So, I’ve managed to reduce my tests to at least 8 a day (well, that’s still much^^)
But it’s a little success. I ask myself before each test: "Will it really give me useful information right now?"
And I’ve realized that often my insulin still works so it’s better to wait until it’s gone before I test again.
I try to keep that going and listen more to my body so I don’t run into too many ups and downs (like my favourite struggle: Eating to much when I’m low, and giving an extra bolus afterwards again… ^^).
Maybe, there’ll be more “a little to high” BS numbers, but then, it’s more stable and I FEEL better with it!
What do you think is more important to stay healthy?
A better A1c or more stable numbers through the day?
I was already more stable about two years ago but my A1c was still around 7,5 so I got frustrated and wanted to intensify things again…
I know, there’s no guarantee for not getting complications, but when watching a documentation on a new holistic understanding of our body, I just thoght:
If I really feel healthy and happy, maybe that’s much more important for actually staying healthy!
I mean, you can’t ignore things, and that’s not what I want to do…
I want to listen more closely to my body, which numbers and strategies for regulating feel good, and which do not…
Instead of forcing myself to strive for perfect numbers, because that makes me frustrated again and again, and wanting to drop down things sometimes, being angry of myself…
I wanna become a friend of my body! 
Glad to hear that you are doing well! The goal is to have stable, good blood sugars.
The A1c is only an indicator – it’s an average. So I think you are taking the right approach. I generally know how my blood sugars are – so the A1c should not be a “surprise”. The main reason for me to measure it is to see if I am possibly experiencing highs that I am not catching.
If you are measuring your blood sugar 8 times a day, then you know more than an A1c 
First things first. From your page/blog, I understand you are Type 1 and that you are on pump. Have you thought of CGM, continuous monitor. Then you will not need to test “often” and no strips required.
Do you have diabetes educators in Germany; you may get more information from them. I feel 2-3 readings by strips per day may be sufficient for keeping tabs on the BS numbers and diabetes control. Some days you may need more readings, those days when ther is change in diet, activity or mental stress (being a student, only periods of stress can be during exams, assignments etc. or ailments/being sick)
Your main topic on A1c. It is more important to have good values of A1c than all of the “freedom” “feel good” factors. Kindly understand that A1c directly can be co-related to development of complications of diabetes.You must “feel healthy and happy”, but it’s “much more important for actually staying healthy”. You must take care of readings and precautions but should be cheerful and happy doing it. Don’t get frustrated, you must try again till you succeed and nothing succeeds like success. Take a lighter view of life. Make lemonade from the lemon the life has dealt us.Lemonade should be sugar free ofcourse. LOL. Love.
You need to reach both goals: A1c below 6.5 and deviation as low as possible. In your age stable numbers alone will not be enough. An age of over 80 is absolutly realistic for your generation. To reach this age without major complications is a long way to go but it can be done. Others have proved to us that it is achievable.
My first suggestion to reach better A1c is to increase the test frequency. Just to get more knowledge about absorbtion time and the reaction to different types of food. The next step is to draw the right conclusions from the meter readings. I assume with your test frequency that you will catch negative developments early. Thus I think the real question is: why is the A1c still above 7.0 despite all the early corrections you have applied? Is it the night or something else? If this question can not be answered easily then I would recommend to ask your diabetologist to get a rental CGMS for one week. You will have to pay for the sensor but it is worth the investment (40-50 EURO I think). This way you will learn what really contributes to your A1c. If you know your enemy: basal setting, rising in the night, post prandial etc. you can do something about it.
This is interesting because I had my doctor’s appt Wednesday and received my lab reports yesterday with a 6.5 A1c. Of course, I wanted it lower. Perfectionist. It should be in the 6’s, but everyone wants things better than they are. Another thing to remember,though, is that an A1c is one number that measures blood sugars over a 2-3 month period. Would you use one number to determine how much insulin you take over 2-3 months or how much you eat over that period? That’s why blood sugar testing is important. Before I got a CGM, I sometimes check 8-12 times a day when I was on vacation because I was eating different foods and getting different amounts of exercise. Eight times is not too much at any time, on vacation, weekends, or not. It’s also important to know how to regulate the insulin you take for the food you eat and exercise you get, whether that’s through MDI or pump boluses. An excellent and fun-to-read book is “Think Like a Pancreas.” It’s written by Gary Scheiner, a diabetes educator and a diabetic. You’ll laugh and you’ll learn as you read it. He addresses many of the issues you talk about. And he’ll tell you how to get the blood sugars stable without feeling like they’re jumping on a trampoline. As I said, it’s an excellent book. I’d highly recommend it. All this will contribute to an even happier lifestyle that you want already. And listening to your body is good; BS readings at times can be wrong - but don’t ignore them if you don’t feel like the numbers they say you are; just do another test to make sure it’s right.
I agree with Kristin and the others. If you take your blood sugars frequently , the A1c will not be a surprise. A CGMS is good for trends , and helps ij a push for more stability, but the learning curve to mastery with the CGMS and managing the data for me has been LONG… I like the accurate data I geet from my MM REaltime CGMS, WHEN it is accurate. Just do not “nursemaiding it” with calibrations, But that is another story…
Congrats, keep up the good work, and do not look at your numbers as a judgement of you. If they are a little 'too high" , look for the patterns as to why they are a “Little too high”… I know it involves logging and charting and downloading and all the little self-science experiment paraphenalia while you are trying to live your life and interact with things/people/events outside of your diabetes world… I feel it all the time. But do not beat yourself up. Take VERY small steps.
You can do it!!
Gos Bless,
Brunetta
Life is not all about the A1C :-).
I used to be able to run my bg so low that I had an A1C in the low 5’s, but I had a lot of hypos. Then my hypo awareness didn’t disappear but became less, especially if there was a string of hypos. Then I ended up with several scary hypos and finally ended up with my wife calling 911 and a trip to the ER room.
I still have good control, A1C’s in the high 5’s or low 6’s, but not nearly as many hypos as I used to have. And I’m a lot happier and in touch with reality.
Wohaa, thanks a lot for all of your comments!
And thanks for cheering me up again!!!
Feeling healthy AND happy is the best goal!
I already had CGM and found it great, but unluckily, you can’t get it permanently in Germany.
I think I KNOW a lot about diabetes, I had very good doctors and education, but it’s dificult for me to find a constant balance way of taking care. Sometimes I exaggerate, and then I don’t wanna take care at all… So I think I have to integrate my diabetes into a constant balanced lifestyle. As a student, that’s not easy for me, but I’ll finish this year and I very much hope my numbers will love the regularity of the working week when I’ll have a job! And I wanna find a balance between listening to my body AND my numbers!
But I won’t give up. Thanks for your support!!! It’s what really keeps me going!!!
Love, Astrid.
Sure u will complete studies this year and be a well rounded personality. Education is life-long. U will learn more and more, but u will get more satisfaction helping others learn.
In my opinion, even after following the string of discussion here, the A1c numbers are important than feeling healthy and happy (in the context u said in the start); a person must feel happy and healthy while adhering to the numbers and when the numbers are not ok, u should not become frustrated. Once in a blue moon the numbers may not be ok but the satisfaction of striving is more important. It is important to play the game and strive for the best and not get discouraged/frustrated.
An important lesson of Life, be a friend of (befriend) your body (learnt from u). We will have lemonade!!! Let us toast to it.