How'd You Survive Thanksgiving?

Well, how'd you do? Did you survive Thanksgiving without any hiccups? I'm once again so thankful for Afrezza. I ate entirely too much food for DAYS. Oh how I love left overs. What is your favorite?? Mine is, by far, homemade mini pumpkin muffins and individual pumpkin pies. Now, I'm no Martha Stewart, but I don't do too badly. I think I ate almost all of these. By the way, they are NOT diabetic friendly, but they're sure Afrezza friendly!!! 4units for every 2 is what I took. Hey, I told you they weren't diabetic friendly. Oh and I made some pumpkin fluff to go on them. My oldest son loves that stuff. Well, all my children do, but my oldest son loves the fluff on the muffins. So, hey, what's a momma to do? We make our children happy.

I have also been busy sewing. Oh that's my love language for sure. Give me a pattern and some material...ahhhhhh. So, I made and embroidered my grand daughter a dress and matching purse. This was such an easy pattern. I added the lace at the end to add length. This grandmomma likes long dresses on little girls! Anyway, I hope you all survived and are going Afrezza Strong. I'm already looking forward to the Christmas food. 

Endo Update & Tricare Troubles

Well I saw my endo again. What happened? Afrezza lived up to the hype! Once again my A1C was down. Not by a ton. Many report their levels decrease by 2 and 3 points. I'm SO happy for them, but my reality is my new level is 6.8. Do y'all see that? 6.8, take a minute and let it sink in.

I told Dr Asamoah that I knew it needed to be lower, but I was feeling so great on Afrezza and Tresiba that I was happy. He looked at me and told me he was thrilled with my levels. It's not easy pleasing this man. He takes diabetes very seriously and has no problem letting me know when I mess up :/

Before this appointment though, I had a Tricare hiccup. It was so weird. I went to Kroger to get my meds, and they stated I needed a P.A. from Tricare now. WHAT????? After 25 years you'd think I should have known this. NO, why? Because it was something new. They wanted me to try some other insulin my doctor knew would not work on me. I tried it. It flopped. I emailed him and told him. The next day I had my Tresiba.

Folks, finding a good doctor is hard now a days, but it's worth it for your health. Find one. Dr Asamoah, if you're in the Indy area, is who you need to see if you are a diabetic. This man has been ranked in the top 10 drs in the country SO many times it's unreal.

Finally, have you all ever tried Flatout Bread??? Well, glory, try it. It's the best ever for diabetics. Nope, I'm not getting kick backs and have no ties to this company. I take NO insulin when I eat this. I'm not sure why, but I don't have to. You should try it. NO you HAVE to try it!!! Here's a link in case you don't know what I'm talking about. https://www.flatoutbread.com. Oh mercy.

It's all going great in this Afrezza Frenzy's Diabetic World. Praise God and giving Him all the glory.

Pray, test your levels, and inhale your insulin!

Who Has Time For Posts Anymore???

Today I was asked if I still wore a pump. OH MY it made me realize I haven't updated my blog. Why? Because who has time for blogging when you're busy living life. I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE Afrezza. Oh my-lanta, I can't praise it enough.

Two days ago was our youth service at church. I was asked to help with games. In my pump world, I would have started already planning high/low strategies. How'd I handle it with Afrezza? What's to handle? They ordered Papa Johns Pizza. Typically, we don't eat a lot of pizza, so this was a great treat for all in my family.

I ate one piece, which was more than enough. I inhaled 4 units. I started with a level of 132 and ended up 2 hours later with a level of 96. WHAT??? Now, all you pump users (former and current) know that with a pump that wouldn't happen. It would either be super high or super low. If high, you'd take more insulin, than what would happen? You'd crash because it'd drop. If it was low, you'd eat more, which would make it go high. Do you see the vicious cycle???

I get up in the mornings and take 10 units of Tresiba for the long acting and then never worry again about my levels. Now, we don't typically celebrate halloween, but we bought a bunch of candy for the youth service games. Now we have a LOT of candy left over.

It just so happens, I'm a little fond of candy. So, I've gladly helped myself to the leftovers. I love Almond Joy Candy Bars. LOVE THEM. The little snack size ones are the best. Guess what? I don't even inhale Afrezza with it? You read right. I can eat one and not take any insulin. How is that possible?

Afrezza should be named-Freedom because it allows a freedom every diabetic longs for. YES you still have to inhale before meals, but so what. You can live a normal life with it. You will never, in my personal opinion, ever live a normal life on a pump or shots.

#TEAMAFREZZA

Nothing new....Just some summertime fun!

