GETTING BACK INTO THE POOL (after 2 years away)

Sports & Exercise
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AFTER BOUTS WITH TERRIBLE GASTROPARESIS AND SEPSIS I WAS FINALLY ABLE TO GET BACK INTO THE POOL AND SWIM AGAIN; EXPERIMENT #1:

So, ive not been swimming since my last post. I ran out of my Domperidone and got a terrible bout with Gastroparesis. It sent me into the hospital with Sepsis (again), and since my meds come from Canada, i have quite a wait to get them over the boarder. And to make matters worse, my GI doc wouldnt prescribe more until he saw me in person (no video visits or phone conversations.) I felt like dying. I was so impacted, i was nauseated and vomiting and couldnt eat, i was so bloated i looked like i was about to give birth. And the PAIN, Oy Vay!!

I am still waiting for the Doperidone to arrive. As far as the tracking number says, its in some warehouse in California. SO, i am hoping any day now. I found that the maximum strength of Gas X helps with the bloating of the gastropraesis and i have been taking lg doses of Zofran for the nausea. I can eat, but only tiny portions and only easy to digest foods (it certainly is getting boring).

But iā€™ve been coping. Im doing the best with what i got. I mean, what else is there to do. However, apparently, a few GI Specialist in the USA perform a procedure where they implant a device (kind of like a pace maker but for the tummy) which stimulates the muscles to contract so that your food can move down through your intestines. (And BTW, this has been making it VERY difficult to maintain in TR with my BGs. My sugars are all over the place. yet, despite it all my latest A1c% was 5.4. Not so bad considering)

The only problem with using these specialists is that they are all over the map. One is in Texas, one in Philly, another in Pen, and one who only knows how to implant it but unfortunately he does not know how to moniter it and adjust itā€¦ Iā€™m both pissed off and angry. I mean whats up with these doctors ???

Anyway. Today was a GREAT day in the pool. No one was there. I had the entire pool to myself!!! Hooray. It was a challenge, though, to swim as hard as i am use to as my muscles were not as strong. My body was lethargic and tired quickly. But i was able to push myself and get the most pleasure out of it as possible. I am very surprised and pleased with my BG control. My starting sugars were 101 and i finished at 77.

I think Iā€™ll start a post on Gastroparesis and see how others cope with it. All i realy know about it is that there is no cure for it. Its the gift that keeps on giving :sleepy:

signing out,

DM

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giphy

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DISAPPOINTING BGs BUT 1/2 DECENT SWIM; EXPERIMENT #1:

Sorry i forgot to post about last Fridays swim, but just to say, it was fantastic. pool was empty and my stroke was strong. faster than usual but i did tire easily. BGs were excellent. i was very pleased.

However, today my BGs spiked in the morning (cortisol/adrenalin ?) and before jumping in my BGs went from 87 to 168 !!! Holy cow. I went all out with my swim, which was a great thing, but when i finished my sugars had only come down to 121. I felt really disappointed. But sh*t happens. I always forget that its NOT my fault. Its a disease, not me. So i try and talk myself off of the cliff and roll with it.

I bolused a little extra than usual after my swim (usually .3u/h , but today i bolused .5u/h thinking that would prevent any cortisol spike. Nope. Sugars jumped up again. I bolused for my Boost Shakes for 32gms and retested and my sugars had come down to 117 But when i finally got home, i retested and they had jumped up again to 158. I did a correction bolus of .6u/h and weā€™ll see what happens; anything goes.

All in all, i should not be complaining. Its luxury just to have a place where i can swim my laps, which i love so much. Iā€™ve really gotta stop focussing on my numbers and just enjoy every moment of it. (iā€™m usually pretty good at enjoying myself, but like some of us, it can be pure frustration!!)

iā€™ll be back in the pool on Friday so i can try it out all over again :wink:

siging out,

DM

PS: Its torrential here in Brooklyn today. Perhaps that was why the pool was so empty. I dont care what the reason was, because i had the lane all to myself and really had a great swim.

PS: DID I MENTION THAT I HAD A GREAT SWIM? :rofl:

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ENTERRA for gastroparesis:

I qualify as a candidate for the Enterra implant for my Gastroparesis. Ive been doing my research. Although my top of the medical profession for all thing GI, most of what i read about it sounds miserable and consuming.

Has anyone tried this for their Gastroparesis? Please chime in.

