Since I found out I was pregnant, I have been on insulin to manage my diabetes. Before I got pregnant, I was on pills to help mange it. Since the pills can transfer to the baby and there is very little to no research done on how it will effect the baby, the choice was insulin. I have gotten used to the needles and the pain. Its not as easy as it sounds and would never wish it on anyone.
Since the baby is growing there is much more demand on my body. Each week, I am required to call my caseworker. She specializes in pregnancy and diabetes. I keep track of my sugar levels and she will either decrease or increase my insulin each week. It is normal for my insulin to increase since the baby is growing. I write down my changes and keep it in my little bag that I carry with my insulin. I even have it posted on my computer at work so there is no question what medication I'm on if anything were to happen to me.
I take two types of insulin. One is a 'fast acting' insulin, it takes about 1-2 hours to start to bring my sugar levels down. The other insulin is 'long lasting' insulin, it takes about 5-6 hours to bring my sugar levels down. In the morning, its a mixture of both insulin. At dinner, it is the fast acting one. Then at bedtime, it is the long lasting one. I am pretty used to what insulin I should be taking and at what time.
On Thursday, I shot the wrong insulin for bedtime. I took the normal amount of units, just the wrong type of insulin. I was supposed to take the long lasting one....but I took the fast acting one. After I had realized this, I told Oscar right away. We knew that my sugar level would be dropping and we had set the alarm to go off within 3 hours of going to bed. We knew that checking my sugar at night would be extremely important, at least that night.
I had woke up feeling sweaty and being unable to sleep. I knew there was something wrong because I shouldn't have been sweating in an AC room. I tested my sugar level and I was at 34. That is the lowest it has ever been. I woke up Oscar and he ran to the kitchen to get me something that had sugar in it. I knew that I had to get up and make it to the kitchen as well. In the process of getting to the kitchen, the wall ran into me twice! Having a low blood sugar...especially low like in the 30's, its almost like being drunk. Your body feels week, you have no control over your body movements, you can't walk, your words are slurred, and you don't make any sense with your words! Since this time it was an extreme emergency, I struggled to make it to the kitchen. I stood up took a few steps and hit the wall in my room, hitting my head. I managed to make it out to the hallway...where I managed to hit my head again on the wall. I was lucky that I didn't hit my head on the same side. From that point, Oscar helped me to the kitchen and fed me everything and anything to make my sugar go up.
I hope that I never experience another night like that ever. I later read that day that a sugar level in the 20's and below can cause loss of consciousness or have a seizure. The good thing is that low blood sugars do not affect the baby. If I were to lose consciousness or have a seizure, then I would be putting my baby's life at risk. When I get a low blood sugar during the day, I'm able to act quicker to the symptoms. I have never let my sugar level drop lower than 60 during the day. At night time, that's a different story. Since I'm asleep when my sugar starts to drop, I am 'unaware' of the symptoms when they start. I normally realize what is going on when its too late.
Just one mistake of switching my insulin could end my life...I can't wait until I'm off of it.
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