A Brief Post This Week

I'm lacking inspiration for what to write about so this might be short. I don't know if it's the alteration I made to my insulin dosing or if, somehow, insulin is taking longer to get in my system from certain sites but I've gone low or been close to going low at supper a couple of times in the last week. I'll try lowering my dinner insulin first and see how that goes. If that doesn't work I'll adjust back to 3mmol/l for one unit of insulin and see if that works.
Next week is coeliac awareness week here in Ireland. I'll have to come up with something for that. I can't guarantee it'll be anything special but I'll definitely do something on the blog.
I'll leave it there for today. Feeling a bit drowsy after dinner so I'll try and have a nap.

Surviving Covid_19 Part 2

I haven't posted in a long time. My test for Covid_19 came back negative. I felt relatively ok for a while after the test but then, when I got the result, how I was feeling slowly deteriorated. I was fatigued and light-headed a lot. I felt depressed and this stopped me from doing things even more than the fatigue. I was going to call the doctor but I decided to wait until after my diabetic nurse appointment.
The diabetic nurse is active in the wards for two weeks so I was told that her colleague would phone me instead. It's disappointing that I couldn't attend the outpatients for my appointment but obviously it's not possible in the current situation. If I attended I could have found out my HbA1c and got bloods done for various bodily functions. I meant to ask about this since I was feeling unwell but my head was so busy making sure I wouldn't forget another issue that I forgot about the situation with blood tests. He basically discussed with me how I was doing with controlling blood sugars and when I told him I was trending a bit high because of not being out and about and snacking a bit more he said a lot of diabetic patients are the same way. The function for logging my insulin doses in my glucometer stopped towards the end of last month and I wanted to ask the nurse about the code for turning that function back on with my laptop. That's the thing I was making sure I remembered that made me forget to ask about getting blood tests. I could switch insulin settings on in my laptop but it asks to key in a code before you can access this function. The guy offered to send me out a replacement glucometer but I told him I had a spare and neither has the insulin logging function enabled. They only have codes for Freestyle Libre but my glucometer is a Freestyle Optium Neo. He said he'll get on to freestyle about it and get back to me.
I adjusted how I dose for mealtimes and also discussed this with him and he was ok with it. The diabetic nurse gave me a ballpark figure of 1 unit of insulin dropping my blood sugar by 3mmol/l in one of my first appointments. So, along with my regular mealtime doses, if I was 9mmol/l or above I'd take one extra unit, 12 or above two extra units etc. I tried an adjustment of the mmol per unit figure to see what it felt like. I adjusted down to 1 unit of insulin dropping 2.5 instead of 3 mmol/l. So now I take one extra unit for 8.5 or above and two extra units for 11 or above etc. At the moment this seems to be working. I had a low from being late having supper a few days ago but I think this was due to overcompensating my dinner dose to allow for a sweet treat as a dessert afterwards. Other days, so far, I don't get too high after a normal meal since making the 2.5mmol/l adjustment.
I phoned the doctor and told him my symptoms yesterday. He said they were consistent with someone recovering from Covid_19. He also said that there were quite a few people coming back with false negatives. So I probably had it but tested negative. He asked me if I got any exercise and I told him I did a bit of yoga and was able to go for walks out as far as the bridge at Blennerville and back even though I wouldn't do it at a brisk pace. He told me that was a very good sign. He told me to keep an eye on the moments of light-headedness and if they continue I'll need to get my blood pressure checked, even suggesting that it might be too low. He asked me about the diabetes as well and I told him about the call from the diabetic nurse's colleague the previous day. My doctor seems concerned if I mention lows. I have noticed a few more lows than normal recently though. He told me to talk to my diabetic nurse if I go low more often than normal in the coming weeks. I told him I always carry glucose tablets with me when I'm out & about and he seemed reassured by that. I thought of asking him about something else but decided against it, for now at least, in case it was just the stress of the situation we're in now triggering inflammation. I'll wait until/if the virus isn't a factor.
That's all I have for now. I'll try and get back into weekly posts again. Hopefully I'll recover to be well enough to do that. It won't all be doom & gloom. I'll do a few recipes and more upbeat posts in future too.

