Not testing

[Funnygrl]

I copied this from another message board. This is NOT me doing this. But I would like to know your thoughts. The other board isn't very busy, so I would like to get more people's opinions. I have already answered this saying it was a very bad idea. But at the same time, her a1c is great.

I have had type 1 diabetes for 5 years. I am 25 and I have a problem with testing my blood sugars. I know I should and I go to the doctors every 6 months. My A1C level was 6.4 last time. I think I have it under control without testing it. Does anyone else do this or is it just me? I feel some sort of way when I used to test it and it was not what it should have been.

Discuss...

[Cyborg]

How does this person determine how much insulin to take? Do they draw cards from a hat? Or perhaps roll some dice? :rofl:

[sydneya]

How does this person determine how much insulin to take? Do they draw cards from a hat? Or perhaps roll some dice? :rofl:

My doctor wants me to test, but not to determine how much insulin. I am just supose to take the prescribed amount. Then if my test is constantly high call him for instructions. I know, I need a different doctor.

[Cyborg]

My doctor wants me to test, but not to determine how much insulin. I am just supose to take the prescribed amount. Then if my test is constantly high call him for instructions. I know, I need a different doctor.

This person was supposedly type 1. As such, they are dependent on the insulin to survive once any honeymoon period is finished. At least type 2's still produce insulin. Taking insulin without checking your bg seems like russian roulette to me...

[Funnygrl]

This person was supposedly type 1. As such, they are dependent on the insulin to survive once any honeymoon period is finished. At least type 2's still produce insulin. Taking insulin without checking your bg seems like russian roulette to me...
I totally agree. And said that.

[JediSkipdogg]

This person was supposedly type 1. As such, they are dependent on the insulin to survive once any honeymoon period is finished. At least type 2's still produce insulin. Taking insulin without checking your bg seems like russian roulette to me...

I think the person could be honeymoonding during those 6 months. I'm not sure how long that poster has had diabetes so that leaves a few questions. But I know one user on here that I flew a red flag up about. He was diagnosed type 1 a few months ago and told to test 4 times a day. Then he went back to his doctor and had a great A1C (under 6 I believe) and the doctor told him to test less often, maybe only once or twice a day. During the honeymoon stage alot can go lax, however, if you don't get comfortable testing 7-10 times a day during the honeymoon, when you really need to you may not be able to.

[psilocybin]

lol this guy has made himself famous around here.

[gettingby]

Quote:
I have had type 1 diabetes for 5 years. I am 25 and I have a problem with testing my blood sugars. I know I should and I go to the doctors every 6 months. My A1C level was 6.4 last time. I think I have it under control without testing it. Does anyone else do this or is it just me? I feel some sort of way when I used to test it and it was not what it should have been.

Ok, where do I start with this one. It looks like after 5 years, this gal should know how important testing is. Going to the doctor every 6 months??? Not me. IMHO, 6 months between visits is a little too long.
Sure, that's a good A1C level but what if the next one is higher. Without continuous testing, how is she gonna know what to do to fix it.
Diabetes is hard. My question to her would be this. How are you gonna get to where you need to be and stay there if you don't know where you are coming from? That's where the testing comes in. You wouldn't take off on a road trip to a destination you know nothing about without a road map. In diabetes, testing on a continuous basis is that road map. You gotta know where you are at to get to where you want to be.
Ok, rant off !!!!! This just irritates me. We have so many new technologies now than we did when I was diagnosed. You've got the technology, use it !!!!!!!!!!!

[am1977]

Yeah, I think the person is taking too many chances by not testing and could even be jeopardizing her/his health...should the person go low and notrealize it. As much as I think as Diabetics we are a little more intune with our bodies, I don't think we can completely rely on how we feel to determine our blood sugar levels. Many times I test and predict the outcome, and I'm often way off base :eek:.

I certainly hope that this person doesn't run into problems, but I think if she continues the way she is, that could very well be the case :frown:. Sometimes that's how we learn, though... :hmmmm:

[Funnygrl]

I think the person could be honeymoonding during those 6 months. I'm not sure how long that poster has had diabetes so that leaves a few questions. But I know one user on here that I flew a red flag up about. He was diagnosed type 1 a few months ago and told to test 4 times a day. Then he went back to his doctor and had a great A1C (under 6 I believe) and the doctor told him to test less often, maybe only once or twice a day. During the honeymoon stage alot can go lax, however, if you don't get comfortable testing 7-10 times a day during the honeymoon, when you really need to you may not be able to.
Her post said she had it 5 years- doubtful she was honeymooning.


