Another Wait

The Dexcom G6 finally arrived last week, after a wait which was entirely too long.

And yet, we've decided to put off using it.

There are still 3 Dexcom G4 sensors here, and we've decided to use them up.

The wait is, in most respects, really hard. It's like getting a new toy on Christmas morning and not getting to play with it until February. Why would we torture ourselves like this?

We have our reasons:

We are grateful for what we have, and don't want to waste the G4 sensors. We're certain that once the switch is made, there's no way my daughter will want to go back to the G4 for a few weeks to use up the old supplies.

We feel much more comfortable with supplies in reserve. By waiting a couple of weeks, we build up a few extra G6 sensors in the supply closet for a rainy day.

We want to take the time to start it and to set it up right. Because of our family's marching band commitments, time is at a premium in October.  We're waiting for a quiet evening, or weekend morning, to sit and learn the minimal but important basics of insertion and sensor start-up, download the apps and software, and learn how to use them. That might not be until November.

And the most trivial reason? The Dexcom receiver fits perfectly in the tiny pocket of the marching band uniform jacket, and my daughter's phone (which will be her new receiver) does not. Waiting until next year to solve that problem, which will likely involve some stealthy sewing, feels easier.

So we wait, the box of G6 stuff taunting us from the corner of the dining room.

Prepared?

With the news from Belgium on in the background this week, I'm reminded of a question I've considered and dismissed several times over the past few years:

Is my daughter, at any given time, prepared to 'shelter in place,' or to be displaced?

In this increasingly dangerous world where bombings, mass shootings, terror threats and other such events are becoming commonplace, it's question worth considering.

In her school classrooms, she has a meter and its assorted equipment, one juice box and a roll of glucose tabs.  She carries these items with her throughout the day. Would that be enough for a six hour lockdown?

When we travel to the city for the day to see a show or visit a museum, we have double those supplies and usually a small snack.  What if we were told to shelter in place due to an event near our location?

When we go away for a weekend, we take twice the number of supplies we think will need for the days we're away, and a vial of lantus and a pack of 10 syringes in case the pump fails.  What if something happened which stranded us from home for much longer than expected?

Then there are the days when we run to Staples and forget to bring even the meter kit.  Or go for a half mile round-trip walk to the library with only a tiny box of nerds stashed in a pocket, just in case.  What if we were unexpectedly detained?

I don't like to consider these questions.  Dwelling on the scariness of the world in which my child is growing up isn't on my to-do list.  Carrying a bigger bag of stuff in case of an event I desperately hope will never happen seems like a burden which might outweigh the risk.

But maybe there should be extra snacks and spare test strips in her pencil case.  And maybe we should have spare insulin and a few granola bars with us when we're away from home for the day.   And maybe we should always have at least the meter with us even when we're walking a neighbor home who lives only a block away.  And maybe every road trip should involve a really big box of supplies.

But maybe I don't want to think about it.

Prepared

I spent some time emptying and organizing my purse before we traveled last month.  Apparently it the project was overdue.

In my purse, I was carrying:

2 juice boxes

3 boxes of nerds

2 spare vials of test strips

a bag of goldfish crackers

3 rolls of smarties

an empty glucose tab container

approximately 20 used test strips and

a glucagon kit.

I believe in being prepared with supplies for my child.  But this was a little too much.  Especially since as she's getting older she brings her own bag for day-trips and bigger adventures. The stuff in my purse is now just for quick local excursions, or as back-up to what she's packed.

But if I ever get stuck in an elevator, I'll be in good shape.

Wordless Wednesday: Back To School Supplies

A Pharmacy Story

I called the pharmacy on Monday to refill prescriptions.  In a rare moment of organization I checked the Lantus we keep for emergencies and noticed that it had expired.  The automated system told me that the prescription itself had expired and I ended up speaking with a pharmacist.  She said they'd call the doctor's office for the Lantus. 

She then informed me that we could only get 4 vials of Novalog instead of the usual 6 for a three month supply.  She attempted to explain the situation.  The conversation became very convoluted and in order to end it I agreed to accept the 4 vials. An endo appointment is in our near future and I figured we'd start fresh with a new prescription then.

