A pat on the back for Kelsey
Today was my quarterly endo appointment.
judgment day, if you will.
I quizzed my husband last night, "What do you think my A1c will be?"
"Hmm. What was it last time?"
"6.4."
"It'll probably be about the same."
"Man, taking the easy way out huh?!" I teased him.
(The reason I asked my husband to guess is because he's had an odd ability to guess my blood sugars lately. He's been within 5-10 points or exactly correct a lot lately! Weird.)
Anyway, my A1c has been consistently in the 6.2 to 6.4 range for the last year. I'm quite pleased with this, especially considering I'd never even broken into the sixes before! However, since I'm trying to prepare my body for pregnancy, I was really hoping to get it a bit lower.
Another reason for wanting a lower result is that I'm still on MDI. Yes, I'm one of the few pump holdouts in the OC. With the prospect of pregnancy looming, I knew my endo would be pushing the pump even harder. Having a great A1c would be proof that I didn't need the pump to achieve good control.
I know the pump has it's virtues and I've researched it extensively, but remember, I'm the person who passes out when she gets her blood drawn! My aversion to the pump is simply the fear of having something permanently inside me and the inconvenience of having the pump attached to me. Plus, starting to pump while dealing with being pregnant does not add up to success for the change-phobic Kelsey.
That said, I'm interested in the Omnipod and CGMS, so I'll have to deal with my phobia at some point. I'll just wait until the advantages of the systems outweigh my fears!
Today's result was.... drumroll please :)... 6.0!
A pat on the back indeed.
judgment day, if you will.
I quizzed my husband last night, "What do you think my A1c will be?"
"Hmm. What was it last time?"
"6.4."
"It'll probably be about the same."
"Man, taking the easy way out huh?!" I teased him.
(The reason I asked my husband to guess is because he's had an odd ability to guess my blood sugars lately. He's been within 5-10 points or exactly correct a lot lately! Weird.)
Anyway, my A1c has been consistently in the 6.2 to 6.4 range for the last year. I'm quite pleased with this, especially considering I'd never even broken into the sixes before! However, since I'm trying to prepare my body for pregnancy, I was really hoping to get it a bit lower.
Another reason for wanting a lower result is that I'm still on MDI. Yes, I'm one of the few pump holdouts in the OC. With the prospect of pregnancy looming, I knew my endo would be pushing the pump even harder. Having a great A1c would be proof that I didn't need the pump to achieve good control.
I know the pump has it's virtues and I've researched it extensively, but remember, I'm the person who passes out when she gets her blood drawn! My aversion to the pump is simply the fear of having something permanently inside me and the inconvenience of having the pump attached to me. Plus, starting to pump while dealing with being pregnant does not add up to success for the change-phobic Kelsey.
That said, I'm interested in the Omnipod and CGMS, so I'll have to deal with my phobia at some point. I'll just wait until the advantages of the systems outweigh my fears!
Today's result was.... drumroll please :)... 6.0!
A pat on the back indeed.
posted by Kelsey @ 9:09 AM
14 Comments:
At 11:16 AM,
Kerri. said…
FANTASTIC A1C!!!
You deserve a pat on the back, for certain. You also deserve two tickets to Hawaii and a week at an all-inclusive resort, but I'm unable to provide that for you at this time.
I can cheerlead from the internet, though.... YEAH KELSEY!!!
At 11:17 AM,
Scott K. Johnson said…
Hi Kelsey!
Way to go! That's a wonderful improvement!
Don't worry about the whole pump thing. What is important is to do what works well for your situation, and everyone is very different.
You are doing a great job with MDI, and it's obviously working very well for you.
At 11:37 AM,
Kelsey said…
Thanks for the support guys. Sometimes I feel a little left out, since the pump is so popular. If they'd hurry up with this new technology, I'd definitely join the club!
Man, will I need a lot of support then :)
At 3:47 PM,
Penny Ratzlaff said…
Sending a virtual pat on the back your way!!
