Of iPhones and iApprovals

Final day of the month...and I feel the need to write something, however unprofound that something might be. Finally got to go on the grandest of sprees Wednesday, ending up with this:


Of course, they don't sell Iphones at Office Depot but they do sell $200 Amex gcs...and Itunes gcs. OD reward certificates can be used to purchase any type of gift card. Best Buy was running a deal(of sorts-$50 off for Reward Zone members) and the prepaid mastercards can be used for anything.(actual purchase plus bills)Signing another 2 year commitment(just did one for the gym..ugh) was not a particular joyous occasion, but I have wanted an iphone forever...and my current cellphone contract will soon expire. I am rather attached to my old number, I've had it ever since I've had a cellphone and giving it up is going to be a very painful grieving process. But having 2 running contracts makes no sense whatsoever.(even if the iphone and the first two bills are free!) And I've got another cellphone that's prepaid(it was a gift) so I'm like rolling in cellphones right now!

I'm not sorry I did it...the iphone rocks, on so many levels. Not having to find a wifi hotspot, being able to use any application at any time is just great. I love my iphone!

D-wise, its been low after low after low. Got my approval letter from my insurance(sensors) and the sensors were mailed out Thurs. of this week. Haven't gotten them yet...hopefully will be here Monday. I'm of the opinion that taking in more fast-acting carbs and getting the bg down later(if you overshoot the mark) is better then eating/drinking 15 carbs...eating another 15 carbs..eating yet another 15 carbs...I could spend my entire life waiting for my bg to come up, with that method. Since I'm having so many I just go for the big guns(40-60 carbs) right away,and it works well. Until the next low. I need to majorly overhaul everything (basals and boluses),day and night they're causing lows. It's not really because of the exercise...because I only work out about 3 hours a week. Hopefully bgs will go back to normal soon.

Signs of the Times

Dear idiot student(s):

So its over. I'm over that. I wish nothing but the best for our new president, and I hope my feelings of doom/and gloom don't turn out to be the case.

But I still have a right to MY own personal political views and if I want to have a bumper sticker that says 1/20/2013- Change We Can Believe In- it is my personal right as an American. You may not like it, but there was no need to put that displeasure into action and decorate my car in such a immature manner.

Ice, coke, and ketchup. Wow- you really take the cake. Forgive me for not finding it funny (maybe one day I will). Right now it just feels like an invasion of the freedoms I took for granted. Luckily for you, the only thing right now handy to take it out on is my meter(I think I'll try Joe S's trick of running over one).

Sincerely,

A fellow (more intelligent, tolerant) student

Circle of Willies

Disclaimer:

I am a control freak. Or at least,I try to be. Not in the sense of my blood sugar never goes above 150 post-meal..more like, I don't trust anyone else besides my cde/endocrinologist to be making suggestions about my D-care. Especially not the local community hospital, and even at University hospitals it can be touch and go as to whether you'll get good care. Unless you have a pumper doc/nurse or someone who knows about pumps.(not very likely)

There's something I haven't quite figured out yet, and its a subject that's discussed even less frequently among doctor/patients then "How's your sex life?" (which is a question I'm not likely to be getting for 30+ more years anyway)

What you have the rights to, D-wise, in surgery or in the hospital. Some surgeons literally demand that you must go off your pump and onto whatever system they've got and some are ok with you staying on your pump. And I've done it both ways, scared stiff to refuse. Because, well, the last general surgeon intent on slicing into my intestinal blockage probably wouldn't have understood if I'd have talked myself blue and though they're quite good at what they're doing they tend to have a mindset that one insulin regimen fits all. Between the language barrier and that,I didn't dare refuse. (fortunately it didn't come to that)On the other hand, the vascular surgeon(port surgery) was ok with me being on the pump. It's a surgeon lottery. I can understand during long, complex surgeries the need to have some control over the situation but with an IV in there anyway they could have access to sending it up or down if the numbers strayed too far. I am easily correctable.

So I think I need some sort of plan. Something that can be given to any future physician who doesn't know much about pumping. I think that would help them see that I'm not the type of patient who will go low on just the basal rate if not doing anything(more like high). (to alleviate fears) I still don't know whether I've got the rights to refuse without them refusing to keep me as a patient. I have hopes that one day..when I'm around 40 or so insulin pumps will be more accepted and the young physicians of today will be the older, experienced physicians who know all about it. The younger physicians, they speak Pumpese "What's your ISF? TDD? Insulin/carb ratio?" while the older ones could care less. As a patient, I feel more connected to someone who shows knowledge about D rather then someone who skirts around the issue. I have D, it is a part of me and it needs to enter the conversation at some point.

