Today at supper time Ruby alerted. Faith took it upon herself to grab her meter and check herself.
Thank goodness I had my phone handy to capture the first time Faith has done it herself from start to finish.
Here's the bittersweet moment...
How can she be this grown up at 29 months old?
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Ugh...What fun we're having...
One of these days I'm gonna get on here and have something so positive and uplifting to say you won't believe it.
Today is NOT that day.
Faith's numbers are ALL. OVER. THE. PLACE. We've been waiting to see if it's due to the infection that had us in the hospital last week, the heat, or a growth spurt...or maybe even because the wind blew, or we weren't holding our tongue right...
Sometimes, it's hard to tell with diabetes.
Anyway, we haven't wanted to make any permanent (HA! permanent until next week when it changes again) basal changes until we could decipher what was causing it and find a pattern. (Again, HA!)
If it weren't for Ruby these past few weeks I don't know what we'd do. Faith's numbers have been low, low, low. Since getting Ruby it's VERY rare that Faith's numbers get below 80; because, as most of you know by now, Ruby catches it - and alerts me - BEFORE Faith is low - so I can usually boost her with a few carbs and we avoid the low. The past couple weeks, however, we've had multiple low numbers a day (and night - *super fun*).
Like, actual lows. 40's and 50's lows.
NOT because Ruby hasn't alerted, but because even when she catches it at 130 or 140, I can't shove enough sugar in Faith's face (ok, I'm a little gentler than that...but tonight this is how it feels...) before her bg has plummeted.
But wait! That's not all! (Think: infomercial. Buy now and we'll double your offer...)
Did I mention she's got small ketones? So, try to back off the insulin to avoid the lows and - you guessed it (or maybe you didn't...) - ketones go up!
This has gone on for over a week. (Yes, please. Shoot me now.)
We decide to do a temp 20% basal reduction for 24 hours, keep a close eye on the ketones, and LOG LOG LOG every move we make to look for patterns. Worked pretty well. Still had a couple lows, but they were 70's low, not 40's lows - so, definitely a step in the right direction. AND, the ketones finally went away.
Thought things looked promising, until tonight...
We're walking through Wal-Mart, enjoying our usual fish-bowl experience (you wouldn't believe the people that stop and stare, or circle around for 3rd or 4th looks, or talk about us like we are not there - seriously people, it's absurd, but that's another post), when Ruby alerts that Faith is low.
We check and she is 81.
Gave Faith 6 grams of carbs and continued on our way. 30 minutes and a recheck later and Faith's bg hasn't moved much. It's going to be another hour or so before we eat supper so I decide to give her another 3.5 carbs (3 and a HALF carbs, people) to *hopefully* boost her until we eat - but not so much that she's high at mealtime.
We finish up at Wal-Mart and decide to run through Wendy's, because we still have about a 40 minute drive home...and given the pattern over the last couple weeks, Faith's bg may not hold that long.
While we're waiting in the drive-thru line, I ask JC to check Faith's bg. He did, and when it beeped he said, "um, Mom, it says HI."
WHAT?! That's not possible. HI means her bg is over 600.
"Did you clean her finger well, JC?"
"Yes ma'am, with an alcohol wipe."
"Ok, well, that doesn't seem right, so let's check again to be sure."
Chuck gets out and checks her this time to be sure we get her finger wiped off really well.
Her meter is still yelling "HI" at us. (and believe me, it wasn't just being friendly...)
UGH! We're talking less than 10 grams of carbs sent her from 80 to over 600 in an hour...and the beautiful thing with a "HI" reading is that you don't know how far over 600 we're talking. Is it 601 or 801?
My mind starts racing.
Has her site gone bad? Well, maybe, but not that bad, that fast - surely...
Did she grab some candy or something when I wasn't looking? Anything's possible, but she was sitting in the buggy and I was pushing it so SURELY I would have noticed that...
What do I do?
Here I sit in the car with 4 hungry kids that can smell their food...but I can't possibly give Faith carbs when her bg is over 600...and I can't let everyone eat in front of her.
What fun we're having.
Pull over and give Faith a correction via injection in case her site has gone bad. I just can't fathom driving home 40 minutes with her bg north of 600...but it makes me SO nervous to give her much of a correction, because it just doesn't make sense that her bg could possibly be that high! I mean, HOW is that possible??
Drive home 40 minutes with Faith screaming because we gave her a shot (or because she's over 600...or because she's NOT over 600 and I just shot her up with a lethal dose of insulin and she's crashing...or because she's 2 and mad that she can see her kid's meal but can't eat it...who knows?), and I'm bawling my eyes out wondering if I've done the right thing and racking my brain trying to figure out what the heck is going on.
Get home and her bg is 147. A great number...UNLESS she was 600 forty minutes ago!
She eats her chicken and french fries and Ruby alerts, so I check her bg again. 108.
Dangit.
I give her a bit more food. (But, now I'm scared to give her too much...but seriously, at this point - when 3.5 carbs sent her over 600 - how much is too much??)
20 minutes later her bg is 140, and it's time to start getting ready for bed.
30 minutes later Ruby alerts and she's low again.
Give Faith a tiny bit of yogurt - *hoping* the protein/fat/whatever will keep her bg up through the night and not wanting to overcorrect in case any of her supper is slow to absorb.
