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Letters from our Friends from 2004
This page has letters from all the wonderful people who have visited this site. Thank you everyone for all the great letters. Many bring tears to my eyes as I read them. I had to share them with everyone.
A letter from Doll Petrelli 1-10-04
Kimberly,
Hi. Oh how I wish you and your site was around when we found out about our daughter.She was a month from turning 10 when we found out. Like your daughter my daughter had also had the flu and then came down with diabetes. She's getting ready to turn 21 in April of this year, she's now a mother of 2 baby boys. It's been tough on her. She's always had a problem with high levels but A1C always ran below 8.0. while she was carrying my grandbabies they put her on the pump and out of all the years she didn't run high anymore. She's in wonderful control. This is the bad part. She has told me that as of February 2004, Medicaid will drop her. and she will have to go back to using shots for she's been unable to get insurance and on top of that she told me that starting next week she's out of supplies for the pump. I'm unable to help her money wise so I did the only they I could do and that was try to find someone to please help my baby girl. So if there is anyway you could point me in the right direction on how to help my little girl I would be so thankful I worry about her everyday as I'm sure you do your's. I also worry about her not being around for those sweet little boys of hers. My friends tell me I worry too much but as a mother that had to watch her little girl face this at a young age and to have that sweet little face look up at you with tears in there eyes at the age of 10 and tell you that don't want to die, well you know..I know I don't have to say anymore for reading your pages I could tell that the same pain I went thru and still go thru you did to so I know you understand what it's like. So if you could help my daughter out, I would be so thankful and now that I know about your site if I come across supplies that you could use to help others out there, I would be so happy to send them to you so please attach some info on that also. Once again I hope you can help if not I understand. Thank you and May God bless you and yours and bless your site.
Thank-you,
Doll Petrelli
A letter from Angie 1-12-04
I just wanted to tell you that your story really touched my heart and I give you alot of credit for having to do what you need to for that girl. I've learned alot about the effects of Carbohydrates in the last couple of months, I've started the Atkins Diet and now that I know what happens when you have too many, it's just not worth it. Life is already too short, why try and shorten it more. I would like to be updated on Ashley's progress, so when I have kids and this every happens I will know what to do.
I also wanted to tell you that your website is awesome, please keep up the good work.
God Bless You,
Angie
A letter from Denise Owens 1-20-04
Hello,
My daughter's story is just like Ashleys. It's so amazing. I meet so many families with kids with diabetes and it seems that my story with my daughter is rare. Most people caught their child's diabetes before DKA. Did you feel guilty for a long time? I still have pangs of guilt - 3 years later. She was 5 years old. I was going through a terrible divorce at the time and she had been sick. I came back from court fighting for custody against my husband who was a family law attorney to find Haley had just drank lemonade and said she was burning up. Her eyes began to roll back. Her pediatrician told me I couldn't come because of my past due balance. I called the ER and they said I could go there. She did the ambulance ride to another hospital with a PICU. They did the digging for IV insertion except they called it "tunneling". I did pass out from the shock. My knees buckled and I went down. She is now very healthy and 8 years old and pumping. Our last A1C was 5.9. I'm still a full time single Mommy and I work in the field of diagnostics for kids with diabetes. I still have this guilt thing about not acting on her strange wetting the bed stuff. I kept thinking it was because we had just left my husband 3 weeks earlier and that it was an emotional reaction. I can never forget that day. I felt that part of me broke inside and can never be okay again.
Denise Owens
Mom to twins, Haley & Savannah, 8, Haley dxd 12/22/00
A letter from Amanda Jefferson 1-21-04
Hi! My name is Amanda Jefferson and I became diabetic in May of 1997.....my story is similar to your daughters except I never went into a coma. My blood sugar got into the high 900s. When I first became diabetic (I was 14 ) I took really good care of myself. I became a pump dependent diabetic in 1999.....I continued to take really good care of myself until about my junior year of high school. My parents and everyone I knew were always talking to me about how I needed to get my diabetes back under control but I never listened to them. I knew what could happen to me, but I guess it just didn't phase me! I am now 19 and married and until a few days ago I still did not take care of myself like I should have. About a year ago my pump started giving me rashes like you said happened to your daughter, I am back on needles and really want to be back on my pump. I am so glad that I saw this site and that I read that about the pump! When I go back to my diabetic doctor I am going to mention those things to him and maybe I will not break out with those products. I know that I have already damaged my body and that things are going to take affect in the long run, but I just wanted to let you know how this site has helped me want to continue to get them under control! I hope that your daughter continues to live a Happy and Healthy life!
