A Convo with Our Endo...

Day 3 WEGO National Health Blog Post Month Challenge:

"Post about a conversation with your Doctor"

That's easy...today we had Nora's three month check up! She's been running higher, in the 200's, however, we are in full swing puberty. Some days we make zero adjustments others we run temp basals all evening. Of course, I was interested in her A1C (the three month average of blood sugars...basically, the diabetic/caregiver report card. For those of you that have been following our blog for a while you know I don't stress over this number. Because it's just that...a number. I don't beat myself up over it. I take the knowledge I gain the day of the check up and do the best I can.

We have a wonderful Children's hospital here in Cincinnati and we love our Endo! It's the first Doctor that readily admits that we know more than she does about Nora's diabetes. She listens to our concerns and talks to us and helps us come to a plan of action. The other thing about her that I love is she really talks to Nora. This is huge...how wonderful for Nora to go into HER Doctor appointment and participate in HER care. PLUS our Endo goes to Diabetes Camp every year...how cool is that?!? She is just an all around awesome person who happens to be Nora's Endo! 

It's a teaching hospital so it's not uncommon to have multiple doctors or students in our room. Today we had a Med Student, second day on the job. She was a neat lady. She talked to Nora, asked her questions about the pump and CGM and talked girly stuff. If she chooses to walk the Endo path I think she would be fantastic! Anyway, when our Endo came in she looked at all the graphs from the CGM read out asked us what we thought and we stumped her! It was kinda funny...she was at a loss as to what to do (and not in a bad way). She was leary of tweaking numbers too much as to cause too many lows/highs. She finally made peace with herself and after getting our gut feeling on the situation decides she isn't going to change a thing. She's happy with Nora and her diabetes and how she is dealing with all of it. 

Goal: keep doing a good job! 

High fives all around and a see you in three months. I can deal with that. She knows I can tweak on my own and gets that. Like I said before, she knows we are the professionals here. And I feel blessed knowing I don't need to go into my kids Endo office and fight to be heard, or feel guilty because of how her diabetes is or isn't being cared for or feel rushed. We are cared for, praised and loved. And what could be better than that?

(and for those with inquiring minds...7.7 was her A1C...down .1...and that my friends, I'll take all day long!!)

Weird things....

Today's challenge from WEGO's National Health Blog Post Month is:

"Write about the weirdest thing about your health":

What's normal about diabetes?? But let's assume that we don't know much about diabetes. Let's pretend we are outsiders...oooh playtime!! 

When you tell someone that you/your child/spouse/loved one/whomever has diabetes what kind of reaction do you get? Usually it's the "oh, is that the bad kind?" or the "my Grandma lost her leg because of diabetes." I could go on but you all know them all already! So what's weird about that? Nothing...but then everything! 

First weird thing about D is that Diabetes covers both Type 1, Type 2, LADA and Gestational. All types require different treatments. Yet they are all put under this umbrella of Diabetes. Then their are the myths that swarm like mosquitoes about each type of D. It then becomes our duty (if you so feel inclined) to re-educate the misinformed but usually well meaning stranger/family member about your particular type that affects you. So if you are reading this post and know nothing of diabetes, or even if you THINK you know, please, PLEASE, when you are asking about diabetes, ASSUME nothing!!! Instead, ASK them about it. Don't feel the need to interject your lost limb Grandma. Just...LISTEN!! 

Second weird thing about D is that Diabetes is not one size fits all. Even within the same Type of diabetes. For example, I have TWO Type 1 diabetic daughters. They both can have the same amount of breakfast/lunch/dinner/snack but they both have different insulin ratios. These ratios are the amount of insulin given per carbs eaten. They can both react differently, meaning one can go high or one can go low, even after eating the same thing. They have different insulin sensitivities and different target blood sugars. It's the same disease yet they are completely different and why Diabetes is weird! 

T1D day...

This is an extra, impromptu post. I can't help myself....I just am full of blogs running around in my head. Lucky you, you get to read my insanity!! :)

Today is T1D day. The day that kicks off National Diabetes Awareness Month. I signed up to do the JDRF T1D challenge. You sign up and receive several texts throughout the day reminding you to check your blood sugar, stay upbeat, that you are running high or low and what to do. Let me just tell you it was a pain in the ass!!

It woke me up to tell me I needed to make sure I packed all my diabetes supplies for the day.

Then it text me a pep talk.

Then it told me I had eaten breakfast two hours earlier, need to check my blood sugar and I was running high.

Next, I was hungry, had to eat an apple, count carbs and bolus for eating and figure out what I'm having for lunch.

My fingers are sore from testing, it tells me, and try using my thumb.

Lunchtime. Time to test, count carbs eat, bolus, I'm high again!

Now it's 90 minutes since I ate and I'm feeling low; need to grab some OJ to bring blood sugar back up.

I'm feeling sluggish and emotionally spent from my earlier low. Stay positive!

It's been 2 hours since my low blood sugar. Need to test again. Yay! It's right where it should be!

I'm home. But now I'm going to go on a 2 mile run. Take necessary precautions.

Blood sugar is good!! I consumed extra carbs during my run to prevent a low!

