My Type 1 Diabetes - Exposure To Chicken Pox

A friend asked me to look after their little boy Oliver last week as he had contracted Chicken Pox from Pre-School.  The school obviously wouldn't take him and neither would his child minder I can't think why, its not like it was obvious

Well perhaps it was.  LOL The dilemma for me was I had never had Chicken Pox or should I say that every child that came into contact with me got it as a child, but I never had any of the symptoms or spots.  My mums friends and the doctor said I was a 'Carrier' and they all talked about 'Typhoid Mary' having seen an old black and white movie about her.

The thing is, did I have the power of my convictions and would I shirk at testing the theory.  No! Well I was pretty certain I was immune, so me and Mr Spotty had a great week playing.  Amazingly Oliver wasn't driven mad by itching, and despite having a slightly raised temperature he charge about and wore me out.

His mum had gone online to check if there were such things as carriers, and promptly told me it was rubbish and that I must have had it.

My bloody sugars have been normal, and I haven't developed a temperature, so here is hoping I don't sprout in the next few weeks.  Needless to say when Oliver came round with his brother Pascal today he was a lot less spotty.

Malcolm

#Diabetes - How My Dog Warns Me Of Hypos

Picture From Harvard Medical School Literature

I have had Type 1 Diabetes for Over 35 years and currently take 6 injections of various insulins per day. despite what some people and physicians may feel is a high level of insulin use, I currently have none of the life limiting complications associated with long term diabetes.  I used to think it was luck! but as a disability support assessor and assessment centre manager for 10 years I came to realise that it was not luck, I don't need a medical degree to realise that my insurance to good health has been a solid understanding of my body, its needs and my Diabetes.  I have attended many different Diabetic Clinics in local Doctors Surgeries and hospitals, but I have never been hospitalised due to my diabetes.

Please Note:

I Have Never Suffered From Diabetes

Like Any Killer, I Give It Respect And We Co-exist

The views expressed here are my own and an aid memoire to myself in how I manage my own Type 1 Diabetes,  I do not prescribe anybody do what I do and recommend they make up their own minds and control their own Diabetes.

#Diabetes - How My Dog Warns Me Of Hypos

One of my Lurcher (cross between a Greyhound and a Saluki) rescue dogs 'Bree' is very sensitive to smell and taste and I have written about her strange bathroom habits in a previous #Diabetes #Mentor blog posting:

My Dog Bree And My Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus

Over the last few months Bree appears to have become particularly sensitive to any low blood sugars when I am in or on the bed. 

Skippy (light) And Bree (grey)Asleep On The Bed Just Before Biscuit Time 

If I start to have a low blood sugar she stands over me and prods me to get out of or off the bed.  She is extremely persistent and will even start yelping at me if I don't move.

As soon as I move she gets up on the bed and licks where I have sweated, as Diabetics often do when the blood sugar goes low. I have been trying to understand when this began to occur and I think I have cracked the case. I may have turned Bree into a Diabetic Alert Dog by accident rather than design.

Out of guilt from eating something and not giving Bree and Skippy anything, I started to give them a small biscuit, each time I had a biscuit between meals or if I had woken in the night in a cold sweat.

Therefore what has occurred is that by Behavioural Training my dogs, and particularly Bree have associated my regular biscuits times, my hypo biscuit times and my low blood sugars with a food reward. So now when it reaches my biscuit time they come to me, If I'm asleep they wake me and if during the night I start to get a low blood sugar (which they can smell the pheromones of) they wake me to get a biscuit. In the process warning me of a low blood sugar which would otherwise have left me with an awful headache or worse.

Therefore, is you have a dog and you have diabetes, let them lick the crease in your arm when you are having a low blood sugar and give them a biscuit, also reward them when you have your regular biscuits and your dogs may just become a helpful, and happy to help as Bree is.

Please check out my other Diabetes Mentor blog posts, please be aware so contain references to adult content relating to sex and diabetes.

Malcolm

aka #fixed1tDIABETESmentor

#Diabetes - My Dog Bree And My Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus

Picture From Harvard Medical School Literature

I have had Type 1 Diabetes for Over 35 years and currently take 6 injections of various insulins per day. despite what some people and physicians may feel is a high level of insulin use, I currently have none of the life limiting complications associated with long term diabetes.  I used to think it was luck! but as a disability support assessor and assessment centre manager for 10 years I came to realise that it was not luck, I don't need a medical degree to realise that my insurance to good health has been a solid understanding of my body, its needs and my Diabetes.  I have attended many different Diabetic Clinics in local Doctors Surgeries and hospitals, but I have never been hospitalised due to my diabetes.

