We, The Undersigned

Recently various petitions have been circulating the Diabetes Online Community, so today let’s pretend to write our own. Tell us who you would write the petition to – a person, an organization, even an object (animate or inanimate) - get creative!! What are you trying to change and what have you experienced that makes you want this change? (Thanks to Briley of inDpendence for this topic suggestion.)

I would choose to petition insurance companies and their limits on the number of test strips they allot to each patient. This is a problem I have run into on a couple of occasions. Back when I first started college in 2008, I once ran out of test strips. My mom and I tried to call and order new strips, but CVS told us our insurance company had denied our request. We then called the insurance company who told us that I could not reorder anymore test strips at this time because I went over my prescription and had "abused" my strips. I think that is the most ridiculous response ever. How can one abuse their test strips?? I feel like insurance companies sometimes make diabetics walk a fine line between being cautious and staying healthy in hopes of preventing future complications and saving money. It's not fair. I shouldn't have to be worried about testing too many times in one day....I'm probably saving the money by keep my blood sugars in optimum range and preventing costly complications down the road....like amputations and renal disease.

It's unbelievable.

That being said, I'm petitioning larger maximum allotments of test strips per person. I'm tired of worrying about going over my monthly limit. Why should we have to worry about going over our monthly limit? Aren't we supposed to be testing often?

Why we need to test often.....

D-Blog Week: Share and Don't Share.

Day 1 post for diabetes blog week!

Often our health care team only sees us for about 15 minutes several times a year, and they might not have a sense of what our lives are really like. Today, let’s pretend our medical team is reading our blogs. What do you wish they could see about your and/or your loved one's daily life with diabetes? On the other hand, what do you hope they don't see?

I feel like my doctor and care team seem to understand what my daily life with diabetes is like- I REALLY DO. I give myself such a hard time about my control and constantly need to remind myself that the numbers aren't always going to be perfect. LIFE HAPPENS. Luckily, my care team is always on my side. In fact, at my last appointment, I was explaining my current situation to my APRN. I was throwing out all these ideas of how to achieve better control. One idea in particular was to stop eating fruit at breakfast (an idea I got from gestational diabetic nutrition therapy). MY APRN quickly shot down that idea and reminded me that I'm 22 years old. Go out, have fun, eat good food, take my insulin, and test my blood sugar. LIVE LIFE AND ENJOY IT. I love this woman. Ever since visiting her, I have felt so much better. This is why I feel like my doctor and team understand what my daily life is like. There's no need to explain anything to them.

It's not my medical team that I wish could see what my daily life with diabetes is like...but there are other people in my life that I wish could see how difficult it can be. I don't appreciate being called a "bad diabetic." I take better care of my health than a lot of people out there...just ask my care team. I get upset and cry if my A1c is above 6. All they want to see is one below 7.

I think the reason people sometimes says this to me is because they see the type of food I'm eating. Let's face it... I love food and refuse to deprive myself of one of my greatest pleasures in life. This is why I have an insulin pump. I eat what I want and bolus for it. I just want to be treated like a "normal" person without diabetes. Please don't tell me I'm a "bad diabetic" when you see my heaping bowl of froyo or my cranberry vodka at the bar. I know my body and I know how to work my insulin pump/glucometer. There are a million and one thoughts that go through my head on a daily basis when it come to taking care of myself. Am I low, when was the last time I tested, we're going for a walk??...better eat a little something before we go, do I have my starbursts with me, how much insulin do I have on board, do I have enough insulin left in my pump, how many carbs are in this....the list goes on and on and on. I honestly don't need the comments.

I'm so happy to get that off my chest. Thanks for reading.....and a BIG THANKS to my diabetes team for being so supportive. That includes my doctor, APRN, mom, and close friends. I love you all.

Checkup (finally)!

Last week, I finally had my endocrinologist appointment! It actually went better than I expected. My mom and I made bets on what my A1c would be before going into the appointment. I bet 7.1…so had a little more faith and bet 5.7. Turns out, my A1c was 5.7. Initially, I was pretty excited! The APRN was a bit concerned. We downloaded my meter and I was averaging numbers in the 200s….not exactly a 5.7. We think I’m not detected all my lows, which is bringing down my A1c.

Looks like I’m starting my sensor again! WAHHHHH. In 2010, I got the Dexcom sensor and LOVED it…but I lost the monitor and never got a new one. In 2011, I decided it was time to try out the Medtronic sensor considering I had the Medtronic pump. I ended up using it for a couple of weeks and hating it. To be fair, I don’t think I gave it much of a chance. I’m back on the Medtronic sensor and things are beginning to look up! The sensor really is helping me catch a bunch of lows that I probably wouldn’t have otherwise noticed. It’s scary to realize that I’ve been walking around like this….sleeping through these! The only thing I dislike about the Medtronic sensor is the needle. It’s so intimidating. It took me nearly 2 hours to work up the courage to insert it last week. Luckily, it looks scarier than it feels and I was so surprised with how little pain I felt inserting the needle.

In other news,I think I'm going to participate in the Fourth Annual Diabetes Blog Week! More posts to come! =]

Progress...

