Category: Blog

In honor of D-Blog day, a few thoughts on being diabetic.

I’m most probably a Type 2.  I was diagnosed when I was 42.  Same birth year that my father was diagnosed.  I’m rabid about taking care of the diabetes as best I can since he passed away at birth year 48 with congestive heart failure, probably due to diabetes complications.

Here’s the good news.  I’ll be 48 in December.  So far, I’m doing well.  Recently had a retinal map, no signs of complications.  Still feel my feet and my hands are doing well.  I’m still running dog agility so I’m doing infinity better than he was.

I thank the technology.  I started testing religiously as soon as I was diagnosed.

Went to insulin very early.  Within in a year when on an insulin pump.  Am currently on CGMS. 

Still, I feel the clock ticking.

 I’ve been there.  In fact, I’m sort of there today. Husband left at around 4:00 am this morning and I couldn’t go back to sleep.  Not only am I cranky, but I hurt.

Experience tells us that sleepless nights can lead to overwrought emotions. Now scientists have uncovered some of the first evidence of how this occurs. Their imaging studies show that lack of sleep can lead to greater activation of the brain’s emotional centers and disrupt the brain circuits that tame emotional responses.

Source: Sleep Education.com

It’s really disturbing to a Type 2 diabetic that relies on both technologies.  I’d like to see a blog post from someone who was there, but there is what Amy has to say.

who came across as “dismissing the technology that in particular people with Type 1 diabetes use to keep healthy — insulin pumps and glucose monitors,” a number of influential attendees tell me.

Diabetes Mine

And she’s right.  It’s been difficult getting coverage on the pump, and still haven’t on the CGMS, but it makes my life so much easier, I’m paying for it out of pocket.

Very disturbing indeed.

I’m also an early insulin adopter.  I started on insulin within two months of diagnosis.  The biggest drawback is I really had trouble with weight gain, but that has been solved since I was pumping.

Jo talks about her decision here: 

In October 2005, I went on insulin to assist in my control of Type 2 Diabetes.

Type 2 Diabetes and Insulin : Jo’s Cafe

This was in our local paper today, in an article about diabetes.

Two of the family’s dogs are beagles, the breed from which scientists first extracted insulin. “I feel as if beagles saved my life,” Ms. Middlebrooks says. Kris shared some of his feelings:

For some youths, managing diabetes is part of daily life | Dallas Morning News | News for Dallas, Texas | Life/Travel: Health

It bothers me.  As a long time beagle owner and even breeder of two litters, I know that beagles are frequently used as lab animals.  They are easy keepers, many easy to care for, easy to breed etc.  I also know that the beagles bred for lab use are not related to my girls and haven’t been for many, many generations.  However, they do look like my girls.

What a weird coincidence if it is true though I didn’t make the choice of beagles — my husband did.  We have other breeds of dogs but we’ve always had at least one beagle since we’ve been married.

Ignore it.

Seriously.  It helped that husband was sick and wanted to sleep, but I didn’t buy any candy this year.

Someone did bring in some candy for the teachers, and I did eat a bit of it, but my blood sugar has been much better than it usually is around a food holiday.

I’m going to do close to the same Thanksgiving.  We’ll go to Steak and Ale, but I’ll get one of their regular prime rib dinners and stay away from the carbs.

I found one of these on Ebay and ordered one.  Not for my Animas pump — if you go back through the archives, you’ll know I have a pocket in my bra for that for the Dexcom. 

One big problem being female is finding skirts with pockets.  Few have them.  The Invisapump is nice because it slips down inside your skirt or pants. 

The Dexcom works, but it is a little too long for it.  It does kind of stick in the pouch so it doesn’t slip in and out easily.  It would be nice to have something like this make for the Dexcom as most Dexcom users will tell you that the Dexcom case sucks.  I also start looking a bit silly with both the phone AND the Dexcom hanging out.

In fact, I’d love to see a similar arrangement for my phone!

From their web site:

The INVISAPUMP is made of full grain, soft leather, with a scratch resistant window that enables you to see your pump buttons clearly, an unbreakable belt clip, and durable nylon webbing. A simple idea maybe, but the best things in life are simple.

Invisapump the Invisible Insulin Pump Case

See this is exactly why I am not going for bariatric surgery.  It just can’t be as good as all the people making money off of it think it is.  Funny how we go through this weight loss fads.  Liquid diets, etc. 

About 1% of bariatric surgery patients die within a year of surgery, researchers here found, and the case fatality rate approaches 6% after five years.

Medical News: Not All the News on Bariatric Surgery Is Good – in Primary Care, Weight Management from MedPage Today

I was very dismayed to learn that BCBS of Texas did not cover the Symvist injections in my knee.  No one in the doctor’s office mentioned that was a possibility.  Plus, all my other specialists told me when it was possible that something wouldn’t be covered.

I was also dismayed to learn that the injections were $1000 a piece.  They didn’t seem to be worth that.  Especially since I’ve been having more pain in my knees since the last shot.

The good news, is that one of the shots has finally been covered, so I assume the doctor’s office has gone through the appeals process.

There are pictures and everything here.  By the way, I got a shipment of syringes from Medco last night — and it was SO nice to realize that it was my last shipment of them and I’ll be going back to pen needles soon. 

FDA approval has been given to Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Inc. to market their automatic Symlin injection devices. Symlin (pramlintide), a synthetic analog of human amylin, a naturally occurring neuroendocrine hormone, is the first of its kind injected antihyperglycemic medication for use in patients with type 2 or type 1 diabetes. Two versions, rated by their maximum dosage, should be available for purchase in December.

Source: SymlinPens Approved by FDA – Medgadget – www.medgadget.com