Recent Posts - DAFNE Online

Jun 26, 2009

marke 681 posts

Topic: DAFNE Online Mobile / Mobile site released

thanks for the feedback, I will look into the issue you have highlighted. The '&nbsp' is formatting used to add a 'space' making the page line up better and hopefully look better. All browsers 'should' support it, its possible there is an error in the definition of the page.

Jun 26, 2009

richard_g 14 posts

Topic: General Discussion / "Balance" letter about injecting in public

What does the latest letter say? I must say that I used to hide away to inject but don't any more. I've only had one instance where anyone seems to have noticed and that was a child in a restaurant, but then children are much more observant than adults. Alzibiff, I'm pleased you've now got a more discreet means of taking insulin and as you say it's really a personal choice. i'm curious how Daphne works with a pump though?

Jun 26, 2009

Alzibiff 21 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Pumps V Injections

Damo, Think that you are right - you DO have some misconceptions here:
"My mentality is that they are for diabetics that may not remember to take their insulin, or the less active / mobile. (is this just my misconception?)."

I had injections for 42 years before attending a DAFNE course and moving onto pump therapy - brilliant! The pump does increase flexibility in lifestyle and the way in which insulin is delivered can only improve control - I have had a pump for a month now and along with the DAFNE principles which I have learned, am getting there.

Is it for you? Only you can answer that one I guess but I would certainly give it a trial - nothing is irreversible, I wouldn't think that you have to sign up for life but suggest you should be prepared to give it a decent amount of time.

I play squash with my pump attached - no worries there and I feel that so long as you take reasonable precautions with a pump and delivery tube, footy and rugby should not present any insurmountable problems - the manufacturers of my pump have a pump case designed for active folk like you.

Showering, sex and sleep - no worries. The pump can be detatched for up to an hour at a time which should take care of items 1 and 2 (?). As for sleeping - wear a pair of boxers in bed and clip the pump to the front of them - you don't know it's there when asleep. Before I started my pump I had similar worries and heard that people stick the pump under the pillow - not sure how that works if you turn over in bed as much as I do!

At the end of the day, the pump is a choice - for some it will be fantastic for others it may be a pain. If the latter, stick to injections but I for one love the freedom it is giving me.

Alan

p.s. Three days is not really long enough to assess how you would get on with a pump - in my view anyway!

pps Losing weight is much easier with a pump - although my recent success in this area may also be attributed to the DAFNE regime. One thing to bear in mind is that it is common to need less insulin when on pump therapy compared to injections.

Jun 26, 2009

Lizzie 87 posts

Topic: General Discussion / "Balance" letter about injecting in public

Alzibiff, but the nurse was judging in the first place when she said that people should not inject in public, and she is certainly judging us now as in her second letter she compares diabetics to junkies and says we are selfish and inconsiderate if we inject in public. If that is not judging I don't know what is.

And whether you are shy or not is immaterial - we need to inject, it is a medical necessity and must be done hygenically and this overrides any superficial dislike of seeing injections that some stranger may have across the room. The more people see something, the more normal it becomes and the less irrational reactions there are to it. So to my mind the best way of eradicating this sort of prejudice is to inject publicly and not hide away.

Jun 26, 2009

Alzibiff 21 posts

Topic: General Discussion / "Balance" letter about injecting in public

I think that this topic is getting blown up out of all proportion and simply centres on personal feelings - and we are all entitled to those! Me - I'm a shy person who, prior to using an insulin pump, (a month ago now), preferred not to inject in public for 42 years but did so when I had to. That isn't right or wrong - it's me. The key phrase here being "I'm a shy person". On the other side of the fence - someone observing another who is not a shy person, injecting in public - they may approve, disapprove, like or dislike to see it - it's just them, we should not judge, just accept that this is the way they are. However, it is right to have the debate but not to judge others - it's a personal thing as I said, whether you can understand the feelings of others is another matter.

Jun 26, 2009

Lizzie 87 posts

Topic: General Discussion / "Balance" letter about injecting in public

I think this is discrimination. Why does she expect us to hide our disability and go to a dirty toilet to inject? If a blind person was eating in a restaurant, would she expect them to leave their white stick and guide dog at home so they did not offend anyone? Would she expect an asthmatic to take their inhaler in a toilet? Needles today are so small and discreet, if anyone noticed me injecting I would want to know why they were staring so rudely. If someone has a visible disability, everyone knows it is rude to stare. So isn't it rude to stare at a diabetic injecting themselves?

