Prior authorization, pre certification, pre when the heck did I get cured?

Gray hairs, I have gray hair because of health insurance companies!

Holy crap I do not like Land of Lincoln health insurance. I have to get a new precertification/prior authorization whatEVER every 3 months.

Seriously? Why?

Do they think I am going to find a cure for type 1 diabetes every 3 months?

This time it took them 2 weeks to approve my pump supplies! TWO WEEKS! Wow Im glad I didnt run out of supplies.

I get that some people abuse their insurance but good grief Im the same person I was for my last approval and why cant they be like all other companies I have had? 1 approval is good for a year. I mean really.  Get with the program Land of Lincoln Health Insurance.

Dont put your Diabetic patients through any more b.s. than they already deal with from everyone else.

Please leave me your comments, it helps keep me motivated!

What keeps you motivated?

Type 1 Diabetes is a life long sort of thing and sometimes the people who live with this disease get burned out, depressed, sick and tired of managing it, tired of critical comments from doctors, friends, family and even strangers.

What are some of the things that keeps you motivated to stay on top of this disease?  Do you have any helpful knowledge you care to share with others who have either had Type 1 long term or those just starting out?

Let me hear what you have to say!


Please leave me your comments, it helps keep me motivated!

I just signed up for Livongo for Diabetes Early Access Program 25.00/month test strips!

So I just signed up for this.  It's worth a shot as $25.00/month is less than I am currently paying or have ever paid for Glucose test strips.

I signed up online and called the 800 number that popped up after I entered all of my information.  When you call them they will verify your information and get your credit card information from you and where you want your strips mailed to.

They told me it will be 2 weeks before I get my strips and welcome kit because of the HUGE amount of people signing up! 

https://go.livongo.com/START?d=1

The part that hooked me was: Unlimited testing strips and lancets are included as part of the program. No more co-pays or other out-of-pocket expenses.

Pumpkin chocolate chip cookies!!

Got these in the oven and used walden farms pancake syrup instead of maple syrup, its totally sugar free. Also used lily's chocolate chips which are also sugar free.

I just tried one and theyre amazing!!

Next time Im going to add some stevia/erythritol...the Walden Farms doesnt quite make it sweet enough for me. 

http://fingerprickingood.com/2013/10/10/pumpkin-chocolate-chip-cookies/

Please leave me your comments.  It helps keep me motivated to blog!  =D  

Living with Diabetes "Grit"

Six months ago on April 3rd, I walked out of my Endocrinologist appointment with a couple of sample bottles of some off label use drugs to help me control my blood sugar spikes. (I have been t1d since 2000)

Side effects of these drugs can be urinary tract infections and yeast infections.  Those side effects really got stuck in my mind.  I thought about this the whole one and half hour drive home.

Is anyone reading this using the new Dexcom G5 yet?

Hey, you, yeah you all out there in the internetland! Are any of you using the new Dexcom G5?  Do you like it, hate it, what do you think of it?

I am due for a new receiver in December, my warranty will be up, so it will be covered by insurance.  I have no idea what to get.

My issues are:
I just bought a new transmitter in July as mine was being crazy AND now it is still working, its lasted me and ENTIRE YEAR.  So I paid 525.00 for that freakn thing and still haven't used it.  Hopefully when I pop it off the magnet it will last me a long time.  Otherwise I will be out of transmitter warranty in January ( I KNOW what a terrible time to be out of warranty with insurance deductible resetting, I am not so stoked about that crap at all)

I don't know if I want to go back to a larger transmitter?

I don't know if I want to be forced to buy new transmitters every 6  months no matter what?

I don't own and iPhone and I never will.  I hate iTunes.  I love my Android.

So I think I need to go with the share transmitter and hang around waiting for Android FDA approval.  COME ON Dexcom, this Android approval delay is freakin lame.

What do you guys think?

Let me know, LEAVE A COMMENT, for reals.

I can finally walk somewhat normally!

I am nearly three weeks post surgery for my ingrown toe nail procedure.  I am still kind of walking on the outsides of my feet but not as much as before.  My toes dont tingle much anymore but the nerve on the tops of my feet are still a bit unhappy.

The foot doctor checked me out Tuesday and said they are healing really well so that is good.  I am suppose to take the bandaids off next week and let them dry up.  That sounds horrifying to me right now as they are still painful and the bandaids so offer a little bit of protection from my clumsy self.    I have already dropped several things on my toes and stubbed them a couple times and my stupid dog ran across my toes yesterday.  I could have strangled her I swear.


Here is yesterdays updated pictures of my toes.

Please leave me your comments.  It helps keep me motivated to blog!  =D

The Teal Pumpkin Project and how you can help the kids with food allergies or Diabetes this Halloween!

I saw this a few days ago somewhere on the internet and then seeing theperfectd blog post today: http://theperfectd.com/2015/10/13/the-teal-pumpkin-project-diabetes/ inspired me to write a quick post also.

The Teal Pumpkin Project http://www.foodallergy.org/teal-pumpkin-project

My birthday is on Halloween and I loved it, tons of candy on my birthday and Halloween themed birthday parties!  I wasn't diagnosed with type 1 Diabetes until I was nearly 20 years old, so my trick or treating days were long over.  A lot of children do not get as "lucky" as I did and they feel left out of trick or treating because they cannot eat ALL the candy their friends and or siblings do and if they do their blood sugar suffers and most of us can get or do get very sick from elevated blood sugars.