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I havenā€™t, but maybe start a new topic?

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Thanks MM2, Its a great idea. I think iā€™ll start a new thread today all about my trials and tribulations with Gastroparesis (cause its been a real nightmare, and i know others suffer from it too to different degrees.)

DM

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449

ZERO BASAL EXPERIMENT #1:

so last night throughout the ENTIRE night, i could not keep my sugars up. I was running in the 40s and 50s. Thank God for my Dexcom!!! (i would have easily slept right through the lows otherwise.) When i woke up i turned my basal down to 90% TB and went back to sleep for about another 1/2 hour. And, by 11am i had come up to 93. Phew. I turned off my basal to zero% . I waited 1/2 an hour, and when my BGs began to climb , i left right for the pool. By the time i got to the pool my BG had risen to 120. (boy that zero basal works fast!!! )

It was a great swim. I would have swam longer but the spinal pain was just too great. AS soon as i got out of the shower, i popped a muscle relaxer and pain reliever. I dont usually do this, but i was in such discomfort that i made and Executive Decision to take my meds. ( the doctor prescribes them for 4 times a day but its caused so much aggrevation for my Gastroparesis that i take 1/2 of what he prescribes and deal with the pain as much as i can tolerate.)

my start BG was 120 and my finish was 91. I would have preferred to go in a little lower, but it is what it is and next time i need to use a zero basal i wont wait so long before leaving the house.

After i finish writing this, i will start a new thread about the Enterra for the Gastroparesis. So, please check it out and contribute as much as you can. I would really like to begin a conversation about a really serious incurable problem.

Have a great weekend everybody!!! Iā€™ll be back in the pool on Tuesday.

signing out,

DM

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450

GOD I HATE DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME; EXPERIMENT #1:

nothing is as it should be. My sugars are so wacky that i dont know what to expect from hour to hour. I dont know if im gonna be 48 or 148. Iā€™m just rolling with the punches here. How long will this last???

When i woke up this morning my BG was 71. Great, right? after Bfast, my sugars shot up unexpectedly to162, then came back down to 81 after 4 hours. Kinda normal, but not for me. I dont usually go high after eatingā€¦at least not THAT high!!! Before leaving for the pool my sugars had popped up to 123 for no seemingly normal reason, and when i got to the pool my sugars were 115. I popped 1.5 glucose tabs and jumped in. There was no-one there. The pool was empty. It felt like my own private oasis :smile:

when i was finished with my swim, my sugars were 91. Okay, normal. I bolused .3 units asap, showered, dressed, and dashed home. When i was about 10 minutes from home, i bolused 3.2 units to cover 32 grams of refuel shakes. This is my regular routine. I like to have that insulin in me so i am all ready to drink my carbs and protein by the time i get upstairs. (i usually pre-bolus 15 minutes so long as i am in TR)

Anyway, it was a great, strong swim. I am about ready to extend my swim time. It hurts like hell and my doctors all say ā€œif it hurts, you probably shouldnt do it,ā€ but iā€™ve been hurting for the past 3 years now. I might as well just keep swimming despite the pain. I mean i want to live as full a life as possible without restricting myself to the bed and the sofa :crazy_face:

did anyone check out my post on Gastroparesis yet?

iā€™ll b bk in the pool on Friday and will report.

signing out,

DM

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BOUNCING SUGARS; EXPERIMENT #1:

Overnight i was running low and woke up to take a glucose tablet every two hours. Bad nights sleep. So, when 5am rolled around, i couldnt take it anymore, so i popped a Gtab waited for my sugars to come up and ate breakfast. While I was eating, however, i started seeing stars and my Dexcom alarm was screaming at me ā€œLOW,LOW,LOW!!!ā€ I did a finger stick, even though i could barely see, and my BG was 32! Holy Cow!!! I took a Transcend gel and waited patiently, shaking, for my sugars to come back up. I tell you, this Daylight Savings Time has been killing me. I dont know why just one hour either backwards or forwards should make such a significant difference in my BGs, but this happens to me EVERY time we move the clocks in any direction. And it lasts and lingers. I end up having to retweak my basals most often just to accomodate the discrepancy. what a PITA.

