Serve From the Left

I have never had a waitressing job in my life.

I'm guessing that's probably a good thing considering:

• I like to pick food off of other people's plates
• I'm not good at faking pleasantries or being nice to people who aren't 
• I'm a wee bit clumsy 

Wednesday night - we put my non-existing serving skills to the test. 

Doug and I were just two of a gang of volunteer servers at a fundraising Iron Chef event. 

We had to dress head to toe in black which I did (secretly hoping they weren't checking undergarment colours) and I pulled on my only pair of black shoes (which of course have heels). 

We had five courses to serve but were not responsible for pouring wine (thank the gods). 

We were told that we had to grab two plates, bring them to where the nice man or frantic woman told us to and then put them down in front of the person they pointed to. Go back, get two more plates and do it again. Then clean up the plates. Then repeat with the next dish. And the next and the next and the next. 

Ok, I told myself, all I have to do is follow the person in front of me, not trip and not drop the plate of food on anyone. 

"serve from the left and clear from the right" whispered Doug. 

Ok I said and then promptly forgot what he said. 

I took my two plates of food. "The cold part of the dish goes on the right" said the very serious man handing it to me. 

What's the cold part? The whole plate feels cold. Serve from the left but put the cold part on the right? But you put it in my hand so the cold part (I think!!) is on my left. So do I rotate the plate to put it on the right? Or do I put it down and then rotate it? 

Don't trip, don't trip, don't trip...

I ended up serving the first plate from the right and the cold part stayed on the left. The poor person's cutlery was too close together so I also ended up putting the plate on top of their fork and was too frazzled to do anything other than say 'sorry'. 

Back to the kitchen for two more plates. 

Why are everyone's forks so close to their knives? How the hell am I supposed to put the plate down properly?!?

I served, I cleared, I served again. 

I was only propositioned by two people, one very drunk annoying person and one guy I used to know years ago. Both rather awkward moments but I carried on like a trooper. 

After we served dessert, there were a few extra dishes of cannolis left over and we were told we could try one if we wanted. Having just witnessed the craziness of what goes on in a restaurant kitchen and the fact that I had touched several hundred dirty forks and plates made me say 'no thank you' to homemade italian cannoli. 

How sad. 

I think I'll stick to eating in restaurants. 

And leave the act of balancing five plates of food to the professionals. 

Little Red Box

I've been talking to Scully about glucagon. We were complaining about how, in Canada, when we get a glucagon prescription filled it comes in a cardboard box.

When one puts a cardboard box in their purse - things disintegrate pretty quickly.

She mentioned that, in the US, glucagon prescriptions come in lovely red boxes, complete with easy four step instructions. Then she told me that Colleen was nice enough to send her an old red box that she no longer used.

So I'm tossing this out there to the world to see what happens.

Do any of you lovely DOC members have an old red box or two that you'd be willing to send to a Canadian lass?

She'll pay for postage.

She'll write a blog post about how amazing you are.

She'll mail you a bottle of real maple syrup if you want...

...or a can of Tim Hortons coffee.

Igloo-making instructions...?

Name your price - we'll negotiate.

From Fast Slow to Slow Fast

When I started running - I was slow.

I mean really sloooooow.

I am a pretty fast walker so I must have looked ridiculous as I power walked for five minutes and then slowed down to a run for two minutes and then sped up to a walk again.  Things went on that way for a while. I added minutes to my runs but I always walked faster than I could run. I tried not to be mortified by that fact but it was pretty embarrassing.

I joined Runners' Edge after a few months of trying to make a go of it on my own and they taught me a few tricks that helped me learn how to run faster than I walked. I sped up a bit but settled pretty quickly into a 7 minute per kilometre pace. Always being the last one to finish a run, I described myself as a slow slow runner.

I was ok with that because a) I was running! and b) the thought of going any faster was enough to make me want to faint so I really didn't think there was any point in fretting about my pace. I was working hard dammit!

Over the next year I trained for a 10k, a half marathon, another 10k and then another half marathon.  We did speed work, hill work, long runs and lots of them. But I never got faster - the only thing that happened was that it got a little easier to run my 7 min/k pace.

