Lucy...back to revised scale?

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123joan

123joan

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Two questions to start out the day:
1. Do you think this original scale (I'm using this right now) is too high? The revised scale might have been too low. Perhaps I didn't stick to the revised scale for enough cycles.
The original scale, the one I've been using for the past three days (since 9/10). I was using this from 8/25 through 9/3
200 - 250 .6
250 - 300 1
300 - 350 1.4
350+ 1.6
Revised scale, used 9/4 thru 9/9
200 - 250 .2
251 - 299 .6
300 - 349 .8
350+ 1.2
2. After curve, our vet surmised that she stays high, has flat curve, because I was feeding so often. On 8/28 I began skipping the mid day meals and feeding right after AMPS, PMPS, and a late evening half-portion. I could easily throw in a mid-day meal, if I'm away my husband would happily feed them. I was thinking if I fed at regular times each day that her glucose would be more easily monitored.

EASY? Ha Ha! There's my first laugh of the day.
I won't be able to test today, out of town till PMPS.
 
To some extent, your vet is right, but I don't agree with his strategy. The human diabetics who I have spoken with have told me that their "sugar" stays more consistent over the course of a day because they eat multiple small meals per day rather than just 3 bigger meals like most people do. Diabetes is diabetes, and cats seem to do better when the carb-load from food is more evenly distributed too.
He is right, that the curve will remain flatter when Lucy eats more often, but there's nothing wrong with a flat cycle, provided the "colors" are okay. You wouldn't want a flat pink cycle, but there's nothing wrong with a flat blue cycle. Non-diabetic cats have a flat green cycle, right? A functioning pancreas is just an "insulin pump" that spits out a bit of insulin as needed to keep the BGs flat all day.
Shooting twice a day is the closest we can come to simulating the action of the pancreas. The only other influence we can have on the BG is providing food to counteract the effect that insulin has on pushing BG down. It's backwards from the way nature intended, but it's all we've got to work with.

Which scale you choose will depend on how you manage the diet. If you are going to feed less often, then the doses would probably need to be lower, because there wouldn't be anything working against the insulin after the first couple of hours after the shots. If you feed more often, then you could shoot a higher dose and by testing during the cycle, you would be able to figure out when the insulin has its onset, when it peaks, and when it starts to taper off, and introduce food accordingly.
Most of the food would be given during the first half of a cycle, when the insulin is most effective. You'd end up with a higher number at nadir. But that isn't always a bad thing. It can lessen the frequency of "bounces" from really low numbers.

The important thing to keep in mind is that both food and insulin impact BG levels. In a "normal cat", it's all automatic and instinctive. Food and insulin are opposing forces, and the trick is finding the balance that works, which unfortunately is different for every kitty.

Carl
 
Well this will take me quite a while to digest, no pun intended. It is so hard. Thank you, for being patient and spending so much time explaining.
 
To me, it's like a tettter-totter. Insulin is on one end, food on the other. In a cat without diabetes, neither end of the tetter-totter touches the ground or gets too close to it. It just gently tetter-totters so everyone enjoys the ride.

Diabetes upsets the balance and the tetter-totter keeps thumping the ground, causing all kinds of bumpy rides. Finding the right balance of food and insulin will get the tetter-totter back to the gentle ride. The trick in cats is finding that balance. :smile:

(Now I wonder if using a tetter-totter as an example really ages me! :lol: )
 
Great analogy, Teresa! Perhaps "see-saw" would be less aging? :lol:

Joan, we can explain things in multiple ways. If the way I say it is confusing at all, ask one of the others to translate? And if anything isn't clear, ask specific questions and we'll try to clarify. It helps to take things in small portions - this disease is pretty complicated and overwhelming. And I tend to be wordy and say too much at once :smile:

Carl
 
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