The hospital is enough of a place for med mixups/infections/nervous breakdowns as it is. Bright lights. Loud noises. Demented, agitated roommates. Uncomfortable beds. Food menus that make no sense(lots of carbs but no "sugar") and have no nutrional information. Constant streams of people, day and night. Blood leechings. Tests that take forever on cold hard tables and make you miss meals. Endless reruns of "MASH". Waiting all day for the doc to come in to tell you you can't go home that day. Friend/relative visits that awkwardly end as you fall facefirst into your cream of wheat on a medication trip. Lots of decisions, much of which won't happen because its all relative to what the doctor decides when he gets around to it. As for diabetes control, good luck with that, you are on your own. At least on the pump you are not hypoing constantly, you have some control over the situation. Whereas with sliding scales you are pretty much stuck.(haven't been on one in 9 years and don't intend to be)

Some more thoughts on the situation...(Dec.2006)

I wish there were a facility in which only D's(or friends, family members) worked..everything would be done with the D taken into consideration and pumps would be the rule, rather then the exception. Better attention to D translates to better bgs equals shorter stays and improved outcomes.

The One on the Right

There once was a musical troupe
A swinging, rhyming folk group
They sang non-traditional ballads
In a never-ending loop
They were great with alliterative allegories
And charming,mildly interesting stories
But diabetical incompatibilitys
Led to their downfall.

Well, the one on the right was
Tight with Animas
And the one in the middle was
Not in any "pumping" rush
While the one on the left was
Having a major Medtronic crush
And the guy in the rear...Burned his Medical Alert.

This musical aggravation
Toured the D-Life communes
Singing non-traditional ballads
In the oddest, weirdest tunes.

They performed with great virtuosity
And soon, they were a hit(surpassing even the Jonas Brothers!)
But diabetical incompatibilities
Finally made them split.

Cuz' the one on the right had a
5.5 a1c while the one in the middle was 8.4
the one on the left was 7.2
and the guy in the rear...could care less.

When the curtain finally rose
On their season's biggest show
The D-folk watched in anticipation
To see their latest, weird creation.
But they all forgot their meters
And that led to quite a scene
No longer friendly greeters
These charming folks turned mean.

The one on the right was
Really high, while the one in the middle was
Feeding him pie.
The one on the left was the one who
Really needed that pie
While the guy in the rear...was dialing 911.

Now this should be a lesson
If you plan to PWD messin'
Don't go mixing pumpers
With the politics of the D
Just work on getting along
No more messy spiels
And if they're slightly in the wrong
It's not a major deal.

Now the one on the left
writes a blog while the one in the middle
Went back to Lantus.
the one on the right just ran a marathon
And the guy in the rear..went back to school and became a CDE.
(there's always hope for the rebels)

A Valentine's Weekend Dozen

#1
(gift from my very sweet husband)

#2 A workout at the Love Triangle. I call it that, because it has my doctor's office, the gym, and CVS in the same general area so whatever you need, you're covered! (injured, hop on over to docs and pick up RX at CVS). Only I always end up going across the street to McDonalds and stuffing my face because workouts make me incredibly hungry and there's just no way I'm going to pay $5.99 for a "Rejuvenating Fruit Smoothie."

#2 An hour long wait to The Pasta Place because the place didn't take reservations. Sigh. It was good though, awesome Italian carby goodness that was well worth the insulin. No candlelight, but it was dim enough in there to qualify as being in the Twilight Zone anyway.

#3 A Visit to the William Paca House.(signer of the Declaration of Independance) We've visited Montpelier-Monticello-Mt.Vernon but this was quite different from them, this was primarily a show house and living in the city of Annopolis they didn't have to be so self-sufficient as the Virginia hicks did.


#4 Going to meet Cara at a chain restaurant called Eggspectations. She was up here visiting a friend, and her friend and friend's (8 month old? correct me if I'm wrong) kiddo were along. Her godson was having a "Mohawk Hair Day" + was an absolute knock-out, cute as could be. Should work in his favor when he does get to be a teenager! She treated us all to lunch.(that's REAL Tennessean hospitality!) We talked D-stuff, non D-stuff, and walked around in the Artic Blast, visited another shop and then they went home. She's pretty cool.(and we have the same type of camera!)

