Archive for the ‘The Beetus’ Category

What a racket!

Posted: November 13, 2012 in diabetes, Doctors and Dentists and Nurses... oh my!, Novo Nordisk, The Beetus, Travel
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In the big news, I decided to try a new method of insulin delivery. I had read of the flex pens and the ease of injections and the like. I also saw there was a $50 coupon. I had no idea how much they would cost, but I assumed it would be in the neighborhood of what I currently pay. For the record, the price on a vial of insulin, which lasts about a month, is about $37, once the insurance deductible is satisfied.

Anyway, I contacted my healthcare provider’s office and requested a scrip for the flex pens. The insulin brands I use are from Novo Nordisk, a Danish company that concentrates its business in diabetes care, and they offer the pens in both flavors of insulin that I use. My primary insulin is called Novolog. I take three shots a day with meals. My other insulin is a longer-acting variety called Levemir that I take at bedtime. Basically, I go through 4 syringes a day as well as multiple sticks to test my glucose. I really am a human pincushion.

Getting back to the pens, I read how this is an easier method of injection, and was thinking ahead to travel. Touring Disney parks while toting insulin vials and syringes is a pain in the ass, not to mention the hassle of getting a slightly unfrozen ice pack through airport security. I realize that the vials, once opened, do not need refrigeration per se, they just need to be kept under 86 degrees. That can be a challenge in the Florida heat, as you can imagine. I knew the pens had the same refrigeration standards, but offered durability and less prep work to use, so why not?

The office called in the prescription to the local CVS and I got the call that the pens were ready for pickup. I dutifully took my $50 coupon to the pharmacy, handed it over, and was greeted with the news that my total (which I figured would be around $100-$120 was in fact $255.26. AFTER the coupon!

Yikes.

It just makes you wonder how the price would be that much higher for the same drug in the same proportion. I was too flabbergasted to contact the insurance about it last night, but I think I’m going to look into this. That’s unconscionable, in my opinion. I’ll keep you posted.

In the meantime, after trying it, I think the vial and syringe method is actually less painful. Go figure. Pay more and it winds up hurting in more ways than one. Sigh.

New morning…

Posted: October 12, 2012 in Bariatric surgery, Chick-Fil-A, diabetes, Doctors and Dentists and Nurses... oh my!, Stress, The Beetus
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After the abject negativity of yesterday’s post, I slept on it. Not for too long, but long enough to get the gist of what happened yesterday. Basically, it was me being petty and spiteful and ignoring the blatantly obvious.

I’m still eating too much.

It’s nowhere near what it used to be. In my heyday, I would think nothing of swinging by Chick-Fil-A, snagging three sandwiches and a box of nuggets and scarfing them all down in one sitting. I could eat an entire pound of ham, and a pound of cheese, and go looking for more. I usually would feel disgustingly full after I did that, swear to never do it again, and promptly do it again the next weekend.

Lather, rinse, repeat.

I never got a good handle on why I did stupid, mindless shit like that. All I knew is that food made me happy. The texture of some thick, dense bread on the tongue would make me feel warm and fuzzy inside. It’s an addiction, like alcohol or drugs or gambling or sex. Just so happens, my drug of choice is food and you need food to live. Talk about a kick in the teeth. To live, I need the very thing that will prematurely kill me if I can’t succeed.

However, next Friday marks the six-month point since I started the bariatric program. Theoretically, I’m ready for the operation, but I don’t know if I want to have the surgery done. I know there are benefits, but there are also some pretty big risks as a counterpoint. Also, if I do have the surgery, what procedure do I have? Do I go for the band, which is the least invasive? Do I go for the bypass, which is the most invasive, but also offers the best success at “curing” the Beetus? Do I opt to try to go solely with diet and exercise? Also, do I have the operation this year while the insurance still pays more or do I wait until after the holidays?

Even the name is right…

See, so many choices and me with so few answers. And I really am not good at making decisions.

I think I’m going to see how this week goes, see what my regular doc has to say, and go from there. I’ll just keep moving forward.

