Endo Time!

      Unlike SO many other diabetics I know, I actually don't mind going to the endocrinologist. Everybody is super nice, you see other diabetics, and I get out of my 5th and 6th period. I like that. I still hate going to the regular doctor, and I avoid going THERE like it's chasing me with poison or something.

So my mom picked me up yesterday at lunch, and drove me to Chipotle. (Also another tradition I like.) After chicken fajita tacos and diet coke, we had to go to the Children's Hospital parking lot, which was PACKED, probably due to the nasty flu season this year. I went in while my mom parked, and met some other diabetics in the elevator. ("They make pink pumps?" and "Do you have a Dexcom?")

I took off my pump and stuck my finger for an A1c. Apparently they don't need to download my meter because the pump keeps the numbers. Weird, because I have no way to access that when I bolus from the pump.

Like I mentioned, it was busy, and the doctor took a while, but came in and as usual had great advice. She tweaked my target ranges, recommended combo bolus settings, and went over my plans for running and soccer. (I like that sentence, I sound really fit.)

Overall, it went well. My A1c (my best yet!!!) was 5.9%, and I was pretty excited. But even better,  I am on my way to finally get a Dexcom G4!

Endo appointments usually aren't great, but I had to celebrate that one. Good luck on your endo visits!

Life is good.

It's been too long since I posted last, but my life has been busy. Between school, friends, diabetes, and life, I don't have much time to post. But I do have something to say:

THANK GOODNESS FOR OTHER DIABETICS!!!!!

I have no idea where I would be without all the other diabetics I've met. So thanks a lot all of you! <3

I should post after my endo appointment next Tuesday also.  Keep beating the betes everyone!

-Katy

The Walk.

"Expect the Unexpected."

     I like that saying for this post because diabetes has no rhyme or reason. And definitely not good timing. We've all experienced it a several times, and it can be terrifying. But when two of my friends and I clipped my dog into her leash the other night, I wasn't prepared.
     I started to feel a little bit off when we were about 10 minutes away from getting back to my house. But all three of us had been laughing and joking, so I tried to forget about it. A couple of minutes later, my arms and legs began to feel like a strange combination of lead and jell-o. Now I knew I was definitely low, and I reached for my meter. But it wasn't there. "Do you have any candy or something?" I asked my friends, voice quavering.
     "No, I don't."
     "Sorry."
     Great, what was I supposed to do? We were only a little bit farther than a block away from my house, so I opted to hurry up and test when I got back. "Hey guys? I think I'm low... Could we ummm, hurry up so I can test sooner?"
      They jokingly complained, but we picked up the pace. Every step I took, my legs screamed for sugar. When I finally opened the front door, I was walking so unevenly that I probably looked intoxicated. After unclipping the leash (I know!) I found my meter and flopped into a chair to test. Wipe off finger, pull back the lever on the poker, pop open the test strips and fit one into the meter. 5. 4. 3. 2. 1. 45 mg/dl.(2.5 mmol/l)
      I pulled out an unopened tube of grape glucose tabs and tried to tear off the plastic seal. I was too uncoordiated with the low, so I passed it around to both my friends, who weren't able to break it either. "MOM!" I hollered, "I'M LOW AND I CAN'T OPEN THE TABS! CAN I HAVE A JUICE?" In a sort of last attempt, I ended up ripping off the plastic and opening the glucose tabs. I chomped four of them and shouted, "NEVERMIND MOM!"
     I finally had sugar, and I was starting to relax (besides the jittery feeling of the low) when one of my friends asked, "What do the grape glucose tabs taste like?"

Normally? Kid's medicine. But right now they taste like heaven, my friend.

Condescending Wonka Says:

My life in a meme.

Meet Pepe.

            Unless you happened to stumble upon this blog by accident, you are probably raging a constant battle against your own body. You're often sticking your fingers, calculating up a storm, dosing the perfect amount of a finicky chemical that your body cannot produce. We have type 1 diabetes, and try as we might, it's impossible to be as flawless as a genuine pancreas.

But our pancreases are in pieces, and we are left wishing for an unspoiled set of islets.

           What can we do about it? we can focus on managing our glucose levels, for one. Just staying alive is a battle every day, every week, every year. We will do this, and we will find a cure someday. Although we are not able to recieve a functional pancreas today, we can get an awfully cute stuffed one.

Meet Pepe the Pancreas.

Pepe is a hope that we can make insulin with our Beta Cells again. I think I like this guy.

Disclaimer: Nobody paid me to write this, the pancreas was a Christmas gift from my little brother. You can get one at iheartguts.com. The pancreas page is here, and this is the stuffed pancreases are here.

Welcome 2013.

Happy New Year! Even being a somewhat *teenagery* fifteen year old girl, I have a lot to share with you guys today :)

First off, the Holidays: The holidays were great! Seeing my family who I (believe it or not ;P) love to pieces (I'm not denying that they can be embarrassing, but...) was a lot of fun, but adding a big dose of Holiday Spirit to that just tops it all off.
My holiday thing is pretty simple- I work at good blood sugar, but I do what I want... Meaning yes, I took 9 units for desert. And yes, my blood sugar was terrible after that, but it could have been worse. Actually, most of the day I fend off excitement-related lows. It works.

Second, even though blogger hates me (dumping all my posts-in-progress!) Instagram has been great! Thanks for being so patient with my blog silence. It's really frustrating, but I'm still writing posts.

So happy After Holidays, Everyone!