#type1dm

[thesugarfiles]

Here's to: new beginnings A few months ago I decided that it was time to take control of my diabetes, after years of not making it my priority. Everything else seemed more important than my health, until a mini-scare after my routine yearly diabetic eye screening. Everything was, fortunately, sound, but I realised that I would only have myself to blame if anything did go wrong in the future. So, I met with my consultant endocrinologist, who arranged for me to speak with the diabetic nurse about insulin pumps. An insulin pump is designed to deliver your insulin without the need for an injection. Yes, you still have to test your blood sugar levels and count your carbohydrates, but it means a little more ease and flexibility. Today, the nurse and I chose a pump that would work for me, and scheduled an appointment to start "therapy". I feel emotional. Firstly, because I have been lucky enough receive treatment that will make my life so much easier, and my HEALTH so much better. Secondly - and this will sound bizarre - because my whole life is about to change dramatically. I have taken at least 2 injections every single say for practically my whole life. I don't remember a time when I didn't have to. It's going to be really really strange, and I'm not really sure what to make of it... So, until then..!

[typefdm]

Trying to write my jdrf Ride to Cure bio, I've run out of insulin. How fitting.

[typefdm]

I wish my blood sugar would consult with me before buying four pastries in the commute to work.

[thesugarfiles]

In the "Pursuit of Happiness"

It's been a while since I dared to test my blood glucose level (BG from herein) before dinner. I find that, at work, I'm so focused on caring for my patients, that I frequently miss my lunchtime insulin, and end up being sky-high by 6pm. *insert clever quite here: "you can't pour from an empty cup. Look after yourself first", blah blah* Last year, I arranged a few appointments with a clinical psychologist to try to figure out WHY I refused to take my diabetes seriously. We came to the conclusion, ironically, that a need for things to be perfect stands between me and good diabetic control. It's counterintuitive. Insanely. You'd expect that perfectionism would ENCOURAGE me to be a better diabetic, but really, knowing that I haven't had a perfect day of carb-counting, eating and injecting prevents me from testing my BG and seeing a "bad" number. Why does that mean poor control? Because seeing these "bad" numbers would give me a chance to correct them and bring my BG back to a healthy number, instead of ignoring them and staying "high" which cause damage to my cells. (To clarify, while a high blood sugar level is dangerous and harms the body, it does not affect the person in the same way as a low blood sugar would; mood, concentration and coordination are not affected to my experience, unlike a low blood sugar where working or driving would be incredibly dangerous.) Anyway, so I finally tested, and hurrah: 9.8 ! My target range is between 3.6 and 7.5 before a meal, so I'm a little out-of-line, but not nearly as scary a number as I had expected. To put that into perspective, high is 15 and sky high is 25. This means that, if it wasn't for the sneaky shortbread biscuit I had on leaving work, I would've been right on track *more cheers* Small daily improvements make all the difference. I'm going to hold onto this cheerful feeling, and keep recreating it. Slowly.

[thesugarfiles]

A learning curve that's so long, it's almost a circle..!

Had a mini-cardio session last night (260 cals worth) and a decent walk around town in search of baubles and a Christmas jumper. The insulin pen beside my bed only had 22 units left in it, so that's what I took (I usually take 36, or 32 after a good amount of exercise). Scoffed a bowl of Fruit'n'Fibre because I felt empty. Yet, I STILL woke up on the low side of "target blood glucose level". Usually, eating more carbs and not taking enough insulin will do the opposite, and send your blood glucose level sky-high... What-on-earth?! The science: the fitter you become, the more sensitive your muscles (including, I assume, heart muscle) will become to insulin. Hence, my body is becoming more able to maintain a good blood glucose level on less insulin. This is particularly exciting as insulin is used by the body to store fat tissue, so the less insulin you need, the less fat you will store. Fatty tissue also increases resistance to insulin, meaning you need more insulin to get the same energy from the carbohydrates you eat. So, fitter = reduced need for insulin = less fat storage = better sensitivity to insulin. And the cycle continues! Hurray to better fitness 🎉

[typefdm]

I usually get excited when I see things like 11:11 on the clock. Today I was 315 at 3:15. Mind. Blown.