Both 10k races took 70 minutes and both half marathons were exactly 2 hours and 30 minutes. After that I figured I had found my pace and that I was always going to be a slow slow runner.

In 2011, I started off the year by training for Around the Bay and then leapt right in to marathon training. I started running four days a week instead of three. I did all my speed work and all my hill work and I taught my body how to run for hours and hours.  Somewhere along the way, I started speeding up a little bit. I went from 7 min/k to 6:45 to 6:30 and then, on really fast days, I could even handle 6:20 for short periods.

I was no longer right at the back of the pack and I, occasionally, passed someone!

I had become a fast slow runner and it felt good.

Then I got injured.

Twelve weeks off followed by a really slow comeback.

One minute runs. Two minute runs. Three minute runs. I huffed and puffed my way through 60 seconds of running. It felt ridiculously hard and I felt like I had gone back to the days of walking faster than I ran.

But I kept at it and, as I added one minute at a time, my body slowly remembered how to run. But it seemed to forget what pace it used to run because every time I looked down at my Garmin, I would see 6:00 and 5:50 and 5:40min/k.  Those paces were the ones I used to struggle to maintain during my speed work - never mind during regular runs.

I kept adding minutes and I kept up the pace. It felt crazy fast and I kept waiting for my body to rebel and slow back down again...but it didn't.

The big test came two weeks ago when I had to run 60 minutes for the first time. My pace hovered around 6:00 the entire time and, as I approached 58 minutes, it dawned on me that I might be able to get 10k done in under an hour. For the first. time. ever.

I pushed a bit and, when my watched beeped, I looked down to see 59:51 on the clock. I did it. I broke 60 minutes for a 10k without even trying to.

I ran 60 minutes two days later and pulled off another 10k in 59:47.

Last night, I headed out for another 60 minute run. I wasn't feeling super energized and had decided not to push it. I trotted along at a comfortable clip, not too fast, not too slow...

...so I thought.

10k in 58:32.

That my friends, is insane.

I think I've graduated again. I am no longer a fast slow runner.

I'm now a slow fast one.

Bring it on!!

Taking It Up A Notch

For 8 1/2 years, I did the diabetes thing on my own.

Not alone - for I have too many loving and supportive people around me to ever do anything truly alone.

But on my own nonetheless.

I had quarterly appointments at the Diabetes Centre to ask my questions and then I would go back to my life and carry on - on my own.

Then I discovered the DOC.

I began reading about other people's adventures and misadventures with diabetes. I learned about what things scared people and what things I can look forward to once I have this disease for another ten or twenty years. I found athletes with diabetes and discovered we all do things differently to try to keep our blood sugar under control while we exercise and nothing ever works all the time (read: I can always do better but I'm doing ok).

I learned about diabetes humour that no one else gets but 'us' and I've discovered diabetes lingo that makes me feel like I'm part of a secret community.

I read a blog a while ago that asked people to write about how many times a day they checked their blood sugar. I expected people to say 4-8 times a day. I was surprised to read that most people had 8 as a bare minimum and some went up to 20 checks a day. Even those people using continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) technology.

That's a whole lotta test strips.

Last night I sat down to start a list of things to bring up at my appointment next week. Normally I don't ask too many questions - I just explain my numbers, get my blood test results and head back out into the world.

Spending so much time reading about what other people are doing has inspired me to do more for myself.

I want to ask them if they have any advice for finding less expensive CGMs. The ones for my insulin pump cost $50 each and last for six days (at best). If I want better control and I want to see trends in what my sugar is doing - I can only do it using CGM. But not at $50 a pop.  It's too expensive.

I also want to ask about options for testing my ketones. Glucose is normally what the body uses for energy. When there isn't enough insulin in the system, the body can't access the glucose so it breaks down fat for energy instead. The byproduct of this breakdown are ketones and they are pretty toxic and can cause diabetic ketoacidosis. When I was first diagnosed I used to have keto-sticks and I would diligently pee on them every time my sugar went above 15. Then the strips began to expire before I would finish them and I just stopped renewing them.