(((**Side note: Type 1 children are capable of eating sugar and can take insulin to counteract eating sugar, but I personally believe since going low carb 6 months ago, that all people with type 1 Diabetes deserve to have normal blood sugar readings with no or few blood sugar spikes.  The constant up and down of a type 1 Diabetic's blood sugar is what causes the damage to our bodies and can lead to complications later on in life.  *LATER on in life, they won't be seen in the coming years or months, but after years of this damage is when you can get complications.  I personally am doing everything I can to live a full life complication free. The typeonegrit facebook group http://typeonegrit.blogspot.com/ is a perfect example of thousands of people living on low carb and children that are THRIVING and growing perfectly well on low carb lifestyles (it is not a diet and it is not ruining any childrens lives there are thousands of alternatives to sugar laden foods, you just have to not be lazy and actually cook the food).  Our ancestors didn't eat carbs and we don't need to either.  CARBS are an industry created evil and are the cause of many many health issues our society faces today.  No one NEEDS carbs to survive.  Do your own research, don't listed to the American Diabetes Association, look at who is funding their research.  Look up Doctor Sarah Hallberg https://www.facebook.com/Dr.SarahHallberg, looks up Doctor Bernstein http://www.diabetes-book.com/ There is plenty of proof out there that people with Type 1 Diabetes do thrive and thrive much healthier on a low carb lifestyle. End side note** ))) 

Thankfully there are other options and you, the people handing out candy, can do to help!  

Launched as a national campaign by Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE) in 2014, the Teal Pumpkin Project™ raises awareness of food allergies and promotes inclusion of all trick-or-treaters throughout the Halloween season. This year, you can be part of an even bigger movement by joining 100,000 households pledging to participate in the Teal Pumpkin Project™! Take the Pledge>

How can you help?:

• Provide non-food treats for trick-or-treaters and paint a pumpkin teal to place in front of your home, along with a free printable sign from FARE, to indicate you have non-food treats available. Download a Sign>

   
 

• Make a gift to FARE to support research, education, advocacy and awareness programs that make a difference for the 15 million Americans living with food allergies. Make a Gift>
• Spread the word!  http://www.foodallergy.org/teal-pumpkin-project/spread-the-word#

Ideas for NON Food items you can hand out this Halloween:

• Glow sticks, bracelets, or necklaces
• Pencils, pens, crayons or markers
• Bubbles
• Halloween erasers or pencil toppers
• Mini Slinkies
• Whistles, kazoos, or noisemakers
• Bouncy balls
• Finger puppets or novelty toys
• Coins
• Spider rings
• Vampire fangs
• Mini notepads
• Playing cards
• Bookmarks
• Stickers
• Stencils

I will be out trick or treating with my child this year and I live way way out in the country so I wont be the one handing anything out, but I will be watching for people who are supporting this cause and stopping to tell them thank you for helping the kids who have type 1 Diabetes like I do!

#tealpumpkingproject

If you ever decide to have ingrown toe nail removal surgery done, here is your warning.....graphic images don't open if you can't handle it.

So I have been batteling ingrown toe nails for at least 10 years.  Digging the little fragment of nail out of my toe and clipping it.  My right toe for a least 10 years, the left toe for at least 3-5 and the other side of my right toe for 3-5.

If you have this issue DO NOT WAIT to get it taken care of.  Mine finally got to the point where I was digging way down by the bed of the nail. Almost all the way down.  I figured with me having type 1 Diabetes I shouldnt mess with my feet anymore and some day I probably wont be able to see that stupid little tiny sliver of nail.

I was unaware of the repercussions of my "bathroom sugeries" all the trauma I had been causing to my toes made them build up extra tissue.  Well this tissue has to be removed after they cut your nail off.

I had both my big toes fixed on 10-2-15 and I could finally bear weight on them again on 10-10-15. The pain was terrific and on my drive home Friday after having this procedure done, I thought I was going to have to pull over and puke.

Getting your toes numbed up with lidocaine and whatever else it was, was pretty awesomely painful and feeling that medication go around my toe was pretty crazy.

I watched the whole thing without feeling sick or anything, it was pretty awesome to watch and gross at the same time.  I had the nail deadend on the outsides because I dont want to ever have to go through this crap again.

Gross pictures ahead:

Opinion: ADA: Low Carb Diet Helps Diabetics, but Still Not Recommended

Article:
http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/news/a/adalowcarbdiabe.htm?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=shareurlbutton

 

"As reported by Regina Wilshire in her low-carb science blog Weight of the Evidence, a spokesperson for the ADA says that low carb diets are helpful for managing diabetes, but they aren’t recommended because the ADA thinks that low carb is too difficult for people to “live with long term."

In other words, instead of trying to help people follow the diet that is best for them, this prominent organization admits to recommending a diet that is less healthy for diabetics –- a diet that could cause a type 2 diabetic to take more medication, progress to becoming dependent on insulin, or even suffer from any of a number of health problems caused by poor blood glucose control."

 

Since when do we allow other people/organizations to decide what is best for us?  Isn't what's best suppose to be based off medical research?  Research shows that a low carb diet is what is BEST for us.  Just because it is HARD they wont recommend it?   Or is it because of their crap guidelines and the resulting crap blood sugars keep all the Diabetes related MILLIONAIRE companies afloat?