# Do you use showers for BG management? **URL:** \ **Category:** Treatment\ **Created:** [November 7, 2018, 8:09pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/do-you-use-showers-for-bg-management/5432 "2018-11-07T20:09:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Nickyghaleb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Nickyghaleb](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/u/Nickyghaleb)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2018, 8:09pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/do-you-use-showers-for-bg-management/5432/1 "2018-11-07T20:09:10Z")
> [@Using a higher basal than we absolutely need: one more treatment option](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/using-a-higher-basal-than-we-absolutely-need-one-more-treatment-option/5422/38): > > hot showers: extra basal will drop me much faster than my usual shower induced basal drop I know this is another thread, but I just wanted to say I’ve been trying to use showers to help my insulin… I can’t say it’s had any effect on my blood sugar, but I am way cleaner. 😁 ---
**Author:** ![Pianoplayer7008](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/forum.fudiabetes.org/pianoplayer7008/32/1507_2.png) [@Pianoplayer7008](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/u/Pianoplayer7008)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2018, 2:05pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/do-you-use-showers-for-bg-management/5432/2 "2018-11-08T14:05:55Z")
First, had to lol at the subject. Second, I’m not on basal, and don’t notice a drop, but I have noticed a couple times being higher than I thought I would be after a shower. I haven’t tested prior to a shower to really confirm I rise due to the shower itself, though. Would be curious to hear if anyone experiences this… ---
**Author:** ![Kaelan](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/forum.fudiabetes.org/kaelan/32/989_2.png) [@Kaelan](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/u/Kaelan)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2018, 2:52pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/do-you-use-showers-for-bg-management/5432/3 "2018-11-08T14:52:03Z")
Showers used to take me down, maybe 10-20. These days, though, they tend to take me up quite a bit, then down again: I might go up 30-40, then back down right afterwards. But not always. Weird. Last year on FUD we had a shower discussion. It was strange to read that showers take some higher, and others lower. But then I found out it also can take me higher or lower… ---
**Author:** ![T1Allison](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c77e96/32.png) [@T1Allison](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/u/T1Allison)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2018, 2:55pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/do-you-use-showers-for-bg-management/5432/4 "2018-11-08T14:55:34Z")
On Novolog, showers would drop me 120 points. It was like the heat of the shower turned on a huge Glucose Vacuum getting all of the sugar out of my bloodstream. On Humalog, showers drop me typically around 40 points. ---
**Author:** ![mike\_g](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/34f0e0/32.png) [@mike\_g](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/u/mike_g)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2018, 3:00pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/do-you-use-showers-for-bg-management/5432/5 "2018-11-08T15:00:46Z")
For me, it’s primarily for BO management (couldn’t resist). I haven’t noticed BG differences, myself. Are you guys talking about indications on your CGMs? Have you verified this by BG tests before and after the showers? ---
**Author:** ![glitzabetes](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/forum.fudiabetes.org/glitzabetes/32/4287_2.png) [@glitzabetes](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/u/glitzabetes)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2018, 3:20pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/do-you-use-showers-for-bg-management/5432/6 "2018-11-08T15:20:14Z")
Showers make me rise a little bit, which I’ve attributed to being disconnected from my pump for ~15 minutes. (Unless I’ve JUST delivered a bolus, then the insulin works much more quickly than usual) ---
**Author:** ![T1Allison](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c77e96/32.png) [@T1Allison](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/u/T1Allison)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2018, 3:51pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/do-you-use-showers-for-bg-management/5432/7 "2018-11-08T15:51:59Z")
> [@mike\_g](#): > > Are you guys talking about indications on your CGMs? Have you verified this by BG tests before and after the showers? I also wondered if it was a sensor anomaly, but I’ve tested it enough times before and after showers that in my case, the CGM has shown to be accurate. ---
**Author:** ![mike\_g](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/34f0e0/32.png) [@mike\_g](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/u/mike_g)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2018, 3:55pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/do-you-use-showers-for-bg-management/5432/8 "2018-11-08T15:55:22Z")
@T1Allison Interesting. Is this with an active bolus, or after a bolus is complete, and just basal is active? ---
