Diabetes threw us another curve ball, and everytime something happens, it's when I least expect it to, or don't want it to. It's not a good time, I yell. I think my somewhat of a medical training has kept me on top of this diabetes stuff. Yes I can get very overwhelmed, but then I realize it's not that bad, I can handle this, and mostly we do take care of each situation with some sort of ease in the midst of some sort of caos.
It starts out like this...
This last Saturday morning was a rare morning where we didn't have a thing going on, so we slept in a bit. I only made it to about 7:30am, since I went to bed fairly early Friday night out of bordem. Shortly after everyone was up. Hannah tested her blood sugar like she does every morning right away. She was a solid 166 at 8:11am. It's a little higher than what she normally wakes up at, but all in all it's pretty good for her. We have been trying really hard to get her doses to keep her in the range of 90-140, and her morning numbers usually are the best and are within range recently. I didn't think much of the 166 on Sat. morning, she can be up or down at any given time. She ate breakfast, and had what she normally does. Just before noon, she jumped to 318. I thought that was odd, and automaticlly jump to conculsions and try to figure out why.....or at least any obvious why's. Sometimes we are just at a loss to why. So I made sure we bolused for her breakfast, and checked her pump. I forgot to check her site and just thought she ate more or something. I was determined to get her back in range, because today was her dance performance. We had a few hours to get it back in range and also get her ready for dance. I had alot on my mind to make sure we got her ready on time, and now added getting her blood sugar levels down, without getting her too low. Didn't want her not feeling well before dancing.
Tested her a few hours after lunch, and she was 350, so her blood sugar went up and not down, it shoulda clued me into something, but I decided to just give her a correction bolus-- no food, and see what she was in an hour or so. Still not thinking to check her site. It still had a day left and was supposed to be changed Sunday night. She tested once more before going into the auditorium for her dance and she was 326-- pretty much no change after a correction. So now it's within 1/2 hour before she goes on stage and I took her into a restroom and finally it hit me hard to check her site....why didn't I think to do this 4 hours ago? and of course it was slightly red, and looked to be pulling out. I knew the insulin was not getting through by the way it looked. So with so little time before she was to dance, we disconnected her pump, ( just left the site in) and I gave her an injection before I sent her off to dance. It's always "a little " stressful to get into these situations at the worst times. Why now!!
So we winged it and she danced awesome and seemed to be feeling ok.
Afterwards we went out to eat at Buffalo Wild Wings, and I had her test as soon as we got there, and she was down to 76. Not terrible, but a little low, we like her to be about 80 at the lowest, ideal is 90-120. So I let her eat a "snack" as we waited a bit to be seated. I always carry fruit snacks or candy for lows. I musta mis judged the insulin injection vs. exercise (dance), it's a fine line sometimes and when I couldn't use the pump to get specific, it's hard with an injection to give her what she actually needs, minus the exercise.
So she got a little low, but it was good to get her out of the 300's too. Just seemed like I couldn't win on this day.
She still was feeling good ( except starving) and we ate supper, finally, which meant another injection for food. I didnt' want to over do the insulin again, but I did give her a snack, which should have brought her up some, so I figured her meal as best as I could, knowing I still wasn't gonna be as precise as her pump woulda been.
We get home, knowing we had to do a site change. She took her old site off like she has done many times before, as I was preparing her pump and next site stuff.
All of a sudden she yells that she needs a paper towel that it's really bleeding. ( where she took her old site off). She can't really see well since her sites go on her butt, but she could see a stream of blood and got nervous. I came with a kleenex, and held pressure on it, but by the time I could get there blood was running down to her pants and on the chair she was by and on her hands.
This has never happened.
We've had 2 sites stop working because of a small amount of blood blocking the cannula, we have a few sites come out before their time, but never has she pulled off a site to have blood come pouring out.
As I held a kleenex on her butt, Hannah was getting increasinly worried that it wouldn't stop bleeding...ever. Seriously, in her 9 year old mind, she thought there was a possibility that it wouldn't stop bleeding. I guess it could happen, but I know blood clots and in time it would stop. As I took the kleenex off to check after a few short minutes of pressure, the blood literally poured out more.
I thought what is happening did she cut herself, it seemed that way anyway.
I suggested she go lay down, so got her to the futon, reluctingly she laid down, and I told her to trust me. I assured her I wouldn't let off the pressure, and I needed her to calm down to decrease her blood pressure, and maybe that would make it stop bleeding. She trusted me and took some deep breaths and tried to be calm, yet kept asking me, what if it doesn't stop? I kept saying, it will stop.
I think at this time we both took a deep breath.
I checked again under the kleenex, and it looked to be stopping or slowing down. I think having her lay down helped too. She had a big bruise from this ordeal, but we got the bleeding to stop. Now we still had to put in a new site, so we numbed up the other side of her butt, and she relaxed more. I had her test once more, as it was now after 8pm, and she was back up to 311. So either she ate too much at BWW, which she did eat alot, or I didn't give her enough insulin-- thinking I didn't want to overdo it again.
Once again diabetes won and I felt defeated.
We did get the new site in and pump reattached after it being off for a record of 5 1/2 hours. That will throw her basil off some being that she got no insulin for that time, except my 2 injections. She did havea bedtime snack and we bolused for that, and I then had to do the midnight check. Got up at 12:30am and checked and she was still 303. Good grief. She got a correction-- and that is a task in itself checking her on the top bunk of her bed, and then trying to dig out her pump while she is half asleep, and trying to stay focused myself as to what buttons to push.
I tested her blood sugar again at 3:30am--- and FINALLY I beat this -- 123-- what a glorious number. Happy Birthday to me!! and back to bed.
She was 113 this morning and was much better all day today. The kids and I went to a movie this afternoon and I even figured out the movie theatre popcorn pretty good this time too. She ate alot !!!
So anyway we are back on track again, but these things always, ALWAYS come at the wrong times. I am thankful for all the good days too. We get many of those as well.
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