Is a complete and utter hate-on for an inanimate object healthy?

Posted: October 11, 2012 in Futility, Supportive Partner Woman, The Beetus, Weight loss
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Or is it a sign of me starting to crack up?

I say this because I had another appointment with the dietitian today only to find that I gained five pounds. I hate the scale like nothing else. I hate it with the fire of a thousand suns. I want to beat every scale I see with a large sledgehammer. I feel that the scale exists to completely destroy any sense of accomplishment I may have.

I know… there are all sorts of theories why one scale weighs differently. and maybe that’s part of the problem. I don’t think that a five pound swing is likely.

I think the problem is plain and simple.

Stress.

It hasn’t been a good food week. I know that. Supportive Partner Woman (Liker of Mexican food!) and I have been eating out at a rapid clip, which is not good. There’s been so much going on that it’s hard to know which end is up, and sometimes, the best option is to grab something on the run. So, we wind up eating lunch out. I’m still eating my breakfasts at home and I take dinner with me, but according to the dietitian, I’m eating out too much. Couple with the reduced activity thanks to Wayne, well, I’m not getting as much exercise as I should. It all adds up… it’s not just because we’ve been to Chipotle multiple times in the course of a week.

See, the only part that doesn’t show results are the weigh-ins. I’ve been able to steadily increase the weights and workouts and my clothes fit better. In fact, I’m wearing a pair of jeans I haven’t been able to wear since the winter before last and they are actually a little baggy.  I can’t believe that the bariatric center didn’t take measurements when I started. I’d really like to know how many inches I’ve lost.

The other stressor for the week is thanks to my wonderful employer. It’s annual enrollment time again and that’s never any fun. Not only because of the hoops they make you jump through, but because every year they find yet another way to nickel and dime you. This year’s big surprise is not only are my premiums going up 12%, they are cutting the amount they pay by 5%. That’s really a 17% increase. And because it’s not complete without one more thing, they are also doubling the deductible. Basically, it seems that if you have a chronic condition, like the Beetus, you should just save everyone the trouble and off yourself before your next doctor’s visit. Couple that with the federal legislation that limits FSAs to $2,500 a year, well, it’s a complete shit sandwich.

As my late father would always say, “I don’t mind getting screwed, but at least kiss me first.”

I hope the next post will be free of the negativity… it’s just so frustrating to put in the time and the sweat and see that you gained five pounds. Makes me want to go and eat. A lot.

I’m not going to, though.

Thursday lament

Posted: July 19, 2012 in diabetes, Exercise, Foot issues, Stubby the Wonder Toe, The Beetus, Weight loss
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It was Thursday… that means a session with Ryan and Cory. I’m really starting to get used to the schedule. I go in, do 20 minutes of cardio, lift for a while, then finish with 10 more minutes of cardio.

Today was no different… except I tried some different programs on the treadmill, the arc trainer and the elliptical. Random hills or intervals. Just trying to break up the monotony. I noticed something, though… the more I do this, the easier it is to do 60 minutes. Today I was shocked when my time was done. It only felt like half an hour had elapsed.

I need to do something about my shoes, though. See, one of the issues with diabetes is that it does a number on the nerves in your feet. This is not just referring to neuropathy, but also pronation. This has caused my feet to flatten out and spread. Couple with poor circulation which makes the feet swell and finding a new pair of sneakers is a tough job.

Typical diabetic sneaker. Nice Velcro.

I’m a big fan of New Balance footwear… have been for ten years. They make a shoe that is wide enough to fit my foot comfortable and give some great support. After I had the issues with Stubby the Wonder Toe, the docs recommended getting diabetic friendly athletic shoes. I had looked at some of them and they were butt-ugly, no color or anything. Typical. It seems that if you aren’t the perfect size, you are out of luck when it comes to decent apparel. Same thing obviously goes for diabetes. I dug in my heels and did my research. I found that New Balance had a line of diabetic friendly footwear.

The running shoes I wound up with. Much more stylish.

