Jen's Diabetes Blog - Feb 2007 
I've just written- what information
to give your child's school - which is based on the information sheet that we used to give to
Alissa's school teachers. If your child is at school, it's helpful to talk with teaching staff about the care
and health of your child.
26th February
Diabetes - Sick Day Regimen
You’ve been warned about it and finally it happens
– you’re feeling sick, how do you adjust your daily regimen to cope?
The irony is that when you’re feeling fully well
and healthy, you know what to do. However, when you’re feeling
sick, you’re likely to feel far worse due to the rise of ketones in your body, and it may be hard to remember
what you should do.
The key to this is to be prepared – write and print out some procedures,
instructions or information to help yourself.
Also, make sure that you always have plenty of strips for monitoring – both for
testing blood glucose levels and keeping an eye on ketone levels too.
What Can You Do ?
You’ll probably be waking up in the morning and
realizing you feel ill.
The first thing to do is to check your blood sugar
levels – if they’re high (you will have agreed a level with your healthcare professionals – make sure you
write this down) you’ll need to make a correction.
If you’re on a pump, do NOT use the pump to make
your correction by bolusing. Instead, inject insulin as a
correction dose. Set a timer and check your level
hourly.
If your blood sugar level is not lower or
approaching the normal range within two hours of injecting and your level is still too high, contact
your health care provider or doctor for further advice.
Are You A Pumper?
This is not the time to forget to change your
infusion set – if anything change it sooner than usual, rather than later.
Also, if you’re resting, setting a higher temporary
basal rate may be advised – check with your diabetes team.
Drink !
However you are feeling, drink as much water as you
can. If you don’t like the taste of regular water, try chilling
water as it can be easier to drink larger quantities.
Do not drink anything with added sugar!
Eating
If you're feeling sick and unable to keep food
down, you will need to make alterations to your insulin/injection regime.
Do take advice here - bolusing for food when you
may be sick could lead to hypos - this is when you'll need to get help from your doctor, hospital or
healthcare team.
Get Advice & Help
If you’re vomiting, you can get easily and quickly (within hours) become seriously ill. Whilst we've all
heard what can happen if your blood sugar levels get too high, don't take any risks, do get medical help
and advice.
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