**Author:** ![T1Allison](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c77e96/32.png) [@T1Allison](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/u/T1Allison)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2018, 3:58pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/do-you-use-showers-for-bg-management/5432/9 "2018-11-08T15:58:35Z")
> [@mike\_g](#): > > @T1Allison Interesting. Is this with an active bolus, or after a bolus is complete, and just basal is active? Great question. After having watched this so much, I try to only shower when it’s been at least 3 hours from my last bolus. Since that can be hard to do, if it’s any closer than 3 hours from a bolus, I’ll take a super fast luke warm shower to minimize the effect. If I take a normal hot shower within two hours of a bolus, it’s very likely I’ll tank. But even with basal alone I drop…maybe closer to 20-30 points on basal. Novolog’s effect was always more significant than Humalog’s for me, in each scenario. ---
**Author:** ![Nickyghaleb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Nickyghaleb](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/u/Nickyghaleb)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2018, 4:01pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/do-you-use-showers-for-bg-management/5432/10 "2018-11-08T16:01:05Z")
> [@mike\_g](#): > > For me, it’s primarily for BO management (couldn’t resist). I haven’t noticed BG differences, myself. 🤣🤣 Can’t believe I missed that! ---
**Author:** ![Nickyghaleb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Nickyghaleb](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/u/Nickyghaleb)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2018, 4:05pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/do-you-use-showers-for-bg-management/5432/11 "2018-11-08T16:05:59Z")
> [@mike\_g](#): > > Are you guys talking about indications on your CGMs? Have you verified this by BG tests before and after the showers? Because I don’t experience anything like it, I tend to want to believe it’s something like this… just a sensor anomaly (or what would more likely be in my case a sensor lag). However, as @Kaelan said earlier, this disease can look so different on each one of us, so I imagine showers really might have different effects on our insulin. The only time I ever crash in the shower is when I’ve just finished exercise and am trending downward. I wish showering would magnify my insulin effects. Exercise definitely does, but that requires coffee. 😁 ---
**Author:** ![CatLady](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/forum.fudiabetes.org/catlady/32/36_2.png) [@CatLady](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/u/CatLady)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2018, 4:10pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/do-you-use-showers-for-bg-management/5432/12 "2018-11-08T16:10:09Z")
If I want to take a HOT shower I do tend to wait until I am either a bit higher than normal or else have no IOB ‘cos I will also drop, maybe 10-20 minutes after I am done. A quick, just-warm shower is generally not a problem. ---
**Author:** ![cardamom](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/forum.fudiabetes.org/cardamom/32/2622_2.png) [@cardamom](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/u/cardamom)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2018, 4:22pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/do-you-use-showers-for-bg-management/5432/13 "2018-11-08T16:22:48Z")
Heat in general lowers my blood sugar, whether from a shower/bath/sauna or being out in hot weather for extended periods of time. I once forgot my morning Lantus shot prior to an all day music festival in super hot weather and couldn’t go back for it—I expected to have to cover with lots of extra humalog, but it worked out perfectly, since between the heat and some additional activity (but mostly the heat I think), my basal need apparently dropped about 50%. For me the effect of a single hot shower isn’t typically enough to harness effectively, especially since the heat also tends to cause my POTS/MCAS to flare up, so having long, particularly hot showers doesn’t work well for me. ---
**Author:** ![mike\_g](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/34f0e0/32.png) [@mike\_g](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/u/mike_g)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2018, 4:42pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/do-you-use-showers-for-bg-management/5432/14 "2018-11-08T16:42:48Z")
I guess it makes sense, since it increases circulation. Wasn’t there a hotpack or similar product marketed recently to take advantage of this effect? ---
**Author:** ![CatLady](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex030/user_avatar/forum.fudiabetes.org/catlady/32/36_2.png) [@CatLady](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/u/CatLady)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2018, 4:50pm UTC](https://forum.fudiabetes.org/t/do-you-use-showers-for-bg-management/5432/15 "2018-11-08T16:50:02Z")
> [@cardamom](#): > > being out in hot weather for extended periods of time Me, too…and it doesn’t even have to be that hot: I went down weeding in the sunshine in the 60s! 🙀