Jun 26, 2009

Anne-Marie 4 posts

Topic: General Discussion / "Balance" letter about injecting in public

Hi. This is my first post here (I am a recent DAFNE graduate in Eire) but had to say that, firstly, I am dismayed at the reaction of that nurse who thinks taking your medication is something to be ashamed of. I do, however, understand that some people are highly sensitive to needles (I have a few friends who have a mortal fear of them!).

As with most people on this post, I would have started off injecting in the bathroom but, no matter what people say, I seriously doubt you can compare the hygeine of injecting in a toilet to doing it discreetly at a table in the restaurant. I do now inject discretely under the table, and in general people don't notice. Even in work, where I have been at a desk in an open plan office for the past 2 years, some people sitting nearby only realised I was diabetic this month, as I was going on the DAFNE course - despite the fact that I inject at lunchtime at my desk almost every day!

It is possible to inject without displaying it to the whole world. At business meetings, I find I don't inject (either running to the dreaded toilet or planning meetings outside of eating times) - mostly to do with not wanting to draw attention to such a personal topic in a business environment. But in general I would not have a problem with discretely injecting - and doing BG tests - in public, provided the person I'm with knows about my diabetes and is comfortable with it.

Jun 25, 2009

NiVZ 82 posts

Topic: General Discussion / "Balance" letter about injecting in public

Hello,

This letter really has stirred up a hornets nest and I have to say I'm quite offended by this nurses attitude. I'd like to see her ask me to go to the toilet just to do my needle. If it offended her so much, she could go and wait in the toilet until after I'd done my needle ;o)

With the number of diabetics being diagnosed going up at an alarming rate, this nurse will find herself in the minority in the not too distant future. Anyway, on a lighter note, this leads me to a true anecdote passed onto me by a work colleague recently.

He was out for a meal with 5 other people, including one of our mutual friends who is diabetic. After the meal, our mutual friend made a big swan song about his diabetes and proceeded to do his blood sugar and take his insulin. Imagine his embarressment when 4 of the other diners at the same table then took out their BG testing kits and pens to do their needles. Thought this was a priceless reversal of the norm as my friend who told me this was the only non-diabetic at the table!

And remember people, laughter is the best form of medicine, unless you're diabetic......then it's insulin.

Jun 25, 2009

Janys 5 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Applying DAFNE when hiking

I wonder if anyone has practical experience of applying DAFNE whilst hiking. I am going on a week's walking holiday and I plan to reduce my BI (Lantus) by 30% starting the night before and to reduce my QA by 50% for all meals including the evenings, then to play it by ear with lots of quick acting carbs in my pack and testing during the day (hopefully not too much).
Before doing DAFNE I used to have lots of lows and highs whilst walking and really didn't feel on top of it.
I have had diabetes for 35 years and took the DAFNE course at UCLH in March, and have benefitted greatly from it.
I'd be pleased to hear from anyone who has actually tried DAFNE whilst hiking.
Janys

Jun 25, 2009

Lizzie 87 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Diaries

Hi Chris

You can buy them from DAFNE in the post, it is quite cheap. Email them and ask for an order form.

Jun 25, 2009

Lizzie 87 posts

Topic: General Discussion / "Balance" letter about injecting in public

Hi all

Have any of you seen the latest issue of Balance? The nurse has written in again. What do you all think of her letter?

Jun 25, 2009

Damo 7 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Pumps V Injections

DAFNE was great but since I have tried to get more active and loose weight I am fluctuating badly and lost warning signs of hypos.

I have recently been left confused when my doctor recommended I go on to an insulin pump.

My mentality is that they are for diabetics that may not remember to take their insulin, or the less active / mobile. (is this just my misconception?).

I am on 4 injections a day at the moment but have been suffering regular hypos, mainly casued by exercising and irregularity of diet due to an "unbalanced" lifestyle.

Apparently a pump can increase flexibility in lifestyle and enhance control. But I am worried about the limits that may be put on me. Im an active 34 year old male who enjoys football, rugby and crawling around on the floor getting dirty. I recently had a monitoring device for 3 days which was for too intrusive to live my normal life. Showering, sex, sleep and even sitting at a desk were regularly annoying.
I know the pumps these days are smaller but still need fixture and stability.