At 5:55 PM,
If not a mother... said…
great!!!
my husband is another hold-out on MDI, but he said he might come around if the next A1C is still in the 7's.
At 6:50 PM,
Minnesota Nice said…
How nice.
I too am an MDI'er and currently have no plans to start pumping, at least in the immediate future.
But........man oh man have I learned a lot about the pump just in the few weeks of participating in the OC and know that if the day should ever come, there'd be a ton of people to answer questions.
One of my favorite quotes is "effectiveness is the only measurement of truth".
Keep the good work.
At 7:06 PM,
Allison said…
WOW!! You chica are awesome. Way to go with the A1C.
I love the pump (not that anyone could guess that...). I was like "Heck no" with the pump for TWO YEARS before my endo convinced me to go on it (thank you, Dr. Hansen).
Anyway, when you aren't on the pump, it's really common to think, "Ohmygosh, it will be so noticeable, I will notice it all the time, I don't want something attached to me." When I finally got the pump and got used to it, I LOVED the fact it was always with me. Man, talk about instant gratification. You never need to worry about bringing enough syringes for the day, you never need to worry about running home because you didn't think you were going to eat out. Obviously you don't need it for control, but the whole "presto chango" factor of the pump is quite possibly the coolest thing since the invention of the waterbed.
At 12:13 AM,
justme said…
Congrats on the A1c!!
I, though still new to diabetes (although it feels as though I have had it forever already!, too am a bit apprehensive about going on the pump. I have been managing fine with the injections - something I did not think I would be able to do. The pump scares me a little, in that it will consitantly be attached... But maybe in the future!
At 6:20 AM,
Lyrehca said…
Congrats!
I hear your hesitation about the pump... but here's another consideration. Some docs won't let you use Lantus while pregnant because "it hasn't been tested in pregnancy" and might put you back on NPH. (I'm presuming you're on Lantus now). Being on a pump (and yes, I'd suggest going on one before getting pregnant, too) means you only have one fast-acting insulin to deal with, one that can given with the push of a button, and can change basal rates daily when pregnancy requires you take more insulin. (Typically, you need THREE times as much insulin at the end of a pregnancy than you would at the beginning). I know what you mean about having something attached to you, but hey, your arms are attached to you and it's not like they seem odd, right? My pump right now is about as crucial as both my arms and I'd hate to go back to MDI.
At 10:22 AM,
stella said…
Congratulations on the awesome number!
I was hesitant about the pump at first. I'm not saying that you should switch, because obviously MDI works great for you.
But when I was considering the pump, I had a friend give me a few insertion sets. I put one in, and wore it for a few days. (that first time, I nearly passed out) I was VERY aware of something being in me the whole time. But after the first day or so, I forgot all about it. It made it much easier for when I actually did get my pump a few weeks later. I knew that I would be okay.
Again, I'm not saying you should switch, because I believe everyone should do what works best for them.
Congrats again!
-Stella
P.S. Let me know if you have any questions about diabetic pregnancy.
At 7:33 PM,
Major Bedhead said…
That's a fantastic a1c. Congratulations!
At 12:58 PM,
Kelsey said…
You guys are really getting me thinking about the pump again... Thanks A LOT! :)
Of course I want to do what's best for our future children, and all the praise for the pump can't be for nothing!
Ohh, if I start the pump I'll have to chronicle it in my blog, since it seems like most OC bloggers have been on the pump for awhile... It might be cool to post about the process of starting it.
Hmm, we'll see!
At 8:17 PM,
Kassie said…
Congrats on the awesome A1c!
If you have pumping/pg questions, I'm happy to help sort out the answers.
10 years ago I started pumping as part of a pregnancy study (something about pregnancy lows) - this 'everyone is pumping' thing is fairly new :)
At 8:46 AM,
Johnboy said…
Please take a bow! That's just awesome.
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