Diabetes Soldiers

Posted on May 17, 2014 by Laddie

Today’s Topic: Back for another year, let’s show everyone what life with diabetes looks like! With a nod to the Diabetes 365 project, let’s grab our cameras again and share some more d-related pictures. Post as many or as few as you’d like. Feel free to blog your thoughts on or explanations of your pictures, or leave out the written words and let the pictures speak for themselves.

In yesterday’s post, I mentioned that I am trying to convert from a Windows user to a MacBook junkie. It hasn’t happened yet. I am a MacWinBookDows person. I need them both.

Today I started with a photo of 52 crystals lined up in a row. The crystals are the beautiful blue pieces that operate my Animas reservoirs. A long time ago I learned that I don’t need to change my reservoirs on the same schedule as my infusion sets. Each reservoir lasts me for about a week. So these 52 crystals represent a year of reservoirs for me. A year of insulin. A year of life. These crystals represent the soldiers that keep me alive. Day after day. Reservoir after reservoir. Week after week.

They remind me of Chinese soldiers. All in a line. Powerful, but regimented. One, two, three, four, five. The Great Wall of China.

My kitchen has back splash tiles that measure 3.5 by 3.5. Add in the grout and each tile embraces 5 Animas crystals.10 tiles with 2 leftover crystals equals a year.

This morning I lined up 52 crystals. I cropped my photo and then used various filters in Pixelmator to show my Diabetes Soldiers in different costumes. I couldn’t figure out how to do the final cropping on my MacBook, but Photoshop on my Windows Desktop delivered my final photo: Diabetes Soldiers, Diabetes Soldiers Black & White, Diabetes Soldiers Sepia, Diabetes Soldiers Green, Diabetes Soldiers Blurred & Colored, Diabetes Soldiers Bumped, Diabetes Soldiers Vortex and Colored, Diabetes Soldiers Inverted.

Diabetes Soldiers. One, two, three, four, five. Animas reservoirs keep me alive. One, two, three, four, five. Insulin keeps me alive.

Every day.

Thank-you.

Life Hacks for Diabetes (and Blogging)

Posted on May 16, 2014 by Laddie

Because the audience for Diabetes Blog Week is mostly a “With It” crowd, I don’t know whether I have any diabetes tricks that will make my readers think “Aha! What a fabulous idea. I would have never thought of that.” One reason for that is that almost everything I know I learned from the DOC. But many of my readers are also bloggers. So I decided that I would briefly mention a few diabetes tricks and then a few blogging hints. Because I am approaching my one year anniversary of blogging, I’m sure I’m qualified to help those of you who have been doing this for years and years!

Diabetes Related

Pull out the scissors: A few years ago after I had 2-year period where three or four Medtronic pumps cracked in the exact same place. I was using the Medtronic clip and one rep finally suggested I quit using the clip. They sent me a free leather case which I despised. I started carrying the pump in my pocket with no other protection for it. I hate to sew and just used my scissors to cut holes in my pockets for the tubing to fit through. I have never had any of these holes fray badly or ruin my pants. So those who think you need reinforced and stitched holes for the tubing. Not true. Just be careful when you cut the hole so that you don’t cut any other part of your outfit. Also, don’t put the hole near the bottom of the pocket because things like car keys and coins will fall out of the pocket and take a ticklish journey down your pant legs. BTW once I quit using the Medtronic clip, I never had a pump case crack again.

Pants with Pockets: I previously wrote a blogpost about my favorite “diabetes” pants and thought I’d give the link here. As a woman I struggle to find pants with pockets that can hold my pump, CGM, glucose tabs, car keys, and phone. These slacks are perfect for me and I wear them most of the time. I even bought an extra pair and shortened them to work as capris. Click here to get the information.

Don’t wait at home: Most of us order at least some of our supplies and medications by internet order and rely on FedEx and UPS to deliver them to us quickly and in good condition. If you live in Minnesota and are expecting a sensor delivery and it is -10º out, what do you do when you need to go to work and can’t stay home to receive your package? Or you live in Phoenix and don’t want insulin sitting on your front porch in 115º temperatures. Both FedEx and UPS have programs that give you many options over the delivery of your packages. Click here to read my November post detailing services available from FedEx and UPS.

