Is she okay?

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dragonkitty03

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Hello I'm Melissa and my Cat Belle just started Prozince last friday night. I'm so freaking it.. My Belle was sleeping and she was laying on her side with her paws sticking out and one of her paws twitched.. it has happened before... should I worry?? Or am i being silly?? I'm so depressed this afternoon and bad thoughts are going through my head... She is taking 1 unit twice a day so that's a pretty low dose... Can you tell me if should could have a low on that low of a dose?? My vet said no since its a low dose and if i gave her more then that then she could have a low.. and not to worry... Can you please tell me?? I'm so freaking out and I wont go outside and I wont workout or do anything that I use to enjoy.... If I know that the dose is low enough where she wont have a low, it would put my mind sort of at ease... I'm always checking on her and waking her.... I like when she does things like calls me and i run to the kitchen and she brings me a toy and how she purrs... I just need to know that she will be safe when I leave the house, if i leave the house.... I know 1 unit is a low dose but is it low where she wont have a sugar low?? the vet told me she would be okay cause the dose is low where she wont have a low, if she does it means i gave her to much insulin... Please help.. I'm so freaking out, right now!!! i wish I could feel better.... I did this morning when I had a nice convo with someone and she knows who she is :smile: but now I'm freaking out again!!!! Thanks Melissa and Belle
 
Someone wise said to me when I first joined the board - don't forget to breathe. So breathe....

She is most likely fine. It is a good starting dose. One of the things that everyone does is to start watching their kitty's every move and worrying. Have you read this letter to Mom? Hopefully it will make you smile. viewtopic.php?f=28&t=33671

I am just coming back to the board after a 6 week trip so I am sorry that I don't know your history. Are you testing at home? Learning how would help with a lot of the stress - just knowing what the numbers are is such a great feeling. It eliminates the guessing whether she is feeling well or not. If you aren't testing, can we help you learn how?

And here is some info on hypo. Knowing her numbers is a much safer gauge than just observing behavior, but it may help: viewtopic.php?f=28&t=15887
 
Sue,

Thanks for the links…. The one from the cat did make me smile… no I’m not home testing yet… the vet wants me to call him sometime this week so I will call him Friday… I’m going to tell him I want to start home testing and what numbers are for her so I know… So I can be more at ease….

I hope you had a nice trip… My cat just found out she was sick Thursday and I started insulin on Friday and I’ve been scared and worried ever since… I keep waking her up to make sure she is okay or I shake the bag of treats to see her run to me… she is eating, cleaning and doing her kitty things that she as done before… I think she is getting better… using the cat box less and drinking water less… I know when its time for her shot because she starts to drink more water, but in that way she is doing better… If I went on with her and didn’t know she was sick I wouldn’t worry as much…. Now that I know she is sick I look at everything differently. Like when she sleeps and doesn’t move when I wake her or call her name I get scared or when she sleeps so much… why is that?? I cried to her today and told her to please get better… do you think she understood me?? Sometimes when I do that she growls at me..

Yeah the Dr said 1 unit twice a day is a very low does and shouldn’t make her go into a low because the dose is so low.. His he right?? I sure hope so!!!
 
OK - here's your choices as I see them right now:

A) Wait to talk to the vet before testing and continue with this constant scary existance

b) Go get the testing stuff and start testing - the worry is gone and you'll realize she's just chasin' rabbits...

I'm not trying to be a meanie, been there and already discovered. LEARN from my experience rather than having to live it any longer......at least my lost sanity won't have been in vain. :-D
 
Melissa, did you get back in touch with Lori for her to send you a newbie kit with testing supplies? Home testing is SO important and you will feel so much better knowing what’s going on with Belle.
Keep us posted.
(((((hugs)))))
 
Squeaky,

Thanks.. Yeah the vet is calling me tomorrow and I will tell him I want to home test since I don’t have any money to keep bringing her to the vet so he will be in touch with me tomorrow morning… yeah I’m trying to relax… I walked to the store in the pouring rain and it felt good and Belle was still alive!! So I can relax for the moment.

Donnahc,

Not yet, I’m going to do that tomorrow once I speak to the vet… So I can get the numbers that are right for her and get his fax and all that good stuff so I can get her started… I have a question my cat twitches her paw when she is sleeping… Is this okay or an I over worrying?? Oh I will no worries..
((((hugs))))
 
Hi Melissa,
well, first off, the twitching is normal, Shakes does it all the time .. :mrgreen:
Now for the testing....it is so important that you start home testing asap.
even though Belle is only on one unit, her numbers are always changing so every time you
shoot her with insulin she can have a different sugar level.
On the bottom of my message is Shakes SS
Please open that and take a look. We are going to ask you to have one for Belle.....
before you freak out..dont worry we are here to help you figure that out also..
when I first started I was such a spaz some angel here had to create Shakes spreadsheet for me..
so as you are looking at Shakes spreadsheet you will notice that every moring and every night his numbers are
different and there are times when I have to change his dose to accomedate his numbers.....
but dont worry we will help with that too...
so please let me stress testing again..
my vet was against me testing..thought it stressed him out too much but what actually stressed him was the visits to the vet...
please try to stay calm and we will walk you through this.once you take a look at the spreadsheet let us know and
we can go from there, also let us know when you get the testing supplies..
hang in there...

Densie and Shakes
 
Hi Densie
Awe thanks! That is so good to know its normal!

