Thanks for the update Sarah. Are medical devices and supplies , doctors visits etc. covered where you live ?
I hope you will visit your health team in the near future to discuss some of the problems you had to go through yesterday . Are insulin pumps available ? However probably more finger poking , than living without a pump .One needs to stay focussed , not always easy , as we have to remember to bring along our supplies, gain a lot of knowledge and use the knowledge effectively .
Sharing on TUDIABETES and other blogs is one of the wonderful technologies available to us.
Stay well …
Happy to hear the good news! Days like yesterday are so painfully frustrating.
Hi, Sarah. Glad to read you finally got the blood glucose level to come down. Please talk to whomever prescribes your insulin about how to establish correction ratios for yourself. That way you’ll feel more certain when you do have to take extra units to cover a high.
How are correction doses determined? Trial and error! I take 1 unit of rapid-acting for every 30 mg/dls over 140 mg/dl in the mornings, but only 1 unit of rapid-acting for every 50 mg/dls over 140 mg/dl. And if I’ve exercised that day, I may need a little less. A lot of blood sugar tests helped me figure out I needed a little more in the mornings. But everyone is unique; my correction ratios won’t necessarily work for another person.
The frustrating thing, as you’ve just lived through, is when you have highs that don’t seem to respond. And sometimes that does happen. All the tips you received, such as drinking water, gentle exercise, eating a small low-carb snack, etc., are the methods most of us have to resort to on occasion. Let us know how it goes!
Dear Nel.
Are pumps covered by the BC govenment?
yay glad you’re doing well
I am so happy it has gone down. How did you feel at 54 and bit shaky?
This happens to me from time to time. Just remember, this is not an exact science. If it was, you would be able to control your blood sugar perfectly at all times. If this is a daily pattern, then make the changes. You need to look at the overall readings of a couple of weeks to get the overall picture.
Sid
Hello Anthony ,
To answer your question simply : YES , however there are restrictions …one has to be not older than 18 !!!, one has to have a doctor’s special authority, which is most likely easy to obtain . I wish I knew how to cut and paste I think it is called, however if you google " Advocacy win in BC: Province to fund pumps for children " , then I am sure you will be able to get to the news letter, put out by CDA in December 2008 , called Diabetes Current .
We are having a Provincial Election , May 12 and I am sure lots of people will be /are working on the " choosen " Government to add pump coverage to ADULTS , including other ASKS .
Another topic all together , correct ? Hope this is helpful .
My GP says that he has a research paper that shows that people on pumps do not do any better than on multiple daily injections. Our nazi health minister must of have circulated that to all doctors in the province. I will call his receptionist on tuesday to see if I can get a copy. This would be interesting to find out who is the authors and how in the hell to they get that conclusion. Alberta fully funds foot amputations for diabetics but nothing else. Boycott tar sands oil. although without it alberta wont be able to subsidize the rest of Canada.
There have been studies (Scott S posted this some months ago) showing that people who had good control before pumping didn’t show improvement & some actually had higher numbers because they were able to eat more. If I remembering it correctly, those with higher A1cs did improve when switching to a pump. So like everything else with diabetes, there are no rules:)
That sounds reasonable but GP exaggerated by implying all. In my case having something mechanical attached to me 24 hours a day would drive me insane faster than 10 injections per day.
Also the higher A1c may have improved their score with good education. Unfortunately in Canada this means high carb diet which only a few diabetics do well on, most don’t. CDA preaches high carb will not give cheque to volunteer anymore violates my beliefs.
Wouldn’t be the first time a doctor didn’t read an entire study, or didn’t read one critically.
Sure Scott Strumello would be happy to share this info again.
Good point–people do seem to get a lot of good education with pump training. A friend has been Type 1 for 33 years. Partly due to being diagnosed before current info, but he never counted a carb in his life before going on the pump. No one ever taught him to properly dose either. He was in the hospital frequently with hypos. A couple of times he was picked up by the police & thrown in the drunk tank when he was hypo & could have died there.
This is where I’m at right now…No matter what I do, shoot or eat I’m high.
Sarah M, I’m glad it worked for you finally, the advice offered to you may help me as well.
My last A1C( which does not tell all !!) was higher than previous and not because I ate more , I trained hard for a half marathon instead. HOWEVER …fewer lows ( am pumping since 2001 ) …I hope this study did not use 3 month data . Actually a JDRF study is stating the opposite , The reason , why I qualified to start pumping was hypoglycemic unawareness ( could be a killer ) . My Doctor is clear , that not everyone is pump material and I have to agree with this statement.It requires dillengance .
Dear Nel.
That is interesting that you went on the pump because of hypoglycemic unawareness. All diabetes requires extreme dilligence. My wife met a diabetic that never measured and poped his avandia once a day bet his A1c was over 9%