Hey everyone! I'm back with an update! In terms of my overall health, I've been doing much, much better. I've gone running and have also attempted some exercising in my box of a room. Now that it's getting darker a bit later, it's been so much easier for me to get out and go for some runs after work! I'm determined to keep up with the cardio at least 3 or 4 days per week. I have also started volunteering with a program called New York Cares. Yesterday, I helped serve lunch at a senior center on my day off. It was great to get out and do something to help others outside of the hospital. I am excited to get involved with more of their projects! In terms of my diabetes control...that's also been better! I think my major issue is I'm using the same area (my back side) too often. As much as I hate it, I've started to use my stomach and have noticed a significant difference in my numbers. This happened to me once about 4 years ago. I saw a nurse who specialized in absorption issues and discovered I was using the same site too often and, again, started to rotate on my stomach as well. Now that I've started using my stomach, I'm mainly seeing numbers 90-140. I just need to tweek my morning insulin:carb ratios (my post-breakfast numbers are about 190-230), but that's always been an issue for me. Overall, I'm very pleased with my control over the past couple of weeks. I'm also excited to say that I'll be attending an insulin pump fair next week! I cannot wait to see the latest and greatest diabetes technology out there. I've been sporting my Medtronic Paradigm for about 3 years now. I'm not sure when I'm due for an upgrade, but I'm hoping soon. I'll definitely be back with an update with how this goes!

Turning Over a New Leaf

Long time no talk! So I've been MIA on this blog for some time now with very sporadic posts. I'm hoping to change this....starting today. I've been busy with my dietetic internship at New York Presbyterian Hospital. I've completed 5 rotations and am almost done with my 6th! This has been the most educational/eye-opening experience. I still cannot believe I'm interning at one of the nation's top hospitals. On a not-so-positive note, my diabetes has not been so well controlled over the course of this internship. Living in the city with no income has proved to be a struggle. I am not eating the way I should be and have no form of physical activity. I've gone from taking 25-30 units of insulin per day to about 60. I'm actually disgusted with myself right now. I woke up this morning after a night out (I drank too much, had a pita from a Halal cart, a McFlurry, a medium fry, and topped it off with a happy meal)and realized I can't keep living this way. Out of disgust for the way I ate last night and my blood sugar when I woke up this morning,I went for a long run (first run since August) and decided I need to take better care of myself. I started this blog during my sophomore year of college after a similar experience and it truly helped me achieve better control of my diabetes. I'm hoping that I can achieve that once again with the help of this blog!

First run! I'm planning on making this a regular activity for me!

Diabetes Apps

Hi All!

Life in the city has been swell. I haven't been up to much, but I've done some more exploring! Today I decided to explore the walk/bike path along the East River.

There was a path that went over FDR drive to get to the actual path.

The path is very nice! There were even some little dog parks along the way!

I was a bit nervous when I got to the Queensborough Bridge...but my nervousness came and went. I guess that's something I can expect being so new to the city!

Of course, I did not go for a walk without some sort of sweet to treat any lows along the way. Tis' the season for candy corn! Well, maybe I'm a bit early....but I cannot help but buy some for a "special" low treat! :-)



Okay...so now for the point of this post. This past May, I treated myself to an iPhone as a graduation gift. (Heehee...thought I deserved a reward for all my hard work)! I mainly wanted an iPhone for the GPS apps...for navigating the city and its subways without too many issues. Another reason I felt an iPhone would be useful is for some of the diabetes apps. The DLife app seemed like it might be kind of neat with the videos, food guide, and BG log...but the review weren't too great. I ended up downloading it and it's pretty slow.

Does anyone use any diabetes apps on their phones? If so, which ones? What are they useful for?

Life diabetes-wise has been okay. I had my 3-month endo appointment at the end of last month. My BGs are still on the low-side (A1c 5.6)...probably from all the extra physical activity I was getting at work. Now that I'm in New York and will have a more regular schedule, one of my main goals is to figure out any patterns in my BGs. I'm really starting to make some progress. Adjustments have been made to my:

-Overnight basal rates

-Dinner-time I:C ratio

-Bedtime snack I:C ratio



Last night was a huge breakthrough in that I didn't experience a nighttime low! I also woke up at a wonderful 76 mg/dL!

Hope everyone is having a fantastic Thursday...it's almost the weekend! WOOOOO!

New Beginnings

Long time no talk everyone! Yesterday I moved to New York City to start my dietetic internship! The internship itself doesn't start until the 10th, but so far it's been a great experience.

I'm actually living in a dorm with other dietetic interns, nurses, pharmacy students, and fellows. The interns I've met have been awesome! I'm happy that we've all been able to get to know each other before the internship starts.

As for the conditions of my dorm....it's an 8x11 room. Pretty freakin small. It has some good storage though, so it hasn't been too bad.

This is my room. Not too shabby!

There's lots of storage....nice and deep. Perfect for my pump supplies!











One thing that's been a bit depressing is the price of groceries. For example, a box of multigrain cheerios was about $7.50! Luckily the hospital will be providing us with one meal a day. I'm thinking I will just eat breakfast in my room, having a larger lunch at the hospital, and then have something light for dinner. The interns and I will be venturing to Trader Joe's tomorrow to look for some cheaper items.

Some exciting news is that my first rotation will be.....wait for it.......ENDOCRINOLOGY!! YES! I'm so so so excited to start the internship doing what I am most passionate about. I will update everyone on what this experience is like!

As for the rest of this week, I'll be working on some homework, getting my ID badge, and exploring the big apple!