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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Happy 31st Birthday to My Diabetes
In the immortal words of The Smiths, I’m here to wish you an unhappy birthday. Some 31 years ago today, I was admitted to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia to learn that my pancreas was no longer operational, changing my life forever.
I Dislike My Lying Sensor
I’ve had some problems with my Medtronic Enlite sensor. This morning’s experience, though, takes the cake.
The worst way to feel about my diabetes treatment, I’ve learned over the years, is relaxed. I can never, ever assume that the way I treated my sugars will be effective next year, next month, next week, or maybe even tomorrow.
CGM: Sensor Stories From a Snowy Weekend
This weekend I got to experience the real benefits of CGM usage, as well as one of its challenges.
I’m about a month into using my Enlite continuous glucose monitor (CGM) from Medtronic. I had some initial difficulties in getting the CGM operational (along with other difficulties, like it lying to me and preventing me from getting a good night’s sleep).
Friday, though, is got to experience why this piece of equipment is all I’d hoped it would be. Then it was a little bit of a pain.
Getting Used to My Pump
My pump and I got off to a rocky start. Part if it was my fault. We started our relationship at probably the worst time of the year, the week of Thanksgiving. Lots of parties, lots of carbs, lots of eating. It’s a period of overindulgence, and it doesn’t help a transition to a new device where knowing precisely how many carbs I’m eating is of vital importance. This isn’t something that I’ve always done, so I had a pretty steep learning curve.
Part of it was my pump’s manufacturer’s fault. (I’ve gone over this ad nauseum. Particularly here. And here.)
However, I feel like, with each day, I’m getting a little better at managing and controlling my diabetes with my pump. Here are some of my opinions about my new devices.
Another Day, Another Issue
Pump usage continues, and it’s been going really, really well. Except for the fact that, as of right now, I’m still unable to use the continuous glucose monitoring aspect of my device. Why, you ask? How could it be that, after a full four weeks of ownership, I still haven’t been able to use the biggest component that convinced me this is the device for me?
It seems I’ve been felled by a 5 cent piece of plastic.
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Me and My Pump
I am now using my insulin pump. It’s been a long time coming, as you may remember from recent posts. (Like this one. And this one. And this one. And, unfortunately, this one.) Now I’m hooked up and rolling, a full-fledged pump user.
Tales of a Diabetic Loner, a Customer Service Nightmare, Football Friday, and Other Bits and Bobs
I recently read a story from Accu-Check Diabetes about relationships and how they impact diabetes care. I came across the story because it had been tweeted by the awesome nonprofit organization, the Diabetes Hands Foundation (@diabeteshf). Their tweet said “Scientific proof that relationships can have a positive effect on #bloodsugar control.”
I assumed the article was following my theory that diabetics need a close circle of support in order to successfully manage and control their condition. However, the article says that diabetics are more successful at controlling their blood sugars when they have a support group of other diabetics to rely upon and use as support and sounding boards. I thought that was interesting, and it made a lot of sense.
Diabetes Awareness Month 2013: Giving Thanks
As I mentioned before, November is Diabetes Awareness Month. A number of diabetes support organizations and other blogs are focusing on week-by-week themes for the month. This week’s theme is “Giving Thanks,” and I’ve read and watched a number of blogs and vlogs that have diabetics (or people with diabetes) talking about ways they’re thankful they have diabetes.
I don’t think I’m going to go that far, but I can appreciate that everyone’s allowed to have their own opinion. (Even if they’re wrong.)
I’m resigned to having diabetes and to being diabetic, not thankful. However, I am very thankful for a lot of things, as related to my diabetes. Here are a few:
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