Now, here I sit...Faith is high, it's 1 am, we have baseball games first thing in the morning, I'm exhausted, Faith is walking and talking in her sleep...
Ugh...What fun we're having...
Today is NOT that day.
Faith's numbers are ALL. OVER. THE. PLACE. We've been waiting to see if it's due to the infection that had us in the hospital last week, the heat, or a growth spurt...or maybe even because the wind blew, or we weren't holding our tongue right...
Sometimes, it's hard to tell with diabetes.
Anyway, we haven't wanted to make any permanent (HA! permanent until next week when it changes again) basal changes until we could decipher what was causing it and find a pattern. (Again, HA!)
If it weren't for Ruby these past few weeks I don't know what we'd do. Faith's numbers have been low, low, low. Since getting Ruby it's VERY rare that Faith's numbers get below 80; because, as most of you know by now, Ruby catches it - and alerts me - BEFORE Faith is low - so I can usually boost her with a few carbs and we avoid the low. The past couple weeks, however, we've had multiple low numbers a day (and night - *super fun*).
Like, actual lows. 40's and 50's lows.
NOT because Ruby hasn't alerted, but because even when she catches it at 130 or 140, I can't shove enough sugar in Faith's face (ok, I'm a little gentler than that...but tonight this is how it feels...) before her bg has plummeted.
But wait! That's not all! (Think: infomercial. Buy now and we'll double your offer...)
Did I mention she's got small ketones? So, try to back off the insulin to avoid the lows and - you guessed it (or maybe you didn't...) - ketones go up!
This has gone on for over a week. (Yes, please. Shoot me now.)
We decide to do a temp 20% basal reduction for 24 hours, keep a close eye on the ketones, and LOG LOG LOG every move we make to look for patterns. Worked pretty well. Still had a couple lows, but they were 70's low, not 40's lows - so, definitely a step in the right direction. AND, the ketones finally went away. Thought things looked promising, until tonight...
We're walking through Wal-Mart, enjoying our usual fish-bowl experience (you wouldn't believe the people that stop and stare, or circle around for 3rd or 4th looks, or talk about us like we are not there - seriously people, it's absurd, but that's another post), when Ruby alerts that Faith is low.
We check and she is 81.
Gave Faith 6 grams of carbs and continued on our way. 30 minutes and a recheck later and Faith's bg hasn't moved much. It's going to be another hour or so before we eat supper so I decide to give her another 3.5 carbs (3 and a HALF carbs, people) to *hopefully* boost her until we eat - but not so much that she's high at mealtime.
We finish up at Wal-Mart and decide to run through Wendy's, because we still have about a 40 minute drive home...and given the pattern over the last couple weeks, Faith's bg may not hold that long.
While we're waiting in the drive-thru line, I ask JC to check Faith's bg. He did, and when it beeped he said, "um, Mom, it says HI."
WHAT?! That's not possible. HI means her bg is over 600.
"Did you clean her finger well, JC?"
"Yes ma'am, with an alcohol wipe."
"Ok, well, that doesn't seem right, so let's check again to be sure."
Chuck gets out and checks her this time to be sure we get her finger wiped off really well.
Her meter is still yelling "HI" at us. (and believe me, it wasn't just being friendly...)
UGH! We're talking less than 10 grams of carbs sent her from 80 to over 600 in an hour...and the beautiful thing with a "HI" reading is that you don't know how far over 600 we're talking. Is it 601 or 801?
My mind starts racing.
Has her site gone bad? Well, maybe, but not that bad, that fast - surely...
Did she grab some candy or something when I wasn't looking? Anything's possible, but she was sitting in the buggy and I was pushing it so SURELY I would have noticed that...
What do I do?
Here I sit in the car with 4 hungry kids that can smell their food...but I can't possibly give Faith carbs when her bg is over 600...and I can't let everyone eat in front of her.
What fun we're having.
Pull over and give Faith a correction via injection in case her site has gone bad. I just can't fathom driving home 40 minutes with her bg north of 600...but it makes me SO nervous to give her much of a correction, because it just doesn't make sense that her bg could possibly be that high! I mean, HOW is that possible??
Drive home 40 minutes with Faith screaming because we gave her a shot (or because she's over 600...or because she's NOT over 600 and I just shot her up with a lethal dose of insulin and she's crashing...or because she's 2 and mad that she can see her kid's meal but can't eat it...who knows?), and I'm bawling my eyes out wondering if I've done the right thing and racking my brain trying to figure out what the heck is going on.
Get home and her bg is 147. A great number...UNLESS she was 600 forty minutes ago!
She eats her chicken and french fries and Ruby alerts, so I check her bg again. 108.
Dangit.
I give her a bit more food. (But, now I'm scared to give her too much...but seriously, at this point - when 3.5 carbs sent her over 600 - how much is too much??)
20 minutes later her bg is 140, and it's time to start getting ready for bed.
30 minutes later Ruby alerts and she's low again.
Give Faith a tiny bit of yogurt - *hoping* the protein/fat/whatever will keep her bg up through the night and not wanting to overcorrect in case any of her supper is slow to absorb.
Now, here I sit...Faith is high, it's 1 am, we have baseball games first thing in the morning, I'm exhausted, Faith is walking and talking in her sleep...
Ugh...What fun we're having...
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