Blogging Tips

Those of you who read my blog regularly have probably noticed that I use graphics or photographs for every post. The last thing in the world that I am is an artist, but I used to work at Kinkos/FedEx Office in the days when we provided in-store design service for our customers. I learned the basics of Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator and thoroughly entertain myself by continuing to work in those programs. This winter I purchased my first Apple computer and am slowly trying to wean myself from my Windows design programs. I think that Pixelmator at $14.99 will be a good replacement for Photoshop. I’ve been told that Sketch will replace Illustrator, but I haven’t taken the plunge at $79.99. I’m going to throw out a couple of ideas that you can use for adding graphics to your posts.

Text as Art: I often use text as the basis for a graphic. I am cheap and there is no way that I am going to spend money buying fonts to use in my blog which nets me zero money. My absolutely favorite site for downloading free fonts is Font Squirrel which bills itself as Free Font Utopia. You can browse through categories and find some really great fonts to download. It’s easy to download fonts and if you don’t know how, just Contact Me through my blog and I’ll help you. If you want to see some Font-based graphics, click here and here.

Clip-art: So far I have not been able to abandon Windows and live in a totally Mac world. My best source of clip-art is through Microsoft Word. Under the Insert Tab, click on Clipart and you will have access to a huge library of free clip-art. I use this clip-art on my blog as well as for fun personal documents. In my Mac world I have not found a lot of free clip-art. I bought PrintMaster for $40 and it has a lot of clip-art. But I keep going back to the desktop and Windows. I have an iPhone, an iPad, a MacBook Pro, and a Windows Desktop. I use all four devices every day.

Mantras and More

Posted on May 15, 2014 by Laddie

Today’s Topic: Yesterday we opened up about how diabetes can bring us down. Today let’s share what gets us through a hard day. Or more specifically, a hard diabetes day. Is there something positive you tell yourself? Are there mantras that you fall back on to get you through? Is there something specific you do when your mood needs a boost? Maybe we’ve done that and we can help others do it too?

All day long I’ve tried to think of something to write on mantras. Reading multiple #DBlogWeek posts about mental health has not done much to inspire me. I’m feeling a little gloomy reading about the struggles of my fellow DOC members. Right now I just want to yell “GROUP HUG!

I wasn’t a cheerleader and “push ’em back, push ’em back, way back” doesn’t doesn’t seem to have much relevance beyond what I should be doing to dessert at the table: “Push it back, push it back.” I’m not much into meditation and “Om” mostly reminds me of Sheldon’s throat singing on The Big Bang Theory.

The Little Engine That Could is a charming and inspirational children’s book, but “I think I can, I think I can” seems a little trite on my 1,460th insertion of a long-needled Silhouette infusion set. I know I can, but I still don’t want to.

“Take one for the team” implies that because I have diabetes, I am statistically saving another person from getting diabetes. If only.

I’ve often written about getting up every day and trying to do a better job with my diabetes. For the most part, that is what I do. But I can’t use the “Try, try, try again and you shall succeed” mantra. What will be the measure of my success? That I didn’t die? That my diabetes is cured? That I have a good A1c? The only good prize to win with diabetes is that you don’t get the bad prizes. “I guess that is a good prize,” she says, smiling….

Maybe “Just do it” should be my mantra. With visions of a Nike swoosh, that can be inspirational like climbing Mt. Everest. Or swimming the English Channel or finding a cure for cancer. I’d look good in a Michael Jordan basketball uniform (not!).

But “Just do it” can also mean “Quit thinking about it, you ninny, and do what has to be done.” Test your blood sugar, count your carbs, change your pump site, calibrate your Dexcom, order your supplies, bolus for meals, do it again. Do it again and again and again. Don’t think about it. Just do it.

Yeah, that’s the one. Just do it.

Always an Optimist

Posted on May 14, 2014 by Laddie

Today’s Topic: May is Mental Health Month so now seems like a great time to explore the emotional side of living with, or caring for someone with, diabetes. What things can make dealing with diabetes an emotional issue for you and / or your loved one, and how do you cope?

