Windy City, Here I Come!

Posted on April 10, 2011 by mydiabeticheart

The windy city is about to be invaded by a bus load of Hoosiers.  The American Diabetes Association’s Chicago Diabetes Expo is Saturday, April 16, and myself and 54 other folks from Indiana will be there.

After seeing a blurb about it on the Indiana ADA facebook page Wednesday evening, I decided to reserve a seat on their bus.  So, I gave the office a call and, much to my chagrin, got an answering machine because the office had closed for the evening.  So, I left a message telling them who I was and what I wanted, and to please call me back in the morning.

On Thursday morning I received a call from a nice lady named Cindy, who provided details about the trip and the cost, and provided the mailing address for sending payment.  A $10 check and a trip to the post office later, and I have secured one of 55 spots on the bus to Chicago.  And I’m rather excited about it.

I don’t know if I’ll know anyone on the bus, or if I’ll run into anyone that I know at the Expo, but that’s OK.  By the time it’s all said and done, I’ll know at least 54 other people who have been touched by diabetes in some way. And that’s just cool!  I plan to take along a ton of business cards and promote my website and the DOC to anyone who is interested.  And even those who aren’t 🙂

I’ll be sure to shoot lots of pics to share when I get back, and may even attempt to shoot a video as well.  Guess we’ll just have to see what happens.  I’m not taking a laptop, but I’ll definitely have my droid with me, so you can expect to see plenty of tweets as well.

Well, until the battery dies anyway. 😉

Posted in D-Meetups, Diabetes, Travel | 1 Comment

Reverse the Bullshit!

Posted on April 5, 2011 by mydiabeticheart

Daily life in the Helter Skelter world in which we live comes with an abundant supply of bullshit. That’s a fact on which I think everyone I know would certainly agree.  And when you live with any type of diabetes, the amount of bullshit in your daily life multiplies exponentially.

Life with Diabetes is hard.  It doesn’t matter whether you have Type 1, Type 1.5/LADA, or  Type 2, each comes with its own bundle of  bullshit to be dealt with each and every day.  Why? Because there is NOT A CURE available for any type of Diabetes.

As if each person with diabetes doesn’t have enough to contend with every day, we also have to contend with the massive amount of misinformation that is constantly being spread about diabetes.  It’s on TV, in newspapers, in magazines, and all over the internet.  The BULLSHIT is EVERYWHERE!!!

I can’t even go through the checkout at Walmart, or any other store for that matter, without being bombarded with bullshit about “Reversing Diabetes” or some miracle cinnamon diet that will instantly relieve me of my suffering.

And while I’m thinking about it, can someone please explain how the fuck eating chocolate cake is going to help improve my insulin sensitivity in 7 days?   Seriously!!! I want to know!! How is that going to help me?!?

Over the last two years, I’ve become quite used to seeing that sort of stuff from Prevention and other vanity magazines  in the stores.  And each time I see the words “reverse diabetes”  my blood boils because I know there is no way to reverse or cure diabetes.  It’s bullshit, and it’s bad for you!

That, however, is not the kind of thing I expect to find in a well respected publication like Reader’s Digest.

Last night, my friend Kim Vlasnik, who blogs at http://www.textingmypancreas.com/, informed the rest of us in the Diabetes Online Community (DOC) that Reader’s Digest is planning to release a similar publication in May.  In fact, it was advertised in the latest issue of the mag.

We in the DOC take serious offense to this type of recklessness, and Kim and several others have let Reader’s Digest know it.  They’ve written blog posts, sent emails, and my friend Kelly Kunik made phone calls expressing disappointment over this egregious mistake.

I encourage everyone reading this to contact Reader’s Digest and let them know that their good intentions are not in the best interest of anyone.  This kind of Bullshit is harmful to all of us living with Diabetes.

Emails can be sent to: letters@readersdigest.com  and snail mail can be sent to:
React, Reader’s Digest, PO Box 6100, Harlan, Iowa  51593-1600.  Be sure to include your name, address, email, and phone number.

And if you’ve seen similar publications in stores in your area, take a moment to track down contact information and give them an earful.  They are just as guilty in all this, because they are distributing the bullshit.

