[foxl]

Originally Posted by Subby

And further to that, can, as in might happen, might not happen at all. Just to make that clear, it's not some kind of common inevitability. While being positive and hoping nothing untoward would happen for a very long time, I think the point is partly, that situations for diabetics can change. Another example, a complication might develop at some stage, making life tricky in other ways. Often a diabetic and those around them need to be ready to adapt to a new scenario.

Subby,

From someone contemplating insulin therapy, thank you for this explanation!!!

[GeishaGirl]

Sorry! I just reread my post and realized it did sound kind of alarmist My mom was a brittle diabetic and was never even told about the basal/bolus system of insulin therapy -- she was on the two-shots-a-day-no-matter-what therapy until she got a pancreas transplant in 2005. So her highs were high and her lows were VERY low. I've only been on insulin for 11 months, so my anecdotal evidence is almost entirely based on my mom -- I've never had a low yet that required outside help, not even my husband.

Nothing is inevitable, but anyone involved with a diabetic -- type 1, 2, 1.5, or 17 (:smile) should definately educate themselves as much as possible. Way way early in my insulin life I had a low and we had NOTHING in the house for me -- not a chocolate bar, nothing. I told (well, yelled at) my husband to go to 7-11 because I NEEDED FOOD. I forgot to add I definately couldn't drive. He just kinda looked at me and said "But I was going to grab a shower. I have to meet the guys at 6." I still haven't let him live that down.

SO, yeah, while nothing is inevitable (and, frankly, with D, nothing is even common!) it is best to be prepared for extreme circumstances and be grateful if they don't show up!

[EBenFl0w]

Wow, I can't believe the incredible number of replies, all of them helpful in one way or another! My girlfriend came up to visit me Thursday night, and just left Sunday afternoon. I decided to show her my post once I saw the first couple replies, and at least one actually came in while I was showing her, haha. I was wrong - she didn't kill me for posting p

We had an absolutely amazing weekend, including checking out the Phantom of the Opera in NY, playing minigolf, hiking (more like walking off-trail P) in the local park, and eating some delicious and healthy foods that're outside my normal diet, haha. Breakfast, for example... as a programmer, I'm used to being a night owl - breakfast is replaced with a third meal sometime around midnight, usually.

But I digress She had a CGM on for a test-drive, compliments her endo. As an analytic person, I'd have to say that if I were a diabetic I'd love it. You can have the immediate feedback of where you're at, without pricking yourself every time (though it doesn't replace manual testing, and still requires calibration). She sees it completely differently, and here's another example of one of the places we differ so strongly... at one point after breakfast, Sunday afternoon. We were about to go hiking, and the CGM let her know that her level was shooting up, fast - I know she wouldn't want me to mention any specific numbers, so I won't. It was as if knowing that she was going to be high for the last few hours she was with me was ripping her apart. That's what upsets me the most, when the numbers seem to get to her so much. I'm removed from it, abstracted - I can say just bolus, it's okay, maybe you forgot after breakfast, no big deal.

I asked her why it makes her so upset once, and she let me know it was because she was recording her numbers for the same endo, and she didn't want the endo to judge her; didn't want to feel like anyone was seeing her badly; didn't want to be not-herself when she was with me. It hurts me to know she's so troubled over those things, so I do my best to help her out with it. That time she went high that I was mentioning, I got her to calm down a bit and we just started to walk into the woods. Soon enough her level was back down, the insulin had kicked in, and she had dropped down to the perfect level to go eat lunch Everything worked out well, even though the high sucked a bit...

What I'm trying to say is: thanks for all of your posts. You all gave me some awesome strength to help her and myself out this weekend. We got salads instead of eating out at a chinese place (though I admit mine had a single piece of fried fish at the bottom, hehe), ate a nice slice of watermelon together, and breakfast never tasted so good. Never tasted before at all, haha.

I might disappear into the ether, might drop by now and again. I don't know what advice I can offer to diabetics, only to those who're with them. My girlfriend and I have never been happier, and I'm hoping that stays true for a very long time to come Thanks either way again for all of your advice, and I'll try to keep it in mind during the school year recipe and life style-wise.

