In type 1 diabetes, the body produces very little insulin and so we have to try our best to perform the job of our pancreas. The task is not an easy one and sometimes control can slip up away from the best of us. This article serves as a guide to help you get your control back on track.

Make things simpler – establish a routine

Many of us who have struggled with our control at one time or another will likely be familiar with the feeling of being always one step behind our diabetes, such as needing to correct a series of highs and lows rather than being able to plan ahead so much. Making sense of our results is always going to be easier if there are fewer factors to consider, so to help make sense of your blood glucose results, try to keep to a regular routine as best as you can. Taking injections at the same times of day, where possible, is a good place to start. It is particularly important to take your long term insulin at the same time(s) each day.

Test regularly

None of us enjoy testing our blood but it is certainly a big help when it comes to getting our blood glucose levels under control.

For example, you might find yourself asking questions about why you went hypo such as:

• Did I take too much insulin for lunch?
• Did I exercise harder than usual?
• Was I already low before the exercise?
• Did I have low sugar levels before lunch?

Testing regularly helps to reduce the number of factors that could have played a part, and so makes understanding highs and lows easier to understand, and gives you the chance to better learn and avoid these highs and lows in future.

Weigh out portions and check carbohydrate values

Food portions can often be a source of misjudgement. You may have the same meal on two different days but get different results following from the meal if the size of portion was different on those two days. It can really help to spend some extra time weighing or measuring out portions of foods, particularly those that have a higher carbohydrate value, such as potatoes, rice, pasta and cereal. This will allow you to make more accurate judgements when making dosing decisions and when analyzing your results.

Reviewing your results

If you’re trying to bounce back from a period where your control has let you down, it can help to spend more time than usual to record what you are doing in your day. What you eat, when you exercise and for how long, what you eat, even things you wouldn’t normally inject for. It may feel like hard work but it’ll really help you to build a sense of the factors at play and, if you stick at it for a few weeks, it’ll really start to pay off and boost your confidence.