I don’t carry a lot of emotional baggage with my diabetes. I knew very little about diabetes when I was diagnosed as a young adult in 1976 and I didn’t know that I should be sad, mad, or depressed. Both of my parents had issues with depression and for whatever reason, I have been spared that journey into darkness.

I began my diabetes life before home glucose monitoring was available and my insulin regimen was one shot a day of Lente. I followed doctor’s orders when it came to testing my urine and taking my insulin. I wasn’t perfect when it came to my exchange diet, but I followed the diet plan more often than not. Diabetes wasn’t filled with too much guilt and I had no expectation of perfect control. In some ways I was also very naive. It was never part of my mental make-up that I even had diabetes. To this day my self-conception is that I am active and healthy and that whatever the stereotypes and realities of diabetes are, that’s not me. A phrase in the songs of several artists (The Band, Casey Shea, Harlan Howard, and more) fits me perfectly: “I’m in pretty good shape for the shape I’m in.” Stupid for sure, but it helps keep mental demons at bay.

Lest you think that I am all smiley-face and Pollyanna about diabetes, I find it to be an incredibly frustrating and mind-tangling condition to live with. Most of the time my blood sugar responds in a somewhat expected fashion. Things aren’t perfect, but the tracings on my Dexcom are familiar and not totally from Mars. Then days like yesterday. My BG started climbing after my morning walk when usually it stays level or trends low. Multiple corrections and a lunch of only 18g carbs rocketed my numbers high and higher. It was the day to change my infusion set and two changes later (the first one hurt), nothing improved. Boatloads of insulin finally brought things down just in time for dinner. Stir-fried chicken and vegetables (no rice!) re-launched my BG to the stratosphere.

Most people who know me think that I am incredibly disciplined and rarely veer off the path of lowish-carb good nutrition. Ha! Not so! A “good diabetic” would have spent the evening drinking oodles of water and avoiding the snack cupboard. Unfortunately my most common reaction to unexplained and “undeserved” highs is to say “What the heck!” and start gorging on crackers, cookies, and ice cream. Add another glass of wine to the mix and moderation is banished.

Frustration with diabetes. Disappointment in my lack of willpower. Guilt for sure. A night of Dexcom squawks. A recipe for mental anguish and depression.

But morning comes. And just as I have on each of the 13,693 days since I was diagnosed with diabetes, I get up and resolve to do a better job today. Another day filled with diabetes, but a new day nonetheless.

A Diabetes Poem

Posted on May 13, 2014 by Laddie

Today’s Topic: This year, Diabetes Blog Week and TuDiabetes are teaming up to bring out the poet in you! Write a poem, rhyme, ballad, haiku, or any other form of poetry about diabetes. After you’ve posted it on your blog, share it on the No Sugar Added® Poetry page on TuDiabetes, and read what others have shared there as well!

Thanks to Abby the Black Lab who has taken time off from her busy day of napping to share some thoughts about diabetes.

A Diabetes Poem by Abby the Black Lab

I don’t know fancy poetry,
But I do know how to rhyme.
Diabetes is a pain-in-the-butt
All of the time.

I’m not a smart alert dog.
I don’t smell lows or highs.
But I do wish that diabetes
Would take a big good-bye.

At eighty pounds I’m big and black
And always need a hug.
I’m just a big old lapdog
And cuddly like Lancet the Pug.

It’s true that I am just a dog.
Dog biscuits make me drool.
I am so glad to not count carbs
Diabetes is so cruel.

I’m starting to get old and stiff.
My joints are getting sore.
It’s sad to know that one gray day
DSMA walks will be no more.

Glucose meters come and go.
Diabetes seems to stay.
It’s faithful like a big black dog
And never goes away.

If I could bark and scare away
Type 1 and Type 2 likewise.
I’d ask for heaping bowls of food
And not the Nobel Prize.

So diabetes, please be cured
And don’t come back another day.
You’re not a friend like cats and dogs,
That’s all I have to say.

