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Help? Humalog Calculator - to Correct High Sugar? (Type 2)

Posted , 3 users are following.

Je_n
Je_n

Hi, does anyone have a Humalog calculator? I lost 50 lbs since my last insulin shot/ sliding scale doc gave me and don’t remember the formula.

I want to correct my sugar and everything online is for calculating meals. 

For example, I weigh 159.

Very sensitive to insulin

Glucose is 279 (Illness and stress)

Thanks! 

 

0 likes, 3 replies

3 Replies

  • micksmixxx
    micksmixxx Je_n

    Posted

    Hi, Je n,

    Unfortunately, ma'am, there's no such thing as a "Humalog Calculator".  It's based exactly on you as an individual. i.e. things that would need to be taken into consideration include YOUR sensitivity to insulin.

    You would need to contact a member of your diabetes support team ... doctor/endocrinologist, diabetes specialist nurse, certified diabetes educator ... and ask them.  From the time that they have been treating you they SHOULD be able to give you some sort of idea of what your correction factor is.  (This is the amount of insulin that you, as an individual, should take to lower your blood glucose level by a given amount.  For instance, I need to take 1.0 unit of Apidra insulin to lower my blood glucose level by 4 mmol ... mmol (millimoles) is the International Standard for blood glucose measurement, whereas in America you use mg/dL (milligrams per deciLiter).  There are 18 mg/dL in 1 mmol/l.)

    Anyone that gives you a specific figure MUST know what your insulin sensitivity/correction ratio is or they could be advising you to take too much, which COULD prove disastrous.

    I do hope that you'll contact a member of your diabetes support team, ma'am.

    Be well.

    Lots of Love and Light.

     Mick

    x x x x

     x x x

    P.S. Please don't be offended, or alarmed, at the 'x's'.  It's merely a logo, of sorts, that I've used for the past 40-odd years.

    • Je_n
      Je_n micksmixxx

      Posted

      Thank you for your response. They gave me a chart last year, but I lost 50 pounds, so I didn’t want to rely on that old data.   My sugar spiked up to 320, so I guessed and took three units. I dropped to 140, so I guessed right. Too bad my sugar won’t just stay down, but can’t go to the gym, not much I can do.  You know how it goes, stress and illness happen and glucose can’t be easily controlled for a little while. Thanks again for responding to me. 
  • micksmixxx
    micksmixxx Je_n

    Posted

    Hi Je n,

    Thank you for your response, my new-found friend.

    With the response that you got from injecting 3 units of Humalog ... dropping from 320 to 140 mg/dL ... it appears that we're both about as insulin sensitive.

    Your 320 mg/dL is equivalent to my 17.8 mmol/l (millimoles per litre).  If I were to take 3 units of my Apidra insulin, I would expect it to drop down to approximately 5.8 mmol/l (104 mg/dL).  This, of course, would be if there was no underlying infection present, where I would, in fact, increase the dose slightly.

    The chart that your doctor provided you with is a 'starting point' that doctors would base their calculations on. i.e. what are good correction boluses for yourself would NOT be suitable for all diabetics.

    To be honest with you, I was surprised just how insulin sensitive you are, seeing as you are a type 2 diabetic.  The vast majority of type 2 diabetics are insulin resistant, so much so that they need to take large doses of insulin once they're started on that form of treatment.  I've met, and spoken with many type 2 diabetics that would take as much insulin in a day as I would in a week, and that is no exaggeration.

    I do know what you mean about not being able to go to the gym.  I haven't been able to go to a gym in probably 20 years now ... they won't loose me in with my hospital bed.  Plus, if they did, I don't know how I'd get it onto the various machines in there. lol.

    Anyway, I'm glad that your "guess" ... or should that be 'educated working out' worked for you.

    As an afterthought, Je n, do you have contact details for a dietitian, who should be part of your diabetes support group?  S/he MAY be able to offer you guidance on foods to cut back on/restrict if you're not going through a particularly good time with your diabetes control.

    I wish you well, Je n.

    Lots of Love and Light.

     Mick

    x x x x

     x x x

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