Sincerely,
Amanda Jefferson
A letter from Karen Stroop 1-23-04
Kimberly,
What a wonderful web page. I came upon it by accident. I am 50 years old and was diagnosed with Type II Diabetes. Your page has provided me with more information that is easy to understand and use than anything I have been given to read or anyone that I have talked to.
I'm glad Ashley is doing wonderful and just want to thank you for sharing!
Karen Stroop
A letter from Machelle Tatsch of dripping Springs Tx. 1-26-04
Thank you so much for you site. My daughter Demi is 10 yrs old and was
diagnosed at age 6.She is on the pump now and is doing great, but your
story really hit home we had a similar story. Demi went to Childrens
hospital in an ambulance from a different hospital with a blood sugar of
1254. completly amazing. I would like to thank you for all the time and
effort that you and your family are putting forward to help others and if
there is ever anything I could do to help you please let me know. And God
bless you!!!
Machelle Tatsch
dripping Springs Tx.
A letter from Annabel M. Morff 1-28-04
Kimberly...
I came upon your website tonight and wanted to tell you how wonderful it is. I read Ashley's story and commend you and send best wishes for Ashley with more than the cliché 'my whole heart' could say.
At two-and-a-half I was diagnosed with diabetes and have a brave, loving Mum like you. I had it easy in comparison to your daughter, though. My sister was in school, training to be a nurse, and it was caught early.
I am twenty-six now, on the pump too, and went to diabetic summer camp when I was younger. I would tell you my story, but I think you already know all the most important parts. ~smile~ Thank you for setting up such a fabulously informative site for diabetics.
Warmest wishes,
~Annabel M. Morff
A letter from Dana Green 2-03-04
Thanks for all the work you put into making my carb counting easier!
Thank You,
Dana Green
A letter from Linda Johnson 2-04-04
Dear Kimberly,
I am 52 years old and have three siblings. Two of them were already insulin-dependent diabetics when I was growing up and one was diagnosed after I married and left home. Your story was very frustrating but not surprising to me because my parents didn't realize that my youngest brother was diabetic even though they had two older children with the condition. He had a sore throat and kept eating ICE CREAM -- the worst thing he could do of course. By the time they tested him (back in the days of urine tests done in test tubes) his sugar was sky high (1800). Fortunately they caught it before he lapsed into a coma. They had already been through that with my older brother. Stephen was in a coma for 3 days in early 1960. The doctor didn't expect him to live but he was a very experienced older pediatrician and had seen someone successfully brought out of a coma before. He was a fabulous doctor and treated my siblings until he retired but just like you my parents had to do most of the regulating of insulin themselves. They got better at it than the doctors. When my oldest brother was in his teens he was also diagnosed with Addison's Disease which I personally believe is also an immune system problem. It wrecks havoc with his diabetes and it was diagnosed when he began having insulin shock-type symptoms that didn't respond to glucagon injections. All three of my siblings had the flu before the crisis that led to their diagnosis. I now have 5 children between 28 and 14 and a healthy respect for the flu but none of my kids are diabetic. Nevertheless we own a blood sugar monitor and I know how to use it.
Guilt is the worst enemy of a parent with a diabetic child. You did the best you could with the information you had so give yourself a break. Good luck to you in the future and tell Ashley congratulations on her insulin infusion pump. It's a compliment to her sense of responsibility that she's been allowed to have one. My sister received one of the first ones because she was a medical professional and she loves hers. She calls it her "Sweetie". She works part time for one of the companies doing patient education in Sacramento, CA.
