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Blog Entries With Tag: Children With DiabetesBlog: Anna's BlogFrom: FatCatAnnaPosted: Mar 21, 2013
Okay - I've maybe worded the title incorrectly here - but psst - did it get your attention or what?
My HIGH comes from the incredible weekend I just spent with T1D kids/adults, T3's (parents/grandparents/sisters/brothers/etc.) at the 4th annual Children With Diabetes (CWD) - Friend for Life (FFL) conference and expo in Toronto, Canada. I actually am feeling a little depressed about being away from "my family" - missing the sounds of the beep, beep, and whirl, whirl of various medical devices being used around me - that I use myself to stay healthy with my diabetes. It felt so amazing to be part of such a big group - that got each other - we didn't have to question why you were doing this and that - do it in secret like some diabetics I know that hide out in dirty washrooms to test their blood glucose (BG) or bolus with insulin. It was just so cool is all I can say!!! The last time I attended in Toronto I was part of the staff - and because of that missed out on all the great conferences that are presented. This time though, I wasn't asked to help, and of course, I felt like having abit of a pity party (memories of Joe Solowiejczyk talk about dealing with diabetes are going thru' my head here - I cried so hard with laughter - "Yipee I love having diabetes ... NOT!!!"). This time I managed to get our god daughter, Catherine and her son, Aaron who is a T1D like myself to come along. I do not think they regret one bit about my dragging them along (well - their only regret is that they didn't take up my offer of ear plugs - since I still am not 100% well - and snored ... or should I say ... purred REALLY loud).
Catherine met up with other D-parents like herself, exchanged contact info and I'm hoping they stay in touch for many years to come as their children grown up into adults. So, the 6 hour drive back home after such an exciting long w/e was abit of a drag, as we didn't want to say good bye to everyone, but with good tunes and a GPS (Toronto is a big city) - we got back home safe and sound. Aaron is now putting his plans in action to figure out how to raise monies to attend the CWD FFL 2013 meet up in Orlando, Florida this summer. Obviously, he didn't get enough in Toronto!!! For myself, it was meeting up with all the parents (some actually were looking out for me with my ears since they follow my scribbles in the sandbox at Diabetes1.org and in other social media areas I post in). Listening to their fears of their children with diabetes and trying to reassure them that with great patience - their kids will do alright, just like I did with having family members that looked out for each other with living with this disease (I hate calling it that - since to me - it's not a disease - it's just a hiccup in my life - that I try to make the best of the situation). Also spending time with the kids, sharing laughs, dancing (okay - it was more like an aerobic workout for this old D-cat) - just AWESOME!
Sadly, this maybe the last FFL being held in Canada, due to sponsorship - sigh. I have to admit, I had hoped that there would be more pump manufacturers other then Animas (you know my reasons there - and forthcoming blog will be revealing abit of a shocking conversation I had with Paul Flynn, Director of International business Development of Animas Canada). Perhaps, if those other companies, and a few more that have products aimed at diabetics all pitched into the pot, then I'll be writing about the next Canadian one that I am able to attend. If you are interested in checking out the presentations (I know I'm going back to go over some of the notes I took down) - you can find it all at this link!
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![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Tags: Friends For Life (2) insulin (1) blood sugar (1) blood glucose (1) BG (1) Animas (1) 2013 (1) FFL (1) CWD (1) Children With Diabetes (1) Toronto (1) T3D (1) T1D (1) Orlando (1) Joe Solowiejczyk (1) Related posts:Type 1 vs. Type 2 | Keeping track | In a slump and scared | Midnight Three and Six and artificial pancreas technology | Surviving the Holocaust with Type 1 diabetes | My first month with Bowie my Dexcom G4 CGMS | My 13 year old self describing her DKA in the 70's | Edmonton man denied insulin for 20 hours | Twist and Shout – Sleep Apnoea | Crack Free #ShowMeYourPumpBlog: Anna's BlogFrom: FatCatAnnaPosted: Mar 3, 2013
Well, so far, no reply from the big wigs at Animas Corporation / Animas Canada on my email that was sent in reply to their's over a week ago. I'm actually hesitating on calling Animas Canada, since they seem to have wiped their hands clean of me - but have promised some Animas users - that I will see this thru' to the very end. I've sort of lost faith in big corporations like Johnson & Johnson - but I'm trying my best to be patient - and see what the end result is with my pump - that was under warranty when they "discovered" the issue with the internal s/w date killing the pump (and now it appears to be in all their pumps pre-2020). Which still makes me wonder .... why it was never corrected in the 2020?
