CFRD- what do you eat differently?

[littletally]

I was also just in a tune up and during those three weeks my blood sugar dropped bad twice. Like in the 60's. Of course then I drank juice and had a nutty bar but still I think I would rather have a little high than alotta low. Anyone else have the low problem?

Nikki
27/f/cf

 

[coltsfan715]

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>also? do you give yourself insulin shots or do you have an insulin pump? how often a day must you take insulin? or do you only take it if your sugars reflect that you need to? i am ashamed about how little i know about diabetes and need to do more research, so thank you. </end quote></div>

I used to give myself insulin shots, but now use an insulin pump.
When I first started taking insulin I gave 2 shots a day. I was taking Humalog (a short acting insulin) and HumilinN (a long acting insulin). I would take a mixture of each in the morning and a mixture of each at night - normally with breakfast and dinner.
After about 3 years of being on that regimine my meds were switched. I started taking Lantus (a long acting insulin) and Novolog (a short acting insulin). I went from 2 shots a day to roughly 4-5. I would take one shot of Lantus at night and then a shot of Novolog at every meal. Roughly one year ago I started to have difficulty keeping my sugars regulated, so my regimine became more involved. I was taking a smaller dose of Lantus and having to give shots twice a day instead of once. Then I was also having to increase my shots of Novolog to account for after meal highs too. Overall I went from about 4-5 shots a day to about 8 plus shots a day. At that point I started the process to get an insulin pump.
I have been using an insulin pump now for about 5 months and am slowly getting used to it. At first my sugars were hard to control because I was getting used to a new treatment set up. Now they are getting fairly easy to control though. I have to change the infusion kit every other day - so I went from 8 or more injections a day to 1 injection/needle stick every other day. MUCH better. I get a constant flow of Humalog - a short acting insulin - the pump releases a basal rate every few minutes to keep my blood sugar lowered throughout the day. Then I give a bolus with every meal - a bolus would be the equivalent of an injection. The bolus at each meal covers the carbs that I will be taking in that meal and also accounts for my blood sugar if it was elevated before I started eating. I am not really sure how many boluses I give per day - at least 4 because I eat that often .. maybe 5 or 6 - I give them every snack, meal, drink everything. It is much nicer than the shots because I am not keeping myself from eating because I don't want to give myself a shot - it takes away from that stress.

I personally started taking 1 amount of insulin regardless of what I was eating. I would adjust it slightly in accordance with my blood sugar but not for the meal itself. Over the years I have started to adjust for each meal as well that way I am able to eat what I want and hopefully gain or maintain my weight and control my blood sugar as well.

I think the freedom with eating is so prevalent with CFRD patients because we have weight issues in most instances. I have been told by my doctors that weight and my diet is NOT a concern because I am underweight. They have told me that if I were to reach a point that I was gaining too much weight they would then suggest that I modify my diet - but we are not at or near that point now.

Take Care,
Lindsey

 

[coltsfan715]

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>also? do you give yourself insulin shots or do you have an insulin pump? how often a day must you take insulin? or do you only take it if your sugars reflect that you need to? i am ashamed about how little i know about diabetes and need to do more research, so thank you. </end quote></div>

