@daisymae, your courage and persistence and determination are always an inspiration to me. 
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Eric, none of this would have been possible without all of your guidance and endless support and the support of the FUD community.
If anyone is curious who doesnt know my swimming story, please read my thread on SWIMMING. I think it is very educational (IMHO) and you may learn about many different things besides just exercising as a diabetic who takes insulin.
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Totally agree! I read all of your incredibly helpful posts and can vouch for them helping me. I know others will be, too, if they read them. I read from the beginning posts and found it very helpful to see your progression, how you applied @Eric 's advice and your very detailed notes.
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FINALLY! BACK IN THE POOL AFTER 3 WEEKS AT HOME SICK. EXPERIEMENT #1:
Every day I was waking up just hoping that that day would be the day I would b feeling better and I could get back into the pool and do my thing. But by breakfast time, I felt like death. I couldnt eat I was so nauseated. I ached from head to toe. light bothered my eyes. Basically, I lay on my sofa like a slug, drifting in and out of sleep, waking up only to take my pain pills and drink water. lots of water. maybe too much water 
.
I had to go to the hospital twice. Once to Mt Sinai Urgent Care and once late at night to the NYU Langone ER. They did both CoVid and Influenza tests, full blood work, EKG, and lung X-rays (I had been coughing non-stop and had felt like and elephant was sitting on my chest and was having a terrible time breathing.) (All of this, btw, after my husband had done 4 at-home CoVid tests which were all negative and had been chasing me around the house with a thermometer …also negative for fever.)
All of my hospital tests came back showing that I was in perfect health. So what was the matter? Both hospital doctors told me that since CoVid, people are coming in droves with weird, unexplainable illnesses. They believe that they are all variations of the CoVid virus. Unfortunately, they dont know how to diagnose them, so they dont know how to treat them, so they just send people home and tell them to take some Tylenol and rest and stay well hydrated. (I already know that I drink too much water, so thats not an issue for me.)
But, back to the important stuff: Swimming. 
:
Finally, after way too much time out of the healing water and exercise, I was back and able to do my thing. I had been having issues with my 10am basal rate over the past few weeks (too low), and finally figured it out (I kept spiking at around 12pm (remember, my idea of a spike is 120 
) I didnt know which part of my pump profile was causing this “spike” but I had to fix it and I didnt feel particularly comfortable messing around with it on a “swim” day. But I did. And it worked like a charm. All I did was increase it from .625 U/H to .650 U/H. only a tiny change, I know but my body is super duper insulin sensitive and just that tiny increment of insulin packs a real punch with me.
Anyhow, at 12:10, when I had no more IOB from Bfast, I turned off my pump to Zero basal. I waited 15 minutes before leaving the house. Usually this gives me exactly 20 minutes to get to the pool and 5 minutes to change into my suit. BUT, this afternoon, my husband (he’s such a doll ) insisted on walking me to the pool. He’s a slow walker. Ugh. A slow walking Doll who added another 5 minutes to my walk and I am such a perfectionist, and for me, timing is everything. I prefer to get all my Zero Basal in at once so I know how much insulin I need to replace when I re-hook up to my pump. Oh, big deal, Daisy Mae…get a life! .
stats:
Woke up on the high side (for me) at 122. Did a pre-bfast correction of .3U and pre-bolused 30 minutes before eating. (8am)
by 8:30, my sugars had come down to 110, so I ate my Bfast and chilled out for 2.5 hours when I tested again. My BG was 112. Not bad. It was almost 11am, but since my 10am basal rate increase, I didnt know what to expect when I had no more IOB. Anything goes. But I lucked out. I used the Force, which Eric taught me, and it worked like a charm.
12:10 BG 110 turned off pump and prepped for my swim. in exactly 15 minutes I was all set to leave the house, but my husband pleaded with me to come along. OMG, he takes forever just to put his glasses on! 
