Items to have ready by November 2nd:
Charge the bionic transmitter/receiver
Have the glucose monitor in place and ready to monitor
Open the boxes of supplies and have 1 of each item available
Install the bionic app on your smart phone. Create an account and try the Simulator website
Have a vial of fast-acting insulin
Have alcohol wipes and sterile gauze
Additional supplies:
Ketone test strips
Glucometer and test strips
Oh, and have your current weight available.
Yikes! I have been avoiding the scale because I know I have gained weight. And I can’t lie about this matter. Unlike the DMV or your relatives, the pancreas must have my exact weight in order to dose my insulin correctly. Sigh.
Because I’ve been fighting off a cold and today it’s winning, I decide to have soup for lunch and then veg in front of the TV. Tomorrow morning I will start fresh and download software. Maybe even weigh myself.
I just don’t know how much more excitement I can stand.
Homework?!?
No matter how old you are, you can still get assigned homework. More proof that life is not fair.
Next week I will meet with the bionics training person, so I must get up to speed and do the reading and studying I need to do before then.
The company that makes the pancreas has trainers in Stockton, Sacramento, and San Francisco. All of them are hundreds of miles from the little mountain town of Arnold. My doctor suggested that she schedule an appointment with a trainer she works with, named Maureen.
What are the odds that it is the same Maureen who trained me on my former insulin pump 12 years ago? It turns out that she is that very Maureen! And she now has a good reason to visit Arnold and train me at home. I gave this circumstance the major “happy dance” it deserved. It was the first time since receiving the supplies that I felt good about this thing. Also, knowing I did not have to drive for miles helped me de-stress a lot.
Today I am organizing things and cleaning up the aftermath of quilt show things. Then, I will take the rest of the week to do my bionic homework. To be honest, I’m afraid to do it. I’m afraid to find out that I’m probably going to hate dealing with this new pancreas. The few things I’ve read on the internet are scary.
I promised myself that I would give it a fair chance. I may love being bionic. It could happen.
TTFN
I Feel a New Series Coming On…
Just when my life is getting back to normal, well, normal-er, I am thrown into a new adventure. What helps me deal with changes is to talk (vent?) about them.
You, dear readers, get to come along for the ride. Although this adventure is not traveling to foreign lands, I think you will find it interesting and educational. I know I will.
When Medicare stopped covering my insulin pump, I reverted back to the Stone Age and injected insulin myself. My doctor had to retrain me about the diabetes math (calculations made to determine dosage). My pump did the math for me, among other things.
I did not get a new pump because my former one did everything via Bluetooth, and I did not have to have infusion sets and tubing to bother with. I was spoiled. Fast forward 2 years of unstable blood glucose, and I have chronic kidney disease to show for it. My doctor said I had to go on a pump system again before more complications emerged. I am not happy about this development.
I have enough to do without training to use inconvenient new equipment. [grumble, grouse, and grumble again]
This is the difference between the two technologies:
In my view, Medicare should pay for the simpler solution. That is already working for the patient. However, in the world of medicine, the patient is rarely right, or even considered. But I am veering off topic.
This blog is not to rant to you about Medicare! It is about me sharing my journey with y’all in an effort to get over my depression and look at things from your perspective. What I think is your perspective. I am assuming you are not a Type I diabetic. If you are, you may want to follow along anyway.
This adventure began a couple of weeks ago, when two large boxes arrived on my doorstep. I had to sign for them. They were shipped out by a company called “Reliable”.
The shipping documents showed they were supplies from Beta Bionics. This week, a little black box arrived, only labeled in white letters: ‘iLet Bionic Pancreas.’
It sure did not look impressive. The box was smaller than a bread box.
That’s all I have for now. I have to arrange training on the device and schedule it for November.
TTFN