I used to give myself insulin shots, but now use an insulin pump.
When I first started taking insulin I gave 2 shots a day. I was taking Humalog (a short acting insulin) and HumilinN (a long acting insulin). I would take a mixture of each in the morning and a mixture of each at night - normally with breakfast and dinner.
After about 3 years of being on that regimine my meds were switched. I started taking Lantus (a long acting insulin) and Novolog (a short acting insulin). I went from 2 shots a day to roughly 4-5. I would take one shot of Lantus at night and then a shot of Novolog at every meal. Roughly one year ago I started to have difficulty keeping my sugars regulated, so my regimine became more involved. I was taking a smaller dose of Lantus and having to give shots twice a day instead of once. Then I was also having to increase my shots of Novolog to account for after meal highs too. Overall I went from about 4-5 shots a day to about 8 plus shots a day. At that point I started the process to get an insulin pump.
I have been using an insulin pump now for about 5 months and am slowly getting used to it. At first my sugars were hard to control because I was getting used to a new treatment set up. Now they are getting fairly easy to control though. I have to change the infusion kit every other day - so I went from 8 or more injections a day to 1 injection/needle stick every other day. MUCH better. I get a constant flow of Humalog - a short acting insulin - the pump releases a basal rate every few minutes to keep my blood sugar lowered throughout the day. Then I give a bolus with every meal - a bolus would be the equivalent of an injection. The bolus at each meal covers the carbs that I will be taking in that meal and also accounts for my blood sugar if it was elevated before I started eating. I am not really sure how many boluses I give per day - at least 4 because I eat that often .. maybe 5 or 6 - I give them every snack, meal, drink everything. It is much nicer than the shots because I am not keeping myself from eating because I don't want to give myself a shot - it takes away from that stress.

I personally started taking 1 amount of insulin regardless of what I was eating. I would adjust it slightly in accordance with my blood sugar but not for the meal itself. Over the years I have started to adjust for each meal as well that way I am able to eat what I want and hopefully gain or maintain my weight and control my blood sugar as well.

I think the freedom with eating is so prevalent with CFRD patients because we have weight issues in most instances. I have been told by my doctors that weight and my diet is NOT a concern because I am underweight. They have told me that if I were to reach a point that I was gaining too much weight they would then suggest that I modify my diet - but we are not at or near that point now.

Take Care,
Lindsey

 

[coltsfan715]

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>also? do you give yourself insulin shots or do you have an insulin pump? how often a day must you take insulin? or do you only take it if your sugars reflect that you need to? i am ashamed about how little i know about diabetes and need to do more research, so thank you. </end quote></div>

I used to give myself insulin shots, but now use an insulin pump.
When I first started taking insulin I gave 2 shots a day. I was taking Humalog (a short acting insulin) and HumilinN (a long acting insulin). I would take a mixture of each in the morning and a mixture of each at night - normally with breakfast and dinner.
After about 3 years of being on that regimine my meds were switched. I started taking Lantus (a long acting insulin) and Novolog (a short acting insulin). I went from 2 shots a day to roughly 4-5. I would take one shot of Lantus at night and then a shot of Novolog at every meal. Roughly one year ago I started to have difficulty keeping my sugars regulated, so my regimine became more involved. I was taking a smaller dose of Lantus and having to give shots twice a day instead of once. Then I was also having to increase my shots of Novolog to account for after meal highs too. Overall I went from about 4-5 shots a day to about 8 plus shots a day. At that point I started the process to get an insulin pump.
I have been using an insulin pump now for about 5 months and am slowly getting used to it. At first my sugars were hard to control because I was getting used to a new treatment set up. Now they are getting fairly easy to control though. I have to change the infusion kit every other day - so I went from 8 or more injections a day to 1 injection/needle stick every other day. MUCH better. I get a constant flow of Humalog - a short acting insulin - the pump releases a basal rate every few minutes to keep my blood sugar lowered throughout the day. Then I give a bolus with every meal - a bolus would be the equivalent of an injection. The bolus at each meal covers the carbs that I will be taking in that meal and also accounts for my blood sugar if it was elevated before I started eating. I am not really sure how many boluses I give per day - at least 4 because I eat that often .. maybe 5 or 6 - I give them every snack, meal, drink everything. It is much nicer than the shots because I am not keeping myself from eating because I don't want to give myself a shot - it takes away from that stress.

I personally started taking 1 amount of insulin regardless of what I was eating. I would adjust it slightly in accordance with my blood sugar but not for the meal itself. Over the years I have started to adjust for each meal as well that way I am able to eat what I want and hopefully gain or maintain my weight and control my blood sugar as well.

