Earlier this week, I was sick again. A very clingy cold with high snot-producing capability and lethargy like whoa took up residence in my face and chest, and my blood sugars did not respond kindly. As a result, I spent the better part of six hours between 260 – 330 mg/dL on Tuesday. Being high like does not feel good….
It is humbling to look in the butter compartment of my fridge and see insulin. It’s necessary. And I’m grateful. The out of pocket cost is upwards of $380 per bottle without insurance, and making sure our family has insurance coverage is our biggest worry in regular rotation. When job situations look dicey, my first concern is insurance. When there’s talk of storms…
A tiny, precious bottle with tremendous responsibility. You might also like: Insulin Pump Refill: In a Pinch. Don’t Mind Me. When Good Insulin Goes BAD. Despite Insulin …
Guest Post: People with Diabetes are Demonstrating for #insulin4all
Diabetes Community, Diabetes Online CommunityToday’s guest post comes from Elizabeth Rowley, director of T1International – an organization working towards sustainable access and affordability of insulin, diabetes supplies, medical care and education for all people living with type 1 diabetes. They are planning a protest at Eli Lilly on September 9th, and Elizabeth is borrowing SUM today to share the who, what, where, and why of…
For several weeks, I was flipping open the charging port on my t:slim insulin pump and plugging it in while I was in the shower. But then I noticed the charging port cover was looking a little worse for the wear, and I connected with a friend about best practices. (“Best practices” standing in for “How the hell do you…
Last night my low alarm went off like a siren in my bedroom, partly because I had hooked my phone up to a bluetooth speaker to (successfully) help amplify the Dexcom alarms, but mostly because my blood sugar was 50 mg/dL. How the alarm didn’t wake up my daughter (clad in Captain American pajamas and asleep in my bed because…
#Insulin4All: A Chat with Elizabeth Rowley.
Diabetes Advocacy, Guest Diabetes Blogger, Insulin, Real Life DiabetesLast week at the International Diabetes Federation’s World Congress in Vancouver, I had a chance to briefly reconnect with Elizabeth Rowley from T1D International. We talked about the #Insulin4All campaign and the work she and her team are doing to help provide access to people with diabetes around the globe, and how our online community can work together to improve…
I’ve been a fan of Pump Peelz for several years, impressed by both their products and their back story. The company, founded in 2011 by high school sweethearts turned married couple Scott and Emily, aims to “help people with diabetes live with more confidence by turning insecurities associated with diabetic accessories into a form of individual self-expression.” Can’t argue with…
I’m not a good traveler, but I am a good packer. Part of my preparation ritual is to make sure I only bring what I need and that outfits are tried on and coordinated before I go. (Because there was that one time I brought a shirt and forgot pants and that made for a different sort of panic before…
Nothing helps remind me more about the importance of being familiar with serving sizes and what they look like than being on the road for a few days. Meals away from the comfort and familiarity of my kitchen make for some guesswork, and these last few days have shown me that I could use a refresher on serving sizes. Here’s…
“Do you pre-bolus for your meals?” “I do.” (I was happy to answer this question because I actually do pre-bolus. Pre-bolusing is my A1C’s saving grace.) “Okay, that’s great.” She made a few notes in my chart. “How about for snacks? Do you pre-bolus for those?” “I … um, nope. I am horrible at pre-bolusing for snacks.” Unfortunately, hat is…
I feel like the beginning of Diabetes Blog Week had so many prompts that really tapped the emotionally-saturated side of my diabetes management that I’m spent. But I didn’t want to phone it in today for the last weekday post, so I’m pulling myself up by the bloggy bootstraps and putting my hacker hat on. (Damn, Gina – that sounds…
Don’t mind me … … I’ll just be sitting here with 1 unit of Humalog left in my pump because I went to bed with 9 units left and tried to use my insulin to the very last drop. I’ll let my dawn phenomenon-induced morning basal rate suck up the rest of this cartridge before swapping it out for a…
Guest Post: Timesulin, Innovation, and the Sniff Test.
Diabetes Advocacy, Diabetes Products, Guest Diabetes Blogger, InsulinPeople with diabetes know what people with diabetes want, and John Sjölund is no exception to this rule. Diagnosed with type 1 diabetes just before he turned four, he has created a simple, streamlined solution to make multiple daily injections easier to manage: Timesulin. I’ve used his product, and thought of it as “informed MDI’ing.” Recently, he kicked off an Indiegogo…
It slipped out of my hand and smacked against the tile floor, making a thick, heavy sound that went silent and caused guilt almost immediately, like dropping your mom’s favorite Christmas tree ornament and watching it smash into a dozen pieces. Brand new bottle of insulin, used previously for one, single pump cartridge filling. I had just taken it out…
Clever Diabetes Recycling (Upcycling!)
Diabetes Advocacy, Diabetes Community, Diabetes Online Community, Diabetes Products, Robot LifeAfter 27 years of type 1 diabetes, with ten years of pumping and over 60,000 blood sugar checks, I’ve certainly generated my share of diabetes-related garbage. All the little syringe caps and infusion sets, bottles of insulin, and dead strips, I could scent a landfill with the soft, wafting bouquet of band-aids (insulin) with ease. But it doesn’t all have…