It's almost dinner, check BG, what am I eating and how much, oh, and remember, I just went for a run!

I had a great dinner and bolus.

Crap, now my  insulin vial is almost empty and I need to reorder supplies.

I skipped dessert and want some cake or ice cream...should I or not?

Okay...I honestly don't know how grown-up T1's do it. One of these text messages was during a conference call I was on. The other times I was at work.

 I couldn't be bothered.

Wait, what?!?!

Yep, I felt like it was nagging me!!

I felt like how my girls must feel when I nag them to do all the things above. UGH!! Granted, it's only a blimp on their/your diabetic life but WOW...D is really a pain!!

And on a somewhat different, yet related, note...I was planning on borrowing one of the girls meters...we have like 5 spare...but I had a  friend today post on his fb wall that he is fighting insurance to cover an increase of test strips for his diabetic wife. What's the increase? From 50 to 150...for the MONTH!! This infuriates me!!! 150 test strips...we go through that in 2 weeks..more if blood sugars aren't in range. How could I "play/borrow" my kids test strips when my friend can't even get a proper amount for his wife to test for the month?! I couldn't. So I didn't. I will cherish the 300 x 2 I get for both my girls each month knowing that there are MANY diabetics without proper test strips, insulin and supplies to take care of their diabetes. Knowing that we need to make a difference. I need to make a difference. To help people, in our own community, get the things they need to live.

Will you?

Happy National Diabetes MONTH!!

Today is the kick start to National Diabetes Month!! I love it!! (okay, not really. BUT if we are going to have to deal with diabetes why not have an ENTIRE month dedicated to it and have some fun with it, right?!?!)

Here at Blue Heel Society we have lots of fun things planned all month long. One of them includes another Blog Month from WEGO health. So EVERYDAY in November we will be blogging our little Blue heels off! (Note to self: gonna need a pedicure after all this!!) Be sure to check back to see what we are blogging about daily AND all the fun events we have planned!

Now...to the post...

Today's challenge is:

"My favorite thing about social media/internet/online health communities". 

Easy! 

It's all of YOU!!

I've talked about the DOC (diabetes online community) before...I couldn't do it without YOU and I know you feel the same way. 

We are FAMILY!! 

We get IT! 

I can't even call my daughters' Endo office (and I LOVE them) and get a question answered as fast as if I post it to Facebook or one of the many online diabetes groups. And I love that! I want answers NOW not in an hour or whenever they get back to me. If I'm up at 3am and need an opinion or to whine, GUARANTEED, another D parent is up too! 

So, I will thank you, again, DOC, for your unwavering friendship and loyalty. 

Thank you for getting me and "IT"! 

Walk a mile in Blue Heels? Nah....Rebel Race in 'em.

Since the inception of Blue Heel Society....almost a year ago ( our baby is getting soooo big!!), I have had the privilege of meeting a compliment of wonderful people who totally get what it is we do here! I see so many of our allies out there raising tons of money and awareness for all the right causes. Makes me well up with tears most days, because it's very personal to me and to know so many people want to see diabetes eradicated means more than words can ever describe.

Most of my days are not spent training in a gym, or cycling through the continent, or blogging or anything not centered around caring for my four kids.....yeah...that's my glamorous life...and I love it....

HOWEVER....I was recently beaten at thumb-rasslin' by *you know who* and agreed to do something called a Rebel Race...I was fairly certain that regardless of that unflattering sounding title...eh, I was in. We were doing it under the Blue Heel Society, recruited some really amazing friends and family to join us, raising awareness for diabetes....yada yada.

Ho. Lee. Chit. NOT what I expected it to be.... This is quite different than scoring the Jessica Simpson wedge from a hoard of teenage girls in Marshall's...this is most certainly like boot camp before death.

For me, anyways.

Let me paint the picture here for you, lambs...the premise is that you run for like 500 miles uphill in Geisha shoes, then you have this obstacle course of most assured manicure ruining little stations like carrying a lion wrapped in barbed wire on your back through a sewer pipe....then, to finish off, you run some more....covered in mud, the kind not found in Serenity Day Spa...and potentially a gaping scrape or blister that will definitely require closed toe shoes for dinner given via a straw by what I can only assume will be a nurse in training....while I am on my death bed.  Sounds awesome right? Everyone is IN!!

This race ain't nuthin compared to what my child with diabetes, my family, my friends, and their loved ones do day in....day out....either with medications, diets, pumps, blood glucose meters, and a lot of blood, sweat, and tears....and a whole lotta giggles, while having no other choice.

Rebel Race will be one moment in time for me to say, this sucks, I'm doing it anyways. My child pricks his little finger 15 times a day....changes a pump site every other day.....If I could move the diabetes *mountain* and my only tool was a teaspoonful of dirt at a time..... for him, I would do it every second of every day....and as I really began to think about it....this race ain't no different.

I will most definitely bring a Hello Kitty Band-aid kit. And the overwhelming support from you with me as I embarrass myself proper, in the name that is all too familiar. Diabetes.

Wanna come laugh your hiney off at me? Join our team, volunteer, come cheer Team Blue Heel Society on as we get a little mud on our heels.