Linda Johnson
Merced, CA
A letter from Shari Locklear 2-12-04
Kimberly,
Wow, what a wonderful site!! It had me in tears. After reading your
stories, I now understand what my parents went through. I was also
diagnosed with diabetes in 1983 when I was only 7 yrs. old. I remember
my parents also got a lot of conflicting instructions from doctors,
nurses, and diabetes educators. Your story has brought back so many
memories, both good and bad. I was hospitalized a lot when I was
younger with DKA. Luckily, I still do not have any complications. I am
now 28 and have 2 beautiful daughters, 7 and 2 years old . I was put on
the insulin pump during my second pregnancy and had all intentions of
getting off of it after she was born. Boy was that a bad idea!! After
about one week of taking shots again, I felt horrible. I never knew
that I felt that bad. I will never get off of this pump again.
Thank you for sharing your stories with everyone. Even though I am
older now, I really enjoyed reading them. It's nice to read stories
that are very closely related to your own.
Sincerely,
Shari Locklear
North Augusta, SC
A letter from Lori 2-12-04
Hello Kimberly,
My daughter, Allysen, was diagnosed with diabetes at the young age of 18
months. She is now 9 and has been pumping insulin since 8/2001. I was doing
some research for another local Mom and came across your site. There are so
many people that do not know the signs and symtoms of diabetes and I think
that your site is very informative. It is also amazing to see how many kids
that are the same age as ours that have it. I have found it to be more in
girls than in boys.....interesting.
Anyway, I thought I would post some information about a support group I am
interested in starting in my area. I live in lower Michigan. Could you post
this to your site so that anyone that is interested can reply to my email
address: LoriDBaxter@hotmail.com Please indicate support group as the
subject so that I do not think I am getting more spam. :)
Much appreciation,
~Lori :)
A letter from tabbyshome 2-15-04
Thank you very much for providing the nutritional information contained on your web site. I truly appreciate your help.
A letter from Crystal Saylor 2-20-04
Hello Kim and Ashley,
First I would like to say Ashley you are a beautiful young woman. Also Kim I would like to commend you for your bravery when it came down to what you had to do for your daughter. Especially with the scare you had when she went into the coma, and overcoming your fear of needles to help her. My husband is afraid of needles also, as a matter of fact I was trying to tell him about Ashleys story and when I got to the part about IV's and how they did hers he as all scrunched up in the kitchen chair by the computer lol.
Both of my parents are Type 2 and so far control it I guess but they need to do better. I am thinking about going on Atkins or just low carb so my mom will do it and it will be better for the both of them. Could you send me some easy food ideas if you arent too busy? I have 2 boys ages 3 1/2 and 2 and I need to lose weight anyway so going low carb would be good. Also I am concerned if I dont start watching what I eat now at age 29 I will be like my parents in not too long. I was concerned about my 2 year old for a while because he drinks and drinks and pees and pees but hes 2 you know. Hes active and I have learned he CAN go without something to drink and be ok hes just a hoglet for milk and water and juice. Anyway I didnt mean to babble on I just wanted to say your story really touched me and I will think of y'all in my prayers. I am so glad Ashley is doing fine and that you lost some weight and are doing good also. Not bad to lose weight while helping your daughter..You go girl....Thanks for listening......
Crystal Saylor ....Crystal City Missouri
A letter from Jenny Lewis 2-27-04
Hi, my name is Jenny Lewis and I was browsing online and found your website.
I am a 21 year old single mother that delevoped diabetes during pregnancy
and I now have type II diabetes. While I was pregnant I had medicaid and
they supplied my test strips and lancets. However six weeks after I had my
son I lost my medical card and can no long get my supplies. Since I am a
single mother I can not afford to buy these as you know they are really
expensive. I have tried to get help everywhere around my community but
haven't had any success. If you can help me in any way I would really
appreciate it and if not I do understand. I'm suppose to check my blood
sugar 12 times a day (when i wake up, before meals, one hour after meals,
two hours after meals and so on...) The machine that I have is One Touch
Ultra. I have about 15 test strips at the moment as I have been trying to
conserve them because I don't know when I will get anymore test strips. If
you need anymore information please feel free to contact me. Again I
appreciate your time and I understand if there aren't enough supplies to
help at the time...but I thought it would be worth a try....and I also
wanted to tell you how wonderful I think it is that you have pulled this
website together to help others in situations like myself.
