Hate and rage

I have been extremely frustrated with my blood sugar lately. Since Monday, my blood sugar has been a lot higher than usual. I changed my insulin/carb ratios to 1:7 at breakfast and 1:10 for the rest of the day, but it hasn’t really improved anything. Today, I’m trying out a new basal profile, with everything increased by 0.05 to see if that helps. I can easily switch over to my normal profile if things go south, but that doesn’t seem to be the case yet. In fact, it doesn’t seem to be any different at all. It’s so depressing to pump more and more insulin into my system, just to have no effect.

Aiming for grace’s post about “what’s in a number” completely syncs with my perspective. You see the number and then instantly feel bad or good about yourself. Sometimes you just have to take your feelings out of the equation and just act on the number. It’s okay if things aren’t going so well; that just means some more tweaking. Hopefully I won’t let this rough spot spoil my trip this weekend. Cross your fingers!

I left GiR for another woman

So, I’m having a conversation with GiR, or snuggling with him, or whatever. We’re having a great time. I love spending time with GiR. But then, Lucy will beep and tell me to do something. “I’m sorry, GiR, but I have to take this. Unfortunately, Lucy is more of a priority than you.” Lucy will probably always be higher priority than anyone. Because ultimately, me and my health should come first. But don’t worry, GiR comes in a close second.

Hyperaware

Some days I feel like I am hyperaware of my medical state. Hmmm… I’m a little hungry. or My foot feels kinda weird or My lip’s acting funny. I am constantly wondering: does this have something to do with my diabetes or is it just a normal health problem? I hate always noticing those little things and then fretting about them. I mean, we all go through thousands of mostly subconscious “mini health checks” throughout the day, and sometimes I just get tired of it. I don’t really want to know EVERYTHING that’s going on with my body. I just want to get rid of that little voice that is constantly wondering how I’m doing.

What?!?!

Okay… Something is not right here.

• 7:50pm - 65, dinner bolus + “negative correction”
• 9:47 - 113
• 6:46am - 246, breakfast bolus + correction
• 8:47 - 266, correction
• 9:43 - 222, correction
• 10:43 - 169, no correction
• 12:11pm - 111, normal lunch bolus
• 2:12 - 253, correction

Why am I so high? I’m thinking of changing out everything (reservoir, tubing, infusion site) to see if that helps. Any other ideas?

Sushi questions

Tonight I will be going out to dinner with GiR and 3 of his friends for some birthday celebrations. The restaurant chosen is a Japanese place that mostly serves sushi. I have eaten sushi before, but it was a loooong time ago (early on in diabetes diagnosis). Now that I have Lucy, I should be able to handle this, but I don’t know how.

How am I supposed to estimate carbs? I checked Calorie King, so I have a general idea (around 7g per thingy). But, I have no idea how much or what I’ll end up eating. Do I guess the amount of carbs I’ll eat (say, 50), and dial in an extended bolus for that amount? I’m tempted to just skip the whole sushi stuff and just get a salad or something, but I don’t want my fear of how to bolus to get in the way of eating unusual foods.

Any great tips for bolusing for sushi?

Bad test strips from China?

I just read this Consumerist article about bogus LifeScan OneTouch test strips. No word on any recalls, or even what exact strips are affected. I would suggest using an alternate meter with alternate strips if you can until there is more word as to what’s going on.

Straightening out

Well, I’ve finally finished all my basal tests. I think I’ve got all my basal rates straightened out. My overnight one is not as perfect as I would like. It seems my choices are to drop 25 points or rise 25 points. Sometimes I wish I had an Animas that has .025 increments instead of .05. Oh well, I’ll deal.

I’ve also tweaked my insulin/carb ratios a bit, so they do not freak me out like they used to.

• Breakfast: 1:8
• Lunch: 1:11
• Dinner: 1:11

I think my correction factor needs to be updated too, but I’m trying to do this bit-by-bit. Basals first, then insulin/carb ratios, then correction factor. Of course, even if I think things are straightened out, life will always throw you a curve ball (thank you, period, for messing up my blood sugar today). Ugh.

Anyway, GiR and I are going to a BBQ tonight, which should be a fun SWAG bolus experience. Wish me luck!

C is for Cookie

I LOVE to bake. I actually started doing it semi-seriously after I became diabetic. Ironic, eh? I typically bake full-sugar classic recipes, but I’m trying to figure out how to make some lower-carb treats. I’ve made Splenda snickerdoodles and Splenda cheesecake, but that’s about it. Any other good recommendations?

Average vs. Standard Deviation

At my pump training a month ago, the pump trainers looked at my blood sugar history. They noted the standard deviation (std dev) was 46 and congratulated me on doing such a good job. Huh? I’m not a math major (that would be GiR), but I know that looking at the std dev alone is not the complete picture; just like looking at the average along is not the complete picture either. Take these examples:

1. 50, 50, 100, 200
2. 90, 95, 100, 105, 110

They both have the same average (100), but they have drastically different std devs. #1 has a std dev of 61 and #2 has a std dev of 7. Most glucometers output the average, but you can’t just take that by itself. Clearly a lower std dev indicates better control. However, you can’t just look at std dev by itself either.

1. 90, 95, 100, 105, 100
2. 205, 210, 215, 220, 225

We already know that #1 will produce an average of 100 and a std dev of 7. #2 also produces a std dev of 7. Does that mean it is good control? Not really. #2 has an average of 215! Not a place you’d want to be.

All I’m saying is to make sure you take both the average and the standard deviation into consideration. Both numbers together indicate your control. You want an average in your target range and a low standard deviation.

Note: This is the standard deviation calculator I used for this post. It’s a quick little tool that can help provide more data about your blood sugar.

Microchip to measure blood sugar?

This Gizmodo article talks about a microchip that would be implanted in soldiers to measure their vital signs. The author mentions that he’d like to see it expanded for civilian use, especially for diabetics. Now, the technology is at least 5 years off, but wouldn’t it be kinda neat to have a little chip implanted somewhere that measures your blood sugar and you could view the results on your PDA or cell phone or something. It’s a long ways away, but it’s not impossible.