How could I forget to write about my newest needle??? Oh my, sorry ya'll but I am so far behind. Keeping up with these blogs is hard work when you've got 2 busy kids running around! At my endo appt in April my endocrinologist and I were talking about how great my numbers were...except for my morning blood sugar reading. It was always in the low 200's but thats high for me. I suggested (since I'm the smart one here) taking some NPH at bedtime. I am on 3 types of insulin: humalog (fast acting. It starts to work to lower my blood sugar within 15 minutes of injecting it), NPH (this is the "old" long acting insulin. It works for 6-8 hours, but doesn't start to work until the humalog is starting to stop working), and Lantus (24 hour insulin. Its what I call my "pump" insulin. I'm not on the pump, but for people who do have an insulin pump, it gives then a teeny tiny dose of insulin all day and night to keep their sugars lowered. My Lantus works for 24 hours to keep my sugars in check).
I used to take 2 needles per day growing up. One at breakfast and one at dinner. Both needles included 2 types of insulin (NPH and R. R is the older version of today's humalog. It just didn't start to work as quickly as humalog does). I was on these two needles from the time I was diagnosed at 21 months of age until I turned 13. It worked well for me and I had great numbers. When I turned 13 I needed a little more help. So I was switched to humalog instead of R insulin and put on a third needle: lantus, at bedtime. My numbers got back to pretty good. When I was pregnant with my second son I needed a little more help around lunchtime (since I wasn't taking any insulin then). I was put on a 4th needle. I thought it might just be during the pregnancy, but my numbers were so good I didn't really want to get rid of the needle. Then the 5th needle...a couple months ago.
People go "wow, 5 needles?" Um, yes. And you know what? There are times I take more than 5 if my sugars are high. BUT, I wouldn't go back to the pump for all the money in the world. I like not being attached to a machine. I felt "sick" and everyone knew I had diabetes when they saw it on me. The needles of the pump hurt like hell. I hated it. I gave up on diabetes, and it took me YEARS to regain control. YEARS. Now that I finally have control, and great control at that, I won't go back to the pump and risk losing control again. The pump is an AMAZING little machine that is a life savor for many many people. Its just not for me... :(
So yes, 5 needles. And I asked for the 5th needle...so glad I did. I wake up with perfect numbers every single morning now! (between 75 and 115)
No comments:
Post a Comment