Out of control T2, landed in the ER crashing on June 2nd, A1c 11%.
"Come to Jesus" moment as a result, made the decision to voluntarily go on insulin / MDI and aggressive therapy to achieve tight control. After 6 weeks, decided to get a G4 and Omnipod. Got approved and shipped in record time, been on the G4 for 4 weeks now, pod for 2.
(yeah, I know, I need to have a lab test for accurate comparison, but there is no doubt I lowered it a lot, and from what I've read the A1cNOW is reasonable accurate, so I expect my lab A1c to be between 6-7%).
Congratulations! You deserve a lot of credit for taking your diagnosis seriously and then doing the rational thing, taking effective action. We all indulge in some emotional transition following such a shock but you’ve seemed to cut that way short. Way to go; keep it up!
Not a member yet, but just put in my request to join, thanks to you!
I'm thinking I'm kinda a nut in the way I view all this now, 3 months later, but I become ever more strongly convinced that CGMs and pumps are tech that should be available to any diabetic (1, 2, LADA, MODY, Martian, dog, tree shrew, etc.) who wants it and is willing to make use of it to maintain normal blood sugars.
I mean, do they tell people with glaucoma that they're only going to protect 50% of their sight? A person with sepsis, well, we'll "stabilize" the infection at a fever of 100F?
What is it with diabetes that "treating it enough" so that you only have your feety hacked off in your twilight years instead of in your 50s is acceptable?
I have diabetes. There are tools to control my BG in to normal range. Why shouldn't I have those tools?
There's no good reason you shouldn't have any tech tool you're willing to try. I can't imagine living with diabetes (T1, T2, other) without my meter, pump, analog rapid acting insulin, CGM, and hypo-alert dog! My glucose metabolism would be a hypo to hyper train wreck without all of them.
You have a right to normal blood glucose. We can't always maintain normal BGs but why should any diabetic be denied the best chance available?
...I think the answer as to why technology is denied is because we are a "special interest group" who are demanding benefits, whether from government health agencies (Medicare, Medicaid, NHS, etc...) or private-payer insurance. As in so much, there's a lot of haves and more have nots but the have nots don't have much leverage because the devices, even meters and test strips, are expensive. We know they aren't as expensive as they are, since other countries have price controls in place and, lo and behold, the companies are still selling stuff there. If we want health care, we can afford it but we would have to be willing to increase taxes, cut costs and work together to try to make it happen. That seems really unlikely to happen, at least in the USA, any time soon.
But when you compare the cost of one ER visit, complete with a middle-of-the-night ambulance transport, the meter/strips/pump/CGM costs look trivial. It looks like a penny-wise, pound-foolish policy to me. Not to mention the long-term complication cost of dialysis, blindness, and amputations.
With US insurance corporations, it's always about the next quarter's financial performance, never the long-term results. I can't for the life of me understand the moral (or financial) justification of a for-profit health care system. I guess the insurance companies just want to delay as many expenses as possible until the individuals migrate into the Medicare program.
I fully agree with you. I think part of the problem, though, is that a lot people don't have good control even with these tools. The tools are great, but it takes a lot more then just them to get good control.
Great job on the A1c, by the way! I am really hoping my next one might be below 7.0%, been trying for that for about three years now!
Wow, That's an impressive turn around. Insulin is a powerful tool and my treatment of choice for my T2, I wish I had learned that lesson in the beginning like you have. The way you are going you will make your goal in no time.
Sadly, Gary, it's not "the beginning" for me. I was diagnosed 15 years ago.
For various reasons, I went off the reservation about two years ago, and got completely reckless about a year ago.
I lived like a person with the flu all the time for about a year and a half. Thought I had cancer, so of course I avoided seeing my doctor so I wouldn't find out for sure. Idiot.
All's good now.
T1's, T2's, LADA, whatever. Get a pump and a CGM if at all possible, and you can handle the tech. It's the easiest way to get tight control.
This is true Jen, not everyone can have this success even with all these tools and I can't use those tools due to other problems with them although I may have to go to a pump at some point. Certainly they should be available to everyone who wants them.
