My endocrinologist appointment last Tuesday went great. My A1C was 6.9%, even better than I had thought. I felt happy that so much of my hard work had paid off - Diabetes was hard work, and it felt good to know that despite the turning down unhealthy things, the 3 bruises currently on my body from insulin needles, and the worry about expenses, that my health was doing well. It was nice to see all of my old Doctors, too - they'd always been special to me, being my Doctors since I had first been diagnosed. Paula wrote up paperwork for blood work for me to get done, and I groaned as I took it from her, saying goodbye to everyone before leaving the office. I drove to Quest Labs down the street from Princeton in Winter Park, and walked inside the reception room as I had done back in December. I filled out the paperwork. "Have you been fasting?" The woman at the reception desk asked me. "I...well, no," I told her, stating that I hadn't been asked to fast last time. "Well, I'm just telling you, you have to fast for 10 hours before getting your blood tested. Most people fast overnight and come in the morning." Knowing I was in for an unpleasant experience, I left the office disappointed that I couldn't get my blood work done with right away.
The next morning I woke up, feeling unusually ravenous. My stomach was empty - I groaned inwardly as i remembered I had to go get my blood work done. I entertained daydreams of saving it for another day, of getting breakfast, but I wanted to get it over with, So I rolled out of bed, pulled my hair back and changed into a pair of sweatpants. Mom drove me to the Quest Labs in Apopka, which as chance would have it I saw while driving by yesterday had just recently opened. We found the office on the third story and walked inside the tiny room, and I handed the woman my license and Amerigroup insurance card - conscience of how soon the card would be useless, and how soon the woman would be asking for a debit card and not an insurance card. I sat down and waited until a kind looking woman called my name from the door. I gulped and followed her around the corner to a short hallway, and she had me sit in a chair. I showed her my usual vein, and she tied a band around my arm. I took a deep breath as she grabbed a needle, tubing and a few vials from the dresser to my side. "I hate this part," I told her in a shaky voice. I dealt with needles every day, yet pathetically enough, I still dreaded blood work. But this was my third time since having Diabetes that I'd gotten it done, and despite my reservations I knew I cold handle it. I closed my eyes and turned away, thinking of other things as best I could. I felt the pinch, and the needle was in. I felt slight discomfort, but it wasn't so bad.
The blood didn't come out of my arm easily, and the woman tilted my arm. I still looked away, not liking to look at it. The feeling that came upon me was sudden and swift. One moment I felt fine, and then I suddenly felt sick to my stomach. I shifted uncomfortably in my chair. "I don't... feel so good..." I told her, leaning back, giving anything to be away from there just now.
I shifted again. "Do you feel like you are going to pass out?" She asked me. "No, I feel like I'm going to throw up!" I told her frantically, starting to heave. I glanced towards the trash can, and she grabbed it, handing it to me to hold with my free hand. I heaved and heaved again, but my empty stomach allowed for nothing to throw up. I choked up bile and spit it out, leaning back and wiping my hair away from my face. I was drenched in sweat, my whole body shaking. My mom showed up in the hallway. "She's diabetic and they told her to fast," she told the woman. Another older lady strode in. "Just take the needle out, we have enough", she said, coming up to me. I didn't even notice the needle being removed. I just sat there, motionless, breathing in and out heavily. "Get her some juice, the one I have in the fridge". She told the other woman. "She's Diabetic, she needs sugar. Let's get some color back in her." "I'm sorry," I repeated over and over to whoever would listen. "It's alright, the younger woman said when she returned with a small container of juice. I thought you were just afraid because of the needle." I laughed. "No, I haven't eaten in hours." I drank the juice slowly, still feeling poorly. I was allowed to leave a few minutes later, feeling better, but drained, from my experience.
No matter how many times you've had it done, bloodwork sucks!
Monday, July 16, 2012
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
The Nighttime Low Strikes Back
Erica has been my best friend for years. We met in freshman year of High School, and were as opposite as two people could be at first glance. Blonde and quiet, shy and reserved, I came to school every Tuesday in my Smith Prep Polo, did my work, and went home. Erica had fiery red hair and a personality to match. Always the first one to speak up in class, Erica never said no to a chance to talk in front of the class, debate, or just in general share her views. She played football while I sat in the field at break, wore colorful scarves in her thick hair, and was surrounded by a group of close friends.
Erica completely intimidated me!
