Why Social Media Matters

The following post was written by Dana M. Lewis and the original link can be found by clicking: https://www.facebook.com/notes/dana-m-lewis/why-social-media-matters/181501591897591

Dana M. Lewis is a member of the diabetes on-line community, creator & moderator of the widely popular Health Care Social Media chat on Sunday nights (#HCSM) on Twitter and is currently employed as an Interactive Marketing Specialist for the Swedish Medical Center in Seattle.

She's also from Alabama and her post regarding How Social Media saved lives before and in the aftermath of the Tornado is incredibly powerful.

You need to read, learn, and share the link to her original post with everyone you know.

Thanks for writing such an inspiring link Dana!

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On April 27, a slew of tornadoes devastated my home. Home is where the heart is, and my family, friends, and the University of Alabama community are these places.

My family and immediate friends were very fortunate to have not been seriously injured or harmed during the

storm. However, there are still residents of Tuscaloosa and students from UA and others across the state who are injured and missing.

I watched online as a tornado, a half-mile wide, headed towards a heavily populated area of Tuscaloosa that was the epicenter of our community.

Tuscaloosa, Alabama on April 27, 2011.

Now it's gone.
I was powerless in the path of this tornado - I couldn't do anything from my computer in Seattle, Washington. Or so I thought.

But as I texted my parents and close friends to make sure they heard the warnings and headed to a safe place, I got texts back that said "keep us updated, you're our only source of information."

When the power went out, cell towers weren't working, and only text messages could get through, they relied on me in Tuscaloosa, Huntsville, and other parts of the state to let them know if and when additional storms and dangers were coming - and they were.

I watched multiple news stations online and used Twitter to disseminate information to those without power. Social media saved the lives of people who wouldn't otherwise have been alerted to get out of the path of the storm and inside to safety. As the storms passed, and people emerged, Facebook became the go-to resource to check on the well-being of friends and family, and to help get out the word for people who need to be found.

Today, in the aftermath of the storm, social media continues to empower us. It's keeping us informed and connecting us as a larger community. Like UA students pitched in to help AU students after one of their landmarks was destroyed, AU students and other schools are already busy collecting supplies, volunteers, and donations to help us rebuild.

Using these online networks, we're able to coordinate volunteers across the country, disseminate safety information, and track progress as we work to continue the search and rescue progress. We can direct people to shelter, supplies, and safety. We can't control the storms, but we can do our best to tackle these challenges that our community is facing.

This is why social media matters. If you want to help, help people stay informed. Spread the word about the status of services, the location of shelters and supplies, and connect people in need with resources. If you'd like specific ways to get involved, here's a good resource: http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/04/28/how.to.help/index.html. In general, it sounds like supplies of all kinds are needed, especially clothes, toiletries, baby items. There's definitely a state-wide shortage of blood if you can donate.

Feel free to share or post parts or all of this to your blog, site, or favorite social media network. And please, help get the word out about how people can help.

Dana Lewis

Being Stalked By Tech Issues And Finding My Smile Again Thanks To #DSMA

The last few weeks have been plagued with technical issues on the work/home front and I'm really starting to think that I'm possessed.

Perhaps my body is giving off some freaky sort of electrical current that screws with my electrical surroundings. Or maybe some technical poltergeist is screwing with my word just because it feels like it.

OR MAYBE I'M JUST BEING STALKED.

Electrical weirdness is surrounding me in the form of light bulbs continually blowing out in my kitchen only a few weeks after being replaced.

My car's oil light suddenly flashing whenever I stepped on the breaks this past Saturday. even though it's a good 800 miles before I needed the oil to be changed.

My faulty mac needed to have its harddrive completely wiped and all new software reinstalled last week, which brought all sorts of inopertune realizations regarding mac's PAGES & NUMBERS programs this week.
These programs are great for me to figure out & use, but aren't so wonderful when trying to email work files to others who are sans mac technology.
And then yesterday I realized (after reinstalling my printerdrive software on Sunday,) that my scanner refused to actually, you know... scan. After googling the issue I found out that I needed to install scangear, which I did - and still, NOTHING HAPPENED. So YES, I'm still unable to scan or fax!