I think the freedom with eating is so prevalent with CFRD patients because we have weight issues in most instances. I have been told by my doctors that weight and my diet is NOT a concern because I am underweight. They have told me that if I were to reach a point that I was gaining too much weight they would then suggest that I modify my diet - but we are not at or near that point now.

Take Care,
Lindsey

 

[NathanWind]

I was diagnosed about 7 years ago with CFRD. Since then I have had periods of not taking my blood sugars all that much because I would get 'low' so often.

However, if I had one bit of advice it would be to absolutely get in the habit of testing your sugars 3-4 times/day. Having your sugars under control will do wonders for your health long term. It sux having to add yet another item to the laundry list of things we have to do on a daily basis to stay healthy, but it's well worth it.

I'm taking Lantus and Humalog now. One Lantus shot at night, and Humalog with meals and snacks. I probably take from 5-8 shots/day depending on how much and oftern I eat. It sounds daunting, but you get used to it. They have very small and fine needles which help (BD Ultra Fine Mini Pen Needles - 3/8 inch).

The only thing I cut out of my diet completely is sodas. I find that it's next to impossible for me personally to limit myself to just one or just one or two with meals. I used to drink 8 or 9 cokes/day before I was diagnosed with CFRD and didn't give them up completely until about 4 months ago. Since I've given those up, my sugars are much better (my 14 day avg. is usually between 90-110) and I have a lot more energy.

Good luck and just tackle this full on - and definitely consider a pump if taking the shots that many times might lead to your not being compliant. You know yourself better than anyone, just be honest about how well you'll handle taking shots.

 

[NathanWind]

I was diagnosed about 7 years ago with CFRD. Since then I have had periods of not taking my blood sugars all that much because I would get 'low' so often.

However, if I had one bit of advice it would be to absolutely get in the habit of testing your sugars 3-4 times/day. Having your sugars under control will do wonders for your health long term. It sux having to add yet another item to the laundry list of things we have to do on a daily basis to stay healthy, but it's well worth it.

I'm taking Lantus and Humalog now. One Lantus shot at night, and Humalog with meals and snacks. I probably take from 5-8 shots/day depending on how much and oftern I eat. It sounds daunting, but you get used to it. They have very small and fine needles which help (BD Ultra Fine Mini Pen Needles - 3/8 inch).

The only thing I cut out of my diet completely is sodas. I find that it's next to impossible for me personally to limit myself to just one or just one or two with meals. I used to drink 8 or 9 cokes/day before I was diagnosed with CFRD and didn't give them up completely until about 4 months ago. Since I've given those up, my sugars are much better (my 14 day avg. is usually between 90-110) and I have a lot more energy.

Good luck and just tackle this full on - and definitely consider a pump if taking the shots that many times might lead to your not being compliant. You know yourself better than anyone, just be honest about how well you'll handle taking shots.

 

[NathanWind]

I was diagnosed about 7 years ago with CFRD. Since then I have had periods of not taking my blood sugars all that much because I would get 'low' so often.

However, if I had one bit of advice it would be to absolutely get in the habit of testing your sugars 3-4 times/day. Having your sugars under control will do wonders for your health long term. It sux having to add yet another item to the laundry list of things we have to do on a daily basis to stay healthy, but it's well worth it.

I'm taking Lantus and Humalog now. One Lantus shot at night, and Humalog with meals and snacks. I probably take from 5-8 shots/day depending on how much and oftern I eat. It sounds daunting, but you get used to it. They have very small and fine needles which help (BD Ultra Fine Mini Pen Needles - 3/8 inch).

The only thing I cut out of my diet completely is sodas. I find that it's next to impossible for me personally to limit myself to just one or just one or two with meals. I used to drink 8 or 9 cokes/day before I was diagnosed with CFRD and didn't give them up completely until about 4 months ago. Since I've given those up, my sugars are much better (my 14 day avg. is usually between 90-110) and I have a lot more energy.

