Haha. A sense of humor is a must, right? It's nice to know there's at least one thing I can't get.
I'm new to the site, fairly new to diabetes and totally new to pumping! I do have some questions but wanted to introduce myself. I'll try not to ramble.
I was diagnosed as a Type 2 diabetic when I was 30 years old (now 35), after arguing with doctors to test me. They said I didn't fit the profile. They also knew nothing about LADA/Type 1.5. The endocrinologist I went to immediately did the GAD antibody test (after talking to me about his idea of marketing human breast milk at Whole Foods Market, where I work...needless to say I got a new doctor). My whole world was crushed when I found out I had diabetes and it was crushed a second time when I found out I had LADA and might become dependent on insulin...which did happen less than 2 years later.
I joined a study testing a drug that was supposed to halt the autoimmune destruction of the beta cells that produce insulin. Study was halted...unsuccessful, but I had great doctors during the study and learned a lot! I had great A1C results until I stopped producing insulin and went completely on insulin (vs pills).
Injections, and diabetes, do not jive with the snacking habit I spent 30 years creating!!!
The thing I miss most is spontaneity. I love traveling, have lived and traveled all over the world. During college I lived on 600 acres of land, took care of some people's sheep in exchange for a cabin and once I graduated suddenly decided to sell everything, including my car and move to Manhattan 2 weeks later. Ah, the joys of a life not requiring health insurance!!! Whole Foods is a great company with great health insurance; I'd be silly to leave without a plan. I did manage to live in 3 states last year, moving expenses mostly on them:)
Anyway! I arrived in Cleveland in February and found the most wonderful endocrinologist who was the first person to get me to listen to him about insulin pumps. I think I was still in denial about having this lifelong disease and then wearing this thing that publicly displays it (and i'm not secretive at all about diabetes). And having it attached to me ALL THE TIME! Well, I found out I could de-tach. And the pros started to outweigh the cons.
I started the pump July 8th, 2010. I was so overcome with love for my new One Touch Ping that I named her Lucia (for light) and changed my relationship status on facebook to "in a relationship" with Lucia. The honeymoon is over but I still love her. (A 'her' because I can't have a 'him' hanging around all the time!)
What else....well, since so much of our time evolves around food- I'm a 17 year long vegetarian, now vegan. I love biking, hiking...anything that makes me go outside. I have dreams of moving back to Africa, somewhere, someday, though now I accept I won't be able to live in a hut 100 miles from electricity.
And I am very happy to find this community of people that can identify with many of my daily challenges and experiences!
Now, to my QUESTIONS!
I would like to know what kind of tape I might use to cover my infusion set on the 3rd day so that I'm not worried about the sometimes frayed edges coming up and the cannula coming out. I can't believe how many types of tape exist. And I want one I can cut or adjust the sizes...no huge blankets to cover the set!
And, in the winter I love to take hot baths. What kind of sticky stuff can I use that is stickier than the IV prep wipes I use now?
Last one, I use these wipes called Unisolve to get the sticky stuff off but they're in individual package wipes. It seems so wasteful. Is there something in a bottle that you can put on a cotton ball instead?
Thanks so much!!
Here's to embracing diabetes as part of what makes me who I am....
Courtney