? 9/14 Xena Sudden Drop in BG

[Don & Xena]

So, I haven't been on here in a while. I have been following the TR still, and am up to 21 U. I just filled in about 2.5 weeks of data on her chart. Not going to drag out why, but things are hard around here right now, and I can barely keep up . Anyway... I started calling around to get a price and find a place to at least look into get the Acro and IAA test, because the few vets I called a while back "did not do the tests" (I know they have to be sent to MSU)... the Ladies who answered the phones had no idea what i was talking about with Acromegaly.
I guess it happens, but it just seems so crazy to me that Xena is on 21 Units, so it makes me nervous to keep increasing...
Then today out of the blue she tests at 85 this afternoon. I was sure it was a bad strip, but I tested with different meters and it was accurate...close to it anyway 85, 93, 101 is what I got. Then 1.25 hrs after eating she was at 123.
I realize she can shoot back up because of insulin resistance, and I know we want to find that magic number, but is it normal to just drop suddenly like that? I was expecting a gradual decrease as we got close to a good dose.
Should I be worried? Any advice is much appreciated.
Sorry for not posting regularly, but things are so crazy and Xena just seemed to be the same consistantly and I know you guys have SO MANY cats on here as it is. I figured that if nothing is changing why take up your time posting EVERY day.
This really caught me off guard.
@Wendy&Neko @tiffmaxee

 

[Wendy&Neko]

Awesome, first greens!

I was expecting a gradual decrease as we got close to a good dose.

Unfortunately, it doesn't work like that. Insulin is a hormone, not a drug. It's not like you add a little bit more and the numbers get a little bit better. You start to see action when you get closer to the fitting dose. And with IAA and/or acromegaly, that fitting dose can be a moving target. Plus the acro tumour, if present, can pulse up and down. It's a slower change, not drastic, but can impact dose needed.

Don't be worried, it's normal. Just hold this dose for 10 cycles to see if she comes back to green.

 

[Don & Xena]

Awesome, first greens!

Unfortunately, it doesn't work like that. Insulin is a hormone, not a drug. It's not like you add a little bit more and the numbers get a little bit better. You start to see action when you get closer to the fitting dose. And with IAA and/or acromegaly, that fitting dose can be a moving target. Plus the acro tumour, if present, can pulse up and down. It's a slower change, not drastic, but can impact dose needed.

Don't be worried, it's normal. Just hold this dose for 10 cycles to see if she comes back to green.

Thank you for the info. She's came right back up to the high 200's. It's all a bit overwhelming. I'm trying to do what I can for her with the time and resourses I have. I was starting to feel like maybe I shouldn't be testing so much, since she is basically the same all the time, but if I missed that midday test I would have never known about that I guess. I have been feeling like "How high am i going to take her on this Insulin, it just starts to seem futile" I also feel like if/when I take her back to the vet they are going to think I am crazy for giving her so much insulin. Is it possible that she'll never get to a good dose?

 

[Wendy&Neko]

he's came right back up to the high 200's

Likely bouncing - she's not used to under 100.

Is it possible that she'll never get to a good dose?

There is a dose out there for every cat, that moves them. We just don't know what that dose is yet. I have yet to see a cat not find a good dose. At least for a while. If your vet thinks you are crazy, show them the spreadsheet. It's a good sign that Xena is finally making a move.

As for testing, now you are starting to get some good data, telling you when you need to be testing. When they start seeing lower numbers, the BG patterns start to emerge. Once she came back up at +6 yesterday, as long as she had nothing but low carb, you didn't need to test further. When ever you see a +3 to +5 that you've been doing, and it's higher than preshot, you can stop testing the rest of the cycle. Typically, a +2-+3 lower than PS will be an indicator of a more active cycle needing more testing.