#DblogWeek Day 1: The Rules of Ginormous Flat Screen TVs Are Finite

It's the first day of #dblogweek - and today's topic is Diabetes and the unexpected. 

Diabetes makes me look at things differently - and find alternative solutions, a’la MacGyver -  and that’s a great thing.

Rubber Bands to procure your insulin pump

For instance, a hair rubber band isn’t just for hair dear readers. 

It’s also a trusty pump reinforcement for my pump clip when the little lock part of said pump clip cracked off.

No harm, no foul, and no freaking out about not being able to clip my pancreas to my hip 

Sidebar: Elastic ribbon bands work especially well - and add lots pretty to your pump! 

Strategic placed low blood sugar bedside station

Years of middle of the night lows have taught me that strategic bedside placement of juice boxes and a jar of glucose tabs on the bedside mean no stumbling in the middle of the night during a low blood sugar, thus allowing for physical safety and staying toasty under the covers.

Speaking of.... Juice box requirements in the middle of the night have taught me to suck down the juice boxes more efficiently. Who has time for fumbling with each individual juice box straw? 

Not this chick.

I've discovered through trial and error that the first straw/same straw for multiple juice box nights and avoid fumbling with additional wrapping.

Diabetes has taught to assess my surroundings

No matter where I go, I quickly assess the food situation and ALWAYS make sure I bring something to treat a low - just in case there's no food and or gross food. 

But it's not just about food. 

Recently I was at a restaurant with a group of 20 people - and my pump battery went from 3 bars to 1right after I ordered my pork sandwich.

I was in a city I wasn’t familiar with, I didn’t know where the closest drugstore was, nor did I have a car to get there. 

But a quick study of my immediate surroundings and my diabetes MacGyver razor focus zero'd in on the 2 ginormous flat screen televisions mounted on either side of the bar - and not because of the basketball games. . 

The rules of ginormous flat screen televisions are finite. 

Where there are wall mounted flat screens, there are television remotes. 

Where there are there are remotes, 9 times out of 10, there are triple AAA batteries. 

Did I mention my pump runs on a singular triple AAA battery? 

I moseyed on up to the bar, explained my situation to the bartender, and asked if he had an extra battery. 

The bartender asked the manager, the manager went to his office and came back and handed me two triple AAA batteries - just in case. 

I thanked him and promised a positive review on YEP. 

Note to self: Get cracking on that positive YELP review!

Diabetes as an empathy builder

Not only does diabetes make me view thinks differently, it makes me view people with diabetes and without, differently. 

Thanks to diabetes  (and my parents,) my empathy factor is dialed up to 11.

I get what it’s like to have a bad day - and diabetes or not, there are days when physically or mentally - we're not always whistling dixie.

Everyone of us fights daily battles the rest of the world knows nothing about. 

Those battles, no matter how large or small, can be incredibly draining, so practice empathy and kindness. 

We need more empathy in this world, we need to understand others better, we need to practice kindness and remember how much it matters.
And we need boatloads of all of the above.