I consider our first official "meeting" to be the last day of class that school year. It was almost time to leave for the bowling party, and we were all talking about our summer plans. Erica brought up something anime-related and I burst out, "I love Anime!" I remember her smiling from across the room even if I don't remember the rest of the conversation anymore. More than anything, though, I remember Erica mentioning our Bible and World History Teacher Mr. Phillips' summer camp, VSO, that she and her close friends were going to for the second time this year. We didn't have much time to talk because we were all loading into the vans just then, but Erica sat with me on the way, stating something along the lines of, "I haven't talked to you yet, so I guess now's a good time to start!"
The rest is ancient history. Erica and I hit it off, I came out of my shell, we went to VSO together, I met Joshua, and we all lived happily ever after.
Fast forward 4 years - I am now in town and visiting for the summer. I find myself at Erica's Saturday evening, sighing after a long day of work and helping myself to some cucumbers and grilled portabello mushrooms. Erica and her mom are pulling more food out of the fridge for me as a substitute to tonight's meal of sausage and spaghetti. I haven't eaten much all day except eggs in the morning, a slice of pizza at a party, and then a hurried meal of popcorn and a popsicle (sugar free) at home before heading back to Erica's. I bolused for the popcorn and popsicle, just not for the pizza... I'd had NO time! My blood sugar was high - somewhere around the 290 range, so I bolused a correction and then debated a little while before bolusing a little more for the vegetables. I ended up staying up late with Erica - 2 am - and checked my blood sugar on a whim before bed, checking in at the 90's. A little low, and normally I wouldn't have gone to bed that low, but I figured it was late and the night would be over soon anyways. I'd be fine. I drifted off to sleep in my comfy bed, dreaming strange dreams and resting up before church in the morning.
I checked the phone and it was 5 AM, and I was wide awake. Every fiber and nerve in my body stood on edge, but that didn't transfer to my limbs - they felt like Jello as I mechanically slid out of bed. I was low, it was dark, my surroundings were unfamiliar to me and I was scared. I pushed open the door and stumbled down the hall to the kitchen, desperately trying to not make noise as I look for something to eat. But Erica's family was the most healthy I knew! My mind was fuddled and though I looked through the fridge, I saw only vegetables, cheeses and other healthy (but non-carby) things to eat. I stumbled to the pantry. Spices...teas...nothing useful to me now. I was getting desperate - my body was shaking, I felt as if I'd pass out right there on the floor if I didn't get carbs NOW. In a last attempt I looked to the island, found a big peach in the basket, and grabbed it, collapsing into a chair and eating the peach to soothe my shaking limbs and frazzled nerves. Finally I felt better, but the experience was not one I wanted to repeat... battling lows at night is hard, but especially when you're not in your usual surroundings.
Erica completely intimidated me!
I consider our first official "meeting" to be the last day of class that school year. It was almost time to leave for the bowling party, and we were all talking about our summer plans. Erica brought up something anime-related and I burst out, "I love Anime!" I remember her smiling from across the room even if I don't remember the rest of the conversation anymore. More than anything, though, I remember Erica mentioning our Bible and World History Teacher Mr. Phillips' summer camp, VSO, that she and her close friends were going to for the second time this year. We didn't have much time to talk because we were all loading into the vans just then, but Erica sat with me on the way, stating something along the lines of, "I haven't talked to you yet, so I guess now's a good time to start!"
The rest is ancient history. Erica and I hit it off, I came out of my shell, we went to VSO together, I met Joshua, and we all lived happily ever after.
Fast forward 4 years - I am now in town and visiting for the summer. I find myself at Erica's Saturday evening, sighing after a long day of work and helping myself to some cucumbers and grilled portabello mushrooms. Erica and her mom are pulling more food out of the fridge for me as a substitute to tonight's meal of sausage and spaghetti. I haven't eaten much all day except eggs in the morning, a slice of pizza at a party, and then a hurried meal of popcorn and a popsicle (sugar free) at home before heading back to Erica's. I bolused for the popcorn and popsicle, just not for the pizza... I'd had NO time! My blood sugar was high - somewhere around the 290 range, so I bolused a correction and then debated a little while before bolusing a little more for the vegetables. I ended up staying up late with Erica - 2 am - and checked my blood sugar on a whim before bed, checking in at the 90's. A little low, and normally I wouldn't have gone to bed that low, but I figured it was late and the night would be over soon anyways. I'd be fine. I drifted off to sleep in my comfy bed, dreaming strange dreams and resting up before church in the morning.
