With a side of Insulin

First things first, I have to admit this title is not my own creation. I saw this on a diabetic forum and thought it was incredibly creative.

I feel the need to confront some more common misconceptions and stereotypes about this disease as I hear more and more of them each day.

1. Every Diabetic is a Type 2
Lets use some common sense here people. If every diabetic was a type 2, why would type 1 even exist? Yes, Type 2 accounts for the majority of cases, but that doesn't mean everyone you meet is a Type 2. Type 1 diabetics are the insulin dependent ones and we have to inject insulin. Depending on the severity of the type 2, they may or may not need to. If you see a pump on a diabetic, you'd be right 99% of the time assuming they're a type 1. So please, before you assume anything, just ask.

2.Which Type is Worse?
To answer this question plainly, it is whichever type affects you or a loved one. Neither one is fun, and both have their challenges. No one is asking for diabetes, and no one is preferring one or the other.

3. You're Too Young to Have Diabetes
False. You are never too young or old to get diabetes. Type 1 is more common in kids, but look at me. I was diagnosed at 18 years old, which is technically an adult.

Annoying Questions
Before I start, I know I will get this eventually, but I know most people are genuinely interested, but when my blood sugar is 43 and I am about to pass out, I do not need multiple people crowding around me shooting questions off.

What is that thing? (pointing to my side)
That is my pump

Can I watch you take your blood sugar?
Sure, why not. Just don't ask me a million questions about it

Doesn't that hurt?
Not really, you get used to it

Is 47 good?
No 80-120 is, so this is bad

Do you have to take insulin for that?
Does it matter? If I do, I don't need your input on it.

How do you do that everyday? I hate needles
When your life depends on it, needles become one of your best friends

Can you eat this? It has sugar in it
If I want to eat that, I will eat that. Sugar isn't the enemy as long as I bolus (inject) the proper amount of insulin

and so on and so on. It never ends...

I guess what I am trying to get at is the media, schools, and every other social gathering does absolutely nothing to educate people on this disease and the different parts and types. I am sick of people assuming I am unhealthy and lazy. I am sick of the lack of thought and knowledge put into the questions people ask me. If you want to know my story I am more than glad to share, but do not assume you know everything from 1 TV commercial or show. So before you ask a diabetic what they can eat, or make a ignorant comment, use that 3 pound mass of tissue in your head and think.

More rants and issues to come. Go Bulldogs!

Monday October 29th, 2012

Oh Monday, we meet again.

Mondays consist of 5 classes that pretty much take up all my time between 8am and 4pm. A lot of homework happens after these classes. Lately I have noticed my sugars running a little higher in times of stress before exams or in this case, projects. I have two individual projects in the next week or so, and have a lot on my mind. The more I sit and stress about it, the more I realize how much stress I am putting my body under. Nothing will get rid of that like a solid workout. I lifted harder than ever last night. I think most of it was stress related, but I can't help but wonder if dealing with my ex girlfriend had anything to do with it. All I know is the second I hit the weight rack, I was full rage. I like to think I looked something like this:

But really, that was a joke. I was quite intense about it though. Sugars after were an unpleasant 65, which I corrected with a couple Laffy Taffy. Banana is by far the most amazing flavor for those wondering.

I fear I may be coming out of the "Honeymoon phase" of newly diagnosed diabetics. Essentially this means that when a Diabetic (specifically Type I) is put on Insulin, their pancreas, for whatever reason, decides to start producing a little insulin. Some may think "oh well then they're good right, their pancreas is working again". Unfortunately you would be incorrect. This "phenomenon" only lasts for a short while. Some have it for a month or two, others have it a year or more. The only concrete fact is that eventually it will stop again, and your insulin needs will go up. My morning numbers have been higher than normal this past week and I fear my pancreas is shutting down again. Who knows for sure though, because as stated earlier I am under an enormous amount of stress again. Sometimes I feel like this little guy:

I cannot wait for a full, relaxing thanksgiving break. We have the whole week off and it will be incredible. I am not, however, looking forward to thanksgiving dinner with this new carb limit. That will be a post of it's own I'm sure.

On a last note, I changed my infusion set in under 3 minutes today, which is a new personal record. The first time I changed it (it is changed every three days), it took me almost 15. AS the picture above shows, it looks a little gruesome and big. In reality, it is 100% painless. The spring loaded needle goes in and out with no pain and the set itself is extremely flexible. Only time it hurt was when I hit a nerve ending (self-explanatory).

That is all for now. More to come and Go Bulldogs!

Sunday October 28th, 2012

Good Morning Everyone,

Last night was Halloween for those not in the know, and campus was insane.
Among the "festivities" was Sigma Nu's Voodoo party and everyone's costumes were hilarious. What other holiday lets you dress up in embarrassing outfits and not get stared at? After Voodoo things started getting out of hand. Many kids in my dorm were going a little too hard and I am sure they are feeling it this morning. My roommate and I both have copious amounts of candy in our room (thanks mommy and daddy!) and I may have given myself a little (or a lot) of extra insulin to enjoy some treats. It's been roughly 4 months since I had a piece of candy and it was incredible. Funny how something as insignificant as a Starburst could be a highlight of your night...really puts this disease into perspective.

I may regret it now, but we had a Paranormal Activity marathon last night in our room, and it was scary. If you haven't seen those movies, go check them out! It's almost like Inception and The Exorcist had a child and named it Paranormal Activity.
 +=


Now back to the focus of this blog, besides having some candy and sweet, sugary, my blood sugars were in check all day. I'm sure the 2 hour workout I had early evening helped with that. Lifting seems to bring my numbers up (high stress, high intensity) while cardio brings it down. Cardio brings it down very fast too. Overall this weekend has been successful so far, and numbers continue to get better each week. I have some homework to get to so I will update that later!

