Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Gary on May 12, 2012 at 2:27pm

I have to say if my Kidney's or any other body parts left the building the rest of me would be leaving the building as well. Suffering more then I already am is not an option. I'd miss diabetes like a f***** root canal. If the FDA isn't compassionate enough to understand this disease more then any (because of the amount of people that have it) needs a functional biological treatment they need their priorities checked. A pancreas transplant is far from the answer though I met a women who had one and she claimed it was a blessing compared to diabetes. I am following the most advanced forms of encapsulated islet transplantation being studied (where no toxic anti drugs will be needed) and I think a few of those in specific have the best chances to help us long standing diabetics. If its not too late

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Permalink Reply by KatieT1 on May 12, 2012 at 2:47pm

gary, i would encourage you to try other insulins. i felt horrible, horrible on novolog (I didn't know, at the time, it was the novolog)..but my eyes would burn, I would profusely sweat 10 minutes after every injection - regardless of what my BG's were, I had to wait so long after bolus to eat, a host of other issues. My endo said, "It could be one of your isulins, let's change to humalog." I didn't want to..but knew I was going on the pump and this fast acting would be pumping into me (or that was the plan) 24/7...so I did switch and all the profuse sweating, eye burning, etc...has stopped, headaches too. It also, at least for me, works much faster and gets out of my system, it seems, much quicker too.

You have to, IMO, be willing to at least try different things..no insulin works the same, etc..they all react and act differently for every BODY.

There isn't going to be a cure anytime soon. So, we have to at least try and make the best of what was given to us, that I do agree with. Many (probably most) do live very healthy and full lives...strive for that. If you're not willing to make some changes, nothing will change.

I'm trying everything I can to get this D under control. I'll keep trying until I feel like I have..when that will be, if ever, I don't know...but I want to feel good, be happy and have as little of fluctuations and problems/complications down the line..so, if someone provides me with something 'else' to try..I'll try it if it may help me to better manage this and the symptoms and BS that goes along with this D.

Good luck to you.

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Permalink Reply by Gary on May 12, 2012 at 3:12pm

I've used pretty much all the insulin's except a few of the long range ones because I only use a long range during the night. They all pretty much do the same crap. Lower your sugar.. Too much=low, not enough=high. It's too much of a complex disease to get right. There are just too many factors in play to really keep the levels stable. This is a quote from the CEO of Viacyte who are working on a potential functional transplant..

“Our whole company is focused on diabetes,” Robins said. “It is something that we think can be treated with stem cells.”
People who aren’t familiar with Type 1 diabetes don’t understand how terrible it is, he said.
“There’s not a very good way to control it,” he said.

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Permalink Reply by DeeJay on May 12, 2012 at 10:28pm

You just havent figured your body out yet. I have occasional highs but most of the time I'm between 80-150 because I took the time to figure out how my body responds to certain foods, You should try a low carb diet, maybe a Paleo or Primal diet and see how you like it. My body just doesn't respond well to sugar and carbs so I took it out of my diet. Maybe you should try that. It sucks that we cant enjoy the typical American (Horrible) Diet, but we are much healthier eating lots of veggies, low sugar fruits, Fatty food & Proteins. Try it out!

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Permalink Reply by Cosumne Jan on May 12, 2012 at 10:39pm

My BS is never very high nor very low, but I have autonomic neuropathy - at least twice a week my bowels are unpredictable - and peripheral neuropathy which means I can't walk very well or very fast. If you think being grumpy because you have high or low BS is bad, you should try the lovely combination of diarrhea and feet that don't work well. It's pretty shitty, Gary. I just make the best of it, carry spare clothes, and keep on truckin'. I hope you can do the same some day.