On Tuesday I stopped in to pick up my prescriptions.  I gave my daughter's name to the pharmacy tech, who knows me well.  "Are you looking for the Lantus?"

"Lantus and Novalog today," I replied.

"I see they're still waiting for a call back from the doctor for the Lantus.  The Novalog isn't in here at all." 

I smiled broadly and kindly, because what else was there to do, and said, "The Novalog's the one I really need."  She went to the other computer station to submit the refill, and came back over.

"It says you only have two vials left on the prescription."

"Hmm...yesterday I was told it was four." 

"I'm sorry...it looks like only two."

"Fine.  I can get a new prescription in a couple of weeks anyway.  I'll take the two and regroup next time."

So I waited, picking up a few additional items including what I figured was a much deserved Twix bar.

When my name was called, the original tech rang up my items and handed me a pharmacy bag with six (6?) vials of Novalog in it.  I tucked it in with the rest of my items and returned home to restock the butter compartment. 

Today's task is to call the pump supply company to reiterate my daughter's desire for blue sets instead of the pink which mysteriously reappeared in the most recent shipment.  Will the stars align twice in one week?

Survival

A recent school trip involved a variety of outdoor activities and team building exercises.  As a parent chaperone on this overnight adventure, I had the opportunity to reflect on some of the programs while trying to keep my feet warm in the great outdoors.

One of the classes was called 'survival.'  The activity was to build a make-shift shelter from branches, insulating it with snow and leaves, but first a conversation took place.  What do we need to survive?  How would we obtain the basic necessities if lost in the woods and needing to camp overnight?  What should we keep with us when hiking; 'just in case?'  The kids learned about water purification tablets and foraging for food.  They learned about the rule of threes, which states that (loosely speaking) one can go without air for 3 minutes, without water for 3 days and without food for 3 weeks. 

There I ironically stood, weighted down by the backpack I had been carrying since we'd arrived.  It contained 2 juice boxes, 2 packs of cheese and crackers, 2 water bottles, 2 tubes of glucose tabs and whatever candy happened to remain in the meter case when we left home. It also contained the meter, 2 vials of test strips, a lancet, spare batteries, and glucagon.  There was a large stash in our cabin from which to restock.

For this particular class within sight of the dining hall, this collection of things might have been excessive.  For the 2 hour, 3 mile hike up the mountain, it could have been life saving.

For my daughter, no matter where she is, every hour is a survival challenge.  Insulin, food, water, exercise and more must be carefully coordinated.  Our goal is to balance these for her optimal health, long life, and sense of well being.  Yet without constant focus, things can get out of kilter quickly, providing a real threat to her survival. 

Without insulin, she will not survive.

Given too much insulin, she will not survive.

If she spends years with consistently high blood sugars, she will not survive as long as her peers.

Imagining an unlikely night lost in the woods is not a prerequisite to considering what my daughter needs in order to survive.  We must consider those needs every day and every night of her life.

The Meter Case

 

 

This is may daughter's project for Diabetes Art Day.  It's made entirely from test strips sourced from her meter case yesterday afternoon.

 

Animas Animal

 

What better, I thought, to make primarily with Animas supplies, than an animal?

 

 

 

 

This is my creation.  Check back this week to see what my daughter makes.  And click on the link below to view a fabulous collection of d-art from around the world.

 

Happy Diabetes Art Day!

 

 

 

Wordless Wednesday: Diabetes Box #2

The Upgrade!

 

Seems weirdly luxurious to have so much room.

 

 

 



Or Sort-Of Green

If you look back at yesterday's post, you'll see pictures of the unwrapping of my daughter's new pump.  The excitement was akin to Christmas morning, with bubble wrap flying and packaging strewn around the living room.  The shiny new pump, with no scratches or faded buttons was exciting to discover.  Most importantly, it was green!

It's packaging, however...not so much.  Strikingly out of proportion to its contents, it reminded me of a girl scout project our troop did last year in which they each had to bring in an example of excessive packaging. 

