I ALSO TEST IN PUBLIC EITHER ON A STORE COUNTER OR AT THE TABLE BEFORE I EAT.AT MY SYNAGUOGUE 1 LADY DOES NOT LIKE WHAT I DO SO I TRY TO EXPLAIN & TEACH WHY BUT SHE THINKS SHE KNOWS BETTER.WHO CARES.I HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF MYSELF.PERIOD.
WHY SHOULD I HIDE WHAT I NEED TO DO TO STAY HEALTHY & ALIVE?I NEED TO TEST,BOLUS & THEN EAT.
I guess because I was just diagnosed, and the fact I am shy to begin with.. I hate testing in public as of right now. I'm OK with it now at school, but I'm with a bunch of vet students! They don't care, but I warn whoever's around me just in case.
I don't let anyone watch me give myself injections either, because it still feels strange.
I imagine one of these days, I won't care anymore and will be testing and bolusing whenever, wherever.
If someone says something, oh well.
When i was first diagnosed i would stay in the vehicle before entering a restaurant cause there was no way i would give injections in the rest room, way toooooo disgusting. when i started the pump all was good, my daughter and i would go in get food, find a table, test and eat. a few times people would stare, big deal, my daughter noticed and her sugar was low and she was so crabby that she looked at the people and said "Do you have a question that you want to know or do you want to tell us your medical history, maybe you have your surgeries in the rest room!" The people apologized for staring and a few other tables chuckled. One couple there was diabetic and before they left they thanked my daughter for the new strategy for handling people that stare. We do what we have to do and what we are comfortable doing at the time, to bad to the rest that dont understand. What would they do if it was them or are they and they dont care enough to take care of it.
Do what you have to do and if people dont like it ask them to leave. why do you always have to leave?
Good Luck and God Bless us all
Kat
GOOD FOR YOU, SO DO I.
Just another opinion: If the person objects, tell them to take a hike. You are entitled under ADA to take care of yourself without unnecessary hassle. A large number of times, my servers will ask if I need a container to dispose of my strip and lancet. I reply, yes, that will help me protect you, my server. Another customer in a restaurant objected, and told me to go to the restroom. I responded the restroom was filthy and refused. They called the manager. Because of my earlier (previous visits), the manager supported me and said he agreed the table was better than the restroom.
My bottom line, tell the family member next time they do something disgusting and they will, it bothers you and they should control themselves better. <>
The last time someone in an official capacity told me to manage my diabetes in the restroom, I calmly told them āIf you ask me that a second time, you will be facing a lawsuit.ā. They backed off. This kind of discrimination is illegal under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
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I donāt think Iāve ever had a stranger tell me to test in a bathroom, but Iāve had family members give me a bit of hell for it. I laugh and tell them look, I saw the Late Great BB King do it on stage; Iām doing it wherever the hell I want ;-]
Same goes for my MDIs, although I try to find a clean place to inject when I need to do an injection on my leg. Iād avoid bathrooms at all costs.
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Glad this post was brought back!
Iāve never had a negative experience while checking my blood in the open (that I can remember). A lot of people will get very concerned and ask if Iām okay or if I need something, I just kindly explain that I need to check my sugars all the time, not just when I think something is wrong.
In regards to checking in public, Iām perfectly comfortable doing it. I also feel that maybe, just maybe, another D will see me and they will feel more comfortable, too.
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Am I the only one on here who constantly has a problem with managing his diabetes in public?! I mean, I donāt go out of my way to test in public. And I wear a pump mainly only for the convenience factor of not having to inject. Otherwise I would gladly do MDI. I have no idea how I could go to the mall, to a baseball game, to a concert, to a night club, without a pump. And when I do go to those places with my pump, I rarely even bother trying to test sugar. I am at the mercy of the distance between the venue and my car. So how do you guys do it? How do you guys blend into society. This diabetic has about had enough of the stares, the managers coming out and telling me not to do that in their restaraunt, even professors telling me no eating in class and you canāt have cell phones, girls wanting me to leave my pump in the car before going into the restaurant.
[quote=āCocheze, post:70, topic:10731, full:trueā]
Am I the only one on here who constantly has a problem with managing his diabetes in public?! I mean, I donāt go out of my way to test in public. And I wear a pump mainly only for the convenience factor of not having to inject. Otherwise I would gladly do MDI. I have no idea how I could go to the mall, to a baseball game, to a concert, to a night club, without a pump. And when I do go to those places with my pump, I rarely even bother trying to test sugar. I am at the mercy of the distance between the venue and my car. So how do you guys do it? How do you guys blend into society. This diabetic has about had enough of the stares, the managers coming out and telling me not to do that in their restaraunt, even professors telling me no eating in class and you canāt have cell phones, girls wanting me to leave my pump in the car before going into the restaurant.