Change the World

Posted on May 12, 2014 by Laddie

This is my first time participating in Diabetes Blog Week and I am overwhelmed at the idea of publishing a blogpost every day for seven days. I usually take a long time (too much time!) to write each blogpost and that just won’t be possible in this scenario. At least I had access to the topics a week ahead so that I could get a head start thinking and writing and thinking more and writing more and thinking a lot more and …. Well, you get the picture. Thanks to Karen Graffeo of Bitter~Sweet™ for being the brains behind this project and organizing it for the fifth year.

Today’s Topic: Let’s kick off Diabetes Blog Week by talking about the diabetes causes and issues that really get us fired up. Are you passionate about 504 plans and school safety? Do diabetes misconceptions irk you? Do you fight for CGM coverage for Medicare patients, SDP funding, or test strip accuracy? Do you work hard at creating diabetes connections and bringing support? Whether or not you “formally” advocate for any cause, share the issues that are important to you.

As I looked at the topics for this week, today’s subject is the hardest one for me to write about. In recent months, discussions about advocacy have been everywhere. In some ways I think I’ve already said it all. And if I haven’t said it, for sure someone else has. Unfortunately just because we’ve talked about issues over and over again doesn’t mean that the problems have been solved and we no longer need to think about them. No, the problems are still here and we need to keep bringing them back to the forefront.

I think that there is an umbrella under which all of my advocacy concerns about diabetes fit. I strongly believe that everyone with diabetes needs access to proper care and supplies. That can mean a lot of different things. I participated in the Spare a Rose, Save a Child campaign in February. That was and is the nitty-gritty of needing proper care and supplies. Many children diagnosed with diabetes in developing nations have almost no access to education and insulin. Every donation to the campaign made a huge impact because a child who had absolutely nothing was given the gift of life.

Although insulin and diabetes supplies are more readily available in the United States than in developing countries, I would still argue that many people in our country are not getting proper care for their diabetes. Every person who is told that she has a “little bit of diabetes” and then sent home without education and test strips is not getting proper care. Every adult with crazy high blood sugar who is handed pills without any consideration that he might have Type 1 instead of Type 2 diabetes is not getting proper care. Every child who has the flu-like symptoms of diabetes at the pediatrician’s office and doesn’t get a routine blood glucose test is not getting proper care. Unfortunately these stories happen every day. Too many people with Type 2 diabetes are only diagnosed once complications have set in. Too many people with Type 1 diabetes are simply handed Metformin when their bodies are screaming for insulin. Too many children end up in the ICU with DKA or even die when a simple fingerstick at the pediatrician’s office might have diagnosed diabetes.

My co-blogger Sue from Pennsylvania has written extensively about the struggle to have Medicare cover the cost of a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) for her Type 1 husband. What was considered proper care for him when he was 64 years old is now considered “precautionary” and being denied now that he is 65. In addition, Sue’s husband and many other pump-users on Medicare are increasingly having problems finding vendors to provide their insulin under Part B because Medicare’s outdated reimbursement rates are less than the vendor’s cost to purchase the insulin. Medicare coverage needs to reflect current standards of care for diabetes and its reimbursement rates need to cover current costs for things such as insulin. Without those changes, many seniors with diabetes will continue to struggle to access the diabetes supplies and medications that keep them healthy and safe.

As someone who is living with Type 1 diabetes and getting older, I increasingly worry about receiving proper care once I am no longer able to care for myself. Whether it is a short hospitalization or a permanent move to a nursing home, I need my caretakers to understand the differences between the types of diabetes and treat me appropriately. I have been “privileged” to have good insurance throughout my diabetes life, but no amount of privelege will protect me from a potentially lethal injection of insulin based on a Type 2 sliding scale. Proper care isn’t a sometimes thing. It needs to be an everyday thing for every individual with any type of diabetes.

Proper care and access to supplies and medications. That’s a gigantic umbrella over a huge number of issues for people with diabetes. Until children in developing countries have reliable access to insulin, until people with Type 2 diabetes are diagnosed before complications have set in, until Medicare recipients with hypoglycemia unawareness have access to CGMS, until no child has to die of undiagnosed diabetes, until….