WOW I had no idea it'd been this long this I'd posted anything. Summer is always a fun season for my family, so I've taken advantage of it. Probably one of the most fun things we've done is taking our boat out. Now, it's been especially fun for me because I was always too scared to be near water. Why? THE PUMP. You can't get it wet; you can't let it get too hot; you can't stay unplugged from it for too long. Oh how the list goes on.

This year I've enjoyed a lot of fishing with the hubs. He fishes on a tour and loves it. Me.....not so much but I have been enjoying the sun and spending time with him. I no longer have any worries about my levels. The Dynamic Duo continues to work perfectly!!!!!!

Here are three fun pics I just "had" to share! The first is what my daughter-in-love has created for me. She does ALL kinds of cute sayings on them. They're reasonably priced too. I told her I thought she didn't charge enough. She made this one for me. I'm certainly blessed for many reasons, but a great one is because I have her in my life. If you want a sign-send me a message! Seriously. She ships too.

Oh my what a time I had driving the boat. My skirt was trying to fly up and my hat was flying off. Oh my LOL

Now here's the reason I go out on a fishing boat. My husband, Michael! He's my soul mate; he completes me; he is still makes my heart flutter after all these years (25 to be exact). 

Walk, Jog, Run........Afrezza

OK a few quick questions for the world. What types of snacks do you carry with you when running? I am training for my first ever mini-marathon for next year. What I've been finding is that my levels drop after 2-3 miles UGH. I can't drink those goo drinks. So many reasons but a primary one is they make me sick. I was thinking maybe carrying some sort of a granola bar. I really like the Kind Bars and they seem to be sustaining. What do you think?

Have any of you walked/run a mini before? Or what about a marathon???? I'm really excited about this training. I'm scared though. Should I take the Afrezza with my breakfast that morning? Should I not? How do you handle it? HELP. I need to start preparing now.

I Don't Care What Others Say....It Does Lose Potency

I've been doing my own little experiment. I've heard people say they've left Afrezza in their car for months in 100 degree weather, and it worked perfectly. How on earth does one person have enough insulin of any kind to leave it UNUSED in their car for months? I've had people say they've opened theirs, forgot one was opened, then opened another one and then months later found the original one and it worked great.

Well....I'm the weird one. Mine doesn't work "great" all the time when left out like that. Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not saying I follow Afrezza directions for refrigeration, etc perfectly. OH MY-LANTA NO WAY. BUT, I have discovered that it does lose its potency. Surely I can't be the only one who has discovered this. I don't have to take more, but what I have noticed is this......

If I eat Baked Chicken, Steamed zucchini and broccoli and baked beans, I would take 4 units. My starting level would be 80. 2 hours later it'd be 101-120ish IF IF IF I use a fresh unit.

IF I eat the same meal with the same starting level and use a unit that has been out of the refrigerator for over a week then my level 2 hours later is around 180-190. That level certainly doesn't warrant me increasing the amount to 8 units, but it doesn't make me aware.

I don't say this as a "negative" per say, just to say that people need to be aware that refrigeration could make a difference and new users need to be aware. It's not life threatening, but awareness and education are key to controlling this nasty disease.

Vacation and Time Change....Tresiba.....

Well, it's been over a week since my last post simply because my husband took me to Hawaii for our 25th wedding anniversary! How fabulous was that? I was ready-except-UGH-I never thought about the 6 hour time difference, which meant I didn't know how to calculate the difference with the Tresiba. Now, normally I wouldn't be concerned because I take it at the same time each day.

However, I remembered my Endo saying I needed to take it at the same time each day and be careful because it could affect my Afrezza. Well, I was concerned. I decided to "wing it." Pretty stupid of me; I know. The first day we arrived really made me stop and think. IN was 6 hours ahead of Oahu, so some calculating had to be done.

I decided 6 hours wasn't going to be enough time to worry about and to just take it the next morning like I would if I was in IN. It worked. Then when I got home.......fast forward 6 hours. I still kept the same schedule. It really worked. I'm thrilled to know that I can travel a few thousand miles and this evil disease will not be affected. WOOHOO

I did so much walking there that, honestly, I didn't have to take very much Afrezza. I actually had a few spells where my levels were LOW. As worried as I was about traveling before on my first trip to Maryland, I have ZERO worries now about traveling anywhere.

The dynamic duo proves to be excellent once again.

