Living Healthy with Diabetes
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I know you have heard them all -- those diet and health maxims repeated by every source you have turned to for health. Diet. Exercise. Manage stress. Well, this is all great advice for everyone, but for some, it is a matter of life and death, literally. A woman who recently came to me and shared her story, gave me permission to use her first name in this article, it is Carol-Ann. Carol-Ann was diagnosed with Type II diabetes. She faced four insulin shots a day; out-of-control blood sugars and excruciating pain in her shoulder. Since I cannot treat medical diseases, I referred Carol-Ann to a local Diabetes Treatment Center I had heard of. Here is what she now says, "They have given me my life and the quality of it, back!" |
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To hear the exuberance in her voice compared to the nearly suicidal woman I first encountered was one of the greatest gifts I have ever received. Carol-Ann's story tells us all that one truly can learn to cope with this disease and bring it under control to the best of one's ability. According to the American Diabetes Association, diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States. Type 2 is the most common form accounting for 90 -- 95 percent of all diabetes cases. It occurs when the body does not manufacture enough insulin or use it properly, which causes glucose to build up in the blood. Let us discuss the good news now! You, like Carol-Ann, can learn to manage your Type 2 diabetes. Those who learn this can look forward to a bright future if they only take good care of themselves and keep the disease in check. There are four levels in controlling Type 2 diabetes. Healthy eating, exercising, managing stress and medication. Those who commit to necessary changes can live long, healthy and happy lives, sometimes even without medication. |
When Carol-Ann contacted me she was depressed, obese, scared, lonely and extremely troubled with her diagnosis. After a good long cry, Carol-Ann decided to pick herself up and learn to accept her diabetes. She said, "I was feeling sorry for myself! I wallowed in self-pity. I allowed this disease to dominate my life and wondered just what was left of it! Once I realized this, I knew the choice was mine and mine alone. Did I want to be well again and work towards a normal life or did I want to give in to my self-pity and let this thing kill me?" Once she was able to accept it, she felt the strength and motivation to tackle it by learning management skills. Today Carol-Ann is 45 pounds lighter and more importantly, no longer needs insulin shots or any oral medications. That is a true, inspiring success story and it can be yours, too.
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