Please Note:

I Have Never Suffered From Diabetes

Like Any Killer, I Give It Respect And We Co-exist

The views expressed here are my own and an aid memoire to myself in how I manage my own Type 1 Diabetes,  I do not prescribe anybody do what I do and recommend they make up their own minds and control their own Diabetes.

My Dog Bree And My Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus

I have two rescue dogs, the breed are called "Lurchers" and mine are a cross between 'Greyhound' and 'Saluki'.

Our first rescue dog was Bree, a trully beautiful grey with sphinx like eyes who like to cross her front legs.  

Shortly after we got Bree she gave me one hell of a scare with a very odd behaviour:

I actually considered training her some time ago and bought some urine testing sticks to detect the level of sugar in my urine, but after complaints about the efficacy of this and the video I decided not to do it. However, despite my efforts to deter her if ever I forget to close the toilet door she is there in a flash. So I think I will try and train her over the next few months.

If I can train her to distinguish between the sugar levels by using a set of different objects this could be extreme useful. Not only to me but to countless others, as diabetes test sticks and blood testing kits are expensive. 

Please check out my other Diabetes Mentor blog posts, please be aware so contain references to adult content relating to sex and diabetes.

Malcolm

aka #fixed1tDIABETESmentor

#Diabetes URGENT Diabetic Hypo Warning Lucozade Original

#Diabetes URGENT Diabetic Hypo Warning Lucozade Original

fixed1t Diabetes Mentor

I have used High Glucose Sugar Original Lucozade regularly for over 35 years to treat the early onset of Diabetic Hypo or to drink before I do any exercise of manual work.  Last week I went to purchase some more ORIGINAL LUCOZADE and discovered a new variety call Original Lucozade... but it wasn't what I new or expected had I purchased this whilst feeling hypo I'd have been in serious trouble.  I am therefore making this video as a warning.

If you are a Diabetic Type 1 or Type 2 Or You Know A Diabetic Or A Parent Or Carer Of One They Need To See This Urgently

LUCOZADE ORIGINAL Is Used To Treat Diabetic Hypos Due To Its High Glucose Sugar   If You Don't Give A Confused Hypo Diabetic

Sugar They Will COMA And May Die!

You don't need to be a Diabetes Consultant, Diabetes Specialist Nurse, have a medical degree or be a Diabetes Mentor to know that carrying Lucozade High Sugar provides a level of insurance and comfort to diabetes patients.

#fixed1tDIABETESmentor

#Diabetes Managing My Type 1 Diabetes - Things I Do

#Diabetes Managing My Type 1 Diabetes - Things I Do

Picture From Harvard Medical School Literature

I have had Type 1 Diabetes for Over 35 years and currently take 6 injections of various insulins per day. despite what some people and physicians may feel is a high level of insulin use, I currently have none of the life limiting complications associated with long term diabetes.  I used to think it was luck! but as a disability support assessor and assessment centre manager for 10 years I came to realise that it was not luck, but a solid understanding of my body, its needs and my Diabetes.

Please Note:

I Have Never Suffered From Diabetes

Like Any Killer, I Give It Respect And We Co-exist

The views expressed here are my own and an aid memoire to myself in how I manage my own Type 1 Diabetes,  I do not prescribe anybody do what I do and recommend they make up their own minds and control their own Diabetes.


I have decided to add my Diabetes Mentor blog to my fixed1t blogs account as I have neglected it for a number of years. The main reason for the neglect was that it had a different logon and google+ account which meant logging out of fixed1t on Google then logging back in again as vis-versa. Sadly for me this was like keeping a guitar in its case rather than having it on a guitar stand by your favourite chair, the effect is that after a small number of times you do nothing with it.

fixed1t tip: If you have a guitar in a guitar case you are most likely not using it (too much set up hassle) so get a cheap guitar stand and set it up where its accessible when your waiting for the kettle to boil etc and you will start using it again and love it.

I have also moved all of the my diabetes related and medical self help posts from my various fixed1t blogs into my Diabetes Mentor blog.  Why? well all of them relate to me and are therefore relating to my 36 years of living with Type 1 Insulin Dependent Diabetes.

