Walking With Diabetes

0:00Hi and welcome to Inspiration from the Conversation. It's here that I hope that you'll find inspiration. So I just wanted to put in my own little disclaimer. I am not a doctor. I don't have any of those letters before my name or after my name. These are just my opinions and my experience. That's all. This is episode 22, walking with diabetes. Now let me just quickly read what diabetes is. Diabetes is a condition that happens when your blood sugar or glucose is too high. It develops when your pancreas doesn't make enough insulin or any at all. Or when your body isn't responding to the effects of insulin properly.

1:04The reason why I want to talk about this today is because I was recently diagnosed as being diabetic. It was kind of funny because I had been, I guess, prediabetic for quite a few years. And to be quite honest with you, I didn't think I was going to get diabetes. I don't really eat bad or back then anyway. I did have my sweets, I did like my sweets. But I guess, I don't know, I guess I was in my 60s. I had been 63 maybe. I was at work and I had started having symptoms and everybody's symptoms are different.

2:04Sometimes you get accumulation of different ones. But for me, it happened like this. I had started noticing that I was going to the bathroom quite a bit. And at first I just kind of played it off because sometimes I have coffee in the morning. And then when I get to work, I might have another cup. Sometimes I do, other times I don't. And I do drink a little water throughout the day, even though my children constantly get on me and ask me if I had any water today. And to be honest with you, I can't drink as much as what they want me to drink because if I did, I would never get any work done. But anyway, I just noticed that I was going to the bathroom a lot.

3:05And I would go and not long after I'd go, I would end up having to go back again. And this started, I guess maybe on a Monday. And then Tuesday, it was really picking up, really ramping up. And by Wednesday, I was like, man, I need to go and have this checked out. So what I ended up doing was I went to urgent care. And what I ended up doing was talking to them. And I actually had a PA, and the PA was suggesting some other things. But I was like, no, that's just something else is going on. Now, the one thing that they did not do, they did not take a blood test because if they had, they would be able to see that my A1C was up over home.

4:147. And usually they'd like it to be below 6.5. The A1C below 6.5. And I know that my mind was over 7 and it had to be because what I come to find out is that that's the body's way of getting rid of any excessive sugar in your body. You were urinated out or you were peed out, I guess. But anyway, so I was able to get into my doctor and she did the test. And after I guess that next day, she had sent me a message saying that, hey, the A1C was really high. And I'm going to sketch you for a diabetes education class.

5:17So I ended up finally having a, I did a zoom with a dietician. And it's like four parts and they talk about what diabetes actually is and they talk about just how do you take care of yourself or the symptoms of whether you're diabetes or you're on glucose. Glucose, glucose, I can't even talk, whether it's high, low. They talk about those symptoms and what to do when you have those types of symptoms. Some things you can do to kind of hear things before they get really, really bad.

6:23But the class was really, really good. So I did the four classes. I did all of those, which you can actually go in and sit with somebody. But the symptoms were convenient. I could just do it right out of the house and that made it really nice. Again, we talked about what diabetes is taking care of yourself and eating right. And the last part of the class actually until a meal plan, so the dietician and educating, she put me on a meal plan. And I'm not going to say die because really what you have to do with anything.

7:28And I'm getting older and I don't move like I used to, I don't exercise like I don't know. I used to say I really can't afford to cut back some things. And the biggest thing really is learning how to eat. Eating more vegetables, more fruit, smaller portions and protein. And the bad thing about it, I shouldn't say bad thing, but I don't eat meat. All my eaters, all vegetables, seafood and things like pasta, rice, and beans and stuff. But those particular items have carbohydrates. And when you have diabetes, it's important to watch your carbohydrates

8:33and watch your sweet intake. I'm talking about cookies and candies and ice cream and stuff like that there. Don't get me wrong, you can still have them, but you have to be really disciplined and be mindful of the amount that you have. And that's really been the struggle for me because I love ice cream, I love cake, I love pie, I love donuts, candy and stuff like that there. And so just trying to get a handle of that has been the hardest part of this walk. And it's kind of funny because the old generation, they say sugar, they refer to diabetes as sugar, some people refer to it as diabetes.

9:39And yet, some others refer to it as the bees. I have never heard that one, but I have heard that one recently. And I was like the bees and trust me, it's not a drumbeat. It is diabetes that they call it the bees. But so what can you do once you've been home diagnosed with diabetes? Well, for one thing, you really need to understand the symptoms because it's what Trump said. And if you don't understand the symptoms, there's plenty of information online. But the most important thing for all of us to do, and I know that a lot of us, and I'm talking men, do not like to go to the doctor. And it's important that we go to the doctor and not just get physical, but have the blood drum.

10:48And have your doctor or your personal care provider to do run tests on your blood and take urine. And do all of that because it's very important, especially as you get older. And listen to your body too. But those things, the tests will reveal a lot of different things in your blood and your urine. So I encourage all those, and I say men, but everybody, women, children, that you least go twice a year, at least. You know, one, you're just doing blood work or whatever, and then two, you actually do a physical. And they check a bunch of other things and do blood work.

11:49If you have a very good care provider or personal care provider, they will do those things. Also have your eyes checked, that's another thing. And you have, you know, you go to the dentist. The thing about that is that going to the dentist would head off a lot of different things. And what people don't understand is that a lot of times when you have diabetes, a lot of those things come out in your eyes and your teeth. And once you do, or once you're diagnosed with diabetes, they will say, well, have you had your eyes checked and have you been to the dentist. Because it is very important. All those things play into one another.

