Lasso'd By My Insulin Pump Tubing - AGAIN

So this happened the other night.

Just spent 2minutes tethered 2stove b/c my #insulinpump 's tubing inexplicably wrapped around a burner knob that refused 2 loosen! #diabetes

— Kelly / Diabetes (@diabetesalish) January 23, 2017

And lucky for me, DOCers on the twitter related and laughed with me. 

Basically, yours truly walked into her kitchen, turned the corner and was literally lasso’d by one of her stove's gas burner knobs. 
The knobs (dials?) rest on the front of the stove and directly above the oven door, not on tap, which keeps things interesting

The more I tried to untangle myself, the more tangled up I became. 

And of course I reached for my phone to document, but it was in the other room... on the couch. 

I tried the stove's knob/dial, but that sucker was on there tight and having hand surgery didn’t help the situation.

I finally disconnected from my pump infusion site and was able to pry the knob off with my hands, then I slowly untangled form the 1/2 an inch metal part thingy that the dial/knob fit on. 

Crisis averted and I laughed out loud because:
A. It was funny
B. Nothing terrible happened, being mad would have been wasted energy.

It’s not the first time my pump tubing has been lasso’d by my stove’s burner knobs, or the second, or third. 

Thanks to my pump tubing, I’ve also been lasso’d by doorknobs, ledges, edges, my car’s emergency break, seat belts, the occasional belt loop (mine and others,) body parts, (mine and others,) and everything in-between. 

It’s part of the living with the “job” that is diabetes, and wearing an insulin pump with tubing. 

And yes, I know that I can tape the tubing to my abdomen, but my belly real-estate is limited.  

BUT I may try taping the tubing, thus making it look like an actual lasso.... Also,  

Squad Goals

I think we can all agree that if we didn't laugh at the D craziness, we'd go nuts. 
And personally, I need more laughs as of late. 

So if you’ve been lasso’d with your pump’s tubing or some other D accessory, feel free to share ... or not. 

Either way, I hope this post made you smile! 

Full Reservoir Syndrome/Euphoria

Whenever I have a brand spanking new reservoir that’s filled to the brim with that life saving elixir called INSULIN, I have this weird sense of normal.

It’s not a bad sense of normal, just a weird sense of normal.

For some reason knowing that for the most part, I don’t have to fiddle with a bottle of insulin for a few days makes me a happy camper. I like to refer to this feeling as: Full Reservoir Syndrome / Euphoria.

Yes, I wear my electric pancreas clipped to my hip, and I’m forever lancing myself to input my numbers to said electric pancreas, but that’s my normal and not actually having a daily interaction with an insulin bottle is a wonderful thing in Kelly’s world.

For the first few days of Full Reservoir Syndrome/Euphoria, I don’t even think about the insulin in my reservoir, (unless the insulin’s gone skunky,) because for the most part, I know (OK, I feel very strongly,) that I’m covered.

Instead, I'm free to worry about blood sugars gone wild, dodging doorknobs, avoiding dead spots, etc., etc., etc.

Currently, I have 5.7 units of short acting insulin left... And since sometime early yesterday evening, the low reservoir alarm has been reminding me that It’s almost time to change out the old for the new.

And for some reason, it makes me sigh a little melancholy sigh.

It’s not that changing the reservoir is a pain, because it's really not. Actually, it’s super quick and easy and takes less two minutes of my time, so why do I become a little bit of “Melancholy baby? ”

Most likely it’s because it reminds me that without a insulin for my reservoir, I’m toast.

And for the record, I already know I'm toast without insulin, full reservoir or not.

So..... Have you ever experienced full Reservoir Syndrome/ Euphoria? Diabetesalicious minds want to know ;)

By Writing About It, I Will Most Surely Cause The Infusion Set Nirvana To Cease.....

By writing about it, I will most surely cause the Infusion Set Nirvana to cease; yet I must.

