Tag: doc

Diabetes Detective Work: Solving the Mystery of Prolonged High Blood Sugar

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When it comes to solving the mystery of why I recently experienced high blood sugar for a prolonged period of time, let’s just say I was a wannabe Sherlock Holmes.

I’m going with “wannabe” here because I lacked the satisfaction of deducing the exact culprit, but at least I had my wits about me enough to come up with a few reasonable explanations.

Diabetes Detective Work_ Solving the Mystery of Prolonged High Blood Sugar
I wish that a magnifying glass was all it took to figure out the “why” situations in life with diabetes.

The scenario: I was riding between 200 and 250 for hours. I did a temporary increase of my insulin for a bit, took 2-3 micro-doses of insulin (in order to avoid stacking), and did my best to stay hydrated while avoiding carbs. And I barely budged, much to my frustration. All throughout dinner that night, I was anxiously eyeing my Dexcom and hoping to level out before long. It was only after I went on a 45-minute after-dinner walk that I started to drop, and it took me quite a while longer than usual for me to be totally back within range.

The questions: Did my mid-afternoon pod change throw something off? Was my carb counting wrong? Was it something I ate? Was my pod working the way it should’ve been? Did I get enough exercise throughout the day? Too much? Was it due to anxiety or stress? Some other factor that never even crossed my mind?

The clues: A couple of clues helped me eliminate the cause of the high blood sugar. For starters, it couldn’t have been the insulin – it’d been refrigerated and I’d been using the same vial for a couple of weeks without any issue. It also likely wasn’t either of my pods, because the one I’d worn for the full 3 days had worked fine, and the new one that I applied mid-afternoon did work for the full 3 days…even though it seemed to take some time to adjust to my body. I definitely didn’t eat the healthiest meal (my entree may have been a green salad, but I also ordered a sugary cocktail and had fried pickles as an appetizer). And I was dealing with slightly higher levels of stress than usual.

The case cracked (sorta): All of those aforementioned conditions combined could have contributed to the high blood sugar. Unfortunately, I can’t quite say with certainty that they did, because on paper, I did everything right in order to combat the highs. That’s just the thing with diabetes, though: You can do everything “perfectly”, and the way it “should” be done, but sometimes you can’t prevent these little mysteries from popping up and keeping life with diabetes…ah, well, “interesting”.

My Pharmacy Mailed Me a Broken Vial of Insulin. Here’s How I Handled It.

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As soon as I opened the package, I knew something was wrong.

The contents of said package were five vials of insulin – my regular 90-day supply. On the surface, nothing seemed wrong. They arrived in their usual styrofoam cooler that was taped shut. After removing the tape, I saw four ice packs next to the plastic packaging containing the insulin vials; again, this was all expected.

When I picked up the plastic package and used scissors to cut it open, though, a pungent odor greeted my nose.

A medicinal, harsh, familiar scent…the smell of insulin.

Upon further investigation, I discovered that one of the five cardboard boxes encasing the vials was totally damp to the touch. Gingerly, I opened it from the bottom flap, which was sticking out slightly due to the wetness. That’s when I saw the shattered insulin vial: Somehow, the bottom part of the vial had broken, spilling and wasting all of its contents.

I wish that smell-o-vision was a thing, because OMG…the smell coming from this was STRONG.

I was shocked. In all my years of diabetes, nothing like this had ever happened to me before!

I didn’t really give my next step a second thought: Immediately, I jumped on the phone with Express Scripts, which is the mail order pharmacy that I use for my insulin and some other medications. I spoke with and explained the issue to a customer service representative, who connected me with a technician that promised a replacement vial would be mailed to me at no additional cost to make up for the broken one. I asked if they needed me to send the broken one back to them, but I was reassured that it wouldn’t be necessary because I had called them so they could document the incident.

My issue was resolved, just like that, in fewer than 15 minutes. While it was annoying to have to take time out of my day to figure that out, I’m very happy that I got a replacement quickly and easily. But really, where was quality control on this one?!

Insulin is expensive, as we all know. And to see that a perfectly good vial full of it was rendered useless due to defective packaging was a major punch to the gut, indeed.

But this reminded me of the importance of being proactive whenever I suspect something is wrong with any of my diabetes supplies…when in doubt, do something about it.

5 Things I Hate About Pod Failures

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I’ve had a slew of pod failures – three in the last two weeks.