Faith & Afrezza

Many question, since I'm a Christian, why I'm not healed if the God I serve is truly a healer. Let's stop a minute and put it into perspective. Shall we? God didn't say He would heal INSTANTLY like we want. We are a world of NOW. We want 'fast' food, instant text responses, answers immediately. If someone doesn't respond to a text or email within seconds, we think the worst. We think they're mad; they're ignoring us; they don't want to answer, etc and we become angry. Have you ever just stopped and thought that maybe, just maybe, they were actually busy and their lives didn't revolve around answering YOU?

Well we treat God that way. "OH NO. He didn't do what I prayed for immediately. Well, it must not be His will. He doesn't want me to have that blessing. Well, he must not be a true healer." RIDICULOUS. Stop it. My faith doesn't depend upon what God does for me. He owes me nothing including healing. Though it's promised, and He won't go back on His Word. Whether I'm healed here or in Heaven, I'll be healed. T1D does not define me; my faith does.

T1D is what I endure. I've realized it has allowed me to witness to others about how God has blessed my health through this. I'm sure all of you know someone who has had complications due to diabetes. I've had to endure this for 23 years now, and I do not have one single side effect or complication from it. NOT ONE. Now that's God.

God gives us wisdom to use. We need to spread the word about how great Afrezza is, because it can help many people. Now here's a challenge, spread the word about Afrezza while spreading the Word of God and how great and mighty He is. Yes, I'm believing one day soon God will take this away from me-absolutely. But I will not become discouraged by it-NEVER. We must consistently put the Word of God in our hearts so when difficulties, such as diabetes, arise, our faith will be ready.

We need to stop being a generation of NOW, and we need to start being a generation of Your Will Lord. My faith isn't wavered. My health is sound. My faith is like a seed being planted in dirt and refreshed by the Lord's spirit-the water I need to drink that will enable the planted seed to grow and sprout. So, to answer my first rhetorical statement-I'm HEALED one way or another whether here on earth or in Heaven. I'm just waiting for the Lord to allow me to tell the world.

If God healed me this instant, I would be able to share it with all my dynamic church family, my friends, my earthly family, but I would not be able to share it with others enduring diabetes. I wouldn't have a need to go see Dr Asamoah again and talk to him about my faith (yes, he listens and we have great conversations). I wouldn't be able to share Afrezza AND the Good News with others. I wouldn't be able to share my testimony of how healthy I am-no high blood pressure, nothing wrong with my eyes, no neuropathy of any kind, NOTHING. ZIP. ZILCH. See, the world wouldn't care about my testimony. They would shut me down. So, I'm not discouraged. I'm encouraged. I'm encouraged that God knows I will fight the good fight and grow not weary as the Word says. All the while, I'll share how great Afrezza is and how it helps me and continue to share how good God is and YES He's the one true and only healer!

So, let's make sure we pray daily for Mike Castagna. He has a lot on shoulders. Pray for the rest of MannKind. After all, we want Afrezza to continue, right?

What Is Vaping Anyway, and NO I'm Not Doing It?!

Have you ever been asking if you're vaping? What is that I wondered? I mean, I had heard of it, knew it dealt with smoking but wasn't super informed. I looked it up. WHAT??????? NO, thank you, I'm NOT vaping. I'm inhaling INSULIN. The devices are only similar in the fact each is inhaled. The devices do not even look the same.

Now that I'm aware of this, it's amazing to me how many people actually think I'm vaping. I do NOT, let me repeat myself, I do NOT smoke or vape. NO THANK YOU. I often wondered why people would stare at me as I inhaled Afrezza. H-E-L-L-O, Robyn. That's what they've been thinking about me. OH MY-LANTA, talk about needing to educate people.

It's so sad that more education has been done on this horrible thing than on Afrezza, and more know about it. So sad that people are not knowledgable in the very things that can save their physical life, yet are fully knowledgable in the things that can kill them. Afrezza users, we MUST start making it our daily mission in life to 1. Tell people about the Lord, his crucification and resurrection and how Heaven AND Hell are real, and 2. Educate folks about Afrezza.

If we do not do both of these, people's lives are in jeopardy. I, for one, do not want to be held account for these. Yes, there are struggles in both.

Since this is primarily my Afrezza blog, let me focus on that. I was contacted on Twitter recently from a guy who clearly stated Afrezza wouldn't make it, the company will be going bankrupt, etc. I went to his page. He's making it his daily mission to alert the Twitter world about how horrible it is. I then decided to start checking out others' pages who are pro-Afrezza. I was amazed. There are some who are like me-they don't post daily. There are some who post about everything from politics, religion, health, finances, you name it. They post about it. Then there are a FEW, a rare few, who are dedicated to daily Afrezza posts. Let's face (I'm stepping on my own toes here too), we need to be more like the latter folks.

