Hi, dear Erin, and, of course, you too sweet Morris,
Thank you for your name. Writing to Me was insane...
I'm going to be painfully honest with you, okay? Painfully for me, now that I know who me is again; yet, hopefully insightful for you.
The FDMB was my first message board experience. I found it after Gizmo was diagnosed Memorial Day weekend, 2003. Took me a week and change and the help of Robert, the webmaster, at the time to log on... Thank you, Robert!
Get a cup of coffee, dear Erin, as this might take me a while... It's about a leap of faith...
I'm beyond relieved Morris doesn't have ketones! YAY! Giz was diagnosed diabetic and DKA in the same breath and spent three days in ICU at the ER hospital.
When Giz came home, we were alone. I listened to every single word her ER vet told me. Don't home test. Don't catch pee. And, here are samples of the new food you must give her. She and a glorious vet tech taught me how to shoot my cat.
Don't get me wrong, Erin. I will always love Giz's ER vet -- forever and a day. She had us come in every single Sunday afternoon at 4:00 for a +6 BG (six hours after her shot) test. She only charged us $18 as a follow-up visit. Normally to walk through those ER doors on that day, it would have been $125 back then... I will always be grateful to Dr. A.
But, somewhere in between Sunday visit 1 and 2, I was able to finally log on to this wondrous Board. And, I started reading, learning, and printing -- and reading and learning some more... And, I finally posted about Gizmo.
I was truly torn. I mean I loved this ER vet who knew so much and was being so financially kind to us. Yet, here were people and cats living in the sugar trenches every single day. Yes, total strangers... Not vets... I was catching pee and testing for ketones within two weeks.
Her ER vet took the news well.
It took me quite a bit longer to home test. One month and 28 days to be exact. Giz was on increasing doses of Humulin N and was miserable. She hated the whole carrier, going to the vet's routine every Sunday. I started wondering if I was doing the right thing by her...
Started taking in my hand-copied BG notes to give to Dr. A. every Sunday. She'd look at them and smile at me, hand them back, and do a leg draw on Giz.
I think it was early August, 2003, when we did yet another dreaded weekly Sunday visit. But, this time, I was packing my meter in one pocket, and test strips in the other. And, when this wondrous vet who I will love forever and a day, took that leg draw, I humbly whipped out my meter and asked for one bead of blood. Dr. A. looked genuinely startled. I'm sure I did, too. But, there was Gizzie... She put a bead of blood on the examining table. Her meter read 495. Mine read 487. She scooped up my BG notes for that week and said, You've taught me a lot.
Giz was cut loose to once-a-month visits for not many months longer. And, I not only changed her dose, but her insulin in the mean time!
This Board has taught me volumes about leaps of faith, dear Erin... And, Giz and I danced for four more years...
Thank you for "listening"...
Much love and countless encouraging hugs for you and Morris,
Deb and Nikki -- and, Giz, forever dancing in my heart and who sent me Nikki!