Monday, September 2, 2013

Day 15: Labor Day, Rainy Day, Dangerous Disease and I'll Tell You Why But it Has Been a Good Day!

Diabetes Journal Day 15: Labor Day

Monday September 2, 2013

3:45am
Pain where the left femur meets the hip joint woke me but did not feel hypo and did not check my BG, Bailey was asleep in “her chair” in the living room – of course hearing me wake up she was soon right there with me, a bundle of silky puppy love.

The was not as bad as has been but I took a ½ pain pill and Ibuprofen, sat up for a few minutes with the heating pad on the sore area, watched the news and after about 20  minutes went back to sleep with Bailey sleeping at my feet.

My physical therapist and doctor seem to think unless I get an adjustable bed to change my position in the night I undo all the therapy in the day. Naturally the pain and inflammation act up worse when I am asleep. Would be nice to sleep more than a couple of hours at a time! I added a 325mg aspirin to my nighttime ibuprofen which truly helped with reducing the inflammation in my right shoulder, the “good” one and did not have any finger numbing and subsequent pain as I stretch to relieve it in the night and morning. Might be a keeper because it was bothering me so much, esp. the past few nights that I was very tempted to ask my doctor to call in a medrol dose pack. The steroids would have set my diabetic progress back some, and for a week or two.
 So far so good.

I’m excited about the new bed, adjustable but not the sick room kind, and the recliner. The best part is that someone is giving me an almost new Craftmatic base, saving me thousands. The rest I am getting on credit but I got a Labor Day deal.

7:30am
FBG 117 52U I feel great, enjoyed a 16gm carb breakfast. Will begin to lower bedtime carb intake to get my morning numbers closer to a hundred. Really it is due to not just to my anxiety but also so I can get used to the lower numbers and the signs and symptoms of real hypo.

I wonder how many people really realize how dangerous this disease is?

Not just what it does to one’s body but how dangerous the meds can be. Dying from a hypo can be a real possibility, but usually when one’s blood sugar level drops, another hormone from the pancreas called glucagon signals the liver to break down the stored glycogen and release glucose back into your bloodstream. This often causes a high blood glucose reading in the morning.

Still it is a fear.

A dear friend of mine with Type I Diabetes died in his sleep a couple of years ago from hypoglycemia. He often had severe lows and this has left such an impression on me that in the back of my head I fear that one morning my 21 grandson will find me dead in bed.
A major motivator for me to get off of insulin, but I must closely monitor it and control it while working towards that goal.

I need the cooperation of my friends and family. My family is pretty good; they have come a long way. Some my friends don’t understand that a “little sugar” can put me over my limit. And they do not understand the difference between fast and slow absorbing carbs.
For example:
 A tsp. of sugar is 4.2gms of fast carbs and will cause a blood sugar spike, a ½ cup of sugar is 100 gms of fast carbs and exceeds my carbohydrate allowance. Furthermore because it is a fast acting carb it will spike my blood sugar to unacceptable levels.
On the other hand, 6 oz, or ¾ cup of broccoli and cauliflower provides 9 grams of slow absorbing carbs and barely affects my blood sugar esp. if I add fat and protein to the meal.

I don’t expect them to fully understand but I only ask that they please respect my answer when I say “Thank you but I can’t have that.” Sometimes I can work a “tiny taste” of your Aunt Mamie’s Red Velvet cake into my carb count, some days I just simply can’t. It’s just not worth the dangerous act of having to take extra insulin to counteract the effects of the large amount of carbs on my blood sugar and risking potentially life threatening hypoglycemia. I ask that they understand and do not take offense as this truly can be a life and death decision. Or a quality of life decision to avoid the potentially horrid effects of high blood glucose on the body.
I love my friends and want to be around for a long time to enjoy their company!

10:35pm
PP BG 113 That is good! Was going to take Bailey to the park so she can play at my feet when I sit and read, but it was too hot and muggy so she played outside with my grandson and when he went to but the lawn we played “bowling” in the house. I have a long hallway that runs from the back door to the front door and I toss the ball down the hall and she happily runs after it. It’s a funny site and we both enjoy it: I have hardwood floors so she slips and slides trying to get purchase at what looks like warp speed to get her ball. I must say her balance is getting better but she loves the chase!

12:58pm
BG 74 Kind of expected these lows after five hours of my morning insulin dose. I think I am going to add a few more carbs to my breakfast.  I’ll give it a few more days than put it to my support group for their advice.
I feel great, not dizzy, shaky, sleepy or anxious. A little irritable but that may be because my 6’6” grandson decided to look for something behind the couch and accidently knocked over an end table with a lovely bird oil burner and a delicate crystal cluster, both given to me by two dear friends. They both escaped destruction but the crystal cluster lost a couple of tiny crystals, nothing noticeable. We lovingly referred to these kinds of events as “sasquatching” or something being “sasquatched” because my grandson always seemed to be too big for the world around him.
He has grown out of it mostly except when he is in a hurry as he was today.
At the same time he did this I was putting together my pre-planned lunch and feeling a bit pressured to get the food into my system and had to stop to survey for any damage and pickup the items. So it was not so much the accident but me feeling pressured to get my lunch before my blood sugar fell any further.
A note here, I do not think it was “falling,” it may have been going down very slowly because I felt fine.
Lunch was delicious! Tender steak cut in strips, broccoli/cauliflower medley and an avocado quarter; 17gms carbs.

3:56pm
PP BG 120 Good.
 
5:15pm   
BG 126   Sleepy. Thought maybe BG dropped, it’s fine. Been sipping coffee wth cream I made earlier and had a cheese stick earlier to help slow down and offset any carbs from the garden tomato sauce I sparingly taste as it slowly simmers. One of the best pots of sauce I have ever made and I am not sure if I really want to eat it with shredded broccoli in lieu of spaghetti. The supposedly low carb low glycemic pastas cause nearly as much of an impact on me as regular pasta. I have never been much of a pasta eater but when I have eaten pasta in the past I like to enjoy a full generous serving with lots of sauce. Not going to happen.

8:30pm
50U Had a great dinner I was going to pass on the garden tomato sauce but it was way too good so I cooked some broccoli slaw, put some sauce over it, Parmesan cheese and a sprinkling of a mix of peppers and onion. I paired it with a sliced roast chicken breast with skin and wing. I use a smaller vintage plate so it looks like more food than it is. 375 kcals 19gm carbs (and I am still under my carb allowance for the day)



10:30pm
PP BG 111, very good but too low for me to pass on my evening snack. Interesting to see what my fasting will be.


Say good night Bailey~


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