Surviving Covid_19

I was unwell last week. I didn't feel up to doing a post. In the days leading up to last Wednesday I had intended to post but I just didn't feel like doing much last week when the day came. The Saturday before I coughed up a bit of phlegm. There was a bit of blood in it and that was unusual. I started to have a scratchy, dryish throat and the occasional loss of equilibrium. I also suffered from pain around the secroilliac area of my lower back. There were also moments where I had to breathe deeply to ensure I was breathing right. I phoned the doctor on Monday morning. One of the doctors called me back as they were not seeing patients in person due to the corona virus situation. She asked me a few questions and sent a referral for a test for the virus. She also prescribed antibiotics for what she assumed was a chest infection because I didn't have a fever. I didn't take the antibiotics. I don't like medicating symptoms without knowing what is causing them. Tuesday and Wednesday I had a feeling of a heavy chest cold and would get very short of breath especially around nine o'clock at night from Monday to Wednesday. On Tuesday or Wednesday I got a text that my corona virus test was cancelled because of new testing guidelines that came into place. My symptoms weren't severe enough when I called the doctor. Wednesday night I coughed blood again but this time there was a bit more. I phoned the doctor's number again and the same doctor rang me back a while later. I told her I was concerned that I coughed blood twice in less than a week and that my symptoms had gotten stronger since I rang on the Monday. She referred me for a test again and I got one for Saturday.
I was starting to feel better on Tursday and Friday and by the time the test came around I was thinking it's possible to test negative even if I had it because I had the energy for the 30 minute walk to the test centre.
I was told to blow my nose and given a surgical mask to wear. Then I was taken to the tester. I had to wait ouside the little marquee while someone in a van was tested. I was the only one that didn't come in a vehicle. She took a swab from my throat and nose. I coughed from the nose swab because it was uncomfortable and caused a little bit of irritation but it was all over in seconds. Since then I've felt way better. I feel a bit low in energy at times still but I don't feel sick.
Someone sent me a message today that some people have got false negatives even though they're living in the same house as someone tested positive and with the same symptoms. So their doctor told them to assume everyone in a household with the same symptoms as someone confirmed with the virus has got it.
I live alone so that's probably why I wasn't as badly affected. I'm assuming I had it even if my test comes back negative. I don't know when or even if I'll get a result because there is a shortage of testing kits now. Anytime I coughed or sneezed in the last couple of days I'd think "I hope it's not coming back". I've heard of someone tested feeling like they're on the mend and then the symptoms popping up again. So I hope that doesn't happen to me. I feel like I'm well on the mend and I don't want a setback.
There is something else going on in my body that I won't talk about here. I wanted to talk to the doctor about it last week but I got distracted by corona virus questions. Hopefully the next time I see a doctor in person. It's something I noticed happened in the months leading up to when I started having coeliac symptoms and then again a few months before I was diagnosed with diabetes. I don't want it to mean my body is developing another autoimmune disease. I have enough of them to last me a lifetime.

Social Distancing, Dodgy Cleaning Products & Inflammation

First of all social distancing is relatively easy for me. I don't have a social life, let alone an active one. On the one hand it's great that I can be myself and generally avoid people the way I always do. On the other hand I wonder if I'm being complacent by not washing my hands after I shop for groceries despite no social interaction. I went to the shop this evening and washed them on return. I had an idea though. I have a box of disposable gloves in the press in the kitchen that I normally use for preparing meat for dinner. I could bring a pair each time I go to the shop and wear them if I don't see any sanitizer facility and dispose of them on the way home. I should try that.

I posted a couple of weeks ago how I had dodgy sinuses and chest the day after cleaning my kitchen. I thought it was because I used too much bleach despite windows open and reasonable ventilation. I gave my toilet a much needed clean this week. Then I bleached the inside of the bowl. The product I use for cleaning is home made. It is vinegar based. I coughed a bit and my breathing felt strange after cleaning the toilet. My first thought was "I hope it's not covid 19" because it can cause respiratory issues. But then my sister posted the photo above on facebook and things started to make sense. The very first one is bleach + vinegar, as you can see. So I won't bleach after using my home made product in future. I'll wait until the next day before using bleach when the bowl is dry.
I was talking about inflammation the past two weeks. It feels like there's something more going on, autoimmune-wise, than just diabetes and coeliac. I've been struggling with back and joint pain and feel like my whole body is inflamed. I'm not going to talk to a doctor about it at the moment because they're probably flat out with treating covid-19. Maybe when all this dies down I'll talk to a doctor about it. I hope my appointment with the diabetic nurse at the end of next month is not cancelled because I want to get my vitamin D levels tested. I reckon low levels is contributing to my back and joint aches. I can get blood tests done there under the medical card. Blood tests by my GP are no longer covered by the medical card. On the issue of vitamin D, when I first went to the coeliac clinic at the out patients in Galway hospital in 2014 my levels were checked, found to be too low and two injections were prescribed. I'd prefer to get two vitamin D injections every year than taking supplements. I wish that was possible because I'm no good for getting into a routine of taking supplements and they're not as effective as injections in my opinion.

