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CGM – should you get one?
It was finally time.
I was nervous, noticeably so.
My hands were shaking, I had a slight sweat and could only concentrate with major effort.
I was sitting at my diabetes nurse’s office, plunger in hand, plaster sitting snuggly on my stomach.
“Come on, Hanna, you’ve done this a gazillion times before”, I told myself.
And then I just did it.
I pushed the plunger and the sensor was in. It didn’t even feel worse than a normal injection (sometimes I hate the fact that I can say that.)
So, I got hooked up to my first Dexcom G4 Platinum sensor yesterday.
I have now become a bionic woman, wearing 2 medical devices/robot parts, my OmniPod insulin pump, and my Dexcom cgm. (and yes, they have names, too.)
CGM and Insulin pump – I’m a bionic woman!
I’ve had it on for a full 24 hours, so these are really my very first impressions! And my initial reaction is that it’s beyond amazing! The results have been very accurate (ca 1 mmol/l difference) so far, and I’m hoping it will stay that way.
What is a cgm?
A cgm is a continuous glucose monitoring system, meaning that it measures your blood glucose level in your interstitial fluid every couple of minutes.
This is done by a tiny sensor underneath your skin, which you can keep there for (officially) 1 week, but sometimes longer.
The sensor is connected to a transmitter, sending data to the receiver, on which you can see pretty graphs of what your blood glucose levels are up to.
Although the glucose levels in the interstitial fluid is a few minutes delayed from the level in your blood, it’s an awesome tool to see the trends and where you’re heading, blood glucose wise.
Dexcom G4 Platinum (borrowed from the Dexcom website)
I love making lists for myself. And so also this time.
The pros with a cgm
– The Trends
Seeing the trends and where your blood glucose is heading is very handy. It takes a lot of the worry out of your daily care.
– Security
Hand in hand with the pro above comes the security feeling it brings. I swear I slept better last night, knowing I have something extra that has my back.
– Analysis
Being able to analyze my blood glucose better, being able to adjust my basal levels more exactly, instead of my usual guesstimation based on “yeah, that sounds good”.
The cons with a cgm
– Another device
It is, of course, yet another device connected to you at all times. The transmitter is tiny but bulky at the same time. And together with the OmniPod, I may look like a slighter version of Quasimodo in certain angles… For me it’s worth it, although there are certain items of clothing I should probably get rid of now…
– Micro management
The chance of starting to micro manage your blood glucose levels is, to a greater extent, a possibility. Seeing those dots on the screen whenever you want to may cause you to act sooner than you have to.
– Expensive
This toy definitely doesn’t come cheap. If you have an insurance policy that is ready and willing to take care of it, there’s nothing stopping you. But if you don’t, you need to think twice about getting a cgm.
And why, oh WHY, can no diabetes gear holders be at least a little nice? Why does the bag of the device have to make you feel sicker than you actually are? (Or is it just me?)
One more list: my top 5 reasons for getting a cgm:
1. I’ve lost my hypo awareness. Meaning I can’t feel when my blood glucose levels are (sometimes) dangerously low. This can of course be helped in other ways, but the other reasons made this a better choice.
2. Lately, I’ve gone extremely low every time I’m on an airplane. Weird, I know, as my pump definitely can’t be the reason for it.
3. Seeing the trends.
4. What happens in between the times I normally measure my blood glucose. I normally measure my blood glucose ca 8-10 a day, so it’s not like I’m slacking. But I have no idea when my blood sugar peaks after certain foods, for example. Without sounding too OCD:y, it’s to gain more control.
5. To have less question marks in my life. Life is full of sometimes quite pesky question marks anyway, so why add to them if there is a solution?
So far, I absolutely love my Dex (that’s his name, and no, it’s not very imaginative). I can definitely see that he’s going to be a huge help in my self care, and give me a little more peace of mind in the diabetes jungle. Dex passed the field test today, working at a cafe in town, with flying colours (and I did too, I’ve never seen a better graph! (blood glucose tests confirming this))
1st Day CGM graph – not bad!
As I see it it’s either a love or hate relationship with this thing. It has huge potential to help you a great deal in your self care, but it can also interrupt you if you already have a great regime going that works for you. But YES, you SHOULD get one! :-)
But boy, oh boy, we’ve come a long way since the insulin syringes needed to be boiled to be disinfected. Or from my very first blood glucose meter back in the late 80’s , that took several minutes to give an answer to the ever long question “where is my BS at?”
Do you have a cgm? What do you like about it? Dislike? Let me know in the comments!
Ps. I also have my first impressions written down from when I got my OmniPod about a year ago. Would you like to read that? Comment below!
Diabetes and the Universe (or, Why me?!)
I have something to confess to you.
I used to think in a way that was pretty destructive, both for myself and those around me. And I still can’t help but to fall back in every once in a while.