Sugar level control & pump V dealing with hypos and frustration.

If you have any advice I would love to hear from your experiences.

Thanks. D.

Jun 25, 2009

Damo 7 posts

Topic: General Discussion / "Balance" letter about injecting in public

Im not for brandishing a needle around the room but discreetly done under the table would mean it would only be the nosey or the other diabetics in the room that may be left to comment.
Im sure anyone afraid of needles would not want to look anyway (not that you can see them their so small).

If it was to measure your sugar levels on the other hand which may require pricker, blood and tissues then i may be a bit more sympathetic to the quibbler!

Jun 25, 2009

ChrisS 12 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Diaries

Wow- quick service, thanks.

Jun 25, 2009

marke 681 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Diaries

Chris,
I have the file to produce it from DAFNE Central but unfortunatley have not had chance yet to convert it into a format that is easily printable for users. I will hopefully get chance to do this in the near future and will post again once its online for you to access

Jun 25, 2009

ChrisS 12 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Diaries

Is there anywhere I can get the DAFNE diaries to record my BG levels etc. I realise there is the online resource, but I like to have it to hand.

Jun 25, 2009

ChrisS 12 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Introductions

Hi
I'm Chris, 43, married to Sarah with 2 daughters, Tegan and Amber (5 & 2).
I attended my DAFNE course at Medway Hospital in September 2007. I was first diagnosed as T1 in Feb 03 and I had been experimenting with Carb counting for a while when my Diabetes Nurse got me on the course. My job and hobbies mean I struggled to cope with a rigorous regime of fixed meal times etc.
Been really disappointed with the online resources for DAFNE, and only by chance looked in to see if any diaries were avaialble and found this new forum. Well done to those who have set this up.

Jun 24, 2009

hazelharrison 1 post

Topic: General Discussion / Do periods mess up your blood sugars?

Hi Jenny,

I'm 8 months pregnant at the moment, but casting my mind back to when I had periods, I usually had to reduce by background insulin levels by around 10% the week before my periods were due as I was always hypo in the morning, once my periods started I had to put them back to normal dose again. All other ratios remained the same. My diabetes team agreed that female hormones were a factor and that it was not uncommon.

Jun 23, 2009

NiVZ 82 posts

Topic: DAFNE Online Mobile / Mobile site released

Hello,

just tested and works fine in Opera Mini on my Nokia 5310.

The default browser works too, but I can see a '&nbsp' in plain text between the Forums and Logout link. There are also '&nbsp' showing on the Back, Home and Logout links at the bottom of the carb counting page.

This is excellent work tho - very handy to have this on the move ;o)

Jun 21, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: General Discussion / Hello

Hi Shelley,

Welcome to the site, glad to hear you enjoyed the course and hope you find the site as useful. Congratulations too on being our first user to take advantage of the diary sharing feature of the forums.

Simon

Jun 19, 2009

Shelley 1 post

Topic: General Discussion / Hello

Hello everyone!

I finished the DAFNE course today and thought I would join here and come and say hello! I have had diabetes for 22 years now and am so glad to have been referred to do DAFNE! The course was brilliant and am hoping my blood glucose levels will settle down, once I have got them all right! I have just entered todays results so far and they are still a little high but better than earlier in the week!!!

I look forward to usinf this online tool very much and maybe getting to know others of you in a similar situation.

Shelley

Jun 18, 2009

PNThompson 57 posts

Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / Useful link for looking up CPs

I completed the DAFNE Course at the end of April, and after a couple of weeks, found it awkward to do the calculations, and think that some of those calcs were wrong.
What I have managed to do, is input some data into an excel format.
The input contains the amount of carbs per 100g, and you input the weight of the portion, and the computer calculates the CP figure, and also works in the ratios, and adjustments according to the BG prior to the meal.

The only problem with this, is that you need the carb contents, but generally works ok for any packaged products.

Looking at some of the Carb contents, they differ according to the Company producing the food, so I am wary about CP Counts listed in the book or in the Carb Counter.

Jun 15, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / Question: Sharing the online diary

Here's an example range from my own BG diary. If you have any comments on the format or features then let us know.

