Welcome! New members, please, introduce yourself

Welcome
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Hi everyone! My name is Michelle and I was was diagnosed with T1DM 30+ years ago. I have been through a lot but have also learned a lot. My first wake up call was when I suffered with neuropathy (edited, not nephrology) in my teens. The pain was unbearable so I began to take care of myself. I haven’t seen an A1c of 7 since then…go figure! The price that I paid was the many episodes of hypo seizures. Later came the realization that I am sensitive to insulin, and yet sometimes resistance sets in.

After using MDIs for years, I finally decided to try the pump. I’m currently using an Omnipod and I am okay with it. Currently using Dexcom G5 and that has been extremely helpful. My last A1c was 5.4 but it’s a daily challenge as most of you know. I’m so thankful for this community and I’m hoping to share and learn some more on this forum! :smiley:

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Hi @JenA, Yours is not an unusual story, a large number of adults with type 1 were initially diagnosed T2. We are glad you have gotten the correct diagnosis and we are glad you are here,

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Hi @MichelleM, We are glad you are here, we are also hoping to share and learn from you.

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Thank you!

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Hi, I’m Michael been a type 2 since 1997, I am currently using Humalog and an insulin pump. Last a1c 6.2.

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Hi Michael40. Welcome, we hope you will enjoy this forum.

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Hi all! I’m John, a Type 1 diabetic for 40 years. Can’t believe it’s taken me so long to join this group but I’m looking forward to learning from all the experience here and hopefully can share a thing or two.

I currently use a Tandem pump with Humalog for my basal insulin and a combination of Afrezza and Humalog injections for meal boluses. I also use a Dexcom G6 CGM. I’ve followed a low carb diet (Dr. Bernstein inspired) for a long time but have recently had the liberty to experiment with more carbs thanks to Afrezza. Though I’ve been struggling with getting the dosing just right, especially with meals with a lot of protein and/or fat.

Anyhow, looking forward to some interesting discussions.

Cheers!

John

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Welcome to TuD John. If you have any specific questions it would be best if you posted them in the forum. Several people here use Afrezza and would be able to help you.

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Hi @johnfk, That’s an interesting way to do Humalog, as basal in a pump and as injection for boluses, why not do both basal and bolus Humalog with your pump?

I do hope to hear more about you Afrezza experiences, welcome to the community

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Thank you, will do!

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Thanks @Stemwinder_Gary. To answer your question, I find bolusing with the pump too unpredictable for me. E.g., sometimes a 5u bolus acts more like 3u, especially after the infusion set site is a few days old. I don’t have that problem with good ole syringes which I can use all over my body.

As for basal, I’ve found nothing beats the pump for handling the dawn phenomenon and for matching changes in basal needs during the day.

I’m happy to share experiences with Afrezza. If you have specific questions let me know.

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Hello,new here. 67 yr old with type 1 for over 30 yrs. New to pumping and CGM.
Kaiser pt using Dexcom G6 and Tandem T2.
Have been using Tandem steel injector since starting a couple months ago and am going to try the soft injector next.
Overall doing well and really enjoy the convenience of not sticking and multiple injections, especially in public.
Not all is perfect especially with Dexcom sensors, but much improved average BG readings.
Will read on here and hopefully be able to contribute something as we go on.
Mark

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Hi mkevenson, Welcome to TuDiabetes. I hope you will find many interesting topics on the forum. I am sure you will be able to join in the conversations and learn new techniques from our members. Enjoy!

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Pastelpainter, thank you for the welcome. Will get my feet wet.
Mark

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Hello. I am glad I found this forum.

I haven’t been healthy for years, and it’s pretty much all my fault. I made excuses as to why I didn’t take time to go to a primary care doctor, opting to deal with emergent things like repeated kidney stones with specialists only. I really had no excuse; my employer offers great health insurance and time off for medical needs is generous. I just didn’t bother. Both of my parents are adult-onset diabetics. My father had coronary issues starting in his fifties. I began having the same at a much younger age, and shortly after experienced cold sweats, extreme thirst, blurry vision, etc. I was also rather overweight as I enjoy good food.

A visit with a new doctor revealed an a1c of 11.6. I became very scared and immediately changed my ways, starting on metformin and other medications (ACE inhibitor, statins, etc) along with begining mild exercise. Within a week I saw by blood sugars plummet from above 300 to about a 100 and often lower. I quickly shed pounds. A couple of months later, I was down 20 lbs and my a1c was 7.6. While I know this is still high, I am at least finally confident I can get lower. My cholesterol numbers, liver enzyme numbers, etc. have evened out as well. I was afraid after all this the tests would show no change.

I’m here to hopefully learn more about this condition. I have a child to raise. I can’t be rotting away in a wheelchair and on dialysis. I would need to lose another 30 lbs to have my BMI fall into ‘normal.’ As of now I still am considered obese by that standard.

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Welcome to the forum, mkevenson!

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Hello. My name is Marilyn and I will be 68 next month. I was dx in 1959 when I was 8. After years of poorly controlled diabetes due to bad advice and urine testing, I became much healthier when glucose could be tested at home by using blood. I was already 30 by then. My A1c hasn’t been higher than 5.5 in 20 yrs.

I don’t remember not being a diabetic. I try to live with it as well as I can while not always being pleased with having to deal with such a complicated illness. It is what it is.

Was a very low carber for years, but now a vegan plant based carb eater.

I am shooting for setting a record for living well with diabetes.

I have been married just short of 50 yrs and we have a 30 yr old son.

Oh yes, Tresiba and Novolog pens.

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2 posts were split to a new topic: Insulinoma

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I do hope you achieve your goal.

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Been on the site some time now, never got around to the intro.

I just turned 70 and have been on a pump for seemingly forever. First a Disetronic D-plus, then a Cozmo, then a Medtronic, next an Accu-Chek, followed by an Accu-Chek Combo, and now a Tandem t:Flex. My favorite was the Cozmo because of the great software, features, and the customer service. My least favorite was the Medtronic, primarily because of the bad attitude of the company toward their customers. The t:flex has been discontinued but I wouldn’t get another because I always felt that Tandem treated it like a second-class product.

I use a DexCom G5 now, and since I’m on Medicare, my next pump Fall of ‘19) will probably be a Tandem t:Slim X2, since Medicare will pay for it and the DexCom G6.

As you might guess from my age, I’m retired now, after a multi-disciplinary career - CPA, software engineer, systems engineer, cybersecurity engineer, tax accountant, and so on. Because of my technical background, I tend to take an analytical approach to my diabetes, which my doc calls “insulinopenic type 2”. So far, that keeps my A1c in the 6-6.7 range, with an all-time high BG of 333, which was when I had to take prednisone.

In early 2019, I get my biggest challenge yet - I get to undergo surgery, with all the fun that entails, such as dealing with a temporary stopping of my Eliquis (blood thinner) and putting up with hospital staff that has no idea how to handle a diabetic.

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