Supportive Partner Woman (super supportive!) and I went to the nearest New Balance store and found that there were some much nicer options available. Options that didn’t entail Velcro closures. I found a pair that I liked and promptly found them on Amazon for 1/2 the price. After some teething problems (read: blister) I grew very accustomed to these shoes and have worn the hell out of them going on 18 months. I bought a new pair of cross trainers that didn’t fit well and that was because my circulation had been so poor that my feet were swelling so much I could barely fit in the new ones.

Lately, thanks to the gym time, my feet aren’t swelling nearly as bad, and now I need to consider placing the cross trainers back in circulation. Only problem is I have cannibalized them, taking the insoles and the laces and using them in the running shoes. I plan on picking up some new laces and changing the insoles yet again as I’ve noticed the soles of the running shoes are nearly worn through.

Did I do the right thing in refusing to get diabetic sneakers? I don’t know. I just couldn’t see myself in these ugly shoes. By making diabetic shoes that unappealing, it’s like a stigma. We don’t all have one foot in the grave. I chose to go with something with more pizzazz. I liked them. One other choice I made was to go with a sturdy pair of Merrell hiking shoes as my other go-to shoes. They keep my feet warm and dry in the winter and have plenty of support. Not the best choice for general summer wear, but what can you do?

One more note. WTF is up with Sports Authority not carrying wide-width shoes? I was told by the “helpful” sales associate that not many people have wide feet. Seriously? They do have them available on the website, but what good does that do? I won’t buy a pair of shoes without trying that brand/model to see how it fits my feet.

On that note, I’ll let you go. Got a busy weekend ahead visiting the Philadelphia Zoo with the Magic Meets crew and having a group dinner at Jack’s Firehouse.

Eating better=better results

Posted: July 16, 2012 in Cooking, diabetes, Physical activity, The Beetus, Weight loss
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I’ve known for some time that you are what you eat. I always figured that was crap, since I never turned into a giant bag of snack food or a big loaf of bread.Fact is, there’s truth to it, something that I am seeing almost every day. Since I’ve started to really monitor what it is I’ve been eating, I notice that not only am I losing weight, I feel better. Better physically and far better about myself mentally.

It’s also enabled me to make some changes in my lifestyle that I probably couldn’t before. I’m now much more able to get up and go for a walk than I was just a few weeks ago. Even after totally getting arc trainer-ed to death today, I still went out for a walk. Was it an intense walk? No, but it was activity and I didn’t feel the need to sit around and eat. That’s a huge plus.

So, changing what we eat has been a huge part of the success I’ve had so far. Eating more protein and less carbs. Being mindful of the sugar content of what I do eat and its glycemic value. Being active and thinking of stuff to do to avoid raiding the fridge. Every one of these small changes is helping me toward a bigger one and a healthier lifestyle.

Fresh local corn, steamed broccoli, balsamic marinated asparagus and sautéed scallops with a side of tomato/mozzarella salad.

Now, Supportive Partner Woman (bestest wife in the whole wide world!) and I have started a bit of a Sunday tradition. She’s been working most Sundays while I’ve had off. So, I try to think of a nice, healthy dinner and prepare it so she can come home, eat something that’s not breaded, fried or otherwise prepared elsewhere, and we actually get to eat at our own table.

This past week, SPW (shopper of great skill!) came across scallop pieces at a good price. These were gorgeous, though… they might have been pieces, but they looked like real sea scallops. Since I needed to use them, I sautéed them in some olive oil, made some local sweet corn that we picked up at Root’s Market, added some steamed broccoli and as SPW is a far of asparagus, threw together a quick and dirty balsamic marinade, then sautéed the asparagus. Turned out rather tasty.

To make the marinade, I took 1/2 cup of olive oil, about 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar, added a touch of oregano, garlic powder and basil. Mixed them together and put the marinade in a Zip-loc bag with the asparagus spears. Put it in the fridge for about 15-20 minutes. Only change I will be making is to let it marinate longer… the flavor was good but not completely married.

