My grandmother turned 102 on Tuesday (Happy Birthday, Grandma; you rock!!), which, of course, has me thinking about old age. And that, in turn, makes me think of being elderly with diabetes. For many years I have said that I want to live to be 85. I’m not sure when or how I came up with that number, but it’s kind of stuck in my head. I have to admit, though, there are times now when I think that 85 is really not all that old and maybe I could go a little longer.
The one thing that really bugs me, however, is the thought of someone else taking care of me. I worked in a nursing home during the summer between college years, and I took care of several elderly people who had diabetes. I saw the nurses doing everything for them, and I decided then that I couldn’t accept that. Someone else giving me my shots or programming my pump or poking my fingers? I don’t think so. By the way, when I was in the hospital having babies, my OB wrote in my orders, “diabetes management per patient”, which meant that I did it all myself. Thank you very much.
Another aspect to being elderly and having diabetes is that it really makes sense to ease up on the intensity of management. In other words, higher A1Cs are not only acceptable, but safer. Elderly people are at increased risk for falling, and those who live alone really need to be careful. I have had some 80-plus-year-old patients who managed their diabetes extremely tightly and had a somewhat difficult time accepting “slacking off” a bit, but they came around. Even more, I’ve had family members of elderly people with diabetes who had trouble understanding that it’s ok for Mom, Dad, or whoever, to run numbers in a higher range than they had been.
My philosophy is that if you’ve lived 85 years, for example, you’ve done something right and you deserve to enjoy the time you have left here on earth. As long as your blood glucose levels are in a range that allows you the energy and health you are accustomed to (too high of blood glucose levels can lead to infection, lethargy, etc., and too low we already discussed), I encourage the elderly with diabetes to enjoy eating the foods they like, check blood glucose levels less frequently, and get the most out of what they love to do in life.
Although I have a lot to do before that time comes, I’m looking forward to kicking back a little and enjoying my “golden years.” I’ll take good care of myself now so I have the luxury to relax more later on!