Until everyone with diabetes receives proper care and access to needed supplies and medications, our job is not done.

IF ONLY

Posted on May 5, 2014 by Sue from Pennsylvania

For the past few months, I’ve been working on Level 4 of the Medicare appeal for my husband’s CGM. It finally went in the mail to the Medicare Appeals Council (MAC) at the beginning of April but I needed a few weeks to clear my brain after weeks of trying to get this appeal in order. Fortunately, for this level, I was able to find an attorney who drafted the appeal. There was a lot of back and forth to get it right and I was thrilled with the end results. The argument is that Medicare’s regulations clearly indicate that blood glucose monitors are covered if (1) the patient has diabetes; (2) the patient has been trained in how to use the device and is capable of the same; and (3) the device is designed for home rather then clinical use. Included in the appeal letter were 130 pages of attachments displaying that CGMs are recognized as the standard of care for brittle diabetics not only within the United States, but internationally. I have been told that the wait to hear from the MAC can be anywhere between three to six months but our attorney has indicated that if the wait is longer then three months, we’re going to escalate it to District Court. Future blogs will keep you informed of what’s happening.

But now onto an interesting article that was recently in the Tampa Bay Times. The headline was “Low blood sugar cited in death of prominent community leader’s husband after Tampa police traffic stop.” If you would like to read the entire article, you can follow this link.

To give you a synopsis of the article, Officer Anthony Portman received calls of an erratic driver who was swerving onto the sidewalk and into a stop sign. When Officer Portman arrived at the scene and asked the driver, Arthur Green Jr. 63, to hand over the keys, Mr. Green became combative. Officer Portman called for backup and then called for Tampa Fire Rescue to send medics. When Cpl. Matt Smith, the backup officer arrived, he indicated that he had seen diabetic incidents before and suspected that this what Mr. Green was having, but because Mr. Green was resistant, the officers restrained him with handcuffs. At that point, Mr. Green stopped breathing. The officers attempted to give Mr. Green CPR but when the Fire Rescue arrived at the scene, Mr. Green had no pulse. He was transported to St. Joseph’s and after 19 minutes of trying to resuscitate Mr. Green, he was pronounced dead. He had a blood sugar of 29.

A few days after receiving the article, Laddie, my fellow blogger, sent me an email and asked what I thought about the incident. Both Laddie and I agreed that we had no idea of what Mr. Green’s diabetes history was. In pulling up whatever information I could about this incident, I do know that Mr. Green was not wearing a medical bracelet. There is no mention in any of the articles that I’ve read that Mr. Green had a CGM so I am assuming that he did not have one. The main issue of most of my blog posts is Medicare and their denial of coverage for the CGM. Mr. Green does not seem to fit in with this since he was 63 years of age and unless he was on Social Security Disability, he obviously wasn’t on Medicare.

After thinking about this situation for a few days, I decided that the broader issue is that this man died because he didn’t have a CGM. Had he had one, he would have been alerted of his falling blood sugar in enough time to make a correction to get his blood sugar elevated. The reason why he didn’t have one isn’t the important part of the story. It’s the fact that he didn’t have one. It proves the point that the CGM is a lifesaving device and that anyone, whether young or old, on Medicare or not, could be saved from a preventable death with the use of this device.

This could have been my husband. He’s had quite a few incidents where the same thing could have happened to him as happened to Arthur Green Jr. Call it luck or a higher power. My husband has been fortunate enough to have been stopped by officers who recognized immediately that he had a medical problem (he does wear a medical alert bracelet) and notified EMS quickly enough for them to get to the scene and administer glucagon (a hormone that stimulates your liver to release stored glucose into your bloodstream. It is used as medication to treat someone with diabetes that has become unconscious from a severe insulin reaction). He does not have a CGM presently. This has been what our 1 ½ year long appeal has been about.