And I’m going to bet that you’ve thought this precise thought many of times.
When something has happened to you; your wallet got stolen or you get a really bad cold.
When you get food poisoning twice in one week whilst visiting one of the most beautiful cities in the world, Rome. (True story, that was me last week.)
When you spill that glass of red wine on your white pants.
Or when diabetes shows itself from its very brightest (and most butt kicking) side.
In these situations it’s so incredibly easy to tilt your head backwards and shout out loud: “WHY ME?!“
You feel very excluded from the masses, almost chosen by some higher power to be suffering. It’s almost like Karma came up to you, tapped your shoulder and said “you’re it” and ran away, like any mature 5 year old would.
Ok, maybe I’m being a tad melodramatic.
But it feels really crappy when you’re sitting there, with a possible sh*t storm brewing right next to you/on top of you/in your hands (ew).
The biggest problem with this is that you’re making yourself a victim. This is victim thinking at its highest degree.
And what’s wrong with that, you may ask?
It’s whiny, it’s the easy way out. And frankly it’s being a coward.
It’s blaming something/one else for your own fate, when all you can do is to put on your big girl panties and knock it right on the nose.
It takes a huge shift in mentality to see this, as well as to see the other side of it. Believe me, I’ve been there myself.
I used to be the biggest “why me”:er the universe has ever met. I threw it out for anything and nothing that didn’t go My. Exact. Way.
Whether it was a failed relationship or disgusting lunch options. Being teased for something or an “unfair” grade. Or a period of shaky blood sugars. The answer was always “why me”.
It’s crucial to gain the insight that it might not always be about or because of YOU.
If it’s illness you’re “why me”:ing about, maybe your body is trying to tell you to slow down? If your wallet got stolen, stop spending as much money as you are? And what about that red wine stain on your white pants? Maybe it’s keeping you from some other, bigger disaster, or, you’ve simply drunk enough?
This is where faith comes in. And no, I’m definitely no biblethumper. But you need faith in knowing that you won’t be handed what you can’t handle. Sure, it might stretch your definition of what you can or can’t handle. But guess what? That’s how we grow as humans! Getting out of your comfort zone is what life is about.
Of course this takes a little longer if it’s a more serious issue, like, say, a chronic disease you will have for the rest of your life (read: diabetes). But it is doable.
And it is definitely worth getting past “why me”:ing.
Because what awaits you on the other side is a happier life. A life that is more worth living, when you don’t focus on your own “misfortune” every time something goes a little sidetracked.
You have the means and tools to work with, combat or embrace whatever falls in your lap. Go use them.
Green smoothies – why I don’t recommend them.
Ah, the rave about green smoothies!
Green smoothies to heal this, green smoothies to clear that infection, green smoothies for brighter and clearer skin.
The list is endless of what green smoothies can (apparently) do!
Yet, I might be the only nutrition specialist that doesn’t recommend drinking them. Especially not for people with diabetes.
Have you ever thought of the ingredients in these smoothies?
Sure, they’re packed full of good stuff like spinach, kale, cucumber, various other veggies and sometimes even spirulina and other gently detoxifying stuff.
Have you noticed that most recipes contain an enormous ratio of (high sugar) fruit, though?
So much so that it becomes closer to the American Diabetes Association’s outdated recommendation of 60% carbohydrate to every meal?
And, a smoothie should probably not even be considered a full meal! (Unless you’re doing a juice cleanse, in which case I wish you good luck if you have diabetes.)
Let’s have a look at some of the recipes I’ve seen recently:
1. Avocado Coconut Smoothie (from: finerminds.com)
1 large avocado
1 large banana
3/4 cup organic pineapple juice
3 tablespoons freshly-squeezed lime or lemon juice
1 can organic coconut milk
1 tablespoon flax seed oil3 tablespoons melted extra-virgin coconut oil.
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
Sounds super yummy! But what’s the carb count?
1 large avocado has about 17 grams of carbohydrate (fiber 14 g), 1 large banana about 31 g (3,5 g fiber). ¾ cup pineapple juice has about 25 g crabs (0 g fiber). 1 can of coconut milk has 10 g carbs. The rest of the ingredients aren’t too carb-filled.
The total? 83 grams of carbohydrate. In one drink. Even if you discount the fiber count (which I only heard that you can do recently, and doesn’t work for me) you still get 65.5 grams of carbs.
Although this smoothie has a lot of good fatty acids, vitamins and antioxidants, I’m honestly surprised at just how much carbohydrate there is.
Let’s have a look at another one.
2. Pomegranate Citrus Punch Green Smoothie (2 servings) (from simplegreensmoothies.com)
2 cups spinach, fresh
1 cup orange juice, fresh squeezed
1 cup water
1 cup pomegranate seeds
1 banana
OMG, get in my belly! And the title sounds so carb-innocent, too, right?