It is so important that we continue to stand up to such ignorance and stupidity.  If we don’t, ignorance and stupidity will think it’s OK.

If Reader’s Digest and other publications really want to help people with diabetes, they should scrap the rubbish they are producing, and start producing quality materials that dispel myths about all types of diabetes; that help educate the general public.

And I have a great title for the publication.  Reverse the BULLSHIT!

Posted in Diabetes, Featured, Rants, Shout outs | Tagged , , , , | 17 Comments

Bloggin from the droid, take 1

Posted on March 30, 2011 by mydiabeticheart

Fe fi fo fum, this little blog post was written on my droid using only two thumbs. 🙂

I’m in the midst of a much needed vacation, and so far it has been as relaxing and peaceful as I had hoped it would.

I got to Louisville around 5pm on Sunday, just in time for the bbq dinner my grandma had prepared to celebrate my birthday.  We had angel food cake for dinner. Yummy!

I was so tired after the long day of driving, that I went to bed around 11pm that night.  In fact, I’ve gone to bed by midnight the last three nights. That never happens. 

Monday was my 27th birthday, and just as I had hoped, there wasn’t much fanfare over it.  It was laid back and low key. In fact, I had a quiet evening with my aunt and uncle, looking at pictures from their cruise in february. We did have pizza for dinner, which was fine for a birthday meal.

On Tuesday, I took a ride out to the location of the meetup I’ll be having with Meredith on Thursday. I’m not familiar with that area of town, so I wanted to do a trial run to find the place and get an idea as to how long it’ll take to get there and back.  And so, I know now, and am looking forward to our meetup about 24 hours from now.

And today, well, I haven’t done anything more than take my grandmother to the grocery store.  Always a fun time.

Oh, I should also mention that this vacation has turned into a much needed break from sitting in front of a computer. All of my online activities have been via my droid. And due to my lack of computer usage, I will also be taking a break from dsma tonight.  I love dsma and everyone who participates, but I need a night off. I’ll be back next week. 🙂

Well, that’s all for now. Back to doing nothing. Ciao!

Posted in Life, Travel | Leave a comment

It’s OK to Need Help

Posted on March 20, 2011 by mydiabeticheart

In previous blog posts and conversations over the last two years, I’ve made no bones about the fact that I’ve battled with bouts of depression and anxiety since I was diagnosed with congestive heart failure and type 2 diabetes.

The daily routines of medications, blood sugar testing, meal planning, and other related bullshit, combined with the constant worry of trying to figure out how to pay for all of those medications and testing supplies, are simply overwhelming at times.

Add to that all of the typical stuff that goes along with every day life, you know… work, bills, chores, relationships, etc… and you’ve got yourself a great big barrel of fun.

Then top that off with dealing with a loved one being diagnosed with stage 4 cancer and going through all of the activities and emotions that go along with that, and being forced to put a near 9 year relationship on hold while your best friend becomes the primary caregiver for that loved one, and that great big barrel of fun transforms into the biggest clusterf*#K you’ve ever seen.

It’s all enough to destroy someone mentally. And the extreme mental hurt quickly manifests into extreme physical hurt. And you eventually reach a point where you just can’t take it anymore, and feel like throwing the towel in.

As difficult as it is for me to admit, I reached that point in the early part of February.

And the hard part is that I know it didn’t have to happen. I had a little bottle of “happy” pills in my possession that my doctor had given me the month before. I just wasn’t able to take them immediately, because I was starting a new blood sugar medication and had to get through the side effects of it before starting the other medicine.

And then when it was time to start the Celexa, I kept putting it off and putting it off, because of the fear that I’d have the same problems with it that I had with similar drugs years before. When you’ve had a bad experience with medications, or anything for that matter, you tend to shy away from them. It’s perfectly normal to have those feelings.

Things finally reached a point in early February where I knew I needed help, and knew that I had to take the plunge into the world of anti-depressants and anti-anxiety medications again. And so, on the 21st of last month, I broke the seal on the prescription bottle, cut the little pill in half as the doctor had instructed, and jumped.

