The A1C Waiting Game

Posted on January 5, 2011 by mydiabeticheart

Well, it’s almost time for another round of routine doctor visits.  I see both my PCP and my cardiologist next week and, as usual, preparations for those appointments include a visit to the lab for blood work.  I made that visit this morning.

Approximately 20 minutes of my times, one sharp needle, and a few vials of blood later, and the waiting game begins.

You know what I’m talking about.  The little, not-so-fun game we play while waiting for the doctor visit to get the test results.  The game where we sit around and dread what the results will be; where we kick ourselves for the bad numbers we’ve had. And where we fear the admonishment that may come from doctor.

I’ve been playing that game for a while now, simply because I know that my numbers haven’t been very good lately and that my A1C is not going to be as good as it has been.  And, there’s a whole list of reasons why things have gotten out of hand.  Which is bad because some days I just feel like it’s a list of excuses, but it’s also good because I know what’s causing the problems, and it gives me a list of things to work on.

And I’m trying to be positive about it.  After all, one bad A1C in two years isn’t going to be the end of the world. And it’s just a number. And I am not my numbers.  I’m a person. And a great person at that.

Posted in Diabetes, Doctor Visits, Health, Lessons Learned, Life | 5 Comments

Sleeping with the Insurance Company

Posted on January 3, 2011 by mydiabeticheart

Um, yeah..So this is something of a partially coherent rant.  You’ve been warned!

Throughout the last two years, I’ve often been asked what I thought the hardest part of living with type 2 diabetes and congestive heart failure is.

For the longest time, my answer was simply not having my family around to help me cope with things.  Sure, I had April and her parents here with me, so it’s not like I’ve been completely alone. However, MY family lives more than 200 miles away. And not having them near has been pretty rough.

Having put a great deal of thought into the question, though, I have to admit that not having my family around pails in comparison to the difficulties of trying to figure out how to pay for everything that goes along with life with multiple chronic health conditions.

Simply put, the cost of living with this bullshit isn’t cheap.  The drug costs alone are astronomical; not to mention all the testing and treatment supplies that go along with it.   Just ask me or anyone else living with these diseases. We’ll give you an ear full.

I mentioned before that Type 2 diabetes and congestive heart failure aren’t the only chronic conditions in my clusterf@#k of joy.  I’ve got asthma, allergies, severe obstructive sleep apnea, acid reflux and other GI problems, arthritis, and migraines. Just to list a few.  And, I’ve also stated that there’s a long list of medications, etc… that go along with those.  And guess what…they all cost me hundreds of dollars each month, despite the fact that I have insurance.

Shortly after I was diagnosed, I received an information packet about an diabetes management incentive program offered by my health insurance company.  If I followed the requirements of the program, they would cover the cost of diabetes medications, test strips, and other sorts of medications.  It was a 5 level program, and at each level, they would pay for more stuff.  I was rather hesitant about getting into the program; I absolutely hated the idea of an insurance company dictating how I was going to live my life.  What it boiled down to was deciding whether or not I could handle sleeping with the insurance company in exchange for medications and test strips.

Now, before anyone pipes up and says I’m lucky to have insurance and an incentive program like that, let me say this: You’re right! I am quite fortunate in that I have a job and decent health benefits.  I count those blessings each and every day.  Those benefits, however, only go so far.  And like so many other people that I know, I’m still frequently forced to make a lot of tough choices.  Like choosing between getting medications needed to keep me alive and putting food on the table.

Those are scary decisions.  And with so many of us facing those sorts of things, is it really any wonder why depression and other mental health issues are so prevalent  among those with diabetes and other chronic conditions?

Posted in Diabetes, Health, Heart, Insurance, Lessons Learned, Life, Rants | 3 Comments

Playing Catch Up

Posted on January 1, 2011 by mydiabeticheart

In a effort to start 2011 out on a positive note, I spent the majority of today working to get caught up on a few pressing matters.

With the running around and all that I’ve been doing the last few months as a result of my mother in laws health problems, I had managed to fall behind on preparing and sending blood glucose logs to my insurance company.  I hadn’t realized how far behind I was until I got an email from the lady in charge of the diabetes management program at my insurance company reminding me that I hadn’t sent anything to her since early October.

So, I spent a while this morning dumping data from both of my meters, and running reports from their respective software.  I then printed cover sheets and faxed the reports.  It felt great getting that weight off my shoulders.  And now that I’m caught up, I  fully intend to stay that way.

The other thing I worked on today was catching up on sleep.  Anyone who knows me knows that I don’t get a whole lot of rest; with the crazy hours I work and all, I’m always on the go.  And the insomnia doesn’t help either.  Today, however, I managed to get a 5 hour nap in.  5 full hours of uninterrupted sleep for me is unheard of, so it was a welcomed occurrence.

