Aa
Levemir help
Currently unemployed and can't afford my prescription. Any suggestions?
Thanks
Geyson
Thanks
Geyson
Best Answer
COMMUNITY LEADER
Hi,
the length of time of vial of generic insulin depends on what your insulin dose is. For example. A vial of insulin has 1000 Units. If you are taking say 50 units a day, then this vial will last for 20 days.
I used mixed insulin in the past, and while it can be quite effective, because it is a fixed amount of both medium and short acting insulin, you will need to eat on schedule to avoid going low. If you are the type of person who follows a fixed schedule well then this insulin may work for you.
I did mixed insulin during my first pregnancy 70/30 and did have a problem with going low if I didn't eat on time. After that pregnancy I changed to basal bolus insulins (I was using the generic insulins at that time, have since switched to more modern insulins).
When starting the mixed insulin, make sure to study the product information on typical dosing and also make sure you are testing frequently and eating regular meals. You will need to adjust the insulin dose over a period of days - weeks. As a guide: If you are very far off target you may increase by 5 units at a time every 3 days. If you are close to target then increase insulin by only 1 - 2 units every 3 days.
Do not forget to eat after you take your injection. I did that once in China, at 8 months pregnant (took insulin and didn't eat quickly enough after), and woke up in a Chinese hospital. That was an experience and fortunately baby and I were both fine! I am not a person who likes fixed schedules. After that I changed to basal - bolus so I can more exactly control my blood sugars and only take fast acting insulin when I eat.
Hope this helps. Please ask more questions if we can further assist.
Best Regards
Sally Clark
the length of time of vial of generic insulin depends on what your insulin dose is. For example. A vial of insulin has 1000 Units. If you are taking say 50 units a day, then this vial will last for 20 days.
I used mixed insulin in the past, and while it can be quite effective, because it is a fixed amount of both medium and short acting insulin, you will need to eat on schedule to avoid going low. If you are the type of person who follows a fixed schedule well then this insulin may work for you.
I did mixed insulin during my first pregnancy 70/30 and did have a problem with going low if I didn't eat on time. After that pregnancy I changed to basal bolus insulins (I was using the generic insulins at that time, have since switched to more modern insulins).
When starting the mixed insulin, make sure to study the product information on typical dosing and also make sure you are testing frequently and eating regular meals. You will need to adjust the insulin dose over a period of days - weeks. As a guide: If you are very far off target you may increase by 5 units at a time every 3 days. If you are close to target then increase insulin by only 1 - 2 units every 3 days.
Do not forget to eat after you take your injection. I did that once in China, at 8 months pregnant (took insulin and didn't eat quickly enough after), and woke up in a Chinese hospital. That was an experience and fortunately baby and I were both fine! I am not a person who likes fixed schedules. After that I changed to basal - bolus so I can more exactly control my blood sugars and only take fast acting insulin when I eat.
Hope this helps. Please ask more questions if we can further assist.
Best Regards
Sally Clark
Thanks for the information. I appreciate all your help. Would anyone know about how long a typical vial of generic insulin will last? And has anyone had any experience with Walmart's ReliOn/Novolin 70/30?
It pays to shop around, if Walmart were much more there are probably other pharmacies at lower prices for generic insulins, but I suspect you may have meant Walmart's price is much less.
I don't know what 'flat' means in terms of insulins. Perhaps you meant 'fast'?
I don't know what 'flat' means in terms of insulins. Perhaps you meant 'fast'?
COMMUNITY LEADER
Worst case you may also consider switching back to generic insulins (Humalin N and R - they work a bit slower and are not as flat as the modern insulins, but are also cheaper) These are also available at Wallmart for much more than many of the others....
My Aunt was being medicated for Diabetes 2. She changed her lifestyle (swapped nibbling at snacks throughout most of her day, for going on long walks). Through such a lifestyle reversal, she lost some 25 pounds while becoming far less sedentary and was able to get her symptoms under control enough that her doctor approved her discontinuing taking any diabetes medication at all.
Yours is an injectable insulin (correct?), I'm pretty sure she was taking tablets, so I suspect you would no chance of complete success with her approach towards not needing to take meds (but, you might or might not find with weight loss that not only would you gain assorted health benefits, but, would perhaps find that a less expensive diabetes 2 med would suffice). I'm certainly no expert on this topic, but that's a question to ask of your doctor (or possibly your pharmacist), next time you're chatting with one.
Anyway, to directly answer your question: goodrx.com surveys licensed pharmacies for drug prices, I suggest you see what their website has to say. ((It appears that Walgreens offers your med at nearly 1/2 the price of several other pharmacies' offerings.))
Yours is an injectable insulin (correct?), I'm pretty sure she was taking tablets, so I suspect you would no chance of complete success with her approach towards not needing to take meds (but, you might or might not find with weight loss that not only would you gain assorted health benefits, but, would perhaps find that a less expensive diabetes 2 med would suffice). I'm certainly no expert on this topic, but that's a question to ask of your doctor (or possibly your pharmacist), next time you're chatting with one.
Anyway, to directly answer your question: goodrx.com surveys licensed pharmacies for drug prices, I suggest you see what their website has to say. ((It appears that Walgreens offers your med at nearly 1/2 the price of several other pharmacies' offerings.))
I'm a 64 year old male, height is 5'10", and I weigh 190lbs.
I'm looking for assistance with levemir, or a substitute drug that's effective and cheaper.
I'm looking for assistance with levemir, or a substitute drug that's effective and cheaper.
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Scalp, thank you for the catch. Yes, I meant less, not more.
Duration of action is different for different insulins. We have rapid acting; older insulin Humalin-N has an onset of 15 - 30 minutes compared to the modern insulins such as Aspart (novorapid for me) and Humalog, which have an onset of about 10 - 15 minutes.
Moderate acting insulins are the ones we use for basal (background) insulin. Examples are Humalin-R (older insulin), levemir, lantus etc.
Then we have the action profile: whether there is a peak or not.
The older insulins, particularly humalin-R do not have a flat action profile. they still have a peak and one has to be aware of this - though it can be very useful in addressing the dawn phenomenon. When I was taking Humalin-R I would typically go low by late morning.
Compared to insulins like Levemir (Insulin Detemir), which have a fairly flat profile for their duration of action. Though many people find they are better dosed every twice a day rather than every 24 hours as the manufacturer would like people to believe. I take Levermir and rarely if ever go low (even if I don't eat - my basal is pretty well tuned and my target is 70-90 for background levels).... much easier than Humalin-R.