I need all the help I can get
I watched as my wife sat on the bed with the Kwik Pen in her hand. A diabetic who should be able to test her sugar in her sleep couldn’t figure out how to use the pen. I couldn’t help her because I never thought to pay close attention. She will check her sugar when I’m asleep or eating, or when I’m using my computer.
I will be an expert Kwik Pen user before it’s over
We never could figure it out that night. Two nights later, I had to call 911. I was talking to my brother-in-law on the phone. He suggested that I find out what Brand of monitor and test strip she uses. Once I found out, he said I should learn how to use them by watching YouTube videos.
During a lull, I watched a few videos when my wife was asleep and not yelling for me to help her. I will watch them often until I get it down. I can help my wife the next time her sugar is too high or too low.
I know there will be a next time.
It’s not hard to do, a matter of how to release the catch, that’s all
“ Now I get it,” I thought as I watched the video for the first time. My wife couldn’t figure out how to prick her finger with the Kwik Pen. I have a habit of breaking things when I try to use them without seeing how they work first. I didn’t want to break the pen.
I now know how to release the trigger to use the needle. I’m not clear yet on how to use the readings, how much glucose is too low, and how much is too high, but I will learn.
A crash course on the effects of Diabetes on the mind and body
I didn’t know a lot about Diabetes before we got married. I learn more every day. Diabetes is a serious illness. A Diabetic who refuses to mind their glucose levels is playing with fire.
If you’re a Diabetic, take your condition seriously. Fighting through the complications of Diabetes negatively affects your quality of life. You have things you want to do and a life to live, but you can’t get the most out of life if you’re sick all the time.
Maintaining your health, or being sick all the time, and an early death, choose
I know, monitoring your glucose level is a pain, and so is injecting Insulin. Aren’t frequent ambulance rides and hospital stays a pain, too?
Another person you need to consider if you’re a Diabetic is your spouse. I haven’t had a lot of sleep since I called 911 the other night. My wife needs help. She sleeps a lot. I have to wake her to see if she’s okay and if she eats and drinks something.
She’s getting better, but it’s a struggle
I called 911 the other night. Her sugar was low, and she let herself get dehydrated. They released her from the hospital three or four hours later. She sleeps and eats when I wake her.
I wake her up every hour or two. I make sure she eats, drinks, and takes her meds. I love my wife, and I’m happy to care for her. The stress and lack of rest make things hard.
The stress is too much sometimes, and I snap
I know it’s the sickness and she can’t help it, but her behavior and attitude are too much. I have been running my butt off and nothing is good enough. The constant fussing and calling my name is wearing on me.
Interestingly, I eat and drink whatever she serves me, but nothing I fix for her is good enough. I’m not fast enough either. I was patient up to a point, but the other night I snapped.
I need to do better, I know that, but I’m human
She cried and said she was sorry and threatened to leave. I told her she didn’t need to go anywhere; she needed to cut me some slack. We’re good now, for the moment anyway. I wish I hadn’t lost my temper, but I was tired and stressed.
If you find out she’s Diabetic, learn all you can, because she will need your help
If you’re in a new relationship and you find out she’s diabetic. As the relationship progresses, you need to learn about the disease and what you need to do to help her.
Don’t do what I did, and think she will be responsible enough to take care of herself. That might not be the case. It took me long enough, but I learned my lesson.
Diabetes can be controlled and managed, but you have to be responsible for your health
Diabetes can be challenging to deal with, but you can control it. My wife did that for several years. Her mom was also Diabetic. She knows the dangers of not managing the disease. Why managing it now has become a problem is something I need to figure out.
Learn as much as you can about the disease. Learn how to use the tester and how much Insulin you need to administer. It also helps to go outside for a minute and decompress, and that’s hard to do in South Carolina in July. It was cool today, the high was only ninety-one degrees. It’s been hotter than that.
Final thought:
If you’re a Diabetic, you need to put the self-pity aside and take care of yourself. Not taking care of yourself will not make it easier for you or your loved ones. What good will your husband do you if you cause him to have a heart attack or another stroke?
If you’re a spouse of a Diabetic, you need patience. The Diabetic will push all your buttons and not let you have privacy or rest. You have to keep your cool and help her the best you can. Find time to get out of the house, breathe, and decompress.
Remember your vows, love her, help her as best as you can, and forgive her attitude and lack of patience. She doesn’t mean the hurtful things she says. Marriage is amazing, but it’s not easy.
Take care of each other.
If you’re looking for a writer: LawsonWallacewrites@gmail.com
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