That's not good. If I get sick - I need to know if I have ketones. If my sugar spikes - I need to know if I have ketones. So I want to know what the modern 2012 options are for ketone testing and get back to being diligent about it when I'm sick, spiking or just feeling nauseous.

Then I want to ask about glucagon. If my blood sugar drops to dangerously low levels, an injection of glucagon could save my life. For years, I would get a glucagon prescription filled, train my co-workers, life partners and parents on how to deliver it, watch it expire and fill it again. I have never, ever needed it. I haven't filled it in a few years now.

I wonder what you would say to someone with an epi pen who didn't fill their prescriptions?

It might save my life one day - so yes, I should get back into the habit of having one - at least at home for those night time lows.

I thought I was really good at taking care of diabetes. I am really good actually - much more diligent than a lot of people are. But not nearly as much as others are. So I'm going to my appointment next week armed with my questions and hopefully can take things up another notch.

A Visit From Boston

Last Friday, Doug and I went to the curling club as per usual.  The second last game of the season.

That's where our typical weekend stopped and the real fun began.

As we were pulling on our so-not-sexy curling shoes, Scully waltzed in. She drove all the way from Toronto to watch our game...and to meet up with Jeff. He showed up a few minutes later and Scully and I beamed - he's here!! All the way from Boston just to hang out with us and run all the way Around the Bay.

I don't think the Curling club has ever had three T1s in attendance at the same time. With matching Medtronic pumps and plenty of fast acting carbs to boot.

We piled onto the ice and Erin arrived to teach them the fundamentals of curling and provide colour commentary while we played.

After the game, Doug took Jeff out on the ice for his first curling lesson. There were lots of laughs, lots of photos, and the conclusion was that perhaps he should stick to running...at least for now.

Saturday, it was pouring rain. So after a trip to the Around the Bay race expo and Hamilton Market, we headed out for a road trip with me as tour guide. And I could think of nowhere better to bring three T1s than Nigh's chocolate shop. It's a tiny little shop in the middle of nowhere (to steal Jann Arden's line) but has the most amazing array of chocolates anywhere around. We completely ignored the sugar free chocolate section and proceeded to purchase ridiculous amounts of full fat, full sugar, full flavour chocolate.

I had hardly started the car when we heard the unmistakable sound of Scully ripping into her first bar. Followed by the sounds of blood sugar testing and insulin pump beeping. Yep, there were lots of beeps going on in that car.

Off to Niagara-on-the-Lake for some cheese tasting and history lessons before we then back home again.

Sunday morning dawned cool but clear and we all found ourselves in Copps Coliseum. Race time folks!  The 118th Around the Bay Road Race was about to begin.

Doug, Scully and Jeff headed for the start line, Erin and I headed out on the course, and the game of chasing runners began. We spotted everyone at least once, collected cast-off clothing as the temperatures began to soar and made it back to Copps on time to see everyone cross the finish line in victory.

Thanks Jeff, for braving the wilds of Canada to hang out with two Canadian girls for the weekend. We had a great time!

The Rabbit Hole

Join me, if you will, as I journey down the rabbit hole of diabetes madness.

Before we leave on our little trip, there are a few travel terms that everyone needs to understand.  The story is crazy enough as it is - best if you know the road signs. 

Basal: that is the insulin that is continuously trickling into my body from my pump. It's set at a rate (which changes depending on the time of day) that takes care of my body's insulin needs when I'm not eating anything. If my basal rates are calculated properly and if, for some crazy reason, I didn't eat anything all day, my blood sugar levels should stay relatively steady all the time. 

Bolus: that is the insulin I take when I'm going to eat some carbohydrates or when my blood sugar is high and I want to bring it down. It's like a burst of insulin rather than a trickle. 

The same type of insulin is used in both examples, it's just the name that we give it and the role that it plays at that moment that differs. 

Got it? 

Ok, let's go! 