I was ready to throw both my mac & my canon pixma MP500 off a bridge and there may or may not have been some tears she on this end.
I was WORN OUT.
SO I logged on to twitter last night and participated in #DSMA (Diabetes Social Media Advocacy) twitter chat and was once again reminded just how fantastical the diabetes on-line community makes me feel.

The tweets were flying fast and I didn't feel alone or frustrated. I felt happy and part of the gang! By the time the hour chat (which felt like it was only 10minutes) was up, I was feeling all sorts of chipper and positive!

#DSMA & the DOC helped turn my frown upside down and I'm so grateful for that!
#DSMA/DOV, you brighten my world, continually make me laugh, smile, learn, and I love you!

To learn more about Diabetes Social Media Advocacy, click on the following link! http://diabetessocmed.com/

PS: This morning I was unable to log on to twitter for 6 hours, due to some freaky technical difficulty having to with God knows what. Like I said, I'M BEING STALKED!

"I Christen Thee....The Diabetes Mobile!"

True story: I was cleaning out the consul of my car late yesterday afternoon after work when I spied two unopened open infusion sets near the bottom of said consul.

OK, I knew I had at least one back up infusion set nestled in the side pocket of my driver side door (in case my site went dead or my tubing got caught on the emergency break, which seem to happen to me a lot) but I was pleasantly surprised to find that I had back ups for my back up!

I also found a larabar well past it’s expiration date ( Banana Bread flavored, and I was NOT HAPPY to have let that one go to waste,) an empty canister of test strips (I have no idea why an empty canister was in there) a spare box of lancets, (unopened) and 7/8’s of a bag of jellybeans purchased at Boscov’s during a low blood sugar emergency sometime pre - Easter, 2010.

The Jelly beans were stale, which was a good thing because I’m trying to lose weight, so I tossed them.

As I moved from the drivers side onto the passenger side and collected the empty diet Snapple bottle on said passenger side floor, I found one lone 1 used test strip sitting quietly in the corner and I laughed out loud.

At that very moment, I tapped the empty Diet Snapple bottle every so lightly on my car and waved it all magic wand like and said in a fake English accent: I christen Thee...."The Diabetes Mobile." May good blood sugars and the likes there of, bless all who sail in You! Expecto Patronum!

I swear, sometimes I amuse myself!

Diabetes Weirdness: It's Just An Empty Bottle of ALL ~

My Diabetes weirdness Continue To Evolve ~

Like most of you reading, I live a diabetes life 24 X7 - And I’m OK with that, for the most part.

Yes, I want a cure sooner rather than later and yes diabetes is a pain in the ass both literally and figuratively, but diabetes is a part of life and we do what we must in order to make a go of this life - diabetes nor not.

Still, Diabetes weirdness always comes into play.

For instance, I save my used test strips & diabetes supplies and put them in an empty detergent bottle instead of a Sharpie's container.

I used to fill up empty 1 liter seltzer bottles with used test strips & lancets and jokingly call them my Test Strip Bottle Art.

And you should have seen my pharmacists face when I dropped them off to be disposed!

But a few months back, I decided to switched it up and challenge myself to filling up a 50 fl ounces instead of a measly 33

and started adding used pump supplies in the mix - just for shits and giggles ~

Yes, I’m damn near obsessive when it comes to putting my used test strips, pump supplies, lancets, etc. in that ALL bottle!

And as that bottle continues to get heavier and darn near filled to the tip top, I have this really weird sense of pride & accomplishment.

It’s like filling that ALL bottle reminds me that I’m accomplishing my job as my own artificial pancreas.

It’s stupid really, it’s just an empty bottle of ALL, after all. Nobody’s grading me on if or when it gets filled, or how long it takes me to complete that task. But when it’s finally filled to the top and I drop it off at my pharmacy for proper disposal, I want shout out loud from the roof tops: I DID THAT, BITCHES!!!

