Jessica & Boo Radley
Member Since 2011
We've had quite the journey with diabetes over the past 8 months. Boo Radley was diagnosed in Aug of 2011 in DKA. We started out on Lantus at 0.5 U and climbed as high as 4.0 U, and tumbled back down to 0.5 U using the Tilly protocol. My spreadsheet doesn't include 2011 #'s because we were one of the unfortunate ones using the Freestyle Meter....at the end of 2011, we ended back up in DKA because we thought the numbers we were seeing were reliable, only to find out the beautiful blues and greens at 0.5 were really pinks and reds. At the hospital in our second DKA, my freestyle meter said 150....the vet's number said 480. (I'd be happy to send anyone that data for reference, but there's just no telling what's true and what's not). We've since switched to the Relion Meter and have found to be within 30 points of the vet numbers.
In January, coming out of that 2nd DKA, my vet convinced me to give Prozinc with Regular bolus doses a try. After a couple of weeks I knew it wasn't the right decision, so back to Lantus we went. I kept using 0.25 bolus doses of Regular if we were above 350 (the brown R on my sheets represents a 0.25 dose). We started at 1.0 in Lantus and worked back up to 2.25 U before we started seeing some better numbers, tumbled back down and then back up (again following the protocol).
I began to read and watch the Levemir board and some things resignated and peaked my interest. Boo has the big swings on other insulins that people were talking about over here. Once thing I've learned with him over the past 8 months is that he is very, very sensitive to low numbers and is spectacular (if you want to call it that), at protecting himself from hypo's by throwing out tons of glucagon. Bounce, bounce, bounce....... the downside of not having to worry about lows.....2 DKA's later....is the highs.
I started on 1.0 U of Levemir in my heart thinking and worrying that it wasn't enough insulin (so after just a few short days and a few bolus doses of R....I upped him to 1.5 and cut out R all together). We're in our 6th full cycle at 1.5 and I'm just not sure what to do....is it too much insulin, is it too little? I'd love to hear anyone's thoughts....
Here's just a bit more info:
Feed Fancy Feast Classic
Shoot almost religiously on a 12/12 cycle (once in a blue moon we have to alter)
Relion meter, home test
Boo is 4y/o, weighs 11 lbs, HIV positive but not sick
In January, coming out of that 2nd DKA, my vet convinced me to give Prozinc with Regular bolus doses a try. After a couple of weeks I knew it wasn't the right decision, so back to Lantus we went. I kept using 0.25 bolus doses of Regular if we were above 350 (the brown R on my sheets represents a 0.25 dose). We started at 1.0 in Lantus and worked back up to 2.25 U before we started seeing some better numbers, tumbled back down and then back up (again following the protocol).
I began to read and watch the Levemir board and some things resignated and peaked my interest. Boo has the big swings on other insulins that people were talking about over here. Once thing I've learned with him over the past 8 months is that he is very, very sensitive to low numbers and is spectacular (if you want to call it that), at protecting himself from hypo's by throwing out tons of glucagon. Bounce, bounce, bounce....... the downside of not having to worry about lows.....2 DKA's later....is the highs.
I started on 1.0 U of Levemir in my heart thinking and worrying that it wasn't enough insulin (so after just a few short days and a few bolus doses of R....I upped him to 1.5 and cut out R all together). We're in our 6th full cycle at 1.5 and I'm just not sure what to do....is it too much insulin, is it too little? I'd love to hear anyone's thoughts....
Here's just a bit more info:
Feed Fancy Feast Classic
Shoot almost religiously on a 12/12 cycle (once in a blue moon we have to alter)
Relion meter, home test
Boo is 4y/o, weighs 11 lbs, HIV positive but not sick