The other item I threw together was a quick tomato and mozzarella salad. I seeded and diced some Roma tomatoes, then diced 8 oz. of mozzarella. Added some Italian salad dressing (I said it was quick) and finished it with some basil. After stirring it, I covered the bowl and put it back in the fridge. It makes a very easy, light and refreshing salad.

I did that whole meal in around 25-30 minutes. Can’t argue with it. It’s fun to create and to tweak recipes. The only thing I won’t change is my chocolate chip cookie recipe. I tweaked it a few years ago and hit a home run, so I do it the same, even using the same baking sheets. If anyone wants my recipe, feel free to ask.

Until next time…

The Book of Beetus? Nope.

Posted: June 20, 2012 in diabetes, Stubby the Wonder Toe, technology, The Beetus
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The bane of my existence is being stuck with the Beetus. Having to treat myself like a human pincushion is not on my list of fun activity. The insulin injections are annoying enough, but it’s the testing that I detest.

Diabetes sucks, but this is pretty cool tech.

I admit, when I got my first test kit, it was kind of cool. Make yourself bleed a little, watch a drop of blood get drawn up the test strip, and viola, you have a blood glucose reading. It’s like diabetic sorcery! However, when you have to do it multiple times a day, well, it starts to suck. Since you’re pricking your finger, you have the worry about getting blood smear on your clothes, not to mention going too deep and hitting a nerve. I also found that tech has recently invaded the world of diabetes. Pharmaceutical giant sanofi-aventis has created the iBGStar glucometer which connects directly to a iPhone or iPod touch and uses an integrated app to import and track all glucometer readings. It’s actually kind of cool and I wonder if my insurance company would pay for it.

This is also what you run into when you are on insulin, especially by injection. Sure, the syringes aren’t too long, but there are certain spots where you bleed or other spots that sting a bit. Unless you’ve a masochistic streak, most people don’t enjoy that kind of stuff.

The other thing to consider is the actual measurements themselves. The measurement the handy-dandy meter gives you is calibrated in milligrams per deciliter. Normally speaking, a healthy human’s blood glucose reading should be between 70-130 mg/dL before meals. For me, this is a problem. I usually find myself chasing a reading and that’s not good. It’s not good to be outside the target range, but a low reading is worse than a high reading. For me, if I dip into the 80s, I can feel my hands start to shake and I generally feel lousy. Lower than that, the cold sweats and double vision. NOT fun.

There’s normally some variations in the readings. This can depend on many factors, some dietetic, some environmental, and some mental. I was guilty of chasing the readings, trying to figure out why some readings were higher than others and I didn’t have anything to eat. Luckily, my new primary care provider, Rachel Ho, was able to shine some light on why this happens. Seems that when you don’t eat, your body starts to use stored fuel (aka fat cells) and this can boost your glucose levels. It was the first time anyone ever really took the time to answer those questions in real words, not medical jargon. I must say that I’m pleased with this change in caregivers… Rachel isn’t an MD, but has a refreshing, no-nonsense air about her that just lets you know that if I don’t keep on the straight and narrow, she’ll give me a kick in the ass. In fact, Rachel impressed us so much that The Management made an appointment to see her, which she chronicles here.

Please, don’t take anything I’ve written here as the gospel truth. This is not the Book of Beetus, Chapter 1. Diabetes is a terrible disease and if you can do anything to avoid it, do it. The human pincushion impression sucks, it’s expensive and it will really make your life miserable. If you’ve been diagnosed with diabetes, take it seriously and make sure you see a doctor who takes it even more seriously. If you don’t, well, I lost part of a toe. It could’ve been much worse. Take your meds and if they are causing you problems, talk to your doctor. If he/she won’t listen or pooh-poohs your concerns, find another doctor. If you have children, make sure they eat properly. It’s not a bad thing for them to have a treat now and then, but make the treat the exception, rather than the rule. If you think that diabetes is a joke, I have some post-operative pictures of my toe I can share.

