#DBlogWeek: One Great Thing.

Today's prompt: Living with diabetes (or caring for someone who lives with it) sure does take a lot of work, and it’s easy to be hard on ourselves if we aren’t “perfect”. But today it’s time to give ourselves some much deserved credit. Tell us about just one diabetes thing you (or your loved one) does spectacularly! Fasting blood sugar checks, oral meds sorted and ready, something always on hand to treat a low, or anything that you do for diabetes. Nothing is too big or too small to celebrate doing well!

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I'm not sure what this says about me, really, but I seem to have developed a reputation for bolusing for alcohol with some finesse - to the point that a fellow PWD recently texted me well into the night hours, asking for advice on a stubborn high after a couple of glasses of wine. They wanted to bolus, but didn't want to tank later while they slept (alone, and in an unfamiliar hotel room).

Again, should I be proud of this? Because, kids, it takes a lot of trial and error to get here. I emphasize errors. (It also takes finally admitting to yourself that mixed drinks are just a horrible idea all around, unless you can use a Diet mixer.) I don't know the answer to that question, but I do know that a few years back, I would have LOVED to read how someone else did this, because I was clueless and needed to hear someone else's trials and tribulations.

I can only say what works for me, and it is said along with the typical disclaimers: I'm not giving anything even remotely resembling medical advice; don't try this at home; YDMV (your diabetes may vary); I'm not condoning drinking in general, OR drinking with diabetes; consult your doctor first, etc. etc.

Okay, now that THAT's out of the way...

If I drink, it tends to be white wine. Sometimes I'll try a red, and sometimes I'll have a cider beer or a "diet" mixed drink. If you can figure out the full-sugar drinks, more power to you; I just can't walk that tightrope very skillfully. After several years of stubbornness trying, I've pretty well given up. So what's the pattern, you may ask? What's the central piece of knowledge I've gleaned?

Wine will make me go a little higher for the first few hours, and then once I hit hour five, I start tanking.

Here's the deal with me and wine: if I start drinking before the meal (say, half an hour before) and the meal has some degree of fat in it (think Italian food), the two pretty much cancel each other out in terms of delayed spikes and drops, so I do a regular one-time bolus and let it ride.

If I didn't start drinking until after I've eaten some food, I bolus a little bit extra up front. Every time I hit that five hour mark, though, I start dropping. Hardcore. I need food in my stomach at that point, even with no IOB - really.

Am I recommending that you drink? Nope. But if you do, I hope you'll do it safely. I watch my Dexcom receiver like a hawk, and I check my blood sugar as often as I can remember. I can drop very, very quickly once those drinks have had a few hours to do their thing, and past experience has taught me to watch out.

It's also a great idea to let someone that you're out with know about your situation, as it were - and wear a medical ID, wuddya? You do not want things to go badly and have people not know how to help you (or, worse yet, just think you're extremely drunk and let you "sleep it off").

And if anyone can figure out and share how to bolus and stay under 200 (without dropping like it's hot) for sugary drinks - well, I'll buy you one.

 (If you want to know more about how diabetes and alcohol mix - go here.)