Granted, I'll take it all apart, recycle the cardboard, paper, and what plastic our town will collect.  The school librarian just asked for boxes, so I'll send that in for re-use. Yet, as my girl scouts learned, not using the materials at all is even better than recycling them responsibly.

It's part of a lingering concern I have.  The amount of trash diabetes generates in our household is enormous.  Infusion sets and their big plastic inserters, cartridges, tubing, wipes and their wrappers, lancets and their caps, test strips and their containers, insulin bottles, juice boxes, and the packages all of these things come in need to be disposed of.  Very little of this is recyclable, particularly because so much of it is medical waste. 

I hear Omnipod has program to return and recycle old pods, which is great.  I hope other companies will find ways to follow suit.  Until then, there are occasional ways to repurpose things. I've heard of people using their old insulin tubing to tie up their tomato plants.  When my daughter was little and had a play kitchen, we turned test strip vials into spice containers.  Her creations were extremely flavorful. Last spring, she used lancet caps as eyeballs for a school project.  Every package I send goes off in a pump supply box.

Obviously, the value of these supplies to my daughter's health unquestionably outweighs the environmental concern.  Therefore it becomes a matter of finding ways to dispose of them or repurpose them as best we can. Meanwhile, we can ask our supply companies to keep looking for packaging that's a bit...greener.



 

Go Bag



Sandy is the first storm for which we've packed a full diabetes 'go bag.' 

There is always a plastic shoe box on my daughter's closet shelf with batteries, three of four vials of strips, some syringes, and a couple of site change sets.  It also has a spare meter and some glucose tabs.  It's our travel box for weekends at Grandma and Grandpa's or our starter kit for vacation packing.  I think of it as what we would grab should we need to evacuate.

Yet as I began to contemplate the possibility of an actual emergency, I realized some things needed to be added to tide us over:

A flashlight

Juice boxes

A big jar of glucose tabs

At least 2 weeks of site change supplies, strips, lancets

Alcohol wipes to sterilize things if we had to

Snacks

I also realized that once the hint of an emergency is on its way, we should get this kit out of the closet and put it somewhere handy.  Last week, we put the plastic box into the ironic 'JDRF Walk To Cure Diabetes' bag, adding the aforementioned items.  We also added our every-day insulin and  long-acting back up insulin, as well as the spare supplies we keep in my purse, my daughter's backpack, and elsewhere around the house. 

Once gas is easier to come by and Target doesn't seem like a far-off land, I'll head over to get a larger container so that this discombobulated bag of diabetes paraphernalia can be organized and water-proof.

Meanwhile, I'm grateful that I was able to unpack a few things from it this morning and return it to its shelf.  

Fun and Functional

Re-purposing a tic-tac box for used test strips keeps (most of) them out of the bottom of the bag!

Until about a month ago, we carried our diabetes supplies in their original containers.  The  meter, lancet and strips went in the meter case, with bits of tissue and a roll of smarties.  Then there was a container of glucose tabs.  And a juice box.  And a separate bag with glucagon, a syringe, spare strips, spare batteries and more smarties.

It took us almost 10 years, but we finally realized there was a better choice.  I invested all of about $10 in this cheerful little make-up case from Target, and now it's all together.

We were inspired by a friend who re-purposed a cute pencil case for her supplies.  Why not keep these things we use so many times per day in something more fun than a black case?

We were also inspired by a greater need to keep all of these items in one place.  It is increasingly common for my daughter to go places without me and my giant purse.  She now does not need to rummage through the giant purse for the odds and ends of diabetes care, transferring them to a giant tote bag of her own.  They are now all together in this handy bag for her to grab and go.  We even chose this design over the flowery one so my husband could carry it more proudly for the walk to the library or around the park. 

A great improvement in the fun and functionality of daily diabetes drudgery.  For only $10!


This post is my September entry in the DSMA Blog Carnival. If you’d like to participate too, you can get all of the information at http://diabetessocmed.com/2012/september-dsma-blog-carnival-2/

Being Prepared

Here is a photo from  Friday: packing the 'diabetes box' for our weekend at Grandma and Grandpa's.

Five sets of site change supplies, four vials of test strips, two spare pump batteries and two dozen syringes turned out to be enough for a three day weekend.