Entertainment people always say that any press is good press whether it’s positive or negative. So in this instance, The Tampa Bay Times calling attention to the unnecessary death of Arthur Green Jr., as sad as this death is, calls attention to the fact that this can happen to any diabetic at any time. If only Medicare would be aware of this incident and understand that those people who are asking for coverage for their CGM are not doing it because they want another piece of equipment to attach to their bodies. They just want to assure themselves that they are safe and able to keep others safe as well.

It’s so difficult to understand why Medicare just doesn’t get it. IF ONLY they did.

The 2nd Diabetes Hope Conference

Posted on April 30, 2014 by Laddie

If you are an active participant in the Diabetes Online Community (DOC), you have read about multiple diabetes conferences that seemingly “everyone else” attends. There are multi-day conventions such as Friends for Life and Diabetes Sisters and single-day events such as TCOYD and the ADA Expos. Some like the ADA Scientific Sessions are huge and designed for medical professionals. Others like the JDRF Reach & Teach U’s are sponsored by local JDRF chapters and targeted for children, adults, and families.

But you might live in a small town where nothing like this is available. You might be terrified of not being able to afford your next bottle of insulin and the cost of attending a conference, especially one out of town, is lightyears beyond your reach. You might be shy and fearful of immersing yourself in an environment where maybe no one will talk to you or you might have an embarrassing low. You might have absolutely no interest in spending your time and money to travel somewhere and talk to a bunch of people who have diabetes.

At the same time, diabetes is a nagging and constant companion. It takes no vacations. Just when you think things are going well, it slaps you upside the head and reminds you just who is in charge. Maybe you have a few complications and the crippling fear of your next eye exam or blood test has hurled you in a deep dark cave of depression. Maybe you’ve had this disease long enough to worry that your luck is about to run out and the future is lonely and terrifying.

I invite you to participate in the 2nd Annual Diabetes Hope Conference. This is a 3-hour online webinar scheduled for Tuesday, May 20, 2014 from Noon until 3:00pm Eastern Time (USA). There is no cost to “attend” this conference, but you must pre-register and space is limited.

The theme of the conference is HOPE. No matter how frightening and severe diabetes complications can be and no matter how depressing it can be to live with a lifelong chronic condition, we all need HOPE. One way to create HOPE for people with diabetes is to talk about our fears and learn from each other, the medical community, and pharmaceutical and device companies.

This is the point where I need to let you know that this conference is sponsored by Pamlab, the company behind the prescription-only nutritional supplement Metanx that can be effective in treating peripheral neuropathy. Scott Johnson, whom many of us only know as a blogger, is a consultant to Pamlab and has been instrumental in the creation of the Hope conferences. To read the story behind the development of the conference, click here. Last year’s online program had about 250 participants and the expectation is to double that number this year. Nothing about the conference is a marketing ploy and you don’t need to be concerned that your sign-up information will be used in any way by the sponsor. Okay, that’s out of the way and let me tell you more about the Hope Conference.

There are three panels for the conference, each lasting about one hour. The panelists are all A-list diabetes professionals and bloggers/advocates. For the price of a free ticket and three hours of your time, you have the opportunity to listen to and interact with some of the most influential people in diabetes. The first panel is titled The Doctor Will See You Now. Christel Marchand Aprigliano and Karen Graffeo will present questions to Dr. John Anderson, Immediate Past President, Medicine & Science of the American Diabetes Association. Once you sign up for the conference, you are urged to submit questions for this panel. What are the questions about the science of diabetes that you have always wanted to ask your endocrinologist? What do you wish you knew about ongoing diabetes research? What is the ADA doing for us?

The second panel is The Value of Blogging in Chronic Illness. Kerri Sparling and Mike Lawson will talk with Pamela Katz Ressler, the co-author of the research study Communicating the Experience of Chronic Pain and Illness through Blogging. This should be a fascinating discussion between three experts on the role of social media in healthcare outcomes.

The third panel will be Who’s in Charge? Who Says What? And Why? George Simmons will dive into patient/doctor relationships with Dr. Jen Nash. Dr. Jen is a practicing clinical psychologist, as well as author, consultant, and oh yes, a person with Type 1 diabetes.

What should you do?