anyway, after i was able to finish mmy Bfast, i was wiped out, and i decided to go bk to bed and nap till i had to prep for my swim. throughout my nap my Dexcom kept reading 110. not so bad for all that sugar i pounded into my body when i was at 32 trying to quickly as possible to climb up. It was acceptable.So, not needing any correction, i continued sleeping. And before my husband left the house, he made me do a finger stick ( out of sheer concern) and my sugars were still 110. holding steady. I went bk to sleep for another hour. But, When i woke up at 10am, my sugars had climbed to 139. OMG. I wanted really badly to go for an early swim and doing any correction would not be recommended, so as soon as i had zero IOB, i made a dash out of my home for the pool. By the time i reached the pool, my sugars had come up to 144. OMG AGAIN. Okay, so what. I changed into my swimsuit at started swimming as hard as i could.

During my swim, as great as it was :rofl: my Dexcom started peeling off. Just the overpatch, but i was teribly afraid of it coming off (it happened to be on its last hours, but it had been perfectly calibrated and i love when that happens. That extreme accuracy is a rare treat, and i dont take it for granted.) I continued to swim, but there was a drag on my left arm as the overpatch kept flapping :crazy_face:

anyway, when i got out of the pool, my BG was 100. I felt really good about that. A nice strong swim with excellent results. The only difference between my ā€œreplacementā€ insulin (to fend off the incoming cortisol spike) was that since i was 100 BG instead of bolusing my usual .3u/h I bolused .4u/h (especially bc it was a tough swim). On my way home i did a manual bolus to cover my refuel shakes. And that was that. Right now iā€™ve been holding steady at 95. I really hope my basals cooperate for the rest of the day. I really dont want to have to retweak and adjust my basal rates any more than i have to.

If anyone out in FUD Land goes through this with Daylight Savings, please please please chime in and comment upon it. I am sooo eager to know if i am the only D who goes through this.

Iā€™ll b bk in the pool after the weekend. Weā€™ll see what happens with my BGs. I hope that they settle down. Now please say a prayer for me while i call up Dexcom for a dud sensor i had to remove two weeks ago and request a replacement. They are nice but the whole process drives me crazy.

signing out,

DM

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No, I donā€™t think it effects like it does you but I can see that it could be a factor, afterall, everything else in this world seems to have impact on our BGs!

That was a bad low. Glad you got up when you did to eat some ā€œrealā€ food, and did a finger stick! You stabilized nicely and your swim probably redu ed the stress from your earlier low, too!!

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INCREASING MY SWIM TIME; EXPERIMENT #1:

So, i would like to increase my swim time. I want to take it slowly though. I would like to add on another 15 minutes so that will bring me up to 45 minutes total. (of course the goal is a nice 2 hour swim, but im not there yet). I am uncertain whether i should do a zero basal before i begin my swim, or if i should just pop a Gtab before or during my swim (meaning getting out of the pool and taking a tab to continue swimming). I will have to confirm with Eric on this one. His suggestions for me have always gotten me nearly perfect every time and as an all time athlete, heā€™s my go-to dude. And of course, i will be reporting it all back to you, so perhaps this will help someone anxious or struggling or just interested at watching my process. Thereā€™s always so much to learn!!! (especially being a D )

Today was a nice, leisurely swim. There were only a few other swimmers in the pool, so it was easy to meditate and relax. I started my swim at 105 and finished at 70. I felt very happy with my BG control. I know that when i begin to swim for a longer time period, my numbers will most likely b a little wacky in the beginning but i dont want to go there yet in my mind. I just want to enjoy myself doing what gives me so much pleasure.

Signing out,

DM

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Here is what I suggest. You dropped a little bit today from beginning to end. And that seems like the normal trend for you.

I suggest adding another 15 minutes to your zero basal before the swim starts. And possibly taking a gtab right before you start if you are either close to 100, or trending down before starting.

Keep everything else the same! Donā€™t change too much. Just a few little changes. See how that works.

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[quote=ā€œEric, post:454, topic:12729ā€]
I suggest adding another 15 minutes to your zero basal before the swim starts. And possibly taking a gtab right before you start if you are either close to 100, or trending down before starting.
[/quote

I havent used the zero basal in a while now. I use it when my sugars are below 110 while i am prepping. Yesterday, before i left for the pool my sugars were 111, so i didnt bother with the zero basal. I simply walked right to the pool. but it was when i got to the pool that my sugars had come down, I seem consistantly to drop slightly, youre right, from beginning to end of swim. Before my swim i take enough tablets that would ā€œnormallyā€ bring me up to 140/145 BG and then i jump in. So for instance, yesterday when my sugars were 105 i took 2 tablets before jumping in. my question for you, Eric, is, do i just try taking more of the tablets before jumping in? Just enough to carry me that extra 15 minutes?

