What I Advocate

So for No-D Blog Day, I wanted to talk about something that's really near and dear to my heart. To be honest, I'm a crappy diabetes advocate. I've been to one JDRF walk in the almost 5 years I've been diagnosed. I haven't contacted to my local congressman to talk to him about funding towards a cure or the artificial pancreas project. For the most part, the only time my husband and I discuss my diabetes is when it is extremely evident via a scary low or high.

But there is something that I'm a real advocate for and that's adopting rescue animals. When Trey and I discussed getting a puppy to add to our 2 person, 2 cat family, we tossed around the choices of breeds we wanted. He wanted a boxer, I wanted an English bulldog. However, after researching breeders in the area and realizing the amount of rescue shelters there were in town, we decided to get a rescue.

We were lucky to pick out an 8-week-old, 10 lb. ball of fur at PetsMart, because most rescue dogs are older and have some type of behavior problems. Roscoe's momma came to the shelter pregnant with him and his 7 siblings. And we got to pick him out when they brought them to the store that day. Half Labrador retriever, half Siberian husky, my Roscoe is all love! Loyalty is his middle name, because he's never more than 3 feet from me. I love that big ball of mess.

Missy we adopted as a roughly 1-year-old boxer/lab mix, or a boxador as I call her. She came to us with some neglect issues, because we noticed that she wants nothing more than for someone to pet her and play with her ears. We gave her all the love we could and balanced it with enough discipline to make her a great dog. She has the shortest attention span of any dog I've ever met, especially when she sees a squirrel. She's our little sweetheart. 

Our family at the local Dog Fair

So if you're looking to add a furry animal to your mix, I extremely advocate looking at rescue animals. There are millions of dogs and cats in our country that are waiting for someone to give them a chance. And after a few years, the old saying is really true, "Who rescued who?"

Don't Worry

For the most part, I'm a pretty positive person.  I enjoy the company of my family and friends, playing with my dogs, and a good cup of coffee.  However, I know that I'm a worrier.  I consider it more of a "pessimistic reality"--meaning if something bad can occur, I at least like to dwell on it and prepare myself.  My dear husband constantly reminds me "Why are you worrying about things that aren't even real?"  I wish I could dwell more on the positive, because for the most part that is usually the outcome.

For example, I have type 1 diabetes.  Most articles on my disease warn of possible complications such as eye, kidney, and nerve damage.  I certainly try to do my part to take care of my disease to make sure that I don't get any of those things.  And I haven't (coming up of 5 years this December).  In fact, I would argue that I'm the healthiest I've ever been in my life, THANKS to diabetes.  My A1c this past Tuesday was 5.6!  The best I've had since going on the pump. 

Also, I am married and have been for 3 years now.  We received a lot of warnings when we were preparing for marriage that we would be miserable.  That we would wake up one day and realize we hate the person we're with!  I couldn't fathom that scenario at the time, but I at least prepared myself for that reality.  But our marriage has been so fun and so sweet and so . . . blissful, that I think all those "warnings" were nothing but smoke.  Sure, we've had our hard times, but it's nothing that "Holly & Trey" as a team can't handle.  I was worried that I would hate my husband, but I love him more and enjoy him more that I ever prepared myself for.

The same thing happens all the time.  I worried about a test in school, but I end up doing awesome.  I worried about not passing my thesis defense, but I was passed within 5 minutes.  I worry, I worry, and I worry.  Most of the time, over nothing. Some might say that my worrying just puts me in a more aware, prepared state of mind.  But I'd like to go through some things in life not worrying in the beginning and enjoy the process.

I know the best thing I can do is surround myself with positive people to counter my negativity.  I hate that most doctor's appointments will be spent making sure nothing is going wrong, at least in my mind.  I need to look for the positive.  I need to BE positive.  The Bible has 365 verses where the phrase "don't worry" is mentioned, but my favorite verse about having a positive mindset is Phillipians 4:8,

"whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such thing."

I need to tattoo this phrase on my right wrist, next to my medical ID.  

"It's Called a Lance(t), Helloooooo!"

This thing is awesome!

