Meter reading everyday.

[Rob43]

Hi, It's very hard for someone that hasn't had to check their blood sugar levels everyday to keep doing it day after day. I keep missing days. How do you people get into a habit taking your blood sugar everyday. What makes it worse for me my 3 month blood or A1c test came back from a 7.2 three months ago to this time at 5.2 which my doctor said is very good. My diabetic drugs did it not me.

Thanks, Rob43

[statdeac]

Rob43,

All cases are different. For me, blood glucose levels can be highly variable so checking frequently (like 4-6 times every day) is critical to maintaining "normal" levels. When I'm much above or below "normal", I take corrective action.

Sounds like you are type 2. If you have A1c readings of 5.2 and are not feeling lows during the course of your week, you may want to revisit with your doctor the subject of testing frequency, then follow your doctor's advice.

If you are not testing multiple times per day, at the very least you should probably be rotating the time of day and when you test in relation to meals when you do test.

Hope this helps!

[Rob43]

Hi, My doctor said to take my blood test before eating and wait and take it again two hours after I eat every day. But it's hard to take when I'm doing so good.


Rob43

[am1977]

I just wanted to remark that drugs can't do everything for you. I wouldn't count on putting all your hopes on your drugs, b/c I think it will probably catch up with you and could put you in a lot worse situation in the near future if you are not careful. It is important that you put in the effort...i.e. test, eat well, and exercise, etc...remember this is for your own well being. Besides, testing is easy, it only takes a few seconds and it gives you some insight of how you are doing and if there are issues to bring up with your doctor. I do understand that it can be a pain, no pun intended :), but it is worth doing.

I hope that this doesn't sound too preachy, I just would hate to risk putting yourself in jeopardy. Health is so important.

Take care.

[WiseWords]

Originally posted by Rob43
Hi, It's very hard for someone that hasn't had to check their blood sugar levels everyday to keep doing it day after day.
I keep missing days.
How do you people get into a habit taking your blood sugar everyday...A1c test came back from a 7.2 three months ago to this time at 5.2 which my doctor said is very good.
My diabetic drugs did it not me.
Thanks, Rob43
;) You are probably still in an adjustment phase, so, things may
change with time. You need to be prepared for that possibility.
One good way, of course, is to test.

If you are a Type 2, then your pancreas is still producing some insulin,
and that, along with your meds, has produced good results for
the A1c,
but do not get lulled into a sense of how easy it may now appear.
The best way to encounter problems is to ignore such items as
testing. Exercise & a proper diet are close seconds.

For me, without knowing what my BG is before a meal,
and at other times, would leave me lost.
If your BG is low before a meal, you may need some extra food,
but if it is slightly high, a smaller meal would be a good idea.
How could you possibly know without testing?

There will be times when it does something unexpected.
If you establish a good routine, then it will be easier to
compensate when things go astray.
And, you will have a reference point for what are now good results.

Eating when you do not know what your BG is, is a major mistake.
This may be even more so for a new diabetic.

It shouldn't be much harder than brushing your teeth, or any
of the other daily routine tasks that we all do.

[scoreman]

Rob43,

Testing everyday from my perspective is a must. I'm on 4mg of Amaryl daily. That plus diet and exercize have taken my A1C from 14.2 to 5.4 in just over three months.

I'm the one in charge of keeping this desease under control as best I can. Testing let's me know how I'm doing. Not knowing how long my pancreas will keep producing extra insulin in response to my medication is something I want to be aware of.

So my motivation to keep up my testing regimen is my desire to keep on top of this desease.

What works for me may not work for you. You need to come up with your own motivation.

Lot's of luck in controlling your diabetes.

[rzrbks]

I'm probably the least organized person in the known universe, but, when faced with this disease, the first thing I did was start using my watch to make aware of the times I had to take blood readings. And to show off that I could do it. :smartass::thumbsup:

My unconsience motivation was to make my wife and friends admire ( Macho thing) how well I was taking the change to my life. After a while, this developed into the habit of doing the right thing without the need to "Show Off."

A major thing which helped me was to buy a new watch with a buzzing alarm to remind me that it was time to take BG readings.

[Andrea]

I read a good quote once.

<<Not testing your blood glucose levels when you have diabetes is like driving a car without a spedometer.>>

It is just not a good idea. How do you know how you are doing if you don't test? The test takes 5 seconds and uses a tiny drop of blood. It isn't that much of an inconvenience. Obviously there are different needs for testing based on what type of diabetes you have and how it is managed. But there is never a good argument for not testing at all.

A person with diabetes should decide, together with his or her doctor, what the best testing schedule would be AND then how to interpret the results and what to do if the result is outside of that individual's target range.

Like Wise words said, it should be as routine as brushing your teeth.

Andrea

[Jenny]

Rob,
When I was first dxd, I checked everyday like I was supposed to. Now I tend to be lax about it....maybe twice a week...I know that isn't good, but I get tired of poking myself.

[dragonfly1113]

Hello everyone,
I have been away for a while.
For three years I checked my sugar here and there and stayed in denial. I found out about the insulin pump and was tickled to death. I started checking my sugar everytime I was suppose to and counted every carb. I became obsessed. Guess what happened... Burnout. My last A1c was 6. I worked so hard to try and get it perfect. Then I just checked once or twice a day then finally once a week. I quit counting carbs. I looked at what I ate and said "oh that looks like 25 carbs ect. I got a royal chewing when I went this past Monday and they asked for my machine to check my readings. I sat there saying I can tell when my sugar is high or low. Yea right, I thought I could. She checked my sugar and it was 59 and I had no clue. If my sugar goes over 150 my feet burn and hurt. They gave me a new machine because mine was not working right. It would say I was 110 and I would be shaking and not able to carry on a conversastion. So I am back on track now. Hopefully for good. I will find out my A1c results probably tomorrow. I just hope I didnt hurt myself worse for my stupidity.
Susie

[HeatherP]

Susie, I'm glad to hear you're getting things back "under control". Since we can't go back and change the past, try your best not to dwell on it - you CAN change the future.

Rob, testing is just a part of your life right now. Do you have a watch w/ an alarm on it? Or maybe a cell phone? Set it for certain times of the day when you're supposed to test. Life needs to come to a halt around you for a minute so you can test. If there's people around you, then just say, "hey, I need to ck my blood sugar to make sure I'm doing okay". Most people will understand, and maybe even ask questions. Some people won't - the heck with them. I'm T1, so testing HAS to be done frequently throughout the day. The best I can think of is an alarm of some sort to remind you.

Hope you can find a way that works for you!
HeatherP

[lgvincent]

Jenny, I wish I could do that! I have a hard time going more than a few hours without checking it. I wish I could afford to check it more often than I do now. I can't depend on the way I feel to give some indication of what my blood sugar is. I can feel like it is high only to check it and find it low while at other times I've felt like I was having an insulin reaction only to check it and find it was high. It doesn't happen a lot but it does happen.

[Littlebit63_99]

I purchased a watch at radio shack for $20.00 that has multiple alarms on it (4) it helps remind me to check on the odd times of the day.........meals are easy to remember, but during the day when I feel good, it is hard to remember.....so I set the alarms for two and four.
Good-luck and take care!!!!!!!