Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Am I The Only One Who's OCD RE: Lab Work & My Fasting Blood Sugar?

I'm supposed to get my blood work done tomorrow for my Endo appointment next week. 

Here's the thing: My blood sugars have been in the crapper since the middle of last week, I have a nasty summer cold and sore throat and I'm currently on a temporary basal rate that fluctuates anywhere between 119% and 125% over the last 5 days. 
And FTR: I feel like crap. besides the cold and sore throat, I have a blood sugar headache and my neck hurts. 
I know it shouldn't matter if my labs show a high and or elevated fasting blood sugar -especially since I'm fighting off a cold and a sore throat.   
I know my lab work isn't about the fasting blood sugar, it's about what's going on in my body since my last Endo appointment, not the #blood sugar I had when I had my blood drawn. 
And my Endo, the Rocking Dr. J never chastises me for a high and or higher than normal fasting blood sugar - He gets that every blood sugar number has a story and wants to hear that story - with no judgement. 

But for some stupid and deep seeded reason a high fasting blood sugar matters to me - And it always has. It's like I'm #dstigma - tizing myself. 
Of course, there's a  50/50 chance that A1c has gone in the wrong direction and hyper focusing on my fasting blood sugar this time around is some sort of avoidance issue. 

My question: Am I the only one who feels the need to have an acceptable fasting blood sugar when it comes to lab work or am I just completely OCD? 

6 comments:

Laura said...

I have been known to over-bolus (and then just sip juice as needed) to make sure that the reading I get at my endo appointment is within range. It is only one reading, but somehow I feel that number is indicative of how I'm doing - more than my A1c. It makes no sense, especially because it's taken by a nurse who makes no comment whatsoever no matter what the number. I don't know if my doctor even sees it. Anyway, all this to say that I understand exactly what you're saying.

Laddie said...

After the major blood draw at my endo's office, each patient gets a finger-stick BG reading with the lab's Aviva meter. I asked about it once and was told that we were not charged for it and it was to ensure that we were safe to drive home. Kind of Big-Brotherish, but I was told that so many patients want to have a good BG reading at the endo's office that many of them end up going low.

So yes, I often test in the parking lot before my appointment to decide whether to bolus as I aim for a good, not-too-high, not-too low reading by the end of the appointment.

And I did almost reschedule my June Endo appointment because I was worried how things would look. (http://testguessandgo.com/2014/06/05/endo/) I didn't and neither should you:-)

Anonymous said...

My endo doesn't ask for blood glucose check with blood draws anymore. Even if it's the cheapest test on the script, it's wasted money. She knows that I already check my fasting every day and it's more accurate when I get out of bed than an hour later at the lab, by which time it has often risen significantly. But I totally get it. I previously had a bit of a fixation on that particular blood test too.

Kate Cornell said...

Nope, you're not alone. I hate that numbers are so important, but they are whether they should be or not. #dblogcheck

Jenn said...

If I know I'm not going to be at a "decent" number going in I mentally prepare an excuse story. I don't know why, maybe it stems back to some childhood experience, but I do.

(In my house, we call "OCD" "CDO" - in alphabetical order as it should be. Silly, I know.)

Unknown said...

I'm with you! I tend to be especially careful before endo appts or lab tests, as iof they think my blood sugar at that time is an indication of what it is all the time. Then again, mybe they do think that way!

Thanks for sharing this. Makes me feel a little more normal, even if we're BOTH OCD T1Ds!