Simon

Jun 15, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Site Development / Question: Sharing the online diary

Dear site members,

The ability to share all or part of your Blood Glucose diary with other site users has now been implemented. There are two methods for doing this, detailed below:

Option 1 - Using the forums
You may add a date range of up to 10 days to a forum topic/post. When browsing your DAFNE Online BG Diary, look above the diary table itself and you will see a drop down box allowing you to select which of our forums you would like to post part of your diary on to. Then ensure 10 days or less is currently displayed in your diary view, and click the 'Share' button. This will add the date range to a new forum topic, allowing you to add a Topic title and description.

This option is intended for users who want to seek advice from the entire user base of the site, much in the same way that is done each morning of the DAFNE course using the overhead projector. People replying to the topic (and of course the topic author) can add their own diary entries by adding a date range in the format DDMMYY (Day Month Year) to their reply box in the relevant boxes.

An example from my diary is shown in the following post, so you can see how the diary will be formatted.

Option 2 - Sharing with individual users

You may also share your entire diary with another user of the site. To do this, click the 'users' link at the top of the site, and then use the search box on the right hand side to search for the user either by username or email address. In the list of results, click their name to see their profile, and then click the 'Share my DAFNE Diary with this user' link. To see a list of users who have shared their diary with you, click the 'shared diaries' link to on the right hand menu, and then click that user's username. Once you have shared your diary you can 'unshare' it with a user by following the share procedure detailed previously. To see which users can currently see your diary, navigate to your diary and see the list to the right (in a box underneath 'DAFNE Tools').

This option is ideal for users who wish to share their online diary with their DAFNE Educators, and maybe other members of their DAFNE Group.

We hope that you find this new functionality enjoyable and useful. If you have any feedback at all, whether positive or constructive then please don't hesitate to let us know.

Thanks,

Simon

P.S. Please remember any advice given on the forums is just that; advice. Insulin dose adjustment may be different for each individual and also depends on external factors such as exercise and illnes

Jun 11, 2009

Simon 578 posts

Topic: Questions for HCPs / Protein Supplements

Good points there - I was more wondering if the 'excess' protein intake causes the kidneys to work harder and may cause them to fail somehow. (This may be totally untrue, hence why I work in IT and not medicine...)

Jun 26, 2009 marke 681 posts	Topic: DAFNE Online Mobile / Mobile site released thanks for the feedback, I will look into the issue you have highlighted. The '&nbsp' is formatting used to add a 'space' making the page line up better and hopefully look better. All browsers 'should' support it, its possible there is an error in the definition of the page.

Jun 26, 2009 richard_g 14 posts	Topic: General Discussion / "Balance" letter about injecting in public What does the latest letter say? I must say that I used to hide away to inject but don't any more. I've only had one instance where anyone seems to have noticed and that was a child in a restaurant, but then children are much more observant than adults. Alzibiff, I'm pleased you've now got a more discreet means of taking insulin and as you say it's really a personal choice. i'm curious how Daphne works with a pump though?

Jun 26, 2009 Alzibiff 21 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Pumps V Injections Damo, Think that you are right - you DO have some misconceptions here: "My mentality is that they are for diabetics that may not remember to take their insulin, or the less active / mobile. (is this just my misconception?)." I had injections for 42 years before attending a DAFNE course and moving onto pump therapy - brilliant! The pump does increase flexibility in lifestyle and the way in which insulin is delivered can only improve control - I have had a pump for a month now and along with the DAFNE principles which I have learned, am getting there. Is it for you? Only you can answer that one I guess but I would certainly give it a trial - nothing is irreversible, I wouldn't think that you have to sign up for life but suggest you should be prepared to give it a decent amount of time. I play squash with my pump attached - no worries there and I feel that so long as you take reasonable precautions with a pump and delivery tube, footy and rugby should not present any insurmountable problems - the manufacturers of my pump have a pump case designed for active folk like you. Showering, sex and sleep - no worries. The pump can be detatched for up to an hour at a time which should take care of items 1 and 2 (?). As for sleeping - wear a pair of boxers in bed and clip the pump to the front of them - you don't know it's there when asleep. Before I started my pump I had similar worries and heard that people stick the pump under the pillow - not sure how that works if you turn over in bed as much as I do! At the end of the day, the pump is a choice - for some it will be fantastic for others it may be a pain. If the latter, stick to injections but I for one love the freedom it is giving me. Alan p.s. Three days is not really long enough to assess how you would get on with a pump - in my view anyway! pps Losing weight is much easier with a pump - although my recent success in this area may also be attributed to the DAFNE regime. One thing to bear in mind is that it is common to need less insulin when on pump therapy compared to injections.