What gives? I’m not exactly sure yet, but I’m hoping to get to the bottom of it. I sent my most recent failed pod to OmniPod/Insulet for analysis, and my suspicions are telling me that I have a bad batch of pods in my arsenal.

While I wait to hear back, I decided to write a blog post listing the five things I hate the most about pod failures as a form of catharsis…

1 – How suddenly and randomly they occur. Pods don’t give an eff as to whether or not they fail at an inconvenient time. In the middle of a conference call? Fails can happen. Sleeping? Fails can happen. On a date? Fails can happen. Just sitting there minding your own damn business? Yes, still, fails can happen. The unpredictability of pod failures makes them doubly obnoxious and loathsome.

2 – That wretched, unrelenting BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP. Crying babies, barking dogs, ambulance sirens – I’d much prefer any of those other sounds over the high-pitched scream of a failed pod. I get why it’s necessary – how else are you supposed to know that a pod is no longer functioning – but it makes my ears want to bleed. Plus, you’ve got no choice but to silence the pod by sticking a paperclip/toothpick/other equally skinny object into that teensy-weensy crevice in the corner of the device! Let’s be real here, who has a paperclip just…available like that at all times in the event of a pod failure? It’s no wonder I chose to silence my most recent screeching pod by taking a hammer to it (note to anyone else who chooses to use this method: DON’T DO IT INDOORS, go outside and smash it on the pavement or in your garage…and maybe wear something to protect your eyes, just in case).

I smashed this screaming pod with a hammer and let me tell you, it felt great to release my frustration that way!

3 – The perfectly good insulin that gets wasted. When I deal with a pod failure, I can sometimes salvage the remaining insulin left within by inserting the syringe from the brand-new replacement pod into the insulin reservoir and sucking it out (literally the opposite of adding insulin into the reservoir for a routine pod change). But it isn’t always possible to rescue the insulin due to time constraints, amount left, and so forth. So it’s extra painful to just toss the failed pod away knowing there’s insulin left inside it that I just won’t be able to use.

4 – You don’t always find out why it happened in the first place. I am a naturally inquisitive person who is always asking “why”. So when a pod fails, I want to know what went wrong. Unfortunately for me, I don’t always get an answer. OmniPod/Insulet customer service representatives might be able to tell me why based on the reference code I provide them when a pod fails – when that reference code is found in their database, the answer might be that static electricity caused it to fail, or that when the pod was performing its routine and automatic safety checks, the pod itself determined it could no longer be used. But there have been plenty of other times that my reference code didn’t signify anything, leaving me permanently clueless as to what happened to make the pod fail. SO FRUSTRATING!

5 – You have to call customer support in order to get a replacement. As someone who has customer support experience, I dread these sort of calls. It’s just a giant pain in the neck to have to go through everything about your experience with a failed pod, such as how long I was wearing it for, what brand of insulin I use, where the pod was located, the lot, sequence, and reference code numbers…the list of questions go on and on. The silver lining here is that I’ve almost always had a very positive experience when calling OmniPod/Insulet to report a pod failure. My issue is usually documented in 10 minutes or less, and I’ve never had a problem getting a replacement, which shows is indicative of superior customer service.

But…is it so much to ask for the dang thing to simply work the way it’s supposed to 100% of the time?!

Is the Livongo Blood Sugar Meter Accurate?

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It occurred to me the other day that even though I wrote a couple of blog posts and even made a video about it, I still haven’t addressed one major component of my new Livongo blood sugar meter: its accuracy.

How does it stack up to my Verio meter? More importantly, do I think it’s accurate?

Well…the answer isn’t cut-and-dry because I think it can be accurate…as long as my blood sugar isn’t above 200.

How did I arrive at this conclusion?

I conducted a little experiment.

Bear in mind here, I’m no expert in experimental design, so I established a simple setup for this. During the period of approximately two weeks, whenever I checked my blood sugar, I used the same drop of blood on test strips for two different meters: my Livongo and my Verio.

And the results were interesting, to say the least.

Whenever I was about 80-180, my results from the Livongo meter and the Verio meter were within about 10 points from one another. One instance, I was 86 on the Livongo and 92 on the Verio. Another time, I was 105 on the Verio and 113 on the Livongo. The meters never reported the exact same number at any point during my experiment, but I was happy whenever they showed similar results.

Things got dicey, though, any time I entered the hyperglycemic range.

