Thanksgiving Prep

It’s Thankgiving week. This used to be one of my favorite holidays because it was the one time out of the entire year where you could eat whatever your heart desired and no one said a thing. That was until I became diabetic. Now, during this old favorite holiday people comment on how much I’m eating or give me a look. For those of you who are still going through the emotions of this holiday, I want to give you some encouragement, that you are not alone, and some tips on how to give yourself insulin with a pump or with a syringe to manage your sugars during this holiday.

Over the years of having diabetes my mindset on the holiday has varied. I have gone through the hiding method to avoid hostile looks when I want to eat a little extra stuffing (that I have given myself insulin for), but this always made me mad. I have done the protest of eating what I want, just to get a rise out of the people giving me a look, but that only left me feeling more rage and frustration. I have tried to ignore, call out people out, explain, but really what it all comes down to is letting it go. It’s your body and your disease. That means no one else should really be involved except maybe the people you have given that permission to.

The hubs and I have anagreement that if he hasn’t seen me check my sugars in a while he just politely will ask if I need to check in a calm non-accusatory way. This is something we chose to do because when you are out of your normal everyday routine we sometimes become forgetful and honestly we could use the reminder. But I’m not going to lie asking me about where my numbers are or if I checked my blood sugars and I have not given you permission to do so really frustrates me. Especially if you can’t tell me the main things about my disease then it really upsets me. So, before the wonderful day gets here make a game plan with someone you trust and feel comfortable having help you during the Thanksgiving, that way you can try to avoid riding the whip during the holiday.

Another great tip for getting through this holiday is planning on how much you are going to eat and when you are going to eat. It you want better results in your blood sugars this holiday, plan on giving yourself your insulin dose about 30 minutes before you eat. This will give your insulin time to start working, and by the time you begin eating it will be able to catch your food before it makes your sugars spike. If you have a pump use your dual wave tool when you give yourself your insulin. This tool will split up your dose to give you some before you eat and some an hour or two after you eat. When you are eating meals that are a mix of carbs, fat, and protein it takes a little longer for you body to recognize the sugar in your blood stream. Splitting up the dose helps you to avoid going low and then having a spike later in the day, trust me you will thank me if you haven’t looked into this yet.

Just remember the holidays are hard on most people whether your stressed because you are hosting the event, stressed with having to deal with certain family members, or stressed because you have diabetes. Just remember to breathe, have a partner, and bolus like a mad person. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Need some help with counting carbs this holiday? Check out D-Mom’s guide to Thanksgiving food for the holiday.