superdog683's comments

if you use apps. and a spread sheet to keep track of all misc. expenses then i would say too much time and effort.

my simple way is take the misc. expenses $ money right off the top when cash check. i put the cash in my pocket. $800 every two weeks. and i use cash for all misc. stuff. use the credit card for fixed monthly expenses and pay maintenance stuff like insur, etc elec. check. so if run out of cash then done till next check. and usually have left over dont usually spend full $800 i just throw it in the drawer until it piles up and then spend it on something or divert to invest. acct.

i think its a good point too much time spent saving money is wasted time. my rule of thumb is can i save more that i get paid at work?? so if you get paid $100/hr. you can clip coupons 3 hours and save 20 bucks or stay at work 3 hours and make $300 i am a dyi person but if i can pay someone to do the job less than my pay i just work extra hours and hire that person.

one can spend end less amounts of time on "investing"

i like macro-economics and treat it as a hobby.

others that may have little interest in the subject could take a simple route.

25% gold/silver 25% blue chip dividend or index fund 25% property or rental 25% in your business or hobby, if you spend/invest in what you know and like will usually do well same with work do what you have passion and ability=success

if #3 and 4 dont apply just put 20% gold/silver and 80% in 10 different good dividend paying blue chip. why gold and silver?? because inflation protection against fiat currency. another note now not the time to by stocks, now is time to sell. buy after next correction.

i agree, you are doing the impossible.

thank you for the feed back, its how i learn.

yes, 2/3 of that post is for the "average" diabetic that maybe be reading this thread, you are are already an advanced diabetic. just keeping the child alive means you are very vigilant. i have not treated a diabetic under 5 years old. i could learn more from you than you can learn from me.

so only advice i have that may be helpful for you is trust and expand on your expertise. learn the glycemic index. others md and me will be wrong in dosing "your" child. i accept that the patient or parent knows their body and listen accordingly. many medical people will not! when you know your right trust your expertise. and finally, yes the 2 issues you brought up are difficult and unexplained. fever or illness can cause glucose to be erratic. and the low bedtime could be from residual insulin in the tissue. this still wouldnt explain all of it but some of the drop could be from insulin in the tissue, can take 1-3 hours to clear. from the numbers you gave your child has some what erratic glucose numbers. the meal issue is very difficult, maybe you can use the pump just for basil and dose the the child after they eat with humalog. dosing a child before meals is impossible and humalog only takes about 15min.

my post is mainly about how the new technology has limits and using individual dose at or after meals for some diabetics will help.

in a more extreme environment ie if glucose and eating are extremely variable you could wait 30-60 min after meal and dose according to glucose reading this is usually easier than dosing ahead counting carbs etc. this is not a desirable long term dosing method. i would only use this when "forced" to by very erratic eating and glucose readings.

thru routine should be able to get sugar stable over night.

i imagine you are trying to keep your child textbook perfect as far as glucose levels. this is close to impossible for a child this young. in general you can keep a diabetic around 100-150 as long as they are not above 150 for extended periods of time it avoids the negative issues associated with diabetes. always safer to run a little high verse low. you could turn down the insulin pump at night until child around 125 and chance of low sugar would decrease. when child gets older can strive for "perfect" control. if diabetic 150 or below and 180 or below at meals most of the long term negative health issues are avoided. 75-95 and 120 meals is the text book numbers but difficult to maintain. good luck when he gets older dealing with the candy and soda issue. one of the very difficult times with a type 1 diabetic explaining and convincing the child they cant have candy like the other kids. also when he gets older avoid all the diet foods and drinks, esp. nutrasweet. stevia might be ok we dont know yet for sure. nutrasweet is bad bad bad for everyone especially diabetics.

you mention some good issues and concerns.

technology is very helpful but for the most part it can not perform any functions 100%.

step one for type one diabetic is routine and diet. yes this is boring but very important. a good solid start in diabetic training would take 100 hours. that is to start and with a good trainer and a good patient. as a pharmacist i like to stay with the old technology for now. insulin pump for basil rate. or use insulin pens long acting agent for basil rate and a short acting for meals. test ye old finger prick and glucose meter. i focus on routine to get consistent glucose levels. develope 10 standard meals to start. 10 brk. 10 lunch. 10 dinner. understanding the glycemic index is key to consistent glucose levels. have to understand carbs and how they are absorbed and avoid high glycemic items b/c those will spike and then drop glucose levels. now this child is very young but older diabetics, alcohol can wreak havoc on glucose levels. next want about 1/3 1/3 1/3 carbs/protein/fat and fiber. example 8oz buckwheat/80z salmon/ 8oz broccoli seems simple and we all talk about a balanced diet but the reason its important is the carbs/protein/fat all get absorbed and metabolised at different rates so this gives the body a sustained level of calories that are digested over a period of hours. there are a 100 important factors i could talk about but the glycemic index and 1/3 ratio and dont exceed 600-800 cal per meal might help some people get started.

just as an aside i have had patients that were motivated, educated diabetics and after a year or two of working with them they could go a week without testing and stay in the 100-150 range. diet, routine, and understanding how and what your body metabolizes are very important.

cost would be highly variable.

insur. depends on your employer and 100 other factors. some plans very little cost others maybe 25%. if you are independently employed insur will run about $25,000 to 35,000 per year for the family.

if your son is "healthy" and is a "good" diabetic he can get by on about $6,000/year. this would be if he eats well, moderately active and maintains sugar well. fyi if athletic this doubles or triples amount of insulin consumed. if your son takes very poor care of himself very erratic sugar 100-350 and 5-8 extra trips to the ER and or doctor and you want the top end insulin pump, humalog, humalog pens etc then the cost could be as high as your imagination.