(and I just noticed the creepy guy staring out the window...weird)

#5 Getting a $25 gc/purchase of a new RX coupon from CVS...because they're incredibly rare and its great timing, the beginning of the year always brings horrendous copays and every little bit helps.

#6 Semi-annual cleaning of the diamond ring...and having the Zales salesperson semi-cuss-me-out. " X-Y-Z, this is so dirty! How did it get that way?" Ok, its dirty, that's why I'm here, to have it cleaned. Neither her language nor her tone was appropriate to lambast a customer with. My husband didn't pay good money to have me treated that way. I was slightly peeved, I don't think I've ever been cussed out by a salesperson before.(not even when I should have been!)

#7 Playing games at Dave & Busters.. its such a fun place and I could totally spend the rest of my life in there.

#8 Studying for microbiology test #1(lecture). Ack, ack, ack.(now behind me)

#9 Wondering if this will be the week that A. my sensor coverage comes through and B. my Office Depot gift card arrives and I'll be able to get my longed-for Iphone.

#10 Reading poems of yesteryear + thinking, wow, was I ever so young and clueless back then,I thought the pump would solve everything.

#11 Semi-Annual Stuffing at the Golden Corral. Every time I go there, I gain five pounds.(hence it is good that we only go 2x a year)

#12 Downloading my Valentine's Day Ipod Playlist:
1. How do I love her-Steven Curtis Chapman
2. I'm yours
3. Sincerely Yours- Petra
4. Head over Heels- 4HIM
5. LOVE-Nat King Cole (?)
6. When You're Loved- Debbie Boone
7. All you need is Love- The Beatles
8. I Walk the Line- Johnny Cash
9. Because of You-Reba McIntire
10. Cleaning this Gun-Rodney Atkins
11. Testify to Love- Avalon
12. I'm not gonna write you a love song- Sara Bareilles

From Endo, With Love

I'm not sure how it happened, but...

My a1c has gone down. By 0.8. Which puts me exactly where I was last year at this time.
(in the 8's, which is much better then the 9's). I'm feelin' the buzz from that, its moving in the right direction.(at least)

The rest of the appt. was fairly unproductive, my endo doesn't much like Pings(they're rather difficult to get the basals and TDD from + the meters read 40+ higher then the Ultra) and discussing my major hurdle toward better bgs...my fear of humongous boluses even when I know I need it. Because when I crash from one of them,it is a major crash + not pretty. I would rather square wave something then bolus it all up front,and sometimes you need everything up front.(like for cereal)If I have my Dex on,I'm not as afraid to do large boluses but because approval/paperwork for sensors has been stuck in insurance land since the beginning of Jan. I don't have that safety guard. The main reason my a1c has come down is because of my overnights, which have been pretty rock-solid awesome for the past few months.

Paperwork to get yearly bloodwork...a refill rx. Hey insurance, please hurry up with that paperwork, I need those sensors!

And that question, which popped up once again- "When are you planning to have kids?"
I didn't tell her what happened last month, and I'm not sure it would have done any good(not info she needs to know unless A. I stay pregnant or B.it happens more then once) When do I plan to have kids...probably never. Don't want to be told what I already know.(a1c must be in optimal range or that could be a major reason in miscarriages)

But all in all, it wasn't a total disaster + its good that I went.

The Happy Microbiologist

I have white coat syndrome.

Yeah, there's the normal kind...where you're sitting in the docs office, heartrate/blood pressure skyrocketing and your bg getting the maximum glycogen-glucose conversion possible.(this will occur on Friday, when I'm waiting for the results of my fingerstick a1c + a subsequent endo appt.)

But I also have another kind of white coat syndrome, the type where you feel like hot stuff(perhaps I should call it the MD syndrome). Microbiology is FUN,(quick, how many carbohydrates in an Agar dish?) and wearing a white coat propels one off on a quite intoxicating power trip. No wonder many docs act like complete dictator jerks.

There's also another pumper at my lab table so if either one of us starts eating Agar it will be clear to the other one what's going on.
I think I'll be taking a picture and putting it on my Twitter profile because wow, I look good in a white coat. Really, really good.

Rappin'

My Wedding Processional

(it's frustrating that I can't embed the video in my blog..and this is the ONLY YouTube video that really captures the grandness of the moment.)Just envision a large church...majestic organ music(sans the "how do you solve a problem like Heidi" vocals), a crowd about 1/100 the size of the one in the movie and you've got it.
"Here comes the Bride" is not nearly as thrilling as this is.(in my humble opinion) Every time I hear it I want to bawl.