Here’s hoping that such occurrences will become a regular thing for me during 2011.  I sure need it.

Posted in Diabetes, Life | Leave a comment

Happy New Years D-OC!

Posted on December 31, 2010 by mydiabeticheart

From where I sit, there are just five and a half hours left in 2010.  And what a wild and crazy year it has been.

From the highs of D-Meetups and vacation travels, to the lows of personal and family health struggles, it’s certainly been a busy year.  It is my fondest wish and prayer that 2011 be filled with more joy than tears, and that there’ll be many reasons to smile from ear to ear.

Here’s to a Healthy and Happy 2011 for everyone in the D-OC.  Have fun tonight, and be safe.

All the Best!
Mike.

Posted in Diabetes, Life | 1 Comment

Two Years of Knowing

Posted on December 29, 2010 by mydiabeticheart

Today is my two year Diaversary.  Two whole years; not a long time in reality, yet I feel like it’s been so much longer.

In actuality, I really have been living with Type 2 Diabetes and Congestive Heart Failure for longer than two years.  What today marks is two years of knowing it.  And what a difference knowing has made.

Looking back, I’d say I had been living with type 2 and CHF, undiagnosed, for two or three years before I was diagnosed.  Given the knowledge I have now, and the fact that I had felt like hell for so long, I’d say that’s a well educated guesstimate.

Lots of things have changed for the better over the last two years.  My A1C, as of last check, is 6.5 as opposed to 9.6 at the time of diagnosis.  My heart, which was pumping at 30% to 35% when I was diagnosed with congestive heart failure, is now pumping at around 50%. At least that’s what the heart catheterization I had in July showed.  And, I’m lighter in weight than I was prior to diagnosis.

It’s been a wild and crazy ride the last two years; I’ve learned lots of stuff and gained more friends than I can count.  I’ve been places and done things that I never would have considered prior to diagnosis, like petting sharks, starfish and horseshoe crabs and traveling to meet strangers I met on the internet.

Being diagnosed with a life threatening health condition makes you realize just how short and fragile life really is.  And the fact that life is short underscores the importance of living what time we have to the fullest.

I’ve said this time and time again; life hasn’t ended because I was diagnosed with diabetes and congestive heart failure, It’s only just begun.  And I can’t wait to see what new adventures the new year has in store.

Posted in Diabetes, Featured, Heart, Lessons Learned, Life | 5 Comments

Christmas Monkey Business

Posted on December 27, 2010 by mydiabeticheart
Yet another Christmas has come and gone as it does every year, and it turned out to be much better than I expected it would, given the two chaotic months we’ve been through with April’s mom.

Despite all of the chaos, though,  April still found time to be sneaky in preparing the present she had in mind for me.  And what would Christmas be without a little monkey business?  I mean really.

My gift from April was the giant sock monkey and the outfit he’s wearing in the pictures on the right.

A while back, April and I were talking and, some how or another, we got to talking about sock monkeys.  I think we had been looking at the ThinkGeek catalog and saw one in there.  Who knows.  Anyway, I mentioned that I had never had one as a child, and that I thought they were pretty cool.

About two weeks ago, April & I were at Meijers, and happened to walk past a display full of giant sock monkeys.  I almost bought one right there, but decided not to.  Well, that obviously got the wheels turning in April’s head.

So, while she was doing her Christmas shopping last week, she returned to Meijers and bought the giant sock monkey.

Then during one of our nightly phone calls while I’m at work, she asked for the link to the CafePress store that I had told her about previously.  I gave it to her and didn’t think anything of it.

And that’s where the real monkey business begins.  April went to the site and swiped the logo off of one of the products.  She had to edit the image a bit to get three different sizes, and then moved them into Word, and printed the images onto t-shirt transfer paper. Those were then applied to the front of the t-shirt, and the front and back of the hat.

As you can see, April also drew little red and white hearts on the hat.  What makes those special is that red side is a finger print.  She dipped her finger in the paint and kind of wiped it across the heart.  Those hearts symbolize both the fact that I do have a heart that’s literally broken and the aftermath of a blood glucose test.

I must say that I am really touched by the thoughtfulness and thoroughness of this gift.  It’s not only cute and fun, but it also connects to something very near and dear to me.

I appreciate the time and effort that went into putting this together.  It is the thought behind the gift that really counts, and I so appreciate that this gift truly came from the heart.

Thanks April! ❤

Cody S. Monkey

Smile Cody!
Posted in Humor, Life, Photos, Shout outs | 5 Comments

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Posted on December 24, 2010 by mydiabeticheart

Wishing the timeless treasures of Christmas, the warmth of home, the love of family, and the company of good friends to everyone in the Diabetes Online Community!

