Living with Diabetes and Lapband

First, I was released from Physical Therapy last week, and I am just getting used to having those 4 hours back.  I’m still very stiff and have muscle pains everywhere but the right knee.

Today is the first day I missed a workout that I didn’t have PT scheduled in the afternoon.  Just tired and had trouble waking up.  Not sure if I’ll try to make the workout up at all.  I’m just exhausted between not sleeping well before a staff development and my dog training schedule.  I have three late night classes right now, and it’s hard to wind down.  I need to schedule a nap before I go to class.

Fit4D is a bit disappointing as it takes SO long from them to ramp up.  I finally got a strength workout from them yesterday, but haven’t had a chance to try anything.

My biggest problem is my food issues – I’m still binging, especially when I’m tired.  The good news is that I haven’t had a food incident since Saturday night, so I might have just tried too fast. Those who read this will remember I had gotten to the point I couldn’t eat any real food and had to have an unfill from my lapband.  Still not happy with it.

I can see that it is really going to take some time to get my head and stomach working right after the unfill.  Last night, I couldn't get last night's dinner down and it started coming up almost immediately.  That triggered a binging episode. 

Today is going better.  I've been able to get down every meal and haven't felt the urge to eat more than I need to. 

I got an unfill on Monday.

I have been having increasing difficulties in eating. Haven’t even wanted to try.  Was finally talked into an unfill.  Got a half-day sub.

So here’s what happened.  She did an ultra-sound and the port was fine.  Took me to the surgical center.  Did a barium swallow.  We could see where I was not getting enough fluid down and could see a dialation above the band.  By the way, the band looked fine, according to the tech.

I’m just coming off of mushies.  Had trouble with tilipa in rice, ended up eating half the meal, but making sure I had a bite of carrot and greens.

Had no trouble with beef fajita salad, but did add ranch dressing.

Will probably blog on what is working.

Some of you may recall my mother was diagnosed with diabetes a few years ago, long after I was.

We were talking the other night, after I'd gotten the unfill, and she was really pushing my buttons about food, etc.  Well, come to find out she hasn't tested in three weeks!  Partly because of the test strip game I posted about in the previous entry.  She is feeling overwhelmed etc....

I will admit to taking pleasure on getting on her case over her diabetes care -- I told she had no right to get on my case when she wasn't taking care of herself, and she admitted I was right.  She even knew how bad I had gotten last spring when I stopped testing, so she really knew she was wrong.

Hopefully I've got her testing again, and now she has some extra test strips to do it with.

diabetes,fit4d,test strips

If you are a Type 2 diabetic on medication, you probably have been told to play the "test strip" game.  Even Fit4D plays this game.

Here is how the game works:

• On day 1 and day 2, you test in the morning, fasting and 2 hours after breakast and record it. 
• On day 3 and day 4, you test before and 2 hours after the meal and record it.
• On day 5 and day 6, you test before and 2 hours after the meal and record it.
• On day 7 you test before an evening snack and record fasting the next day.

Rinse and repeat.  This is insane!  Doesn't even give a decent picture.

Okay, name 3 people who are organized enough to do that.  Here's how it should go:

Test every day, morning, lunch and dinner, probably two hours after. Testing after meals you eat a lot of both before and after are good.  Now I'm a pumper and do a bit more.  I often forget the before meal check, but I always get the after meal (bolus check). 

 

Wimp!  You think you have needle phobia?  Trying watching a doctor stitch your face with no pain killer in the ER?  Or a second time, while doped up on valium.

GET OVER IT and do it. Seriously, I do. I do have to "shoot up" without watching.   If I see the needle, I don't do well, and there are some infusions sets I just can't do because you have to watch the needle go in.

But I can even to a intra=muscular shot -- again, as long as I don't look at the needle.

Quoted from http://thepoordiabetic.com/insulin/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+thepoordiabetic1+%28The+Poor+Diabetic%29:

To insulin or not to insulin | The Poor Diabetic

I have a phobia for needles.

 

Those of you who follow me on Twitter or Facebook, or better yet, Foursquare, know that I have changed my routine and am going to the gym in the morning on the way to school.

I used to do this, but it got really hard when I became a diabetic.

I’m going because I was finally convinced that I needed to exercise on a stationary bike – I sold my treadmill and weights and joined @LAFitness.

The best way to fit it in, is to exercise in the morning. 

To accomplish that, I have to pack the night before.  I’m using a dufflebag with wheels I got for my cruise, and that’s working very well.  I tried two bags, but that just got messy.  To go, I have to have:

• clothing for school
• extra pumping supplies – so I can take some pumpless showers
• shoes for school
• hair stuff – lots of days, especially wet or humid ones, I just need a brush and shampoo but having an option is good
• consumer electronics
• towels (man I miss my old gym)
• contacts

So when I get home I have to clean out the used clothing (which I just remembered I forgot to take out of the bag).  I have been putting the towels out of the bag when I get done so they will dry and I can recycle them – they have to be washed if they have been in the bag with sweaty clothing.

It also means some extra wash, but recycling my towels helps that.

I also keep a gym bag in the car, which has also come in handy for physical therapy.

Today I managed 35 minutes but at level 1.  I am noticing a decreased use of insulin.

The new fill technician has a completely different procedure than the old one.  I got there early, and I was glad I did, as it was very time consuming.

First, she checked my port with an ultra sound machine and it was fine.

Second, they had me do a barium swallow.  We saw that my esophagus was a bit dilated and she felt that the restriction was too much.  She took .4 cc out and did another barium swallow. We both liked what we saw.

I won’t know anything more until I can eat, probably not even until next week.

Oh, the old procedure was the tech poked you with the needle and did what she thought she should do.  No barium, no ultra sound.

Kind of nice to know everything is where it should be.

Almost forgot – she also thought that the lunch period was entirely too short for me to even try to eat then.  I might be able to eat during my planning period, but can’t always count on that either.

I have a half day sub for Monday.  YEAH!  That means I can get the unfill.

Other than a possible diabetes complication of depression, I know that I am still depressed and unhappy with my life.

Fit4D helped me figure it out completely, but I have been suspecting it for some time. 

It’s the lapband.  I’m going to try an unfill Monday, IF I get a half day sub.  Right now, the sub system is down, and when I checked last night, I didn’t have one.

I am so restricted on what I can eat right now it isn’t funny.  I can’t eat solid food before around 2:00 pm, and there isn’t much food I can eat of the solid variety.  At lot of this is due to the school year, this week was awful and I still have to write an email about it, solving the problem.

The following foods are completely out:

• pork (though I can do sausage if I avoid the skins)
• most beef
• fried or grilled chicken
• vegetables
• fruit

With the exception of anything that is cooked in a sauce.  Notice I didn’t say sauce added, though that can help.

I cough food up on a regular basis, no matter how slow I eat.  Coughing food up isn’t pretty and probably isn’t good for me.

What really triggered things was the Fit4D people bitching about what I was eating.  The phone call from the coach was very negative along with the emails.  To continue with them I had to set some boundaries because the depression is worse.  I’m on the verge of tears even writing this.

I honestly can’t eat any of their suggestions.