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I did not know you stopped doing the ZB.

(But you are still on a ZB during the swim, since you take the pump off! :joy:)

So, yes, I would stick with your normal formula, except add just a little bit ā€œmoreā€

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When you say : ā€œadd just a little bit moreā€ what do you mean? Do you mean to take an extra tablet before jumping in?

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It depends!

No formula, just The Force.

If you were 90 you would take more than if you were 120, right?

If you were dropping quickly youā€™d take more than if you were flat, right?

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Thanks. I will just play around with it and use The Force to guide me :crazy_face:

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@daisymae,
Apply what you already know about your 30 minute swims. Just do a little ā€œmoreā€ for 45 minute swims.

The amount you need will always depends on the circumstances. So you canā€™t decide now that you will take 1 more gtab. You have to decide on that morning. It might be 1 more, it might be 2 more, or it might be none.

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INCREASED SWIM TIME TO 45 MINUTES; EXPERIMENT #1:

WHEN GOD GIVES YOU LEMONS MAKE LEMONAID.

Have you ever had a true panic attack? Well i had a whopper of one this morning.When I woke up my sugars were 74. I ate breakfast, and shortly afterwards my Dexcom started screaming. I did a fingerstick and my BG was 60. I popped a Gtab and got bk into bed for a two hour, pre-swim nap. I couldnt sleep. All i could think of was the goal i had set for myself: The first 45 minute swim since my back surgery. How would I manage it, what i would I do to be safe, what would I do to have ā€œgoodā€ BG control, etc etc etcā€¦My heart was pounding. And the more i tried to slow my racing heart down, the worse it got. I couldnt sleep. Not a wink. My heart just raced. It was awful. As my prep-time came closer, my sugars started spiking. I went from 60 (pre-Gtab) to 149 in just one hour. I waited till I had no more IOB and to the minute, I grabbed my gear and ran out of the house to the pool. By the time i got there i was terribly frazzled and my sugars had gone up to 152 !!! Holy Cow. I changed into my suit and jumped into the pool. I swam as hard as i could. I was still having a panic attack. At that point, i couldnt understand why; i mean, my sugars were high, so it wasnt like i was going to drown. But my breathing was uncomfortably fast and my heart pounded. I tried meditating. Breathing in, breathing out, slowing my breathes, focusing on my stroke. Doing a body ā€œscanā€ where I started with my feet and worked my way up to the crown of my head. Feeling my feet. they were there. feeling my legs, they were there too, etc etc right up to my head. I started to relax. Finally. Phew. After 30 minutes i got out of the pool to check my BGs. 121. I didnt take any Gtabs, i just got back into the pool and swam for another 15 minutes. I knew that id be okay without the Gtabs bc i had been on Zero Basal for the past half hour. When i was finished my sugars were 102. I was very pleased.

SO, what i learned from this experiment was that when BGs are 150ish, I would need X amount of Gtabs pre-swim to keep me in my TR for 45 minutes. A new ā€œformula.ā€ All i will need to do for my next 45 minute swim is try to " repeat " this scenario. Like, if my sugars are 100 pre-swim, i would need to take enough Gtabs to bring me up to 150ish (if i werent swimming) And then while swimming i would remain stable. so basically, i would start at around 100 and finish at around 100. (Thats the goal anyway.) Also, after my swim, instesda of giving myself the usual .3 u/h to ward off the cortisol spike, i gave myself .4 u/h since i was off my pump on zero basal for the 45 minutes. Here i dont think i gave myself enough insulin. Finishing at 102 bolusing for my shakes, i spiked to 168 right afterwards. So for my next swim, I will try giving myself some extra insulin and see how that works.

Right now, i will just Basque in the sunshine of a successful experiment and cope with how sore and utterly exhausted my body is. Im on that athletic swimmers High right now, which is thoroughly enjoyable :rofl: Iā€™m not going to waste any time ruminating over petty imperfections.

siging out,

DM

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#warrior #courage

way to power through and seize victory from the jaws of defeat!!! :muscle:

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