We need to start being like the dude who hates Afrezza and posts continuously about it, and the folks who post nonstop about it. Is Afrezza perfect? NOPE. Are injectable? NOPE. Which would I prefer? Inhaled any day.

People will continue to think we are vaping if they do not become educated. Yes, there will always be a few people who are uneducated on both but have maybe heard about vaping and will think we are doing it. That's ok. A few are ok, but a majority is NOT ok.

We're failing our fellow diabetics and others out there. So, diabetics-unite. We need more than a few events to educate medical professionals and others. I've repeatedly asked MannKind to allow me to help them in IN and have heard nothing. If we (meaning ME TOO) do not start being more demanding with this, we will be out of an insulin, folks. Funding will not be there for the production of it.

EDUCATION is KEY. What a great day it'll be when people recognize Afrezza as easily as they do injectables.

2, 4, 8 units..oh my!

I know I've talked about this before, but, seriously, I can't believe I'm the only person who is having issues inhaling 8u's. I hurt; my lungs hurt; I cough for HOURS afterwards. I begin to wheeze. What in the world is going on with it? YIKES. It's so strong in my system that I can't stand taking the 8's. I will never take the 12's oh my-lanta. I can't imagine how strong they are!!! Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that the product itself is bad. I'm saying I can't handle it. That's it!

I would much rather than 2-4u's than 1-8u any day of the week. I know that MannKind is also working on the 2u's, which is FABULOUS. I'm super excited about that. Won't that be wonderful? So, recently someone on FB asked about if others had experienced the 4u's dropping their levels too low. I sure do. So how do you handle that? I have found when I need just a *little* bit more insulin and I know 4 will be entirely too much, I re-inhale the 4u. There is always a tiny bit left in the cartridge, so I put it back in and inhale it all over again.

This seems to be working for me. Have you come up with any creative ways to lower your levels without taking 4u's?? I have also been noticing that drinking VERY VERY cold water has worked. I'm not sure why and I do not know the theory behind it, but it works for me.

So, save those 4's and use them later. At least that's what I do! Happy Inhaling.

Another "Bad" But Not Really????

I almost hesitate to even write this post. Why? Because it's, for whatever reason, embarrassing. I pride myself in excellent oral hygiene. With that said, when I was young I had a lot of teeth issues. My poor mother! Oh what she went through with me. Now, like I've said before, I love my dentist, but he knows he's not my favorite person to see :) Remember a few weeks ago when I had my root canal, well that same tooth was still giving me grief. Last week I bit down on a peanut and BAM the pain was immense. I was shocked because I didn't plan on having anymore pain in that tooth.

Finally, I couldn't take the pain anymore. I went in to see him today. I had cracked the tooth in 2 places. While the roots are dead, the nerves are not. I still can feel pain. It was so bad that the tooth was crumbling in a few places. Anyway, I had to have it pulled today. To me, that's so embarrassing. I'm not sure why, but it is. No one will know. It's the very back tooth.

I asked about taking my insulin. He thought I was crazy. He thought I still wore a pump. Anyway, I showed him how it worked, etc. He was a little concerned because of dry sockets. I get that, but I have to eat LOL He asked if I could inhale it and suck in air on the sides. I tried it; it worked. I said, the last time I chatted about dental work, that having wisdom teeth removed or something similar would be hard. It is more challenging to do it that way, but it works. I was success at it this evening. It's one of those things where you can't really change it. You have to have dental work; you have to have insulin. So, today I'm making the best of it!

Afrezza is still the best insulin on the market; it's still the easiest to use. As all diabetics know, are life consists of always having to figure things out-where should I put my insulin, is the temp for it right, did I bring enough with me, do I have snacks in case my sugar drops, what if I want to leave my purse in the car, do I have a place to hold the insulin on me, did I remember my glucometer, did I bring enough test strips? This is every time we leave the house (ok guys, not the purse part LOL), but you get my point. So this is just one more hurdle that we shall all survive.

As promised, the good/bad/ugly of Afrezza will be shared. Still the best even with the bad and ugly.

Dexcom-No Thanks

Last Thursday I saw Dr. A and after all the hype about Dexcom, I finally had the opportunity to chat with Dr A about it. He was on board with me getting one. He gave me the info and sent me on my way. I must admit, I was excited to learn more about it. After all, with all the help and information I'd received from you all (especially on Twitter, you all rock!), it was finally time to chat with a rep. I called. I waited.

