My mother has diabetes and takes shots twice a day. When she doesn’t take her shots for a couple of days, she gets sick. I live away from my mom, and she doesn’t like to tell anyone she’s out of medicine. When she’s sick, what signs should I look for?

When your mother does not take her insulin, I would assume her blood sugar slowly goes up over that time. Some symptoms of high blood sugar could be extreme thirst, increased urination, sores or infections that won’t heal, irritability and, possibly, confusion. Is your mother able to test her blood sugar at home to know what is happening? That might be helpful for her to see what happens when she is unable to take her insulin. There are resources for her to get insulin if her insurance does not cover it or she is unable to buy it herself.

I would encourage her to discuss this with her physician who might have samples they can give her or other resources so that she does not have to skip her insulin and suffer the high blood sugars the follow. Another resource for you both would be to talk to a diabetes educator in her area. You can find one by calling the American Association of Diabetes Educators at 1-800-TEAM UP 4.

KS