Jun 26, 2009 Lizzie 87 posts	Topic: General Discussion / "Balance" letter about injecting in public Alzibiff, but the nurse was judging in the first place when she said that people should not inject in public, and she is certainly judging us now as in her second letter she compares diabetics to junkies and says we are selfish and inconsiderate if we inject in public. If that is not judging I don't know what is. And whether you are shy or not is immaterial - we need to inject, it is a medical necessity and must be done hygenically and this overrides any superficial dislike of seeing injections that some stranger may have across the room. The more people see something, the more normal it becomes and the less irrational reactions there are to it. So to my mind the best way of eradicating this sort of prejudice is to inject publicly and not hide away.

Jun 26, 2009 Alzibiff 21 posts	Topic: General Discussion / "Balance" letter about injecting in public I think that this topic is getting blown up out of all proportion and simply centres on personal feelings - and we are all entitled to those! Me - I'm a shy person who, prior to using an insulin pump, (a month ago now), preferred not to inject in public for 42 years but did so when I had to. That isn't right or wrong - it's me. The key phrase here being "I'm a shy person". On the other side of the fence - someone observing another who is not a shy person, injecting in public - they may approve, disapprove, like or dislike to see it - it's just them, we should not judge, just accept that this is the way they are. However, it is right to have the debate but not to judge others - it's a personal thing as I said, whether you can understand the feelings of others is another matter.

Jun 26, 2009 Lizzie 87 posts	Topic: General Discussion / "Balance" letter about injecting in public I think this is discrimination. Why does she expect us to hide our disability and go to a dirty toilet to inject? If a blind person was eating in a restaurant, would she expect them to leave their white stick and guide dog at home so they did not offend anyone? Would she expect an asthmatic to take their inhaler in a toilet? Needles today are so small and discreet, if anyone noticed me injecting I would want to know why they were staring so rudely. If someone has a visible disability, everyone knows it is rude to stare. So isn't it rude to stare at a diabetic injecting themselves?

Jun 26, 2009 Anne-Marie 4 posts	Topic: General Discussion / "Balance" letter about injecting in public Hi. This is my first post here (I am a recent DAFNE graduate in Eire) but had to say that, firstly, I am dismayed at the reaction of that nurse who thinks taking your medication is something to be ashamed of. I do, however, understand that some people are highly sensitive to needles (I have a few friends who have a mortal fear of them!). As with most people on this post, I would have started off injecting in the bathroom but, no matter what people say, I seriously doubt you can compare the hygeine of injecting in a toilet to doing it discreetly at a table in the restaurant. I do now inject discretely under the table, and in general people don't notice. Even in work, where I have been at a desk in an open plan office for the past 2 years, some people sitting nearby only realised I was diabetic this month, as I was going on the DAFNE course - despite the fact that I inject at lunchtime at my desk almost every day! It is possible to inject without displaying it to the whole world. At business meetings, I find I don't inject (either running to the dreaded toilet or planning meetings outside of eating times) - mostly to do with not wanting to draw attention to such a personal topic in a business environment. But in general I would not have a problem with discretely injecting - and doing BG tests - in public, provided the person I'm with knows about my diabetes and is comfortable with it.

Jun 25, 2009 NiVZ 82 posts	Topic: General Discussion / "Balance" letter about injecting in public Hello, This letter really has stirred up a hornets nest and I have to say I'm quite offended by this nurses attitude. I'd like to see her ask me to go to the toilet just to do my needle. If it offended her so much, she could go and wait in the toilet until after I'd done my needle ;o) With the number of diabetics being diagnosed going up at an alarming rate, this nurse will find herself in the minority in the not too distant future. Anyway, on a lighter note, this leads me to a true anecdote passed onto me by a work colleague recently. He was out for a meal with 5 other people, including one of our mutual friends who is diabetic. After the meal, our mutual friend made a big swan song about his diabetes and proceeded to do his blood sugar and take his insulin. Imagine his embarressment when 4 of the other diners at the same table then took out their BG testing kits and pens to do their needles. Thought this was a priceless reversal of the norm as my friend who told me this was the only non-diabetic at the table! And remember people, laughter is the best form of medicine, unless you're diabetic......then it's insulin.