That evening I called the 800# and spoke to a rep. He stated he would put me in contact with another rep. Finally, I was able to connect with someone. Her knowledge of diabetic pumps was ZERO. I was trying to figure out the actual size. We made it through that LOL, poor gal. To truly understand me, you must realize when I'm in business mode, that's it. I'm a blunt, direct person. All the while displaying Christ and His love for us. That's not always easy when you're dealing with people who don't listen. Don't you love it when Christ wants to strengthen our patience, so He provides us with tests to do it. LOL

I think I passed it, but it was a HARD test. Needless to say, I won't be getting a Dexcom. The functionality of it is great. But I can't put it in my stomach; that was a huge reason I dumped the pump. She stated it didn't work as well anywhere else, but I could try. Um-I think not! Also, the device is MUCH larger than a pump infusion. I'd definitely get that thing hooked on everything.

She stated it would be better if I didn't wear it on vacation, because though you can get it wet, you can't wear it if you are in water deeper than 8 feet. Well, scratch that. I plan on swimming when I'm in Hawaii in a pool deeper than 8'. She also stated you change the site every 7 days. REALLY? As a diabetic, I can't believe that's healthy. You change a pump infusion every 3 days to prevent infection, what makes this so special? Why wouldn't this follow the same logic? I realize it's a different device, but diabetics have to be SO careful, and this one is just puzzling me. So, while I'm thrilled it's helping so many people, in my life, I've decided it's just entirely too complicated at this point in my life. I'll stick to sticking my finger 10 times a day.

Saw The Endo This Morning

I'm THRILLED. I've been going back and forth about my "happy" level of my A1C being 7. I'm no longer going back and forth. I'm THRILLED. I found out this morning my A1C is the lowest it's been since 2013. How crazy is that? How'd I do it? H-E-L-L-O......AFREZZA and TRESIBA.

He also talked to me about getting a Dexcom. I'm glad, but I'm not overly thrilled because it's something that has to go in my stomach. I was having horrible issues with my dumped pump, so now I'm fretting a little. God will work it out. After all, Philippians 4:6 KJV says, "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God."

Has anyone else heard about Islet Transplanting??? Well it's a new one on me. I asked Dr A about it, and he does not recommend it. I was hoping it'd be another way to help out diabetics. He said it's both good/bad. Good-gets us off insulin Bad-Only works 3-4 years AND you're on a lot of anti rejection medication. 

I will not do that even if it was "forever" that I'd be off insulin. My mother had a double lung transplant and was on them. She couldn't go out in the winter, be around anyone who was sick, etc. It was terrible. Though my mother in law also had a kidney transplant and is on them and doing fabulously. So, I've seen both sides and transplants aren't for me. 

So, at this point, I'm thrilled with results, thrilled with endo appt and thrilled that I have a Savior who shows me daily mercy and love.

2u Please.....And new A1C

WOW it's been a long time since I've posted. I didn't realize that. Life got in the way as we're gearing up for a statewide homeschool convention, and I'm helping. Anyway, BRITTLE DIABETICS......do you find that you need 2 units instead of 4? Sometimes I do. I've very sensitive to Afrezza and sometimes 4 units just drops me too low. I wish there was a scale that says if your level is 250 take 4 units or something like that. Some days I need 8, some 4 and some 2. MannKind says it takes a while and is in the works. Well, what's a girl to do until then?? I know. The same thing ALL diabetics do-SUFFER.

I also got back my 3 month lab results since being on Afrezza. It only dropped 0.7, and I was super discouraged. Then I realized WAIT it's dropped a total of 1.7 since all this began. So now it's 7.0. That's huge. I also heard from other users that it can take several months for the true results to show. I believe this simply because I know my numbers and know I've done great. YES, there have been highs and lows, but the reality is it's been good. So much better than when I was on a pump.

I feel better. I exercise more. I do more things with my family. This stuff is still the best even while waiting on 2u. It was really great last week when my oldest daughter came over to get a china hutch I was giving her. It was pouring rain. She immediately said, "No Mom, I'll do this. You can't get wet." I reminded her that I no longer wore a pump. It was a moment when we all realized how programmed we were and how prohibiting that pump really was. Let's face it, no one wants to get wet in the pouring rain, but it's nice to know if I do my health will still be ok!!

Not Afrezza Frenzy Related.....until the end LOL

Sometimes things happen in my life NOT related to Afrezza such as the fact I hate holidays. Valentine's Day is not really a holiday to me but apparently to the rest of the world it is LOL  Why would it be? Do people not show their loved ones how much they love them throughout the rest of the year? My husband and I have been married almost 25 years and I can't remember the last time we did anything for a birthday, anniversary or even V-Day. Now, this year we're celebrating our 25th in a big way and heading to Hawaii. That's because when we got married we said we were going to do that. But seriously, we don't typically do stuff.