Tomorrow, March 21st, will mark a month since I started the medication, and I can honestly say that I’m glad I did. I’m not nearly as edgy as I had been, and feel quite mellow most of the time. And mellow is a good thing.

The moral of this story is this: It’s OK to need help; You just have to ask for it!

Posted in Depression, Lessons Learned, Life, Medications, Mental Health, Popular | 14 Comments

Little G’s Meltdown

Posted on March 4, 2011 by mydiabeticheart
This just into the MDH Newsroom:

Little G, the popular D ninja doll and star of the hit series “The Adventures of Little G”, has apparently gone off the deep end.

MDH News has learned that the little ninja’s roommates have witnessed what can only be described as a complete meltdown. They told us that the star has spent recent days running around their home yelling “I’m a Winner! I’m a Winner!” and “I’ve got High Fructose Corn Syrup in my veins!”

When asked about the motivation behind the sudden outburst, one of the roommates, Code S. Monkey, told MDH News that he believed this was a copy cat performance inspired by the recent debacle involving a certain Hollywood star.

 Little G goes to work Little G
The other roommate, who we’ll call Birdman, told us that he always thought the little ninja was a little crazy, but he had never seen him do anything like this.

Birdman, who lives with type 2 diabetes and congestive heart failure, told MDH News that Little G had been acting strangely for a while, and that he had even confronted the ninja about it after finding Little G’s stash of HFCS filled goodies. That confrontation didn’t end well at all.

Both roommates told MDH News that they just want what’s best for their friend, and hope they can convince him to get help before it’s too late. They plan to try another intervention in the near future.

MDH News will have more on this story as it develops. Stay Tuned!

Now back to your regularly scheduled Friday night web surfing. 🙂
Posted in Humor, The Adventures of Little G | 4 Comments

I’ve Just Kept Living

Posted on February 21, 2011 by mydiabeticheart

The DSMA Blog Carnival topic for the month of February is “The most awesome thing I have done in spite of diabetes is . . . . “ Here’s my entry:

I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about the topic since it was first announced at the beginning of the month, trying to come up with my response.  I’ve thought of a hundred different ways to reply.  There have been so many awesome things that I’ve done since I was diagnosed two years ago.  How does one rank the awesomeness of the things he or she does?

Oh sure, I guess I could list all of the things I’ve done and rank them 1 to 10 on the awesomeness scale, but that doesn’t seem like the right answer.

To me, all of the things that I’ve done over the last two years, no matter how big or small, have been awesome in some way or another.  Yes, some have been more exciting and rewarding than others, but awesome just the same.

“Why has it all been awesome?”, you ask.

Well, it’s because everything I’ve done has been during two years that I didn’t think I was going to have to live.

And when you think about it, that’s what it’s all about. Living our life.  Everything that we do is just a tiny square that makes up the fabric of the life we live.

What’s the most awesome thing I’ve done in spite of type 2 diabetes and congestive heart failure?

I’ve Just Kept Living!

“This post is my February entry in the DSMA Blog Carnival.  If you’d like to participate too, you can get all of the information at http://diabetessocmed.com/2011/introducing-the-dsma-blog-carnival/“

Posted in Diabetes, DSMA Blog Carnival, Lessons Learned, Life, Shout outs | 3 Comments

A Little Peace of Mind

Posted on February 16, 2011 by mydiabeticheart

During an evening chat session on Twitter earlier this month, I mentioned the issues that I’ve begun to have with my insurance company not wanting to pay for more that 2 blood glucose test strips a day.  Several of my friends in the diabetes online community (D-OC) weighed in with similar frustrations.  And before long, quite the rant session was underway.  It’s just disgusting that insurance companies are leaving us all high and dry when it comes to the supplies that we need to survive.  I’m not going to climb up on my soap box right now, though, because that’s not what this post is about.

This post is about being thankful for being blessed with amazing friends; and one in particular who helped bring my mind a little peace.

While that rant session was going on publicly, I received a private message from a friend telling me that she had a surplus of the Contour Blood Glucose Test Strips  that I use,  and that she’d gladly send some my way.  If I hadn’t been at work at the time, I probably would have cried.  I was just stunned by the generous offer.  I provided my mailing address and thanked her immensely, then we both went about our own business.