Total diabetes weirdness? Yes, of course it is. But it makes proud (and psychologically, it might even make me test more, but I doubt it) and filling that bottle of ALL makes me smile :)

Maybe the next container I fill with used diabetes supplies should be an empty 2 -liter bottle of Diet Coke.

But since I don’t drink soda, I’ll leave that task for Mr. Scott K. Johnson to consider!

What's your "diabetes weirdness?"

I'm Talking Diabetes NEEDS, Not Wants....

Here are my latest additions to my never ending list of "Diabetes Needs."
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I need Test Strip & Insurance companies to consider the margin of error when it comes to said test strips and what those said errors cost the consumers.

And by "margin of error," I mean several things. Things like the skunky test strip factor and the "Error" message that shows up sometimes for a multitude of reasons including; lack of blood or the the drop of blood being applied to early.

There are also annoying messages like "NOT OK" that gives no reason at all and make me want to scream.
Then there's the whole "law of test strip averages" form of testing which requires the user to u use two or three test strips because there's no way in bloody hell that the first reading is right, so we must test again and bolus for the combined average blood sugar.

For example: Blood sugar 1 is 187, But you swear its lower, so you test again and blood sugar 2 is 159.
187 +159 = 346. 346 divided by 2= 173. Depending on your last meal, the correction bolus between 187 & 173 can be enough to make for an extreme low and or an extreme high later.

All of the above factors cause us to use more test strips, which is good for the supplier of the product, but not so fantastic for the end user of the product.

All of the above factors also causes major arguments with insurance companies who limit the number of test strips that they will cover.

Apparently the term: SHIT HAPPENS, doesn't cut it for most HMO's.

Bottom line, I need my diabetes GPS system to work consistently and be right on Target, my health depends on it!

I need (and would really appreciate) if the makers of Glucose tabs would icksnay on the uber hard to open childproof protective plastic wrap that their unopened products are ensconced in.

I know that the containers have to have some form of protective plastic wrap, but when my blood sugar is low and I need me some Tropical Fruit flavored glucose tabs, I need to actually be able to open them, ASAP. I fumble enough when my bloodsugars are low, I shouldn't have to fumble with the packaging for the product used to treat my low.

Now, whenever I purchase glucose tabs, I remove the protective plastic seal immediately, before a low occurs.
Sometimes I buy glucose tabs in bulk (especially when they're on sale) and go ahead and call me crazy, but I don't want to open every single container glucose bottles/10-pack tubes at once. According to a very reliable source named Scott Strumello, good news regarding said glucose tabs is on the way!

I need restaurant chains to list the carb content of their food dishes, not just the fat, calories and fiber content. Calories won't help me to bolus for your food properly, but a correct carb count will.

I need doctors and health care professionals to talk with and too me, not at me. I need them to be willing to work with me regarding my disease. And I need and would very much appreciate if they took the time to listen and consider what I have to say about my diabetes, becuase I'm the one who has to live with it 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

I need the media to stop getting diabetes wrong - And like you, I'm working to make that happen.

I need a diabetes cure for so many reasons that it makes my head spin a la Linda Blair. But at this moment in time I need a diabetes cure because I'm just so tired of having diabetes.

But enough about me - What are your diabetes needs??

Diabetesaliciousness - Lite, 2011 Earth Day Edition!

Diabetesaliciousness - Lite, Earth Day Edition!

Happy Friday (a day that many celebrate the last day day of the traditional work week) and Happy Earth Day, the day in which we celebrate our planet and our attempts to be greener!

We all know that going green is a good thing for our planet,our environment, and our health. Less chemicals in our products & real foods on our plates make us healthier as a people and a planet!

This Earth Day, I plan on laying out my plans for this summer's veggie garden, picking up trash wherever I see it, seriously assessing how I can live a greener life.

