Skip to content

Posts from the ‘Robot Life’ Category

Dec 10

4 Comments

Hacking Diabetes.

(Seems like that post title should end with “to bits!!” including a defiant shout and then the popping open of a can of Diet Pepsi.  Or something less specific.)

Last week I traveled to Melbourne, Victoria to present at the International Diabetes Federation World Congress.  Long, Inception-esque flight.  Excellent flight attendant.*

My presentation was anchored in the “Living Well With Diabetes” track, and I homed in on the tips, tricks, and hacks that people with diabetes are using to streamline a cumbersome disease.  But the best part, for me, was getting the folks in attendance to share their tips, and to get discussions brewing between attendees.  A lot of the discussion was built around integration of diabetes devices.  “The technology we have available to us is amazing, but if we don’t wear it and use it, it’s useless.  Doctors prescribe these tools for us, but as a community, we learn to truly integrate these things into our lives.”

  • We talked about the Dexcom-in-a-glass routine, and other patients mentioned putting loose change in the same glass to further amplify the rattle.
  • I mentioned (or at least I think I did) the CGM/earthquake application hack, as well.
  • Keeping things “stuck,” in terms of devices, generated some good discussions.  We touched upon different tapes/stickies we use (Opsite Flexifix, Tegaderm, Skin Tac), and I brought up the Toughpad solution I’ve used for my sensor rashes.
  • A few HCPs in the audience shared tips they picked up from their patients.  “One of my patients had a tough time remembering to take her nighttime insulin dose, so I suggested that she tape the pen to her toothbrush.  It’s something she uses every night before bed!”
  • A patient talked about the time she swapped her basal dose for her fast acting dose.  “I spent that whole night eating.  Never again!”  To help remind her to note the difference between her two insulin pens, she wraps brightly colored duct tape around her fast-acting insulin, so she is forced to note the difference.
  • We talked about diabetes devices and their wearability, and I shared the insulin pump/wedding dress pocket idea. The pump-in-a-trouser-sock trick was also mentioned.

Whether we’re talking about how to best (read: most comfortably and practically) use diabetes devices or highlighting the need for peer-to-peer support, the discussions are important because diabetes does not exist in a vacuum.  For me, I hit diabetes management stride when the tools – glucose meters, insulin pumps, CGMs, logbooks, medications – are in my control and fit into my actual life.

If there’s something you do to make diabetes easier and you’d like to share it, please do!

*Huge shout out to Rachel, the Qantas flight attendant who only ridiculed me a little for “losing” my phone (only to realize I tucked it into my book bag during a jet-laggy moment) and was the epitome of excellent care and service for for a nervous flyer like me (QF 94 on 11/30 from LAX – MEL, and again on QF 93 on 12/8 from MEL – LAX).  Already writing to the Qantas management team to highlight her kindness, but writing it down here on the off-chance that someone who works for Qantas has diabetes.

Related posts:

One Size. Partnering for Diabetes Change. Diabetes Reality, Reframed.

Dec 9

8 Comments

Not Prescribed.

There are things that I use, regularly, to manage my type 1 diabetes that never end up on a prescription pad, but are instrumental in making the diabetes integration in my life reasonably seamless.  (In related news, I’ve never, ever owned a small purse.)

 

[None of this is medical advice.  You shouldn't ever be taking anything from the Internet as actual medical advice, especially from me.  I can't even whistle.]

Related posts:

Keeping the Dexcom Stuck. Over It. Hypoglycemic Blues.

Dec 5

11 Comments

Time is of the Essence.

For the first few days I was here in Australia, I was wondering why my morning blood sugars were such crap.

“Must be the travel, or the time zone change, or the lack of sleep, or the food-on-the-go,” I reasoned.

Nope – it must have been the fact that I changed the time on my pump to PM instead of AM, giving me the basal rate pop I need in the late evening hours, instead of the wee morning hours, therefore causing me to wake up much higher than normal.

Time, especially the timing of my basal rates, is of the essence.

Related posts:

Ketchup and Mustard. Diabetic Fashionista. Despite Insulin …

Dec 2

5 Comments

First Impressions: One Touch Verio Sync.

[Disclosures up front:  I currently have a contract with Animas and I have received the Verio Sync meter for review prior to the full US launch. I was not asked to write this review.  Opinions shared, for better or for worse, are mine.  Typos, too.]

“Mawm!  Are there cookies in there?” my daughter asked, after the package containing the Verio Sync meter was delivered.  (Not sure why, as we’ve yet to receive cookies in the mail.)

