+9 and still yellow! Sunny day for Quintus even though it's grey outside.
I just got back from the vet's, went to pick up some more testing strips, his convenia syringe, and anti-inflammatories. I bumped into my vet who asked for an update. He was really happy with the numbers, and told me I had "understood everything". I said I'd had help! Thanks everyone
Anyway, he said it was quite normal that Quintus is eating less if his body is starting to be able to use the glucose he's been swimming in to feed his starved cells. Regarding the food, he also said what I'd been thinking: that if I can't completely transition to DM because of runny poop, but that I manage to get his BG down, it doesn't really matter that much, does it? So I'll stick to the mix, which seems to be working well enough, and as he seems to be leaving more and more of the kibble from the mix on the table, maybe he'll manage to transition himself slowly enough to not step on my face in the middle of the night with a poopy hind paw. He also said that eating less and putting on weight was a really good sign! I have a 17-year-old diabetic cat and he's putting on weight, must be doing something right
He said not to worry about phosphorus, his levels pre-diabetes were really good, we can worry about that in a few months when we do a check-up.
My next mission is ordering strips online (they seem to have them on Amazon) and maybe trying to the freestyle Lite ones which
@JeffJ seems to be using. Note to US readers: not everything and everybody ships to Switzerland! And even when they do, shipping costs often make it cheaper to pay the full vet office price.
Other than that, I've been thinking a lot since Quintus's diagnosis about how involved/invested I am in my cat's well-being. These last weeks, almost all my interactions with him have been medical. When I'm not poking him or trying to feed him, I'm reading up here or elsewhere about diabetes. This is not unexpected. I have a bit of an obsessive personality when I discover "new" stuff, I dive deep into things and figure them out. I also like to take care of those who are unwell (good thing I didn't go into the medical profession) but if I am not careful this is all my relationships end up being about. I don't want that to happen with me and Quintus.
So, I'm keeping watch on myself. As I'm starting to feel more comfortable, and as Quintus's BG becomes prettier, I want to remember to enjoy my cat and the rest of my life, too. In a
blog post in French a week or so ago, I recalled that it is very easy for me to dive into intellectual pursuits (and wow, is feline diabetes a fascinating one) and caring about others so that I do not feel my anxiety, and more importantly, sadness. I do not want to spend what is left of my cat's life solely focused on medical issues.
This doesn't mean I'm backing off from anything I've been doing. I'm going to keep on taking care of him as well as possible. But I'm going to pay attention to what my attention is on, if that makes sense. I'm going to learn to know my cat enough that I can end up testing less and being less stressed. My objective is to be able to "forget" about FD, meaning, have it just be one of the various things that come with the old cat -- the blindness, the arthritis, the daily meds, changing the litter box, checking BG, giving insulin. I hope for remission. But I won't sacrifice the quality of my relationship with Quintus for it.
These are just my musings. Maybe you've had similar ones, or are in a very different place. I'm always happy to hear from you.
. Ed
