Wow! I learned an awful lot at this conference. I totally enjoyed hearing Tom Brobson, JDRF National Director, talk about the artificial pancreas he got to wear. I'll talk about technology in my next post with a photo of his cell.
But really the biggest boost I got was from Dr. Stephen Ponder, who talked about how to get the most out of your CGM and how to time you meals with that constant flow of CGM information.
OK, long timers, who thought that when "faster" acting insulin was invented in the 90s (Novolog, etc.) that that meant we could take insulin as we sit down to dinner?
I grew up the "Regular" insulin, which meant I had to take my insulin 30 minutes before I ate. I was under the assumption, probably falsley planted by my doctor or diabetes educators of long ago, that the new insulin would work in about 10 minutes. So, I thought, "Ahh! Time to eat my pasta dinner, better take insulin for the 45g of carbs." Well, 15 years later, I find out I was kinda wrong and CGMs help us see why.
Dr. Ponder explained that if you take insulin 20 minutes before a meal, you can see on your CGM that a slight bend downward in your blood sugars happens at 20 minutes post insulin and THAT is when you should start eating.
So, yesterday was my husband's birthday and I did a little experiment with this new process. I took insulin 20 minutes, maybe 25, before we sat down to eat surprise donuts! Yep. Donuts. My blood sugar never went above 165. How cool is that!
I also learned that when you correct a high, you shouldn't see much in terms of results for at least two hours. It seems awful silly that I didn't know that. I mean I did know it, but no one ever said to me, "You won't see results for two hours." I just experienced it. There is something so valuable about hearing a doctor or professional give you concrete information about something you have experienced intrinsically for more than two decades. Is that weird? To be so thrilled with info I generally knew, but now have specifics on and can apply to my management?
More on the horizon of diabetes care in my next post. Lot's of info that I'm trying not to get my hopes up about, cause it would be too awesome!
2 comments:
Good info, Wendy, thank you. I'm trying to get better about pre-bolusing too, but I have to admit that I'm sometimes afraid of waiting too long. I know it's silly, but it's been hard for me to work through.
I've never heard Dr. Ponder speak, but have been a fan of him for a long time. Glad you had the opportunity to learn from him!
I also like the tip about pre-bolusing before eating. It takes me back to the days of using Regular, to include the anxiety of eating out. However, I wish that there was a useful way for folks with gastroparesis to anticipate managing the food/bolus tightrope.
Post a Comment