Put the date and time on your calendar.
Get your ticket to participate.
Check out the website to learn more about the panelists and the conference.
Spread the word about the conference. The Twitter hashtag is #dHopeConf. You can download graphics at this website.
On the day of the conference, follow the link on your confirmation email to join the webinar. You can use your desktop computer, your phone, or your tablet.

I participated in last year’s Hope Conference and already have my “ticket” for this year. The “virtual panels” will be live streamed and the audience (that’s us!) can submit questions live to the panelists via Twitter using the hashtag #dHopeConf.

I’ll be there. I HOPE to see you there also!

M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E

Posted on April 24, 2014 by Laddie

Last week was a very busy diabetes week for me. I started the week in Phoenix, Arizona with the Monday meeting of Valley Pumpers. I headed back to Minnesota midweek and attended the JDRF-sponsored Adults with Type 1 program. On Saturday I joined a group of Type 1’s who hang out every other month for a couple of hours at Panera Bread. That’s a lot of diabetes fellowship for six days and is certainly not how I would have optimally scheduled my week. In fact someone suggested (you know who you are!) that I needed a new hobby. But I had a good time at each event and would have been disappointed to miss any of them.

I’ve never been one to Tweet my whereabouts and I don’t think that you want to read about the minutiae of my conversations at each meeting. I also don’t think you want to see my outfit or know what I ate or drank. What makes these meet-ups blog-worthy is the juxtaposition of them with a Saturday post by Wil Dubois at Diabetes Mine. Wil writes a weekly column called Ask D’Mine in which he thoughtfully and/or humorously gives answers to letters and questions submitted by readers. Saturday’s letter was from a longtime Type 1 who was frustrated/offended/astounded by the “Mickey Mouse” cheerfulness that he perceived dominated the newsroom at Diabetes Mine. He couldn’t understand the excitement at Diabetes Mine over new technology and new medications. He is plagued with many complications and seems trapped in a very dark place with his diabetes.

After assuring the gentleman that no one at ‘Mine finds diabetes to be fun to live with, Will eloquently explained the attitude of his fellow Type 1 writers:

There’s a difference between making hell sound like fun, and having fun with hell. We’re stuck in this nasty old broken-down house, and all we can do is choose how to decorate it. I cope with black humor. That works for me. Others among my peers are snarky, or analytical, or philosophical. There’s no right or wrong way to deal with the un-dealable.

We just manage, the best we can.

There is no doubt that those of us in the DOC have fun and revel in the absurdities of a life spent poking ourselves with sharp objects and dealing with the chronic frustration of trying to manage the unmanageable. We learn from each other, we inspire each other, we support each other. We laugh at each other, we cry together. Occasionally we bug the heck out of each other. Tweet after Tweet, blogpost after blogpost, Facebook photo after Facebook photo, and one day we discover that we have become friends.

I wonder how the gentleman would have viewed my week. Could he have participated in any of these meet-ups and come away with a little bit of appreciation for his fellow Type 1’s and a little bit of enjoyment from having spent time with them? Would an hour or two spent laughing, complaining, supporting, and learning with other pancreatically-challenged individuals have helped bring a glimmer of sunshine into his diabetes life?

I would have liked to have him join us at our Panera Bread lunch on Saturday. He could have spent time with a group of people who genuinely like each other and feel that our lives are enriched by knowing each other. He could have talked about diabetes, alert dogs, and Symlin and then learned about Scott’s new car, Ann’s two grandchildren due in December, and Allison’s first Minnesota winter. I mentioned the Diabetes Mine article and asked: “If you knew that you would lose all of your online and offline diabetes friendships, would you choose to have never had diabetes?” Without a moment of hesitation, Katie expressed the universal sentiment of “Hello, Life with No Diabetes, and Bye-bye, Diabetes Buddies!” (You’re right, Katie, but you could have at least hesitated a moment before replying.)

The gentleman from Diabetes Mine would have also seen that although we have lots of fun, none of us is naive about the evils of Type 1. How could we be after being told of Mike’s young friend who recently lost a leg due to diabetes? How could we be when there was an empty chair at the table because of the death of Dean Devalerio this winter? How could we be when we read about the eye problems that Kerri and Sarah are experiencing? How could we be???

