Average sensor glucose: 144 mg/dL.
Standard Deviation: 55
TDD Insulin: 30.8
Basal: 18.9
I stopped taking Alpha Lipoic Acid and Evening Primrose Oil. They are insulin mimetics which I have been taking for some time. I decided to stop taking them for a while because they are a bit expensive. I found that when I stopped taking them my insulin demands went up for about 4 days, and then settled back close to normal. I know there may be some other benefits to the supplements, but, for now, I'm going to see how I fare without them. I am taking very little beyond insulin and Symlin now.
I am a little shocked that I made it this far into a flu season without getting a cold or flu. At work I've seen kids out for a series of days quite regularly, so I know there are certainly some bugs going around. It's been over a year since I've had any viral stuff.
As I look at my sensor data I'm seeing some trends that show that I may need to look at my basal rates and make some adjustments. I think my higher trends are at the same times of day, normally around dinner time and afterwards. I'm noticing a dawn phenomenon trend as well.
At work they are offering health screening blood panels for free. I will probably participate because it will give me another metric to look at for a1c and whatnot.
My cardiologist recommended that I see his colleague for my recent six-month "check-up". It was like starting over again... he was looking at my condition like it was a brand-new mystery. He wants to confirm my diagnosis and has requested that I wear a monitor for 30 days. I'm fine with experiments and information gathering... but, if it's just for kicks? I think it's a bit inconvenient to wear a 12 lead monitor for a month just to confirm my diagnosis from a year ago, with no changes in treatment. So, I'm going in to get the monitor today... Also, how do you take a shower?
The medication they have had me on for the last year has been working well lately. It's a super low-dose and doesn't have any side-effects. I'm finding that when I don't have gluten in my life, I don't have any a-fib episodes. I'm pretty happy with the current program.
That's pretty cool that gluten seems to be the vairable with A-fib. Just one more reason, right? I think it's kind of ridiculous that they want you to do all of that monitoring. It's so easy for a doc to say, "Hey, I'd like to do a little extra testing, just to be sure." Then you have to do all of the work!
ReplyDeleteYeah, I'm a pretty annoyed about the monitor. It's bulky and 30 days seems like a long time. This experience is all at my expense...
DeleteI know I could have said I'm not interested in investigating further... but, there's a chance I'll have a different diagnosis or maybe even no longer have a-fib.
I keep wondering if I can just end it whenever I get sick of it...
Do you have waterproof skin tape? I would think the IV 3000 (which I think I remember minimed selling) would work or any of the other tapes people use for sensors.... don't know.
ReplyDeleteI recently bought flexifix for the sensors (G4 doesn't seem to stick on as well as 7+ did) and that's a waterproof tape. But since I've never worn a heart monitor long enough to need to shower wearing one I don't even know if you need to cover it up.
I think one of the nice things about new things added or subtracted from diabetes is how it tends to shock me out of routine. Because you've got to stay interested or something in your body will change and you won't notice and oops that old routine now has you running an average of 15 mg/dl (or half an A1c point) higher.
Jonah,
DeleteWell, my questions about whether or not I can shower with it were answered when I got the monitor. There are only 2 leads to your chest, and they give you a whole package of extra stickers to replace them when they come off. The nurse said I could expect them to stay on for about 2-3 days. You disconnect the leads for showers.
I agree that tweaking little things keeps us interested. I'm trying to track down that 15 mg/dL. :)