So, I posted on FB about how there were no romantic dinners planned, no flowers purchased (yuck, I can't stand fresh flowers, they die! Keep them outside where they belong), no surprise gifts, etc. Well, I took a private beating for that one from my friends. Apparently they are only shown love once a year and took great offense that I did not get anything. I was fine with it; they had the issue LOL LOL Poor gals, my husband needs to give a training class on how to love your wife 365 days a year and be romantic daily!

Gals take note. If your mate only takes you out for a romantic dinner once a year or buys you a surprise once a year, you may have an issue LOL you don't have to have money to be romantic. Grab a candle from your Christmas decorations, a blanket and make soup beans for crying out loud. Then eat on the floor while playing some music in the background. Do you want to know something silly, yet oh so cute, my hubs did that totally surprised me? He got some program on his iPad and wrote our initials and drew a heart around them and then showed me. How silly, right? Yet ahhhhhh ladies you know you'd love it if your man did that!

Celebrating your love for one another shouldn't be once a year. It should be daily. Husbands, love your wife as Christ loves the church. Christ doesn't love the church yearly. He loves it every second. It doesn't matter how many children you have, how many pets, how much you work, there is a reason you chose to spend the rest of your life with this person. Celebrate that love daily! You did it when you were dating, do it now. Stop thinking it has to be about money. Once my husband made me a prayer bench for my prayer closet. I didn't need a holiday. I needed a bench so he took care of me. He works 10 hour days and still finds time to make me whatever I ask. Now, I try not to ask a lot of things of him because he is busy, but he loves me and sometimes, I just need stuff!

Yesterday was an overpriced day like all other made up ridiculous holidays to make merchants even wealthier. How? Candy and flowers. Way to go....oh yes and let us make that candy sugar free for diabetics because hey candy makers love us too, right? WRONG! Don't eat that junk. Take your Afrezza, inhale those units and if you must eat that processed garbage, eat the real garbage LOL not that sugar free stuff. I was proud of me. I did not buy and did not eat any candy.  I would have though if it were homemade and I could pronounce the ingredients. I wouldn't have been scared. Afrezza is the best.  What other insulin can you inhale that controls highs and lows like Afrezza? Oh yes I know the answer-NONE.

So, there is a moral to this rant, don't wait for February 14th to show someone how much you love them. Show them daily. Yes it's nice to go out for a nice dinner, etc, but if you're doing it on the exact same day as everyone else in the country, then automatically 90% of the romance is gone. Be creative, love your spouse as Christ loves you. Take TIME not MONEY for the person. Tomorrow is not promised.

Education Is Key

I'm so excited. I was telling yet another friend about Afrezza. His levels were so crazy. I just knew he'd benefit from this insulin. He would go from 500 to 25 in minutes. Guess what he was using? The good old pump. He dumped the pump for sure! His wife and I were talking tonight and the lowest he's been was 53 and the highest was 200. He's thrilled.

Imagine the energy he's going to be getting back. His overall health will be so much better. He takes such good care of his wife that he *needs* to feel better. All I had to do was just tell the truth about this drug. BAM. That's it. If diabetics would only try it, they'd be convinced.

This past week we were in Maryland again. Well, while trying to get home, we started with United Airlines at Dulles. The flight was delayed, then delayed again, finally cancelled. Not only was it cancelled, they contacted American Airlines and then had all of us take a shuttle to Reagan Airport. 16 hours later I was home (I live 10 hours away, driving).

No joke, 20 minutes before our final flight, we were offered a meal ticket. I didn't have time to eat. I was so thankful for Afrezza. If I had still been on the pump, my levels would have been all over the place. They remained perfect the entire time. Afrezza is truly the best!

Another Test Of Afrezza-It Passed!

I kept hearing that Afrezza was in and out in 2 hours. Well, today I tested my level, and it was 204. I knew it'd be a little high because for supper I had eaten a few things I wasn't quite sure about whether to take 4 or 8 units. ANYWAY.......about 1600hrs I thought it was high and it was-204. I decided even though we weren't eating dinner until 1700hrs, my level was high and I needed to get it lowered.

I inhaled 4 units. Dinner time rolled around and I almost without thinking grabbed my stuff. Then I remembered it hadn't been 2 hours, so a test was in order! I wanted to see if I took it, would it still effectively cover my dinner meal after being in my system for an hour. I didn't inhale any more insulin....I waited....boy was it a long two hour wait after my dinner was done.