The Diabetes Mine post was labeled Ask D’Mine: Anger Isn’t the Only Option (Part 1). I am very curious to know what Part 2 will bring us on Saturday.

But until then, I’ve been called worse than Mickey Mouse….

Dexcom Cases: Big News!

Posted on April 21, 2014 by Laddie

If you use the Dexcom G4 and have been searching for the perfect case for your receiver, I have great news for you! Yesterday on Facebook I read that Tallygear has come out with a silicone skin that is similar to the cases that many of us use on our cellphones.

In the year and a half that I have been using the G4, I have invested more money than I care to admit trying to find the perfect case for my G4 receiver. The black leather case provided by Dexcom is huge and extremely masculine. Great if you want to wear the receiver on your belt, but incredibly clunky if you like to keep it in your pocket. I tried a few cases designed for Blackberry phones and they almost worked. But not quite. A few other cases from Amazon were quickly returned or tossed in the trash.

I ended up using two cases that were okay, but not exactly what I wanted. The first was a case that I found out about in the Dexcom Users group at TuDiabetes. It was designed by the friend of a Dexcom user and was manufactured with 3D printing at Shapeways. It has been my main case, but the color has faded terribly. Although my receiver has survived more than one fall while in this case, I’m not convinced that the case provides much protection especially as it has gotten older and more flimsy. You can check out this case here.

The other case that I have used was purchased at Tallygear. It is a lycra fabric case with a clear plastic front that completely encases the G4 receiver. It has a loop to which you can attach the carabiner clip and lanyard that are included with the purchase. I use that case for hiking and will continue to do so. I loop the lanyard through my belt and feel confident that I won’t lose the receiver off the side of a mountain. Although it is not completely waterproof, it does protect the receiver from a quick dousing in the toilet. (My friend Jenn of Sweet Zoo has firsthand knowledge of that fact.) I personally don’t like how the plastic front sticks to the screen and it has never been my everyday case. But it’s great for hiking, great to wear around your neck, and a good case that provides cushioning and protection for the receiver.

I am thrilled to see Tallygear is producing a silicone case. This is what I have wanted all along and I will be ordering one right away. According to Facebook and the website, red is the only color that is immediately available. Orange, purple, blue, and black are available for pre-order and should be available in a few weeks. This case does not provide protection to the front of the receiver and I will use a phone screen protector cut-to-size just as I am using now. The price of the case is $17.95 with a shipping charge of $5.95. You can save 10% by using the coupon code DexG4.

To check out the new case and to order one, follow this link. I will be placing an order for purple. My Dexcom is pink and red just won’t work. Black might look the best, but with granddaughters who love pink and purple, I’m going with the Double-P/Pink-Purple look.

Tallygear was founded in 2008 by the parents of a daughter with Type 1 diabetes and sells pump/cgm accessories in colorful, fun fabrics. They are incredibly responsive to the needs of adults and children with diabetes and I encourage you to support them. If you’d like to learn more about Tallygear, check out this 2013 post on Diabetes Mine.

I anxiously look forward to my new purple Tallygear silicone skin and will try to remember to post a photo when it arrives. My number one wish is for the Animas Vibe to finally be released so that I no longer need to carry my Dexcom receiver. But until then, I say thank-you to Tallygear!

If you explore the Tallygear website, you’ll also find the original G4 case in a rainbow of colors and patterns, a neoprene case which comes in solid colors and gives even more cushioning and protection, a Tallyband wrist or ankle holder, and of course the new silicone skin. If a new Dex case isn’t enough excitement for you, check out the Tallygear decals for your G4. Sometimes small things can add a big smile to your day.

Post-publication Note: After publishing this post, I found out that Pump Peelz makes clear screen protectors for the Dexcom G4 in addition to its other decorative “peelz”. I’ve ordered a set for $5 and they should be much easier to use than cut-up phone protectors because they are custom-designed.

Test Guess and Go

Even with testing, diabetes is a guess every day.