Feeling Low About Being High

First of all...I'm stealing that title from one of the blogs that I love to read.  In fact here are two that I follow on a regular basis since they have both been through the whole diabetes and prenancy thing.  The first one is prego the second time and it looks like she is less than a week behind me.  The second one had a baby just a few months ago, so it's great to read where she's been and how being a new mommy is treating her. 

Managing the Sweetness Within
Six Until Me

Anyway, as for the real reason of this post, my blood sugars have been a bit crazy....and I'm still on vacation...so, it's been interesting.  Some things I have learned -

1) My blood sugars used to have a tendency to get lower between 3-6am (which is abnormal, generally diabetes makes a person's numbers raise as a part of your body trying to get you ready to wake up...and I've always been thankful to be abnormal in that regard!)....and it looks like I am getting away from that and now starting to rise instead.  I will be increasing my basal rates (again) around 2am to see if that helps.

2) I can't eat cereal, oatmeal, anything with a bunch of carbs for breakfast anymore - it looks like it's either going to be peanut butter or eggs and a piece of toast in the mornings for me.  I will just have to be very careful in the mornings with carbs...I've bounced into the 200's a few mornings in a row after eating oatmeal or a bowl of cereal.  And I guess I have a hard head, because it took me a few times to figure this out.  In general, diabetics have a resistance to insulin in the mornings anyway (in connection to what I explained in #1 above), so some never eat cereal or anything with a bunch of carbs....but me, I've always had it easy and whatever has worked.  I have now joined the ranks for my other fellow diabetics.  Which is fine, really...since I figured my whole pregnancy has been like this.

3) Even with raising my basal rates over a week ago by 30%, I may need to change my insulin to carb ratio soon.  That ratio is what I use to determine how much insulin I give for a meal, snack, whatever I eat.  For example, right now my insulin to carb ratio (I:C) is 1 unit : 10 g carbs...so if I ate a meal with 60 g of carbs in it, I'd give 6 units of insulin.  Well, I have a feeling that is changing and I have been erring on the side of giving more insulin lately for meals and that seems to work out now that I have gotten used to this new idea a little more.  Completely do-able...I just really liked my easy 1/10 calculation, makes life easier...but it looks like I may need to start getting better at diving by 7 or 8 instead now!  Luckily, I was always a math person.  =)

I've had more high numbers (high 100's and 200's) than I have ever had in this pregnancy over the last week and a half...and I just hope this is an okay adjustment period for little AJ in there...that she hasn't been affected by too much of my blood sugars bouncing around.  That's always the sickening feeling I get when I see a number on my meter that is out of range.  And then to see one that is WAAAAY out of range makes me particularly sick.  I have a doc appointment this Thursday, so as ashamed as I will be to be walking in with my crazy numbers over the last two weeks to show them, I will be happy to ask their opinion and get their suggestions.  I could call in my numbers and let them help now, but it seems as though right as I figure the current new crazy blood sugar number situation out, it settles and then a new unpredictable one appears.  I have a feeling I will be definitely phoning in my numbers a lot more though once I am back from vacation and it's all a little easier to do from home.  I also need to put on my Continuous Blood Glucose Monitor on again when I am home again...I really had things easy before week 20 and it was all very predictable.  Yeah, not so much now, so that is why I have the CGM and I can't wait to get it back to good use!  I already check my blood sugar levels 12-15 times a day, but the little device will help see trends and make it easier to see changes that are needed...and there will be a lot in the coming months!

We are almost done with vacation...we are at Bobby's sister's house one more night in Denver and then we are on the road early tomorrow morning for a long drive.  Please pray for my feet not to swell!  Just a little anxious about that.  In the meantime, looking forward to spending one more night with Nora and the family!