I think testing during honeymoon is as important as any other time. You are at increased risk for lows, since your pancreas makes some of it's own insulin still, plus, frequent changes in insulin doses are needed.

[JediSkipdogg]

Her post said she had it 5 years- doubtful she was honeymooning.

I noticed that after I re-read it. Just makes me wonder why a person would do that and why a doctor would allow a person to do that.

[amylo]

Ok....Im gonna gat a whole load of replys saying how stupid/ignorant/dangererous I was during this period of my life, and as a disclaimer, I totally agree with you all now- BUT...

From the ages of 13-21 (four months ago...) I did not test. At all. I was diagnosed at the age of 12 and tested 4x a day but then came up with the bright idea of making my results up, which i continued to do for 8 years. I basically took the same amount of insulin everyday, and reacted to how i felt at the time. Now as you all know this has resulted in bad control recently, which i am rectifying- but during those years I had HbA1cs of 5-7 and was held up as the 'perfect' diabetic....which i found very strange considering I knew all of my logbook was made up!!

The person concerned will realise at some point that thier approach does not work- It may for a while but when it starts to go wrong they wont notice...

Just another opinion from an alternate point of view.

[Cyborg]

Ever been to Vegas?

[stella117]

I accidentally dropped my glucose meter into a sink filled with water. Needless to say, it stopped working. I was beside myself not being able to test! I know my patterns and ratios pretty well by now, but since I can't tell if I'm too high (too low generally is too hard to guess!), I'd rather have the confirmation.

The meter started working again by that evening--I was 178 before bed. Not good, but considering I had a bunch of french fries with dinner not too bad either. LifeScan sent me a replacement meter which showed up a day later. I'm supposed to send the defective meter back, but since it's working I'll keep it and the replacement as a space.

An hbA1c of 6.4 is good, but how does one know if that's made up of lots of 60s and 180s?

[Funnygrl]

Now there are two replies on message board to this thread that I quoted. My reply is one of them, stating that testing is important. Incidently, the reply folling mine is interesting too:

I have had type 1 diabetes for 40 years and ii hardly ever test my sugar except when i think it is low or high. I would say i test maybe several times a week, but not everyday even. If you are 6.4 you are way better. I have not been under 7.5 in my entire life. One way i know if my sugar is low is that i start having trouble seeing and i get this big white spot right in the middle of my vision. Like a light. Also i get a little confused and it is hard to concentrate and noise bothers me....when my blood sugar is high i find that my legs seems to get restless, this is at night mostly so then i get up and test and find it is high. Good luck with your diabetes...I got mine when i was in college at 19 and my entire life i was able to do what ever i wanted...i climbed ladders, went skiing, dug post holes, painted houses, went hiking, in fact i have done more things than most people i know. Now i am 60 and am slowing down. I still paint a lot i am just slower. So dont let the diabetes stop you..just have candy on you at all times.

And that is why I come here for my advice regarding diabetes.

[Georgia]

I have had type 1 diabetes for 40 years and ii hardly ever test my sugar except when i think it is low or high. I would say i test maybe several times a week, but not everyday even. If you are 6.4 you are way better. I have not been under 7.5 in my entire life. One way i know if my sugar is low is that i start having trouble seeing and i get this big white spot right in the middle of my vision. Like a light. Also i get a little confused and it is hard to concentrate and noise bothers me....when my blood sugar is high i find that my legs seems to get restless, this is at night mostly so then i get up and test and find it is high. Good luck with your diabetes...I got mine when i was in college at 19 and my entire life i was able to do what ever i wanted...i climbed ladders, went skiing, dug post holes, painted houses, went hiking, in fact i have done more things than most people i know. Now i am 60 and am slowing down. I still paint a lot i am just slower. So dont let the diabetes stop you..just have candy on you at all times.

