BG at Night

It's evening, you're tired. All you are looking forward to is a peaceful night of sleep to restore the energies spent during the day. But there it is, puntual as a clock: a fluctuation in your graph which doesn't let you sleep serenely. I've spent several years when, many days during the week, I lived like a zombie all day long because of the fact that I was simply not able to handle my BG at night without having to deeply impact on my sleep quality. I arrived at a point when I had to set 3 alarms every single night in order not to be afraid that something could happen to me. Then, I decided it was time to take the lead on this situation. Here is what has helped me the most since then. 

First and foremost, I have to be very clear about this first point: a both peaceful and totally safe night of sleep without a CGM (or any device which sends you alarms whenever your BG moves closer to the danger zone) is, for what concerns my experience, simply not possible. Yes, through experience it is possible to master your BG at night almost perfectly, but the probability of an unexpected fluctuation never reaches 0%, and, trust me, the last thing you want is not to wake up during a late night hypo.

Secondly, an aspect which has helped me simplify BG management at night substantially, has been the fact of realizing how impacting my dinnertime was on the following night's blood glucose track. In fact, the earlier you consume the last meal of the day, the more time you will have to digest before your bedtime, and the easier it will be to manage your BG in order to reach the moment you lie down with straight and stable values. This will, of course, have a huge impact on the following hours. 

Furthermore, a fundamental aspect of BG management, which has even more impacting effects at night, is a correct basal insulin dosage. In fact, an excess in this type of bolus will most likely determine a slow but constant drop in your overnight glycaemia, while, on the other side, a scarcity in your basal dose is bound to provoke a rise in your blood glucose values, especially during the last hours of sleep. Anyway, check this dedicated article to know more on how to perfecty dose your basal insulin!

And with these, also this article comes to an end. But first, let me give you an advice I've learned on my skin: always pursue perfection, but don't let this chase steal your rest. Sleep deprivation is way worse than a slightly imperfect BG track. Never forget to keep reading my website, and goodnight! ;)