DBlog Week Day 7 - Diabetes Hero

Let’s end our week on a high note and blog about our “Diabetes Hero”. It can be anyone you’d like to recognize or admire, someone you know personally or not, someone with diabetes or maybe a Type 3. It might be a fabulous endo or CDE. It could be a d-celebrity or role-model. It could be another DOC member. It’s up to you – who is your Diabetes Hero??
My hero's are everyone whose lives are touched by Diabetes. Whether you have it yourself or its a member of your family, or a loved one.

Parents of children with Diabetes - I was diagnosed just under 3 years ago, however this still had a big impact on my family. With Diabetes on my Mums side of the family, it left her feeling responsible for me ending up in hospital overnight and having this for the rest of my life.

I struggle a lot of the time to manage my own pancreas, nevermind another person and a little growing person at that! There must be a great deal of anxiety and pressure with ever changing goal posts, due to hormones affecting BG readings. However I can also imagine the great feeling when your child starts learning about Diabetes and testing themselves etc, because you taught them how to do it :) They are all heroes.

T3 Friends and family - They provide us PWD with a vital support network and help us whenever we need it. Whether it's listening to us talk about a rubbish day with D, coming with us to HbA1c appointments or carrying around jelly babies in case of hypo's, they are amazing and are all heroes.

Everyone with Diabetes - Living with this condition is crappy, as I've said in previous posts it can be like looking after a baby and like a full-time job. It's hard, and you have to keep your sense of humour as much as possible, because Diabetes and sods law go hand in hand! They are all heroes.

D is like a marathon, but you can do this :)

DBlog Week Day 6 - Say Cheese!

Back for the third 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.

DBlog Week Day 5 - What They Should Know

Today let’s borrow a topic from a #dsma chat held last September. The tweet asked “What is one thing you would tell someone that doesn’t have diabetes about living with diabetes?”. Let’s do a little advocating and post what we wish people knew about diabetes. Have more than one thing you wish people knew? Go ahead and tell us everything.
It's incredibly hard to just pick one thing, as sadly there's so much people don't know or realise about Diabetes.

Diabetes is hard. Fcking hard work. Almost like another full time job, except it's not 37 hours a week. Its all day, every day.

When you're sat there waiting to tuck into your dinner, I'm looking at it trying to work out how many carbs it's got in it.
There aren't just two types of Diabetes!
When I'm feeling hot or cold I'm wondering if I'm going hypo or hyper whereas you'd just grab a jumper or put the fire on.
When you ask why I look tired, it's probably because I was awake at 2am having a hypo.
Yes I can eat what I like within reason!!
Without insulin, I wouldn't be here.
Lots of things can affect BG readings before you've even eaten anything.

I could go on for ages and ages, but basically....

DIABETES IS A PAIN IN THE ARSE!!!!

Dblog Week Day 4 - Fantasy Diabetes Device

Today let’s tackle an idea inspired by Bennet of Your Diabetes May Vary. Tell us what your Fantasy Diabetes Device would be? Think of your dream blood glucose checker, delivery system for insulin or other meds, magic carb counter, etc. etc. etc. The sky is the limit – what would you love to see?
Instead of a Diabetes Fairy that is mean and creates highs & lows for no apparent reason, I'd like one that would help me! One that would just give me a little nudge if I'm heading out of my ideal range, or drop a jelly bean in my pocket when needed xD

Okay, I can dream!

My fantasy device has got to be a glucose monitor that's as accurate as humanly possible. None of this 25% each way. That's not good enough and never will be. We need to know exactly where we are with our BG, to give us a fighting chance to stay healthy and keep our HbA1c at a good percentage. I'd love to spend less time worrying about if I've injected too much or too little because I don't ACTUALLY know where my BG is!

Or we could have a D-Robot (instead of I-Robot) who could be with you all the time, carrying your D supplies, remembering when your last injection was and how much. Stopping you from over-treating or over indulging! Helping you exercise and answering questions like a Diabetic Google. Keeping a log of your readings, providing your own HbA1c results and even charging your meter up whilst on the move!

