Category: Current Status

Between the diabetes and the sleep disorders and the knee the time change is sucking.

The sad part is, I can go asleep any time but when and where I am supposed to. For example, I dozed off for a minute in front of the TV about an hour ago.

Knee aches which is not helping.

However, I do have some good news. I’ve been doing my iShape workouts for 4 weeks now and while my insulin usage is staying steady (and higher than I like), my blood sugars are smoother. And just this week i started using my temporary basal to drop my rate before and during exercise instead of eating to prevent the low.

So I’m hopeful that once I recover from the time change, my insulin usage will start to drop.

Well, I got a gig as an Algebra I teacher (computerized) this summer. I’ll be working for 6 weeks, 7:45 – 1:45 4 days a week.

As soon as that is done, I’ve got to do an AP Workshop. Then I have one week left to play. Hopefully I’ll also get to write our district final, which will really make the summer full, AND the bank account happy.

I’m really looking forward to this.

Bit behind on blogging.

First on Tuesday our kids did go to the protest and probably a few today. I over heard a bunch of them talking about walking part way, realizing they weren’t going to get downtown and playing hookie instead. I knew about one who had called his mom and asked for a ride back.

Protonix. Got 90 pills — the remainder of the prescribtion they didn’t send me in February. So it does look like that’s a go.

Exercise. Definately a need. I had to do an off day on Monday and blood sugar was a mess the next day, but it’s much better now, in fact, I have 7 minutes to go on a 35 minute cardio session and two more weight exercises.

I wish I could get to the point that I could at least do 20 minutes every morning but I’m still waking up extremely groggy.

Diabetes Advocacy: Call for Action from the Diabetes Bloggers

First, my coverage is through an ERISTA insurance. I’m very fortunate that the current insurance does cover everything I need for my medical care, though it is expensive.

First, I don’t like the way insurance is being done in this country now. I’m pretty locked into my current employer. Other school districts in our area who do not have the state insurance do not have as good as coverage. In fact, if I went to work for the school district I live it, I would be without coverage for about 6 months for any pre-existing condition (remember the ERISTA thing?)

Let’s face it, we’re stuck working for a partcular group of employers once we get diagnosed for diabetes and I’m not sure that is right.

I really think that insurance should be more assessible, and I’m not sure this law is going to help it.

But I will pass the information along, and let you make your own decision.

This morning’s change worked. I ate breakfast, hit the temporary basal about the same time, and then did the workout. I took awhile to do my workout since I am doing laundry and housework at the same time, plus some computer work (the puppy stuff), but now my blood sugar is 114! No low!

I’ve finally gotten back on schedule when it comes to working out. Between the PT taking up two hours of my day and the new schedule, it took a while. My blood sugar was higher than it should be and I was doing a lot of corrections. I’ve been exercising pretty steadily for the last 3 weeks, so today I made a bit of change.

Before I was eating if I was low after exercise and this week found I was almost every day I exercised.

So today, I turned on my temporary basal just as soon as I thought about working out. Especially since I also do Sunday’s exercise in sets, alternating working out with housework.

This week I plan on going to the temporary basal as soon as I get off work. I did have to shift Monday’s cardio session to Wednesday as I have to take some kids to a tutoring session and will be getting home to late to work out.

Planning and writing things down really does help.

My endo was worried about my kidney values, in January they indicated that I might be dehydrated but they are better now.

Also, my A1C is better than it was — 6.6, but it has been better.

I called Animas before lunch and they talked me into changing my site, and now, two hours after lunch, my blood sugar is back to 140, where it should be AND where it was.

Whew!!

I need to remember, when things are consistantly weird, change the set!

Something very strange is going on.

I had the pump failure this morning and rebooted the pump.

Did a site change.

Ate breakfast, blood sugar was in the 230’s, 2 hours after. Corrected and by noon was 90.

Ate lunch, blood sugar was in the 250’s, 2 hours after. Corrected and by noon was 107.

Ate supper, and blood sugar was 180, 1 1/2 hours after, ate a pre-agility class snack, and was 130 after two hours (and two dogs) of class. Now I’m 260.

I changed my correction factor, increased it by 1, as the correction factor seems a bit overkill, and has for days.