Jun 25, 2009 Janys 5 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Applying DAFNE when hiking I wonder if anyone has practical experience of applying DAFNE whilst hiking. I am going on a week's walking holiday and I plan to reduce my BI (Lantus) by 30% starting the night before and to reduce my QA by 50% for all meals including the evenings, then to play it by ear with lots of quick acting carbs in my pack and testing during the day (hopefully not too much). Before doing DAFNE I used to have lots of lows and highs whilst walking and really didn't feel on top of it. I have had diabetes for 35 years and took the DAFNE course at UCLH in March, and have benefitted greatly from it. I'd be pleased to hear from anyone who has actually tried DAFNE whilst hiking. Janys

Jun 25, 2009 Lizzie 87 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Diaries Hi Chris You can buy them from DAFNE in the post, it is quite cheap. Email them and ask for an order form.

Jun 25, 2009 Lizzie 87 posts	Topic: General Discussion / "Balance" letter about injecting in public Hi all Have any of you seen the latest issue of Balance? The nurse has written in again. What do you all think of her letter?

Jun 25, 2009 Damo 7 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Pumps V Injections DAFNE was great but since I have tried to get more active and loose weight I am fluctuating badly and lost warning signs of hypos. I have recently been left confused when my doctor recommended I go on to an insulin pump. My mentality is that they are for diabetics that may not remember to take their insulin, or the less active / mobile. (is this just my misconception?). I am on 4 injections a day at the moment but have been suffering regular hypos, mainly casued by exercising and irregularity of diet due to an "unbalanced" lifestyle. Apparently a pump can increase flexibility in lifestyle and enhance control. But I am worried about the limits that may be put on me. Im an active 34 year old male who enjoys football, rugby and crawling around on the floor getting dirty. I recently had a monitoring device for 3 days which was for too intrusive to live my normal life. Showering, sex, sleep and even sitting at a desk were regularly annoying. I know the pumps these days are smaller but still need fixture and stability. Sugar level control & pump V dealing with hypos and frustration. If you have any advice I would love to hear from your experiences. Thanks. D.

Jun 25, 2009 Damo 7 posts	Topic: General Discussion / "Balance" letter about injecting in public Im not for brandishing a needle around the room but discreetly done under the table would mean it would only be the nosey or the other diabetics in the room that may be left to comment. Im sure anyone afraid of needles would not want to look anyway (not that you can see them their so small). If it was to measure your sugar levels on the other hand which may require pricker, blood and tissues then i may be a bit more sympathetic to the quibbler!

Jun 25, 2009 ChrisS 12 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Diaries Wow- quick service, thanks.

Jun 25, 2009 marke 681 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Diaries Chris, I have the file to produce it from DAFNE Central but unfortunatley have not had chance yet to convert it into a format that is easily printable for users. I will hopefully get chance to do this in the near future and will post again once its online for you to access

Jun 25, 2009 ChrisS 12 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Diaries Is there anywhere I can get the DAFNE diaries to record my BG levels etc. I realise there is the online resource, but I like to have it to hand.

Jun 25, 2009 ChrisS 12 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Introductions Hi I'm Chris, 43, married to Sarah with 2 daughters, Tegan and Amber (5 & 2). I attended my DAFNE course at Medway Hospital in September 2007. I was first diagnosed as T1 in Feb 03 and I had been experimenting with Carb counting for a while when my Diabetes Nurse got me on the course. My job and hobbies mean I struggled to cope with a rigorous regime of fixed meal times etc. Been really disappointed with the online resources for DAFNE, and only by chance looked in to see if any diaries were avaialble and found this new forum. Well done to those who have set this up.

Jun 24, 2009 hazelharrison 1 post	Topic: General Discussion / Do periods mess up your blood sugars? Hi Jenny, I'm 8 months pregnant at the moment, but casting my mind back to when I had periods, I usually had to reduce by background insulin levels by around 10% the week before my periods were due as I was always hypo in the morning, once my periods started I had to put them back to normal dose again. All other ratios remained the same. My diabetes team agreed that female hormones were a factor and that it was not uncommon.