OMG :ahhhhh:

[Shellbelly]

What is a honeymoon stage.
I know I went for a couple of months witout testing my sugars. I would just usually pick between 15-20 units depending on what i was eating. but then when i went to the dr last he did some kind of test on my kiddney and they are not doing as well as they are suppose to, dont have to do any treatment for it yet, but hello!!!!! i dont want to!!!

[spike]

What is a honeymoon stage.
I know I went for a couple of months witout testing my sugars. I would just usually pick between 15-20 units depending on what i was eating. but then when i went to the dr last he did some kind of test on my kiddney and they are not doing as well as they are suppose to, dont have to do any treatment for it yet, but hello!!!!! i dont want to!!!

Here's the short version of the definition:
http://www.goodcontrol.org/definition.asp?dict_id=167

[Dewey]

Ok, where do I start with this one. It looks like after 5 years, this gal should know how important testing is. Going to the doctor every 6 months??? Not me. IMHO, 6 months between visits is a little too long.
Sure, that's a good A1C level but what if the next one is higher. Without continuous testing, how is she gonna know what to do to fix it.
Diabetes is hard. My question to her would be this. How are you gonna get to where you need to be and stay there if you don't know where you are coming from? That's where the testing comes in. You wouldn't take off on a road trip to a destination you know nothing about without a road map. In diabetes, testing on a continuous basis is that road map. You gotta know where you are at to get to where you want to be.
Ok, rant off !!!!! This just irritates me. We have so many new technologies now than we did when I was diagnosed. You've got the technology, use it !!!!!!!!!!!
I totally agree with Cin here. How can this person know how to treat a high or low, if she doesn't even know she's having one....after a while of poor control, one's body gets used to being "high," so they'd start falsely treating lows when in fact their sugars are within normal (or even high normal) range.

I also agree 100%+ that with the available technology today, there's no reason this person cannot test. If she cannot afford meters or strips, many companies offer ways to help. Again, No excuse.

A friend's mom is the same way. She tests so little, that she never knows where she stands, and is almost always in the 200 to 300+ range. She is in awe when she hears my sugar levels (she asks me), and says things like "I'd be happy if mine were as good as yours." Well......they could be if she tested more often, kept on top of things more (i.e. Not chasing high sugars with insulin, rather catching sugars before they rise) & got a doctor who'd setup an appropriate regimen for her (she's from a small town, so resources are limited). Needless to say, from years of this kind of routine, she's blind in one eye.

This person really needs to get on top of things before it becomes too late. Our human bodies can only take so much abuse, before they either give out or start shutting down. Behavior like this is precisely why I have a hard time "feeling sorry (or sympathy)" for some Diabetics when they develop issues.

[spike]

I totally agree with Cin here. How can this person know how to treat a high or low, if she doesn't even know she's having one....after a while of poor control, one's body gets used to being "high," so they'd start falsely treating lows when in fact their sugars are within normal (or even high normal) range.

I also agree 100%+ that with the available technology today, there's no reason this person cannot test. If she cannot afford meters or strips, many companies offer ways to help. Again, No excuse.

A friend's mom is the same way. She tests so little, that she never knows where she stands, and is almost always in the 200 to 300+ range. She is in awe when she hears my sugar levels (she asks me), and says things like "I'd be happy if mine were as good as yours." Well......they could be if she tested more often, kept on top of things more (i.e. Not chasing high sugars with insulin, rather catching sugars before they rise) & got a doctor who'd setup an appropriate regimen for her (she's from a small town, so resources are limited). Needless to say, from years of this kind of routine, she's blind in one eye.

This person really needs to get on top of things before it becomes too late. Our human bodies can only take so much abuse, before they either give out or start shutting down. Behavior like this is precisely why I have a hard time "feeling sorry (or sympathy)" for some Diabetics when they develop issues.

A little bit of "tough love", Dewey? :) I'm with you except I feel bad that some people are actually incapable of getting past the denial stage of diabetes. They continue, for the long term, to believe "what I don't know won't hurt me". I've heard that refrain from several diabetics, one a friend who recently died from complications at too early an age. Those types of diabetics would rather not know their blood sugars are soaring. Crazy, but true. Very sad.

[duck]

What's testing?



















BTW, sarcasm aside...This person's A1c's look pretty good, better than my latest 7.4 last month; But I bet they are one moody little........