Welcome to a brand new series of articles that we like to call Diabetic Days (we don’t actually like to call it that, but we couldn’t think of a better name). Much like a low-octane and more pancreas-orientated version of 24, Diabetic Days will chart a day in the life of members of pancreatically-challenged hoard. They might be entertaining, they might be interesting and we might even learn something (maybe even all three, but I doubt it). If you fancy writing one, drop me an email.
Anyway, as a starter for ten my effort is below:
07.10 – I wake up and stumble towards the bathroom in the cold Scottish winter darkness. I check my blood glucose and it’s a reasonable 7.1 – not, perhaps, quite as low as I would want but I’m not really complaining. Stick in 8 units of humalog – I always inject ages before breakfast to smooth out my traditional post-breakfast peak.
07.30 – mmm – 50g of toasted oatflake thingies for breakfast and 100ml of orange juice. It may sound incredibly anal but I tend to have exactly the same thing for breakfast each workday morning. I can then use my breakfast to calibrate the day – will I generally have a “high day” or a “low day”. Which will it be? The excitement builds.
08.30 – trundle into work on the 44 bus – I’m currently reading Ian Flemming’s third Bond book Moonraker. I get to the bit with the high-stakes game of bridge (no, really) between Bond and the evil Drax. Coo, it’s exciting.
08.45 – arrive in my freezing cold office and set about protecting a grateful world from intellectual property infringements.
10.00 – spend the morning drinking far too much black coffee and munching on a few Granny Smith apples, which I don’t bother to inject for.
12.00 – check my glucose again and it’s a 9.1 – far too many apples obviously. I wander out into the freezing cold and pick up a sandwich from Pret a Manger (they have a handy website which gives the carb content of each of their sandwiches (they also make nice sandwiches)). That, and a bag of unhealthy crisps, equals an injection of 8 units of humalog.
13.00 – continue to defend large corporations from those that would intend to do harm against their intellectual property assets.
15.00 – have an orange which, again, I don’t bother to correct for. Accidentally squirt orange juice over my computer monitor.
15.05 – clean monitor and go back to work.
17.00 – escape from work and trundle back home on the faithful old 44 bus. Although I don’t check, my BG feels a touch low so I scoff down two fruit pastilles. Bond is now making his way to Drax’s missile base – blimey!
18.45 – I get changed; collect wife and head back into town with said Katie. It’s our wedding monthanniversary and we try to eat out at a new restaurant each month to celebrate (we like eating out!) Quickly check my BG and it’s a satisfactory 6.0
20.00 – we arrive at restaurant, having stopped to have a gin and tonic on the way (slimline tonic of course). It’s half an hour past my usual lantus time, but hey hum. I surreptitiously stick in 38 units of lantus under the tablecloth.
22.30 – after a rare Aberdeen Angus steak, some chunky chips, a few glasses of reasonable rioja and 8 units of humalog later we head home. I check the glucose again and I’m content to go to bed on 5.4 (although my DSN I shouldn’t go to bed on less than 8.0). Anyway there’s a tonne of fruit pastilles in my bedside table, so all is well and I snore my way through to the morning.
wow – good levels even with eating out – impressive
@Rachel It was only steak and chips – so dead easy. Four courses of Italian buffet would be a little more challenging!
Great read! good to hear that the fruit pastilles keep you on the straight and narrow! 🙂
@Mike Thanks Mike – you can never go wrong with fruit pastilles by your side!
I think I’ve discovered the secret to your diabetes control – it appears that no matter what you eat you take 8 units of humalog with every meal and that sorts it. I must try that, far easier than all this carb counting malarkey!
@Alison That is one of my diabetic mantras – “If in doubt, shove in 8 units, wait two hours and then sort it out if it’s too high or too low”.
Admittedly it’s not a very snappy mantra, but it’s a mantra all the same…
I have to say, I have never squirted orange juice over a computer screen before 🙂
Brownian mantras should be listened to:
“…having eaten, I have ate…∞”
“…vitamin C is A vitamin C is A vitamin C is…∞”
@Samantha You should try it – it’s great fun!
@Ckoei I’m going to have those carved on my gravestone…