About a week later, as I was leaving for work, I found a little package from California sitting on my doorstep.  It was from my friend.  And as she promised, the package contained 100 test strips.  Admittedly, there were tears involved this time. Tears of joy. And a big sigh of relief.

I can’t find the words to express how fortunate I feel to have so many friends in the diabetes online community who are willing to do such generous things without a second thought.  To do such things for people whom you have never met in person says an a great deal about the people you all are.

So, to you, Jenny, I say thank you. Lots of Love, my friend.

Posted in Diabetes, Life, Shout outs | 5 Comments

Ready to Spread My New Wings

Posted on January 23, 2011 by mydiabeticheart

After I was diagnosed with congestive heart failure at the end of December 2008, I spent a good deal of time researching the condition, treatment options, and the various limitations that the condition would place on my activities.  One such limitation that I came across was air travel.

I read countless articles, studies, etc… that indicated that patients with CHF should, in general, avoid air travel because of potential problems and the additional stresses the body endures during high altitude flights.  And those who did travel by air, needed to meet certain parameters, like being able to walk certain distances and climb stairs without getting winded, and have doctor approval, etc… before doing so.

At the time, my heart was in pretty poor shape; it was only pumping at around 30% of its capacity, and was very weak.  And I couldn’t walk or climb many stairs without becoming tired and short of breath.  And so, with the knowledge of my condition and the research I had done, I just let the thought of traveling anywhere by air leave my mind.  It just wasn’t safe for me to attempt, so I left it at something that I just wouldn’t be able to do.

Now, two years later, things have changed for the better.  My heart is pumping at 50% now, which is what the doctor considers a normal level.  I’m feeling stronger and have more energy than I had in the past.  Since things are better now, it made me wonder whether air travel would be something I could do now.

So, when I went to see my cardiologist on Jan. 10th, I discussed the topic of air travel with him.  And much to my delight, the doctor told me that he had no reservations about me flying at all.

And you know what that means right?  Another hurdle to attending diabetes conferences and d-meetups around the country has been cleared.

More importantly, though, it means part of me is on the mend, and that I’m a step closer to enjoying the opportunities life presents me to the fullest.  And that’s pretty awesome!

Posted in Doctor Visits, Health, Heart, Life | 10 Comments

Mr. Betes is a Bully!

Posted on January 21, 2011 by mydiabeticheart

Posted in Cartoons, Diabetes, Humor, Lessons Learned, Life | 10 Comments

As I Expected

Posted on January 17, 2011 by mydiabeticheart

So here we are, one week after my visit with my primary care doctor, and I’m just now getting around to writing about how it went.  Better late than never, or some bovine fecal matter like that.

This was a follow up appointment, and I was to receive the results of my latest A1C.  And I went into it expecting to hear bad news.  And, as I expected, that’s what I got.

The result was 7.1 this time around.  And despite how prepared I thought I was for hearing that my A1c was back above 7.0, it still came as a shock.  Considering where I started out at two years ago though, at 9.6, that 7.1 is still looking pretty good.  And that’s how I’m trying to look at it. POSITIVELY!   I have my good friends in the D-OC to thank for helping me out with that.

Thankfully, my doctor was rather understanding about the situation, and I didn’t receive the posterior chewing that I was expecting.  When she asked what had happened, my reply was simply “life with diabetes happened”.  I explained the situations that I’ve been dealing with over the last few months, and left it at that.

We agreed that it would be best to switch my medications, and I’m now taking Janumet 50-500 twice a day to see if that will work better than metformin and januvia did separately.  And thankfully, just in a weeks time, I’m seeing a big difference in my blood glucose readings.

We also discussed anti-depression and anti-anxiety medications as well.  More on that later.

And finally, the sinus infection I’ve been battling was addressed.  My prescription from the last SI I had was refilled, and fortunately, it’s finally working.  Feeling much better today than I have the last week.  Still a few sniffles though.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must go catch my nose before it runs off.

Posted in Diabetes, Doctor Visits, Health, Medications, Shout outs | 7 Comments