[CarlyD]

Hey, I'm new here too and just went through this with my bf (I'm the diabetic).

I appreciate it when he asks questions and takes an interest in my diabetes. At first they were questions like "what are you doing?" "when are you supposed to check?" or "does that hurt?" He looked up info on the internet (just like you are) so he understood the disease, but he still doesn't "get" what it means to live with it (we've been dating for 4 years).

The food issue is completely up to her. The other people here have given great advice about what to cook if she wants you to, but you don't nessecarily have to do that. It makes me irritated when people assume that my diabetes is regulated by some form of diet. I am not affected much by the type of food I eat, whereas some people are very sensitive. All of your involvment really is a matter of what works for you two.

If you're really committed, you could try seeing an educator. If you do keep in mind that much of their advice is just advice. My last educator said use juice rather than glucose tablets or candy because the liquid goes down faster, while this one insists anything other than glucose takes twice as long to kick in. Everything you learn you should take with a grain of salt because this disease differs depending on the individual.

The only thing that is important is to recognize her highs and lows. You don't need to demand she check - that makes me not check if I'm low (again this varies by person). My bf asks me to please check so he will feel better, and he is right 90% of the time.

What the last couple posts have said are totally true - communication is vital.

Good luck and thanks for putting so much effort into keeping her healthy!

[Subby]

Hey EBenFl0w that's a great post, thanks for reporting back. There is something I wanted to bring up:

Originally Posted by EBenFl0w

She sees it completely differently, and here's another example of one of the places we differ so strongly... at one point after breakfast, Sunday afternoon. We were about to go hiking, and the CGM let her know that her level was shooting up, fast - I know she wouldn't want me to mention any specific numbers, so I won't. It was as if knowing that she was going to be high for the last few hours she was with me was ripping her apart. That's what upsets me the most, when the numbers seem to get to her so much. I'm removed from it, abstracted - I can say just bolus, it's okay, maybe you forgot after breakfast, no big deal.

Woah there, an outside intellectual understanding is NOT the same as living with the frustration of BGs day in and day out... this is meant as a positive point in a way, because I don't believe you are as "different" to your girlfriend as you might think. A few weeks of getting knocked around by your blood sugars (and it can physically, for physiological reasons, sap your energy, stop you thinking, make you moody, make you sick, keep you unhappy... for very concrete reasons) let alone a few years, and I can almost guarantee you'll have a different insight into why fluctuation is a little more complex and perhaps upsetting at times.

It can be hard to understand, and let me say that I once was (still try to be when I can) an extremely spontaneous and "ebb and flow" kind of person. Diabetes will at times grind that up and spit it out in the most disturbing of ways. I have had to retrain myself over the years not to be as spontaneous, just to maintain basic health. It should not stop us doing a lot of things. But it will be one major pain in the backside at times and no mistake, and often dictates a lot of modification to our preferences.

My point is, be sure to keep your own take as a gently positive thing, lending strength is great. But there's nothing worse than someone who isn't going through a bad BG patch downplaying it or dismissing it. I'm not at all saying you did that... just watch out for it in the future.

[someone]

Originally Posted by Lizzie G

I guess what I would like to add really, is that everyone is different. some people control their type 1 (i say type 1 because dietary issues are very different to a type 2 in many instances) by following a very strict and regimented diet, whereas others find that they can work very well with a 'normal' balanced diet in combination with being active and healthy and avoiding a few key things that they personally find challenging in terms of blood sugar....for me personally i prefer to lead a 'normal' life, i eat plenty of wholegrains, salad, meat, fish , cheese chocolate and wine, but i know that in the mornings unless i just ran, most carbs can make me feel rough and spikey (i have rye bread with cheese now, the cheese slows the absorption enough to make it manageable...)

Just wanted to say I agree here. I see lots of suggestions saying to cook lower carb food, but that's not necessarily true. With the proper amount of insulin, foods like pasta are fine for diabetics. I never try to avoid foods or drinks with higher carbs because for me it isn't necessary. As Lizzie G also pointed out, carb counting is the important part. It may be a big help if you can assist her with calculating carbs when you cook.

I'd also suggest you read a 101 book because once you have a basic understanding of how diabetes works, everything will make sense.