Day 11: Fight or flight

One challenge in a personal war on diabetes is the temptation to simply flee (from the program you're on) when you don't see any measurable progress. Your glucose readings aren’t going down, you don’t feel any better, but you also don’t feel any worse.

The problem is that until something goes horribly wrong, we really don’t feel much of anything. If things are getting worse, we can’t tell. Many of our symptoms are hidden, and if we’re not testing regularly or paying close attention to the way we feel before and after meals, we can easily deceive ourselves into thinking we can graze at an all-you-can-eat buffet without suffering any consequences, long-term or short-term.

This is where a support network or support group becomes critical. Right now I’m relying on the support of health-care professionals and a few friends with celiac disease, but I know that’s not enough.

The trick is finding the right group. I attended a few meetings of a diabetes support group where I used to live, but everyone else was Type 1 and had a different set of challenges than I had. I think it would have been okay if there had been even just one or two Type 2 diabetics, because I do believe both types can learn something from each other.

Until I find one, I’ll keep the fight up with the help of professionals and my celiac friends. No way am I going to flee.

If you belong to an online Type 2 support group that you would recommend, let me know about it, okay?

Fasting glucose: 194