Daisy Mae

Yesterday, I picked up my new 2 month old Boston Terrier puppy, Daisy Mae, and brought her home. Ever since Diabetes has not been the first thing on my mind. This is good.

LIVE THE MOMENTS!

Twenty Nine

       Today started off better than most. I woke up with a lovely BG of 98. I had cereal with milk for breakfast, and made sure not to bolus in full for it because I was headed to the rink for a morning skate. I was so excited to have the ice to myself and be able to play any music I desired as loud as I wanted.

The best form of therapy 

      The first 20 minutes of the session was grand. I got to mess around with some new music selections, played with some footwork, worked on spins, and did my general warm up. Then it was time to jump. I did a waltz jump, a very simple element in figure skating and I fell. I thought that was very strange, but I went for it again and my legs practically gave out on me. I sat there on the ice for a moment and literally could not feel my legs and my entire body was shaky. I knew I was in trouble. I slowly got up, grabbed my meter off the boards and checked to find my record low BG of twenty nine!

29 is such a scary number, its right on the brink of disaster. It is so scary how fast things can turn. It's days like this when I really hate diabetes. The way it makes me feel and how it can so easily change my plans for the day. I was really motivated to skate today but diabetes had other plans for me. Diabetes stopped me in my tracks and left me feeling weak and tired. The low came up quite quickly thanks to some sour gummy worms and a few glucose tablets, but I did not feel like skating anymore. It made my day 10 times more difficult but I will not say it ruined it.  I will never let diabetes be victorious. 

T1D Humor

       Last night, an interesting hashtag began overflowing my twitter feed.
#DiabetesTaughtMe... This statement was open for any interpretation, but at that moment I needed some humor in my life. So I came up with this witty statement:

You can never have too much juice box humor 

       It is so wonderful that there are others out there that "get" these jokes and that sometimes it is ok to make fun if it. We are all in this lifelong battle together and it is so nice to have an outlet to express feelings about it to others who are also living the D-life. Here are some other tweets that I enjoyed: 

#DiabetesTaughtMe ain't no such thing as a normal feeling. 

#DiabetesTaughtMe that someone is always going to ask me "does that hurt" when giving myself a shot. 

#DiabetesTaughtMe that there will never again be such a thing as a good nights sleep.

Yes, T1D's Can Have Sweets Too

          In just 4 months, my favorite event of the year will be upon us: the JDRF Walk to Cure Diabetes (now known as the JDRF One Walk). I attended my first walk just 8 months after my diagnosis, and it was a major eye opener. For the first time I was able to meet many people with T1D and share experiences with them. The event was a happy occasion, but also a solemn reminder of how many people suffer from this disease and how desperately in need of a cure. I am preparing for my 4th walk coming up in september, with the goal of raising $1,000. I truly believe a cure is in the not so distant future and if we work together we will be one step closer to finding it.
       For the second year in a row, I held a bake sale during my city's garage sale weekend to raise funds for JDRF and my walk team, "Morgan's Miracle Makers". This year I was blessed to have my skating family donate homemade baked goods for me to sell. Just that little gesture brings tears to my eyes, I am incredibly blessed to have people in my life that care so deeply about me and are willing to join in my journey of finding a cure.

The Goodies 

      Sitting outside with a poster with the words Type 1 Diabetes on it beside a table full of sweets is bound to get people's attention. Many come up and ask if the treats are all sugar free. This gives me an excellent platform to explain that as a T1D I can eat as much sugar as any other person should. Sweets should come in moderation for everyone. I like to think that along with purchasing a treat, my costumers walk away with a better understanding of T1D. This year, I had one customer that really impacted me. She was a young mother who came up with her infant son. At first she just observed and then quietly stated, "I have type 1 too". Before I knew it, she whipped out her medtronic pumps and we were talking about CGM's. I complimented her on how cute and well mannered her son was. She told me that she had him after having the disease for 16 years and that their were no major complications during the pregnancy besides an increased occurrence of low BGs and her son is healthy. This is something I needed to hear. I try not to think too far into the future but I am happy to know that all things are possible. The bake sale not only helped raise funds for JDRF, but it also allowed me to meet new diabuddies that each have important lessons to share.

If you would like to support my walk team, Morgan's Miracle Makers, please visit my JDRF page by clicking here. Thank You! Together we can find a cure...