So I waited impatiently. I do LOVE his companionship so 
just walking with him makes me smile.
so,
12:10 BG 110 took 6gms fast carbs and jumped in (40 minutes of 0% TB)
1:20 BG 98 bolused .8U (just a guess) showered and dressed, took 2 pain pills and walked home. On my way, I bolused 3.2 U for refuel shakes.
2pm BG 104 drank shakes
dont know what to expect. with the basal change and extra time off my pump while I was swimming, I didnt know how much insulin to replace it with. How much insulin did I actually miss out on? How much would that impact me? Was my shower longer than usual? Had I stopped and chatted with another swimmer for too long? blah blah blah.
but time will tell, and then I will be able to tell you 
It was a wonderful swim. It was slower than I worked up to since I restarted, but it was my first day back so I cut myself some slack. Im certain that Wednesday it will b a stronger swim.
Currently, my last BG was 94.my last bolus was at 1:40 and it is now 3:05pm and I have finished drinking my shakes. Now I am moving on to fresh walnuts. 
Tomorrow I see my back surgeon for my 1 year assessment. I am nervous but excited. I would really like to know why I am still in so much pain. I dont think I could put any more energy into my healing than I have. I have tolerated more than my share. Please keep me in your prayers 
signing out,
DM
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DM - know that you are not only in our prayers but my family’s thoughts as well. I hope the appointment goes well, but do know that healing from procedures as extensive as yours can take time, even though we don’t want it to. I hope they have an easy answer for your pain, and your journey is very inspirational!
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So happy that you could get back to it!
And also very happy that you did it with big 
exclamation marks like these numbers!
Congrats! And welcome back!
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WOKE UP WITH A LOW OF 45 BG THIS MORNING; EXPERIMENT #1:
OMG, AT 6:30am this morning, I woke up with a BG of 45, shaking and sweating and not knowing which way was up or down. I stumbled into the kitchen and drank 1/3 Cup of Apple Cider. I really dont know how I came up with that specific amount of juice, but it landed me in a sweet spot.By 7:30am my BGs had come up to 100, and they hovered there all morning, even after I ate my breakfast. Phew. dodged a bullet on that one!! 
I dont know if anyone else has this issue (which I am pleased about), but my BGs dont really rise post meal. If anything, they go a little lower, and then they pretty much stay there like a flatline. Just thought I’d put that out there, even though it has absolutely nothing to do with swimming.
anyway, had a great swim. very very relaxing. so happy to be there in the water. I think I may be ready to increase my swimming days or the timing of the length of my swims. either or. no rush to make up my mind. just thinking about it.
stats:
8:15am BG 102 (bolused for bfast)
11am BG 106
12:15pm BG 104 turned off pump Zero Basal
12:50pm BG 104 6gms carbs, changed into my suit and jumped into the pool
1:30pm BG 84 .6U/H (for my last swim, .8U turned out to be too much bc I ended up crashing later on in the late afternoon)
1:50pm Bolused 3.2U for my refuel shakes while walking home
all in all, everything was a success, minus the 45morning BG and the unknown of my replacement basal post swim. (dont know how thats going to play out. I do hope it works.
PS: yesterday I saw my spinal surgeon for my yearly assessment/physical. Everything was healing well and everything was in its right place. The pain I am having has nothing to do with the surgery itself; it is completely due to extreme tightening and spasming of my muscles. The doctor says he sees this most frequently on very thin people. (God knows why). But he strongly recommended that I get those Trigger Injections to try and relieve some of the muscle pain and to continue exercising as much as possible. If I am not swimming, I should be out walking. No lolligagging around on the sofa eating pretzels and watching mindless television
I am getting my 2nd CoVid Booster vaccine on Friday, so I wont be swimming. God only knows how I’ll react to it. I didnt do so well with the others, so I am trying to set the bar very low and expect to feel crummy for a couple of days afterwards. I am sick of all those people telling me they only had a minor headache or a cough or a night of fever. For my 3 other vaccinations I was laid out for a week. I am very slow to heal. 
wish me luck!
singing out,
DM
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That made me laugh. Years ago a woman was trying to lasso my wife into something she didn’t want to do. “I’m too busy” “What with?” “Watching the soaps and eating bon-bons.”