 

I almost forgot a title…

Posted: June 11, 2012 in Cooking, diabetes, family, The Beetus, Wegman's, Weight loss
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Today was a kitchen day. It didn’t start out to be, but it certainly ended up as such.

For whatever reason, I thought about making my own pico de gallo, but I started out with a little tomato, mozzarella and basil salad. Nothing to that… just dice up some Roma tomatoes, put them in a bowl with some cubed mozzarella (use part skim mozzarella for a little more health benefit), them I add just plain Italian salad dressing and some basil (fresh, if I have it, dried if not). Cover the bowl after tossing the salad, put it in the fridge, and it’ll be ready to go in an hour or so.

I followed that up by seeding and dicing more tomatoes and some red onion. I’ve never attempted to make pico before, but I’ve had it enough to figure out what I need. Just not sure if I got the proportions right. I also don’t have any cilantro, so I let the tomatoes and onions soak in the lime juice and will add cilantro when I get to the store. I know it needs to sit awhile, so no worries.

One tip, if you’re going to make something like this, make sure you seed the tomatoes. If not, you have a mess. It’s really easy to do. Just quarter a tomato and use a spoon to scrape out the seeds. It’s really easy with Roma tomatoes, since they don’t have much in the of seeds to begin with.

The other task I undertook was to make some marinated sirloin for burrito use. I looked at a few recipes and decided to improvise. I took a can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, pureed them in a blender, then I forced them through a strainer to get rid of the seeds. To this puree, I added half of a red onion, some cumin, oregano, garlic and black pepper, ran it through the blender, dumped it in plastic bag with some sirloin tenders we located on clearance at the Greatest Grocery Store on the Planet. Picked the steak up on a good deal as it was about to hit its sell-by date. I’ll let the meat marinade overnight and grill it up on the morning to see what happens. Truffles, however, were NOT a good deal. Seems like the price fluctuates with the season.

In other news, we picked up a lot of ingredients to make a food contribution for a project we have in the offing. I’m cooking up a baked pasta dish with a choice of meat sauce or marinara sauce. That little project will keep us busy the next couple of weeks. I’m kind of doing it on the fly, but it’s pasta. Hard to mess that up.

Blood glucose reading this morning was 114. Pretty happy with that. It’s staying a lot more stable, which is a good thing. It was fluctuating wildly for a few months, plus, I wasn’t checking it as regularly as I should have been. Gotta toe the line if I want to succeed.

Anyways, back to work tonight. I have my first ever trainees… this should prove to be interesting.

Wow… just wow.

Posted: June 10, 2012 in Bariatric surgery, diabetes, The Beetus
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So, living here in Cow Country has taught me that a lot of the local cuisine is really not that great if you are diabetic or in a bariatric program. Everywhere you look, you find all sorts of compressed pig parts, carb-laden starchy goodness, breads, baked goods and candy. To say that the Pennsylvania Dutch really know how to make fattening food would be doing them a disservice. They are the kings of fat food.

One of the hallmarks of the PA Dutch country is the smorgasbord. Sure, many people have seen Old Country Buffet, Duff’s Famous Smorgasbord, Cactus Willie’s, any of those places. Many have eaten at a casino buffet. They all have their places… I remember going to a joint in Florida during a high school band trip where the buffet came to you. You stood next to a giant round carousel of calories and the smorgasbord rotated past you. No worries about someone cutting in line ahead of you, that’s for sure.

The PA Dutch have raised (or lowered) the bar when it comes to consuming mass quantities. Whether buffet or family style, you can get what you want at any of these places, just be warned, you’ll get a lot. Not only of food, but of people wearing stretchy pants, or as Jed likes to refer to them, “buffet pants.”

For us here at Chez T, the gold standard in buffet is Shady Maple Smorgasbord, located in East Earl, PA.

I’ve never seen the place this empty

The food is undistinguished… perhaps best described by Cookie, in the movie City Slickers, “You ain’t gonna get any nouveau, almondine, thin crust, bottled water, sauteed city food. Food’s brown, hot, and plenty of it.” I naturally assumed that I had eaten my last broasted chicken and stuffing. Then I discovered that Shady Maple actually has discount pricing for post-bariatric patients. My first thought was, “Seriously? WTF?” If you check this link, you’ll see what I mean.

