New HB1aC

In early September I am happy to report that my hb1ac was down to 173! It's getting better but boy does it seems like it's slow :( Well, I shouldn't complain. I am really doing much better on letting go of the sweets and nighttime snacking. Another good thing for me has been to stay active. Activity really does a number on the high numbers we struggle with. I have stopped skipping breakfast for the most part. More later friends :)

Holidays are Torture on my Averages

With the holidays came lots of good food. Why does this always happen to me? Because I have no self-control? That would be it. I made candy for Christmas for my non-diabetic friends and family members and sampled too much of my own creation. I think that my average according to my ping meter is around 165 for the 3 month. It's a little better at 157 for the past month. I try not to beat myself up too much. I don't want to be too discouraged about falling off the wagon during the Holidays or else I might lose heart and give up the fight and that's not gonna happen. Well what else do I have to report? Oh yes, I still love the ping! I recently received my updated meter that Animas sent out. There was a software problem in the earlier meter remotes in which one might get the wrong amount of insulin if bolus was given via the meter. I don't use the food database that much. I still have yet to put in my favorites but I will get around to it soon. The other thing I need to do is get some of those tunes for my pump. And the scratching issue with the pump bugs me. I strongly urge everyone to get a cover for their pump and be very careful bumping into things. It seems this pump gets scratched up much easier than my old minimed paradigm did.

Sugar-Free Red Bull

Woke up this morning and blood sugar was 135. That's pretty darn good for me. I suffer from waking HIGH blood sugars half the time so 135 I will not gripe about for now. I hope to get some help with my basal rates once the pump trainer visits me this week. Anyhow, I ate breakfast a few hours afterward and had my usual which is low sugar oatmeal and 2 slices of toast *always my toast consists of low carb bread*. Approximately 28 carbs and for that I took exactly 2 units of Humalog through my pump. An hour later I had a sugar-free Red Bull energy drink. I started feeling like crap around 30 minutes later and so took my blood sugar, it was a whopping 288! Now I am blaming it on the Red Bull but what gives because it's sugar free? The only thing I can think that might bring my sugars up so high is the aspartame in that drink. But I had no knowledge that aspartame would drive sugars up. I think I will do some research on this in my spare time if I can find any. One thing is for sure, Red Bull is a no-no for me from now on.
Looking on the list of ingredients for this sugar-free Red Bull, I see something boldly listed as "phenylketonurics" what the heck are those?

Hb1ac Is Going Down!

I've been trying for over a month to lower my glucose levels. I've been eating right except for the occasional slice of cake or cup of ice cream. I find that when I do eat something sweet, even though I take the correct amount of insulin, my numbers will go into the 200's and stay that way for 3-4 hours. The same thing seems to happen with milk and also with breads (except for low-carb or sugar free brands). These spikes really irritate me because it shows me there are just some foods I can never indulge in. Why am I trying so hard to get my sugars down? That would be because my Hb1ac taken in August was a whopping 8.7! The one before that was 6.9. I am a nighttime snacker and that is to blame for some of these skyrocketing levels but more than that I just know that I have had tons of stress in the past 6 months so that's probably it. Another problem I have that might be the blame is that I do not drink enough water. I love coffee and I can drink that all the time if I let myself. And what does coffee do? It dehydrates us. Is coffee safe? Well, the jury may still be out on that because I heard a news report that stated that coffee was actually good for you! This news after hearing over a year ago that it was harmful. Watch the news and something that harms you one week is beneficial the next, go figure.
I'll be reporting some of my blood sugar numbers on this blog and maybe some of you more experienced diabetics maybe can give me some tips. I've only had diabetes for 5 years so I figure there is still lots for me to learn. The pump has truly helped me I admit and I am so looking forward to getting my new Animas Ping this week.