Forty Days of Diabetes - Day 7

How low can you go?

Some people have rescue inhalers with them at all times, we have rescue Skittles. A person with a functioning pancreas can hover around 70 when fasting without feeling symptomatic. A person with T1D might start feeling symtomatic around 80 and get progressively worse as their blood sugar drops lower. Or they might feel symptomatic if they're dropping fast from a recent dose of insulin. 

We treat these lows with the rule of 15's. Check blood sugar, treat with 15 grams of fast acting sugar, recheck blood sugar in 15 minutes. And check, treat, repeat as necessary. In the meantime Caitlin feels horrible and is ravenously hungry. She's trying to inhale a giant bag of skittles and I'm trying desperately to keep track of how many she's shoveling into her mouth while anticipating a rebound high from over treating.