Thanks to Earth Day, recycling has become second nature to us -which is a good thing, but it makes still makes me feel guilty in my day to day existence thanks to my diabetes paraphernalia.
I really wish that companies whose products that I count on to live, exist and thrive (I'm talking to you diabetes companies) would take the initiative and go more green. They could start by using less packaging, and they could follow many businesses examples of rewarding their customers on Earth Day.

Speaking of rewarding customers on Earth Day, here's a list of some free offerings in honor of Earth Day. Maybe next year some diabetes related companies will follow their lead !

Free Caffeine:
Starbucks: Bring your own travel mug to Starbucks and have it filled up for free today!
Peet's: Peet’s Coffee and Tea is giving patrons a free medium beverage, which includes tea, with a full price purchase of mugs and our beverage tumblers today.

SIDE BAR: Both Starbucks & Peet's give away their coffee grounds to customers for gardening/composting purposes. All you have to do is ask for them!

Is tea more your style? NO PROBLEM! Teas Etc. is having an Earth Day Tea Sale - save 20% on all teas and tea accessories, including their tea traveler, plus free shipping on orders of $60+ Sale ends Saturday night. Here's a link for promo codes/details: http://www.teasetc.com/tea/mailings/earth041811/index.html

Free Trees: Have you been planning on 'sprucing" up your garden and giving back some oxygen to your planet, but your budget has you refraining? No problem, Lowe's is giving away a 1 million trees today!
All you have to do is call your local Lowe's to make sure they're part of the offer. And if so, get on over there and go get your tree!! Click HERE for details!

A free copy of Planet Earth is available for downloading today on itunes !

Beauty
Origins is making Earth Day worth your while. All you have to do is bring in a full size container (full or empty) of your current face cleaner and exchange it for their Checks & Balances or A Perfect World high performance face cleaner!
What do you plan on doing for Earth Day? Also, if you know of any Earth Day deals, feel free to post them in the comments section!

We All Have A Voice ~

I loved the movie," The King's Speech." It made cry, it made me laugh, and it me think.

First, watching Prince Albert (Bertie) go through all that work and heartache to find his voice, his confidence,and his way in the world made me thing of a of a boy I went to grade school with, M.

M stuttered terribly and struggled to get every single word he spoke out & heard by others. M was sweet and kind and loved to sing - We were in Chorus together grades 3 through 7. Like many who struggled from stuttering, M never stuttered when he sang, and he had a beautiful voice. Years later, when I was a college Deejay, M called me up on the request line and said how he envied what I was doing. "Speaking is not a gift I possess, Kelly. But if it was, I'd be a Deejay."

I remember telling him what a gifted writer he was and what wonderful singing voice he had. "Thanks Kel, but I would still love to be able to speak out loud." I never forgot what he said to me, and was immediately reminded of it years later when we ran into one another in the isle of our home town's CVS.

M: Hey Kelly, how are you? Long time, no see!

Me: M, I'm great, how are you??

M: GREAT.

Me: M, you're not stuttering anymore!

M: Nope, I went to Therapist and and turns out, I had some issues that happened to me as really young child that caused me to stutter.

I literally had tears in my eyes when I left CVS! Knowing that M had found his voice made me happy and gave me hope in the broadest and best sense of the word.

M and I reconnected on Facebook last year, and guess what? M became a Deejay at our college, years after he graduated! He's also the General Manager and has his own radio show!

And to this day, M still continues to give me hope.

"The King's Speech" also made me think of the DOC- And why it's so important.

Prince Albert was a patient after all, even if the methods used to help him with his stutter were not typical treatments of the day - And were prescribed to him by an Orator, not an MD.

And like Bertie & M, each of us goes through a tremendous amount of work and heartache to find our voice and our confidence, so we can navigate our way in the world and in our diabetes life.

There's one scene in the King's Speech that reminds me of the DOC and why I love it so much.

Bertie screams at his vocal coach& gets so mad that he says: I have a right to be heard - I HAVE A VOICE!

YEP, the "I HAVE A VOICE," line took my breath away & made me sob out loud at the same time.

