Day 78 to 88

As always, you think things are going swimmingly, and then something else pops up to get in the way - recovery is a bit of a bumpy ride! I had my regular check up in Aberdeen on 11th and they were a bit concerned by some of my blood results so wanted to have a look at my blood pressure and blood glucose levels again. Blood pressure was fine, but my blood glucose came to a massive 26 - much higher than it should be (normal levels should be lower than 10).

This meant I was immediately referred to the diabetic team and I met them all the next morning. It was all a bit overwhelming as I was officially diagnosed as diabetic and provided with a huge amount of information about the two types of diabetes and how they work etc. Luckily, my diabetes seems to be steroid induced - so hopefully once I am off the steroids it will go away. Whats a bit of diabetes when you have taken on leukemia, rounds and rounds of chemo, a bone marrow transplant and a trip to ICU, eh? For the time being I have to take blood sugar levels 4 times a day and I have been given more medication to take - sometimes I think I am taking so many tablets that I might turn into a tablet myself.

The diabetes team are ringing me everyday to check on my glucose levels and they seem to think that the medication is working as my levels seem to be staying closer to 15 now. This is all good news as it does seem to suggest that this is something temporary. I am just trying to be careful about what I eat at the moment, but cutting out sugary foods is no bad thing as I need to get rid of these chubby cheeks that I seem to have gained from the steroids! (Although cutting out chocolate is proving to be quite hard... It's funny how when someone says you can't have something you begin to crave it constantly.) To help with these food changes I have been referred to a dietitian who I will see next week.


Apart from all of this, everything else seems to be going well - I'm managing to get out more and I am concentrating on keeping myself busy. I had a lovely Valentines Day with Sam, and a great, if very windy, day out with my parents in Stonehaven. My steroids should only last for another month or so, and once I am off them, we should be able to really gauge how my body has responded to the treatment - so not long now!