Living with Diabetes and Lapband

Yes, if you carry insulin around you need one. Especially if you do the shot thing.

I pump and it isn't as critical, as I typically have somewhere between 300-50 units on my body at any given time. However, it does fail and I do run out and I do keep a spare bottle and a pen with me.

I had stopped carrying a pen since I had gone several years without needed an emergency injection but I needed one last month – AND I've switched pumps, so I am carrying a Novolog FlexPen -- I'm allergic to the preservative in the Lily products, and besides I like Indycars.

They are small, compact, and if you read an early post made by some really cool people in the Dallas area.

I know keep mine in my back pack.

Just when you think everything is running smooth, someone has to be a jerk….

And it was someone who I thought was a friend, but she drove me to do something I hadn't done. I have been competing in agility trials and this fall is the first time competing with a service dog. The first day was a complete disaster because I left Dulce in the car while I was getting Macy ready. My blood sugar was a complete mess, and both Dulce and I were stressed because of it. The rest of the weekend I kept her with me unless I was actually doing the sport and we were good.

The second weekend, I ran into the jerk. So I went out of the AKC website, and they have a person in charge of accommodations. I sent in my request along with the paperwork I sent to my school. Within 30 minutes I had my accommodations granted and written up in later for me to take to shows:

• Wear an insulin pump
• Be accompanied by my dog unless I am in walkthroughs or running a dog
• Dog be in a cage ringside during those occasions
• Carry emergency sugar in a sealed container on course

Easy stuff, but now I have documentation if questioned.

I have a #Climapak from @KewlInnovations which I love, but I have been keeping it in the same bag with my water and Slim Fast. Not sure what happened but they say that it was water damaged, so I won't be keeping the new one there. Will probably be keeping it in the Ful Bag I purchased from them at the same time and where I usually keep my laptop.

I will say that everyone at @KewlInnovations was very nice and gracious. My ham radio friends recognized the area their office is in as "technology corridor" and I passed Rockwell Collins to get there.

It holds more insulin, but is lighter and thinner. However, it is longer.

I can read the numbers on the screen. Well, I could on the Animas, but not the remote.

User interface is easier and has more functions.

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I was talking about how Dulce helps me (the Diabetic Alert Dog), to an agility handler today and she asked if my diabetes is worse.

Well, I consider diabetes like being pregnant. You either are or you aren't and there aren't degrees.

Yes, according to my endo, my numbers are better. However, I'm on more drugs and am on more insulin to keep them there. My diabetes certainly wasn't under control for the past two years, and it is getting more under control with Dulce's help. Lows scare the Jesus out of me, and since she does a nice job of letting me know they are coming and helping me stop them, yes, I'm using her. In fact, I'm getting more and more dependent on her.

BTW, I'm running lower with the new pump and it dawned me today as I was filling my second reservoir – NO BUBBLES! It was impossible to get all the bubbles out of an Animas reservoir and I think I even stopped trying. Getting the bubbles out of the Medtronics reservoir is easy peasy.

Have run into two, one on a listserv and one in person. The second knows me.

Not sure what is up with the one that knows me, and I am trying to be kind but she has been doing the mean girl thing for about a year everytime I have been around her.

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It's awesome, and I am hoping to expand on it.

I have had positive comments. She walks on a loose leash to the elevator, gets in, gets out, walks to the bikes, waits for her mats and then lies down. Hangs out while I ride for 30 minutes.

Hoping for the same behavior at weights soon.

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I've lost over 45 pounds and I'm still dealing with a great deal of arthritis pain. I seriously thought it would be better at this point.

I'm not disappointed in the lap band itself. I got want I wanted – I was gaining about 10 pounds a month, and it stopped that. I never expected a huge drastic weight lost and that wasn't what I wanted. I knew I couldn't handle it. I wanted to make slow gradual changes.

I've been through the drastic weight loss, and knew it wasn't for me. I'd lost about 100 pounds in one year once, and knew what a toll it took on me mentally and physically and that is part of why I had the major regain.

What I have been wanting is the pain to go away.

And it's not a clear indication. I can tell from her behavior when my blood sugar is dropping too fast. I get a bit cranky when my blood sugar drops and she obviously doesn't like it and gets a bit agitated herself. Thus, when she starts acting up, I know it's time to double check.

It's happened at both agility trials, last weekend and this weekend, which is weird, as I tend to run high at trials. Last week, I was running my old pump, and had cranked up the insulin a bit too high. I didn't want to repeat it today, so I left everything along, and I still went low – though I tend to be running a bit low on this pump – not sure why, could be because I'm checking my blood sugar more, and adjusting my blood sugar more.

Will know better next week when I'm back in a regular routine.

Just went through all my emergency supplies and got rid of the Animas stuff and stocked it with Medtronics. Also just pulled the plug on the Animas pump as the whining it was doing was getting on my nerves. Pretty sad.

I'm glad to get rid of the big clucky meter whose numbers were too small to read. Seriously.

I'm not having trouble reading the Revel.

Wish that the pump would remind me two hours after testing, but the Contour meter will when I'm using it. I have several boxes of One Touch Strips to go through before I can start using it. Also the insurance company won't pay for it until February.

I've got a few strips coming from Amazon, I've sold some unused One Touch strips and I've got a few that I'm bidding on at EBay, plus Walgreens has a pretty good price on them too.