More Worrying Than The Corona Virus

This is somewhat of a continuation of last week's post. I felt as though I'd been glutened a number of days ago but couldn't place where, when or even how it happened. So whatever is inflaming my body is what caused it rather than actual gluten. I'm dealing with an issue that I could go to a doctor about but there is so much more to it than the visible aspect. I asked a doctor about it before and didn't get any help really. I'm worried that if I do get to a doctor before the visual symptom disappears they'll only medicate the symptoms rather than listen to me about what's going on with the invisible symptoms and not investigate the real cause and how to treat it. Overthinking leads me to just wait it out and while the issue is there I'm feeling low and worried I could get really depressed.
I'm not worried about the corona virus. If it happens to me I'll deal with it then. I don't give a shit. I'm more worried about the political implications of it and my mental health.
That's all I have today. I wanted to put something up to stay active on the blog. It's a pity it can't be more upbeat.

Inflammation And Possible Food Triggers

This cycle started off ok. My blood sugar readings have been good before breakfast and I can eat a little bit extra at supper to bring my sugars up a bit in time for my long acting insulin to prevent overnight lows. Since I had the cauliflower rice for the last too weeks, I decided to go with cauliflower couscous (pictured) this week. It tasted good, although the pleasure is more in the texture and feel and the crunchiness of the nuts, and it got a good reaction when I posted the picture on Instagram. I'm also having poached chicken breast with it as the couscous on its own is a raw vegan dish. I might post the recipe in a future post. Included in the ingredients are: cauliflower, spices, salt, olive oil, raisins, dried cranberries, almonds and cashews and topped with finely chopped parsley. I had shop bought soup for breakfast, the couscous and chicken for dinner and I prepared bread rolls and grilled pork chops for supper. No cooking after Sunday's meal prep, only heat the soup for breakfast and heat the chicken breast for dinner.
On Monday I spent the day giving my kitchen a much needed cleaning. The floor hadn't been mopped in too long to be honest. I woke up yesterday morning feeling a bit strange. There was a horrible taste in my mouth, almost metallic, and my sinuses were stuffy. After a while I was wondering if I'd used too much bleach in washing the kitchen floor and if it was affecting me. But I had every window in the flat open when I was cleaning so the place was well ventilated. There was quite a breeze outside so plenty air had a chance to circulate. Later on I started feeling little twinges and aches consistent with inflammation. So I suspect that it's the nuts in the couscous I'm reacting to. The cashews and almonds are raw. The cashews in the stir fry the last two weeks were roasted. I remember one time a guy told me he didn't eat cashews because he got stomach cramps from them when they were raw. So I suspect the inflammation symptoms I'm feeling are from the nuts. They're certainly not allowed in the elimination phase of the autoimmune protocol diet so perhaps they trigger inflammation in me as well. I got enough nuts for two batches of the couscous recipe because I had planned to make it next Sunday as well. I still will make it and see how I feel then after the next cycle to see if it's the nuts. It could also be the spices. Not the turmeric but the cinnamon. The other thing about it is that I feel like I've eaten a meal afterwards but I get hungry (not food craving but feeling of an empty stomach hungry) about an hour before I normally have supper. But my blood sugars stay in range, at the lower end but still in range, until I have supper so I won't lower my dinner insulin. If I could get over the inflammation symptoms that dinner would be great for my blood sugar averages.
My tennis elbow has been acting up and I'm kind of feeling it on the other elbow as well. I have to put sudocreme on hives on my legs and my muscles ache from time to time, along with the occasional stomach cramp. It feels like my whole body is inflamed this week. But it's not as bad as it sounds overall. It's just a number of little things niggling at me but they're not stopping me from moving around and getting things done. It'd be nice if I could pinpoint a solution though. I'll struggle on.
Another thing I wanted to speak about briefly is that Becky Excell shared a link to a gluten free pizza base recipe from her Gluten Free Cuppa Tea blog on twitter. I'm seriously considering trying it. If I do I'll probably say how it went on here. Speaking of recipes, I tend to do recipes from others or an adapted version of existing recipes because I don't have the extensive knowledge in that area or the patience to develop my own unique recipes. I tend to do things at a slow relaxed pace so if I'm trying something new, what would take some people a couple of hours would take me most of the day to get right so I feel like time isn't on my side if I wanted to experiment with cooking and developing a recipe.
Note: If you're wondering what I mean by 'cycle', it's how I plan and prepare meals for the week, especially to do me from Sunday to Wednesday. There is a fairly detailed look at it here: https://myautoimmuneblog.blogspot.com/2020/02/meal-planning-and-preparation-fairly.html