I also plan to be more active on this Diabetes Mentor blog, in an effort to 'give back' for the 36 years of relatively good health I have had despite my diabetes and not following all medical instructions after working out myself what was best for my body and my life.

I Have Never Suffered From Diabetes

I have always worked with it and around it to manage the obstacles the condition could have applied to my lifestyle,  in this way my Diabetes it has:

Not Prevented Me From Doing Anything I Wanted To Do

Please be aware there is some adult content in this blog.

I hope you find it useful, feel free to ask questions about diabetes and I will try and give you an honest answer as to how I deal with such situations.

#Diabetic Hypo Treatment Urgent Warning - Lucozade High Energy

#Diabetic Hypo Treatment Urgent Warning - Lucozade High Energy

I have had Type 1 Diabetes for Over 35 years and currently take 6 injections of insulins per day and currently have none of the major complications associated with it.

I Do Not Suffer From Diabetes

But Like Any Killer I Treat It With Respect

The views expressed here are my own and an aid memoire to myself in how I manage my own Type 1 Diabetes,  I do not prescribe anybody do what I do and recommend they make up their own minds and control their own Diabetes.

This video is an Urgent Hypo Treatment Warning to Diabetics and carers 

I am doing this video to make people aware that all the Lucozade Glucose / Carbohydrate drinks are no longer the same.

The New Lucozade flavours no longer contain the High Glucose levels of the Original Lucozade and are therefore ineffective at treating Diabetic Hypo's where a small glass of the original orange coloured clear Lucozade, was enough to alleviate the Hypo Symptoms with 5 - 15 minutes.

Also, these low energy Lucozade drinks are ineffective in stacking carbohydrates prior to diabetics undertaking heavy work, a technique I have always used before exercise, sex or in the event of illness.

Please read each bottle carefully before use.



#fixed1tDIABETESmentor

#Ganglion #Cysts - How I Aspirate My Painful Cysts To Regain Hand Function

#Ganglion #Cysts - How I Aspirate My Painful Cysts To Regain Hand Function

I got another painful Ganglion Cyst on my index finger knuckle, these are so painful when knocked that I've know people give up type and doing things due to the pain and lack of mobility in their hands.  Sod That I like doing things with my hands.   I had been to the GP before with one of these, it took me a while to get an appointment, he said that it may be removed by squeezing it, with the caveat "how are you with pain" it did ****** hurt. He then said to come back and he would aspirate it.

I finger prick my fingers many times a day to test my blood glucose, aspirating blood from the veins,  so I decided to use my finger pricker on it, and it worked. As the knuckle was bruised I wasn't sure if finger pricker went too deep, so the next time I got one I decided to use the Lancet on its own, with great effect.

I have to say  "Don't try this at home" to cover myself.  I do this whenever I get one of these.  Being a Type 1 Diabetic having had the condition for around 36 years, I seem prone to these minor problems.

Despite taking insulin for 36 years I currently have none of the usual complications and have led a very active life and sometimes bonkers active life.  I have never been hospitalised for my diabetes and in 35 years never had a hypo that I couldn't treat myself, using common sense.

#fixed1tDIABETESmentor

#Dyshidrosis #Dermatitis Month 2 Update - How I Prevent It

#Dyshidrosis #Dermatitis Month 2 Update - How I Prevent It 

I have been asked on Google+ if Acrylic gloves are okay, and these are the type of gloves I wear the most.  I like the One Size Fits All, Non Slip cotton and or acrylic gloves.

I tend to buy them in bulk from cheap stores when I find them, or from eBay or Amazon if I can't.  Here are some links.

Click Here To Search From Them On eBay

Or on Amazon

Month 2 - And the hands are still clear of Dyshidrosis and Hand Dermatitis just by

wearing driving gloves, I hope this helps you if so please come back and leave a message.


Thanks #fixed1tDIABETESmentor

#Dyshidrosis #Dermatitis How I Prevent This Painful And Unsightly Condition

#Dyshidrosis #Dermatitis How I Prevent This Painful And Unsightly Condition

As spring approaches, now is a good time to start looking for and wearing the cotton or acrylic gloves before the irritants start affecting my hands.  Had a warm and sunny trip back from Cornwall, and I'm glad I had some of the non slip acrylic gloves with me, so no itchy swelling hands, thankfully.

