Today's Stats:

Breakfast

Blood Glucose:     Time:  0942     Reading:  136

Blood Pressure:     Time:  1045     BP:  153/78     Pulse:  58

Breakfast:  1100  & Meds What she ate:  2 oz pork sage sausage scrambled with one egg, heavily peppered 1 slice toasted oat bran bread with 1 tbl Fleischmann's margarine 1/4 tsp cinnamon on bread 8 oz orange juice diluted w/8 oz water
Med/Dose	Administration	Explanation
Niferex-150 [150 mg elemental iron]	1 hour before breakfast	to pull her out of what I hope is her temporarily severely anemic state
vitamin C/500 mg	with Niferex-150	helps the body metabolize iron
glipizide/10 mg	1 pill at least 1/2 hour pre-meal	standard pre-breakfast and pre-dinner med
Protonix/40 mg	1 pill at least 1/2 hour pre-meal	standard pre-breakfast med
Albuterol/2.0+IPRAO/.5	nebulized during meal preparation	standard breakfast, sometimes dinner med
lisinopril/5 mg	1 tab with meal	increased her dose because her blood pressure indicated she could handle it, and probably needed it
2 oz aloe vera juice gel	with meal	standard dose to help increase the sensitivity of her cells to insulin
Daily Senior Multivitamin	with breakfast	standard breakfast supplement
folic acid/400 mcg	with breakfast	standard breakfast supplement
vitamin E/400 IU	with meal	standard breakfast supplement
garlic/1250 mg	with meal	standard breakfast supplement
1/4 cup pure cranberry juice w/12 oz water	after breakfast	standard after breakfast supplement

Conspicuously Absent Meds & Supplements
Med/Dose	Administration	Explanation
aspirin/81 mg	1 tab with breakfast	Has not been receiving this, per doctor's orders, since 6/18/04; he feels that, if she is bleeding internally intermittently, the aspirin, being a blood thinner, will increase the blood flow, and this is a higher risk to take, right now, than protecting her against strokes, including mini-strokes
metformin	any amount with meal	at this point, I still wasn't quite aware of what the antibiotic was doing to her blood sugar; so, I continued my cut back program

    Although her blood sugar was a little higher than usual, I had no idea what was about to happen as the antibiotic in her body continued to activate in the presence of her other meds. As you can see, above, I was about to find out.

Lunch

Blood Glucose:     Time:  1429     Reading:  177

Blood Pressure:     Time:  1439     BP:  139/58     Pulse:  56

Lunch:  1440  & Meds What she ate:  sandwich w/ 4 oz tuna salad, 2 slices oat bran bread 4 radishes 11.5 oz V-8 juice with 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
Med/Dose	Administration	Explanation
metformin/500 mg	1/2 a 1000 mg tab with meal	standard lunch dose

    At this point, I figured, time to go back to the old strategy to control her blood sugar until 24-48 hours after her last dose of Cipro XR, depending on how her blood sugar performed. Although her systolic blood pressure was high, for her, I didn't administer any more lisinopril.

Dinner

Blood Glucose:     Time:  1947     Reading:  119

Blood Pressure:     Time:  1956     BP:  174/71     Pulse:  57

Dinner:  2000  & Meds What she ate:  Approx 12 oz macaroni and cheese with hamburger and pork sage sausage, chopped celery, chopped onion and chopped bell pepper
Med/Dose	Administration	Explanation
glipizide/10 mg	1 pill at least 1/2 hour pre-meal	standard pre-breakfast and dinner pre-med
metformin/500 mg	1/2 a 1000 mg tab with meal	standard dinner med
Cipro XR/500 mg	1 tab 2 hours after dinner	according to my research, this is the best time to administer this antibiotic
lisinopril/5 mg	1 tab with meal	again, because of the volitility of her systolic blood pressure, figured she could use it

Conspicuously Absent Meds & Supplements
Med/Dose	Administration	Explanation
36 mg Iron Protein Succinylate	2 18 mg tabs 1 hour before meal	no evening iron until she has finished her course of Cipro XR
vitamin C/500 mg	with iron supplement	since this goes with the iron and the iron was deleted, so was this

    I was truly surprised, today, that she remained up the entire day. The zig-zag in her energy level became apparent, today. One minute she give me a bleary stare and tell me she was going in to take a nap. Fifteen minutes later, she'd have forgotten about taking a nap and when I'd query whether she was planning a nap, she'd answer me with a curt, surprised, "No," as though it was the furthest thing from her mind. I imagine that her blood pressure and her blood glucose were probably zig-zagging, too.
    I was truly surprised, considering what I'd read about the antibiotic, that she remained up for so long. She didn't go to bed on this day until between 2300 and 2400, after the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine two parter on Spike TV ended, and we'd discussed it, which surprised the hell out of me that she had the presence of mind and energy to have paid attention. Although it's a series for which she and I both share a fascination, I wasn't expecting her to handle the side effects of the Cipro so well. As it turns out, Saturday was the day it leveled her.