Originally Posted by MelodyL

Mrs. D.

While we are on this topic of diabetes I need your expertise.

What is your input on this case.

32 year old alcoholic (who will not stop drinking beer) and who recently was diagnosed with diabetes. He never checks his sugar. He has been hospitalized 5 times with severe pancreatitis and is giving meds and then, when he's better, he's discharged. No one can get him to go to rehab because he's over the legal age. No one can do this. He also has cirrhosis of the liver.

At his last hospitalization, they released him with diabetic meter, diabetic meds (novalog) and I have been told that he is to take one shot of this insulin a day.

I have never heard of a person having to take one shot of Novalog a day.

This is a short acting insulin and I know COUNTLESS diabetics who take this before they eat ANY MEAL.

So how can he be told that he only needs to take one shot in the morning before breakfast.

At least this is what he is telling his mother. At the hospital his sugar was over 300. His stomach is always swollen when he has these hospital stays.

They give him Librium and then they release him when he's better. This has been going on for 2 years now. But he's been drinking for 15 years.

Yesterday, his mom went to visit and he had his friend there and the friend took his sugar and it was 300. Of course the mother started yelling "it's the beer, it's the beer".

of course, it's the beer but it's HIS responsibilty, no??

He won't take his sugar but he'll let someone else take his sugar.

He did take a shot of insulin and 15 minutes later his sugar went down.

So we have a 32 year old man with pancreatitis, cirrhosis of the liver, and now a diabetic.

My question to you is not about his going to rehab. that is not happening. Very sad.

My question is "Can a person who has pancreatitis, and type 2 diabetes and his sugar can reach 300, is it true that that person only has to take one shot of novolog a day? Or is he NOT telling his mother the truth.

I think it's the latter. But I really don't know anything about when people take short acting insulin.

Thanks, and I'm not passing on this info. They don't want it and I'm not offering it. I just want to know.

I know when to keep my mouth shut.

Thanks much, Mrs. D