I am happy to report not only did it lower the 204, it also kept it low from dinner. I wouldn't recommend inhaling insulin and then waiting 2 hours, because that would lower your levels too much, which is never good. In this case, though, I am thrilled with the results. It lowered my supper mistake that made my level 204 plus covered my dinner.

I'll admit that I was a little concerned that it wouldn't fully cover it. Wowzer, lovin' this stuff. Yes there are cons to it. There are cons to everything except salvation! So the cons are a lot less and are definitely outweighed by the pros. What an exciting night for this gal.

FaceBook Question...

OK so on FaceBook there is a site called Afrezza/MannKind Stock Group. So who knows about it? I'm a member with the intent of trying to figure it all out. I have no stock. So....do you buy stock in MannKind? I see many posts and am clueless about what they all mean. Can anyone enlighten me?

Figuring This Out Isn't Always Fun

If you have diabetes, you know, regardless of how you did in math class, you must be good at math. Here's the deal. I love Afrezza but sometimes it's hard to judge when to inhale and when not to inhale. Last night's supper was fried chicken (used crushed melba toast and healthy oils for frying), then we had corn. Any other time I wouldn't think twice about inhaling 4 units. Last night, I tested before I ate. It was 145. AWESOME. I inhaled 4 units.

Two hours later I wasn't feeling the best, and it was time to test again. 54....54....do you see what I see? 54 was my level! WHAT? A few weeks ago I had the same meal and inhaled 4 units, beginning level was around the same, and it worked great. What made tonight different? This is so frustrating.

I've seen people create their own chart for carbs and units, but why doesn't Afrezza have anything like that? I know it's supposed to make our lives easier, and, for the most part, it does. I love this insulin. Best on the market, but sometimes I just can't figure it out at all. Sometimes I just want a chart that says HEY HERE'S HOW MUCH TO TAKE. Do you ever feel that way?

The longer I take it, the more I like but the more the "small" things are getting on my nerves.

Endo Appt For My Little Nephew

Well, today I had the honor of taking my great nephew to his endocrinology appointment-not diabetes related. Anyway, it was the first time that I'd met the dr. Very kind gentleman who, I found out, is very good friends with my endo-Ernest Asamaoh. As we were finished, I asked him if he'd ever prescribed Afrezza to his patients (he's a peds endo). INSTANTLY, he said NO WAY-NEVER. I was a little shocked.

I asked why and explained I was on it and loved it. He stated his patients were too young and it causes pulmonary disease in young ones. I must have had a puzzled looked on my face as he reminded me he treated children. I then reminded him he also treated 18 and 19 year olds, which are not children. I was a little taken back by his abruptness and inability to separate the fact he treats infants to adults (though in peds).

He quickly changed the subject and asked about my long acting.  I said Tresiba. He RAVED about it and went on and on. OK so DRS PLEASE REALIZE AFREZZA IS FINE FOR ADULTS....ADULTS....THIS MEANS 18 AND OVER. Many 16 year olds are on it. He was not willing to be educated as he felt with his medical degree he knew about it than me. That's fine. I wasn't offended. A lot of drs are that way.

It's just sad to know those older ones are missing out on a better life. He said he suggests, to those not on shots, that they use the pump. STOP. STOP RIGHT THERE. Do not recommend the pump to anyone. I can't wait for the day when all drs (because not everyone is treated by an endo) realizes this is a great product. I literally tell everyone about it. Waitresses/Waiters, the guy at Toyota who services my car, it doesn't matter to me. I tell everyone!!!!

Found A Con

OK I say I found a "con," but I don't know.....anyway, I had a root canal. It's NOT easy inhaling Afrezza when your mouth is sore. That got me to thinking......what happens then if you have your wisdom teeth pulled? You're not supposed to use a straw after having that done (my husband, all 4 of my children and myself have all had ours pulled). How would you inhale your insulin then-OUCH?

I'm fine and could do it, though it definitely hurt, but there are a lot of scary variables that I had never thought of before. It's not stopping me from using it. It's still the best insulin on the market!

What would you do if something happened to your mouth? With a pump, it was similar. I literally ran out of places where I could put the site because of all the scar tissue. It was terrible. When you take shots you have tons of places to inject, but it's the same thing-scar tissue. Do people really understand just how terrible having diabetes is, and just how it affects everything in your life?