[/quote]I do ALL of those things and have done so since 1990 and NO ONE has ever said anything to me, stared at me, or told me I canāt wear my pump. When I am in the mosh pit at a show, at a party, at a restaurant, the mall, the stadiums and arenas, heck even on a hike with my pals, I just pull my meter out and test and no one even notices. If I need to fix a low I pull some glucose out of my pocket, or if I need to correct a high I just whip out my pump and do fix, and again - no one even notices. Every once in awhile I might step away from a dinner gathering and test away from the table but no one asks where I am going I just say āexcuse me, Iāll be right backā. I am not a guy though, and I donāt make a production of my condition.
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I hated doing MDI and looking for a restroom to inject. Iād be at a movie theater and enjoy my popcorn and the find the closest bathroom, go into that small cubicle and try to balance things while I try and inject.
OmniPods make life so much easier and I can bolus as I watch the movie
I always avoided doing any of those things in front of just about everyoneā¦ Since I got afrezza itās gotten a lot easier because I donāt feel near as out-of-place taking a puff off an inhaler in front of others than I do making myself bleed or injecting, and frankly it works so well that I really donāt even need to check my glucose levels, I can just decide on the large dose or the small dose and get on with my life-- maybe check a couple hours later to ensure I am not getting a delayed spikeā¦
I was āshyā about testing or taking shots in public only at the beginning, after which, I decided that these are things I have to do for my health and it really doesnāt matter what other people think. Like @karen57, I have never had someone (other than my immediate family, but thatās another matterā¦) stare at me or say anything to me about it. Iām not particularly secretive about my diabetes (maybe I should be?) and have, as a result, educated several people (some of whom are also T2) or motivated others to further investigate their own health situations. To date, the only time my D may have adversely affected my life (outside of health) was when my CGM fired off alarms during a job interview (I was low). Iāll never know if it had any real impact or not on that one. Other than that, I do what I have to do.
I have read all the comments on this thread and many more and no one has said that they have experienced the same social problems as me regarding diabetes management. For starters: the pump. Friends have objected to it, almost being offended or embarrassed about it. Girls have stopped making out with me once they find out that I am wearing it. Bosses think if I just ātook a shotā I would be a harder worker. Professors and teachers think itās a cell phone or mp3 player and ask me to leave it in my car. I donāt know what, if anything, I am doing wrong by wearing a medical device. Secondly, going out to eat. When Iām by myself, and the circumstances are right, I will test my bg and discretely bolus at the table. No one says anything. But when Iām with my āfriendsā, they donāt want me doing any of that. AND they donāt even want me using my pump at the table. I guess the outstretched tubing embarrasses them. They expect me to do everything in the bathroom.I have been kicked out of a girlās house, I have been kicked out of a girlās car, a boss asked to see my pump then took it from me thinking it was an ipod or whatever even though i had already told him what it was a few days before, my guy friends have pressured me to switch to injections because girls wouldnāt like the pump. Some girls have ask me to switch to injections because they donāt like the pump. So all of you, please tell me, what am I doing wrong? Is it my looks? I am pasty white with red hands and red hair, maybe I already look sick before all the diabetes gear is whipped out ? Am I picking the wrong people to hang out with? I wish I knew how I could get away with all of this like you guys do. I would love to not be able to wear a pump, use 2 pens, and pop a shot at a restaurant after checking my sugar. I would probably check my sugar in my car, and probably give the injection in my car, too. So do I keep the pump with all the negativity or do I say nothing and just sneak away for an injection? Iāve had diabetes 21 years since I was 7. Pumping since 14. I think most of these problems have surfaced since I was about 16, when I first started driving and got into the real world. So in conclusion, help me out guys. What do I do?
p.s. I have been kicked out of a restaurant before after a patron complained to the manager that I was doing drugs when all i was doing was checking my sugar under the table. many more food places have seen me begin my routine then ask me to do that in the bathroom. also , dates. girls have asked me to leave the pump in my car or at home or to just ātake a shotā . Iām starting to lose my mind, guys.
Can I ask which part of the country youāre in? It sounds like you are surrounded by a disproportionate number of ignorant people.
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Alabama. A small town in the middle between Birmingham and Huntsville.
Do you happen to wear your pump on your forehead or something? Why does everyone in your path take notice of it at all?? Professors and Bosses can be introduced to laws that protect folks with medical devices and the necessary doings with them. Friends and girls and most certainly ignorant ones can be avoided and if you choose to hang out with folks like that then do remember that you made that choice. Getting kicked out of a restaurant for testing is tricky since they usually do have the right to refuse service. Iād probably put them on notice via social network and public opinion announcements.
"When you say āhelp me out guys. What do I do?ā - Do you really want some suggestions or do you just love the drama of your ignorant surroundings. What you do is 1) be discreet so that no one notices your pump and meter and even your diabetes, 2) take a minute to educate these idiots, 3) get some new friends.
To me it seems that rather than mature and get on in life, you have reverted back to high school shenanigans and ideas and enjoy being around people who want to change you and judge you. Time to grow up and maybe move on. Good luck, Cocheze. Oh, and careful when ordering tea in your neck of the woodsā¦itās likely Sweet Tea!
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at what point do diabetics stop trying to educate everyone and just say ā**** off, I gotta do this!ā ?
I think youāre WAY past that pointā¦
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