Well, 1 banana has 31 g (3,5 g fiber), and 1 cup orange juice 26 g carbs (0.5 g fiber). 1 cup pomegranate seeds has 32 g of carbohydrate, with 7 g fiber
This gives us a grand total of 89 grams of carbohydrates, 44.5 g per serving. Without the fiber, it’s still 39 grams of crabs per person. Yikes!
Third time’s the charm, right? Let’s take a really simple one, with only 3 ingredients. How bad can that one be, really?
3. Basic Balance (from: rawfamily.com (Victoria Boutenko))
1 mango
1 cup kale
1 cup water
1 mango has 39 grams of carbs, 4 g fiber. 1 cup of kale has 6 grams of carbohydrate, so not very much at all!
Still, 45 grams of carbs in one drink is way too much for me…
Do you notice just how much carbohydrate these drinks contain? (AND WHAT IF YOU DON’T LIKE BANANAS?!)
In comparison, a can of coke has 39 grams of carbohydrates. Granted, there’s no fiber (or any other nutrition for that matter) in a can of coke, so it’s not exactly the same. But comparing the pure carb values? And what carbohydrate, in whichever form, does to your blood glucose levels in the end? Ouch, that’s going to hurt in the morning.
Yes, the type of carb in fruit and vegetables is infinitely better than eating 100 g of pasta, as it’s more nutritious and filling. But: there are simply too many carbohydrates turning into sugar in these smoothies to be able to include them in a low(er) carb lifestyle.
With the carbohydrates, fibers and occasional fat added too, it can get very tricky to get the insulin dose right for a diabetic, as well. Let alone if you buy it from a healthy store/juice bar and haven’t even made it yourself, meaning that you therefore have very little clue of exactly how much banana (or other high sugar fruit) is in that smoothie.
It’s not all gloomy days when it comes to green smoothies, though.
I have two suggestions for you so that you can still enjoy these bombaliciously nutritious powerhouses!
My first suggestion is to make your own, at home. This way you have the best possible control of what’s in it, making sure to use the freshest and most organic ingredients you can possibly find.
There are some really neat (and cute!) carrying/take away options you can use. I’ve even seen mason jars with a special lid for straws, like this one.
My second suggestion is that you make sure it’s a GREEN smoothie. What I mean by this is that you use about 90% vegetables in your smoothie. Please avoidmaking a “fruuitie”! What I mean by that is to avoid using mostly fruit with some added vegetable and think that it won’t affect your blood glucose.
I want your opinion; am I being too harsh? Have you tried green smoothies? What are your experiences?
(Last, but certainly not least, I’d like to do a HAPPY DANCE for the first blog post with the new web page design! Woohoo! )
The Diabetes Treadmill
If there’s one thing I don’t enjoy doing, it’s walking (or running) on a treadmill.
For me, there’s nothing more boring to spend my time doing. Life is to be lived, not be spent on a treadmill! (You heard it here first!)
This is a thing in my life that has changed though – before I used to LOVE the treadmill! I used to prefer it to walking/running in nature, or on the streets.
Every time I went to the gym, I’d see if I could run just a little further, or just do one more climb… And always feeling really proud of myself when I was finished. Just like I wouldn’t even know that there’s anything else out there to do for exercise.
Why did I feel that?! Sure, exercise is a great point, but there are about 100 ways to do that without having to set foot on a treadmill.
My point is that although a treadmill is fine for exercise, it might not be able to give you what you want, or even need.
Maybe your body type needs more weight lifting, yoga or body pump to stay in shape and reach your own goals with a great feeling of accomplishment. Or maybe you need a mix of them all?
And, most importantly, what do you prefer? Running around on a tirelessly ever-turning machine that has “worked for everyone else”? Or try another thing, the road less taken, and give yourself a chance to breathe and face less resistance?
Maybe “everyone else’s” goals weren’t and aren’t the same as yours. Not even by a long shot. Or maybe they find joy and happiness on that treadmill that you, perhaps, don’t.
This is of course a metaphor for how diabetes advice normally is given. Clearly.
But, Hanna, what do treadmills have to do with diabetes?!
More than you may think. Although exercise is of course very important in your own every day care, it doesn’t have to be done on a boring treadmill. Not at all.
Get out in nature, enjoy what you’re doing and pay attention to the amazing details that surrounds you.
The same goes for diabetes advice.
If the tried and tested advice with 60% carbs to every meal, “some” exercise and eating absolutely zero fat (aka the treadmill) doesn’t work for you– find your own way.
Get off the diabetes treadmill!
Get off that diabetes treadmill. Even if it keeps running, you don’t have to run on it anymore, if it’s not working for you.
