When you just can't get off of the roller coaster...

Sometimes you’re going to have days when your blood sugar is crazy no matter what you do!  No matter how hard you try to fix things, you inevitably have a crazy spike that you can’t get down, or you bottom out because of over-correcting.  There are so many factors that can lead to these unexplainable swings, some of which are fixable and others that you just have to ride out…

• Faulty site, bent cannula or some kind of leak letting out insulin
• Air bubbles in the reservoir
• Stress
• Sickness
• Reduction in exercise

With college comes exams and with exams comes stress!  This is my last week of school before spring break and with 2 exams on Friday; I have definitely seen the effects of stress and a busy schedule on my blood sugar!  Late nights studying, skipping out on regular exercise and eating at weird times certainly can throw things for a loop. 

Quick fix?

…Unfortunately in most cases there isn’t one!  Staying persistent with checking and giving, trying to limit the amount of carbs you eat and following a normal schedule as much as possible is sometimes all you can do!

Even when Diabetes decides to act up, remember who’s ultimately in control :)

For more info on how stress affects blood sugar, check out:

http://www.prevention.com/mind-body/emotional-health/how-stress-impacts-high-blood-sugar-levels

Pumps and Prom Dresses

For all the high schoolers out there… Prom season is just around the corner!  Hours of dress shopping and picking out that perfect spot to take pictures is stress enough!  Why worry about where your insulin pump fits into all of this, when you don’t have to?! 

For prom my junior year, I bought a pump case attached to an elastic strap made to wear around your arm or leg.  That worked fine, but for senior prom I figured something out even better!  Two words: COMPRESSION SHORTS

I wore spandex underneath my dress, which held my pump in place so much better than the actual case did!  I had a great time that night without having to worry about my pump showing through my dress in pictures or getting in the way on the dance floor!  

Becoming a Pro Carb Counter

The first thing many people think of when they hear “counting carbs” is diets.  I guess Diabetes does correspond with diets in a way, but not the kind of diet that many people just decide to go on.  Counting carbs is THE key to figuring out how much insulin a Diabetic needs to give in order to “cover” what they eat.  For me, counting carbs is second nature now.  When I eat lunch or dinner I don’t need nutrition labels or nutrition facts, I just sort of guess.  But… my guess is definitely an educated one!  Since having to know the carb content for everything I’ve put in my mouth the last 11 years, I must say, I have become pretty good at it!  The only way to become adept at knowing food nutrition is practicing, and piecing things together. Also knowing which foods are “free” or have zero carbs is a must!  Eggs, meat and cheese are considered free.  There are many other foods that are very low carb.  Free foods are good to know about in the case that you have high blood sugar but are hungry!

For example…

I eat a turkey and cheese sandwich, an apple and pretzels for lunch one day.  Here’s the breakdown:

Sandwich ≈ 24 carbs

• ·      Each slice of bread usually has 12-15 carbs
• ·      Meat is “free”
• ·      Cheese is “free”

Apple ≈ 22 carbs

• ·     18-25 carbs depending on size

Pretzels ≈ 25 carbs

• ·      Here’s where you have to actually count… 20 pretzels usually have about 25 carbs.  Serving size is also one of those things that you memorize over time!

Voilà!