Disregarding Doctor's Orders
So, I'm kind of ignoring my doctor, but in a good way. He told me to check my blood sugar three times per week. Like, in the morning on Monday, after a meal on Wednesday and before bed on Friday.
Yeah, I'm ignoring that. Because it doesn't help me get a grasp on what my levels normally are and how food and exercise affect them. And if I'm not getting helpful information out of it, then what's the point? (I suppose after a month or more I might finally start to recognize a pattern, but that seems like a long while to wait.) I think his thinking was to not overwhelm me, but he doesn't understand that not having information is the thing that overwhelms me.
So I'm checking it three times per day right now. Once when I get up, two hours after I eat my first meal (which so far has also been between 5 minutes and an hour after exercising), and then before I go to bed (usually two hours after a third meal or snack).
That's about as regular as I can be, because on the days that I eat two meals (or a meal and a snack) before work, I'm due to test when I get in, and there are still a lot of people wandering around, and I just don't want to do it there. And then after my dinner break, there are few enough people around that I wouldn't mind doing it, but by the time two hours hits, we're so busy that there's not really time (sometimes even to remember it, much less do it).
But I think I'm doing it enough times, with enough regularity that it should be helpful. And if I'm really curious what those typical work meals do to me, I can have one on a day off or something.
And maybe I'll get to a point where I feel like I only need to check it a few times per week, but that's not now.
Yeah, I'm ignoring that. Because it doesn't help me get a grasp on what my levels normally are and how food and exercise affect them. And if I'm not getting helpful information out of it, then what's the point? (I suppose after a month or more I might finally start to recognize a pattern, but that seems like a long while to wait.) I think his thinking was to not overwhelm me, but he doesn't understand that not having information is the thing that overwhelms me.
So I'm checking it three times per day right now. Once when I get up, two hours after I eat my first meal (which so far has also been between 5 minutes and an hour after exercising), and then before I go to bed (usually two hours after a third meal or snack).
That's about as regular as I can be, because on the days that I eat two meals (or a meal and a snack) before work, I'm due to test when I get in, and there are still a lot of people wandering around, and I just don't want to do it there. And then after my dinner break, there are few enough people around that I wouldn't mind doing it, but by the time two hours hits, we're so busy that there's not really time (sometimes even to remember it, much less do it).
But I think I'm doing it enough times, with enough regularity that it should be helpful. And if I'm really curious what those typical work meals do to me, I can have one on a day off or something.
And maybe I'll get to a point where I feel like I only need to check it a few times per week, but that's not now.