Thursday, August 9, 2012

Balance

It's all about achieving balance ~

So I sliced the bottom of my foot on Sunday afternoon and my kitchen looked like a CSI scene. 
FYI: You know those nylon bags with cords that you get as a giveaway? Well, they make excellent bags to store your shoes in when you travel. 
But with that being said, when you wash those bags and hang them to dry on a drying rack and one falls to the floor and you don’t see and your pacing around your kitchen while talking on the phone, be careful. 
Because if you’re anything like me and can’t walk and talk on the phone at the same time, the little metal round things that the cord slides through can slide through the ball of your foot like it’s homebase and slice it something awful when you accidentally slip on it. 
Anyway, about a minute after it happened and realized that a CSI scene was in the making, I got off the phone, washed  my foot off in the shower, using  a foot-bath with antibacterial soap[ in the shower to keep it separate and clean. Found the neosporen and applied liberally, covered it with a bandage,and then a clean white sock and did the same process all over again before I went to bed. But when I woke up Monday morning, my foot really hurt and I got nervous. So called my podiatrist’s office and took an early lunch at work so I could get it looked at. 
I sat in the exam room and I was scared. The whole Diabetes/ foot-care was racing through my mind and I was wondering if I should I have gone to the emergency room and gotten stitches. 
Then the Dr. came in and he said: Hey Kelly what’s up? 
I told him what happened and what I was doing to take care of it and he began to examine my foot - All the while talking to me.

Dr. Foot: How’s the blog going? 
Me: Good. Still writing and advocating about life with diabetes and learning from others who are living with diabetes. Thanks for asking.
Dr. Foot: I read it you know - I like it. 
Me: REALLY??? Thank - you!
Dr. Foot: It seems like you and your community work really hard to work with others when it comes to their health. 
Me: Yeah - patients helping patients
Dr. Foot: But do you guys take care of yourselves? 
Me: Well, actually I think having an on-line community support you with diabetes can only help you with your diabetes. And a lot of people agree with me.
Dr. Foot: And I'm one of them! I agree 100%, but that’s not what I mean. I mean that sometimes when your advocate for others as a job/ passion, other things in your life don’t get the focus they should.
Me: Does that happen in the medical profession? 
Dr. Foot: Yeah, it does - that’s why I’m telling you. Just make sure that you and others who do what you do take the time to be good to yourselves in every aspect of your lives - it’s important. Make sure there’s a balance. 
Now, about the foot. You don’t need stitches, two more millimeters and you would have. And you really sliced it on an odd angle! I’m putting you on a topical antibiotic and I want you to apply it 2 to 3 times a day, cover it with a band-aid and a white sock. It’s going to take a while to heal - not so much because of your diabetes, (but that doesn’t help,) but because  you sliced the ball of your foot and that’s one of the biggest pressure points in your body. I like the whole foot bath in the shower thing that your doing, keep doing that. 

Me: Thanks Dr. 

And as I went to get my RX filled I kept thinking about what he said about balance - and making sure you have it in your life. 

Do you guys think about balance in your life, both on-line and off??

How do you handle balancing your life with diabetes with this thing called life? 

What have you done to achieve balance or is balance an issue you struggle with daily? 

Diabetesaliciousness minds would like to know.

6 comments:

Jacquie said...

First of all: fucking ouch! I'm so sorry for your feets, but I'm glad you're okay.

Second: There are times when all things diabetes -- including things beyond self-care -- make me want to put my fingers in my ears and scream.

That's when I take a break. Er, seek balance. :)

Kate Cornell said...

I've been thinking about balance a lot lately too. I've been overly attentive to my D and it sometimes just takes over the day, or at least my mind. I'd rather find a better balance, one where I can continue to have good glucose control while actually enjoying life. I'm working on letting higher glucose readings just be what they are without freaking out. Sorry about your foot. How cool that your Dr. Foot reads your blog!

Bob P said...

I'm not entirely sure that I've ever been in the same county as balance. But, judging from traveler's reports, balance is always a work in progress because of the shifting nature of diabetes and everything else in our lives.

Scott S said...

Balance, right. I should remember that more often.

StephenS said...

Hmmm... feeling guilty right now. My parents visited this week and I spent a lot of time with them, but didn't take any time off. However, I managed to get three blog posts out. The trade-off was not worth it.
Thanks

Scott K. Johnson said...

I see this a lot with myself, and saw it with my mom too.

Thanks for the reminder. And how cool that he reads your blog!