[Diabetes-talk] I'm a silent Diabetic

[Mike Freeman]

Kijuana:

I returned your call this afternoon and will call again tomorrow 
morning. We'll need to know more about your diagnosis -- who diagnosed 
you, what your blood glucose levels were/are, what kind of 
recommendations, if any, you were given, whether you have been signed up 
for a diabetes class run by a Certified Diabetes Educator, whether 
you'll be treated by a primary care physician only or whether you have 
been referred to an endocrinologist, among other things.

All that being said, every last one of us can empathise with you --  
we've all been there. Especially at first, you get tons and tons and 
tons of information all coming at you at once and it's natural to be 
overwhelmed.

As I say, I can talk to you a lot more tomorrow but suffice it to say 
here that there's all sorts of stuff you can look up on the Voice of the 
Diabetic web site, http://www.VoiceOfTheDiabetic.org. WE have articles 
on finger-sticking techniques, how to handle low blood glucose if that 
befalls you, a plethora of material on diabetic complications which you 
apparently don't have yet (thank goodness) and much, much more.

Suffice it to say that learning to use a blood glucose meter may seem 
terribly frustrating at first. But it's quite doable and just takes 
practice, practice, practice. The Prodigy Voice talking blood glucose 
meter is cheap, works reasonably well and is fully useable by the blind. 
the NFB Independence Market, Independent Living Aids and several vendors 
of diabetes equipment (some of whom are on this list) sell it.

If you haven't talked to a dietitian, it ought to be a criminal offense. 
You should see a certified diabetes educator and a good dietitian to 
help you work out a diet that takes into account your food preferences, 
the medications you're on (if any), how much physical activity you are 
used to and how to integrate all this into a healthy diet and lifestyle. 
If you're not seeing these folks, we can help you; the information is 
all there. But it's a lot easier if you see a real certified diabetes 
educator and dietitian who specializes in dealing with diabetics and can 
take some classes.

If you can't find these resources (or even if you can), you might want 
to check out the NLS book: "The First Year; Type 2 Diabetes -- an 
Essential Guide for the Newly-Diagnosed" by Gretchen Becker; it's 
available on cassette and as a digital talking book download. It's 
superb and should get you through the initial period of fear and 
uncertainty and if you read it all the way through, you'll know much 
more than many experienced diabetics.

There are many other books I'd be glad to tell you about but that one is 
one of the best.

Talk to you tomorrow.

Mike Freeman, President
Diabetes Action Network
National Federation of the Blind

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "K C" <kcc86 at hotmail.com>
To: <diabetes-talk at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Monday, November 03, 2008 7:12 AM
Subject: [Diabetes-talk] I'm a silent Diabetic


Hello, everyone.  My name is Kijuana.
On Thursday the 30th of October I was diagnosed with Diabetes after
Uterine surgery on the 23rd of October.  I had no idea I had it.

I'm so scared!  I have never had to stick myself to test my blood sugar 
or
anything else.  I know a little about it because I have had personal 
friends
who have
suffered major complications from this disease, and some of them have 
died.
Logically I know it is something people live with, and control everyday. 
I
also understand that it is a very common illness.  It's just that it has
never been a part of my daily life.

I don't know how to act, or react now.  Because I have no symptoms I 
don't
know how to eat differently or anything else.  Over the past few days I 
have
continued to do like I always have, but the numbers on the blood tests 
say
different.  Its silence scares me more than if I had some weird 
symptoms,
went to my Doctor, and was diagnosed then.

How do you deal
with the days, weeks, and months after diagnoses emotionally?  They'll 
be a
lot of education I'll get in the coming weeks on diet, life style 
changes,
etc.  But what I really need right now is those who're living with this
disease to share their experiences with me so I can put my feet on some 
kind
of ground.  Thank you for reading all this.  I feel totally disoriented. 
My
state services for the blind leave a lot to be desired, so my councilor
doesn't even know where to begin as far as purchasing a meter, testing
supplies, etc.  Any help will really be appreciated.
Kijuana




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