Hi. My name is Shellie and I have two kitties, one of which has just come out of an extended remission from diabetes. Blanco is my sugar cat. He's been a long time sufferer of IBD in various forms. About three years ago, after our food trials failed to help the IBD, the vet started him on anti-inflammatory shots (I don't remember the exact name), which ultimately induced diabetes. We quit the shots, switched vets, and began treating the diabetes with Lantus, 2u every 12 hours. After a little over a month, we were able to reduce to 1u every 12 hours and he ultimately went into remission.
We tried more food trials, and a couple of other methods for trying to control the IBD, none of which worked more than a couple of months. Our vet (who, by the way, has been awesome through this whole thing) suggested trying a low dose steroid that was less likely to induce diabetes. We've had about six months success controlling the IBD, but after a sharp weight drop, I took him in and the BG numbers indicated diabetes again.
Our current plan is to cut back on the steroid pills (but not to go off them completely, as he's miserable with IBD) and go back to treating the diabetes. This time, I've decided to home monitor as I'm worried about the possibility of the diabetes correcting itself again and possibly going into a hypoglycimia. (Read about them, they scare me, I'd rather be monitoring that have something awful happen.)
So two questions. First, I started my own spreadsheet before I joined these forums, but after clicking through some of the spreadsheets here, I'm afraid mine isn't nearly informative enough. Is there a spreadsheet template available for download? I didn't see it on the FAQ, though I've been reading everything for the past couple of days and may have overlooked it.
Second question: I just got my ReliOn Micro monitor and the instructions say to use a control solution for the first test. But there's no control solution in the box, (nor at the store) and the instructions say to call an 800 number for the solution. My husband thinks it's a liability thing and that it's really not necessary. Did anyone else skip the control solution or do I need to call and wait for it to arrive (which would be annoying, as we're supposed to start insulin injections tonight)?
Anyway, I'm so sorry for the long introduction. Thanks for your patience. I've already learned so much from your site, I look forward to learning more.
We tried more food trials, and a couple of other methods for trying to control the IBD, none of which worked more than a couple of months. Our vet (who, by the way, has been awesome through this whole thing) suggested trying a low dose steroid that was less likely to induce diabetes. We've had about six months success controlling the IBD, but after a sharp weight drop, I took him in and the BG numbers indicated diabetes again.
Our current plan is to cut back on the steroid pills (but not to go off them completely, as he's miserable with IBD) and go back to treating the diabetes. This time, I've decided to home monitor as I'm worried about the possibility of the diabetes correcting itself again and possibly going into a hypoglycimia. (Read about them, they scare me, I'd rather be monitoring that have something awful happen.)
So two questions. First, I started my own spreadsheet before I joined these forums, but after clicking through some of the spreadsheets here, I'm afraid mine isn't nearly informative enough. Is there a spreadsheet template available for download? I didn't see it on the FAQ, though I've been reading everything for the past couple of days and may have overlooked it.
Second question: I just got my ReliOn Micro monitor and the instructions say to use a control solution for the first test. But there's no control solution in the box, (nor at the store) and the instructions say to call an 800 number for the solution. My husband thinks it's a liability thing and that it's really not necessary. Did anyone else skip the control solution or do I need to call and wait for it to arrive (which would be annoying, as we're supposed to start insulin injections tonight)?
Anyway, I'm so sorry for the long introduction. Thanks for your patience. I've already learned so much from your site, I look forward to learning more.