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Permalink Reply by Gary on May 13, 2012 at 6:08am

It's pretty clear we all get different symptoms and get them at different levels. My dad is also diabetic and he can be low or high and rarely feels much of anything. My symptoms are quite disturbing and I get them not too far out of range. Unless anyone experiences exactly what I do it's really unfair to judge. I admit I don't have very good coping skills and in general and because of my background I am a very worried nervous person which only complicates matters far worse when I don't feel right. I think we all can agree no matter how you manage your diabetes its nearly impossible to get normal fluctuations consistently in the 80-120 like a non diabetic. That being said not by choice but due to circumstance I feel forced to remain hopeless unless there is a treatment breakthrough. As far as my topic question I find it interesting that most diabetics will go out and do things socially despite how their sugars are running and how they feel.

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Permalink Reply by acidrock23 on May 13, 2012 at 6:48am

I disagree that it's "nearly impossible to get normal fluctuations consistently in he 80-120 like a non-diabetic" assertion. My will to power exerts itself on my blood sugar and puts it where I want it. It's not always easy and there are mysteries lurking all over the place but I am not hopeless at all about surviving with diabetes as I've already survived longer than I would have thought I would 20 years ago. I'm oblivious to a cure until I can go buy one or (ha ha...) file insurance claims to see if they'll cover it.

It occurred to me though that I might be concerned about swimming and BG as the few times I've been swimming in the last couple of years, it seems to kill my BG. About the only reason I'd swim would be for some sort of triathlon and, of course, practicing for that but I suspect that it would be a big challenge. A friend of mine said "hey, we oughtta do the [local] triathlon in August..." and I've been mulling it over. Last year, I needed a break from the grind of marathon training by that time and a triathlon would be a fun diversion. It's 400 yards/ 13 or 14 miles cycling and a 10K which I think I should be able to do but the swimming's a wild card? I'' keep it on the radar but I suspect that when I think about it I'll blow it off. Not just the BG reason but well, I suppose it's there?

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Permalink Reply by KatieT1 on May 13, 2012 at 7:34am

i believe you're a type 2 on no medications...so, i think gary's situation is FAR different than yours. Also, if your BG's are never high or low, you need no medications, A1C 5.1% how do you have automonic neuropathy...that is an extreme intense condition, effecting usually every part of the body.

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Permalink Reply by acidrock23 on May 13, 2012 at 7:38am

I would say Jan's account of the symptoms would establish a certain degree of bonafides, if you are talking to her? I guess one never knows on the internet? I suspect that w/ T2, one can go on at a level that's "OK" to doctors for quite some time before complications manifest themselves which is why I agree w/ Dr. Bernstein, and disagree w/ Gary, that normal BG should be our goal, whether it's T1 or T2 or one of the other types and subtypes/ branches? Once you "come together" with complications, the pathologies are very similar I think?

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Permalink Reply by Donna H on May 13, 2012 at 7:43am

I find it disappointing when I see dismissiveness of people of other types. I think we all of much to learn from each other. AR's point about the pathologies is a good one. With that said, Kate, because of the content of your post, I zipped over to your page to see if you were a T1 or T2 making the comment, but your profile is set to private.

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Permalink Reply by acidrock23 on May 13, 2012 at 8:02am

Thanks Donna. To me, the big problem w/ diabetes, in the absence of a practical and cost-effective cure solution, is the "goal" issue because if your average BG is 140, your doctor will say "you're doing ok" but you are assuming not-insignificant risk of the sort of complications that Gary, ConsummeJan and BrokenPole and other brave individuals have shared with us here. On the other hand, if one goes too far, one assumes the quicker and more disturbing "complication" of hypoglycemia (at least w/ insulin in the picture?) which is also a problem. The goals of "normal" and "stable" don't seem to be part of the medical picture and I have to think that the reason people with diabetes have the problems we have is because our doctors have already "given up" by not adopting braver goals themselves? Yes, there'd be risks involved and there'd be greater costs for reasonable amounts of test strips and reasonable amounts of access to medical dialogues to discuss the results of the additional testing but, if that's what it takes, it should be done. The root of the problem is in the medical industry.

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Permalink Reply by Sam Iam on May 13, 2012 at 12:17pm

+1

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