Swing Low

Actually, please don't.

"If you are dating a girl who carries around juice boxes she's either too young for you or diabetic"

I've went low at least once everyday for the past four days. Mostly just due to over-blousing, not having the right carb count, or my eyes being bigger than my stomach. No matter the cause, it is less than pleasant.

I think everyone must experience lows differently. I have a friend who says they make her want to go sleep. Most people say they get super hungry. Others say they get sweaty and shaky. I don't know if this happens to anyone else, but when I'm low my chest gets tight. I start breathing really quick and heavy and I have a hard time organizing/expressing my thoughts. Sometimes I get really goofy, other times I'm really grumpy. Sometimes I have a hot flash, other times I cant walk straight. 

What are your low symptoms? 

*This is a post that was written in 2015 but is just now being published ;)

I'll add to this (in 2020) that I have had a few ROUGH lows. One time I pre-bolused at a restaurant that is usually really fast and they took WAY too long to bring food and I thought I would pass out. I was soaked in sweat by the time I flagged down a waitress to bring me something to treat. Often times if I get below 60, I have to lay in the floor or on a table to keep from paniking and over-correcting until the feeling of death passes. 

What are some of your low stories? 

Death by Holidays (goodbye honeymoon phase)

Alright, I don’t know about you guys, but when I’m stressed out, super busy, or on vacation, I get a little lax in my management if you know what I mean. Finals week, Thanksgiving, and Christmas vacation are all perfect examples of this. Finals week was, well, stressful. And when I’m stressed out, I like to eat. I mean, who doesn’t love a good a candy bar when you’re on the brink of mental collapse? (Okay, that may have been a slight exaggeration, but you know what I mean) When I say “lax in management” I don’t mean that I completely stop taking insulin or ignore a bad BG reading. It means that I snack more than I should, don’t check as often as I need to, and fail to stay within my normal carb range. I try to shoot for around 45-60 carbs meal. Well obviously, that goal is not even realistic on Thanksgiving.

Let’s start with Thanksgiving. Lots of food, right? Want a general idea of HOW MUCH food? I took nine units of insulin to account for my loaded down plate. At a bolus ratio of 1-15, that means it was about 135 carbs. Post-Thanksgiving meal, my tummy was NOT happy with me. As a diabetic, I rarely eat until I am stuffed. And this was the first time since the beginning of this year (my diagnosis) that I had really gorged. And oh boy did I pay for it! The stomach cramps that night that followed were NOT pleasant. I can’t remember if I checked my BG before bed or not. Forgetting to check my BG before bed was a bad phase for a while (more on that later). So after Thanksgiving I seemed to be having difficulties staying in range. So I monitored my carb intake, insulin dosage, and BG’s closely for a couple days then decided to bump up my bolus rate. So I started doing a unit to every 12 carbs instead of 15. I also upped my daily injected of Lantus from 5 to 7 units.

So that was Thanksgiving. Now on to Christmas.

Pretty much same story, different holiday. Poor control, snacks, too many carbs, too much food in general, ect, ect. This past week I was out of state visiting a friend before school starts back. All week I kept seeing a reoccurring high post-prandial (after meal) BG. So, I upped my intake again, and tried 1-9 for a couple meals, with results still above my preference. Another bump down, and I seem to be back on level ground with a 1-7 ratio.

Now I’m wondering if I might need to give Lantus another bump up, considering I went to bed last night with a BG of 113, and woke up with a 130.

I said all that to say this: Honeymoon period is obviously either over, or in fast decline, and I can’t help but wonder if I was responsible. Did all that over-eating, inconsistent snacking, and irresponsible management finally send my pancreas over the edge? It’s a question worth asking, but I’m not sure if I’m brave enough to admit all of the above to my endo next week. He’s bound to notice those highs and missing bedtime BG’s. Good thing he is a super nice guy.

 ~Regretful T1D

Traveling

My blood sugar does not like traveling. Rather, it doesn't like high carb foods and lack of physical exertion. As I'm sure you've figured out, from last nights post and the sentences opening this post, my sugar has been wacky. Mostly high, but today I went low and this why (I think):

• We were eating food prepared at someone's home, so I didn't have an exact carb count
• I corrected for a slightly high BG (163)
• I also tried adjusting my bolus ratio
• I didn't have a calculator so I had to guess when dividing my carbs

So I corrected, but didn't re-check (I know, bad Kelby). In all fairness though, I was in a vehicle and I couldn't even wash my hands to check. When I corrected, my glucometer stated my BG was 88 but I knew better than that. I was pretty sure I was dropping fast, so I drank some juice. It was the lesser of two evils. I mean, don't correct and pass out, or correct without an exact number because I couldn't wash my hands, ya know? I ate some chips just a bit ago and didn't count or bolus for them. I had maybe a handful. 18 chips=19 carbs. I can have a 15 carb snack twice a day, so I figured the amount I ate was around that. Well I just checked and I was a little high, but feeling like I'm climbing. *Sigh*. Can't wait to get home and hopefully get this wackiness straightened out!

If these kinds of posts are annoying, just let me know. Ill move on to more relatable stuff eventually.

~Apologetic T1D

Glucometer Spotings

Replace "Insulin pump" with glucometer and this was totally me the other night at work. A kid comes in with his mom, maybe his sister and probably a girlfriend. He was my age, maybe a little younger, tall, skinny, kind of sickly looking actually : / I wasn't on register, I believe I was bagging. Anyways, somehow I managed to get a glimpse of the little black case he carried to his table and I'm thinking, "Oh my gosh!! Does he have a glucometer?!" So I bag their food and take it to their table. The case is beside him but I cant see much, the table is in the way. So I go around the dinning room to do a "cleaning check" while trying to see what he is doing without looking like a stalker. Bahahaha! Sure enough though, I'm pretty positive he was checking his sugar with the one touch ping remote. Have you guys ever experienced a moment where you seen someone with a glucometer or pump? Do you also have to resist the urge to run up to them and gush out that you are T1D too?! Sadly, this would be kinda freakish of you, so you resist the urge and carry on in painful silence. I don't know what it is about seeing someone like that that makes you feel less alone in this battle. Just remember, your NEVER lone in your fight with T1D. There are probably lots of kids right in your community who have it too! Maybe one day I'll write a really cool post on how I overcame my fear factor and talked to someone i noticed with a pump/glucometer. ;)
Stay True!
-Kelby