Wednesday, February 1, 2012

The Bloopers

Me, Michelle and Paige (My roommates..sometimes I eat their food)

Diabetes doesn't always run as smoothly as we wish. I think more than we realize diabetics everywhere are  laughing at their silly mistakes and mishaps associated with their diabetes, plus they provide some entertainment for the 5.5'ers in the household too.

I complied a list of some diabetes bloopers that come about, and hopefully I am not the only one experiencing these every now and then!

So, here it goes:

Exploding Reservoir:   That moment when you have waited patiently for the vial to fill the reservoir and you pull back the plunger and BAM! insulin all over the kitchen counter and floor.  Just make sure your dog doesn't go licking the insulin... I am not too sure what exactly would happen in that case...needless to say you've just washed the floors and kitchen counter willingly without allowance.

Caught: If you've got an insulin pump you have also got a fear of door knobs.  It seems that the tubing that connects your pump to your body likes to take hold onto anything it can get its hands on. This tendency is probably what also makes you have to prematurely change your pump site...either way it is either humorous or terrifying - you choose!

Old Sites: When you change a site it is easy to forget about the old one.  That 2 a.m panic attack where you feel a site that has nothing attached to it, only to find out it is just an old site... now that's a big blooper!   I even heard of someone who had more than one extra site kicking around on their body.... (Virtue...)

Little Minions: K, test strips are bound to be found everywhere and that is fine if it is in your purse, your house, your backpack etc. But, when you have just scattered them around the houses of others and I don't know how this would happen, but say they are found in someone else purse.. you can't help but laugh.   You have spread your little minions far and wide.

No Blood? Ok...:  You get out your pricker and you're ready to prick your finger, and then nothing. No blood... ok? So now what.   You just went through that whole process only to receive nothing.. now this has got to be just as annoying as reading errors on your meter.

Knotty Diabetes: Wonder why you aren't getting insulin? Maybe your tubing is twisted!  I don't know how many times people have told me my tubing looks like an old telephone cord, all spiralled and such.  When this happens you just have to shrug your shoulder and start untwisting.

Bend Out of Shape: For all the MDI users.  Don't you hate it when the needle has bent before you even got a chance to do anything...but then again, I guess no one wants a bent needle inside of them.  It's just one of those things ...

Forgetful Diabetic: One of the biggest bloopers that comes along with diabetes is forgetting supplies.  "I really would want to sleep over,  but I don't have a site.."  Hopefully, this person knows you are diabetic and understands what you mean, if not, maybe it is a good idea you cannot sleepover....

Pump? Wherefore art thou pump?:  Sometimes you don't know where your pump is.  You take it off to shower and then two hours later you realize you are lacking a pancreas (not a new feeling right?)   Sometimes your pump is found on your desk, in your pocket, but not hooked up or sometimes your pump is attached and you think it isn't...so many possibilities...

Ain't Nothin' but a D-Thang': Maybe it is just as natural as Canadian's saying 'Eh' but, as diabetics we do have some pretty crazy slang.  We don't realize it,  but our  blood glucose levels, has turned into sugar and our lancet device as turned into a pricker. Sometimes when you are talking to 5.5'ers they just don't know what you mean when you say, "Pass me my pricker, I think I am high my sugar is like 17.8 and I am pretty sure if I don't bolus I am going to go into D.K.A!"

Dear Roommate:  Diabetics should carry sticky notes, because how many times have we stumbled into our kitchens looking for a bountiful treat, only to realize that in fact our roommates have that treat we were dreaming of.   Dear Roommate: I ate your chocolate bar, I was low...sorry...

Despite there being a much longer list - I know.  This is a good summary of what most diabetics go through on a daily basis. All the bloopers of living as a diabetic, fortunately there are about a billion other bloopers that happen throughout life to anyone, diabetic or not, so when these things happen, all we can do is laugh and carry on.

Kayla

4 comments:

  1. Love this list Kayla! I love that they happen so regularly on such a regular basis that they become part of life (lot even realizing they could be "bloopers"!

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  2. What I love is when you "lose" your pump on yourself (normally have it clipped to your pants, but put it in your hoodie pocket to change pants, then later go to check your pump or bolus and start freaking out because it's not on your pants. OMG where's my pump?!? And them feel like an idiot when you realize it's in your hoodie) LOL

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  3. Not having a pump, I don't understand any of what you wrote about. It just doesn't make sense to me. And I guess with me being a type 1 so much longer than you, I don't pay attention to "bloopers" any longer. Life happens.

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