I'm t-1 on Lantus for 5 yrs. and it works well for me also.  I take one shot in the morning. 

Peace, Cheryl

TO MY KNOWLEDGE, THERE ARE 3 LONG ACTING INSULINS.

LANTUS, ULTRALENTE, DETEMIR.

I USE LANTUS, SPLIT INTO 2 SHOTS, 12 HOURS APART.  THIS PREVENTS LOWS FOR ME.

Hi, Julie.

I'm on Lantus and metformin right now. I take my injection first thing in the morning. Saves me a great deal of grief over foods. Must eat less using the Lantus, but worth it.

 

I understand that the Levemir has a longer shelf life after opening, like 42 days as compared to Lantus 28 days. And it doesn't have the very unfortunate side effect of weight gain, at least as much as Lantus has.

 

I want to change to the Levemir for the shelf life! I never use the whole bottle of Lantus and longer shelf life would work very well for me.

 

Injections go just under the skin in the fatty tissue. Barely pin prick, much less prick than finger stick, as long as one doesn't hit any muscle. Burns like a sog when I do. I very rarely hit a blood vessel either, which causes bruising.

 

Dr said to inject at bedtime. But if you are like me, that can be anywhere from 8 to midnight. Must inject at a set hour of the day for these insulins to be effective. Also I was waking up with very high BG number from going low in the night and having liver rebound. Much easier to cope with that during the day or waking hours.

 

Don't dread it, just accept and go for all you got!! Make the doctor talk. Ask him questions, always knowing the answer before asking so he can't snow you. But maybe he doesn't want to show his ignorance like my doctor showed the last time I was in the office.

oops! I responded to Julie's response to you instead of to you. So sorry to both of you.

oops. I responded to your response to Elise. So sorry.

My husband takes Lantus in the morning and we were having problems with high readings so the doctor had him take his regular shot in the morning then 2 units of Novalog at lunch and by supper time he was still good. What was going on is that he would have a great reading in the morning higher at noon then sometimes a way out of control at supper....he is back on the track right now. It will have to be adjusted again this summer while we are at the camper and he is fishing all day and relaxed more.....

But he went for years trying to control with pills and diet and the insulin has helped so much and it costs less too....

Even though we live in a rural area the largest town close by was Norfolk Nebraska and they had a week long diabetes classes that our insurance paid for. And in O'Neill they have monthly little seminars and we can talk and discuss the diabetes and anything new that has come along and she always has a lot of information and recipes and more and there is a nurse there too. And it is free.

You might want to check around and see there might be something through your local county or at the hospital....

Our biggest problem is not the insulin it is portion control and figuring out the carbs etc.....

Janet

Yeh, I just take one shot in the morning.  I was on Humalog with long lasting insulin but I had too many hypoglycemic episodes with the quick acting insulin. I actually had two reactions with readings of 12 and I was so amazed that the readings were 12 that I took my meter to my husband and was saying...."look!  look at this reading!!!" and he's trying to calmly say with urgency...."where's your glucose tablets?"   When my physician first spoke to me about Lantus, he did suggest the quick acting insulin along with it and I just told him that I'd try Lantus but not with the quick.  He agreed and it seems to work....(when I behave myself with what I eat and exercise) : )  I'm still not in the work force though....so I have the time to discipline myself.  When I did work (and that's when I used quick acting insulin....) my diabetes was a mess.....my readings swung like a barn door.

I've tried so many regimens having been diabetic for 32 years.  I've finally accepted that the rhythm of my body's chemistry is what it is so I figure this....when I test myself in the morning before breakfast, if my glucose level is within range, it must have taken a pretty safe course over the previous 24 hours.  I know that there was probably temporary highs at different points of the day but if it doesn't go to dangerous levels and stay there like for days....I think for me, that it is okay.  When I used quick acting insulin to take care of those temporary highs, I got into alot of trouble and I believe hypoglycemia is much more dangerous than temporary highs.  Now this has worked for me over the years; I don't have any diabetic problems as far as with my feet, hands, eyes or kidneys, but this is me.  We all have to figure out what works for us and obviously that takes time.....take care.....Peace, Cheryl