I checked the phone and it was 5 AM, and I was wide awake. Every fiber and nerve in my body stood on edge, but that didn't transfer to my limbs - they felt like Jello as I mechanically slid out of bed. I was low, it was dark, my surroundings were unfamiliar to me and I was scared. I pushed open the door and stumbled down the hall to the kitchen, desperately trying to not make noise as I look for something to eat. But Erica's family was the most healthy I knew! My mind was fuddled and though I looked through the fridge, I saw only vegetables, cheeses and other healthy (but non-carby) things to eat. I stumbled to the pantry. Spices...teas...nothing useful to me now. I was getting desperate - my body was shaking, I felt as if I'd pass out right there on the floor if I didn't get carbs NOW. In a last attempt I looked to the island, found a big peach in the basket, and grabbed it, collapsing into a chair and eating the peach to soothe my shaking limbs and frazzled nerves. Finally I felt better, but the experience was not one I wanted to repeat... battling lows at night is hard, but especially when you're not in your usual surroundings.
Monday, July 2, 2012
My Pancreas Has a Bad Feeling About This...
Anyone who knows me well probably knows my view on the healthcare bill by now - I don't support it at all. I don't want anything to do with it. Yesterday was one of the saddest days in the history of our country because we just said goodbye to on the last true freedoms we really have - the right to purchase something without the government telling us we have to. Sure, the government can't force us to buy health insurance. But it can tax us if we don't. In fact, if the government can tax us for not purchasing health insurance, what does that mean when we go to buy a new car? Go to college? Buy a house? Will the government tax us if we don't buy a gas efficient car now, or tax us for not buying healthy foods it approves, or tax us for TV channels it doesn't like?
We are being penalized for exercising our freedom as a member of the free market to both buy and delcine to buy what we choose.
I find that I have a particularly high stake in the outcome of this bill due to my own medical condition, Type 1 Diabetes. The bill - perhaps was intended to truly help Americans - but of course, I doubt if even Congress knows if that's the case.
First of all, Florida has (naturally) opted out of the Medicaid expansion - which means that, you guessed it, Congress figures that on my mother's $12,000 a year income we'll all be able to pay for health insurance. Currently, health insurance for me is useless. I would be denied if I tried to sign up myself. My mother could sign me up for her healthcare (assuming she had it) but it means absolutely nothing Diabetes-related would be covered. At most, from the research I've done, private health insurance at this point would grant me 50 test strips each month, some insulin bottles but no syringes (so no more pens, and absolutely no pumps) or other supplies. Not to mention, anything at all that is wrong for me can be deemed "Diabetes related" making it difficult to get insurance companies to cover anything. My vision problems? (Myopia - which I've had since I was in 5th grade) - could be deemed Diabetes related. Liver problems? Kidney problems? Diabetes related.
So, I'm curious. Obama says that under his new Health Care Bill, people like me, with pre-existing conditions (which, mind you, I did nothing but exist to bring about), will not be barred from getting health insurance, nor will insurance companies be allowed to charge a higher rate for me. This sounds awesome. Except, I have some serious doubts. How am I going to pay for health care each month plus college? Come October, when I lose Medicaid anyways because I'm not pregnant, I do not have a child, and I'm not disabled enough for the Medicaid system, I won't have insurance or access to life saving drugs anyways. I planned on getting these drugs from Canada (Canadadrugs.com) for a much cheaper cost than buying my drugs from a local pharmacy. Test strips would have to be bought each month (about $120), and buying a box of 5 insulin pens every other month (each box lasts about 2 months) (Novolog and Lantus) would run about $300. In addition to that, I would need to buy lancets ($20) and syringes ($30), but I can make a box of each of those last several months (perhaps a bad practice, but I don't use new lancets and syringes every time I test or give myself a shot). Doctor's appointments every 3 months would run me about $70-$100 plus any blood work I need to get done, which I could get at least slightly cheaper by going to a separate blood testing lab other than one at the doctor's. So, adding this all together, this is my total projected cost for health care on my own after October per month: $337.50, or about $4,500 a year. Is this a large cost for a relatively low-income family? Yes. But health insurance costs more, and does less, under the current system.