Thanks,
Jenny Lewis
A letter from Nicole 3-10-04
Hello, My name is Nicole I am 28 years old and I have had diabetes for 9 years now. I found out right before my 19th birthday. The lucky thing for me was that I only had a urinary tract infection and they diagnosed me there. It wasn't until later that I found out what a diabetic coma was and the complications this disease could bring. In 1999 I was hospitalized 3 times and the 2nd time was almost the last time anything might have ever happened to me again.
After being in denile a few years, I finally realized how important it was that I take care of myself. (I would take my insulin maybe once a week if I felt like it, was in major denial) The good news is, over the years of learning about this disease and back and forth to doctors, I am married and have two beautiful healthy children .(although my son was the harder of the two once he arrived)
When I was pregnant the first time the doctors wanted to put me on a pump and I refused, I didn't want proof that something could take over my life. Then the second time, I knew what had to be done and got the pump. That was the best thing I ever did for my diabetes and my unborn child. There was no excuse for my insulin being at home and not with me. That brings me to the reason I am writing today, does Ashley use the pump? It is a costly machine and thank goodness for medical that can cover majority of the cost, but for anybody that can afford it, I highly recommend it.
I must say though, I feel for these children that have to go through something this drastic at such a young age and I admire their spirit for that. Also parents, diabetic or not please do not feed your children anything with High Fructose Syrup in it. My kids are banned from that. It's hard though making them understand. I occasionally will take my kids to McDonald's for chicken mcnuggets, but my daughter knows she can't have any sauce with that. (I try to feed them decently, but I also don't deprive them of certain foods in life because of my illness. But thanks for listening and if you'd ever like to email me please do. Any body please do. Thanks, Nicole
A letter from Robin Baird 3-14-04
Hi, I'm in nursing school and had to do a teaching
project where we pick a subject and do patient
teaching to a fictional patient. I chose diabetic
diet teaching. I looked up many websites online &
found so many of them very confusing & too complicated
to expect a patient to absorb. When I found Ashley's
site I was so impressed b/c it explains things in a
way that a non medical person can understand. I even
gave the website to my clinical professor & she loved
it. Patients need nurses & doctors to explain things
in common language, not medical jargon. They also
need to take the time to make sure the pt's understand
& not assume that they grasped all the info. Anyway, I
just wanted to say thank you for helping me do well on
my teaching project. Robin Baird
A letter from Scott Greenfield 3-16-04
Hi Kimberly,
I am a frequent business traveler and am a type 2 diabetic. Therefore I have
to eat out a lot, which is a challenge to do so correctly. Your website is
wonderful. It gives me the tools I need to find the resources that will help
me make the right decisions.
If you are looking to add a cool feature to your website, I might have one
suggestion. As diabetics, we find that some of the food that fits within our
diabetic limitations is wonderful, while other restaurants seem to miss the
boat with their food selections. It would be cool to have review section, or
web board or something where we could share thoughts on how good or awful
the new healthy sandwich is arby's or whatever.
Just my thoughts.
Thanks again for a wonderful website. I have it bookmarked and will refer to
it often in the future.
Scott
Greenfield, IN
A letter from Janice Julian 3-18-04
I just found you and Ashley and I love your site!!! I am a newly
diagnosed type II diabetic in my senior years. The education I have
received has been excellent but very confusing and overwhelming. You
have made the information much easier and simpler to understand. I will
continue to visit. You asked for suggestions and I wonder if you could
(if you hear of any any information on it) give any news of diabetics
with bipolar disorder (which I have also). Keep up the wonderful
work!!!!!
Janice Julian
A letter from Chris Grout 3-19-04
Hi Kim,
About a month ago, I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. For a 29-year old that just got married four months before, it was not the news I was hoping, or ever expecting, to hear. I have been gathering a ton of information since getting the bad news, and I wanted to pass on my appreciation for your website, particularly your sections on nutritional information for ethnic food and restaurants. I am determined to take a page out of the books of a number of people who have posted their stories on your site and be the master of my disease instead of vice versa. The information you have posted on your site is an excellent resource for me to help do just that. Thanks!
