Tactfully getting someone to check their sugars??

Well, I can tell you just like a person loosing weight they hate the food police asking them..." Are you sure you can eat that or should you be ""??? I am no longer on any meds for being diabetic because I got my weight and sugar under control by proper food intake. It is very difficult to listen to the excuses so many NON compliant diabetic's use because .....until I got my act together I was one of them . My best friends mom and another friend are BOTH the type of person your dealing with and it can be very unsettling when they won't listen ...if I had any advice for you it would be to offer alternatives like on a trip like that bring proper balanced snacks and eat one with them so you know they are eating and keeping the sugars at balanced levels . You may want to find a diabetic counselor that can further their knowledge because alot of times what they think is the right choices puts them at serious risk . Someone on insulin more than ever REALLY needs to watch their levels ....just lead with love and support and remind them this is why you are helping...not judging ....blessings ...

Thanks for the responses. I didn't know if I should ask or not. I just worry about him and how best to help him. At home it is just him and his 15 year old son. I feel so bad for his son since during real bad lows...he gets very aggressive and mean. I know he doesn't mean too but its hard to take that back once you repeatedly hurt someone. I don't get into what he eats...he pretty much eats whatever he wants...and doses based on carbs. I wonder if part of the problem is that he doses before he eats...then he may or may not get the food eaten that he planned and have time for it to break down and do its thing in his system. One of the really bad episodes he told us ahead of time that he was dosing for a brownie. I remembered hearing it...but I really don't sit and keep track of what he is eating. So...when I noticed his get bad so fast it dawned on me that he didn't eat the brownie...but had dosed for it. He was nearly falling out of his chair and it comes on so quick. I am not around him much, but we talk about this stuff on the phone. Seeing it first hand...and having any clue how to help if it suddenly turns too far that he can't help himself. Ambulance oviously...and I wouldn't hesitate. I just wish...who am I kidding...I wish he didn't have to deal with it at all but since thats not going to happen...I just wish it wasn't so extreme. As for the pump...he has to test and then enter readings...then it dispenses it directly into his system. Plus he uses a pen but not sure how that all works.

The healthy snacks...yeah that would be nice but he is so set in his ways. I didn't even bring marshmallows and stuff for smores b'cuz I worried about him. After our last camping trip and his smore feast I figured it was better not to even have them there. Instead he made a 9x13 pan of something he called Torte?? I couldn't eat more than a 1 inch square...it was that sweet. Two layers of brownies with coconut/pecan frosting inbetween. Poked holes and then melted fudge frosting and chopped walnuts and poured over it all. On top of all that was a whole bag of chopped Reeses minitures. This is the brownie I referred to earlier.

The wierd part about all of this is he is more on top of his meds and testing before eating and record keeping than alot of people. His dr calls him the poster child of record keeping. It is just that he may have tested an hour earlier but can be crashing just out of the blue. He hallucinates in the sense that things become intense and vivid...then flashes to angry in a blink. Then to try to get him to check based on what we see becomes the problem. I did talk to him again today and tried to explain to him that where he thinks he can see the signs and knows when he is going outta whack...that is not the case. I wish it were that simple. Sometimes he does know...and knows he needs to drink juice...NOW!! Its the other times that have me really scared.

Some of us can have a much harder time managing Type 1 diabetes than some of our peers. (Not unlike Type 2's as well).

I envy those who can cruise through a day of relatively normal BGLs without the constant mental checks and testing to make sure of BGLs. Some of us can be good enough at keeping our BGLs normal that we can lose our sense of going low/hypo (called hypo unawareness).

Most Type 1's put in a LOT of effort to maintain BGLs and because of such, often feel like they've got a 100% handle on things at all times. This is why it gets tricky to tell a Type 1 that they need to check their sugars - it's perceived as a failing, or lack of control, or your Mother or teacher telling you to do something you know you're supposed to (think furrowed brows and looks of consternation Of course my immediate reaction would be "What do you know!?". "You have no idea what I go through and how dare you try to inform me about something I'm an expert on". It's an automatic defense mechanism.

What I realized early on, and continue to work on, is that I'm not always 100% in-tune with how I feel and can't guess at my BGL. If I want to know I have to test. A heart-to-heart with hubby and family also cleared up a lot of things and we came to some mutual understandings. "What's your blood sugar at?" is the line we all agreed to use, for example. It's "code" for them thinking: "I'm not comfortable with what I'm seeing" and triggers my mind to do 2 things: 1) answer the question and 2) test if necessary. It may just be semantics but, my mind goes to answering the question as opposed to being "told" to do something and feeling defensive and resistant about it.

