IN 1998 when I switched from Multiple Daily Injections to an insulin pump I was having issues with fatty deposits in my abdomen from, perhaps, not doing a good enough job rotating my injection sites. These fatty deposits remain today and were blamed for poor insulin absorption and a slight rise in my A1c. I focused on better rotation and things did improve. Enter the pump. Problem solved. Or so I thought. Fast forward 14 years and it seems that I now have some scar tissue in the subcutaneous layer in my butt and sides of my abdomen. This scar tissue sometimes bends my canula upon insertion and gives me a bad site meaning poor or no insulin delivery. Damn. This is more than a small inconvenience. I am, as most of us are, extremely busy and often change my site right before leaving the house for the day. So if I am not getting delivery when I sit down to eat a few hours later it is a problem. I never bring back-up syringes or insulin because the pump really can’t be beat for reliability and convenience. My syringes are 14 years old and I think I have used 4 or 5 of them since I went on the pump. Recently, I have come to realize that I need to have back up infusion sets, insulin and syringes with me at all times and I have started to do that. Yes, this might seem like a no brainer but I find that the extra bulk in my backpack is constrictive and annoying. It is not an insurmountable problem but it is one more thing that reminds me every minute of everyday that T1 diabetes management is a walk on a tight-rope everyday. The balancing act is on-going and never-ending.
This is one of those things that crop up over the course of my T1 journey that I learn about as I go through. My medical team gives me excellent guidance but the fact that the longer I live with my “dark passenger” (to reference Dexter) the more troublesome things that seem to be happening. Not knowing, when this first happened, what was happening and why I couldn’t get my sugar down was exasperating. I don’t always have the presence of mind to call or email my medical team even though I know that they would probably know, instantly, what the issue is and how it can be resolved. This is because I feel that only I am in total control of my diabetes, so I don’t reach out for help. I’m working on that!
Another thing no one told me and in case you are not aware, a shot of cortisone for a T1 will raise your blood sugar for a relatively extended period of time and even additional insulin will not be effective in bringing it down. The one shot of cortisone that I had since being diagnosed raised my blood sugar into the high 200s to low 300s for two full weeks. I would bolus on top of bolus and nothing would bring my sugar down until one day…And then my sugar plummeted. Needless to say that experience taught me not to accept being told that a cortisone shot is the answer to my tendonitis or herniated disks. For me, it is not. I have since opted for intense physical therapy and, most recently, a PRP injection for my tendonitis. That, combined with exercise was far more effective than a cortisone injection which, I believe, masks the underlying cause of an injury anyway.
The one important lesson I have most recently learned is that the DOC – Diabetes Online Community – is one of the best things that I ever stumbled upon. I can tweet all kinds of issues or post them on Facebook and get some PWDs to chime in with their own experiences. This, to me, is one of the biggest improvements in my care since being diagnosed. Not every piece of information I get from the DOC is right for me but it does give me some ideas to try and some “thinking outside the box” thoughts and inspirations! To be able to talk directly and at length with other PWDs gives me the kind input and personal knowledge that is somehow lacking when I only deal with my doctors…
Done rambling for now…
Now, about that cure…
Filed under: Uncategorized | Leave a comment »