Quietly suffering.

09Nov09

September 28, 2009.

The alarm goes off early.  Oh, so early.  Whose bright idea was it to take an early morning flight home to Denver from this quick weekend trip “home” to Wisconsin?  Oh, yeah, ME.  After all, I’ve burned through all my vacation time and need to get to work as soon as possible on this Monday morning.

Hey, wait a second…  My right arm is still completely asleep.  And numb.  This better end soon.  Come on already.  Come on, wake up!!!

***

Six weeks later.

And from that moment, I’ve had an issue with varied degrees of numbness, tingling, and pain along the right side of my arm and hand, in my ring and pinkie fingers on that hand.

Of course, I freaked.  I Googled.  The most likely problem is ulnar nerve entrapment, sometimes called ulnar nerve neuropathy.

Yeah.   That word.  I saw that word and I haven’t seen a doctor.  That word which should scare the pants off anyone with diabetes.  Most certainly someone who claims to be a diabetes advocate, right?  Even at the Connected Council meeting, I was quietly suffering with the knowledge that something was not quite right.

Truth is, I’m still searching for a primary care physician.  I need to find one who listens to me, who understands how my type 2 diabetes is treated, and who isn’t willing to pass me off to a bottle of Vicodin or muscle relaxants.  I’m not willing to go back to the one I was seeing – the practice managed to lose my electronic medical record, for goodness sake!

Obviously, this presented a problem.  Fear of what might happen at some doctor’s office was holding me back from seeking a live-and-in-person medical opinion.  I didn’t want to be chastised for poor blood sugar control (because I control it pretty well according to my endocrinologist) or even worse, getting that dreaded “all in my head” phrase.

I chose instead to take the suggestions of what Google searches told me about the condition.  I stopped leaning on my right elbow on the bus while I slept during my morning commutes; I limited the time spent at the computer in the evenings; I stopped sleeping on my stomach with my elbows bent at my head; I even gave up my wimpy 3-lb dumbbells.  The numbness and tingling and pain is much better than it was and I’ll be willing to bet that by the time my endocrinologist appointment comes around in three weeks, it’ll be gone.

And if it’s not, the possible ulnar nerve neuropathy (cringe – there’s that evil word again) will be the number one issue I bring up at said appointment.  The number two issue? Asking for a recommendation for a good primary care provider who works well with the endocrinologist’s practice.

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Days of Grace: 48/365

08Nov09

1. Feeling like I can make something cool happen instead of waiting around for something cool to happen.
2. Being truly active again.
3. And the stellar blood sugar readings that result.
4. Even when I have shepherd’s pie.
5. The ease of cleaning hardwood floors.

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Just say “no” to these diabetes myths.

08Nov09

(Originally posted at the now-defunct Capessa website, an effort of Proctor & Gamble, in November 2008.  As with many “republished” blog posts, I have taken the liberty of editing this piece slightly.)

Four years ago this month, before I knew that November was Diabetes Awareness Month in the United States, diabetes made itself well aware in my life.  

Although I had been with my husband in dating, cohabitation, and two years of marriage up until that point, I hadn’t yet observed a significant moment in my type 1 husband’s life.

That all changed by a phone call from a paramedic who had come to my husband’s aid in the grocery store aisle where he had experienced a hypoglycemic seizure.

  Only a few months later, I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.  Genetics and a case of undiagnosed hypothyroidism contributed to this event.

These days, our life together is marked by diabetes in both of its major forms.   And so, November becomes awfully important for us to discuss diabetes with others.

  Some of the common myths of both types of diabetes include:

Diabetics cannot eat sweets and chocolate.  Actually that’s wrong.  When included as part of a meal plan and treatment regimen, those with diabetes can eat desserts on an occasional basis.

Eating too much sugar is what causes diabetes.  Nope, it is a combination of genetics, diet, and exercise that causes type 2 diabetes.  Being overweight can increase your risk if a good diet and exercise are not part of your lifestyle, however.  Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune response that may be genetically based with no relation to diet.

Special diabetic foods should be included in a diabetic diet.  Unfortunately, these foods often include sugar alcohols, which can increase blood sugar levels just as much as sugar.  In fact, sugar alcohols can contribute to unpleasant gastrointestinal side effects.

