Flashback -- Professional Advice

Well, right after Urban Cowboy's diagnosis, his physician signed us up for Diabetes Education at the hospital. We were looking forward to the class and learning more about managing this disease. Meantime, we continued to do research and determined that we would lower our daily carb count on our own. Our first step was to lower to 100 grams of carbohydrate per day, and once we were on board with that, we decided to lower our daily carb count to 80 grams.

So when we went to visit the dietitian, we already were counting carbs and staying under 80 grams per day. We were so proud of ourselves and we thought everyone else would be patting us on the back! Boy, were we wrong.

The dietitian was nice....but nicely told us that was too low, that Urban Cowboy needed carbs for energy and we should not go below 130 grams per day. Well....at 80 carbs per day, Urban Cowboys blood glucose was still in the 120 to 140 range most of the time. We thought that was too high. We had already read that the complications of diabetes -- kidney disease, retinopathy, neuropathy and poor circulation to the feet -- were all caused by high blood sugar. #avoidcomplicationsofdiabetes, #nopatsontheback

To be honest, we eventually decided that was too high to avoid complications. And since we began this odyssey with a stroke, we figured there was already some blood vessel damage from the elevated blood sugar so we continued our quest to lower blood glucose levels.

In another conversation with Urban Cowboy's primary care physician, we wanted to be able to test blood glucose several times a day in order to get tight control. We were willing to pay for the test strips that go with the glucometer if we had to, but we also wanted insurance coverage if it was available. His physician balked however, claiming that he didn't need to check his blood sugar that often and that insurance would not cover so many test strips.

So, Urban Cowboy called our insurance company to find out their thoughts on covering test strips. He was told that they would cover 6 per day no questions asked. So Urban Cowboy called his physician again and asked for 6 strips per day. And when the doctor said insurance wouldn't cover that many test strips, Urban Cowboy was able to say that "yes, they will cover 6 per day".  So then doc says  that Urban Cowboy's fingers would become infected with pricking them so often! Urban Cowboy may have raised his voice then. He got the order for 6 test strips per day! #checkinginsuranceforteststrips, #checkingonphysicianswhotreatdiabetes

So far, we were not doing well with professional advice, but we still had the classes to go. There were three classes on three consecutive weeks.

Again, we were proud of our success to lower our daily carb count to 80 per day...and at this level, blood sugar was under control most of the time. We were appalled to find out that very low carbohydrate way of eating was never mention in class, except by us. And each time we brought it up, we were corrected by the nurse and the dietitian that taught the class. And we wondered why newly diagnosed diabetics were not offered the option of very low carbohydrates. It is possible for some diabetics to stay off medication by eating this way. To us, the main question was..."Why would you eat something that your body can't process?" If a person is allergic to peanuts, we tell them to avoid peanuts. If a person is intolerant of lactose, we tell them to stay away from dairy products. So why does the healthcare system tell people with diabetes to eat lots of carbs?

We found out this was a complex question with a complex answer. The answer has elements of history, big companies that donate lots of money to the American Diabetes Association and people who don't want to hear that they can't eat cake! #adiabeticshouldn'teatcake

And So It Begins...

There is so much to say about this disease called diabetes, so I might be posting frequently for awhile...til I get it all out of my system. It has only been a year, but so much has happened. We have learned a lot, Urban Cowboy and me...but we are still learning and there is so much to learn.

Years ago, when the Atkins diet was popular, we tried it. It didn't last long because even though we lost weight and our triglycerides were better than ever, I was afraid of the amount of fats that you had to consume. So after about 6 months or so, we returned to the Standard American Diet...aptly called SAD. But as we were taking ourselves off the Atkins plan I said to myself -- if you had diabetes, this is how you should eat.

So, when we were faced with the diabetes diagnosis I recalled that experience and I began an online search for a carbless way of eating. Awake in the middle of the night, I would search for as much information as I could find. One of the first places I landed was Jenny Ruhl's bloodsugar101.com

I think I was up all night reading all the pages she had posted. One of the first things I learned is that Urban Cowboy should be testing his blood for glucose frequently. He was not open to doing this initially...maybe I became a bit of a nag...and eventually he agreed to do it. I remember the day we were at Costco and he decided to buy a glucometer. And you also have to buy test strips to go with the meter...the strips are the expensive part. We took that meter home and read all the instructions. Urban Cowboy began testing his blood first thing in the morning and an hour and 2 hours after each meal. #learningcurveglucometer  #haveyouevernaggedanUrbanCowboy #thankyouJennyRuhl

And, of course, while you are focused on checking your blood for glucose...it is necessary to also focus on how many carbohydrates you are eating each day. So we began a journal to record everything so that when we went to the doctor...or the diabetes education classes, we could show them what we had been doing.
#learningcurvecountingcarbs #diabeteseducation #diabetesjournal

Pride!

Marlboro Man

I like Ree Drummond, the Pioneer Woman...you can find her here: http://thepioneerwoman.com. She has a great spirit that comes across in her blogs and her TV show. Well, the reason I bring this up is that she calls her husband Marlboro Man. That made me think I need a name for Hubs. He is kind of a Marlboro Man too...but that's already taken so I have to think of something else.

He is a stand-up guy who is definitely a rugged individualist. He rides a BMW 1200 motorcycle instead of a horse though. And competitively shoots high powered rifle. He likes toys... like his tractor, ATV...and, well that's to name a few. Last week I was glad that he had more than one toy though because when he was plowing the driveway after the recent snow...well, his tractor slid into the ditch and he had to pull it out!

Out of the ditch!

I'm still thinking what his nickname should be.

Any ideas?

Perhaps Snow Man...no, too focused on one aspect.

Um...maybe, Motorcycle Man...no, that doesn't describe him either.

Country Cowboy? He is a Texas boy...born in Fort Worth...and now lives outside of Chicago. Urban Cowboy...hmm, that has a ring to it! He's my Urban Cowboy anyway.

So Urban Cowboy it is!

#UrbanCowboy, #diabeteslearningcurve

Prelude

This is the story of us....or at least our journey with diabetes. It really began several years ago when Hubs doctor told him that his blood sugar was elevated. His fasting blood sugar was 115. Well, we are kinda against taking medications if there is another option. So we said that we would give it six months of diet and exercise and try to modify blood sugar on our own. And...in six months, Hubs fasting blood sugar was under 100. Yay for us! We won!

Not so fast...now we know that if we had taken the early signs more seriously, we might not be in the situation that we are in now. The doctor followed his fasting blood sugars for the next 3 years and our diet and exercise program seemed to be working. We were elated, but we were just beginning the #diabeteslearningcurve.

Fast forward to January, 2014. Hubs woke up one Saturday morning with tingling starting at the top of his head, down the left side of his neck and into his left hand. He had a few sips of Coke because he felt funny like he might be "hypoglycemic". The feeling didn't go away so we decided to go to the Emergency Room. At that point he had been experiencing the symptoms for about 45 minutes...then, we had a 20 minute drive to the hospital. Once we got there, because his symptoms were indicative of a stroke, we were taken to a room immediately. Tests began immediately -- EKG, Blood panel, CT scan. The things that stood out: microscopic blood vessel changes in the brain and a blood glucose of 159!

So....our journey begins.