Well, like I said, I'm not sure that a root canal was a con, but wisdom teeth being pulled very well could be :(

High Levels Can Be Stress Induced

Well yesterday was Sunday and you know serving the Lord makes the Devil mad. So what does that mean for me? It means my levels were crazy yesterday morning and no matter how much Afrezza I inhaled, it wasn't cutting it. I knew I was making the devil mad by going, which made me want to go even more. Glad I didn't stay home. I got blessed for sure.

Anyway, stress induced....it sure wasn't because of church that relieves my stress.....tomorrow....thinking of it stresses me. The D-E-N-T-I-S-T. Another stress word that will be happening for me tomorrow R-O-O-T  C-A-N-A-L. I've been friends with my dentist for many, many years well as friendly as you can be with a guy who enjoys drilling in people's mouths LOL. Just the thought raises my levels.

I've huffed and puffed my new best friend, Afrezza, for days. I'm praying I sleep tonight. This is crazy. It's been so bad that I made a carb free, no Afrezza needed, dinner. Turkey chops, turnip mash and steamed broccoli. If I wasn't going to the dentist and wasn't a diabetic, I'd want chocolate cake tonight LOL but alas both are reality, so that was my dinner.

Thankfully, the injury to my foot is causing zero pain and I was so excited to have been given this beautiful new grey shoe from the orthopedic surgeon. Sure, I mean, ok, he calls it a walking boot but that doesn't really sound fashionable. I only have to wear it 3-4 more weeks. Truly Murphy's Law. Craziness in my world has set in. Tresiba and Afrezza have been a great combo.

That ugly "p" word (pump" would have had my levels everywhere this week. I can't say it enough-DUMP THE DIABETIC PUMP. SAVE YOUR PHYSICAL LIFE AND DUMP IT.

Losing Strength & What 4u's Will Cover

Well, I know many have given references about Afrezza NOT losing strength when NOT refrigerated. I believe I'll have to disagree. I find it does. I like to stay around only using 4 units, the sometimes 8 and the RARELY 12 (only twice I think since Oct). I have to use a LOT more when it's not refrigerated.

Is it possible my body is just adjusting to it and therefore more is required???

Anyway, I read an interesting article today. It stated 4u's will lower your BS around 40 points. WOW, ok so that would have been great to know before. My doctor said to keep my levels around 180. Well, why not keep it lower? I could take 4u's and make it around 130-140ish. That sounds great to me. Maybe he doesn't realize this. Why doesn't MannKind publicize it? Have they and I missed it? I know this insulin is not like any other, but sometimes.....just sometimes.....I'd like a chart.

Playing Catch Up

What a crazy time the past week has been.

I have completely cracked a back molar. This means pain. This means high blood sugars. Afrezza to the rescue. That's the only thing that has kept my levels normal. By normal, I mean 120's. WOOHOO to me!!!! When it happened, my levels almost instantly went up to 261. Then I trip and hurt my foot. Seeing the surgeon tomorrow. Murphy's Law is in full force.

That also meant levels didn't want to stay normal. Again, woohoo for Afrezza. I know if I were on the pump still, those pesky levels would be all over the place. You can't really control highs and lows on a pump. I don't care what you say.

We eat very healthy, but I've said it before and I'll say it again. I love food and like to cheat. So tonight is a cheat night. I don't "deserve" it because of the week I've had. I WANT it because of the week I've had.

So, tonight I'll be eating some good old fashion cornbread. That doesn't sound like a big deal to most people, but it is to any diabetic. It's wheat, gluten and dairy free for my daughter, so it's a lot healthier than most. I still haven't figured out how much Afrezza to take, but I'm figuring around 8 units.

I stay amazed how this insulin works. My "gripe" about MannKind is the same as always though. They really need to work on communication. They need to understand that while this is new for them too, it's even newer for the users and sometimes, just sometimes, we want to ask some questions without the response being "I'm really not sure."

What's The One Food You Can't Live Without?

It's been so cold today that I really haven't been able to get warm. So, I've drank about 10 cups of hot Earl Grey Tea (oh my-lanta it's so good). I love that I don't have to take any insulin with it. I love that it's warm.

This got me thinking. Do I love that I can take Afrezza and it keeps my levels down? Do I love it because I can eat what I want (I've been down that slippery slop with the pump and it got me in trouble)? Do I love that it's easier and more convenient than the pump ever was? What is it that I really love about Afrezza? What is it YOU really love about Afrezza????

I know that I love I can drink Earl Grey Tea and never take any insulin. I think even if I had to take Afrezza, I'd still drink the hot tea though. So, what's the one food you can't live without? No matter what you'd take the insulin and deal with it?