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 :)

Recent Hb1ac.. I am pleased!

Happy to report that my last hb1ac was 7.4 down from the whopping 8.7. I had hoped for it to be lower but I see now that this is just going to take more time. I'm not beating myself up too much over it not being lower. I had lost some weight and found that I was taking too much basal. Now my settings are as follows:

• 12:00 am-1:30 am-.55
• 1:30 - 5:00 am- .60
• 5:00 am- 1:30 pm-.50
• 1:30 pm-4:30 pm-52.5

I've been satisfied with this new Animas ping pump and meter. It's getting the job done. I find I still don't use the food menu carb counter feature but plan on it in the future. My endocrinologist suggested I should lower my basal rate at my last appointment. As I said I had lost weight but another reason to lower my basals were due to the fact that I was not taking in enough bolus insulin. My ratios were totally off. Started a new job and found I was running around skipping lunch every once in a while. Until I get used to this job I can count on it being up and down I guess. Let's see, what else to report..I have almost denied myself pizza altogether. I know I could use my bolus setting for a square and could maybe have pizza but right now it just isn't worth the hassle. I think only once in the past month have I had pizza and I stopped myself at one slice. Before this I would have maybe 4 or 5 and that carb load was really too much for me. I took my bolus all at once, I would go low. I scattered it about over 6 hours like I have been told to do and I would still be 300+ come morning time. Another thing to report is I am getting much better at pacing myself when it comes to activity and am suffering less lows now.

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.