That line pretty much sums up what the Diabetes On-line Community has given each and every one of us. All of us in the community have a voice, and each is distinct and unique. And whether we read blogs or write them, shout out loud and advocate from the rooftops or quietly share our thoughts and live our lives to the fullest, our patient voices are so incredibly important.

For the longest time, we never had our diabetes/patient voice, and if we did, it didn't count to those in the medical community.

We were talked "at" not "to" and rarely "with." We were considered secondary to our disease and our opinions on the subject didn't matter.

Here's the thing: Whether you shout or whisper, your voice counts. Your voice helps others and your voice helps you to help yourself.

I'm not going to judge you on how loud voice is or isn't. But I will encourage you to find your voice, and use it in a way that works for you.

We all have a voice and all of our words are important - And each one of us deserves to be heard & respected~

'Kings Speech' I Have a Voice @ Yahoo! Video

Things That Make Me Go Hmmmmmm, 2011 Spring Edition

I don't get why Hollywood keeps remaking movies that you know, aren't really aren't that old.
Do we really need a remake of "Silence Of The Lambs?"

I don't know about you, but Hannibal Lechter will always be Anthony Hopkins in my mind, and regardless of who utters "It puts the lotion in the basket," I know who I'll be thinking SHOULD be saying it! How bout they just write/make some new movies?

The Charlie Sheen Torpedo of Truth Tour: Why are people paying money to see this man who obviously has addiction and mental issues. Look, I'll be the first to admit, the first time I ever saw Charlie Sheen was in Ferris Bueller's Day Off," and I was hooked!
I refused to leave the theater until I found his name in the credits - Yes, he was the original bad boy that kicked off my love affair with bad boys. But over the years his rapid and disturbing decline due to drugs, his entitlement issues, horrific treatment of women and a Hollywood system that fully enabled his bad behaviour has completely turned me off.

I also think the guy REALLY needs to get help, and I don't believe he can get that help on tour.

How come my insurance company insists on bombarding me with "Health Care Update" calls, but the folks making the calls don't know a clue about diabetes and always seemed shocked to find out I'm insulin/an insulin pump? READ.MY.FILE.

Why are people excited about Donald Trump running for President ? Do you really want someone in the White House with absolutely no foreign policy experience, a huge slant on the side of big business, multiple businesses that will take his focus off running the county, (I want whoever is in the White House to have one all encompassing job, called being The President of The United States) and an ego larger than Canada? Think about it.

Speaking of politics, Arizona needs to get their diabetes facts straight! They want to charge people with 'unhealthy behaviours," including diabetes (YES< REALLY) a fee for living an unhealthy lifestyle in order to be on Arizona's medicaid program. Arizona politicians, STOP getting your diabetes info from Readers Digest, PLEASE!

Speaking of misinformation, why do I get at least 5 new Twitter followers a day pitching weight loss products? And why are they surprised when I report them as spammers?

Speaking of pitches, if your email me a PR Pitch with the opening line: Dear Diabetes Blogger, don't be surprised if I don't get back to you!

What are some things (and they don't have to be diabetes related) that make you go: Hmmmmmmm ?

DANGER Wil Robinson!!

We live in a society exquisitely dependent on science and technology, in which hardly anyone knows anything about science and technology. ~Carl Sagan

Lo! Men have become the tools of their tools. ~Henry David Thoreau

I like my new telephone, my computer works just fine, my calculator is perfect, but Lord, I miss my mind! ~Author Unknown

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DANGER!!!!!!!

It’s amazing how we get used to something, (good or bad) if we do it long enough.

Ironically, I’m not talking about diabetes, I’m talking about life in general.

We humans get used to things the way they are. And even though we shudder to admit it out loud and to the masses, humans are afraid of change. Change is a hard thing to grasp our heads around, be it changing our jobs, a change in our relationship status, or just the way we make our morning cup of joe.

Change, while having the potential to be quite good, is almost always quite scary and stressful.

