Back on April 17, 2011 … I began a Coconut Oil Fast (here are the related posts Summary, Day 2, Wrap Up )
Set the Stage
As a consequence of eating only Coconut Oil my blood sugar dropped steadily and I thought it had stabilized but I was wrong. My Overnight fasting blood sugar and my daily readings dipped into the 60’s and then into the 50’s. While I was lethargic… I was ‘ok’…. but my fear was waking up on the 5th day with my blood sugar in the 40’s so I ended the coconut oil fast on the 4th day.
This is rare statement for diabetics … but prior to this I had never experienced a low. I am a type 2 diabetic who controls blood sugar with diet and exercise. IF YOU are a Type 1 diabetic or if you are a type 2 diabetic who takes diabetes drugs and insulin… then a low is a fairly common occurrence, especially for the Type 1 Diabetics.
Lastly, I follow a low carb, primal meal plan … less than 50g of carbs since August 2009. I do not drink juices nor eat cakes, cookies nor breads or pasta. (Here’s my diet page)
The Story
While it’s true that my blood sugar was low … I was ‘ok’ and was never worried or in danger. I do push the envelope but do so within allowable limits… in my opinion anyway.
I was texting with a Type 1 diabetic friend about my being low ….and sent this text.
Another 66 … Shuld I drink juice??? :)
I was telling my friend that I had just read my blood sugar and it was a 66mg/dl. Now… if you are an experienced diabetic … you know:
Due to the variances of meters … that 66 mg/dl reading could have been a 60 … or it could have been a 74. So, it was not something to take lightly … but it was not something to be OVERLY concerned with either…. depending on the trend.
The purpose and intent of the ‘text’ was poking fun at myself… I was pretending to be worried about the 66 so much so that I would consider drinking juice…. the dietary equivalent of a soft drink in my opinion. They are loaded with as much and in some cases MORE sugar than a soft drink/soda.
The Problem?
I did not know this at the time…. but I did not send it as a personal, private text… in my haste to show how witty I was, I sent it out as a tweet on twitter. It’s the equivalent of posting it on my facebook page… for all to see.
I sent this tweet ….. without realizing it.
Approximately 20 minutes later I received this tweet ….
@diabeteswarrior if you feel okay. No!
At first I did not connect the two messages. I thought this was an odd tweet to receive …. from someone I did not know.
THEN IT HIT ME!!!! …. I had PUBLISHED the “66” text…as a tweet!!!!!
My immediate thought was, “OMG …. people are thinking that I am considering drinking juice!!!”
My next thought? This person had taken time out of their day to reply with very helpful advice…. advice that I agreed with in fact. Not wanting to hurt her feelings … I ‘went along’.
But then… I realized that was a mistake too…. I started receiving messages asking me if I was drinking juice!!!! OMG….
Just so you know… that’s THE LAST thing I would do and I mean that literally. I would drink juice if my blood sugar was low and dropping and I had no other carbohydrates available..
BUT I was not in that situation nor have I ever been.
The Knife
Not all messages were ‘well intentioned’…. some were spiteful and just plain mean.
Here’s one that I received.
“Did your sword turn into a knife. It happens even to the most stalwart warrior sometimes.”
This may not appear too mean spirited … but trust me it was. This person is an ADA Minion, profiting off the American Diabetes Association’s meal plan. Apparently they do not approve of my drug & diabetic supply reducing lifestyle.
Not to be out done… I replied…
Honestly… no. The original Tweet was meant to be a joke to a T1 pal… :)
however … IF it keeps dropping… it will turn into a butter knife. :))
…. I was proud of the butter knife come back. :)
Summary:
The moral of this story is ….
1) Make damn sure that you do NOT accidently post something on twitter or facebook. And if you do…. ‘come clean’ immediately… there will be less confusion later.
2) Some people will use any opportunity they can to attempt to ‘tear down’ others… so sad.
3) I have not drank juice… since before Diabetes Diagnosis … and do not plan on ever doing so again. I do eat eggs…. and the egg I had on my face, tasted particularly BITTER!!! :))
It’s all good… live LONG AND THRIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Here is my Diabetes Warrior Info:
My Diabetes Meal Plan ( a true diabetes diet, not like most of those promoted by American Diabetes Association)