D life Hacks #DBlogWeek

Diabetes Blog Week day 5: Share the (non-medical) tips and tricks that help you in the day-to-day management of diabetes.  Tell us everything from clothing modifications, serving size/carb counting tricks to the tried and true Dexcom-in-a-glass trick or the “secret” to turning on a Medtronic pump’s backlight when not on the home-screen (scroll to the bottom of this post). Please remember to give non-medical advice only! (Thank you Rachel of Probably Rachel and Kelley of Below Seven for this topic suggestion.)

            There are many different methods I have come up with to cleverly deal with the big D: 

Care Kit: 

Diabetes is NOT a cute disease by any means, but my stuff deserves to be. I have always used Vera Bradley cosmetic bags to carry my D supplies. They are not only adorable, but have great pockets and the cosmetic bags are lined with plastic to easily clean up any messes. I currently use the Grand Cosmetic. 

Pump Pouches

As a female, I have always looked for a discrete yet functional way to store my pump, since I do not like pockets and I know I would break a pump clip in a hot second. Then I found Too Sweet Boutique, 

and I was sold. My collection is quite extensive ;) 

I do not have many life hacks, but my only advice is to not take yourself too seriously. Diabetes is such a hard disease, I like to find cute, fnny, and functional items to help make the D-life a little sweeter. 

My Mantra- Suck It Up #DBlogWeek

Diabetes Blog Week day 4 prompt: 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? (Thanks to Meri of Our Diabetic Life for suggesting this topic.)

            The number one mantra I have followed all my life is suck it up. This may not seem like a particularly uplifting saying but it has always worked for me. My mom first introduced the phrase to me at the age of 8 as a competitive figure skater. When I would complain about practice or one of my competitors, she would ask me why I am doing it. I would always say I skated because I loved it with every bone in my body. She then explained that there are always going to be tough parts in life but we have to deal with them in order to get to the enjoyable experiences.I also think it could be so much worse and there are millions of people out there dealing with issues much worse than mine. So now when I am complaining to myself about having to do a site change I remind myself to suck it up and get it over with. Diabetes sucks, but my life does not have to. Get through the sucky parts to make the happy parts even happier. The longer I take to complete these D-tasks and the more I worry about them, the less time I will have to continue living the life I want to live. So I will continue to suck it up and enjoy life. 

Mantras and sayings I live by:

Keep calm and treat the number

My worth will not be dictated by a number

Live the moment

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" -Philippians 4:13

"Every human being is the author of his own health or disease" -Buddha

D-Blog Week- When D brings me down....

Diabetes Blog Week day 3 prompt: 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?

            Managing Diabetes would not be that bad if you did not have to do it every single day. The day in and day out monotony of the disease is what really wears on me. The sleepless nights and constant worry of the unknown and unexpected never goes away completely. Since my diagnosis I have developed black circles under my eyes that never want to go away. It is a visible reminder of the carefreeness I lost on that diagnosis day. I will never be able to get that back.

            Another aspect of my life that was altered when D came into the picture was my thoughts on food. I used to snack all the time because I never liked eating large meals. When my diagnosis came, I had to begin eating full carb meals. Food became medicine when I am low and the enemy when I am high. I often think that food and I are never going to be friends. When I am hungry, I am usually high and cannot have as much as I would have liked. But when I am low, I practically have to stuff food down my throat to stay conscious. I will admit that sometimes I am afraid of food. This makes me emotional quite often because I wish I could just enjoy my food like the general population and not have to read labels or  choose avoid foods that cause me to go out of range.

            When I am having a rough day, I rely on my closest friends to help get me through. One of my BFF’s happens to also be a T1D, so I often text her just to get things off my chest and joke about things that only T1D’s would understand. Something I have also found to be helpful is picking one day a week to relax and eat what I want when I want. I do not go crazy by any means but just go out and have a treat for pleasure with a friend or two. Lately that has been a milkshake or smoothie, something I used to shy away from because I was afraid of going too high, but now I just roll with the punches, correct the BG, and enjoy life. Diabetes cannot bring me down for long because I am a fighter and I deserve to lead a happy, “normal” life. 

Indulging is good for the soul, as are strawberries with whip cream 

D Blog week: I am a poet

Diabetes Blog week day 2 prompt:

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!

Concrete Poem 

Diabetes

I hate you

Yet I love you

You gave me faith and patience

But took away my innocence

You changed me

And made me a warrior

D- monster

There is a creep under my bed

He wakes me in the night

With sweats and shakes

So I must poke

This is no joke

Low low low

Drink drink drink

Juice

D-Monster, I beat you