But this is why I'm worried: the bill, in some aspects, may sounds good on paper, but gives me serious doubts as to whether it will truly help people like me. If insurance companies can't bar me from coverage, will they only cover bottles of insulin, eliminating the chances of me getting a pump or using pens now? Will they charge higher monthly premiums for everyone? Will quality and innovation in our health system see drastic setbacks, lowering the chances of anyone getting good health care? Am I going to have to pay high costs for health insurance each month and pay for all of the things they don't cover? And what about the large amount of money added onto our taxes each year to pay for this bill? I see taxes taken out of my paycheck - where will it stop? How is a country already in deficit going to pay for a bill of this size? How is it that "experts" say the bill will reduce the deficit over the years, but can give neither the math they used to get these numbers or offer any proof that this will occur other than "it's too early to tell if this will really reduce the deficit or not".
So, those are my concerns. If the bill actually does help people like me, and does what Congress claims it does, I'd be amongst the first to admit that my doubts were wrong. But the feeling in my pancreas tells me that perhaps my doubts aren't wrong, and in which case, people like Type 1 Diabetics aren't really going to be better off at all.
We are being penalized for exercising our freedom as a member of the free market to both buy and delcine to buy what we choose.
I find that I have a particularly high stake in the outcome of this bill due to my own medical condition, Type 1 Diabetes. The bill - perhaps was intended to truly help Americans - but of course, I doubt if even Congress knows if that's the case.
First of all, Florida has (naturally) opted out of the Medicaid expansion - which means that, you guessed it, Congress figures that on my mother's $12,000 a year income we'll all be able to pay for health insurance. Currently, health insurance for me is useless. I would be denied if I tried to sign up myself. My mother could sign me up for her healthcare (assuming she had it) but it means absolutely nothing Diabetes-related would be covered. At most, from the research I've done, private health insurance at this point would grant me 50 test strips each month, some insulin bottles but no syringes (so no more pens, and absolutely no pumps) or other supplies. Not to mention, anything at all that is wrong for me can be deemed "Diabetes related" making it difficult to get insurance companies to cover anything. My vision problems? (Myopia - which I've had since I was in 5th grade) - could be deemed Diabetes related. Liver problems? Kidney problems? Diabetes related.
So, I'm curious. Obama says that under his new Health Care Bill, people like me, with pre-existing conditions (which, mind you, I did nothing but exist to bring about), will not be barred from getting health insurance, nor will insurance companies be allowed to charge a higher rate for me. This sounds awesome. Except, I have some serious doubts. How am I going to pay for health care each month plus college? Come October, when I lose Medicaid anyways because I'm not pregnant, I do not have a child, and I'm not disabled enough for the Medicaid system, I won't have insurance or access to life saving drugs anyways. I planned on getting these drugs from Canada (Canadadrugs.com) for a much cheaper cost than buying my drugs from a local pharmacy. Test strips would have to be bought each month (about $120), and buying a box of 5 insulin pens every other month (each box lasts about 2 months) (Novolog and Lantus) would run about $300. In addition to that, I would need to buy lancets ($20) and syringes ($30), but I can make a box of each of those last several months (perhaps a bad practice, but I don't use new lancets and syringes every time I test or give myself a shot). Doctor's appointments every 3 months would run me about $70-$100 plus any blood work I need to get done, which I could get at least slightly cheaper by going to a separate blood testing lab other than one at the doctor's. So, adding this all together, this is my total projected cost for health care on my own after October per month: $337.50, or about $4,500 a year. Is this a large cost for a relatively low-income family? Yes. But health insurance costs more, and does less, under the current system.
But this is why I'm worried: the bill, in some aspects, may sounds good on paper, but gives me serious doubts as to whether it will truly help people like me. If insurance companies can't bar me from coverage, will they only cover bottles of insulin, eliminating the chances of me getting a pump or using pens now? Will they charge higher monthly premiums for everyone? Will quality and innovation in our health system see drastic setbacks, lowering the chances of anyone getting good health care? Am I going to have to pay high costs for health insurance each month and pay for all of the things they don't cover? And what about the large amount of money added onto our taxes each year to pay for this bill? I see taxes taken out of my paycheck - where will it stop? How is a country already in deficit going to pay for a bill of this size? How is it that "experts" say the bill will reduce the deficit over the years, but can give neither the math they used to get these numbers or offer any proof that this will occur other than "it's too early to tell if this will really reduce the deficit or not".
So, those are my concerns. If the bill actually does help people like me, and does what Congress claims it does, I'd be amongst the first to admit that my doubts were wrong. But the feeling in my pancreas tells me that perhaps my doubts aren't wrong, and in which case, people like Type 1 Diabetics aren't really going to be better off at all.
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