Senator Frist Supports Stem Cell Research!!!

Ladies and gentlemen, you have just witnessed a miracle.

How exciting is that!?!

I saw the newspaper headline this morning at Shari's and I started jumping up and down. JDRF sent me an email about it yesterday, so I already knew, but just seeing it in print was so exciting. The link is the the New York Times, registration is required but it's free.

Frist is being criticized by the Republicans, obviously, though my own Republic Senator, Gordon Smith (R-OR), supports the new research enhancement act. President Bush is still threatening to veto the bill, even if it is passed in both the House and the Senate.

::sigh:: Politics is so frustrating. I understand that it's a very contentious debate and it'll be tooth and nail until the end. But I just want a cure.

P.S. I have my pump back. And I'm very happy.

Q: When does a pumper use Lantus?

A: When her pump breaks.

I was on vacation from Sunday-Tuesday, and on Monday morning, bright and early, my Minimed pump decides to break.

Actually, it was slightly more exciting than that. First, my silhouette set decided to rip out of my body in the middle of the night, awaking me with a 345. When I decided to change the resevoir as well, *that's* when my pump decides to break.

The culprit: a faulty sensor designed to detect the presence of insulin. Oops! After priming 5 times, and wasting nearly 50 units, I gave up.

Since I was visiting a family with a 5-year-old daughter with diabetes, this little mishap was not deemed a fault of mine. Instead, we drove into the nearby town to order a pump replacement and a prescription for Lantus from my endo, to be faxed to the local pharmacy. With newly purchased syringes (as I only brought one- what was I thinking?), my own initial Humalog and brand-spanking new Lantus, I have managed to survive three days.

And it's driving me insane.

Apologies to all Lantus users, but I don't think I could survive for very long on this stuff. My pump has broken before, and Lantus was our back-up method, so this isn't a new experience for me. I was on MDIs for 6 years before I went on the pump, and honestly, injections just don't do it for me. Lantus might be great for some people, but I actually like having something attached to me because that way, it's always there... I'm sure this is just a case of "well, if you had it long enough you'd get used to it" syndrome, but I really like having a pump. I really really truly do. I was practically skipping to the FedEx office to pick up the pump today. I won't be able to go it again until tomorrow morning, when the Lantus runs out, so until then, I will leave you with five little words:

I want my pump back!

BIG Lemonade Thanks!

Thanks to everyone who wrote me about the article that I'm working on. I heard from over a dozen of you within 24 hours, which for a journalist, is amazing.

I'm going to be working on the article for the next week and it should be up on Teen Talk sometime during the beginning of August. Though I don't update the website myself, so I personally am not responsible for the posting of the article, so don't blame me if it isn't right on August 1. I think it will be a really good article and I'm really excited to see what the responses are from all the big kids who are writing in to tell us little kids what to expect. Honestly, as a teen (I really should get used to not saying this- 2 more weeks...), a lot of things like working with diabetes, being pregnant with diabetes, being a parent (!) with diabetes are on my mind. Or should I say, COMPLETELY FREAKING ME OUT!

I don't know how parents have kids when they have diabetes. I would so scared to have a seizure with a baby around... Not that I've ever had a seizure, but still. I suppose all parents have to deal with sudden catastrophes that render them parentally useless. But with diabetes, they are so much more... there.

::screams into her pillow::

OK. I'm better now.

...

I think I need a hug.

WANTED: Type 1 Adults!

As previously noted my first entry, I am the host of Teen Talk, a website for teens with diabetes. This month I'm working on an article about adults who were diagnosed with Type 1 as a teen or child. The purpose the article is to provide wisdom and encouragement from some older folks about living with diabetes long-term. A lot of these teens have only had it for 2-5 years (though some have had it longer), but all of them are dealing with growing up.

If you are an adult (over 21, preferably) and were diagnosed with Type 1 as a teen or child (before age 18), please contact me at amblass@aol.com or leave a comment with your contact info. Include your name, age, when you were diagnosed, occupation and what kind of treatment you are currently using (pump, Lantus, MDI).

I'm hoping to send out interview questions on either Friday or Saturday so please respond ASAP!!!

Thanking you kindly in advance.

(a real update will be posted soon)

Merci beacoup!

Thanks to everyone who have commented and emailed me thus far about liking my new blog. I really appreciate the comments and I'm glad everyone (well, at least those who have talked to me- not too sure about the rest of you) likes my writing style. I've gone ahead and shared the love by adding some more links to other diabetes blogs on the 'net.

Funny story:

Last night I was online chatting with a friend of friend and this mutual friend of ours also has diabetes, but the friend I was talking to does not. Confused yet? Anyway, our mutual friend is quite quiet about having diabetes, and I, obviously, am not. So the friend asked, "Do you carry around a sign?" and I said, "No. I have a banner. A big yellow banner with purple sparkly lettering to get attention."

Bring out the banners!

I HAVE DIABETES!!!!!!!

:: trumpets, drums, and other associated racket-inducing instruments start playing ::

I'm 100! Anyone wanna give me a dollar?

