Butter, 11 months before surgery.
While visit Cape, Butter with babysitter. Dog bite Butter (dog.) Biting dog name Sugar! Bigfoot know—seems like should get along, make shortbread. But now Butter in surgery. (Sugar fine.) This how come to pass BG disaster du jour. No one test Bubs until 10AM. Part because somewhat distraught. Part because distracted: one person drive to vet while other person drive Jack to camp. Other part because not equipped handle extraneous intrusion—only can do diabetes.
395.
Of course Bigfoot not able hold tongue. That’s why we test him as soon as we get up! & other sharp wisdom. Realize it not matter how got this situation. Now dog in surgery! Son super high blood sugar! Who can say how many hours Bubs exist this height. Check notes: 10PM 168. 12AM 192. Correction 0.15u. Then: nothing.
Now in complicated math tangle.
So.
10AM 395. Correction: 2.15u.
11AM 321 (correction probably working=good); eat 50g CHO, bolus 2.5u.
12PM Just checking in, make sure correction still working. 431! Crap. No ketones. Yay.
Inject 3u old-school syringe; trou already drop (site change) so not mention re-introduction of Mr. Orange Cap.
New site, new insulin. Prime. Fill cannula. Await improvement.
Look at that vast empty space.
12:30 eat 78g CHO. Pump recommend 3.9u if BG normal. Bigfoot bolus 3.9u, assume syringe correction will gobble up 300 mg/dL of 431 mg/dL part of situation. So consider BG normal for math purpose. Yes?
OCCLUSION! NO DELIVERY! Hard not imagine pump speak all-caps message in whiny, beleaguered grocery clerk voice. PRICE CHECK AT AISLE NINE! Check site. Check tubing. No occlude. Try bolus again. PUMP NOT PRIMED! NO DELIVERY! PRICE CHECK AT AISLE NINE! Prime already perfectly primed pump, try make pumpbrain happy. Fill cannula with 0.05u for good measure, keep up ruse of correcting failure to prime. Bolus 3.9, 3, 2, 1, 0. Ahhh. Breathe.
1:30PM 165. That really fast: down 100 points per half hour. With beans, cheese, whole wheat tortilla, chocolate milk in equation too. Plummet or normal? Maybe 3u in syringe too much. Because probably something got through with earlier correction. But how much? Crap. Not know. No way know. Breathe.
Also now Bubs feel like total crap, look like damp noodle. Pallid with rosy hint of slight sunburn. Breathe. After lunch, play ping pong. After few serves, decide just want to volley, no score. OK. After few volley, need move table into shade. After volley in shade, move to swing set. After swing, play Creationary. After 2 turns each, depart from game not say anything flop on couch, stare at ceiling. Bigfoot sure BG skyrocket from lunch, decide most likely all of insulin in fridge spoiled—maybe too cold? Must be why Bubs feel so noodle. That when see 165.
Now will check every 30 minutes. This experience make Bigfoot think pump too conducive mystery. Long for straightforward days syringe. When only way child not get insulin is because adult forget.
GOOD THING(s)
- Dream babysitter BACK IN ACTION! Walks, sees, everything OK
- Delicious smell of peanut butter graham cracker on child breath
- Handsome man painting front porch bring Bigfoot iced coffee
- 1h. after 165, 89. Italian ice ready for low
- Always more opportunity handle novel situation w. smart/graceful: water slide party at 4PM
Did I read in one of your friends’ blog that there is a device that stays on the person and measures their blood glucose? In my perfect world for you, it would come equipped with an alarm for highs and lows? If not, scientists need to get to work in the research lab!
Are you talking about a CGM (continuous glucose monitor)? Those are great, but with a 20 min. lag so not necessarily the best security against fast lows. They are really awesome aside from that, but very expensive (the bug itself and especially the sites) if your insurance doesn’t cover them (the only reason I’m not wearing one right now!). Bigfoot could probably benefit from looking into getting one for bubs if she hasn’t already.
We have a CGM in a box in our basement. I need to learn to use it. I’ve been dragging my feet because B’s best diabetic friend who is just his size + temperament found it too uncomfortable to wear and the friend’s mom and I thought it was because they’re little but I saw tons of little skinnies wearing them at FFL so I really need to try! I think our insurance will cover the sensors—they paid for the machine.
I also was worried about it alarming at school, and no one knowing what to do, thinking maybe he could just wear it at night or just at home?
I never wore one as an itty bitty skinny person, so I don’t know if it’ll be uncomfortable for him. I’m sure you can train the teachers to know what’s up if it alarms at school, and it would probably be easier for them to recognize that than the symptoms of high or low blood sugar. I would definitly encouradge you to try it out and see if it makes life easier for you and bubs.
Katy…do you have a Dexcom in your basement? Slap that mother effer on Bubs!
The lag is not 20 minutes. I do not even necessarily use it for “real-time” numbers BUT for trending. Like if Joe was 100 and had two arrows down on Dexcom…he would boost with a couple of Starbursts to avoid the low. It has been a lifesaver with Joe’s activity level…too bad our transmitter is at the bottom of Lake Champlain (fell off while he was slinging mud at a friend)…we are up for a new one August 10th…at which point I will have three receivers and only ONE transmitter….day-in-the-life baby. 
do i not need a lesson from the CDE 1st? i can just open it up and try it? i haven’t even looked at the thing, even though i know it is EXACTLY what we need. i can’t get over the hump of the wretched convincing him to try it period. maybe i can slap it on while he’s asleep.
what good is a 96 if you don’t know where it’s going? right? right. joe wears it all of the time? at school?
Do the Dexicoms have less leg time than the MiniMed? My MiniMed CGM I only got to wear for a few months before the insurance dropped it was certainly 20 minutes behind most of the time, it seemed, with a sneaky quick low coming back up before it would even fuss at me. That 20 minutes is the statistic I’ve heard a lot in the diabetic alert dog world of CGMs being not as good as the dogs with the lag time versus real time. I would be very interested to know if those are better.
P.S. Hope Butter recovers from Sugar’s attack. xo
thanks. i’m going to read more beta buddies with a search for Dex.
eek! hope butter is recovering well from surgery. (i almost typed sugary)
i hear you on worrying over the pump malfunctions. the good news is that you powered through this one successfully so if it happens again it won’t be as frustrating (maybe. hopefully).
i wish i had good cgm advice for you but as you might recall, similar to WBB, L does not like to wear hers at all (though it’s not a dexcom and those are supposed to be easier to wear than the mm that L has).
ANYWAY. so glad to hear dream babysitter is feeling better and back in action!
I would give up my pump before I would give up my CGM. Those arrows have saved my butt more than once.
The insertion needle on the MM CGM is very large and (IMO) painful. The Dexcom needle is smaller and hidden so Bubs would not see it. I can’t remember the last time I’ve had a painful sensor.