More to come and Go Bulldogs!

Saturday October 27th 2012

Last night I didn't go out for Halloween. Most kids seem to love halloween because they can dress up and party. Drinking and Diabetes do not go together at all. Alcohol has a tendency to drop the blood sugar since the liver is focused on metabolizing the alcohol. If I were to drink and then sleep, I could potentially go extremely low while sleeping and die. This is not a risk I am willing to take. I'm paranoid enough as it going to sleep sober. Oh and I am 18 so drinking is illegal :). So parties this year have consisted of me being the DD or "sober patrol" for my friends. Gotta keep an eye out for them! Mostly I seem to be the memory of the group the next morning, since the others were blacked out. I am okay with this role because it gives me a sense of responsibility among my peers.

On a good note, I woke up with this wonderful BG reading :)

Now the real question is can I keep it there all day and beyond, seeing as the first Butler basketball game is tonight and there is a Paranormal Activity marathon going on tonight in my dorm. Parents weekend is next weekend and I cannot wait to see my parents. I know I may have been very eager to leave for college but I do miss my hometown and my parents a lot more than I thought I would.

More to come later. Go Bulldogs!

First Entry.... A little about me

Hello Everyone,

My name is Jarred and I attend Butler University studying pharmacy. The whole point of this blog is for me to express my feelings about transitioning to college with Type I Diabetes and the day to day challenges of this disease. Some of the challenges I have faced so far have been stereotypes, dining hall food choices, and the impact of stress of glucose levels.

I was diagnosed this past summer (2012) with sudden onset Type I Diabetes and was immediately put on insulin.

For those of you who do not know, there are two types of Diabetes. I have Type I, which means my body does not produce insulin. My own body has attacked the cells in my pancreas that produce the hormone and destroyed them. I am currently, and will always be insulin-dependent. I wear a pump and check my blood sugar multiple times a day.

This is what my pump looks like. It is manufactured by Animas Corp partnered with One Touch. The meter on the left is also a wireless remote!

Type 2 Diabetes is where the body "ignores" insulin or doesn't produce enough insulin. Type II diabetics can manage their glucose levels through medications, exercise and diet changes. Some may have to go on insulin, but not quite like us type I folks.

I want to clear a few things up before I go any further with this post. Diabetics can still enjoy sugared foods and all the things "normal" people can, just with a few extra steps. If I want a doughnut, I am more than able to eat one, I just have to adjust my insulin levels to cover it. DIABETES DOES NOT PREVENT ME FROM ENJOYING MY FOOD. Yes I count carbs, and yes I am at higher risk for complications, but I already ate healthy before and still do today. Diets are useless. Nothing compares to eating a healthy diet. I consume over 3000 calories a day and have packed on TEN pounds of muscle in the past 8 months, even with this new lifestyle. Another very irritating statement I hear a lot is "you have diabetes, you must have a lazy, unhealthy diet and lifestyle". I'm sorry, but I was the healthiest 18 year old around, eating a full variety of vegetables, fruits, and proteins with the occasional treat. I swam 1000+ yards every day (I am a lifeguard) and lifted 5 times a week. Yes, being overweight and not exercising can put you at an increased risk for Type II diabetes, but that is NOT the only factor that goes into it. I do not know, and will never know what caused my condition, but I have to live with it.

Now onto the main part of this blog: College and Diabetes

If you couldn't tell already, I am 18 years old which makes me a freshman in college. College transitions are hard enough being a normal 18 year old, so starting college while trying to get manage a whole new life is quite the undertaking. 

Food choices: As a freshman I am required to live in a dorm and have a meal plan. Thankfully my school has an unlimited meal plan, which means everything is buffet style. This is incredibly helpful when I got pick my meals. Everything is my own portion sizes and I know exactly how much I am eating. Counting carbs can be a tedious task with food labels, so imagine counting without food labels. This has been the hardest part of adjusting to college life. The first couple weeks, when I was guessing carbs, my numbers were all over the place. There is nothing scarier than having low blood sugar and not knowing until it's severe. For those who do not know, normal blood sugar is around 80 - 120. The first couple days I was anywhere from 41 - 220. Low blood sugars are extremely dangerous when you get that low. Anything from passing out to seizures to eventual coma or death can occur as the blood sugar drops. Clearly the most important thing is to eat something with fast acting sugar (candy, fruit, fruit juice, sugared pop (not diet), sugar tabs etc). As the months have passed, I have become extremely effective at guessing carb counts in foods and rarely see numbers about 125 or below 75. Enough about food, it is making me hungry and its two hours before lunch.

Checking Blood Sugars: The sole reason I am including this topic in here is because I have been stared at time and time again in class or in public while I am checking my blood sugar. Its not even a large amount of blood. Its a simple finger prick. This is a life-saving measure for me, so honestly my classmates who feel the need to whisper and sneer and stare, please keep doing it, so maybe one day when someone close to you has to do this, you'll understand what their doing. I'd rather you keep staring and use me as an education tool and help you understand how lucky you are to eat whatever you want whenever you want. I'm sorry my meter makes a single beep when it has enough blood to test, thats the meter telling me its working and I like that. Those of you that are annoyed by it can move on because I am not about to skip checking my blood sugar for your convenience. Glad I got that off my chest.

I think thats enough for this post, I know it wasn't super informative, but I needed to get some of that stuff off my chest, especially the comments and stereotypes part.

More next time!

-Jarred