Thursday, February 2, 2012

People With Diabetes & Word Association: The Way We Think Is Different!

As people with diabetes we look at things slightly different because that's just how it is - And that different way of thinking carries into almost all aspects of our life.

For instance when I see the following items/terms, diabetes certainly comes into mind - but in a person living with diabetes type of way. Am I making sense??

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Juice: Something I drink to treat a low, not because I just feel like having a glass of juice.

Juice Box: Exactly 15 grams pre-measured to treat a low without actually having to measure.


Unicorns: The Diabetes On-line Community.

Glitter: Unicorn poop and the DOC and a very weird looking Unicorn Poop Cookie that may or may not be bolus worthy.

Community: FIRST: The Diabetes On-line Community... And SECOND, the much under-appreciated & brilliant television show of the very same name.


Cupcakes: A Bolus Worthy treat I CAN EAT!

Bacon: AMAZING.


Insulin: Banting & Best’s elixir of life.

Insulin: Expensive elixir of life that insurance companies refuse to reduce the cost on.

Doorknobs: Insulin pump D-A-N-G-E-R.

Insulin Pump: Robot Pancreas with an unnatural and unholy attraction to doorknobs.

Uppercase: W and M :Dexcom/ CGM. Thanks for the visual, Kerri!

Uttering the phrase "I'm high," is all about the numbers, not about the altered state brought on by an illegal substance.

Paper Cut: has me thinking that I need to immediately find myself a Test strip so I don’t waste the blood.

Diabetes + Bitching about diabetes injustices = Diabetes Bitch Switch Being flipped!

Test Strip: Necessary, expensive and always finding them in the oddest places.

Lancet: Makes me think of the band BLUNT LANCET and The VH1 Special AND how I need to get me one of their tee-shirts!

Wilfred Brimley: "DIABEETUS, DIABEETUS... ROCK ME DIABEETUS."

If I see a circle, I immediately think it should be BLUE.

If's it's Friday, I immediately wear BLUE.

If I see shoes, I wonder if they might come in BLUE.

Batteries: Food for my Insulin Pump.

A bathroom floor with tiles - especially the 12X12 porcelain tiles: Danger to my insulin bottle if it smashes on said tile floor. Seriously, that's what goes through my head.

White/Light Colored Shirt: Murphy’s Law diabetes style. A.K. A, I always seem to get an abdomen Diabetes Gusher when I'm wearing one!

TSA: Trouble when traveling for people with diabetes and any other medical issues.

Coffee: Time to bolus.

Hot weather: Skunky insulin.

Diet Coke: Scott Johnson.

Glucose Tabs: Mixed fruit flavor is my favorite.

Sex: YES PLEASE & do I wear my pump during or do I leave it on the nightstand..... next to the glucose tabs?

Thanksgiving: Extended temp basal rate or a Duel Wave bolus?

Exercise: How much food do I need to ingest before and do I cut my basal rate in 1/2 or by 2/3rd's and and for how long before and after?

Dog Pile On The Rabbit: Dog Pile On The Diabetes .

Dogs: I want one and if it could sniff out a low blood sugar, that would be great.

Butter Compartment: A home for my insulin and LeeAnn’s Blog.


What words/ things/ phrases, etc., make you think of Diabetes? Bueller, Bueller??

13 comments:

Rachel said...

I loved this post!

I see things like this and think that a diabetic had to have named the transport company.

Kat said...

From a D parent perspective:
Strips= things that can stick to counter tops.. ewww
(or is that just when blood is sticky and sugary?)

Napping: Do I need to poke him..or let him sleep

sleeping in: Same.. should I ninja poke him to check

High: go take more drugs
Low: Ok.. my time to be the brain
Travel: what are the 100 things that could happen and have I prepared him for all.. what is the 101 thing I forgot?

Val said...

LOL at these - I gave myself a paper cut opening the mail earlier and did run to test with it...

strip - little pieces of plastic I trail everywhere, not prelude to an interesting evening.

Mike Hoskins said...

Kelly, this is an absolutely awesome post! Love this. I think of those same things for the most part, except with coffee which (while pumping) it really doesn't hit me up for a bolus. BG Strips: Something that might prompt a restraining order because they're ALWAYS stalking me. Doorknobs, wall corners and open drawers = DANGER, DANGER, PUMP TUBING DANGER. That's all that immediately comes to mind, now that the warning bells are going off in my head... :))

Melissa E said...

Great post Kelly! Speaking of test strips, I found one in the bottom of my 30 gallon aquarium the other day!!! No idea how it got there since the aquarium has a lid. Oh well...

Scott K. Johnson said...

Ha! Love it!

Scott S said...

Check out my July 2007 post entitled "Diabetes Vernacular" at http://bit.ly/x7jfoh for some more of these!!

NeurosurgeryNP said...

Love. I am definitely all for the don't waste a drop if blood, intended or not, ever!

Lee Ann Thill said...

For you it's a light colored shirt, but for me it's white pants, which I wear almost never, but it seems to never fail that that's when I get gushers. I don't seem to get paper cuts (although now that I told you that, I'm sure I'll get one within the next couple of days...). I do seem to accidentally jab myself with infusion set needles all the frakking time though. I'd say it saves me a lancet, but you know I never change that bad boy.

And thanks for the shout out. I love that the butter compartment is the home sweet home of insulin far and wide... and in your case, pretty darn close :)

Anonymous said...

::gigglesnort:: Love this.

Debra said...

Great post, I actually had a vial of insulin hit the kitchen floor tile and shatter, of course I gasped, then I went out and bought a rug to put in front of the fridge.

The Kimlers said...

Exactly, you say it all!!! I did want to mention that the dog sniffing out a low bs. We adopted a white german shepherd who was 3 at the time, and i didn't notice it as much but when I was pregnant she would come near me and rub her head under my arm/hand and would do that same thing if i was sleeping and each time i ended up having a low blood sugar or getting low. And my dog hasn't been trained to do this. But incredibly thankful she caught some 20's and 30's for me while i was sleeping/napping being pregnant. Super scary. Thanks Kelly!!!

Katie Harrell said...

This is great. I cradle my insulin bottle like a child when I'm standing on tile. Always that fear. And the paper cut thing....haha....my non-diabetic 8 yr old son cut his finger the other day and came running to me asking if he could check his blood glucose. And holy moly those test strips...how in the world they end up in some of the places I find them. Ha!! I really enjoyed this post. Thank you!! :)