When I was growing up, whenever my blood sugar hit the reading of "100,"my father would give me a dollar. It was very exciting. I always tried to convince him to give me two dollars for a "200" but I was never successful. He's stopped doing it now that I've moved out of the house, so I try to get other people to do it but to no avail.

So what do I do when I'm frustrated with lows, highs, finger pricking and am-I-going-to-lose-my-kidney fears?

I label postcards.

This afternoon, just before heading to Trader Joe's to buy groceries, I stopped by the American Diabetes Association. Cindy, the area manager, asked me if I wanted to help label postcards for an educational event at a Cold Stone's Ice Creamery in Roseburg, OR. I spent about an hour labeling postcards and chit-chatting about the newest National Youth Advocate and religion. Not that those two have anything to do with each other....

Anyway, I enjoy being able to take out my frustrations on having diabetes by being able to help an organization dedicated to eradicating my fears. It's very empowering to be apart of the solution, not just bemoaning the problem.

'Til next time, signing out.

i am a TERRIBLE diabetic.

ok, collective sigh everyone!

1, 2, 3

::SSSSIIIIGGGGHHHH::

ah, now doesn't that feel better.

eesh. so far, today, i have tested once. i was 88 when i did, but still. ONCE.

you see, i woke up late (11 AM) and tested. 88. went to have indian food for lunch. bolused as usual. drove home and changed for work (at mcdonalds. second eesh.) and brought my meter. which of course didn't have any more strips because i had used my last one that morning. not that it mattered. even though i said i was going to test during my break, i noticed i had a voice message and decided to handle that rather than test. i figured, when i got back on, i have one more hour til i'm off... it can wait. then i got off, got in the car, drove home and instead of testing (why oh whhhhhyyyyy is this so hard!!!!!!!!), i took a shower. got out, dried hair, got dressed, grabbed meter (which still didn't have strip, mind you), drove to wendy's, got dinner, drove to the place i babysit, had dinner while waiting for mom and baby (still not thinking to test), called parents, greeted mom and baby upon arrival, talked with mom, played with baby, took baby for walk, suddenly realized i had failed to bolus (gah!), played with baby some more, put baby to bed, checked email and somewhere around 10 pm decided maybe i should test.

NO BLOODY TEST STRIPS!

somebody shoot me in the foot! i'm gonna lose one anyway!

seriously, folks, how hard is this? i've had diabetes for 11 1/2 years. come on! how long does it take before one gets a clue and remembers to bring test strips?!

rant, rant. rave, rave. whine, whine. boo hoo.

sigh.

some days i'm really good. some days, i actually test all 5 (ok, 4) times that i'm suppose to. other days, it's more like "eh, i'll do it when i get around to it." it's not like i forget to bolus. except for that minor mishap tonight, i'm generally stinking good about bolusing. i rarely forget.

but testing. hoo boy. there's something really really obnoxiously difficult about testing. it's not even that hard to do. take meter out, open up strip bottle, take out strip, insert strip in little hole, take lancet, prick finger, squeeze finger, put drop of blood onto strip, wait 5 seconds. VOILA! instant control.

a monkey could do it. Why can't I???

well, venting was nice. thank you, cyberspace, for letting me rant, rave, and whine about testing.

and now back to your regularly scheduled programming.

ah well, here we go

So I've finally decided to take the plunge and create my own blog. Now, I have a "diary" on my website, Teen Talk (www.diabetesportal.com/teentalk), but I don't update that very often and it doesn't really provide a way for people to comment back. I am craving interaction and the freedom that comes with having my own personal site. Of course, this could just be the ego talking. I'm sure it's a mix of both.

It seems that the diabetes blogging community is growing rapidly, but most of them seem to be thirty-something women with families. There are a few men. But I haven't come across many teens, though there are a handful through Xanga (including my good friend Mollie Singer- http://www.xanga.com/home.aspx?user=curemoll). Mollie, along with her sister Jackie, and I host Teen Talk, although I've been with Teen Talk longer. It started in 2002 when I noticed that Diabetes Station (www.diabetesstation.com) didn't really have a chat program for teens. I asked if I could start one and, miracles of miracles, they said yes. The website soon followed. It's been a fun ride so far... not sure how much longer I'll be hosting it. I turn 20 in less than a month, so I'm officially not a teenage. I guess I will keep hosting until I graduate from college, but after that, I think we should move it on to the younger generation. I've got bigger fish to fry.

I enjoy diabetes mentoring a lot. I didn't really have anyone around when I was first diagnosed at age 8. It's been interesting trying things how with people. There really isn't any other website just for teens with diabetes, so it's been quite the adventure trying to figure out what to put on the site to make it interesting for teens.

Hopefully it will continue to grow. I would love to be able to work more with teens when I'm older. I think it's a really important thing to do. It kind of gives me some purpose, you know? It's funny, though, feeling like you have purpose at nineteen. But it's true. I wonder what I would be doing now if I didn't have diabetes. Considering everything I've done and what I plan to do, I would think it almost be a bit boring.

Not necessarily that it would be a bad thing...

Boredom or Diabetes? Huh. What a toss up.

Well, the computer lab is about to close, so I suppose I should scadaddel.