The Canadian Ministry of Health has a very useful and comprehensive list of the nutritional information for a lot of common food, but not so much on ethnic food (chinese, Indian, etc.). In case you have never visited the Canadian Ministry of Health website, here is a link to the document. I've begun searching the US FDA website for an American version (foods available in Canada are very similar), but have not found a document quite as comprehensive as this one. I hope you find it useful. If you know of a US document like the one I am looking for, perhaps you could let me know where I might find it.
Canadian Ministry of Health List of common food
Again, thanks for your help!
Sincerely,
Chris Grout
A letter from Jean Huckaby 3-23-04
I want you to know how much I hav enjoyed your site. I am a type 2 diabetic and am on Weight Watchers to help slim down some and possibly avoid type I and the insulin that looms in my future. Your restaurant pages are invaluable. Thank You . . I can only imagine how much dedication and hard work you have put into these pages. I look forward to having more time to visit every page. I am going to forward your site to our dieticians and patient educators. Again, bless you and keep up the good work. PS . . Give Ashley a big hug for me.
Jean Huckaby, SPIRIT Chairman
A letter from Kanina 3-25-04
Hi,
I'm a 32 year old Minimed Pump user that lives in London and I just wanted to tell you that I think you have done a great job with your web site.
I've been on my pump for 2 years and it has made all the difference to my life. I couldn't agree with you more when you say that pumps should not be considered a luxury.
I am really pleased to read that Ashley is doing so well and I applaud you for putting together such a great site that has the potential to help many others.
Keep up the great work.
Kind regards
Kanina
A letter from Tina Kendall 3-28-04
Hi Kimberly,
I just wanted to thank you for your website. I recently started a new diet and trying to find information on restaurants is very difficult. I know it must of taken a lot of time and hard work to do what you have done. I just wanted to let you know that I really enjoyed it.
Thank you for being so helpful.
Tina Kendall
A letter from Teresa 4-03-04
I want to take a few monents to thank you for the information you have researched about nutritional info and restaurants. I am on the Weight Watcher's diet and found your info very helpful. I hope Ashley does well and achieves all her hopes and dreams. Thanks again. Teresa
A letter from Andrea Heitz 6-17-04
Kimberly,
Thanks so much for the work you've put into the website. I read Ashley's whole story and cried. I became a diabetic when I was 10. My circumstances were similar to Ashley's, but nowhere near as severe. My sugar was 700 at its highest, and I never went completely comatose. I'm 37 now, and have been on the pump for 7 years. Like Ashley, I love my pump!
Your family's and Ashley's hard work at controlling her diabetes will pay off. I'm 27 years a diabetic and completely complication-free, thanks to God, my wonderful family, and some excellent doctors and diabetes educators. (Dr. Dan, if you're reading this, I'm talking about you!)
Keep up the good work! I'll keep Ashley and your family in my prayers.
Thanks again for all the good info -- especially the recipes. YUM! -- and for being brave enough to share Ashley's story. It's inspiring. Ashley is a beautiful young woman, and she can look forward to a long and healthy life, thanks largely to you.
Andrea Heitz
Fort Worth, Texas
A letter from Meggan Diaz 6-18-04
I was just diagnosed with Borderline Type II Diabetes (very strong family history) and am on a very strict diet...one that I know you are very familiar with. I have only been on the diet for a couple of weeks and have begun to struggle when I want to eat out or get delivery or whatever...I wanted to thank you for putting this website together with the different restaurants' nutritional information...It is a goldmine of information and I feel so much freer. Thank you so, so much...
Meggan Diaz
A letter from Robin Brunner 6-20-04
Dear Kimberly and Ashley:
Hi. You don't know me, but thank you. My great - neice, Alyssa - 4 yrs., just came home from the hospital. I've been waiting for a way to help her and your web site will definitely help. She has many family members, so a great aunt gets in the way from time to time. Alyssa did not go through as much as Ashley went through. We identified the warning signs and
were able to start treatment early. We had her admitted to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia immediately and she has
spent the past 4 days there getting stabilized. This is such a earth shattering event and is really hard for me to describe.
Actually after reading your story, God Bless you all, I know you know what she went through if only a tiny portion.
