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Doctor issues

L

LilaE

Active Member
So I went to my gp today because they said they had a letter from my hospital which turned out to be that I wanted to have cartridges not pre filled pens so I could use a half unit one. Firstly they seemed kinda annoyed that I wanted cardtridges and thought I might get confused and didn't want me to have prefilled on my prescription(in case I wanted them for a holiday etc) because they thought I would get confused. Then when I asked why my prescription of 200 test strips had gone down to 100 they asked me how many times I test and I told them 10 sometimes. This is because I'm in the honeymoon phase and I'm trying to work everything out and I really want to gain lots of information. Also obviously if you go low you check every 15 minutes. They seemed kind of angry and shocked and worried about me and saying I was stressing myself out. I actually cried as I tried to explain some people see their blood sugar all the time and I just want to learn. So they didn't increase my prescription and I think they want me to be part of their diabetic team as well as my hospital because they're concerned. I understand 10 can be overkill but when I can't see spikes and how different things effect me, especially so early on, how can I learn enough about my body and condition?

Sorry about the rant I guess I'm just wondering if I'm doing something wrong and I really am doing too much or if I should feel upset like I do.
 
If the hospital said you should have a half unit pen, you need the cartridges for it.
If you drive, you must test your blood before setting off and this, along with testing before (and 2 hours after) meals, means that you could easily test 10 times per day.

How often did your DSN tell you to test? If 100 strips doesn't cover this, ask her to contact your GP. Type 1 patients shouldn't have their strips limited. The hospital will be able to help you (either your DSN or consultant).

You have the right to attend hospital diabetic clinics, so don't feel forced to change to your GP's clinic.
 
Hi. I would insist on the cartridge pen; my DN offered me a choice of pen types when I started on insulin and prefer the cartridge pen. I must admit 10 strips sounds a bit excessive and perhaps you are worrying too much about your blood sugar? I typically use 2 or 3 strips per day (yes, that's all), but we are all different and I know I'm not typical. I have found that the more I learn about my sugar movements the less I know, as guessing food content limits how predictable you can ever be. BTW my last HBA1C was 6.3% so my control is quite good in practice.
 
I test between 5 - 8 times a day depending on what I am doing. That does NOT account for hypo tests which I seem to only be having every 3 - 3 weeks.

I would definitely talk to your DSN.
 
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