I placed the infusion set in my right thigh late Thursday night, and since that time it's done it's job quite nicely.

I don't even realize it's there most of the time. It's hasn't gotten caught in my jeans or my underwear (and you all KNOW what I'm talking about) and my numbers have been quite good.

The infusion site doesn't hurt at all when my jean slide against my skin or when I brush my fingers over the infusion site without even realizing that I'm doing it.

As always, I carry my spare infusion set in my handbag and have one in my car "just in case."

I know in my head that it's time to change it, but my skin tells me otherwise.

No telltale itchiness around the site letting me knows its time to rotate, or even redness for that matter.

Part of me thinks that if I change the site, my roll of good numbers will stop, but an even bigger part of me knows that’s just crazy talk!

For now, I’ll stick with it and enjoy the moment, because I know it’s a fleeting and quite a temporary thing. Much like a freshly filled insulin reservoir; Blood Sugar Nirvana, my tolerance for all things Kardashian, fresh cooked bacon on a plate or an untouched cupcake calling my name~

Get Bent? Nope, I'm Impressed!

Infusion Set - Left Thigh

Infusion Set Right Thigh

So part of being a person with diabetes who wears an insulin pump is that your infusion sets and infusion sites have their own issues and idiosyncrasies. Sometimes infusion sets get kinked or the tubing gets knotted or ripped out during "vigorous" activity or doorknobs.

Other times, Infusion Set Nirvana sets in and you don't want change your site because your infusion is working so perfectly - which ironically, was the case with the two infusion sets above.

Both sets delivered the insulin just fine (more than just fine - my were numbers were fabulous,) both sets had no problems with absorption, and both sets stayed on for three days each.

And both cannula's look like they had the sh*t kicked out of them!

I thought the first set was just a one a million super hero cannula that could take a licking on keep on ticking. I figured the tubing had been pulled because of my insulin pump clip on my pants and caused the cannula to look a bit funky.

When I saw the second one a few weeks laterI started laughing again, because once again- as funky as the cannula looked, it rocked the insulin delivery.

I've come to the conclusion that it's not about how something looks. Because in the end, it's really about how that something works for you.

And those infusion sets worked performed delivering insulin on my thigh sites like rockstars - so there's no need for me to "get bent!"

On the contrary I'm pretty damn impressed!

Oh What A Tangled Web My Infusion Set Weaves...OR Oops I Did It Again ........

So I'm rushing around this morning trying to get out the door and start yet another glorious day.

I'm already to leave and do a quick once over to see if I have everything I need for the day. Keys? Check. Computer? Check. Phone? Check. Blood sugar machine; test strips, spare batteries, extra infusion set and a few Lara Bars just in case? Check. Great, I'm good to go.

Then, the Fashionista in me realizes that I'm only wearing one earring and I rush to the bathroom to retrieve it's mate left alone on the sink. I dash past the door (at lightning speed might I add) and BAM, MY PUMP TUBING GETS CAUGHT ON THE DOOR KNOB! OOOOUCH, it hurts like hell and my body is literally yanked back to the door frame from which it has entered.

AT THIS POINT I KNOW SEVERAL THINGS:

1. Once again I'm reminded that rushing never makes things move faster
2. My pump site REALLY HURTS
3. My infusion set must be changed before I leave the house

Ironically, I don't think about how this is putting a serious kink to the start of my day.
No, instead I'm thinking "damn I wish the cameras were rolling, I totally would have won the $10,000 on Americas Funniest Home Videos." I'll admit it people , this has happened to me before, and it's happened in front of others. Obviously, I haven't learned from this particular mistake - but on the bright side, I've been told it's quite funny to watch. Since I have this constant need to make people laugh, It's a big hit at parties.

I just have to smile and untangle my tubing, grab my earring, and get an extra infusion set from the stash I keep under the sink. It takes less than 30 seconds to replace it and I'm ready to leave for the day.

Diabetes or not, it's always something and you just gotta laugh!