Granny's gone and done it again

[Granny Hatchet]

Granny, how did you know about his blood sugar, do you test him throughout the day?

I test when I think there might be a problem going on. He said his legs were shaky and I seen his hands trembling.

 

[microchick]

I test when I think there might be a problem going on. He said his legs were shaky and I seen his hands trembling.

Granny please, please please, take the advice from a tired old retired nurse. For a while check him before meals and at bedtimes if he will let you so you get an idea where his blood sugars stand. We check our diabetic cat 4 times a day and every insulin dependent diabetic I ever took care of professionally was checked at least three times a day before any insulin was given. We never gave insulin without knowing what their accu check was.

Checking only when you think he is having problems isn't enough. You stand the chance of him bottoming out while he is asleep and then there could be no waking up for him.

I took care of a patient once who had ZERO control of their blood sugar. They could be 500. We would give them insulin as directed and within 15 minutes they would be unconscious with a blood sugar of 15. We would rush to inject glucagon in them IV and they would immediately wake up and ask if it happened again. Can you imagine what would have happened if we had given them insulin without doing blood sugar checks before hand?

 

[twisted-acres-farm]

You can’t garnish a welfare check in this state

here either OR Social Security check although the government/ss can

 

[Granny Hatchet]

Granny please, please please, take the advice from a tired old retired nurse. For a while check him before meals and at bedtimes if he will let you so you get an idea where his blood sugars stand. We check our diabetic cat 4 times a day and every insulin dependent diabetic I ever took care of professionally was checked at least three times a day before any insulin was given. We never gave insulin without knowing what their accu check was.

Checking only when you think he is having problems isn't enough. You stand the chance of him bottoming out while he is asleep and then there could be no waking up for him.

I took care of a patient once who had ZERO control of their blood sugar. They could be 500. We would give them insulin as directed and within 15 minutes they would be unconscious with a blood sugar of 15. We would rush to inject glucagon in them IV and they would immediately wake up and ask if it happened again. Can you imagine what would have happened if we had given them insulin without doing blood sugar checks before hand?

Your right of course. Thank you. I will try to do better. He isn't on a sliding scale dose though. I have suffered all my life with severe drops and have been given those shots many times. I have woken up in some of the oddest places. You know, this could be the reason of his many falls. The thing is, he is very stingy with his blood. Poked him at least 10xs today to get a drop. Any tips there?

 

[Granny Hatchet]

here either OR Social Security check although the government/ss can

Hi honey...

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Gonna call it. Good night y'all.

 

[Granny Hatchet]

Gonna call it. Good night y'all.

sleep well Blue.

 

[Granny Hatchet]

Still no Larry today.

 

[microchick]

Your right of course. Thank you. I will try to do better. He isn't on a sliding scale dose though. I have suffered all my life with severe drops and have been given those shots many times. I have woken up in some of the oddest places. You know, this could be the reason of his many falls. The thing is, he is very stingy with his blood. Poked him at least 10xs today to get a drop. Any tips there?

Yes. Try sticking the sides of his fingers instead of the tips. Get in the meaty portion of the finger. Before you stick him warm his fingers either by having him soak them in warm water for a few minutes, dry and then stick or by massaging his finger beforehand to increase blood flow.

Insulin dependent diabetics are notorious for having poor circulation in their extremities so you have to coax the blood out of them. Also the sides of the finger tips are less sensitive than the finger tips themselves.

When we check our cat's blood sugar we stick him in his large pad or in a meaty toe pad. If his feet feel cold we massage them until they warm up. Works every time.

As for the falls, hells yeah, definitely. He could also be having orthostatic hypotensive events meaning his blood pressure could be dropping significantly when he stands up and down he goes. But definitely drops in blood sugar and being too low could cause falls.

 

[microchick]

Night Blue friend. I'm hitting the shower and then the bed myself. Talk to y'all tomorrow. Hang in there Granny. You are doing better than you give yourself credit for.