My son has a big dinner with a Humalog shot. Then, before going to bed, he has a really big protein (meat and cheese) snack until he is full, plus a shot of Lantus. One to two hours later, he comes in the living room, says he can’t sleep, is hungry and wants some more food. I am okay with this, but then he can’t get up in the morning to go to school because he is staying up so late. Can you give me some good advice?

Your child’s sleep issues are probably not related to his diabetes. Any child can manipulate their parents into having to have their “extra glass of water” or “extra snack” after bedtime. This is likely a behavior which needs to be stopped rather than actually needing to treat a low blood sugar with a snack (provided, of course, that he has a normal blood sugar at the time of his request to have a snack). I would suggest being firm about his bedtime and not allowing the extra snack that is keeping him up too late. Enforcing that bedtime, especially on a school night, will help him to get up at a normal time in the morning. If he is too tired in the mornings, then bedtime needs to be moved earlier to provide him with adequate sleep.

MSB

[Editor’s comment: Please consult with your son’s diabetes team to ensure your son is getting the proper doses of insulin, eating the correct number of calories/carbohydrates and is growing at the proper rate. Although it seems like your son may be manipulating you to stay up later, it could be that his current regimen is not appropriate and he is, indeed, hungry.

BH]