You have to wonder if there are really post bariatric surgery patients lining up to strap on the feed bag. Everything the professional staff is telling me makes me believe  that this is the last place on Earth I will want to eat. I guess some habits do die hard. WGAL did a piece on the aforementioned discount, showing here:

Another gem in the culinary pantheon is Good n’ Plenty. This establishment is referred to by the local Disney nerds as “Amish ‘Ohana” because the food is served family style. The brown, hot and plenty of it rule applies here, too.

Mmmm. Fried chicken.

I did not see any post-bariatric discounts, though, but again, this is a place I’m not really seeing as being in high post-op demand. They do have some amazing fried chicken, though. This one will be tougher to give up than Shady Maple, since this is one place our friends from New York like to visit when they are in the area.

Other local establishments, such as Miller’s Smorgasbord, do not mention any kind of bariatric discount, which is probably a smart thing. I think that getting this type of major procedure done should also make folks reconsider their eating habits. I’m thinking that unbridled consumption helped get us here in the first place. If you want it to work, then maybe, just maybe, you might be better off at Saladworks.

I leave you with the following quote from Dave Barry:

I recently had my annual physical  examination, which I get once every seven years, and when the nurse weighed me,  I was shocked to discover how much stronger the Earth’s gravitational pull has  become since 1990.

I’m not crazy…

Posted: June 6, 2012 in Bariatric surgery, diabetes, Stress, The Beetus, Weight loss
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Well, the appointment with the psychologist went well. It was nice to lay out a lot of what’s been eating at me over the last however many years and to get some affirmation that I’m not crazy. Dr. Collins was able to give me some recommendations and also some helpful hints to get ready for the surgery.

Yes, I think that as of this juncture I’m going to go through with it. I’m about at the end of the rope with the injections and the constant joint pain and the sleep apnea and everything else. I want to be healthy… I waited long enough to find the right woman and I want to have as much time with her as I can. I owe it to myself to stick around, too… there’s a lot that I haven’t seen/done, so I need more time to work on the bucket list.

Speaking of bucket list stuff, we’re about five weeks from the Roger Waters show. To see The Wall performed live will be something to cross off the list. If, by some miracle, David Gilmour were to show up and do Comfortably Numb with Waters, well, that would be cause for an eargasm.

It’s been a sad year for music, though. There’s been a lot of good ones (IMHO) who have departed the mortal coil in 2012 so far. Let’s take a look at that roll call (and I’m sure I missed a few… I’m getting old):

Etta James
Whitney Houston
Ronnie Montrose
Leon Spencer
Earl Scruggs
Andrew Love (Memphis Horns)
Levon Helm
Adam (MCA) Yauch
Donald “Duck” Dunn
Donna Summer
Davy Jones
Robin Gibb
Eduard Khil

So, folks… there you have it. I have my first group session on Friday… we shall see how that goes.

Change of scenery

Posted: May 29, 2012 in diabetes, Stress, The Beetus
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I’ve found that when you’re in the midst of a down cycle, whether it be food, mood, whatever, sometimes a change of scenery can help.

I’m spending the week at another one of my company’s facilities doing some acceptance testing on a new version of our typesetting software. I came home from work and stuck a blood sugar reading of 113. I’m pretty pleased about that. Usually it’s a lot higher when I get home from the office. I think that stress has something to do with that. Sometimes my job, or the BS surrounding it, can be rather trying. I don’t want to deal with the BS… I want to go and do my job and come home. Maybe that means I’m asking too much, but that’s how it is.

It was a good food day. I took some leftover tomato/mozzarella salad and had some crackers. Reasonably filling and tasty. That’s all you need.

Hope to check in over the next couple days with something more substantive.

Oh, and I started culling the Facebook friends list. If I never met you face to face and we’ve not had any meaningful exchanges, don’t take offense, but you probably won’t make the cut.

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