Call for Submissions!!
Sometimes, diabetic emergencies require immediate medical assistance. We are interested in talking to you if you have ever had to call an EMT/ambulance as a result of a diabetic emergency.
Whether the emergency lead to a trip to the ER, or was able to be treated on the spot, we would love to hear your story. We are specifically looking for people in the NYC area to talk to us the week of 12/4.
Click here for more details!
Comments
- At 02:12 PM on Sun, Dec 10, 2006 Patricia Cravener wrote:
Well in late 1999 I became very ill and an EMT ambulance was called and I was then taken to the ER at Reading Hospital with my Blood Sugar of 500. Needless to say I was very happy to have them take me there and grateful for all the emergency care I received while in the ambulance as well as the ER!!!
Yours Patricia Cravener Reading PA
Puttenqueen - At 09:42 PM on Sat, Dec 9, 2006 Marilyn Snow wrote:
I have been diabetic for 44 years. During that time, I have (or more ofter, someone else) had to call an ambulance a lot of times. Many times the paramedics can give me a glucose treatment and I come right out of it. But often, like during school (I was a teacher) I had to be transported to the emergency room. I've had a stroke. Therefore I have quit teeaching due to my disablity. But I am still hopeful that I can do some good things. I babysit for my grandchildren all the time!You can do it too!
- At 06:38 PM on Sat, Dec 9, 2006 Toni Michael wrote:
While I don't live in the NYC area, and the date of your show is past, I am sending you my two experiences of having an ambulance called when I went into a low blood-sugar meltdown. Both times I was at work.
The first time, I was working at a temporary job as a word processor. The area where I was working was an open room subdivided by rows of work stations. An open aisle went down the middle, with short rows on both sides.
I don't remember the details, but I remember lying flat on my back in the aisle. And I remember paramedics coming in to care for me. They wanted to take me to a hospital, but I didn't want to go. I knew that all I needed was some fruit juice. I persuaded them to leave me there. I don't remember what they gave me, or if they gave me anything.
The second time, I was working in a large open room with three other people. Our desks were arranged so that we could all look directly at each other and talk to each other. One afternoon, two of the other people had left, and my manager and I were still at our desks, diagonally opposite each other. Again, I'm hazy on the details, but I again remember lying on the floor when the paramedics came in. When I first saw them I was surprised and embarassed, because I didn't think I needed them. As they walked up, I swore.
They wanted to take me to a hospital, and I didn't want to go. However, one of them examined my heartbeat with a stethoscope, and discovered a slight heart murmur, which he didn't like. I gave in and agreed to let them take me to the hospital.
They took me downstairs strapped on a gurney, and put me in the ambulance. My manager said he'd follow them. So we took off with red light and siren to a nearby hospital. On the way there, I could hear the EMT on the phone to the hospital. He explained my condition, and said I was "combative." However, I was no longer combative. I was resigned to the experience.
My heart murmur turned out to be minor, but as a result, ever since, I have to take a prophylactic dose of antibiotic before I have any dental work, including having my teeth cleaned.
Once I was released from the ER, my manager drove me back to the office so I could get my car and drive home.
Both events were a long time ago. I don't know if I even had a glucose meter. I do know that now I keep a supply of boxes of juice in my desk, in my purse, and in the glove compartment of my car. I don't like to have anyone making a call to 911 for an episode of low blood sugar.
- At 08:45 PM on Fri, Dec 8, 2006 Rosalie Bullard wrote:
I am not from New York but Illinois and twice I have had an abulance come - once to my house and once to work. The one at work they could not get me to come out of my reaction and they had given me a glucose shot and when I did open my eyes I was on a stretcher being wheeled into the elevator.
The one that came to my house the ambulance people were asking me questions after giving me glucose to see how I was reacting and trying to see if I could answer the questions put to me. I remember looking at clock and saying I have to call into work and realising that I had an intravenous cord attached to my arm. - At 02:48 PM on Fri, Dec 8, 2006 Boyd Riley wrote:
There was a time when I was a student at Finger Lakes Community College in Canandaigua, NY, that I needed to go to the local hospital because my glucose level was over 500.
It was during the spring of '06. I had just finished one class and was waiting for another to begin just before 10:00 that morning. I was starting to feel sluggish, tired and dizzy. I could tell that my sugar level was high, but when I checked my glucometer, I couldn't believe the reading: 524! I immediately contacted my teacher, told her what was happening, and drove to the ER.
The staff there were very nice and hooked me up to a rapid IV of insulin. I was there for about 4 hours while my sugar levels came back down to acceptable levels. I came back home that evening and went straight to bed. The next day, I was fine.
- At 06:40 PM on Thu, Dec 7, 2006 Michele Kennedy wrote:
I've had Type I diabetes for 26 years and have been using an insulin pump for over 10 years. I am a single professional woman who lives alone. I have had two situations over the past 4 years where I had to be taken by ambulance to the hospital. In both instances I had ketoacidosis which developed fairly quickly due to being on Humalog (which is very short acting) and having a pump malfunction. In both cases I underestimated my ability to get my bloodsugar down on my own. Having had diabetes for 26 years and having had no previous instances of hospitalization, I thought I could handle both of these situations at home by taking insulin injections and keeping hydrated. I was wrong! My last hospitalization was in December 2004 and that was very serious and frightening. I didn't go into a coma, but I was very close. I realized then that I need to get medical help much more quickly if I can't get my bloodsugar down by myself.
- At 01:51 PM on Thu, Dec 7, 2006 Terry Pletcher wrote:
It was 5:00 A.M. on a Sunday morning and I started yelling nonsense. This woke my wife and daughter who could not wake me. They called the Columbus, Ohio EMS and related that I was incoherent and a type II diabetic. They instructed them to not try to give me anyrthing until they arrived. About six minutes later they (2 squads and four medics) arrived and immediately tested my blood sugar, It was 29. They treated me with a shot and IV and took me to a local hospital where I remained for six days to treat an infection and sent me home. First time I found out how other problems can affect your diabetic health.
I am now 67 yrs young. My Type II Diabetes showed up about 20 years ago on a routine Life Insurance urine exam. Like most other people I went on Pills etc and I was always an excercise person and ate a reasonable diet. My Sugars were up and down between 150 to 250 and I just didn't know what to do. In 1995, while dancing, I almost had a Heart Attack and underwent By-pass surgery. I almost died twice. I started on Insulin and as I left the hospital my dancing buddy Tom told me to go on a low fat diet. No meats or whole milk products. As I restricted my fat intake, my DIABETES GOT UNDER CONTROL WITH MINIMAL DOSE OF iNSULIn (12 UNITS/AM, 10 UNITS/PM OF 70/30). I eat no more than 20 gm. of fat daily, strict vegetarian, I excercise about 1/2 hour a day. I feel healthier than ever before and full of energy. I keep my A1C at 5.5%, if you know what I mean. Diabetes should be a blessing (if you do the right things) and one can live longer and better life with Diabetes. It takes motivation, education, passion for life and it is not all that difficult. You can e mail me at dancemax@aol.com. TV people! Invite me for a show, you will not regret.