And as much as I love to change things up and say I'm all types of go with the flow, I’m still a little freaked out when it comes to change. Actually, depending on the type of change- I'm more than a little freaked out, I'm a lot freaked out!

I STILL haven’t upgraded to a new pump - And I’m long over due.

I still haven’t gotten a new car, but mine is paid for and runs just fine.

I still haven’t embraced the Kardashians or The Jersey Shore, and lets face it - I never will.

But I'm still all PRO change and I've made boku progress in some areas. I jumped head first into counting carbs and the insulin sliding scale in the mid 90’s with gusto!

I started insulin pumping 9 years ago this May, and I've never looked back!

I’m all about new diabetes tips of the trade - tech and otherwise. I welcome new diabetes tips of the trade with open arms and an open mind, and encourage others to do the same.

I’ve becoming an app savvy girl and my phone no longer looks app-less.

I became a chick who preferred mac over PC, and am quite happy to see that medical hardware co’s are starting to get all mac-a-delic !

Speaking of mac, yesterday morning reminded me just how much I've come to embrace, rely and fear technological change!

I had a mac attack, and it damn near made my heart jump out of my chest!

Out of the blue, after logging on whilst drinking my morning coffee, I kept getting kicked off the Internet. I mean I could log on, and I could even open up a page in my browser, but the minute I actually clicked onto the new page the whole application shut down.

I knew that not being able to keep my browser page opened had nothing to do with the amount of coffee that still needed to be added to my body, even thought I was still only about half cafed, my arterial flow was just fine.

NOPE, this had everything to do with my hard drive, motherboard, and everything in between - And I was scared.

I made an appointment at the Apple Genius Bar (ironically, itunes was the one page that wouldn’t crap out) and arrived for my Genius appointment at 12 noon. As I walked through the iconic doors of my local Apple store, I kicked myself for not bringing my external hard drive - Yet, I was totally impressed that I was thinking along those tech savvy lines!

But then I immediately told myself that I was being an extremest, and that it was probably just an issue with my Adobe Flash upgrade.

NOTE TO SELF: TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS AND ALWAYS BRING YOUR EXTERNAL HARD DRIVE WITH YOU.

After working with my super MAC Genius (whom, for the rest of this post, shall be referred to as Elvis,) for a good 40 minutes, it was decided that it wasn’t a flash issue at all. NOPE, it was a “DAMN, your hard drive is overloaded and in need of a new software overhaul,” issue.

Elvis asked me if I had backed everything up on my laptop.

Me: Ummmm, not in a while, but I have a big old orange external hard drive at home.

Elvis: You need go home and get it, bring it over here, and we need to back it all about and reinstall & upgrade the software on this puppy.

Me: OH, NO.

Elvis: It’s going to be OK, I’m not going to leave you stranded.

Me: Regarding my life, or my mac?

Elvis: Your MAC

Me: OH.

So with the phrase: "DANGER WILL ROBINSON,'' screaming in my head, I went home, grabbed my big, fat, external hard drive, returned to the Apple store, and spent a good 45 minutes to an hour clicking, dragging, and saving files & applications.

It was like my mac life was flashing before my eyes and I have to admit, I WAS FREAKING OUT.

But, it needed to be done, I needed to pitch and purge and save what was important and get rid of what wasn't.

Then I watched as my mac's mind was erased and it’s new brains installed, and every now and then, I found myself surprised that I was actually breathing. Because at that very moment, I realized that for the few seconds previously, I hadn’t been.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, my mac was back - Except now it was like a brand new computer, right down to a pristine desk top, Apple Works, Keynote and Time Machine. And all my old files were stored neatly and safely on my external hard-drive.

When I got back home and started playing around with my new applications, I realized that I become so reliant on applications like WORD, that’d I’d basically ignored some really cool shit on my computer. And thanks to Elvis, now I had some more "really cool shit " on my computer. Cool shit that could really help me in both my personal and professional life - and I needed to learn how to use them.