“No, it’s a new meter.  To check my blood sugar,” I replied.

“Oh.  To make sure it isn’t whoa?”

I’ve been using the Verio IQ for over a year now, and I have a good relationship with that meter.  (It still buys me flowers, and I scratch its back before bed.)  I’m adjusting to not using the Ping remote to bolus (though I miss that feature) and I don’t often use the tagging feature, but I like that it’s available, if I want to use it.  Basically, I want my meter to give me accurate results and to fit into my insurance coverage.  Those are my two big needs.  If it’s cool to look at and does fancy things, even better, but those first two needs make or break my relationship with a meter.

Testing out the Verio Sync wasn’t a big switch, but there are differences between the Sync and the IQ.  The Sync, at its core, is the same meter but it syncs up with my iPhone via the One Touch Reveal app, sucking all the results over and logging them automagically.

Comparing the Sync to the IQ is apples to apples, for me, because I was already happily using the IQ.  That said, I like these apples.  Personal pros and cons?  Got ‘em.

PROS of the VERIO SYNC:

  • It looks and feels like the meter I was using (Verio IQ).  The results are consistent with my Verio IQ, and with my Dexcom results.  It fits into the meter bag I use.  It uses the same strips as the IQ.
  • The syncing mechanism is easy, and seamless, in that the Bluetooth capability on my iPhone needs to be active, and the Sync needs to be paired with my phone.  The set-up process took a matter of seconds.
  • The interface of the application is very visual, and downright pretty.  Like with the Dexom G4 system, adding in color-coding as a reference point is terrific because it gives me a quick look at how my blood sugars are doing.  Lots of green means I’m in-range often, while blue and red signify lows and highs, respectfully.  The bar graph of in-range/out-of-range is also calculated by percentages, which gives a more finely tuned look into my numbers.
  • Logging specifics like insulin dose (kind, units), activity levels (type, duration, exertion level), and being able to fine-tune the timing of my day through the logbook set-up make for personalized diabetes management.  My doctor will love this data, and I’d do well to look at it more closely.  (But how long will it be before I burn out on inputting all that data, and return to my basic meter needs of “be accurate, be covered?”)
  • Also, every data point has the option for notes, which makes a HUGE difference for me in terms of actually making the data useful.  I can say that I was 240 mg/dL before 60 minutes of moderate exercise, but being able to add that I took a correction bolus before exercising puts a post-exercise low into context more precisely than me looking at the results a few days later, forgetting I had corrected, and thinking that the moderate exercise dropped my blood sugar more than it did, in reality.  Data is most useful in context, and open-field note options are long overdue in this kind of diabetes software.  And not just in the blood sugar result data points, but ALL data points.

  • One thing I always look at on my meter(s) are the averages, and the Sync gives averages in an overall sense, but also offers blood sugar averages by time-of-day (and looking at mine, I see that that lunchtime results could use some love, as could before bed.)

CONS of the VERIO SYNC:

  • Even though the device was paired and the Bluetooth was on, it didn’t sync automagically for the first few blood sugar checks.  I’m not sure why.  Now, a week later, it syncs fine.
  • Leaving the Bluetooth active on my phone sucks the battery life away.  Not optimal, especially while traveling.
  • Entering the logbook times of day was awkward.  Sliding the little white dots around to indicate the time took longer than it should have because my fingers are stupid.
  • The Sync has a white-text-on-black-screen feel on the meter itself.  This is the biggest con, for me, because the colorful screen of the Verio IQ is easier on the eyes on all levels.  Why go backwards?
  • Rechargeable meters seem to be the wave of the future, but needing to charge my meter makes me a little anxious.  I’m already worried I don’t have all the appropriate cables, etc. while I’m traveling, and now I need to make sure I have my meter charger, too.
  • I have absolutely no idea if I’m able to export the logbook to something I can print/send to my doctor.  Having it on my phone is great, but unless I can export the data to something shareable (even a Word doc), it’s only useful to me.  (Exporting the logbooks might be an option, but at the time of writing this, I haven’t figured it out yet.)
    EDIT:  I heard from the PR outreach person for Lifescan and they updated me re: the ability to export.  From her email:  “One of the comments we noticed had to do with exporting the log book to something you can print/send to your doctor. We wanted to let you know that by sending just what is on your screen, the system allows you to control what part of the logbook you’re sharing. You can use the 14-Day Results screen to email a table with all 14 days of results – just tap on the range bar on the 14-Day Glucose Report to get to the 14-Day Results Screen. When you share this screen as an email it is converted into a table.”  I tried this out by going to the 14 Day Results page and then pressing my finger against the screen and holding to bring up a “Help/Share” menu.  By clicking “Share,” I was given the option to “Email, Text, or Cancel.”  Clicking email exported the 14 Day Results page into an email – EASY.
  • If I don’t use the app, and I only use the meter, the Sync is inferior to the Verio IQ in look and feel.
  • Which brings me to the last con:  if the usual techno-joy burnout sets in and the meter becomes simply a meter (and not a clever way to easily create a logbook), it’s not as nice to use at the Verio IQ.  Accuracy seems to be the same as the IQ, but the MS-DOS look of the Sync screen isn’t nearly as nice as the updated, clean look of the Verio IQ.

