for some of this stuff (washer/dryer, desks, boxes of family mementos). Moving is exhausting and time-consuming and expensive! I don't know how some of my friends do it every single year! :o
 
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