Reminiscing.....We Are Lucky
This morning I gave an in-service to teachers at a school that was preparing for a child with diabetes to start his first year. I found myself talking about some of the changes that have been made with diabetes management especially with the latest technology tools. When I was diagnosed glucose testing was with a urine kit where you dipped a strip into a urine sample and you only knew approximate ranges of your glucose reading. The only way to know about your actual blood glucose reading was to go to the lab for a fasting blood glucose reading, and then wait several days to almost a week for the results. I did keep records of my readings, but now we can even let our glucometer keep a record for about 90 days at a time. Wow, what a difference it has made in the management of diabetes, to know what your blood sugar reading is at any given time. Other advancements include the insulin pump, which mimics a pancreas so PWD can function as closely as possible to a person with a functioning pancreas. Insulin injections just can’t match having a basal rate of insulin bolusing insulin to cover the carbohydrate ingested. Another technological advancement is the internet, so people have access to information and connectedness about diabetes like my website at www.DiabetesEveryDay.com
So as I discussed the ins and outs of diabetes management to the school staff I had thoughts of how lucky we are to have all these tools and resources. I feel it is a two step process though. Step one is to have access to the useful tools and step 2 is to use these tools to help us manage our diabetes instead of our diabetes managing us. Step 2, of course, is both the important part, and the challenging part.This morning I gave an in-service to teachers at a school that was preparing for a child with diabetes to start his first year. I found myself talking about some of the changes that have been made with diabetes management especially with the latest technology tools. When I was diagnosed glucose testing was with a urine kit where you dipped a strip into a urine sample and you only knew approximate ranges of your glucose reading. The only way to know about your actual blood glucose reading was to go to the lab for a fasting blood glucose reading, and then wait several days to almost a week for the results. I did keep records of my readings, but now we can even let our glucometer keep a record for about 90 days at a time. Wow, what a difference it has made in the management of diabetes, to know what your blood sugar reading is at any given time. Other advancements include the insulin pump, which mimics a pancreas so PWD can function as closely as possible to a person with a functioning pancreas. Insulin injections just can’t match having a basal rate of insulin bolusing insulin to cover the carbohydrate ingested. Another technological advancement is the internet, so people have access to information and connectedness about diabetes like my website at www.DiabetesEveryDay.com
So as I discussed the ins and outs of diabetes management to the school staff I had thoughts of how lucky we are to have all these tools and resources. I feel it is a two step process though. Step one is to have access to the useful tools and step 2 is to use these tools to help us manage our diabetes instead of our diabetes managing us. Step 2, of course, is both the important part, and the challenging part.