I've been back on dry land now for a few weeks since my holidays. I'm still doing the ol' MDI (multiple dosage injections). I'm actually not minding it. Yes, my tummy that takes all the NovoRapid shots during the day for meals and corrections to my blood glucose (BG) looks abit bruised. That's from the occasional blood vessel being poked with the pen needle - despite it's 32 gauge sleekness. My DH noticed my tummy the other day - and I said - get used to it - my bikini modelling days are over. I'm actually not missing the pump at the moment - I can't believe I'm saying this in public. The pump is great for some occasions - e.g. where accessing areas of your body for a shot make things difficult or you have a change in activity that requires less basal insulin. Other than that - I'm getting used to it again. I'm trying not to be so OCD over the fact that my BG's are not as well balanced as they are with the pump, but with more BG testing and adjusting of basal and/or bolus insulins - I am getting the hang of it. ![]() My god daughter who is coming with me to Toronto this w/e for the Children With Diabetes event (3 days of education / fun for kids & parents / etc.) - can't imagine putting her 13 year old onto shots. His diagnosis was at 6 (like myself) and I think he was put onto a pump right away. She said she'd have no idea what to do if he was on MDI. That is a bit scary - andI think if I was an endocronologist or educator (CDE) - I would have newly diagnosed patients hating my gutts - since I would insist that they at least learn how to control their diabetes by the old fashioned system of frequent injections. I'd be like Nurse Ratched from One Flew Over the Cuckoo Nest . I also am still looking into the Roche ACCU-CHEK Combo pump as a possible replacement to Animas. I'd heard thru' the grapevine that it DOES have an end date - that it only works for 7 years, but after I contacted the rep at Roche that I had met last summer - they told me in their older pumps, this was the case, but not with the pumps now sold (phew). The one great thing about the Roche pump is that it was $1K less and had a 5-year warranty. Good for those of us who are paying out of pocket for a pump. **UPDATE** - see comment below dated March 6th. Again, until I have some sort of closure with Animas Corporation/Animas Canada it's sort of put me off of any pump manufacturer at the moment. So, for now, I'm standing on the edge, waiting in ancipation for an answer that is honest and not legally formatted with their reply (e.g. please write in easy to understant terms). ![]()
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![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Tags: FFL (1) Children With Diabetes (1) CWD (1) BG (1) MDI (1) software (1) warranty (1) Accu-Chek Combo (1) 2020 (1) Animas (1) insulin pump (1) Roche (1) Related posts:My first month with Bowie my Dexcom G4 CGMS | Miss Idaho is Defeating Diabetes | Crack Free #ShowMeYourPump | Welcome Ziggy Stardust | My First Night with Dexcom G4 CGMS | NO DELIVERY | D4D dogs that can smell a low blood sugar | Happy Easter | Airing out the house ... | Taking care of my pearly whitesBlog: Anna's BlogFrom: FatCatAnnaPosted: Aug 8, 2011
This blog is dedicated to my Mum – who thought my last blog – The Antidote was written while I was having a hypo. No Mummy – I was on level playing ground – but just having fun with writing!
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![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Tags: Connected in Motion (1) Karyla (1) Tom (1) Jeff Hitchcock (1) Diabetes Research Institute (1) DRI (1) Jen Hanson (1) CIM (1) Friend For Life (1) FFL (1) Children With Diabetes (1) CWD (1) Related posts:Crack Free #ShowMeYourPump | Will I ever go back to my Animas pump? | The Big Blue Test on World Diabetes Day - November 14th, 2009 | The Antidote | I'm still feeling High!Blog: Anna's BlogFrom: FatCatAnnaPosted: Oct 22, 2009
November 14th, 2009 is World Diabetes Day. On that day, at 14:00 hours (2:00 p.m., local time), thousands of people with diabetes will test their blood sugar, do 14 minutes of exercise, test again and share their results online. The
event is called The Big Blue Test because the blue
circle is the international symbol for diabetes. The idea of a shared
"blood sugar test-in" started with an activity organised back in July 2009 by TuDiabetes.org, a community for people touched by diabetes that I belong to. More than a
thousand people participated. Now, they're hoping to reach thousands of people
with diabetes through various diabetes social networks and
Twitter. The activity will incorporate 14 minutes of physical activity to
reinforce the importance of exercise. BTW, I'll open up a discussion in the News section of the Forums here at Diabetes1 a few days before hand should you wish to post your readings OR you can go to the following other diabetic networks that you see below. It really doesn't matter where you post though, just as long as you join in on the celebration of World Diabetes Day by taking part in the The Big Blue Test! I know I will! Tudiabetes / Children With Diabetes / Diabetes Daily / Diabetic Connect / Diabetic Rockstar / dLife / Juvenation / Diabetes Central
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![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Tags: Big Blue (1) Diabetes Central (1) Juvenation (1) dLife (1) Diabetic Rockstar (1) Diabetic Connect (1) Diabetes Daily (1) Children With Diabetes (1) Tudiabetes (1) Related posts:Surviving the Holocaust with Type 1 diabetes | Will I ever go back to my Animas pump? | Diabetes Snapshots | Finding a CDE (Certified Diabetic Educator) in Quebec | My Diabetes Timeline - How Would Yours Read? | Children With Diabetes Friends For Life Canada 2011 | Diabetic CouchSurfing and the D-OC | Meeting up with another T1D in my own town! | How Many Carbs Do You Consume A Day? | I'm still feeling High! |
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