Lots of Love, D-OC!
Mike Durbin

Posted in Cartoons, Humor, Life | 7 Comments

Feeding Time at D Zoo

Posted on December 15, 2010 by mydiabeticheart

Posted in Cartoons, Diabetes, Humor, Life | 10 Comments

Blunt Lancet Song Lyrics Leaked

Posted on December 10, 2010 by mydiabeticheart

Blunt Lancet, the popular 90’s rock group who, according to the higher ups in their organization are working on a new Christmas album, appear to be the latest group to be hit by a leak.

BetesLeaks, a website hell bent on making all things Betes available to the world free of charge, has obtained and made public the lyrics to Blunt Lancet’s much anticipated Christmas song, “The Twelve Days of Betes”.

MDH News entertainment reporter Little G spoke with Blunt Lancet drummer and representative Kim “Pancreas”, who said the group has mixed feelings about the leak.

“We had talked about making the song lyrics available to the public ahead of the album’s release as a way to show our fans that we really were working on new material, but we hadn’t finalized those plans.  We wanted to do things on our own terms.  Now we won’t get that chance.”

MDH News has learned that Blunt Lancet had been working with several consultants on the upcoming project, and that it was one of the consultants who stole the lyrics and made them available to BetesLeaks.

Kim “Pancreas” told Little G that the group had learned a hard lesson about who they can trust.

“With a company name like Dewey, Fuck’em & Howe, we should have known that firm would cause us trouble.”

Blunt Lancet has since made the song lyrics for “The Twelve Days of Betes” available on their website, and have granted MDH News permission to reprint them.

TMP News contributed to this story.
The Twelve Days of Betes

On the first day of Betes my doctor gave to me
The results from my first A1C.

On the second day of Betes my doctor gave to me
Two old brochures and
The results from my first A1C.

On the third day of Betes my doctor gave to me
Three rusty lancets
Two old brochures and
The results from my first A1C.

On the fourth day of Betes my doctor gave to me
Four insulin vials
Three rusty lancets
Two old brochures and
The results from my first A1C.

On the fifth day of Betes my doctor gave to me
Five loads of Bullshit!
Four insulin vials
Three rusty lancets
Two old brochures and
The results from my first A1C.

On the sixth day of Betes my doctor gave to me
Six bills for paying
Five loads of Bullshit!
Four insulin vials
Three rusty lancets
Two old brochures and
The results from my first A1C.

On the seventh day of Betes my doctor gave to me
Seven ways of cheating
Six bills for paying
Five loads of Bullshit!
Four insulin vials
Three rusty lancets
Two old brochures and
The results from my first A1C.

On the eighth day of Betes my doctor gave to me
Eight goals for meeting
Seven ways of cheating
Six bills for paying
Five loads of Bullshit!
Four insulin vials
Three rusty lancets
Two old brochures and
The results from my first A1C.

On the nineth day of Betes my doctor gave to me
Nine pumpers pumping
Eight goals for meeting
Seven ways of cheating
Six bills for paying
Five loads of Bullshit!
Four insulin vials
Three rusty lancets
Two old brochures and
The results from my first A1C.

On the tenth day of Betes my doctor gave to me
Ten fingers bleeding
Nine pumpers pumping
Eight goals for meeting
Seven ways of cheating
Six bills for paying
Five loads of Bullshit!
Four insulin vials
Three rusty lancets
Two old brochures and
The results from my first A1C.

On the eleventh day of Betes my doctor gave to me
Eleven lancers lancing
Ten fingers bleeding
Nine pumpers pumping
Eight goals for meeting
Seven ways of cheating
Six bills for paying
Five loads of Bullshit!
Four insulin vials
Three rusty lancets
Two old brochures and
The results from my first A1C.

On the twelfth day of Betes my doctor gave to me
Twelve Dexcoms beeping
Eleven lancers lancing
Ten fingers bleeding
Nine pumpers pumping
Eight goals for meeting
Seven ways of cheating
Six bills for paying
Five loads of Bullshit!
Four insulin vials
Three rusty lancets
Two old brochures and
The results from my first A1C.

Posted in Diabetes, Humor, Popular, Shout outs | 12 Comments

Do you C++?

Posted on December 9, 2010 by mydiabeticheart

Given the line of work that I do, it was only a matter of time before I started in with code monkey posts here on My Diabetic Heart.  Can anyone tell me what this does?   Leave your best guess as a comment below.

#include <diabetessucks>
using namespace std;

int main()
{
int num = 1;
while (num <= 100)
{
count << num;
num++;
count << ” – We Need A Cure!\n”;
}

count << “\n”;
return 0;

}

Posted in Code Monkey, Diabetes, Humor | 2 Comments