Maybe telling your Bro exactly how (nervous/anxious) you feel and asking if he would assuage those feelings by explaining his side of things to you. Maybe he's not understanding from where you're coming from? Maybe you're not understanding him? Communication is often the key to understanding where each is coming from and setting up some game plans (code words, etc), can also be agreed on. Worth a try?

BTW, what's a semoline pen? Is it Diabetes related?

Hi Lanie - I WISH insulin pumps automagically tested and dispensed insulin like a real pancreas but, we're not there yet. It still takes the individual to set or program the dispensing of insulin. The carb counting and past, present, future calculations are still required. I think of the pump as a permanently inserted insulin needle with pushing buttons instead of plungers

Phishbowl...sorry we must have been typing at the same time...I didn't see your post. Yes we have been talking about it. We had pretty open dialog about it all along and he would tell me these stories about bottoming out and how scared his son was...but I haven't seen it first had for a while. Actually I had only seen one episode where he dosed for something and then didn't eat it. He scared me half to death. We had to put honey in his mouth but thankfully he came around.

The Semoline pen, if I am spelling it right is something he used in addition to his insulin product. They have him on some new synthetic stuff if I understand right. It just came out a few months ago but I don't know the name so I call it insulin.

we have talked about it alot over the years and he has told us point blank that if you see me starting to not make sense, seem out of it, or anything that is not normal...tell me to check my sugars. So that is what we do. The problem we ran into is when all the routine things were in place it was getting him to see that he was not fine like he seemed to think. I am glad he finally talked to his dr about the extreme and scary fast drops. Hopefully they can come up with a plan to help him. I wish he had home health to stop in to help him and check on him. thanks again for the great advice and just having a place to ask questions. I love him and am really scared that we may not have him for long.

Ok...yeah he does test a couple hours after he eats. Heck he pretty much checks evey couple hours all day. It's just that it can change so fast. He sounded pretty good last night when I talked to him. The dr wants to try to come up with a way that will signal him when it is going too low since this also happens while he is sleeping. The thing is...I don't know if that kind of technology exists. I guess we can hope there is something available. As for treats in moderation...he says he tells his dr what he eats...and I know he writes is all down for the dr to see. He said his dr told him that he is so outta whack anyways that fudge and pie are the least of his worries. Who knows...all I know is I am worried. I don't know how long a body can survive the extremes. Thanks again for all your help.

Thanks Kris...yes it does help to hear. I do know they have been trying to get a new pump approved so maybe this is the one. That would make sense when the dr said finding a way to let him know when it is going outta whack. I hope it will get approved. I had never heard of gastroparesis is but I looked it up and will ask him about it. I know he is doing everything he can...and he is just as scared as we are about the extreme rapid changes. He has been fighting infections too say they say that affects how your body uses insulin. I appreciate all the help. I will continue to keep the conversation open with him and will ask about the pump and gastroparesis. Thanks again...have a great day.

That's awesome - about the approval for one of the latest pumps. Hopefully having the doc resubmit another appeal will see the sensors/inserters, etc. approved. Insurance is funny like that. Here in Canada, every province has their own medical programs/insurance and in addition, company benefits can run the full spectrum, too. Some of our provinces cover insulin & the needles but not test strips. Others cover test strips and needles but not all insulin. Then there are some federal programs that allow for various tax deductions. Sometimes I think it's all MEANT to be confusing 'cause it certainly doesn't make logical sense most the time

Most insurance right now looks at a pump as a "delivery device", just like needles and syringes and they look at the CGMS as a "testing device", just like the hand held glucose monitors we all use to check our BGLs. Insurance companies seem to move at a snail's pace when adding new coverages. They were slow to start covering the newer insulin (Levemir), insulin injection pens (no vial & syringe; all in one pen), and they're being just as slow about covering a new type of BGL testing device. I'm encouraged that recently they've started to get much quicker about it but CGMSs are really new player to the game (insurance game).

Keep sending in the appeals - it's often persistence that wins. Many aren't covered till the 3rd or 5th appeal just as a standard practice. There's nothing to lose and everything to gain - hammer away! I've got my fingers crossed

Cheers,
Kris

Careful with pumps... You need to be on a STRICT schedule, no flexibility. (Personal Experience). My brother has a pump, supper was only a half hour late and we found him outside unconcious in the backyard lawn. I yelled "Mom better call 911" and she yells to my sister to call 911 and comes running with honey and syrup. I sit with my mom and we work as a team rubbing syrup on the gums and under the tongue. Have to be super careful so there is no choking, but by the time medics come, they are usually either awake, or getting close to it. Unfortunally, out of 8 of us, 4 are diabetic... my poor mother deals with 3 of us going into comas (I'm the one who fights the coma and manages to stay awake).