In diabetes, self-care is everything. Unfortunately, when you don't fit the textbook scenarios for basals or boluses, or have unexplained highs and low, there is a certain stigma attached.
My endo often suggests more education. The last four day course (vacation time to boot), I didn't learn anything. I can tell you (pre-gastroparesis) that 1 g of sugar will raise me 5 points (now it's like 10 pts). That if I am below 200, 0.1u will lower me 30 points. That if I am 300 or near to it, that the ratio is more like 1 u/75 points.
I can tell you precisely how many grams are in lots of foods. Small hamburger bun? 30g carb. OJ? 15g/4 oz. Milk? 14g/8 oz. Small flour tortilla? 22 g.
There is a certain accusatory stigma when you are a brittle diabetic that you simply must not be doing enough. But what about us rare folks who live, eat, and breathe diabetes, but still have an a1c over 8.0?
The thing about diabetes is that everyone is different. I've never hid my diabetes, or ignored it for that matter. Everyone has always known and it's never been an 'issue' (okay, once I cried at work due to a low blood sugar hehe, but that is to be expected).
Diabetes is just unpredictable in some folks. Earlier this week, I woke up three times in the middle of the night in the 40's (alerted by my fabulous dexcom), and drank 4 oz of OJ each time, waking up finally at 136. Last night, awoke to a 40 again, and drank 8 oz of OJ. Result? 370!
Note this was not a liver glucose dump - it's more like dumping syndrome.
There are a lot of variables. People who get complications are not to be blamed... For 20-30% of diabetics, even with perfect a1c's, complications result.
Posted by sfisher at September 22, 2006 11:27 AM