Too many needles!

Meet my two new constant companions. Up first we have the meter I use to test my blood sugar twice daily:



And next we have the insulin pen I use to give myself daily injections:



I've never been a very big fan of needles, so when I got my diagnosis last week I was a bit trepidatious about being poked and prodded endlessly. That first day in the doctor's office I had blood drawn, a finger stick to test my blood sugar, two vaccines (pneumonia and H1N1) and an insulin shot. My doctor still wasn't sure if I had Type 1 or Type 2 at that point. I was hoping for Type 2, as that's managed by pills rather than daily insulin injections.

What I found out the next day is that I am Type 1 and needles and I were going to become fast friends.

I've gotten quite used to the finger sticks to test my blood sugar. It isn't too fun having tender fingertips all the time, but it isn't terrible. The stick isn't too bad. Well, the lancets that go with my meter are almost pain free, but the ones from my doctor's office are a bit rougher.

I've given myself insulin injections the last three nights. The first night was rough going. For me, it was a bit of a psychological barrier. The idea of sticking myself with a needle was and still is incredibly unappealing. The second night was better, and last night was the quickest of the three. The worst part isn't the initial stick. It's the fact that I have to hold the needle in my body for a slow count to ten to make sure I got the entire injection. It's hard to hold perfectly still for that long with a short needle inside me.

All of my equipment is fairly easy to use. My brain is the worst of the bunch as it still reminds me that self-inflicted pain is no fun and should be avoided if at all possible. The worst of it is my blood sugar is still all over the place. When I wake up, it's often so low I have to treat it immediately, but then it jumps hundreds of points throughout the day. It can be frustrating, but I'm trying to remind myself that things aren't going to work themselves out overnight, that it's going to take trial and error figuring out how much insulin I need and what foods my body doesn't handle very well.