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That 163 and 165 show how at times, the two meters were in agreement with one another…but then there’s that 231 and 262. Those are just a little too different for my liking.

It was weird and I can’t explain it, but the Livongo would report that I was anywhere from 20-50 points higher than what was on my Verio at a given point in time when my levels were 200+. This really surprised me, because I’d suspected that my Verio skewed a little higher compared to most other meters, so I never thought that the Livongo would prove me wrong about that. At times, it was truly maddening: On one occasion, the Livongo said I was 251 and my Verio said I was 204. That’s the difference of at least 1-2 units of insulin for me in order to correct that high! Even more frustratingly, because I didn’t trust the result from either machine, I checked my blood sugar again immediately and the Verio said 242, while the Livongo said 228.

WTF?!

That particular example was extremely confusing because I didn’t know which piece of technology to trust. And that’s the big thing for me: I need to know that I can depend on whichever blood sugar meter I’m using to deliver accurate results.

So again, remember that I’m no good with numbers, and that this is simply an estimation…but if I had to guess how many times the Livongo agreed with the Verio, I’d say it was no more than 7 out of 10 times. And I’m super bummed about that, because I’d genuinely hoped that I could trust my Livongo meter and use it full-time whenever I was taking a break from my CGM. Given the fact that it seems to be accurate when my blood sugar is in range, though, I suppose I could use that as motivation to work harder to prevent hyperglycemic readings…but I’m not perfect and I know that they will still happen from time to time. And I deserve a piece of technology that will accurately report them to me so I can make the best possible treatment decisions.

In theory, I still like the Livongo: It has a great design and some of its features (e.g., test strip reordering) are totally unique. But in practice? It leaves a bit to be desired.

DASHed Hopes

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It’s funny how much I’ve changed regarding diabetes and technology in the last decade.

I grew up not wanting to try the latest and greatest devices. I had zero interest in an insulin pump and was very set in my ways of doing multiple daily injections and finger stick pokes.

My (semi-forced) introduction to CGM technology when I was in my teens, though, changed everything for me. And I haven’t looked back since then. Actually, if anything, I’ve become more curious and excited about new technologies because they symbolize greater freedom from the heavy burden of diabetes.

So imagine how PUMPed (hehehe, diabetes humor) to hear about the redesigned OmniPod insulin management system!

This next iteration of OmniPod is known as the DASH system and it’s freaking cool. The clunky PDM has been upgraded to a sleek, touchscreen format and it’s rechargeable (no more AAA batteries). Plus, it comes with a whole host of upgrades and features that make the first generation of OmniPod look totally outdated.

Naturally, I wanted to give the DASH system a SHOT (LOL look at me, I’m on a roll with the puns).

it's not always diabetes' fault (1)
I took this image from the Insulet/OmniPod website so you guys could see how awesome the DASH system looks!

So I called Insulet and asked whether my insurance would cover the new PDM and pods, and how much everything might cost me. I learned that the major difference between how I receive pods now and how I’d receive the new DASH pods (because the DASH pods use Bluetooth, I can’t use my old radio-frequency-enabled pods with the DASH system) is that instead of getting pods directly from Insulet, I’d actually receive them through my mail-order prescription service (Express Scripts). That was fine by me – I get the pods in the mail anyway – but I wanted to know how it’d work in case a DASH pod fails on me. I was reassured by the representative that I’d still call Insulet to receive a replacement, just like I do now.

Okay, good information to know. But I really wanted to know about pricing. So I was connected with an Express Scripts representative, who informed me that the cost for a 3-month supply of DASH pods would be about $50 more than I pay now for my current pods.

I did the math. That’s around $200 more each year that I’d have to pay for my pods. That might not seem like a lot of money, but I pay right around that amount for a 3-month supply of insulin. Hypothetically, let’s say that I become financially strapped in the future, and I have to make the choice between paying for insulin or paying for my pods – when it comes down to it, obviously I’d choose insulin – but I shouldn’t have to make that choice.

So it looks like my hopes to go onto the OmniPod DASH are, well, DASHed (sorry, last bad pun, I swear) for now. I’m a little disappointed, but I’ll keep my fingers crossed that prices are lowered for DASH pods in the near future so I can take advantage of a very nicely designed, high-tech insulin pump system.

 

Can Certain Sites Trigger More Insulin Pump Failures?

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Insulin pump sites have been a hot topic for me lately.

Not only did I share that I’m in the process of experimenting with some new (intimidating) sites, but I’m also contemplating the efficacy of all of my current sites.

