Diabetic Cyborg’s Life: Another MRI, Neurologist’s Results, More Hypoglycemia with a Fried Sensor/Transmitter and Extortion! 😱
As I discussed the last few months, I have an “artificial pancreas,” A.K.A. an insulin pump, and the daily progress of getting my blood glucose to a consistently good level that is not hyperglycemic or hypoglycemic. One hypoglycemic episode follows, but the MRI seems most important to discuss now.
My last MRI was much of the same old trip as 10 days before. I found that most the people had the same sense of, “oh, you again?” It would be funny if many did not have an air of being worried that I must have some thing wrong if I was back so quickly. I wish I could tell them now that, no, I just have an over careful neurologist that needed a scan with contrast. She knows that I had a bad reaction one time in the past to the dye they use and was hoping that I would not need it this time. Alas, I did need the contrast, so I was back.
Which brings me to the neurologist appointment the day after the MRI. My mom and I were sitting and waiting for her to come in and maybe tell us the results of the last scan, but she asked if I had it. I said yes I had the MRI with contrast. She then said, okay I will go check for the results. She returned minutes later and said I had no new lesions or anything lighting up on the scan. I was, of course, elated and then we talked about the EMG scan and the neuropathy and the cervical myopathy. Then, I asked about the cubital tunnel syndrome, and she told me about the options of treatment and how we can address mine.
I had more hypoglycemia the day after my neurologist appointment. The continuous glucose monitor showed my SG was at 134, so I decided to shower after I ate when I woke up. I got out of the bathroom I felt my BG was low. The SG showed at 96, so I knew that was not accurate. So, I then did a finger prick test and I had a 60 BG. I then ate mints to get my glucose back up. It is now obvious the MRI fried the sensor and transmitter even though I had not such issues 10 days before after the non-contrasted MRI.
I did not read a warning saying do not expose the pump, sensor or transmitter to a MRI or any other strong magnetic fields before that previous scan. They both acted okay afterwards and the sensor died as many others before it. This time are the contrasted MRI the pump, sensor and transmitter acted okay for a day and a half before I had any issues with the glucose readings being that far off. I guess the warning of not having a sensor and transmitter on during a MRI was right. I am just lucky that they all have warranties and all I have to do is call get a replacement sensor and transmitter and canister for returning them and send them back in the canister.
To be honest after the appointment I felt a disappointed that the MRI did not show a new lesion. I thought that I had an active one at least as I wrote in the past blog posts. I guess that brain fog and slight balance issue and other symptoms I mentioned of the pasts months are my “new normal.” That fresh standard means to me that I just have to adapt and modify my methodology of living. That approach changed many times over the years of health issues and college. From the initial type 2 diabetes diagnosis in 2005 to enrolling at Kilgore College and then University of Texas at Tyler. Then my broken hip going into grad school and finally after that my time in the substitute teaching game. The last decade plus of life brought many new norms that I had to adjust to. Never has it been a simultaneously matter of health and normal daily grind, which I have come to love more than ever. The thought must be confidet that all will be okay and worrying about events that may never occur is useless. This hopeful line of thinking is the general thesis of an entry by Kris Gage posted.
“It is optimistic. It is the cardinal opposite of ‘everything is horrible and nothing will ever again be alright,’ or, said differently, my least favorite phrase of all time: “it is what it is” — the wail of the defeatist.”
I commented with some wisdom that my Granny told my Mom that she passed on to me. I felt it was appropriate since Kris mentioned how optimism acts like a grandmother at time. Also she mentioned how our optimism can sometimes sounds silly but actually helps us cope with things. It hit home since I have said before that it sometimes seems like I am lying to my own face when I think optimistically.
My Granny had a similar saying in, “it will all come out in the wash.” She lived through the Great Depression, so my Mom and I find our selves constantly going back to that,
“that hair caress our grandma used to do, the cool hand running over the side of the head. “There, there, little one.”
It is just like a stream of hate and harsh reality that we must keep reinforcing a dam against with kindness, optimism and love. Like you say:
It sounds like nonsense, if we think about it, but we don’t care, because it makes us feel better. But the best part is, it’s not even nonsense.
I constantly fight to be optimistic through all my struggles with the physical side effects form my MS and diabetes. I am better at dealing with the diabetes since type two and one are very similar in the physical side effects and issues, but the MS amplifies some bad heath issues of the diabetes and has new mental issues I only had a slight understanding of before I was diagnosed last summer. The mental side of the side effects only makes the physical issues worse to get through with any kind of optimism intact. I find that helping other friends stay optimistic during hard times to keep actually helps with my anxiety. I guess optimism rubs off and stick to me when I tell it to others. Hey, yes I know, “how can you talk it, when you often don’t feel it.” Hey, I am only human like everyone else and we all have our moments of doubt. What matters is how we react to the dark times. We either let it drag us down, or raise up talk some sense into ourselves and get through whatever is dragging us down.
I told these next 3 sentences to someone that I know that struggles with health issues all the time:
“I just hope you hold on and know that it is all worth it. Remember that everyday you get up means you are still here, and we are all here for a purpose. We just have to find out what that is and make the best out of what we are and have.”
Okay, I never ever thought I could be a victim of extortion, but that just shows how far my mind leaves me at times with my MS. I know in hindsight that the countless red flags that were going off in my mind were there for a reason, and I should have done what I started to do initially and block the profile on Facebook. The fact that my fourth message to the profile was “is this a con?” should have spelled instant block and forget, but I did not. The profile had an attractive twenty something woman, and I frankly knew then that it was a fake profile. I wound up told they had nude video and photos from the whole chat, and they said would post them to my family and friends’ profiles and get my local newspaper to publish them in an add they buy for them.
I know now that it was no doubt a hacker, Russian most likely, posing as a 25 year old woman from Oklahoma that was a student at Oklahoma University and had some attraction to me. After the ransom-extortion message was posted, I posted to all my friends the “411” as I put it on the whole event. I reported it to Facebook and said I would do all I needed to do to stop any plot the hacker took to get money or simply embarrass me. To be honest, I am already embarrassed I took part in the whole chat. Rest assured that all I take from it that I have more proof of my MS’s ability warp reality and make me do things that I would never fathom in my right state of mind.
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