the sh*t hit the fan

[Amber Wallenstein]

Hello health scapers:
The sh*t hit the fan on Wednesday. I woke up on Wednesday morning and my right leg hurt so bad I couldn’t put weight on it. I hobbled my way to my apartment lobby and called an ambulance. They took me to the hospital where I spent about nine hours int he ER. After meny tests, I have arthritis in my back which is bothering my leg something fierce and I was also diagnosed with diabetes. That was quite an unpleasant shock.
So now the bull manure has hit the wind tunnel and I’ve got to make changes. I know they say to start slowly but I wonder if that’s possible in my case. I almost got put int he ICU my blood sugars were so high… Lucky for me they were able to bring them down and I was only in hospital for a few days.
Sorry if this dZoesn’t make sense. I think I got 2.5 hours of sleep in the hospital.
I just have so many little questions. Does anyone know of any blindness diabetic groups either via email or facebook?
Any thoughts/advice you could give would be groovy. I’m giving myself insulin shots twice a day and I don’t mind that though I’m struggling with getting blood sugar readings.
Amber the overwhelmed.

[greens...@wind-haven.net]

Hi, Amber,
I'm so sorry that happened.
I don't know much about diabetes or the adaptive equipment you can use. I do know someone who uses talking glucose readers though. If you can't find anyone to help before Wednesday, I'll ask her when I go to work.
Hugs,
Christina

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[Donna Smith]

Amber, that is a lot to process! We don't ever like pain, but in this
instance, it may have saved your life. Here are a couple of resources
to get you started.

Diabetes and Visual Impairment
https://www.hadley.edu/ShowCourseDetail.asp?courseid=DIA-122
This is a free course offered by Hadley. It looks like it is intended
for professionals in the field of blindness. You can earn ACVRB
credits or just read the parts you need and end the course.

This site has a lot of resources collected in one place.
https://diatribe.org/diabetes-blogs-and-forums
This link has so many resources, that anything else I posted would be
redundant.

I hope you find the support you seek. Is there an independent living
center in your area? They may be able to help with local resources.

Hugs to you and please feel free to sound off here as much as you want.

Donna

[Amber Wallenstein]

Thanks for all this information. I’m particularly struggling with blood sugar testing. I’m finding it hard to get the blood on the strip in the right place. I only got to practice five or six times in the hospital though, so when my meter comes tomorrow I will try again. I’m overwhelmed by all the information I’m finding out there. It’s hard sifting fact from fiction sometimes.
Amber

[Donna Smith]

Good point, Amber. Take web information with a healthy pinch of
"prove-it). Years ago when I learned that a lump I had removed was
soft tissue cancer, I looked up information on the web and was certain
that I'd be dead in six months. Even some well-meaning people on a
discussion list warned me that I had a difficult road ahead. It turned
out to be an isolated incident, which in no way means it can't come
back later, but the point is that I allowed myself to get overwhelmed
with all the readily available input on the web. There are many people
who live quite well with diabetes. Give yourself time to hook up with
the right folks. What kind of local support do you have? Do you get
the information you need from your medical team? Are you a member of
any blindness or disability group where you can talk to your piers?

Donna

[Lisa Salinger]

Hi Amber,
For whatever reason, I never saw your original message. I'm sorry you're going through all this.
I'm not diabetic, but I have a family history. So, when I had a chance to beta test a glucometer about 8 years ago, I went for it. Unfortunately, I had problems getting enough blood, and for whatever reason, those finger sticks really hurt. I've also given myself shots every day, and that was nothing by comparison.
Anyway, I have a few resources and/or tips that might help. Both ACB and NFB have diabetes-related groups.
I think if I had to monitor my blood sugar, I'd try and get the unit described in a podcast interview I did for BlindAlive.
Here's the link:
https://www.blindalive.com/itunes-podcast/2018/4/18/94-ready-for-prime-time?rq=libre
BlindAlive is going out of business as of tomorrow. I think there's going to be a very basic website with the workouts, but I think the podcasts are going away. So, I'd suggest looking at the podcast and show notes before that if you can.
Regarding using a standard glucometer, it never got really easy for me, but here are some things I found helpful. They say you can stick your palm or forearm, but finding the right place to line up with the strip was nearly impossible. I know it sounds a little silly, but going through the motions helped me. So, for example, I'd touch the pen to the place I was going to prick, then touch that finger to the strip. I'd do this about 3 times before actually pushing the button to use the needle.
I found that I had better chances of getting enough blood if my hands were warm and/or my circulation was good. So, I'd either run my hands under warm water, or I'd walk for about five minutes, swinging my arms and/or raising them over my head to get the blood flowing.
I really hope some of this helps. Please let us know how you're doing!
Lisa

[Matthew Nixon]

Amber,
First, sorry you have to deal with all this nonsense, especially around the holidays.
Second, bard has a ton of books on diabetes, diets, and treatments. As Donna said, be somewhat skeptical but the information is out there.
I've heard the keto diet is good for controlling blood sugar. I'll be starting that one soon, so if it works I'll let you know.

-----Original Message-----
From: health...@googlegroups.com <health...@googlegroups.com> On Behalf Of Amber Wallenstein

Sent: Saturday, December 29, 2018 7:53 PM
To: health...@googlegroups.com

[Amber Wallenstein]

Lisa:
Thank you thank you thank you!! The libre is what I really needed to know about. I will be listening to this podcast ASAP.
I was worried it wouldn’t be accessible. I joined the diabetes list for NFB, and I think several people are using it successfully.
Also thanks for your tips on the meter. Giving myself shots is easy, and I don’t mind the finger pricks, but the blood on the strip. ug.
Thanks again!!
Amber

[Lisa Salinger]

Those dang finger pricks really hurt, I think. I'd say I'm fairly stoic, but when my finger, especially a braille reading finger, hurt for two days, that's not my idea of a good time!