My site lineup (as of this writing) includes the abdomen, upper arms, lower back, and thighs. And I’ve noticed an unusual pattern emerging with one of these sites that I know for a fact isn’t happening just to me – it’s happened to my mom, too…

…and that pattern is a series of failures with sites on the upper arms.

I can’t offer any explanation for it other than it’s definitely been a “thing” for my mom and I these last few weeks. It started happening to her first. I think she had 3 or 4 pod failures throughout August, and it only happened to pods that she was wearing on her upper arms. At first, I was skeptical of this and assumed it was maybe a bad batch or a total coincidence.

But then it happened to me, twice in a row.

On both occasions, I’d been sitting there, minding my own business (well, the first time, I was a passenger in a car and the second time, I was leading a virtual meeting with a couple dozen people on the call…the latter was far more disruptive).

Can Certain Sites Trigger More Insulin Pump Failures_
Here I am, holding up the second offending pod, right after I wrapped up the call during which it alarmed. Clearly, I was not amused.

My pods hadn’t been delivering a bolus.

I didn’t bump up or come into contact with the pods in any manner whatsoever.

My pods weren’t due to expire for another 12ish and 48ish hours, respectively.

There was no blood at the pod sites.

The cannulas on both pods weren’t kinked.

Static electricity wasn’t a factor.

But what these pods did have in common was that they were on my upper arms – one on the right, one on the left.

It’s straight-up bizarre, and when I called Insulet/OmniPod to report the second instance, I made sure they noted in their records that this phenomenon has occurred not just for me, but also for my mom. The representative didn’t say whether other people have been calling in with this issue, but it’s definitely weird that it’s happened more than once to both my mom and to me.

So while I can’t say for certain – at this time, anyways – whether particular sites result in more pod failures than others, I can say that I won’t be wearing a pod on my upper arm any time soon…and I’m going to be on the lookout for similar stories from other OmniPod users in the DOC. After all, our ingenious community can be even better than the pump manufacturers themselves when it comes to troubleshooting, so I’m hopeful that I can get to the bottom of this before long. I like my upper arm as a site because my insulin absorption is great there, but I’m not willing to use it again until I know I won’t experience another pod failure in the foreseeable future.

T1D, A1c, and Time in Range

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Time in range versus A1c…which measurement matters more when it comes to T1D care and management?

Well, I’m not exactly in a position to answer that, because I think the answer is unique to all people with diabetes. But I can explain what exactly both of these numbers are and how I view them.

A1c: Also known as Hb1c or hemoglobin A1c, this is a test that is conducted every 3 months (or as requested) by an endocrinologist. A patient gets blood drawn to determine the average amount of glucose concentration in the blood during that 3 month period. The result of this test is a percentage amount, with 5% being an average result for a non-diabetic individual. I consider the A1c result to be highly personal, so I don’t often share mine with others; however, I do refer to it when describing ways in which I want to improve my diabetes care and management.

Time in range: This value describes the literal amount of time that a person’s blood sugar is in “range” for a given period of time (e.g., one day, one week, one month, etc.). “Range” refers to above a person’s low threshold and below a person’s high threshold. One person’s defined range may vary greatly from another person’s, but for me, I have my low set at 80 and my high set at 180 on my Dexcom. In a perfect world, my range would be more like 80-120, but I have a higher threshold set to minimize the number of alarms that go off.

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Diabetes…the chronic conditions with like, way too many acronyms.

So really, both are just two different ways of measuring blood sugar performance over the course of certain time frames. And while I try to bear in mind that these are both simply numbers that help me see part of the diabetes picture, and not sole indicators of how “well controlled” I am or am not, I do pay special attention to them and have certain goals for myself. (I strive for an A1c of under 7 and I like my time in range to be at least 75%: These are goals I came up with independently, without my endocrinologist’s feedback, because it’s what I feel comfortable with when it comes to my diabetes…other T1Ds feel differently, and that’s totally okay!)

It’s important to me that I remember that my “success” as a person with T1D is not defined by either of these numbers. In fact, I know many other T1D individuals feel the same way that they should be viewed as signposts along the road to achieving desired diabetes results. It can be hard to do, though, because of how much weight is placed on these numbers by medical professionals and from people across the Internet.

