We all make mistakes

Last night I really messed up. I’ve witnessed insulin mistakes at diabetes camp, and I’ve heard stories from many parents of/people with diabetes who have taken wrong doses. It’s never an under-dosing we hear about, because we could always just add more. It’s the over-dosing that’s really scary.

Last night was a set-up for a mistake. I was extremely tired and I was talking on the phone as I was drawing up my Lantus. I finished injecting the “Lantus” into my leg when I realized it was actually Novolog. Sixteen extra units of Novolog, which is a fast-acting insulin that starts working in about 15 minutes and peaks in about 90 minutes. You can’t fix that with an ice cream sundae!! (Too much fat – fat takes hours to break down and doesn’t raise the blood glucose level significantly.)

To make matters worse I had just taken a correction dose of 3 units about 30 minutes earlier, so I had 19 units in me and about to work hard. The only thing going in my favor was that my blood glucose was 223, so I had a little time. I stayed calm (important first step) and thought about what I could eat/drink with the most bang for the buck, because I knew I would get full quickly. I ended up drinking approximately 3.5 cups of orange juice, which is 7 carb servings (4 oz. of orange juice is 15 grams of carb, or a carb serving). I also had a whole banana and some peanut butter. The fat was to ensure that the effect of the carb would stick around for at least a couple hours.

I also took my 16 units of Lantus, which was a little scary, but I knew I still needed the long-term coverage throughout the night and next day. Finally, I told my sister what was going on. I’m currently up in New Hampshire and she is my roommate.

I went to bed feeling good about how I had “pre-treated” because I also knew that I had had some high fat items prior to the whole insulin ordeal (these would give me a buffer and keep my blood glucose level up for a while). I woke up at 4 am and checked: 131! Then this morning at 8am I was 119!

What I learned from this experience:

1. we are all human and humans make mistakes
2. stay calm, think through the options, and come up with a plan (quickly when dealing with fast-acting insulin)
3. take enough “treatment” (food or beverage) to account for all the insulin taken
4. let someone know what is going on, so they can help out, if necessary
5. stay focused when drawing up/administering insulin – avoid distractions like talking on the phone, especially when extremely tired