There are always choices out there that might suit you better, that might make you feel healthier, more in control and more confident about yourself and diabetes. It might even give you a clue to the ever-green question: “What’s going on?!”, that other information sources might not have been able to give you.
I’ve picked the raisins out of the several proverbial cakes I’ve had with, on, besides, on top of, underneath and slightly to the right of diabetes, and made them into a health care system for myself, instead of the sick care I’ve been handed elsewhere.
It’s a liberating feeling, finding something that works for YOU as a person, but also YOU as a diabetic.
We both know diabetes can be exactly as varied and changing as you are. It’s the most frustrating feeling in the world. That’s why it’s so important to widen your horizons and find out what’s best for you.
(Spoiler alert: it probably isn’t the advice you’ve been given your whole diabetic career!)
Top 10+ Health FB Pages To Follow
Whilst grainbrain.ch is getting her new looks, I thought I’d focus a little on my favourite social media platform, Facebook.
Who do I follow on Facebook?
The answer here is: tons. I follow tons of people, companies, news sites, brands (and yes, even Sauna, being true to my Finnish roots!).
Exclusively for you, however, I’ve listed my top 10 health pages I follow. Some of these you may already be familiar with, while others are new to you.
1. Diet Doctor
Dr. Andreas Eenfeldt is one of the most outstanding medical professionals to recommend a lowcarb lifestyle, in my opinion. The information he posts is current, relevant and very educational. He also understands diabetes well, and posts about every big study that is made. Check out the Facebook page here.
2. Dr. Mark Hyman
Dr. Hyman is a functional medicine practitioner, who is doing a fantastic job with spreading news about medicine and nutrition. He also gets it with diabetes, and has great resources and tips. Look here!
3. Cereal Killers Movie
If you haven’t seen this documentary yet – do it (right after finishing reading this blog post)! This page contains very little promotion for the movie. Instead this guy shares very useful, thoughtful and educational posts. It’s a keeper!
4. Dr. David Perlmutter
Dr. Perlmutter is the author of the (very well named!) book Grain Brain. Luckily we share very many opinions. :) He’s also about to release a cook book. Anyway, back to the Facebooking, he has some very interesting articles that make you think twice about what you’ve been doing all your life. Check it out for yourself here.
5. Naturalnews.com
“NaturalNews.com is an independent news resource that covers the natural health and wellness topics that empower individuals to make positive changes in their personal health. NaturalNews offers uncensored news that allows for healthier consumer choices via informed skepticism.” That really says it all – check it out here.
6. Food Babe
Food Babe, or Vani Hari, has become the leading expert in finding out what the food we eat is made of, what’s hiding in it, and what are potentially lethal ingredients. Her investigations go much deeper into the food production industry than any of them would like. She’s a true star in finding out the truth. Have a look for yourself here.
7. Dr. Lissa Rankin
Dr. Rankin wrote one of my favourite health books to date, Mind Over Medicine. I believe all health care professionals should have read her book at least once. Her FB page reflects much of her thinking in the book – health as holistic, functional medicine. Get inspired here.
8. Mind Body Green
MBG is a fantastic site that collects the best of the best in terms of health, well being, nutrition, exercise, meditation, relationships… Usually shorter articles that are easy to understand. I barely go onto their website, as they deliver all the goodies right to my FB newsfeed. Find their great articles here.
9. I Quit Sugar
Sarah Wilson’s I Quit Sugar 8 week program is hugely popular to, eh, quit sugar. The FB page is filled with great recipes (that you can easily modify to your needs), tips, ideas and announcements. Love it as much as I do here.
10. Kris Carr
Kris Carr, the undoubtable queen of green juicing, always posts really great information, recipes and motivation on her Facebook site. This woman is truly an inspiration, and I suggest you check her out here.
11. Gabby Bernstein
One of my spiritual guides, Gabby Bernstein, has probably been given a prize for “Most Active FB Page”. It’s truly astonishing how much great advice, affirmations, meditations, thoughts and pictures this modern guru posts. Get a huge dose of inspiration here.
12. SwissHealthCoach
Mirkka at SwissHealthCoach recently did an amazing myth-busting series on the truth about our food. Check her out!
13. Type 1 Diabetes Memes
This page, run by type 1’s for type 1’s post hilarious photos, with a huge “omg that’s me, every time”-factor. Their aim is to make you augh, and to have a positive outlook on living with Type 1 Diabetes. Get a good laugh right here!
Borrowed from the Type 1 Diabetes Meme Fb page!
Ok, fine, that was a bit more than 10, but I just couldn’t leave any of them out! All of these have contributed so much toward my health and getting more confident in my self care.
I’d love to know who YOU follow? Anyone I’ve missed, anyone you don’t-understand-how-I-can-live-without that I should be following? Please let me know in the comments, there’s always space for more people to be inspired by!