Glad your surgeon is happy with your healing, and you are back in the pool.
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BEEN TOO DEPRESSED TO REPORT EXPERIMENT :1
I just wanted to touch base and let you all know that I am still alive. I havent been able to swim for a while. I got very sick from some unknown virus (not CoVid nor the Flu) that the doctors could not diagnose. They sent me home from the hospital with a bottle of Tylenol.
Just when I began to feel better, I went and had my 2nd CoVid Booster vaccine. and, 2 days later, my husband came down with CoVid. I am certain he got it in Shul bc none of the other men there wear masks. We immediately tested me, but I was negative. And I stayed negative for 4-5 days. We separated as much as anyone can in an apartment. Lysol was our best friend.
Because of his age and good health, he was able to take the anti-viral medication. Within 3 days he was back to his normal self. a little tired, but ok. I am not, unfortunately, a candidate for the medication bc of certain medications I must take. I had to ride it out. It was miserable, as im certain many of u know. I felt like death. Thank God for the pump, because I was on 180% TB for 2 weeks. I could barely eat. I was constantly nauseated, and just the thought of food made me sick. I lost a lot of weight, and I am already very thin. My clothing is draping over me.
Once the CoVid ran its course, and I went back to 100% basal, for whatever reason, my need for insulin changed dramatically. Seriously. I am on so little basal now, that if it weren’t for the occasional roller coaster of high spikes, I would b certain I was no longer diabetic
At midnight, for example, my basal is .10 U/hr. I have continued lowering all of my basals but I cant keep up with them. I just crash all day long. And very very quickly. (within 5-10 minutes I can go from 80 down to 60).
I am writing half out of selfishness. I thought that if I connected with the FUD community, I would feel less alone with my frustrations. I am not alone when I connect with you guys.
How does this connect with swimming? Well, I was so excited to get back into the pool today. I had all my swim gear bagged and ready to go.But, despite having been loweringing my basals every day, starting around 8am, my BGs started dropping. Oh yuck. I turned off my pump completely and ate some skittles. I waited for my BGs to come bk up. NADA. They just kept going down. I ate more skittles. Nothing. After 45 minutes off my pump, I decided to take another handful of Skittles and walk to the gym.My BG was 68. I really expected my sugars to rise by the time I got to the pool. Once I was there, I put on my suit, cap, goggles and retested before jumping into the pool. My BG was 50. WTF??? Disappointed, I changed bk into my street clothing and packed up my gear and walked home. I figured with all that time on zero basal I was safe walking home, especially with all those Skittles OB. When I got home my BG had come up to 61.This was at 12:15. I waited (I was starving for lunch). at 1pm my BG had spiked to 145. I did a correction and bolused for a large bowl of cottage cheese (12gms).
I changed out my entire pump set and my insulin just to b certain there was nothing going on there. But my sugars kept climbing. At 4:30, my BG was 210. I did my 3rd correction bolus. We’ll c what happens.
Wednesday I am having another (minor) surgery on my back. (I had one 2 weeks ago but it didnt help so we’re trying for a second round (as per Medicare regulations, If I want to have anything invasive with my back, I MUST go through the right procedures to qualify.) I am still on the fence about getting an ABLATION. (has anyone here had one?) They go under your skin and burn the nerves to stop the pain sensations, and they insert something like a mini pace-maker to stimulate the muscles that are knotted. They are supposed to help for 6-8 months, and they will allow me to get off all the lousy medications. I am trying to b hopeful. I already know how much they will hurt. Egaads.
Thank you all for bearing with me and listening. I need all the support I can get.
I hope you are all healthy; and for the Jewish community, Happy and sweet New Year and all the other holidays that followed. 
hopefully, I will b in the pool on Friday. Ill keep you all posted.
signing out,
DM
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@daisymae you patience is herculean. I know a little about pain management, but not about the current state of those treatments. I had a friend who had a pain stimulator for his back that worked wonders and allowed him to get off all of this pain medication, but that was different than an ablation and a muscle stimulator.