But, because I still feared my mac, (almost as much as I loved my mac,) I tended (not always, but alot of the time,) to concentrate on what I knew, not necessarily what I needed to know.

So I decided that instead of immediately reinstalling WORD, I would give this thing thing called PAGES a whirl and face my tech issues head-on.

OK, I’ll admit that it’s scary not having word at my finger tips, I’m a huge fan of spell & grammar check & I LOVE me my Thesaurus, BIG TIME.

But, I know that I have the CDs to reinstall WORD around here, somewhere. So, I’ve decided to shake things up- at least for a few days, and learn/embrace the wonders of my old/new mac - And learn some new things in the process.

I figure if I can survive a week of the “all new, all the time,” software on my laptop, I can pretty much survive anything.

Why am I writing this?? I’m not really sure, maybe I want you to tell me I'm not crazy, and that change is good for the soul/brain. Or maybe I want to challenge each of you reading to try something new and or that you fear.

So Diabetesaliciousness readers, what’s one thing that you’ve SERIOUSLY considered doing, but totally fear? And it’s doesn’t have to be diabetes related!

All I ask is that you put it out there by posting something that you fear, but really want to try in your life.

If you want to take it a step further, and actually take one day this week and do what you fear first, be it trying sushi or soy milk; switching from a PC to a mac, scheduling an appointment to meet with a CDE, even better!

But if you don’t do it right away, the fact that your actually putting that thought out in the universe, will bring one step close to doing and accomplishing what you fear!

What I Will......

The following is the result of a 3 minute free write exercise . I set an egg timer for 3 minutes and wrote down what I wanted out of my life. This is the result. I started out by saying " I WANT" and quickly changed it to "I WILL," because lets face it, I WILL is much more proactive and positive.

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What I want is to live to live this diabetes life and help others to do the same and I want to work in a job that puts me in daily contact with other people living with diabetes.

What I want is to be understood and to understand others.

I WILL live this diabetes life and help others do the same.

I will find and a perfect trifecta of a job that puts in daily contact with other people living with diabetes.

I WILL be understood by others and I WILL understand others.

I WON'T be labeled or defined by my faulty pancreas, but I will be inspired by what living with a faulty pancreas represents.


I WILL continue finding confidence and being inspired by my diabetes on-line community and I WILL continue to pick my self up by my bootstraps and inspire others to do do the same.

I WILL find love and happiness in myself and in others.
I WILL STOP seeing what I did wrong and be like Thomas Edison, who thought there was no such thing as a mistake, only lessons on the way to what works in life.

I WILL remember my past & learn from it for my future.
I WILL find love and have a family and you know what? I really believe that I will.
I WILL laugh more and cry less - But I will keep in mind that tears are important and are nothing to be ashamed of.

I will encourage others to laugh more and cry less - And if I have to do something silly to make that happen, then so be it!

I WILL learn and try something new each and every day of my life.

I WILL buy a house and make it a home.
I WILL see each one of my nieces and nephews be happy. The same goes for my friends.

I WILL be proud of myself and I want to be proud of those that I love. I WILL keep learning from myself and others and I WILL keep teaching myself and others.

I will continue having empathy, but I will continue flipping my Diabetes Bitch Switch whenever it's needed.

I WILL MAKE the media get diabetes right instead of continually getting it wrong - even if that means annoying the shit out of them. THIS MEANS YOU READERS DIGEST.

I WILL CONTINUE TO BECOME- And I that is a wonderful thing~

Signs Of My Diabetes Life.......

MEEP!

Signs of my diabetes life are all around me - around every twist and turn.

Insulin pump is a constant companion, clipped on my hip or strategically hidden on my leg.

Still, to many a folk - it's surprisingly vague.

Glucose tabs on the night stand,

A 6 pack of juice boxes under the bed.

test strips found in the oddest of places,

And all sorts of numbers continually floating around in my head.

A glucose meter on my bedroom window sill

Another in the trash, because of the water I spilled.