Jun 23, 2009 NiVZ 82 posts	Topic: DAFNE Online Mobile / Mobile site released Hello, just tested and works fine in Opera Mini on my Nokia 5310. The default browser works too, but I can see a '&nbsp' in plain text between the Forums and Logout link. There are also '&nbsp' showing on the Back, Home and Logout links at the bottom of the carb counting page. This is excellent work tho - very handy to have this on the move ;o)

Jun 21, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: General Discussion / Hello Hi Shelley, Welcome to the site, glad to hear you enjoyed the course and hope you find the site as useful. Congratulations too on being our first user to take advantage of the diary sharing feature of the forums. Simon

Jun 19, 2009 Shelley 1 post	Topic: General Discussion / Hello Hello everyone! I finished the DAFNE course today and thought I would join here and come and say hello! I have had diabetes for 22 years now and am so glad to have been referred to do DAFNE! The course was brilliant and am hoping my blood glucose levels will settle down, once I have got them all right! I have just entered todays results so far and they are still a little high but better than earlier in the week!!! I look forward to usinf this online tool very much and maybe getting to know others of you in a similar situation. Shelley

Jun 18, 2009 PNThompson 57 posts	Topic: Carbohydrate Counting / Useful link for looking up CPs I completed the DAFNE Course at the end of April, and after a couple of weeks, found it awkward to do the calculations, and think that some of those calcs were wrong. What I have managed to do, is input some data into an excel format. The input contains the amount of carbs per 100g, and you input the weight of the portion, and the computer calculates the CP figure, and also works in the ratios, and adjustments according to the BG prior to the meal. The only problem with this, is that you need the carb contents, but generally works ok for any packaged products. Looking at some of the Carb contents, they differ according to the Company producing the food, so I am wary about CP Counts listed in the book or in the Carb Counter.

Jun 15, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / Question: Sharing the online diary Here's an example range from my own BG diary. If you have any comments on the format or features then let us know. Simon

Jun 15, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Site Development / Question: Sharing the online diary Dear site members, The ability to share all or part of your Blood Glucose diary with other site users has now been implemented. There are two methods for doing this, detailed below: Option 1 - Using the forums You may add a date range of up to 10 days to a forum topic/post. When browsing your DAFNE Online BG Diary, look above the diary table itself and you will see a drop down box allowing you to select which of our forums you would like to post part of your diary on to. Then ensure 10 days or less is currently displayed in your diary view, and click the 'Share' button. This will add the date range to a new forum topic, allowing you to add a Topic title and description. This option is intended for users who want to seek advice from the entire user base of the site, much in the same way that is done each morning of the DAFNE course using the overhead projector. People replying to the topic (and of course the topic author) can add their own diary entries by adding a date range in the format DDMMYY (Day Month Year) to their reply box in the relevant boxes. An example from my diary is shown in the following post, so you can see how the diary will be formatted. Option 2 - Sharing with individual users You may also share your entire diary with another user of the site. To do this, click the 'users' link at the top of the site, and then use the search box on the right hand side to search for the user either by username or email address. In the list of results, click their name to see their profile, and then click the 'Share my DAFNE Diary with this user' link. To see a list of users who have shared their diary with you, click the 'shared diaries' link to on the right hand menu, and then click that user's username. Once you have shared your diary you can 'unshare' it with a user by following the share procedure detailed previously. To see which users can currently see your diary, navigate to your diary and see the list to the right (in a box underneath 'DAFNE Tools'). This option is ideal for users who wish to share their online diary with their DAFNE Educators, and maybe other members of their DAFNE Group. We hope that you find this new functionality enjoyable and useful. If you have any feedback at all, whether positive or constructive then please don't hesitate to let us know. Thanks, Simon P.S. Please remember any advice given on the forums is just that; advice. Insulin dose adjustment may be different for each individual and also depends on external factors such as exercise and illnes

Jun 11, 2009 Simon 578 posts	Topic: Questions for HCPs / Protein Supplements Good points there - I was more wondering if the 'excess' protein intake causes the kidneys to work harder and may cause them to fail somehow. (This may be totally untrue, hence why I work in IT and not medicine...)