But I’m wondering what’s going on with the bolus. It was fine the rest of the week.

Think I’ll call the endo’s office tomorrow — BUT I don’t have a duty period tomorrow.

— Added later

The blood sugar IS going down. Man, I hate to sleep when things like this are going on.

And the good news is that my TDD is slowly going down.

For a second I thought I figured it out, but maybe not. I used the same bottle of Symlin this morning and lunch, but different bottle for dinner and agility snack. So I don’t think it is bad Symlin. And the insulin I used in the set change was the last in a vial. BUT the corrections are working.

—- Later

Just woke up sick to my stomach and sure that I was too low but at 165.

This school year.

I shouldn’t jinx it, but we’ve only got a short day tomorrow (and teacher torture in the afternoon — it’s called early release), and I’ve got a tutoring session on Saturday.

But man did I need that spring break. I’ve finally been able to enjoy my CS students. I didn’t realize how overwhelmed I felt. Imagine going from 2 preps to 5 preps (for the non-teacher, a prep is a subject you teach). Imagine getting a whole new set of faces and behavior to learn in the middle of the year.

The AP kids are the most fun. We have the most outrageous conversations. Most generated by them == a bit of avoidance behavior, but I love the way they think. The key to teaching AP is to point them in the right direction, stay out of their way, and dig them out of their holes they did. (Remember, they were supposed to have PreAP the year before … and I did at least teach 4 of them PreAP and one of them Webmastering — only 3 are new to programming and they are good).

I do have to teach PreAP and regular Computer Science. That involves introducing each concept (I’ve been doing that on computer-less Friday), assign them programs and give them a chance to solve them on their own, and then on the day they are due showing them how to do it. The really good kiddos — the ones that will go on to AP, will have solved the problem the day before it is due. The normal kids will take notes and figure it out about the day after it’s due, and the ones who don’t care never will. That’s the fun thing about teaching CS, you have three bell curves, not one.

My philosophy, which I shared with them this week when I told almost everyone they were getting a failure notice, is that they can come and ask for help anytime and I promise I won’t make them feel stupid. And if I do, they have my permission to head me upside the head. I watched their formal teacher in action for a year, and his favorite thing to do was to make people feel stupid so they are afraid to ask me.

The worst I ever say is — “gee, you can’t spell, but then I can’t either, but at least I spell it the same wrong way every time”. Or “Gee, don’t you hate that I saw that within two seconds of glancing at your screen? Don’t feel bad, it would have taken me hours if it were my program. I often make mistakes when I do solve a problem in class, a few times on purpose to show them how to dig themselves out of that particular hole. But most of the time, they are truly honest mistakes, and I think it helps them to see me make them AND for them to catch them before I do.

My Algebra I kiddos are getting better. My 1st period group rarely gives me any guff anymore. I am still having problems with the 7th.

Their favorite thing to do to torture everyone in the computer lab and every room on our hall is to turn up the sound as loud as possible. Well, I found a little program called Wizmo and it has an option to turn off sound. So I installed it on their computers and used Lanschool to set it up. I can actually turn off the sound on every computer with two mouse clicks.

It was so cool. Had the math coach with me who feels the same way about this group as I do, and I just started laughing hysterically. They would blast the room with sound, I’d hit two mouse clicks as she was watching, and shut off every speaker in the room. They blast again after a minute or two (fumbling to turn on the volume), I’d hit two more mouse clicks, and shut off the sound again. That went on for 5 more minutes, I showed them how I did it even, and reminded them to BRING HEADPHONES! I also reminded them, it might take a few days, but I always win. Besides, I have the power of the gradebook on my side and they are NOT passing.

This are the same little darlings that spent two weeks of flashing laser pointers in every one’s eyes including mine while I was teaching — they didn’t realize that laser pointers have nothing on the light from an overhead … and got that the #$#$# that had it and turned him in. Of course, the administrator didn’t do anything to him, but I got the laser pointer.

Lovely children. Everyone should be blessed to have a classroom full of them. Do realize that I like most of the students in the class, it’s just about 6 of them who have to torture everyone around them. And I despise people who keep others from learning.