I currently work as a Certified Nurse Aide at a nursing home, but before I was an aide I worked at a smoothie café and in retail. Even before I started working, I was worried about how my supervisors and coworkers would view my diabetes. When I worked in retail, before I had a CGM, I would put candy in my pocket in case I felt my blood sugar dropping. I would also let the managers know that I needed to eat something or take a break if I were to get low, and they were very considerate of the situation. Despite my supervisors’ receptivity I think I would have felt less anxious if I had a CGM at the time so I would know what my blood sugars were at all times during work. Now, working as a CNA for almost a year I feel more comfortable managing my diabetes at work. I also recently got a Dexcom which has helped me feel more confident to know where my sugar is at. Even though there are so many benefits in using a continuous glucose monitor there have also been times when my Dexcom was really off from my meter. One evening before I went into work, I changed my Dexcom and it takes two hours for it to warm up before it starts showing my blood sugars. My Dexcom finished warming up while I was at work but it beeped and said my blood sugar was 45, but I didn’t feel that low. I received calls and texts from my family because they receive alerts from the Dexcom Share app that my sugar was below 55. I went to get my meter but didn’t have any test strips left. So, I called my family to tell them what was going on and asked if they could drop some off for me. While I waited for the strips, I ate some food and told the charge nurse on my unit that my family is going to drop off some test strips for me. When I finally received the test strips, I checked my blood sugar with my meter and saw it was going up, which was a relief. When I’m on the floor helping residents, it’s hard taking time to treat a low when there are call bells going off that a resident needs help. But you need to make sure you are taken care of too so that you can take care of your residents. I do have lows at work and sometimes it happens more than once since it is a fast-paced job. I make sure to keep juice boxes in my lunch box and pack extra snacks with me! As diabetics we face many challenges, but these challenges shouldn’t deter us from living a great life!
Kelsey Bachman
I have been a type one diabetic for 15 years and use a t:slim insulin pump and a dexcom g6. I am studying nursing at a community college and hope to work with children who have diabetes. Some of my hobbies include reading, traveling and spending time with friends and family.