I’m looked at his spread sheet and it looks easy enough… I know I would be a spaz and I’m so scared… I’m always waking her to see if she is okay.. Like know she is sleeping and I’m calling her and she wont lift her head and so I went there and she growled at me… I called the Vet tech and she said that the dose wouldn’t make her go into a low, cause its such a low does but she is having the vet call me tomorrow… I’m still upset and I was going to eat some mac and cheese and I can’t… not hungry or anything… I did have a small OJ and that’s it… Thanks for all your help!!! I’m working on trying to relax so I can take care of Belle…. I still cry to her and I don’t know if she understand me or not… See she is not doing anything different but now that she is sick and I know she is sick I’m looking at everything differently… no wonder why she is mad at me, I keep waking her up… I’m trying to stay calm… I have a question, she is pooping less is that a good thing?? Cause she use to poop a lot!!! Now she just woke up and went into the kitchen to get water.. Is that bad?? She does love her food though that is for sure!! At least she is eating and that’s a good thing right??

Melissa and Belle
 
ok
insulin can cause a little constipation...if needed there are things you can do to help her along.
I will tell you that the sooner you start testing and getting a good look at her numbers
the more likely you will get this under control, and possibley into remission
remission is possible especially if you really start looking at all aspects,
which will incude her dosage and her sugar levels....
so as Sue says you ahve to breathe and relax and stop thinking that this is a death sentnece
cause its not...its just another bump in the road...
so please stop waking Belle up while she is sleeping, I dont blame her for getting pissed at you...
I think i would too! cats sleep probably 18 out of the 24 hours a day
so let her sleep.
Hang in there, and get the testing supplies so we can get started....I will see if I can find the link somewhere on the website for you to start the spreadsheet so you will be ready to go when you get the testing supplies.
and please start reading and learn as much as you can so you can help your baby
 
Melissa,

She's not sick, she has diabetes.....it's a condition, not an illness. Her pancreas isn't working right so you're substituting for it.

Hugs
 
I completely agree about getting started with the testing. Sue is our resident expert on setting up the spreadsheets, I'm so glad she's back.

1 unit is a relatively low dose, but we do have some really low dose Prozinc kitties here so the sooner you get testing the sooner you can get your insulin groove on.

Welcome to our group :-D
 
Just wanted to say hello. My cat Max was diagnosed in January and I was right where you are now, worried, upset, watching my cat's every move, waking him from a dead sleep just to make sure. ;-) I'm sure you're already figuring out that you've come to the best place for help with your diabetic cat. I knew next to nothing at first and was overwhelmed and stressed. This forum and following the great advice/protocol really helped me turn Max's health around. Sue was a great calming influence for me, reminding me to breathe too. Like everyone else has said, testing at home was a huge help. I could test and know what Max's numbers were immediately. Some vets are not that supportive of testing, so don't let your's talk you out of it. Home testing and diet change (low carb wet food) were the two biggest things that turned things around for Max. Don't do any diet changes until your home testing though, since diet can affect numbers. Keep us posted and ask all the questions you need, including just needing support. You can do this! BTW-Max twitches like crazy when he's asleep.
 
I was a nervous wreck when my cat Henry was diagnosed at the end of October last year.
I was almost in panic mode. I did the same thing you did at first, checking to make sure he was breathing. looking for signs of low blood sugar, worrying if he seemed to be sleeping a lot, etc.
What made it easier for me was I started home testing the day he was diagnosed and as my confidence grew in my ability to test and give his shot, my anxiety started to ease.
With home testing you will find yourself less anxious, as you see how your kitty reacts to the insulin and when you start keeping a spread sheet you can see a pattern of how your cat is reacting to the insulin. Most people here like to do a curve when they first start out to see in detail how their kitties are reacting to the doses given. You should always at least check the AM and PM blood glucose levels before you give insulin and get in a test 4-8 hours after the shot to see what kind of movement you are getting from the dose you gave.
Don't worry, everyone here started just like you, not knowing what they were doing, and anxious and scared about their kitty.
Remember, knowledge is power and the first step is to start home testing to know what her BG levels are.
As for constipation, most commercial hairball remedies such as Laxatone contain lots of sugar and aren't good for diabetic cats. try adding a little canola oil or small amount of butter to your cats food or a 1/2 teaspoon of canned pumpkin ( make sure its canned pumpkin and not pumpkin pie filling which has sugar and spices in it).
It will get better I promise, it may not feel like it now, but it will as you gain confidence in treating your cat.
(((big hugs)))
Angela & Henry
 
Hi all,
Just because I have a good deal of prior knowledge on Melissa and Belle's history thusfar, I can fill in a couple blanks.
This weekend I think, Jennifer (Tucker's Mom) is supposed to be driving to Melissa's and carrying newbie kit items (Meter, strips, I think some syringes too), and she will meet Melissa and Belle and give her some hands-on training on home testing and make sure she's giving the injections correctly and all that other "newbie stuff" :smile:
I think Lori is maybe sending some items by mail as well. So by this weekend, Melissa will be able to start collecting data and hopefully feel less overwhelmed and more confident that Belle is okay and that she's actually doing well and finding out that this isn't really as bad as her imagination is making it.
There's been a long thread in Health during the day, and Melissa is getting lots of advice and help there as well as here, and a member or two have spoken to her by way of PM and on the phone.

Hopefully Belle will have a better day tomorrow. Today was all about puking and pooping and it wasn't a fun day for Belle or Melissa. She has also been advised to drop Belle's normal dose back to 1/2 unit BID until she begins home testing. It was thought that would be the safest thing to do, since Belle is eating mostly low-carb food now which is a change since diagnosis and the start of insulin shots, so to be safe, less insulin until Melissa knows for sure where Belle's BG is at.

Just wanted to get everyone "in the loop" in case you weren't in Health earlier today.

Carl

FWIW, I'm thinking Belle's diabetes was caught fairly early, and she may not be needing to dance for too long before she's all better.
 
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