At the end of this month, I'll see my endocrinologist for the first time since leaving the hospital with that adorable little bundle of joy. Prior to getting pregnant, I started taking insulin and I'm still on it. When I see the doctor again, I'll have the opportunity to change things up. Now that I'm done breastfeeding, I can go back on oral medications and put the insulin behind me.

Today, I started questioning if I really want to do that. What are the pros and cons of oral meds versus insulin? The obvious is a pill versus a shot, but after 15 months on insulin, I really don't have a problem with needles. Insulin is natural and the only real side effect is low blood sugar. Most oral meds have much worse side effects, like upset stomachs, headaches and rashes, in addition to hypoglycemia. (READ MORE)

OmniPod

There was the researching, and the chats with the doc,. There was the mental tug-o-war between my daily injection comfort zone and my need for more flexibility, and now, like the quickness of a self-inserting cannula, I am pumping insulin by way of the OmniPod. (READ MORE)

There. I said it. I have been saying that a lot lately. When The Mr. wants to know what's wrong I can often sum it up by saying, "I hate diabetes."

I'm having trouble dealing lately. I know people want to help. I know that when someone says, "It's a way of life," that they're trying to help. I know that when someone suggests I take a walk that they have my best interests at heart.

So why does it just make me want to cry? Why does it make me want to put my head through a wall? Why does it make me want to ignore diabetes and curl up in a ball in a corner? Why can I accept help from people some times and not others?

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I was reading through the dLife Viewpoints section today and saw a post that really hit home.

It's called "Bested by a Can of Tomato Soup" by Scott Johnson and I think it should be required reading for type 3's and other people without diabetes.

Counting carbs can sometimes be a difficult and maddening situation.

And we do it for virtually every meal every day. I mean, we are supposed to.

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I went to get the mail today and found a package from Minimed. It wasn't the normal size box for Olivia's pump supplies and we've already received our Care Link doo-hickey (technical term, that - doohickey. The whatsit that you download pump info from. I think. I haven't actually used it yet. I keep forgetting....)

Anyway, inside the box was a brand new One Touch Ultra that beams blood sugar readings directly to Olivia's pump. Yay! I was all happy. I thought it would be great, that Olivia wouldn't forget about putting her blood sugars in, since the meter would do it for her.

Oh, how wrong I was. I gave it to her, all eager to see her reaction, since when the BD meter went away, she was very upset. But no.

"It's not green!" she exclaimed. "And it's not tiny." And she sort of flung it aside, sighing in exasperation.

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I've gone back and forth about whether to wear a medical ID bracelet. Part of me says I shouldn't bother because once a paramedic friend of mine told me one of the first things they do to a person who has passed out is to check their blood sugar. Part of me says I should wear one as an extra measure of caution.

I wore a medical ID bracelet throughout my third pregnancy. I don't think I ever took it off -- not in the shower, not for exercise, nothing. I don't remember why I stopped wearing it. Perhaps I lost it. In fact, now that I think about it, I think that's exactly what happened. I had removed the ugly silver chain and replaced it with strands of colorful beads to match whatever I was wearing. Well, the chains and clasps were cheap and ...

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