A day in the life of a Diabetic differs from person to person. Not one Diabetic’s day is the same. We all have our own routine and things that needs to get done, but what we all have in common is the pricks, scans and injections.
There are so many different factors that will have an influence on how our day goes. Today you might have to scan/prick and inject 5 times, tomorrow it is 8 and the next all of a sudden 10 times.
I tend to scan more when I have a busy day and when I am anxious or stressed I inject more as I need to correct the whole time.
Apart from just thinking about our day, we have our own little child called Diabetes.
This is what a day off from work looks like for me.
06:05 My alarm goes off. I am struggling to open my eyes as I got to bed late after my late shift. I usually lay in a little longer, but this is the time for my first scan of the day.
06:30 – 07:00 Up and out of bed. I get dressed and take my first jab for the day. My long acting insulin. I am not taking my short acting just yet as I am not having breakfast now and my levels are stable. I need to go drop Etienne off as I am taking the bakkie and going out to town.
I read a bit to pass the time.
07:45-08:45 Off I go to town. Traffic was not okay for this time of day. At 8:30 I was standing still on the off ramp to get onto the high way. Unusual for this time of day. I arrived safely and now the day can really start. I did my second scan of the day and as my level is bit higher than I want it I took my first jab for the day to even it out. I do not have any insulin on board at the moment so need to start adding. Time to mask up and go find a public bathroom! The need is big!
08:50 – 09:50 Spent time in the mall, ran some errands and now off to meet up with my diabuddy!
10:00 Meeting time! 3rd scan of the day as now I will be having brunch and coffee! Second jab to cover the carbs.
11:30 After wonderful time, it is back home we go.
12:34 4th scan of the day. I think I miss calculated my breakfast. Oh, I most certainly did. Granola is not my friend, but it was worth it. No bread and so delicious! So, 4th jab of the day.
13:45-13:55 I arrived home safely, did a food stop, dropped off lunch at Etienne, filled die bakkie with diesel (the price is about to spike tomorrow morning) and then got the doggies ready for their salon visit. Also, I filled my own tank with water. I was super thirsty because of the spike in my level.
14:00 5th scan of the day. The correction I gave seemed to have done its thing. It is time for lunch. So, first what am I eating and then to calculate the amount I need to inject to cover the amount of carbs I will be consuming. 5th jab of the time and the timer is set to 15 minutes.
15:00-16:50 I really did not do much in this time .I read a bit, took a 30min power nap (these work, I promise), had a cup of sadness water (decaf coffee) and then went to collect the doggies.
16:55 6th Scan of the day and it looked all good. Now to fetch Etienne from work as I have the wheels!
17:30-18:30 My levels dropped a bit too much and I felt wonky. I did not scan but I could tell. I took 2 glucose tablets, an apple and some peanut butter. I took quite some time to get my level back up. I was on my way to go for a walk, but I had to sit it out. So, let the dinner preparations begin.
18:30 7th Scan of the day. Almost a unicorn! Now to calculate the amount of carbs again and then take my 6th jab of the day.
18:30-20:00 Dinner is served. We watched some music videos on YouTube, had a chat doing our normal dinner time routine. After dinner I waited a bit for the food to settle. No one can exercise on a full stomach
20:00-20:45 I did a step class in the comfort of my own home. Thanks YouTube!
21:00 8th scan of the day just to check and now to finish my book I was reading.
21:50 9th and last scan of the day and I took a 7th jab as I had some shortbread cookies. Etienne baked! It was lovely! Off to take a shower and good night everyone!
In this day I scanned a total of 9th times and I had to inject myself 7th times. Apart from just managing my day I need to manage my Diabetic baby. It is a full time job 24/7/365 – no holiday, no break, no time off. What a horrible boss-hehe.
I am mighty thankful that I have access to the Freestyle Libre, if I did not I would have had to prick 9 times and I only have 10 fingers. This device really changed my life and Diabetes management style. My finger tips used to look horrible! Go Kenny! (I call my sensor Kenny).
What do you think? Can you blame us for going a bit cranky and talking about or Diabetic baby all the time?
Cheers to life!
E xx
The Travellingmind 