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A dream come true for me. The cocktail of meds I have been taking surely do their own damage.
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Constant pain does a lot of damage on its own. It causes stress which creates a whole host of problems too. It is a difficult problem…
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it took me almost a year to learn how to walk on my own again. That in itself was stressful. I wanted to cry every day. It was a struggle. FUD and my family kept me going. I tried to live in Gratitude rather than Self-Pity, but thats easier said than done.
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Oh DM, this is a lot. I’ve been thinking about you and am so sorry for all of your illness and that you are still in pain. I so hope that Wednesday’s surgery goes well and that you’re able to swim like a fish on Friday. Please take care and keep us posted - xoxo - Jessica
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OMG, you’ve had a rough couple of months, DM! I’m sorry you contracted Covid, but am so glad your recovered pretty quickly. Strange how you continue to have resistant lows. That is hard to understand and sounds impossible to control! I wonder if it is a side effect of Covid. Good luck this Wednesday!! We are looking forward to your post swim post on Friday!!! 
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I was wondering the exact same thing. Especially bc it all started AFTER CoVid passed. Before CoVid, I was absolutely fine with my basal rates and hadn’t any problems with them. They were all consistent and reliable with only the occasional tweak. Hummmmm. 
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BACK IN THE POOL AGAIN, FINALLY, EXPERIMENT #1:
so its been almost a month since ive been swimming. I had two unidentifiable viruses back to back, followed by a terrible bout of CoVid (right after my second booster, believe it or not!) The viruses both sent me to the hospital. I was very very sick. The doctors performed every conceivable test on me, even an X-ray of my lungs (I was unable to stop coughing and was having a very difficult time breathing.) I even went so far as having a VideoVisit with a doctor from NYU Langone and was prescribed two inhalers (one with steroids…that was fun .) No one was able to diagnose me other than suggesting that it was a variant of the current CoVid that is going around.
Then I got CoVid for real, and that was sheer hell, as I am certain anyone who has suffered through it themselves, could understand. I lay in bed for several weeks feeling like dying would be merciful.(I was on a 180% TB!!!)
After CoVid, my basal rates would not go back to normal. My BGs were all over the map. I was high, I was low. I could be 200, or I could be 21!!! (The 21 really threw me for a scary loop) And after much tweeking trying to find new patterns, I almost (and I emphasize ALMOST) have them down and working properly. But its been a long scary road and I was terribly afraid of getting into the pool with sugars that were fluctuating so dramatically.
This morning I woke up at 5am and my sugars were perfect at 77. I got up and played on the computer until 6am and then ate a large bowl of Cream of Wheat. Then I took a nap until 10:30. I got all my swimming gear ready and left the house around 11:05am and raced to the pool. I was so excited. FINALLY!!!
stats:
11:25 BG 110. I took 1.5 tabs of glucose and jumped in. I was weak and although my swim was delicious, I did feel my body struggling as I swam, and I still had a challenging time breathing.
I’ll be back in the pool for another effort on Wednesday. I hope I will feel stronger by then. This CoVid virus really hit me hard. And its just lingering even though I am testing negative.
Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I stuffed my face with everything, but the absolute best part of the meal for me was the home made Pumpkin Pie. I had a huge slice. My sugars never went above 130 throughout. Before bed I put on a TB of 120% to last until 4am, and all went well, staying in my TR. (Eric taught me that trick…he always has something up his sleeve, doesnt he 
)
signing out,
DM
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I hope, no more viruses or whatever. I had a less severe bout of Covid in June. It caused me higher than normal BG levels for 2 or 3 weeks after testing negative. For a solid month I had exercise induced shortness of breath. That has improve. I am back to normal.
And I am so happy 
you are back in the pool.
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Im so sorry you had to go through this. The trouble breathing feels like I have an elephant sitting on my chest
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Your determination is truly world class @daisymae. Glad you are on the mend. Covid sounds awful, fingers crossed I don’t get it, I have somehow managed to avoid the virus but assume at some point my number will be called.
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