If there was a way to mash up the visual appeal of the Verio IQ meter and have that be the one that automagically syncs with an iPhone app, this meter would hit all the marks for me.  For now, I’ll bounce between the Sync and the IQ as preference and phone battery allow.

Off to see if I can mail order cookies for Cyber Monday.

Related posts:

mySugr: Feeding the Diabetes Monster. Shine On, You Crazy Pedometer. Short Dexcom Break.

Nov 15

4 Comments

Another #DayOfDiabetes, Twitter-Style.

For World Diabetes Day yesterday, I attempted to participate in another round of #dayofdiabetes, using Twitter to log the different nuances of a day with type 1 diabetes.  It was a tougher day than normal, Internet-wise, because I spent the morning in the plane and the rest of the afternoon with very limited access to Wifi, but it was World Diabetes Day, damn it, so I wanted to try.

My #dayofdiabetes started early … like 2.10 am kind of early, with a low blood sugar and a buzzing Dexcom:

But thankfully, glucose tabs handy on the bedside table made fixing this number easier:

Glucose tabs help keep me from over-treating, because they are carefully portioned out and not appealing enough to have an urge to eat sixty of them.   It feels like a win, not over-treating a nasty middle-of-the-night low.  I was relieved to check in the morning and see that I wasn’t off the charts.

And then I was off to the races … or more specifically, the airport, to travel to Mississauga for the Peel Chapter JDRF Research Symposium.

The low from the night before still hung around in the form of exhaustion, though.

And airport food offerings weren’t substantial enough to fix what ailed me.

Later in the evening, it was time to dress/device juggle:

Never a simple task, especially with disco boobs:

The night at the World Diabetes Day event was lovely, but I did miss participating in the discussions online, particularly the World Diabetes Day 24 hour chat that took place all day yesterday.  Community and peer-to-peer connections keep me as healthy as my insulin does, some days.

And this morning it all starts again, with a blood glucose check on my meter and that instant yearning for a cup of coffee.

Every day is a #dayofdiabetes in my life, wifi or not.  It was amazing, catching up on the Twitter feeds of others who were participating yesterday.  I learn so much about how individualized everyone’s diabetes truly is through this project.

Here is some info, if you’d like to participate in a #dayofdiabetes, and a primer on Twitter and the diabetes community.

 

Related posts:

A #dayofdiabetes. Hard to Capture. Strip Safely: Taking to Twitter.

Nov 11

7 Comments

Diabetes Advocacy Postcards.

I told Birdy I needed to make some postcards for a diabetes project.  She wanted (insisted) to help, so we spent much of last night drawing insulin pumps on index cards.

World diabetes day postcard exchange project ... with help from the Bird.

My insulin pump has been part of her life since she was born, so it’s no wonder she knows the buttons and lines by heart, even though she had trouble fitting all the details where she wanted them.  “Mawm, I could only fit the O and not the O and the K for that OK button, okay?”

 

Related posts:

“OK.” So Fresh and So Clean. (Clean.) Partnering for Diabetes Change.

Nov 2

4 Comments

Photo-A-Day: Check.

Today’s Diabetes Month Photo-A-Day prompt is “check.”  And seeing how different my Dexcom result is from my meter proves why it’s still important for me to check my blood sugar instead of relying on the information from my CGM.  (Also, you can’t see the “blood drop” request for calibration because the overhead light flushed it out, but this Dexcom sensor was four hours overdue for a meter check.)

Diabetes is a science experiment, with imperfect tools, an imperfect host, and a busted up pancreas.  But we keep rockin’.

Related posts:

Photo-A-Day: Past. Short Dexcom Break. Sleep, Perchance to … Sleep.
« Older Entries
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox

Join other followers