Last week, my standard issue lancet from my OneTouch UltraLink was down for the count. The "pricker" (sorry, best term I can come up with) kept getting stuck in the chamber, refusing to actually make contact with my fingers. I finally had to resort to manually pricking myself, which is very unpleasant.

So I knew I needed to break down and buy a new lancet. I had heard good buzz about the Accu-Check Multiclix being really small and super swift, so I stopped by my closest retail pharmacy and picked one up. (I don't think I've ever paid that much for a lancet, or paid for one ever. Just fair warning.)

Payment aside, this thing is awesome! The "pricker" is like 10x smaller than a normal lancet (OK, not that much smaller, but I do need my glasses to see it). It has multiple depth settings for the sensitive to the calloused fingertips (after almost 5 years with diabetes, I'm only on the 2.5 mark out of 5). But perhaps the best thing about the lancet is the fact it comes with 6 "prickers" in a round. This might inspire me to change it more than once a month!

The first few days after I got it, I was so excited about using the lancet that I forgot to put a strip into the meter first. It's quite ungraceful to use one hand to open the vial and put a strip in the meter while holding the other hand up with a drop of blood ready to go. Regardless, I'm quite pleased with this purchase and I'm tempted to replace my backup meters with the same lancing device. Going from the "I can barely feel it" lancet during the day to "my finger has a heartbeat" lancet at the gym and by my bed is quite a contrast.

NOTE: No one paid me for this post. I paid my hard-earned money for this lancet. All opinions continue to be my own, unless they'd like to send me a free round of "prickers". =D

The Day the Dexcom Died

One of the great advantages of having a CGM is being able to monitor my blood sugar during off-routine times. like a beach vacation.  So when receiver went kaput on me our 2nd day there, I felt completely vulnerable the rest of the trip. 

At least it was serene. 

Let's back up a bit.  One of the things I love to do at the beach is ride the waves on a boogie board.  It's exhilarating and it's a great workout.  Even thought I can't take Constance in the water with me, she can keep up with me when I get back to my chair.  However, the heat of the sun on the receiver sitting on the beach chair is something I didn't consider. 

The receiver was fine the rest of the day, but it did give me some off numbers towards the night.  When I did my nighttime test before bed, I got an ERR1 message.  Not wanting to stay up another hour to recalibrate, I shut down my receiver with intents on calibrating in the morning.  But when the morning came, I couldn't turn on the receiver.  I held down each button multiple times, for longer than I needed to.  I finally called tech support, and they instructed me to try the reset button the back of the receiver.  Nothing happened. 

My receiver was fried. 

Unfortunately, my system was out of warranty.  So that meant I would have to start all over and get insurance approval and chart notes from my endocrinologist.  That was probably the worst news from this whole situation.  The last time I went through this process, I waited a month while the paperwork sat on my endo's desk.  I kind of assumed I would have to go through that all over again. 

But this also meant that I would have to revert back to my pre-CGM management routine, including testing 2 hours after a meal like clockwork.  I know that you're not supposed to rely on the CGM in place of finger stick testing, but I would find myself relying on it more and more, especially if the CGM was proving to be accurate.  My numbers the rest of the week were less than stellar, but not outrageous.  I had high numbers after breakfast, which is typical for me with the absence of exercise.  I did miss being able to monitor my BG when it wasn't in-range, relying on testing every hour or 30 minutes for a correction.  Those gaps in time were excruciating, but I managed the best I could.

On the last day of our vacation, I got the best call.  My Dexcom rep told me that my insurance was still going to cover most of the cost of my new setup and sensors, AND my endo had already signed my paperwork needed to submit to insurance!  I was elated.  And this all occurred on a day that my endo's office is normally closed.  He's really been on his game, especially since I've been discussing the idea of pregnancy. 

I should receive my new Dexcom system next week.  I can't wait to get back to being a real-time diabetic.  Next time, though, I think I'll leave the receiver in my room, or at least get it its own hat. 

Diabetic Nightmares

Shortly after I was diagnosed, I had a nightmare that involved diabetes.  I dreamed that I had snuck out in the middle of the night to go to a bar.  But not just any bar, a bar that served nothing but CAKES!  I remember being drawn to this one in particular, an Oreo cake--a circular white cake with Oreo cookie crumbles all over it.  I felt guilty for even being there, being diabetic and all.  Even though I was told at my first meeting with my CDE that I could have cake, as long as I take insulin for it.  Diabetes was taking over my subconscious!  