In my case this simple prevention is as good as a cure, as long as I remember to have the gloves in the car and my pockets.

I have been asked on Google+ if Acrylic gloves are okay, and these are the type of gloves I wear the most.  I like the One Size Fits All, Non Slip cotton and or acrylic gloves.

I tend to buy them in bulk from cheap stores when I find them, or from eBay or Amazon if I can't.  Here are some links.

Click Here To Search From Them On eBay

Or on Amazon

I hope this helps you as much as it helps me.

Regards fixed1t

#Diabetes #Urine #Testing - Can I Train My Dog To Indicate My Urine Sugar Levels?

#Diabetes #Urine #Testing - Can I Train My Dog To Indicate My Urine Sugar Levels?

My new dog likes to sneak up on me in the bathroom for a sniff of my diabetic urine, but could I turn this into a medical test with appropriate training?

Over the next few weeks and months I will collect samples and begin training her, I will do update videos of the progress.

#fixed1tresearch

#Diabetes and #Mental #Health - Mental Health Clustering Tool

#Diabetes and #Mental #Health - Mental Health Clustering Tool

The UK NHS moved to internal payment by results in 2011, and if your a diabetic with mental health difficulties, the way you are dealt with and which team you are assigned will be dependent on your diagnosis and more importantly which cluster group you fall into.

It can be useful to know, and work out, which cluster group you fit into and this is usually done as part of your Personal Care Plan but is difficult to follow.

You can obtain a pdf of the governments tool by clicking on the link below:

Mental Health Clustering Tool (MHCT) version 3.0 (2013)

or there is an Apple iPad and iPhone App available at the link below"

MHCT - Mental Health Clustering Tool - Carlos Gonzalez

If your a student nurse or a nurse doing regular clustering you may also find this helpful.

Malcolm

#Diabetes - #Norovirus #Attack Day 2 08:37 30th December 2013

#Diabetes - #Norovirus #Attack Day 2 08:37 30th December 2013 

blood sugar 13.2 nausea subsiding and decided to starve for another day as my body is now breaking down fat and therefore could go hyper causing an escalating increase in sugar and dangerous ketosis ( breaking down fat) I therefore took 8 units of Levemir and 4 units of Humalog drank half a glass of fluid and went back to sleep setting alarm for 11:30. Planning going well and well controlled. alarm set for 3 pm and sleep

#Diabetes - #Norovirus #Attack 30th December 2013 05:36

#Diabetes - #Norovirus #Attack  30th December 2013 05:36

blood test 15 mmol, decided I need to increase the Humalog to 6 units to bring it down to 12 -13 could hold back on the nausea and was sick luckily the fluid I'd taken has dissolved the pills so job done, I then drank some more fluid as the thing to avoid besides hypo is dehydration. I then checked the alarm was 08:15 before going to sleep.

My Diabetes - 30th December 2013 02:30

Blood Test 12.3 feeling aweful lots of hot  flushes trying not to be sick for a few more hours took 4 units of Humalog and set the alarm for 05:30 took 2 more paracetamol, really pleased I'm maintaining the 12 -13, most important thing is to avoid a severe hypo and a stay in hospital.

My Diabetes - Norovirus 29th December 23:40

Knowing that i needed to take my usual collection of Pills and could risk being sick I gave into the nausea and vomited soon after waking, I the  tested my blood after washing my hands and before sterilising  them with alcohol.  My blood sugar was 12.3 and I took all my pills with a little milk along with stugeron hoping it would prevent me throwing up for the next 4 hours or so.

I then took another 4 units of Humalog and 8 units of  Levimir, then I set the alarm clock for 02:30 and went to sleep.

My Diabetes - Norovirus 29th December 2013 21:00

Just after 21:00 I tested my blood sugar after vomiting again, thankfully it had now come up to 13 mili mols which from the past i know is a good level to allow me to control it in 3 hour blocks with just short acting insulin with a risk of serious hypo ( for me),  after testing my blood I took 4 units of Humalog and no carbohydrates.  I then took two paracetamol for the pounding headaches and half a glass of squash and set the alarm.  For 23:30.