Yesterday was run day. Ten kilometres was the distance. 4:15pm was the run time. 

I ate my perfectly ordinary lunch at 12:00pm (small serving of pasta with shrimp, yogurt and pineapple) and took the regular bolus for that amount of food. 

At 2:30pm, I had two things to do: 

1. Change my basal insulin rate. When I'm running more than 45 minutes, particularly in the afternoon or evening, I reduce my basal rate to 40%. That has to happen  1 1/2 to 2 hours before the run because insulin lasts a while in your system and the reduction wouldn't actually be noticeable until a few hours later - just on time to run at 4:15pm. With me so far?
2. Check my blood sugar. It had been 2 1/2 hours since I ate so it should be somewhere around 8-9. It should then continue to slowly drop down to about 5-6 by the time I'm ready to run. I take a gel, a date or two and run for an hour. 

That, my friends, was 'the plan'. 

Enter crazy rabbit. 

I checked my blood sugar and it was 13.8.  Unexpected and rather disheartening.

Here's the problem. If I take a bolus to bring that number down, the bolus will still be active in my system when I head out for a run at 4:15pm - increasing my risk for a low. 

If I don't bolus, I'll stay pretty high and, since I just reduced my basal insulin, I'll probably climb a bit. 

So I took a baby bolus of one unit (instead of the 2.8 that my pump said I should take) hoping I would drop down to 10 or something. 

I checked again at 3:30pm (one hour later) and it was 12.2.  Ok, that's good. I can live with that. 

At four pm, I packed up my work and did one final check before going to change. 

It was 15.8. 

Bloody hell!!

Now we're getting into the dangerously high zone where one really shouldn't exercise for risk of ketones and other fun things. Running for an hour no longer seemed like a very good idea. 

But I had high blood sugar (exercise helps bring it down) and I have already reduced my insulin so it's only going to keep climbing.  What to do??

"How about a bike ride?" asked my wise Doug 

Well, I haven't been on my bike in months but it's a lot less stressful on the body than running and since I shouldn't really head out for an hour run with crazy sugars, perhaps I could head out for a ride with him...

So, I looked at all the variables. Cycling has less effect on my blood sugar than running so I would not normally have set the 40% basal rate for a bike ride. That means my blood sugar won't drop (much) on the ride unless I give it a bit of insulin to help it along...so I took one more unit. Not much but enough, hopefully, to at least stop the upward trend. 

We headed out for an hour ride and the rule was we were going to stop and check every twenty minutes. 

Check one: 14.4. Ok, I dropped from 15.8 but that's not too drastic or too fast of a drop.  Carry on. 

Check two: 7.7.  Ok, I dropped from 14 to 7 in twenty minutes. This is NOT good. Do I eat? Do I not? If this trend keeps up I'll be dead in ten minutes so it was a pretty easy decision. I ate one bag of fruit chews (20 carbs) and we headed home. 

We got home at 5:15pm and I checked: 5.9

Ok, it's still dropping but not as fast. Should I eat something else? I've gone from 15.8 to 5.9 in one hour.  That's not good...

"YES!!!  EAT!!!!" screamed the crazy rabbit.  

NO said my brain.  Just wait and see what happens. 

So I waited and checked every twenty minutes for an hour.  

5:15pm 5.9

5:40pm 11.0

6:00pm 8.8

6:20pm 10.0

And that's when I said the hell with it and had dinner. 

Perfect Strangers

I have a friend that I've never met.

I have never talked to him on the phone.

I probably couldn't pick him out of a lineup.

If he walked up to me and said hello, I'd probably stare at him wondering who he was.

Still, I consider him a friend.

His name is Jeff.

He has Type 1 diabetes - just like me.

He runs, he cycles, he swims - just like me.

He takes pictures, likes to travel, and reads lots of books - just like me.

He blogs about life - the good, the bad and the diabetic - just like me.

Tomorrow, he will be flying from Boston and spending the weekend in Southern Ontario.

He's going to run Around the Bay, a race that's, ironically, 'Older than Boston'.

And I get to meet him in person.

Yay!