Still another lives in a cute little carry case, kept in my fabulous purple hand bag

And lways an integral part of this road show of life, that is my diabetes sight gag~

Insulin bottles inside my fridge,

Spare infusion sets found all over my digs.

Keto tests strips next to the loo

In regards to those ketones that may run askew.

Doorknobs as archenemy's

Spare batteries are trusted friends,

And carb counts do indeed help lead the way,

And play a very huge part in my never ending alphanumeric display.

Highs verses lows

Should I disclose?

To CGM or not? Is a question I ask myself all time.

Will it really, REALLY help to keep me in my prime?

With so many diabetes tricks up my sleeve,

Will "Blood Sugar Nirvana," actually be achieved?

So it continually, continues all over again -

Because my life as a diabetes science experiment, never ends!

Craptacular, Craptacular: The Meat Monster Edition - RELEASE THE KRAKEN!!

From the official Burger King "Meat Monster" Press Release.

Currently, only available in Japan. Hence the reason it's written in Japanese~

Ahhh, Craptacualar, Craptacular! THE MEAT MONSTER! Brought to you by the Epicurean minds of Burger King!

SO I was reading the Huffington Post, when an article about something called,THE MEAT MONSTER caught my eye. No, it wasn't the name of a porn movie,it was the name of a the latest burger from Burger King.

Th "Meat Monster" costs close to ten dollars and is loaded with two beef patties, lots of bacon, and a chicken breast. That's right ladies & gentlemen, here's a way to grease up your arteries, clog up your intestines, and screw up your blood sugar but good!

And according to the those in "the know" at The Consumerist, "The Meat Monster" contains "1160 calories, 24g of saturated fat, 240mg of cholesterol, 13g of sugar, 54g carbs, 69g of fat, 1.5g of trans fat, and 2290mg sodium."

My stomach is having sympathy cramps just thinking about it!

So as a PWD, of course I thought: How the hell would you bolus for that? Not that I ever would, but I was still really curious!

So I wrote to my friend Gary Scheiner, CDE Extraordinaire & Mr. Type 1 University himself:

Hey Gar -

HOW GOES IT???

So, do you feel like answering a diabetes riddle that will be read by masses? Or at least by a few friends?

if the answer is YES, then my question to you is: How exactly would one bolus for Burger King's New MEAT MONSTER burger?

Here's the nutritional breakdown before you click on the link to the beast!

1160 calories, 24g of saturated fat, 240mg of cholesterol, 13g of sugar, 54g carbs, 69g of fat, 1.5g of trans fat, and 2290mg sodium.

Here's the link to the beast of a burger!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/12/burger-king-meat-monster-calories_n_848160.html#s263615&title=The_MEAT_MONSTER

k2

And here's his answer!

Ohhhhhh Baby! Sounds like a Homer Simpson creation. Must admit, I have eaten stuff like this from time to time. The giant bucket of movie theater popcorn packs a similar punch. Here's what I'd recommend to control the blood sugar after the BK Behemoth : 1. Base the bolus on the full 54g carb. I doubt this thing has any fiber. 2. Deliver the bolus over time. All that fat will undoubtedly slow down digestion. If you have a pump, deliver the first 1/3 of the bolus immediately, and the remaining 2/3 over a 2 hour period. If you take shots, either use Regular (R) insulin or split the meal dose into two parts: half with the meal and the other half 90 minutes later. 3. It ain't over yet! All that fat is going to send triglycerides soaring, which will cause the liver to become insulin resistant, which will send BG up gradually for hoursafter the carbs are done doing their thing. Pump users can set a temp basal increase of 50-80% for approximately 8-10 hours; injectors can take some extra NPH insulin after the meal. Now kick back and enjoy - Because this meal might just be your last. And now you know! FYI: Currently, said Meat Monster is only available at Burger Kings in Japan. Fries, tums, stomach pump and a plunger for your toilet are not included with purchase of said "Meat Monster. OH, one more thing: RELEASE THE KRAKEN! Kraken, Crackin, cracked ass, whatever - No good can come of this~