Insulin causes weight gain.  If insulin usage is managed properly, there can be little or no weight gain.  For many, insulin is necessary for quality of life.  In the case of type 1 diabetes, those with the condition must take insulin to survive.  In type 2 diabetics, the benefits of glucose managment sometimes outweigh the risk of weight gain.

At this time, the risks of type 1 diabetes are widely speculated but still unknown.  Sometimes there is a genetic link, other times not.  However, if you know you are at risk of type 2 diabetes, please consider an annual screening of fasting blood sugar.  

Handled well, diabetes can be an inconvenience and sometimes a source of great frustration, but it doesn’t need to be a death sentence.

Filed under: Diabetes   |  2 Comments

Days of Grace: 47/365

07Nov09

1. Getting back to sleep for a couple hours after light box time and breakfast.
2. Being able to accept the Iowa football loss because Northwestern became bowl-eligible.
3. Making decent progress on a project.
4. Alone time for several hours this afternoon/evening, including cooking for myself.
5. Reading my last subscribed issue of Bon Appetit.  (In fact, I’ve ended all our subscriptions except for Diabetes Self-Management and the husband’s Astronomy.  The rest just get a brief glance before heading towards piles that crowd my home office.  No more, I say.)

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When in doubt, recycle.

07Nov09

Okay, so I’m not officially doing NaBloPoMo.  The biggest reason is that I’ve been doing daily posts for the Days of Grace project, which means I’ll be posting most days until September 21, 2010, only consolidating under the most dire of circumstances (i.e. lack of free internet access).

But since I am doing fundraising during American Diabetes Awareness month, I feel compelled to post something besides Days of Grace every day.  Obviously, on Thursday’s sick day, I missed out.  And today, well, it’s a weekend.  And I have nothing.

When in doubt, it’s time to recycle.  This comes from a meme that was going around Facebook earlier this year, with some slight editing.

Twenty-four random things about me

1. As of this past June, I have spent 12 years in Illinois, 10 years in Wisconsin, and 11 years in Colorado.

2. I was never a NHL fan until I moved to Colorado, so I’m an Avalanche fan and have only a slight interest in what the Blackhawks do. (Though I did go to many UWSP hockey games, traipsing from the dorms to the arena in below zero weather…)

3. Books are always better than their movies, unless that book is Sleepers.

4. I lived in May Roach Residence Hall at UWSP. Yeah, Roach Hall. ’twas great.

5. I don’t mind working with numbers or words, so that’s how I got to be an accounting clerk along with a writer. (But I prefer words.)

6. I changed my name when I got married because of how common my maiden name is and how uncommon my married name is. Otherwise I would have stuck with the maiden name for the usual feminist reasons ;).

7. When I started having a serious online presence, I wish I would have used my maiden name instead of my married name for some degree of anonymity.

8. My first pet growing up was a canary named Squeaky.

9. My beloved pet growing up was a calico cat named Kizzy. Though she was kind of a biatch…

10. I can still remember the (musty) smell of my great-grandmother’s house.

11. I hate that I forget some details of the first house I lived in (until age 12).

12. One of my recurring nightmares has to do with not being able to get back to my immediate family at that first house. Being stuck in the creek or by a train or just getting lost on the way are all reasons why I can’t get home in this dream.

13. I’ve worn glasses since 1980, right before my fourth birthday.

14. That is, except for the three years I wore contacts in college. I never found ones that really fit my extremely near-sighted, astigmatized eyes. (Yes, I’m inventing words now.)

15. Being disadvantaged in the sight department made me hate gym class when I was younger. I was always worried I’d get hit in the eye and my glasses would break (and one time playing volleyball in eighth grade, they nearly did). And I couldn’t stand that I couldn’t see during swimming.

16. Now, I couldn’t imagine not being active. And I would swim for exercise if there were affordable indoor swimming options around here.

17. I am considering doing a triathlon sometime in the next couple years, but I think I need to run a full 5k first and find that affordable indoor swimming option.

