Living with Diabetes

Author: kathleen

  • Birthday and Break

    Friday is my birthday and it is also the last school day before break.

    Husband and I are going out tomorrow night as my favorite restaurant will probably be quieter on Thursday and we both like quiet restaurants.  It’s a Brazilian barbeque run by a bullfighter.  I can’t figure out why they have stayed in business as I have never seen it even half full, but I’m hoping it is on Friday nights.  They have Happy Hour then, but it didn’t look open last Friday when I got my dog pictures.

    Brazilian barbeque is very diabetic friendly and the part I really like about it is that that wait on you hand and foot.  They do have a salad/side dish buffet, and I usually get a huge plate of veggies and cheese.  Then I like to alternate veggies with meat.  The only carbs I really eat there are their bread, which comes in really small cheese rolls, the banana, cooked and coated with cinnamon and the pineapple.  I love the pineapple.  They roast a whole pineapple and slice the cooked, caramelized slices at the table. 

    We’re on a new schedule for the second year, and it is VERY odd.  We used to finish first semester before the break, and now we go on break for two weeks, have 4 days back and then give exams.  To make matters even worse, my lab has to be torn down on Thursday and be installed on Friday.

    Then we have exams.  Those days are half days for the kids, which is going to give me lots of time to play with the new computers and organize the lab. 

    And I’m spending the break trying to recharge, get squared away on exercise and relax.  Hopefully the weather will be warmer as I cannot sleep well when it is this cold.

  • Weird Stuff

    First, I really hate the weight I am carrying right now.  Some days, like today, it is down right painful.

    Second, I did something that is helping the first part.  I watch “What not to wear”, and one of their most important lessons is “dress the body you have know”.  I have been doing that and it makes a huge difference in how I feel.  It came to home on Saturday when I ended up wearing a bra too small AND a skirt too small.

    It is taking longer than I hope to reverse the dehydration and starvation thing, but for the most part I do feel a bit better.

  • 2nd Medically Supervised Diet Appointment

    I’m impressed.  They treated it like a real appointment!  And it went much better than the first.  Well, the dietician part of the first appointment was good.

    I have lost 1/2 pound since the last visit.  Considering that I was gaining weight at rate of about 5 pounds a month, this is a GOOD thing.  Besides, I’m still working on the water thing.

    So I have 5 appointments to go before I have to make a decision, and I wouldn’t mind continuing seeing her if I decide not to go the surgery around.

    Thus I am still exploring and haven’t made a commitment.

    And the water arrived in my classroom this morning.  We’ll see how these two cases go, but I only managed to get in one diet coke today and one sport cap of water.

  • That didn’t work….

    Remember last week, when I decided the reason I wasn't drinking enough water at school is because I didn't have any already there and I couldn't figure out how to get it there?

    Well, I asked Ozarka to deliver it.

    They said they would, today, between 8:00 and 12:00.  I went down to check on that and some other things and found my water in the main office.  Seems they can't send him up and the custodians have to deliver it.

    They haven't.

    Oh, and they turned the elevator off for the fire drill and didn't turn it back on.  <snarl>

    Can't win for losing some days.

  • Things are looking up

    Still thirsty all the time (which is a good sign, means I’m not ignoring the thirst any more). 

    Blood sugar is at 112 — and it hasn’t been that low fasting in ages.

    Weight is down at least 2 pounds since I started the medicallly assisted diet.  I weigh in Wednesday.

    However, I am STILL coughing.

  • More on Symlin

    Scott was asking about the side affects from Symlin — at least that what I assume is going on.

    I thought that Symlin had stopped working about a year after I started taking it because I started gaining weight.  It was a stress reaction to some changes at work (if you really want to know, look through the archives).

    I also wasn’t experiencing the nausea that I had at the beginning.  I do see a difference between feeling hungry and not hungry when I play with it == or forget my pen at home.

    Over the past few months, probably a year, I’ve been feeling really bad with what I assumed was uncontrolled GERD.  Something I’ve dealt with for a long time and seems to be getting worse.

    First, I’m really not drinking much and have shown as dehydrated several times with lab tests.  And if you did see what and how much I was drinking you’d agree.  The dietician I saw last month thinks that between the fact that I only eat about 1000 calories before 5:00 pm and because I’m dehydrated, my body is driving itself to over eat in the evenings.

    At the same time, I’ve been experiencing some real issues that are common among the lapband/gastric bypass set.

    Something they call productive burping, meaning that you are actually getting food to come back up from the stomach. 

    I’m also experiencing something lovely that causes uncontrolled bowel movements. 

    I’m finding that if I drink lots of water, I do feel better, I don’t have the uncontrolled eating problems, especially in the evening. 

    In fact, I feel “full” right now, and I haven’t eaten since 6:30.  I have been constantly sipping on fluids since then.  I’m kind of hoping if I keep up the hydration that it will solve the rest of the problems.  It DID Thanksgiving week.   So far, so good.  The blood sugar is good and my TDD has been under 80.  I’ve been doing about 125-150 units a day.

    Let me tell you, if I can solve the problem by constantly sipping water, paying for Ozarka to deliver a case will pay off.  (Getting water upstairs to my room has been a problem).

  • Agility Trial and Hydration

    I have spent the last two days getting water through me and I feel better than I did as a result.

    if I can just keep this up.

    I am really glad to lurk on the lapband board because I am realizing that Symlin is acting a lot like their fills andthey teaching me how to deal with it. before I was accepting that I was feling like crap and didn’t know why. they are teaching me that I can control it.

    Which need to be my motto now – control things rather then let them control me. and use my clicker training jnowledge to let people think they are controlling me.

  • Saw the shrink today

    It’s very odd sometimes because all I feel like I am doing is saying the same thing I’ve been saying on Twitter and the blogs, but it does seem to help.

    Today, I decided while I was there, that I would get Ozarka to actually BRING me water.  You see, I’ve figured out that is the biggest and best thing I can do to help me with weight loss, lap band surgery or not, and that my biggest obstacle was getting it into my room.  So Tuesday I am going to have them deliver. It should be easier than bringing in bottles, etc.  We’ll see how it works.

    Joining a lap band support group has been eye opening.  Most of what they experience with the lap band is what I get with Symlin but ignoring, and I’ve decided to switch to dealing with it how they do.  We’ll see how that works.

  • Working on the solutions

    I’ve learned something.  I need more fluids.

    I did really well Thanksgiving week.  Eating was under control, reflux was good, etc. 

    I was HORRIBLE this week.  Everything out of control.

    Biggest difference?  I was careful to keep fluids going all Thanksgiving week, but didn’t do well this week, so I’m gong to concentrate on that next week.

  • This week

    I am going to concentrate on eating most of my carbs before 6:00 pm.  Also going to try to get more water in.  Today is oging to be tough though.  Meeting at 8:00 and at 4:30 with dog classes tonight.