2014 #DBlog Week: My Mantra
Today’s theme for the 2014 Diabetes Blog Week is “Mantras and More.” I started thinking about what my mantra is, with regard to my diabetes care. I’ve stewed over this one for a little while now.
2014 #DBlog Week: What Brings Me Down
I’m a little late to the game with this, but May 12-18 is 2014 Diabetes Blog Week. Bitter Sweet (a great blog from knitter and Type 1 blogger Karen Graffeo) posted suggested topics for the week, and today, Wednesday, the topic is “What Brings Me Down.”
Airport Security, Bits and Bobs, and Remembering Jim
It’s funny, I didn’t talk about TSA or getting through security at all in yesterday’s post. That was a failure on my part. However, I didn’t mention it mainly because it didn’t warrant mentioning.
When we were departing Philadelphia, I approached the terminal entrance, complete with TSA, x-ray machines and all the fun equipment used to poke, prod and examine every nook and cranny.
As I was taking off my shoes and putting my bags and contents of my life in a plastic container, I turned to the nearest TSA person and said, lifting my shirt to expose my pump, “I’m wearing an insulin pump.”
Have Pump, Will Travel: A Birthday Excursion
The Basilica Notre-Dame, which was located about two blocks from our hotel.
With Meg’s birthday approaching, I figured we should do something fun and exciting. A trip would fit the bill, so I booked a nice getaway four-day weekend for us in Montreal. (I also successfully kept our destination secret from my love until we arrived at the airport. The gauntlet is thrown down for my wife for the next milestone birthday.)
As soon as the trip was booked, I was aware this would be the first time I’d be traveling with my pump in tow. I researched and researched and read as much as I could from all the diabetes bloggers and sites out there to see what I could expect, and what would be the best way to maintain balanced sugars while flying to our destination.
A1c Check: My Results Are In
Over the four months since I started using my insulin pump, I’ve had moments when I wondered if I made the right choice. I’ve said publicly numerous times I think I have tighter control, and I think this control would be reflected in better A1c results.
However, there were times when I wondered if that was true.
I’ve always had really good control. There were moments when my sugar would crash, or when it would skyrocket, but I was always aware of what was going on, and what to do to fix it. My most recent A1c results, after all, had been 6.5, 6.7, 6.4 and 6.3. (For those of you who don’t understand what an A1c is, check out my good friends at WebMD.)
Anyway, I was concerned my results might go up. What if I’d made a horrible mistake? After all, I did have that night where my sugar went up, completely out of control. What if my score was (gasp) over 7 because of that really bad night?
Well, I just finished my A1c Now at-home test, and I have my results.
Teaching My Son About Diabetes
Owen looked at my pump. Then he looked at me. Then he looked at my pump again.
“What’s that, Daddy?” he asked.
As I’ve told him numerous times what my pump is, I decided to find out how much he’s paid attention.
“What do you think it is, Owen?”
Sick Days, and One Hell of a Snot Bubble
I’ve made a decision to not complain about pump use today. I’ll leave that for later in the week. (I’m looking at you, Medtronic.) Instead, I’ll tell some stories about the illnesses (plural) that befell our family, the world’s biggest snot bubble, and how we figured out Owen’s feeling better again.
My Pump: What Works, and What Doesn’t
I’m now a little over four months into pump use and have seen what I believe to be a pretty good sample of the good and bad that comes with it. Some days have been great. Some, less so. Sometimes I feel like I have absolute control over everything that’s happening with my body, and that I’ve got this thing figured out, once and for all. Then reality (and my faulty pancreas) give me a well-deserved smack in the face to prove that I don’t know anything.
Since I made my switch, I’ve been trying to be aware of the things that work, and what doesn’t, when it comes to my pump and CGM. This list will probably be added to over time (similar to the occasional additions I’ve made to my “Stupid Things Stupid People Say, Stupidly, to Diabetics“), so be sure to check back.
The 530g with Enlite: My Review Is In
Someone asked for my opinion. Seriously. I was approached by an editor for a publication that covers diabetes and related issues, and they wanted to know what I think.
A little over a month ago, an editor from Evidence-Based Diabetes Management contacted me and asked if I was interested in writing a review for my pump, the Medtronic 530g with Enlite. I jumped at the chance.
A Lovely Night, and Hyperglycemic Woes
Friday night Meg and I had a long-planned date night. For Christmas she got me tickets to see Mike Birbiglia perform at the Merriam Theater in Philly. We had dinner. We had drinks. We saw the show. We laughed, a lot. We went home. And then my blood sugar did some unprecedented things, that really, really sucked.
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