{"id":35564,"date":"2014-03-20T07:05:31","date_gmt":"2014-03-20T11:05:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/asweetlife.org\/?p=35564"},"modified":"2015-12-27T15:44:17","modified_gmt":"2015-12-27T20:44:17","slug":"confessions-of-a-bad-diabetic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/asweetlife.org\/?p=35564","title":{"rendered":"Confessions of a Bad Diabetic"},"content":{"rendered":"

I just read a study<\/a> that says it’s OK for diabetics to do their shots through their shirts, or through their jeans, or bathing suits or any fabric. Way back in 1997 five researchers studied 50 diabetics who practiced this \u201crogue\u201d method of insulin delivery and concluded that, \u201cIt is safe and convenient to inject insulin through clothing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHells yeah!\u201d is what I said to myself upon discovering this bit of research. I\u2019ve been doing shots through my shirt for decades. I don\u2019t do it as a form of rebellion against The Diabetic Man, or as an empty flaunting of the rules. I do it for convenience and because when you\u2019re on a crowded train, in a restaurant, or running the 18th<\/sup> mile of the Boston Marathon, rolling up your sleeve or lifting your shirt and jamming a needle into your arm or your stomach is not just bad form, it\u2019s fairly well off-putting for anyone near you. \u00a0So, when the occasion arose, I would surreptitiously take out my syringe and bam! no one was the wiser.<\/p>\n

The study was a relief. All the years that I engaged in this practice I felt guilty that I was doing a bad diabetic thing. What was worse was a friend would see me do my shot through my shirt and wonder about whether I was a good, or a bad, diabetic. In fact, the only times I\u2019m ever chastised for the diabetic shortcuts I take, or the other \u201crogue\u201d practices I engage in, is by a non-diabetics expressing shock\u2014shock!\u2014at my various behaviors.<\/p>\n

The other day after making a shocking\u2014shocking!\u2014discovery in my kitchen my girlfriend gave me a short speech about the health dangers of Froot Loops. Now, I like my Froot Loops. And Cocoa Puffs. And don\u2019t even get me started on Lucky Charms and Coco Krispees. I explained that yes, I do eat the Froot Loops. But, I do it once in a while, as a treat. I do not, for instance have half a box of Froot Loops for dinner. (All right, there was that one<\/em> time \u2026) I also told her that I calculate carbs and take the requisite insulin to counteract the effects of the aforementioned Froot Loops. She seemed, if not reassured, at least comforted that I appear to know what I\u2019m doing.<\/p>\n

And I do know what I am doing! Until, that is, the beer. In the insightful words of my friend, Michael Reed, \u201cI like beer.\u201d Calculating insulin regarding beer can be tricky because 1) it\u2019s a rolling ingestion that you don\u2019t exactly plan to the gram beforehand, B) the effects of carbs in alcohol on blood sugar are not as straightforward as calculating pure carbs, 4) the counting of the actual numbers becomes, um, intimidating at some point past 1 a.m.<\/p>\n

But, when I transgress I do not panic. I just sit back and wait for those studies that conclude it is safe and convenient for diabetics to eat Froot Loops and drink beer<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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