The Snapshot

Every three months we get to sit in front of a panel of diabetes judges and learn about what we have done right and wrong over the past three months. There is always a Simon Cowell in the crowd and a nice Jennifer Lopez, but most of all most of us spend the hour in the hot seat wondering if we are going to make it through to the next round.  However, for most of us we also manage to get through it, knowing that next time we can do better, or sometimes we come out proud with better averages and a nice pat on the back from one of the judges, er'...I mean nurses.

The big number of the session always comes down to the A1C which most professionals describe as a snapshot of your blood sugars over a three month period.  That snapshot may stay the same for a year with no adjustments, but sometimes A1C results can jump and vary every time you get it done and that is a simple reflection of how you've been dealing with your diabetes.  When I was first diagnosed my A1C was around the range of 13 - which of course is not good, but keep in mind it was my first A1C, so prior to this test I had not known I was diabetic.

On average my A1C is between 7.4-7.6  and I realize that that seems to be common. It isn't anything to be worried about, however, it could be improved upon.  Ideally the goal should be under 7%.    I would love to be in the 6% range; however, often it is said that the more lows you have the better A1C you have, but achieving a large amount of lows is not something any diabetic wants.  It is a balancing act to get a great A1C result, yet keep stable blood sugars.

This week I am going to get blood work done since my appointment is on Monday  I am crossing my fingers for good blood sugars, but there is not telling for me.  I am actually shocked sometimes that my A1C is as good as it is.  However, lately I have been trying extremely hard to keep an eye on my blood sugars, so I am hoping that work pays off.

Kayla