Good luck and just tackle this full on - and definitely consider a pump if taking the shots that many times might lead to your not being compliant. You know yourself better than anyone, just be honest about how well you'll handle taking shots.

 

[blindhearted]

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote><i>Originally posted by: <b>littletally</b></i>

I was also just in a tune up and during those three weeks my blood sugar dropped bad twice. Like in the 60's. Of course then I drank juice and had a nutty bar but still I think I would rather have a little high than alotta low. Anyone else have the low problem?</end quote></div>

I do not have CFRD and to my knowledge my doctors arent concern at this moment. My sugars do drop low. It has been as low as 55 before. I honestly rather drop low than go high. Either way, it will make you feel like crap and needs to be fixed. My sugars drop the most when I start getting sick or stressed out. If I go a long amount of time (12+ hours) and not eat, they will drop...specially if I am active (shopping with alot of walking, running errands, etc). My doctors just told me to keep an eye on it. If it starts to become too much of a problem then they will test me.

 

[blindhearted]

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote><i>Originally posted by: <b>littletally</b></i>

I was also just in a tune up and during those three weeks my blood sugar dropped bad twice. Like in the 60's. Of course then I drank juice and had a nutty bar but still I think I would rather have a little high than alotta low. Anyone else have the low problem?</end quote></div>

I do not have CFRD and to my knowledge my doctors arent concern at this moment. My sugars do drop low. It has been as low as 55 before. I honestly rather drop low than go high. Either way, it will make you feel like crap and needs to be fixed. My sugars drop the most when I start getting sick or stressed out. If I go a long amount of time (12+ hours) and not eat, they will drop...specially if I am active (shopping with alot of walking, running errands, etc). My doctors just told me to keep an eye on it. If it starts to become too much of a problem then they will test me.

 

[blindhearted]

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote><i>Originally posted by: <b>littletally</b></i>

I was also just in a tune up and during those three weeks my blood sugar dropped bad twice. Like in the 60's. Of course then I drank juice and had a nutty bar but still I think I would rather have a little high than alotta low. Anyone else have the low problem?</end quote></div>

I do not have CFRD and to my knowledge my doctors arent concern at this moment. My sugars do drop low. It has been as low as 55 before. I honestly rather drop low than go high. Either way, it will make you feel like crap and needs to be fixed. My sugars drop the most when I start getting sick or stressed out. If I go a long amount of time (12+ hours) and not eat, they will drop...specially if I am active (shopping with alot of walking, running errands, etc). My doctors just told me to keep an eye on it. If it starts to become too much of a problem then they will test me.

 

[catalinaohara]

hi there,

thanks for all your responses! So i am near the end of the cleanout, and last week they did another random glucose, which was normal! This is good news. I am still going to do the OGTT (it is ogtt right?) in about a month.

my question is, did any of you see your cfrd develop this way? i.e.....higher sugars during periods of physical stress but normal otherwise. i am still going to stay on top of it of course but am wondering if this is just a "fluke" or if it is just a sign of things to come, if not right at the moment.

thanks again

Caitlin

 

[catalinaohara]

hi there,

thanks for all your responses! So i am near the end of the cleanout, and last week they did another random glucose, which was normal! This is good news. I am still going to do the OGTT (it is ogtt right?) in about a month.

my question is, did any of you see your cfrd develop this way? i.e.....higher sugars during periods of physical stress but normal otherwise. i am still going to stay on top of it of course but am wondering if this is just a "fluke" or if it is just a sign of things to come, if not right at the moment.

thanks again

Caitlin

 

[catalinaohara]

hi there,

thanks for all your responses! So i am near the end of the cleanout, and last week they did another random glucose, which was normal! This is good news. I am still going to do the OGTT (it is ogtt right?) in about a month.

my question is, did any of you see your cfrd develop this way? i.e.....higher sugars during periods of physical stress but normal otherwise. i am still going to stay on top of it of course but am wondering if this is just a "fluke" or if it is just a sign of things to come, if not right at the moment.

thanks again

Caitlin