I'd imagine he/she to look like this....

DBlog Week Day 3 - One Thing to Improve

Yesterday we gave ourselves and our loved ones a big pat on the back for one thing we are great at. Today let’s look at the flip-side. We probably all have one thing we could try to do better. Why not make today the day we start working on it. No judgments, no scolding, just sharing one small thing we can improve so the DOC can cheer us on!
This one's a toughie, I don't think there's just one single thing we can improve on. D is a marathon, you're always learning and changing so there will always be things to work and improve on.

At the moment I'm struggling with motivation to record my results like I used to. I usually find I stop recording when I'm having bad days. This time it's been on and off since January, I'm trying to start filling in my readings after each test now. I also managed to drop my Lantus usage from 24 to 20, and that's still working out for me in the mornings. I've had my appointment through for my next HbA1c so I'm hoping that gives me the kick up the backside I need right now.

Just want to be back to how I used to be with my D. Kicking it's butt and gradually improving my averages/HbA1c =/

DBlog Week Day 2 - One Great Thing

Living with diabetes (or caring for someone who lives with it) sure does take a lot of work, and it’s easy to be hard on ourselves if we aren’t “perfect”. But today it’s time to give ourselves some much deserved credit. Tell us about just one diabetes thing you (or your loved one) does spectacularly! Fasting blood sugar checks, oral meds sorted and ready, something always on hand to treat a low, or anything that you do for diabetes. Nothing is too big or too small to celebrate doing well!

This was the one topic I thought I may swap for a Wild Card... I've kinda hopped off the D-wagon over the past couple of months. I'm still testing and injecting, I just don't have a lot of oomph for it. I've been neglecting my blog as I didn't really know what to say :(

I started thinking about my loved ones and how great & supportive they are, but it's supposed to be about me... aahhh! I then looked at the almost empty bottle of lucozade at the side of my bed, and realised I'd stuck to changing my hypo treatments for the better.

When I got low and the food monster took over, I'd scoff a lot of biscuits/chocolate until I felt normal, which usually meant bouncing back the other way and feeling even worse later on. So after a little blog venting and some really nice comments, I decided to remove temptation from my room completely, and only have lucozade/gluotabs around me.

I also keep one or the other in my handbag (most of the time!) so I don't have to have something slow acting instead.

Must. Resist. Temptation! :D

DBlog Week Day 1 - Find a Friend

It's day 1 of DBlog week! Today's topic is 'Find a Friend' where we can share the blogs we love and introduce ones that you may not have read before. Like many others, I could pick just one :)

I first 'met' Mike on the Diabetes Support Forum, and his was one of the first Diabetes blogs I read around a year after I got diagnosed. I love how articulate Mike is and how he can always write how you're feeling, exactly how you'd like it to be said. He's always incredibly supportive of everyone in the DOC offering advice and support, and has often made my day when I'm feeling blue with just a couple of sentences in a comment box! So go add his blog to your favourites, I guarantee you won't regret it :)

Kate and Emma are joint bloggers at Sugar Rollercoaster (which I discovered a few days ago and wish I had much sooner!). Along with Type 1 Diabetes they also deal with major depressive disorder & hypothyroidism, and anxiety. They both write amazingly honest and inspiring blogs and I can't wait to read many more of them. So go get your virtual butt over there now! :D
These are only a couple of my favourite blogs, there's more on my blogroll and hopefully after today's topic, lots more too!

Third Annual Diabetes Blog Week!

Make your way over to Bitter~Sweet Diabetes to find out about the Third Annual Diabetes Blog Week. It starts on Monday, plus it's really easy to sign up! Karen has also included a list of topics for the week and who has already signed up to take part. You can also read everyone's posts throughout the week and meet lots of new members of the DOC!

If you don't already have a blog, now is the perfect time to start :) You can use Blogger or Word Press to get you started or blogging facilities on some of the larger D-forums.

Thank you so much again for organising this Karen, am very excited and hoping it clears the D-Writers Block :)