It was a beautiful day in Vermont. Temps in the low 80s, perfect blue sky dotted with fluffy white clouds, dappled sunlight shining through the trees...
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| picture courtesy of Burlington Hostel |
I was mowing the lawn; a job I actually don't mind since it appeals to my need for immediate gratification every once in a while. We have a huge, uneven, hilly lawn so this little chore usually takes me about 4-5 hrs. We only go up to VT on the weekends, and by then the grass is knee-high and the weeds are out of control. But, I was enjoying being outside, and knew that I would have a good BG reading pre-dinner because of all the mowing, raking, wheelbarrowing and weed-wacking.
After yard duty, hubs and I decided to grill dinner. We had a delish summery dinner- lamb chops for him, and fresh corn, grilled zucchini, pasta (Dreamfields) salad and grilled pineapple for dessert. Heaven for a veggie like me! May sound a bit high carb, but suprisingly, corn on the cob isn't too bad on my BG readings. I bolused 5.3 units for this meal and my pre-meal bg was 66 (a tiny bit low due to all the exercise, but not bad.)
Two hours after dinner I heard the dreaded "your bg's low" tone coming from my pump. It's really amazing how four little beeps can inspire so much fury!!
The ensuing disaster is the problem I've been having recently, trying to figure out how to utilize the CGM in the best way with out driving myself or husband crazy. Any hints/suggestions/advice/commiseration is appreciated!
I looked at the screen. Beautiful straightish line hovering between 66-82-70. Ahh perfect combo of exercise, insulin and food. However, my CGM is set to go off as "getting low" at any BG 70 or under. I'm hesitant to mess with that setting because I know the CGM isn't 100% accurate and when it says 70 it may actually be 45. So, I checked my bg with the meter. Actually 70. Wow. Very accurate. Now what do I do? I sit through another half hour or so of beeping every 5 mins and test my bg a few more times 68 was the lowest. Ok, I thought, I'll eat 5 chocolate covered almonds to raise the bg a few units- anything around 80 or 90 will stop the CGM from going off all night. Test half an hour later: 70. Ugh, how come I can't raise my bg when I want to, when I don't want to, its always 200+...? Beeping continues...Blood sugar not rising, but temper is!! Check the meter and see I have 1.1 units active insulin left. Ok, maybe that's why bg is not going up. I decide to eat a Nonni's biscotti 14g of carbs. My ratio at night is 1:10 so I thought- perfect amt of carbs to override the 1.1 units and boost my bg a little? Right? Am I making sense or do I completely not know how to calculate I:C ratio?
I decide I can go to bed now and I really really want to because I am tired after all that mowing. I go to bed and fall immediately asleep. I fall so soundly asleep as a matter of fact, that I don't hear the doo-doo-doo-doos until the meter starts vibrating, lighting up and shrieking like a police siren. Ahhh! Test BG again. 140. CGM still saying low. Calibrate you damn thing! I calibrate it and go back to sleep, totally exhausted. I must have slept for maybe 3 hours when I hear those f'ing doo-doo-doo-doos going off again, but now in the annoying "your bg's high!" tone. Oh my god. I can't take it. Why are you messing with me? Bolus. Sleep. Beep. Bolus. Wake up in a very bad mood. Test BG 109. CGM says 170. CGM, I. hate. you. right. now.
Hubs nicely asks about my opinion on concrete floors. (We are looking for a new apartment and that is an option in one apparently.) "Concrete floors!?!" I practically yell. "What are you talking about? You drive me crazy! This damn things been going off all night and I've had 3 hours of sleep! Why are you talking about concrete floors?!" Hubs nicely asks if I am ready for my coffee now.
Finally, after coffee when I am feeling more reasonable, I apologize to hubs, and to CGM. I know the CGM is only doing its best and trying to help me, but I am getting sick of these interrupted nights. Can anyone else relate to this?
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