First day on Insulin...have questions

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Chris & China (GA)

Chris & China (GA)

Member Since 2013
Well we started the new phase of this adventure and from everything I've learned on this wonderful message board I feel much more confident, but still have questions

China's BG at noon was 398 (I had WANTED to do it at 11 but had to be somewhere else) I gave her .75u of Lantus (She weighs 8.5lbs)

Will it be safe to give her a second shot (.75u) at 11pm instead to get us on the schedule that works best? (Will do BG before either way)

Next problem....I have seen the wonderful Spreadsheet program a lot of you use, but I'm "technology challenged" and am having no luck figuring out how to do it. Would really appreciate some help so I don't have to keep using pen/paper

Thanks again for all your support and information!!
 
I think you can move shots by 15 minutes each shot, so tonight you would shoot at 11:45, then 11:30 tomorrow morning, then 11:15 tomorrow night, and be on your "regular" 11/11 by the next morning. That's optimal - especially since you're new to this and don't know how she reacts or what her insulin cycle looks like yet.

Here's a link to how to set up the spreadsheet. I just followed the directions and it worked for me. I know you start by creating a Google account. There's someone here who's much more helpful than I - I'm sure they'll be along.
 
There are several people that help create spreadsheets. You can send them a PM and ask for help. Some of the people I know that do this are Sienne and Gabby, Marje & Gracie, Sue & Oliver.
 
I think you can move shots by 15 minutes each shot, so tonight you would shoot at 11:45, then 11:30 tomorrow morning, then 11:15 tomorrow night, and be on your "regular" 11/11 by the next morning. That's optimal - especially since you're new to this and don't know how she reacts or what her insulin cycle looks like yet
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Thank you. This will work for me. I'll do a BG about 11:40 and plan on her next insulin at 11:45 tonight and drop it back 15 minutes each time until we're on the 11-11

As for the spreadsheet, I was able to "create" it but don't know how to actually use it...much less how to "link" it here...appreciate any help I can get :)
 
Another option since you have just started today -- skip tonight's shot and start tomorrow at the desired time.

Also - some cats are more sensitive than others -- Tiggy, my diabetic kitty, has no problem with up to 1 hour changes in shot time - we don't bother with 15 minute increments.

Edited -- I see you only need to adjust the time by One Hour --- what you could do is test your kitty tonight at 11 p.m. and if above 200 BG -- go ahead and give the injection and you're on your new schedule.

phoebe
 
As for the spreadsheet, I was able to "create" it but don't know how to actually use it...much less how to "link" it here...appreciate any help I can get :)
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The spreadsheet is where you will keep track of the units of insulin you give, the blood glucose tests you do or tests done at the vet clinic, and any other notes you would like to make over in the remarks column.

The first column is the date. Type in each date in your preferred format. Here in the US, that is usually MM/DD/YY.
Next column is labeled AMPS. This is the BG test you take in the morning before you give the shot. AM for morning, PS for pre-shot.
The next column is labeled U and is the number of units of insulin you give. one unit would be 1, one and a half units would be 1.5.
the + numbered columns are any more BG tests you get, expressed in hours since your pre-shot test.

For example, a test taken two hours after your AMPS is a +2 test. Put your BG test number in the +2 column.

Since we all live in different time zones around the world, we have developed this method for giving everyone a common base time to work from.

The PMPS column is for your test taken in the evening before you give the shot of insulin. PM for evening, PS for pre-shot.

The remarks column is where people note food given if they want to track this, any thing that is deserving of a comment like "dose increase today", any problems your cat might be having that day like constipation or diarrhea,etc. This is to help see if there is some issue that might be causing a BG reading to be 'off'.

Does that help you to understand how to fill out the spreadsheet? Also called SS for short.
 
Does that help you to understand how to fill out the spreadsheet?
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Sorry but no. I do understand what goes where (and thank you for the explanation on the + signs) but the help I need is even more basic. I DO have the spreadsheet and named it "China's SS"...what I am not understanding is how to "type in" the date, BG number, and Units given

As I said, I've never really understood the Spreadsheet program so I'm needing help from the ground up. I need to learn how to make it let me put in the numbers

So far, day 1 is "in the books"....AMPS 398 .75 u Lantus...... PMPS 282 .75u Lantus

Again, I appreciate your help so very much!


While waiting for a reply, I was doing some reading and saw this
Did someone mention to you that you should take his food away at 2-3 hours prior to shot time
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I did not know this! I'm guessing that since China's BG was 282 before injection, she's ok, but I sure didn't know to pick up the food before testing! There sure is a lot to learn!
 
Never used a spreadsheet before?

Open the spreadsheet in google.
Each little rectangular box is called a cell.
Move your cursor until it is over a cell where you want to type in some data.
Click on the cell.
the cell where you are located should be outlined in light blue.
Type in the data you want to enter.

To move to the next cell to the right, you can hit the TAB key or you can use the up, down, left and right arrows in the lower right of your keyboard to move around or you can move your cursor to the next cell and click on that cell.


Google will automatically save the changes you did in your Drive. You may notice the words "All Changes Saved in Drive" or the words "Saving..."
 
great job on the spreadsheet! so far so good - lets revaluate the dose after a few more days
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Thanks!! Had to learn how to use Excel, and then figure out Google Docs but I think I got it mastered...at least enough to enter the things I need to :lol:

Going to try for a +3, +6, and +9 today

ya'll are wonderful and I've even gotten my new vet checking out this Message Board...WOO HOO!!!! :RAHCAT party_cat
 
Next we need to teach you how to shrink a picture down to 90x90 pixels so you can put it in your avatar and we can see the beautiful China White!
 
Next we need to teach you how to shrink a picture down to 90x90 pixels so you can put it in your avatar and we can see the beautiful China White!
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I just got a new Smartphone (so far, it's smarter than I am though)...I'll see if I can get a good picture first...then we'll figure out how to resize it. I'd love to share my sugar kitty with you!
 
A beautiful kitty living in a beautiful area of the country. She is so white, it looks like she glows in the dark. ;-)
 
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