12:49So it's very important that you do that. And but once you do that, basically what you need to do then is, you know, cut back on your eating, learn how to eat. And again, like I'm saying, it's hard for me to give up the sweets. But I mean, I still eat them, but within reason. And the one thing that I've noticed here the last, you know, week or two is that sometimes I still want to eat to get full. And I really have to eat, you know, get to require calories and wash my carbohydrates. And I'm still able to eat and drink certain things, you know, some of the things that I like to do, you know, eat and drink.

13:53But I have to do it in moderation. And really that's what the biggest thing to do is do it in moderation. And don't get so caught up on trying to lose a bunch of weight. But if you make lifestyle changes, the weight eventually will come off and it will stay off. Because you're eating better and you're eating right. And that's really the biggest thing. Now I was diagnosed with type 2, which I can end up taking a pill, which I'm trying to eat right and wash my weight. You know, basically, I want to lose weight, but I'm making lifestyle changes, as I said, a moment ago, in order to not have to take any type of medication.

14:56My plan is to take care of my weight and how I eat so that they will head off me not taking any medication. Now some people will have type 1 where they have to take insulin. And so once you... But I mean, even with that, you can drop your weight and if you drop your weight and get your, you know, start eating right and watch the things that you eat, you can cut back on the medication that you need in order to sustain or keep your glucose level in check. And I guess really, I didn't think I was going to get diabetes to be honest with you, because I had been pre-diabetic for so long.

16:03And I just figured that I was kind of doing the right thing, eating, you know, doing my little exercise and stuff. But by me going to the education class, I realized that I was still eating too many carbohydrates. And everything, mostly everything that we consume has, you know, carbohydrates in it. And so it's with that you have to watch how many carbohydrates you have each day. Of course you watch the calories, but the carbohydrates, that's what your body turns into sugar for energy. And so you have to be careful with that. But anyway, I think really, as I, you know, on this diabetes journey, I have learned a lot of things.

17:10I learned the simple fact that I can be mindful of the things that I eat. And I am eating better, which I do, you know, do like fish. And really, I don't eat a lot of fried foods. I think the only thing that I eat that's fried is fish, you know, whether it be trout, or cod, or white ink, you know, sometimes flounder. But I do like it, other way, I do like it, put that all the way. It's like, you know, big brawl. You know, I do like it that way as well. And I will do it that way. And I eat a lot of salmon too. And I'll eat a lot of canned salmon and tuna fish. But I also, even though I'm called myself a vegetarian, I do eat eggs too.

18:10And I do eat cheese, which has dairy products in it. And I do drink from time to time milk. I don't drink a lot of milk. And a lot of times this song may be almond milk or oat milk or something like that. But I do drink record milk, it's like a lactose-free milk, 2%. And a lot of people don't like 2%, but I can't really tell the difference between that and home milk. Especially if you, and this is not what, but it is good enough on fair life. That is some really good milk. I mean, if you buy that and you drink that and you go back to drinking what you were drinking, you can tell a big difference. To me, fair life is good milk, whether it be the regular milk or the lactose-free milk. I think it might all be lactose-free, but the whole milk, the 2%, the skin milk,

19:12even the charcoal milk is really good. So if you're looking for something a better, greater milk, try that. Now I'm going to tell you it's a little expensive, but it's not cheap, but it is very good milk. And then also I am along with eating right. I am trying to exercise as well. I do walk out work, but I got to get back on the treadmill at the house. That's what I got to do. And that's what my plan is. I should have gone on there today, but I didn't. So maybe I'll make it at some point. But anyway, so that's what my walk with diabetes is. It's about really trying to do better as far as eating more fruit and using what they call the plate method,

20:22where half a year plate is sometimes useful and used out to salad. And then I do a small portion of some type of protein. And then I still have rice or a small potato, maybe a little bit of pasta. And another thing that I have been doing is how, if I go out to eat, and I still like sweet tea, but here lately, I don't have sweet tea. I just drink water. For one, it's too expensive. It's like three dollars for a glass, even though it's free refills. But how many glasses of tea are you going to drink? One, maybe two. And you might take one, but that still doesn't account for the three dollars, because it doesn't cost them that much to make the tea. So I have a hard time swallowing that fee. But anyway, so what I normally do is how order a meal and how split the meal,

21:31and how I eat half of it, and then I'll take the other half home. But anyway, so it's been an upward battle. And I try not to beat myself up. If I have made a two or three cookers, I try to do a serving, which if you do in the Oreos, even some other cookers, you can eat three, and that's a serving. Instead of eating a dozen, I used to do eight, six. And then we're like, man, that's good. I go back and get another six. That's a dozen of cookers. And if you look at how many carbohydrates you've eaten, not to mention whether you drank up a soda or tea, or if you had a meal, and I mean, well-custom, or should I say, I'm a customer to eating a small meal.

22:34And then I said, man, that was good. I go back and get another plate. Well, I have to show some type of restraint when it comes to food. But the biggest thing that I'm working on now is I'm trying, again, not to eat, to get full. I'm just trying to eat and say, okay, I'm good. And then I'll save that for another meal. But anyway, I just wanted to talk to you about that today. And I appreciate everything. And I was going to say, too, I have a YouTube channel that has caused music and people to share. And, you know, if you like the podcast, maybe you'll like my YouTube channel as well. I am trying to post on a regular. And I do have quite a bit of content up there.

23:38And I'm continuing to post other things. I have some things that I'm working on in the next, I guess, next few weeks that I'll post up there. So I hope that you'll come and join me on that platform as well. But anyway, I think I'm going to stop right there. I'll come back when I have more time. Talk to you soon.