18. I used to remember birthdays by heart. Now I need calendars and Facebook reminders.

19. Writing to pen pals got me through the first couple tough years when we moved to Wisconsin when I was in junior high. It was a difficult transition and I was glad to escape through finding people throughout the world.

20. My internal alarm clock usually wakes me up by 6:30 AM on weekends.

21. My immediate family made a big deal out of me being a bicentennial baby (born in 1976), so I’ve always made a big deal out of it. I still have the Spirit of ‘76 elephant a family friend made when I was born.

22. I drank at Ella’s in Stevens Point before I was 21, thanks to the right connections.

23. I will never do karaoke again after the “Beat It” incident on my 21st birthday.

24. My husband is exactly a year and a half older than me. Exactly, to the day.

 

Filed under: Days of Grace, Diabetes, Meme   |  5 Comments

Days of Grace: 46/365

06Nov09

1. Warmth all day long.
2. Making up yesterday’s work and doing today’s work with an hour to spare.
3. Reading so much good diabetes advocacy writing around the ‘net for American Diabetes Awareness Month.
4. Making it through an entire grocery shopping trip without becoming impatient or crabby.
5. A truly lovely evening at home – dinner and hockey watching with the husband and felines.

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Show and Tell: The Shirt

06Nov09

While I usually talk type 2 diabetes, it’s been awhile since I’ve talked type 1.

Doesn’t this shirt tell it all?  I saw it on CafePress a few years back and thought it was absolutely perfect for my husband, who has had type 1 diabetes since he was 11 years old (March 1986, to be exact).

So, stupid pancreas, right?  (Although some have thought the t-shirt shows a piece of the male anatomy…ugh!)

Both types are difficult to deal with, however, people often “forget” about type 1 diabetes.  Often news reports generalize diabetes, forgetting that difference between type 1 and type 2.  There are similarities, but there are also some significant differences.

Type 1 requires insulin to stay alive – not everyone with type 2 needs insulin.  Type 1 comes about through an autoimmune attack.  Nobody gets it from eating too much sugar (that’s true of type 2, too, by the way!).

Because of the need for “artificial” insulin, it’s never perfect.  Blood sugar can still swing from very high to very low, neither of which is pleasant for the person experiencing it…or the people around them.

Any questions?  Ask me here.  I happen to be raising money this month (American Diabetes Awareness Month) – for every comment I receive, I will donate a quarter (up to $200) to iPump, a small non-profit providing insulin pumps and other supplies to children in need.

(And then head over to Stirrup Queens for more Show and Tell.)

Filed under: Diabetes, Meme   |  7 Comments

Days of Grace: 45/365 (Sick Day)

05Nov09

1. I didn’t get sick in public (even though I started feeling very sick in public).
2. Caught up on much-needed sleep.
3. Applesauce in the house.
4. “Nurse” cats, looking out for me and comforting me today.
5. Feeling tons better this evening.

(No other posting tonight as I continue to recover from this minor yuck.)

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Days of Grace: 44/365

04Nov09

1. Early morning workout on a weekday that didn’t end in me racing for the bathroom after my bus commute due to excessive consumption of water during said workout.
2. Warm and sunny day.
3. Lifting myself rather quickly out of a dark mood brought on by the end of daylight savings time.  (I have to thank Scott for the motivation.)
4. Taking my lunch break not only to eat, but to write as well.
5. Finding out about Colorado Patient Navigator Training.  (Thanks again, Lynn!!)

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Follow them.

04Nov09

Yes.  I tweet.

Yes.  I follow.

And here are some people/organization/cats you should be following.

@SafetyNurse Because I once worked for a medical device manufacturer and learned more about what can go wrong in the operating room than anyone should, now I read this sort of stuff with great interest.

@KellyRawlings Editor at Diabetic Living who isn’t afraid to tweet diabetes-related mishaps (and is cheering my return to vigorous exercise)

@SI_PeterKing He knows football.

@veronicaeye Insights on everything from feminism to football.  And everything in between.

@MrBaconpants Doesn’t bacon say it all?

@Powells Best.  bookstore.  ever.

@sockington The cat who tweets.  And who makes me really think twice about having my own brood of felines.

Filed under: The 'Net   |  3 Comments