Comments on: Just Call Me Your Highness

By: t1d

t1d — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 18:33:20 +0000

Karen
I thought the reason protein causes sugar highs was because the amino acids in meat (arginine? I think) cause the alpha cells of the pancreas to release glucagon, which tells the liver to let go of stored sugar.
I think sugar accounts for just 4% of the mass of a muscle, so there is some sugar in all meat.
Arginine can cause beta cells to release insulin, too, but if you don’t have any you only get a spike of glucagon.

By: d2

d2 — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 01:26:20 +0000

Amy
I hear and read your pain and challenges. The size and the volumn of the data is large. With 10 blood glucose reading a day time 30 days the result is 300 readings with a date and time. It would take a person 5 minutes to “look at” all the readings. It is interesting that this is a more recent item. There was a time when some of us were faced with dealing with NO numbers. It was a real challenge when one attempts to define a “feeling”. I would suggest that you examine the list of the specifics that you review to respond to the unplanned movement in glucose levels. All are external factors with no indication as to what is taking place within the body. What is the brain, kidney, liver, etc and their specific interactions of biochemical reactions within the blood stream of the body? What has helped me is to: Learn from yesterday, live for today and hope for tomorrow. When many individual photos (blood glucose readings) are reviewed in a quick pattern, they become a moving picture. It becomes a movie of the transport of glucose through the body for usage, storage, retrival, processing and removal. Does one need to add a bolus or consume some juice to bring a glucose level back to a normal range. Hope this helps.

By: Dan Fahey

Dan Fahey — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 15:43:15 +0000

I was reading Sarah’s comments about counting protein and fat calories.
I don’t yet use a pump but I gather that you mostly count carb calories to determine bolus doses.
I don’t understand that inasmuch as using insulin/needles I’m always estimating the whole package of calories [which is I think Sarah's point].
Taking protein along with carbs helps to lengthen the time over which carbs get assimilated [a good thing].
How DO insulin pumpers make that calculation?

By: Dan Fahey

Dan Fahey — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 14:47:17 +0000

The comment by Ali is right on.
It’s helpful to know the numbers above which one starts to get in trouble, othewise we wouldn’t know when to react. However the issue isn’t so much IF we’re over a particular number but how often, and for how long.
Very frequent testing allows for the kind of feedback that permits us to “fix” the problem [until the next time].
I probably test once per waking hour, so I feel pretty confident that I’m heading off problems before they go too far.
Even so, I’d love to see the CGM become accurate enough so that the every 5 minute routine can be counted on [since it's an automatic]

By: ken fried

ken fried — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 03:14:55 +0000

I’m 24 and have had diabetes since I was one year old. I have the same problem with the unexplainable highs yet it never phases me. 3 months ago I got an insulin pump and things have been going great but I still have this sort of apathy towards highs. For instance it’s not uncommon for my blood to go into the 200’s, 300’s and sometimes 400’s (much less frequently since the insulin pump). Hopefully one day I’ll start to care, and realize that a number above 120 isn’t good. Unfortunately I’ve lived my entire life with always seeing numbers above 120, it’s so hard to change my perspective at this age.
Ken

By: Bernard Farrell

Bernard Farrell — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 13:29:41 +0000

Amy

I feel your frustration. What you’re describing is pretty much an everyday experience with me – even with a CGMS.

I’m curious about your endo’s talk about being over 180. It makes this sounds horrible, when for someone with type 1 you’re probably going be over 180 at some stage on many days. What is it with endo’s and setting unrealistic expectations? I think there are better ways to express the same idea.

By: AmyT

AmyT — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 05:13:30 +0000

Thanks for that, Linda — all of it.

I wanted to remind Tom that this site is, after all, a personal web property, akin if anything to MY living room — a place where we can be completely candid “among friends.”

Besides, using the initials is a nice way of disguising what I really feel like shouting, I think :0

By: Linda B.

Linda B. — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 03:37:22 +0000

First off I would just like to tell Tom who posted above about the WTF, Aren’t there more important things going on in your diabetic world than concern over 3 letters that I am sure you have uttered at least once in your lifetime? The highs the lows, the counting the injections, the food the supplies, etc. you do what you are supposed to do and something goes wrong I would utter the same phrase, It’s getting it off your chest and voicing your frustration. I am positive that Amy is not standing in the middle of the room with her kids around shouting WTF although I must say a good vent in private or in the shower can help relieve the stress of all the junk we all deal with everyday.
Now that I have that off my chest I would like ro say that over the past 12 years Diabetic for 30) I have found thet certain foods do shoot me up there. I also have found that my gastroparesis delays my absorption of food quite a bit. I do not know if your celiac has this same sort of affect. I do know that stuff happens and we cannot control what are body does with the food we consume once we swallow it. I would not commence on a total freak out yet. As with everything there are a lot of variables we need to deal with. Stress, work, meds, the thought of running out of supplies, kids, husbands, other family things, your blog, d-life articles, writing books, there is a lot going on in your life. My advice, keep a check on the sugar, try to meditate, pray, stick a pin in a doll!!, whatever you do to destress. Stress is my biggest downfall, well that and carrot cake!! But anyway I find when I take the time to RELAX, I am then able to focus more clearly on what the culprit might be. I have found out that the less stress I have the less my gastroparesis seems to be, thus my food absorption tends to be a little better.
Good Luck and take a little you time, you deserve it!!!

By: Jan

Jan — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 17:59:44 +0000

SUS, great post. Sudden Unexpected Surges are only acknowledged by our endo regarding growth spurts. But it is good to have a warning that this is, indeed, possible. We have had six to eight hour surges sometimes of high blood sugars that won’t budge with corrections, but need a hefty 50 percent temp basal increase to bring them down. I am always looking for a reason. Would not be high protein, as she will not eat a lot of protein or meat. Bubbles in the tubing could be hidden somewhere. However, I also noticed we might have a SUS after a few days of couch potato TV computer behavior. Which is to be expected. We also have had a few instances where we put her to bed on a perfect night time basal and between our last 2am check and 6am she has gone into the 200s. Since that is the one time we can’t check it’s frustrating. We now have a cgms which helps a lot but there are some nights even that fails us because we sleep through the alarms.

By: jadesr

jadesr — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 09:19:36 +0000

And, thank you Sarah. That is exactly how I feel.