[Make sure to check out Part III if you haven’t already…]
Background
Trying out different things is the heart of discovery. After all, Thomas Edison took hundreds of goes to work out how to make a good lightbulb.
Life involves being a bit spontaneous too, so I naturally experiment anyway (I have no choice). The trick then is to observe, not just carry on seeing stuff without any reflection (which brings us full circle back to Part 1!).
Part 4 – Ideas for next time
Looking at the last week, I try to explain & think of reasons for eg lots of hypers
I think about the future – what can I try doing differently?
Step-by-Step
In Part 3, I mentioned week 4 was pretty good BGLs, while week 5 wasn’t great. Let’s look in a bit more detail at those weeks.
Week 4 – no hypos!
I notice:
most days I woke up with high BGL
I didn’t exercise much
I skipped coffee most days
I avoided nuts
Week 5 – more volatile
I notice:
less insulin for lunch
more coffee
fewer evening injections
less basal than usual
So… what to do now?
I have a few ideas:
skip coffee for a few weeks
do some exercise in morning, or at a time that feels good
Ask myself if I feel like doing exercise and write down the answer (like a journal)
try and test basal is at correct level. Maybe reduce basal at night (when the hypos seemed to happen more).
There are probably more things I can try out, but that’s a pretty good brainstorm. After a season of experiments, I may be getting better and better at these ‘lightbulb’ moments.
My goal is to keep BGL in the normal range as much as possible, with as little effort/thought as possible, all the while managing spontaneity!