The bottom line? I try to tune out the background noise and focus on taking it one day at a time. By no means am I perfect, but nobody is, and I know better than to put pressure on myself to strive for perfection. Instead, I do the best that I can to maintain my A1c and time in range goals, while doing everything I can to keep the bigger picture in mind instead of individual numbers.

Navigating New Insulin Pump Sites and Nerves

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Am I the only T1D out there who feels incredibly nervous about trying new insulin infusion sites?

I’ve been this way as long as I can remember, now that I’m thinking about it. Throughout my childhood, I stubbornly stuck to injecting in my arms, legs, and upper buttocks (tee-hee) because those were the areas I felt comfortable with. I don’t think I even considered jabbing myself in my stomach until I was in my teens, and it was only after I realized the importance of site rotation and reducing scar tissue.

So it’s kind of funny that when I went on the OmniPod just over five years ago, I only used my stomach and my lower back (just above the upper buttocks region, tee-hee) for pod placements. It was partly because my guinea pig – I mean, my mom – used those areas for her pods with success, and also because I was hesitant in the beginning to wear my pods on my arms or legs because of their increased visibility.

It went that way for a couple of year – four basic sites ’round my abdomen – when it occurred to me yet again that site rotation was also important for insulin pumpers, not just MDI-ers (multiple daily injection…ers). So I added my upper arms into the mix, and soon after, my upper thighs followed.

Navigating New Insulin Pump Sites and Nerves
The little diagram (courtesy of Insulet/OmniPod) above only shows a few of the sites that people with diabetes use…over the years, we’ve gotten a lot more creative!

But lately, I’ve shied away from wearing pods on my thighs because the area isn’t overly comfortable. When I roll over in my sleep at night, my pod presses up against my leg and the resulting pressure is just enough to disrupt my sleep and make it difficult for me to find a more restful position to sleep in.

As a result, I’ve started contemplating potential new pod sites, and one of the first places I went to for advice was…Instagram! Because…duh.

The DOC (diabetes online community) on Insta is a natural resource for this sort of thing because many people tend to share photos of their sites. It’s kind of a thing. One simple scroll through my feed taught me that people can get very inventive when it comes to finding new locations to place their CGMs and insulin pump infusion sites.

I saw people wearing Dexcoms on their forearms and calves. I saw pods on backs, calves, and even the upper chest area, the latter of which I found most intriguing. For men, it seems like a very accessible spot that causes little irritation, but for women? How the heck did the T1D ladies I saw with pods on their chest deal with it?

The general consensus, it seemed, was that women wearing pods on the upper chest agreed it was a site with great absorption and minimal discomfort.

I was still skeptical, though. I was worried about how it would look if I was wearing a v-neck tank with my pod poking out of, well, my bra! Then it hit me that my pod garners questions from strangers regardless of where it’s located. Furthermore, people will (probably?) be less likely to ask about it if it’s located on my chest because, um, that’s really awkward. My eyes are up here, people!!!

Then I remembered: I could give the site a try without wasting a pod because I have a demo pack that I got from a diabetes conference awhile back! The demo pack comes with a dummy pod that looks and feels just like a regular pod, but there’s no reservoir built into it, so insulin can’t be injected into it.

So right now, as I’m writing this, I’m wearing two pods: one on my upper arm that’s actually giving me insulin, and a fake one on my chest just to see how I like it. I must admit, so far, so good! I slept comfortably with it on last night and I haven’t had any issues wearing clothing or undergarments with it. I even went for a jog with it on and got pretty sweaty, but it stayed secure/I didn’t feel it bouncing around at all (thought the adhesive got a bit too damp for my liking…it stayed on but if I wasn’t careful I totally could’ve knocked it off).

While I’m still having a hard time wrapping my head around an actual cannula piercing my skin at this location (eeeek), now that I know I can handle the pod itself living there, I’m one step closer to trying (and liking) a site that’s more intimidating to me – a win in my book.

An Enjoyable Eye Exam

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I think I just had the best doctor’s appointment of my life (so far).

And the most incredible part about that statement? This was my very first appointment with this particular doctor and she absolutely nailed it. I’m almost bummed that I only have to see her annually…

Let me back up a bit. This doctor is my new ophthalmologist (eye care specialist). I switched to her because I’d seen my previous one for just about my entire life, and while he was unquestionably an excellent and knowledgeable doctor, we had some…personality clashes that made my yearly visits with him not so great. It wasn’t like we had a breaking point or anything during my last appointment with him, I just decided that now was the time to make the switch to someone else.