So thanks for your web site and keep it going. There are many of us who need it, and we are just beginning.
Sincerely, Robin Brunner PS I'll be passing this on to the rest of our family.
A letter from Missy Johnson 6-25-04
Kimberly,
I have a story almost exactly like yours and Ashley's. This happened to my daughter at 2-1/2, just last December. My daughter also had the flu virus with an ear infection. We visited her doctors twice and were on the phone with the on-call physicians it seems every other night. It started on December 7, she went through exactly the same things (weakness, vomiting, extreme thirst and urination, etc.), lost 22% of her body weight, and finally on the evening of December 21, or more like the very early morning of December 22, we took her to the ER, even though the doctor said she could wait until morning and be seen in the office. She was also panting and began to grunt upon exhale. We were told just about the same way, and I said the same thing "but she's not diabetic". Abbey was also severely hydrated, and by some miracle, after many tries, they were able to get a vein and start her on insulin and fluids immediately.
A pediatric transport team rushed to the hospital and picked her up, to take her to our children's hospital, and I was able to ride with her. Luckily I live in an area with a large, well-known, pediatric multi-specialty clinic, Nemours Children's Clinic which is full of pediatric sub-specialized docs. Because of this, we did not have the same educational experience you had to go through. From the very beginning, Abbey received top-notch care and our millions of questions were answered consistently. Diabetic Educators were in our room every day teaching us, we were given many books and much information to read on it.
Unfortunately, Abbey's veins collapsed and they had to use her femoral vein as well, and even with experienced docs, it took about 45 minutes, it's no easy task. It took about 36 hours for Abbey to correct. I honestly don't remember what her sugar was when we went in, only that it was too high for a regular meter to measure (so, over 600). Fortunately, we were able to go home the evening of Christmas Eve.
Abbey is not on the pump now, but I'd like to get her on it at some point. The problem I'm having now is I have had to come back to work and am nervous about daycare. I want her to go to pre-school so that she can have the advantages other kids do (and her sister and brother did), but I can't imagine them being able to care for her properly. A friend of mine is taking care of her for now, until I can find a place.
If any of your readers know of a place in this area (Jacksonville, FL), please have them post it in a letter on your site.
Thanks and God Bless!
A letter from Alice E. 8-09-2004
I am a Type I diabetic and have been for 17 years. For the last 5 years I have been on an insulin pump. The most gratifying time of all though was when I discovered Animas Corp. After three years of constant "dueling" with my other supplier and to the point of a breakdown, I went online and found Animas. They have been a godsend to me restoring my faith in people - that they actually care about your illness and finding ways to help you. In tears explaining my predicament, they literally took over. When I thought I had no hope in getting another pump, they took my information and then I got a call from my insurance company asking for the dates I didn't think to include, faxed it to them, thinking - wow, they're actually working on this!!! Then I got this call from Animas telling me the approval had been granted and I would receive my pump in 2 weeks and then apologized for taking so long!!! It took them 6 weeks which I thought was a record. Dana told me normally it takes anywhere from 2 to 4 weeks. After a 1000 thank yous I hung up and told my husband I'd be getting my pump in 2 weeks then broke down and cried. Since then (I still cry) I have been on the phone with my trainer, my tech support (most of whom are "pumpers" and know what I am talking about) and customer support. I don't go into a frenzy anymore when I need to order supplies or have to worry about getting authorization - Animas does it all. I cannot say enough about them - they are on the very top of my list for caring people. If anyone would like to ask me about Animas, they can email me at aespinoza@citlink.net. I'll gladly answer any questions you might have. Alice E. (a very happy Animas pumper!)
A letter from Tracy C. McDonald 8-14-2004
Hi,
My 8 year old daughter was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes on 6/30 of this year. I just want to tell you that your site is GREAT!!!! We are still in the learning stage of everything and just completed our last of 3 classes at Texas Children's Hospital in Houston. I must tell you that I think it is wonderful that you've put together this site. My daughter loves going out to eat but we've not been going because I've been so scared that I'll over carb her. I just wanted to thank you for putting together this information. It will be of great help & I know that my daughter will be thrilled with the information. Thanks again.
