Testing. If you’re a diabetic, chances are you have a glucometer of some kind. What’s a glucometer? It’s a (usually pretty small and portable) medical device that allows you to test your blood sugar. Usually you have a test strip that is inserted partially into the glucometer, a lancet with which you prick your finger (or another body part), and the meter itself. Once you get a little blood from the finger prick, it’s placed onto the test strip and in seconds you get a reading.

Yes, I said blood. Pricking your own finger is not fun. It’s a little messy and a little painful–for some it’s more than a little painful. That said, it’s useful if not absolutely necessary in your efforts to manage your disease to go ahead and monitor your sugars periodically (perhaps not as often as the four times a day my physician suggests–I’d only do that if I was sick–but maybe twice a day, once in the morning and once before bed).

What does this information do for you? For me, it indicates a direction for my behavior–if I’m low (below 100, which almost never happens), I eat; if I’m high (I consider more than 160 high for a fasting reading), I exercise. I might exercise anyway, but I really do something if I’m high. In terms of exercise, glucometers can be extremely useful. If you’re about to go out for a run or ride–particularly if you’re relatively new to doing so–taking a reading will tell you whether or not eating before (or during) the workout is indicated. It’s what tells me to get a sandwich down about an hour before my Thursday afternoon run, for instance.

It also helps you equate the nebulous “feelings” you have to actual blood sugar readings. If I’m feeling a little dizzy or hungry or anxious, sometimes I’ll take a reading and find my sugar is about the 100 level. While that’s “normal”, for me it’s a little low. If I ate something it would help me deal with my symptoms.

While using a glucometer is not fun, it’s a key part of learning how to manage your diabetes. Yes, it’s not my favorite thing, but I do it–because it’s a small thing to do to manage my disease and personal behavior over the long term.