And last night, I had another nightmare.  I dreamed that I sat down at a nice Italian restaurant when Constance starting blaring at me that I was HIGH.  I went to the bathroom to check and apparently I was so high that my ketone strips started BEEEEEEEPing, as well!  I tried to discretely walk back to my table, but my CGM kept beeping and I felt like crap (in my dream).  I remember thinking I didn't care how high I was, I was going to enjoy my big bowl of pasta and would deal with the consequences later. I was relieved when I woke up this morning to find out I was a little low, 65 mg/dL. 

Has this ever happened to anyone else?!  Please tell me so that I don't feel like a complete looney.  Diabetes seems to be at the center of my attention every waking moment.  But does it have to be so in my sleep, too?! 

Convicted about Carbs

For anyone who has been following my blog for any length of time, you know that I firmly believe that diabetics should be able to eat and drink anything they want.  I even went as far as to perfect the bolus for the tricky combination that is pizza and beer.  A typical day in my diet includes cereal for breakfast (it's Kashi, so give me some credit), Greek yogurt for a mid-morning snack, a turkey sandwich for lunch, popcorn or a cereal bar in the afternoon, and a protein-heavy dinner but usually includes a side of bread like a roll or cornbread.  Occasionally, I will indulge in some ice cream before bed (but don't we all?). 

I love carbs!  (As you can probably tell.)  But I also believe that our bodies need carbs to function, especially the brain.  I've always wondered what long-term effects the Atkins diet would have on a body, because it can't be healthy to wrap a Big Mac in lettuce.  But carbs come in all different types of food, from your typical bread products, to pure sugar, to natural sources like fruit and starchy vegetables.

And after reading this article, I started to become convicted about what I put into my mouth and justifying it with the flag of "I'm diabetic, but I can eat what I want!"  I'll admit, I sort of carry a chip on my shoulder for anyone who gives me a glare when they see me check my blood sugar at a restaurant and then order a big bowl of creamy Alfredo pasta.  That article was basically God retorting my reasoning with, "But what about what I say?"  Eeesh, it was prick at my heart that I knew could only come from Him.  The sin of gluttony is one that's not talked about a lot, especially in our current culture, but it's one I'm guilty of A LOT. 

I started to re-evaluate my diet and look at what I could change from having strictly bread products.  I started by having a chargrilled chicken salad with fruit toppings for lunch.  It had the same amount of carbs that a typical turkey sandwich would have, but a lot less calories (I suppose bread-like carbs are more bloated with calories).  And this morning for breakfast I had 4 slices of turkey bacon, a small clementine, and a glass of skim milk.  Again, almost the exact same amount of carbs that I usually have with my Kashi cereal, but less calories and more protein. 

Obviously, I'm not expecting to go completely bread-free from here on out, but I think I can make small changes in the meals I'm in charge of to eliminate the heavy carbs.  And when I say heavy carbs, I mean the big 5:  bread, pasta, rice, tortillas, and cereal (this last one made me tear up a big, I LOVE cereal!).  Besides, I think if I can make most of my total carb amount come from more fruits and starchy veggies than bread products, the healthier all around.

This is MY personal conviction, and I'm not saying that I think ALL diabetics should follow this plan.  This is just something I'm following through with because I truly feel convicted by it.  But if there are those out there that have followed a similar plan (i.e. avoiding the big 5), I would love to get some meal ideas from you.  I know I need to stock my fridge with more fruit and vegetable choices so that it will be easy to grab and go.  But what else can I do to avoid bread products (and not go crazy at the same time?).

EDIT:  I wanted to add that my resource for the "Big 5" came from this video with Dr. Lois Jovanovic about diabetes and pregnancy.  I think some of her thresholds are a little extreme, but YDMV as they say.  

Tube Meet Wires

Tube meet wires, a photo by Arnold_and_Me on Flickr.

How in the world does this happen?! The wires for my earbuds get linked with my pump tubing that's tucked into my pants. Two pieces of technology, reaching out for each other?