Tracy C. McDonald
Friendswood, TX
A letter from Jeanne 8-16-2004
I just wanted to thank you and Ashley for the great Web site. I stumbled across your post on the ADA message board. I'm considering a pump, and I really appreciated the pictures of Ashley with her pump. I found your site to have a lot of useful information. Thanks so much.
Jeanne
A letter from Emily Adamski 8-16-2004
Hello!
I came across your website while searching for something online. I've had diabetes for 19.5 years and been pumping for 8.5 years. Just wanted to say keep up all of your hard work- your site is very informative and I hope those who do not know much about diabetes will find their way to it and become more knowledgeable! I made a diabetes webpage back when I was in high school (www.angelfire.com/id/emilyspage) but its not nearly as elaborate as yours! Hope all is going well for you and your daughter.
Sincerely,
Emily Adamski
A letter from Bob Kelley 8-17-2004
Hi Kimberly,
Your web site is impressive and obviously reflects a great deal of hard work and study.
Next month I shall be 71 years old and my primary care physician has urged me to go on the pump in an effort to avoid some of the hypoglycemic episodes I have experienced. Historically my HBA1C has been less than 6 .
I have had diabetes for twenty years and some of the medical personnel I have encountered have been unbelievable. Like the internal medicine specialist I encountered after I got off insulin by diet and exercise and when I went to him he assured me that when a secondary failure occurred he could handle the prescribing of insulin but when it happened he wouldn’t return my calls after explaining he didn’t think I needed insulin. I was fortunate enough to find a competent endocrinologist who handled the problem. The endocrinologist I found was a research physician and he was kind enough to treat me for a year but then had to ask me to find a regular practicing physician. The turkey I found wanted to put me on oral medication even though I told him it was proven by the endocrinologist that it wouldn’t work. After that I gave up on the doctors and treated myself for several years. I introduced regular insulin into my treatment and I handled it quite well keeping a normal HBA1C for years. Until now my primary care physician has essentially let me manage my diabetes and he was satisfied with my management.
His recommendation for the pump is warranted and intended for my best interest but I am back in the world of confusion and double talk and I was wondering if you had any experience in this area. Using the 1800 rule I calculated my insulin sensitivity factor as 16. The pump instructor set it at 50. I calculated the insulin to carbohydrate factor as 1:5 using the 500 rule but the instructor set it at 1:15.
Yesterday was my first day on the pump and I bottomed out at 42 mg/dl because the basal was set too high. I know the world of diabetes treatment is laden with treatment complications and I don’t expect things to go anywhere near flawless but I don’t expect to be bouncing around for months without a progressive plan to eventually reach success.
I purchased Pumping Insulin mentioned on your web site. If you could pass along any information which would help expedite getting me to my goal, I should appreciate.
Many thanks,
Bob Kelley
A letter from Wanda Gurkins 8-21-2004
I just wanted to say thank you for your wonderful website. I was just recently diagnosed as a Type 2 diabetic and have worried about what to eat when I go out with my family. You have proven to be a wealth of information. Thank you again.
Wanda Gurkins
A letter from Diane 8-29-2004
I came across your site quite by accident as I was searching for nutrition
facts for Friendly's restaurant. You see, my son is diabetic and counting
carbs too. He was diagnosed three and a half years ago at the age of
twelve. We noticed the symptons of fatigue, weight loss, frequent thirst
and urination. I took him to his regular doctor...I should add that I
already suspected diabetes. She did a simple urine test and within an hour
we were in the hospital emergency room. He was on injections of humalog and
NPH for over three years before he made the decision to go on the pump. He
has been on the Animas 1200 for about three weeks now and is finally
regulated to a degree. I just wanted to let you know that I found your site
very interesting. Diane
A letter from Andrea McQueen 9-29-2004
I just wanted to thank you for making this super helpful site. My husband is diabetic and we are constantly eating out while we travel and having to guess at the carbs. Now I just went through and printed all the nutrition guides and made my own binder to bring along with us.
Thanks Much!
Andrea McQueen
"If you can read this, thank a teacher...
and since it's in English, thank a soldier."
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Kimberly Advent Site Owner
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