So I did. In August, I contacted the new doctor’s office and set up an appointment. I also wrote to my old doctor and requested the last few years’ worth of notes to be faxed to the new doctor. I’d never written a formal letter like that before, but I kept it short, sweet, and professional by informing him that I’d be seeing a new doctor, providing him with her location and fax number, and thanking him for taking great care of me over the years.

An Enjoyable eye exam
I totally snagged this picture of the exam equipment during the few minutes I was in the room alone. 

Making the switch was as simple as those steps – I had nothing else to do but show up for my appointment on September 1.

When I arrived to the office, I took note of all the social distancing protocol in place. There were only a dozen or so chairs spread out throughout the waiting room. There were dividers in place and stickers on the floor to mark six or more feet apart from the next person in line. The receptionist took my temperature with a contact-less thermometer and of course, nobody was allowed into the area without a mask.

Pleased with the careful measurements the office had taken, I waited for a few minutes before being called into an exam room. A nurse gave me a brief exam and had me read an eye chart using my current glasses prescription, then she dilated my eyes before leaving to go get the doctor.

Within a couple minutes, the doctor entered…and it was nonstop chatter from the moment she came in to the moment I left the practice. Her bubbly energy was infectious and it was obvious I was speaking to someone who truly loves her job. She let me know straightaway that her son is also a T1D right around my age, so she’s more than familiar with every facet of caring for it (with, of course, a special focus on eye health).

We talked a little about everything from insulin pumps, careers, CGMs, my broken bone (she was rocking a brace on her foot, so we shared a laugh over our injuries), and our studies in college. And yes, eventually we did get to the eye exam component, which took barely 60 seconds. She exclaimed with enthusiasm over my “gorgeous” eye health and told me that she is a T1D cheerleader, meaning she recognizes how hard we work to take the best possible care of ourselves.

Absolutely amazing, right?!

The appointment ended with me mentioning my appearance in Dexcom G6 advertisements, and she requested that I send her a clip via email. I did so shortly after I got home, and received the loveliest response back:

“You are spectacular. See you next year!”

I swear, I’ve never left a doctor’s appointment feeling so wonderful about myself. It’s a credit to all physicians like this one, who are passionate about what they do, happy to really engage with patients, and demonstrate in-depth knowledge of medicine and the human body.

It’s Not Always Diabetes’ Fault

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“OMG, it sounds like you have super brittle bones. What’s up with that? Is it because of your diabetes?”

I sighed into the phone, grateful that the telehealth professional couldn’t see my annoyed facial expression.

“Oh no, it’s nothing like that. I’m just clumsy!” I tried to keep my tone light and threw in a little laugh for good measure. She went on to say something about how I might want to consider taking calcium and/or vitamin D supplements, but while she went off on her tangent, my mind wandered.

What does bone health have to do with diabetes? And why does it seem like everyone assumes that all of my health issues are directly related to my diabetes?

it's not always diabetes' fault
When it comes to blaming diabetes for other conditions, some people have their heads in the clouds…

Truthfully, it’s a safe assumption – the vast majority of the time, anyways – that my diabetes does have some sort of influence over the rest of my health. Plenty of studies indicate that comorbidity is common with type 1 diabetes (in other words, other conditions are diagnosed alongside the primary condition, in this case, diabetes).

But is my diabetes the cause for my seasonal asthma? Is it the reason I’m allergic to cats and dogs? Did my diabetes create the digestive issues I’ve faced since childhood? I don’t know, maybe. There could be a tenuous connection there.

On the flip-side, is my diabetes responsible for my (almost always) excellent blood pressure? Does it have anything to do with my slight arrhythmia? It’s not as clear-cut in those areas; in fact, I’d be hard-pressed to find a real cause-and-effect relationship when it comes to those things.

So do I blame my diabetes for “brittle bones”? Heck no. I blame my breaks in the last couple of years purely on myself and my tendency to rush around in an uncoordinated manner. And on top of that, based on how quickly I healed from my last break, I expect my recovery to go as well this time around, and I doubt that’d be the case if I genuinely had brittle bones.

This time around, it’s not my diabetes’ fault, that much is clear. And it’s also pretty obvious that I need to exercise a little more patience with health professionals who 1) don’t know me well and 2) are just trying to help me improve my overall health.

It’s a gentle reminder to be a touch more graceful in how I move…and how I respond to innocent queries about my diabetes and other health conditions.