Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Dblog Week: Let's Do It


Yesterday we gave ourselves and our loved ones a big pat on the back for one thing we are great at. Today let’s look at the flip-side. We probably all have one thing we could try to do better. Why not make today the day we start working on it. No judgments, no scolding, just sharing one small thing we can improve so the DOC can cheer us on!

What can I possibly do better with, as it pertains to my diabetes care? Well, there's a never ending list in that regard...but the #1 shortcoming (and the major contributor to my higher a1c) is my propensity to slightly underbolus food. Sometimes a little, sometimes alot. It has its roots in my past experiences of some pretty horrible hypos, some of which would go on all day (and I would require very little insulin or none at all for that day). When 0.1 units of insulin drops you a whopping 90 points (like it did one time),you tend to develop some insulin-phobia. This really doesn't happen anymore,but I still get times when I'm extremely sensitive to insulin. I realize this is an irrational fear, because most of the time that bolus is precisely what I needed to take but you can't always convince yourself of those things. And it drove my Endo very, very up the wall. (over the course of my pregnancy) ("140 is too high. YOU NEED TO TAKE THE WHOLE BOLUS AND BE UNDER 100.") It's also because I never stay 80, I always drop to 50 and have to treat the resulting low. Nowadays, even 180 sounds just fine to me.(treating lows are a major pain in my already busy schedule)

I guess I could compromise with a "to aim for" range of 120-160. (and go back to pre-bolusing) I don't need perfection,but if I take that bolus as I'm supposed to (and check after, to catch any impending lows) it really will result in better control. But as any with mental issue, it's a lot easier said then done. (changing years of hardwired behavior takes professional help, sometimes)

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I can understand the fear of lows - they can be scary. Hopefully you find a level you feel comfortable at and are safe at.

Colleen said...

It's frustrating. Sometimes the insulin works like a speeding bullet and other times, well it just is sucky.