My Diabetes - Attack of Norovirus day 1

I tried really hard to avoid Norovirus and as I haven't been out much recently I thought I'd missed it.  Then went to pub a few days ago and yesterday afternoon I realised my sugars were going low so kept topping up with carbos all very weird.  Them 16:00 I had a lie down and some more lucozade. Unfortunately  things just got worse.  At 18:30 29th December 2014 I recognised the nausea and luckily by 18:45 I was being sick.  Now you may think the word luckily is a strange thing to say, but 15 mins later I'd have taken 20 units of Humalog and sickness after that would have been a major problem as I discovered some years ago, unlike the films insulin and no ability to keep anything down is a major problem.

After being sick, it was apparent from the nausea that this wasn't going to be a one off as the nausea came in waves.

I tested my blood and it was 4.4 despite all the extra carbos all day.

So I took 10 grams of carbos and no insulin and went to bed setting the alarm for 2hours
and taking a large glass of water with a little salt in it, blood testing meter and a bottle of lucozade.

Submitting diabetesmentor blogger blog to Bing for the search engine to find it

Hi,

I've just finished a video on how I submitted this blog to Bing so it would appear in the Bing web searches, hopefully it will make it easier to do things.  

picture of the binf webmaster page showing diabetesmentor blog

So if your involved with a good cause and want to ask any questions on setting up your own blog or that of a good cause pages, including ad-sense advertising please feel free to ask. The video is on my fixed1t youtube site.

Malcolm Dixon's fixed1t Bing submission video

Still no comments on any of my blog entries :-(

Regards Malcolm (aka fixed1t)

My Diabetes - How I Became Interested in the Psychology And Physiology of My Hypos part 2

Long before Diabetic Dogs became available, I had a discussion with one of my specialist doctors and nurses about smelling the hypo before it happened and therefore being an early warning system. They look sympathetically at me with that 'well if you think thats true thats fine'.
I was still a student and we were studying the so called 'mystic' branch of psychology called Phenomenological Psychology.  It was joked about being 'mystic' because is a branch of psychology not based on external experiments (how I remember it) but on monitoring internal processes. i.e. how do I feel about this.

My Diabetes - How I Became Interested in the Psychology And Physiology of My Hypos part 1

As a 12 year old, we had an interesting Religious Instruction teacher, who covered not only the biblical teachings, but if we were all attentive and behaved he'd spend some at the end of lessons on what we referred to as weird stuff.  Some Old Testament stories of Ezekiel and his description of the 4 propeller 'Lancaster Bomber' and other weird stories from the popular Astronauts from space guru Enrich Von Daniken. He also told us about dowsing and other old mystic type stuff and we'd bring and bend metal coat hangers and search for hidden copper coins in one of the 32 desks to learn how to dowse.  


He also told us about prophets and indian fakirs and ancient and modern mystics and yogi's. He also had a great old book on meditation and showed us pictures of a yogic masters sitting with his legs crossed balancing on their hands, controlling pain and various bodily functions and explain he warned that these took years to perfect, so don't try them at home.

After I discovered I was very good at finding copper coins in desks, a friend and I went to the library for books on yoga.  After some practise I learned to be able to slow my breathing and heart rate and being a thin child I could easily do the half and full lotus.  I discussed with friends how great it would be if you could learn to control things our bodies body and set about doing it, then some years later I discovered it was a new pseudo science called Bio Feedback.

Years on from this, I found a number of  articles in a number of hobby electronics magazines for Bio-Feedback machines and Galvanic Skin Response meters, so I built a couple.  Using the machine I quickly discovered that I actually could do what I thought I had done as a child, slow my heart and respiration, relax very quickly and deeply and the electronic gismos confirmed I was indeed popping in and out of relaxation at the drop of a hat.

So when I became diabetic whilst studying Behavioural Sciences degree, I knew physiological things were indeed happening to me and the effects on my body and from the psychological perspective also my mind. So I decided to become my very own lab rat. I also discovered there was a branch of Psychology that attempted to gain great insights not by doing experiments but by internal personal observation.  It had fallen into disrepute by being a sort of  'mystic' branch of psychology called Phenomenological Psychology.  

It was shunned about being 'mystic' because is a branch of psychology not based on external experiments (how I remember it) but on monitoring internal processes. i.e. how do I feel about this.  Now I had machine that could review my physiology and feelings, tastes, smells and behaviours I could comment on, so I set about using what tools and observations I could make to understand how my hypos affected me and how to prevent them from overwhelming me and rendering me unconscious.

And what an interesting journey it has been.

TBC