Error 5

I looked over and my clock said 3:00am exactly. My mind said, what are you doing awake? My heart said, Get your sorry butt out of bed and test your child. Stupid heart!


I keep lighting to a minimum during these tests because basically I don't want to wake myself up. I know how hard it is to get me back to sleep and I really don't want to experience that sort of torture.  I find a meter on the kitchen table. I insert a test strip, grab a lancing device and head up the stairs to test my sleeping child.  My mind is screaming, You've only just fallen asleep so you KNOW he is going to be low! You are just never going to get any sleep tonight!


I try to ignore myself. I search for an available finger and eventually wrestle it down. The blood flow is good tonight. He must be high. I wait for those five seconds to see.....Error 5. What the.....???? What the heck is an "error 5" anyway? Back downstairs to get another test strip. Stupid meter. There was a tonne of blood. Do the diabetes gods not realize that this is just going to wake me up?? I do not need exercise at 3am! 


Okay, new test strip, back upstairs, wrestle finger again, lots of blood still, strip full and.....Error 5.  What the heck is a flippin' Error 5??? I have had enough! Back downstairs for the third freaking time. Can you tell that diabetes has done it and woken me up? Yep, I am awake and I am not taking this crap from this meter. I grab its identical, although slightly different colored twin, who is coded for the same test strip lot. I also grab the bottle of test strips. I will get a reading without doing my morning workout on the stairs!


Again, I find a hand as it stretches in its sleep.  I snafu it quickly and lance it. Blood remains lovely and deep red. Strip sips said blood and....Finally a reading of 7.5 (135)! Good enough for me. I don't need a perfect 7. I need some sleep! 

Stupid diabetes!