Diabetes: The War We Did not Choose; The Battles We Must Fight
I read all the posts today about eating out on Easter - the mistakes some
made and lessons learned. This kind of thing we will face again and again.
We have many holidays and special occassions in our future.
You know, we are all in a battle for our health………pretty much a full
blown war!
When troops are at war, they have to plan their strategies for each
situation they might find themselves in and plan accordingly. They plan
before each battle. Certain maneuvers will stand them well time and time
again. Sometimes, no matter how well they prepare, they don’t execute their
plan as well as they would have liked - and, sometimes, there will be a
surprise attack and they either fall down or they remember what worked for
them in the past and re-arm.
A sure fire way to loose this war of diabetes than none of us ‘volunteered’
for is to give up because our latest plan of attack did not work out. The
only way we can stay in this race for better health and more fruitful and
longer lives, is to constantly re-arm.
Each night - look at tomorrow’s calendar and plan accordingly. If there is
going to be a luncheon at work and cake is your weakness, be sure to make
some sugar-free cupcakes so you know you have a treat you can eat - and it
is a small size. If you are going out to eat with your co-workers, plan to
order an appetizer as your meal so you have smaller portions - or ask for a
take-out box when your meal arrives and immediately put away half of what is
on your plate. Don’t skip breakfast! Keep some low-sugar/high-fiber bars
(like Solo low-glycemic bars) in your desk at work in case you can’t eat
before you leave home. On the weekends bake up some healthy no-sugar bran
muffins and freeze enough for the week. Keep some lo-fat cheese sticks at
home and work and always have some roasted salt-free nuts on hand. Whenever
you leave home take a bottle of frozen water out of your freezer - you will
have something cold to sip on as it thaws.
Every weekend plan your upcoming menus. Love to snack? This is the time to
make some healthy snacks and freeze for the next week. Going to be out all
day - pack a small cooler with blue ice and put your free byetta gel pack
bag in the cooler so you can take it before your meals.
Plan how you will build some exercise into each day - even it is just
parking at the far end of a lot or an extra set of stairs or running in
place during the TV commercials.
Don’t let food enter your house that YOU cannot eat, too! If it is not
good for a diabetic, it is not good for anybody.
Thankfully, we have a new weapon now: Byetta. Make the most of it.
We must prepare ourselves for battle or it will be a long and costly war.
‘Nita
League City, TX
October 27th, 2006 at 12:20 am
Nita, WOW! Inspirational and so true.
In May we leave for a 5 week trip to the mainland where we will see
relatives and friends and stay both in hotels and family homes.
We will be traveling by air and long car trips etc.
I’ve been trying to plan ahead for this trip with all it’s challenges. I
have a big problem…I get extremely unpredictable diarrhea from the ER
Metformin.
Normally for our yearly trip I don’t take it, just the Starlix. I did
this last year and it was a disaster…FBS went to 300 and it took me
all summer to get BG back down.
Also, I’ve discussed with my NP to use Byetta 5 for the vacation instead
of the 10.
I still have bouts of nausea and periods of extreme fatigue for several
hours after some shots ….not bearable while vacationing and visiting.
Then I’m faced with eating out,favorite foods that are hard to find here
in Hawaii etc.
So, so far I’ve decided to take half of my Metformin and Byetta doses,
continue with the Starlix.
For meals…low carb for all mini meals except a 30 carb "treat" meal..a
day,of whatever I want. To walk at least an hour day.preferably after
the 30 carb meal.
Anybody have any other tips?
Aloha, Marge
October 27th, 2006 at 4:36 am
Are you positively sure the Byetta is a source of your diarrhea? I was
taking both a form of Metformin and Byetta and when I discontinued the
Metformin, my diarrhea pretty much went away. Yes, a long vacation is going
to be a tough one when medications are considered. Knowing that you are
going to have to reduce your medication dosages - you will need to be overly
vigilant in what goes in your mouth - a hard thing to do on a vacation.
Keep a log for lessons that you learn and share when you return!
October 27th, 2006 at 8:56 am
Hello Nita, Yes, It’s the Metformin that causes my diarrhea. I’ve been
on it for years and that’s why I used to stop it for trips.
Why do I stay on it? Because all the research says it’s one of the best
meds for overweight,insulin resistant type 2’s.Better for the heart and
weight neutral.
Now that my diabetes has progressed, I can’t get away with things as in
the early years.
Keeping a log sounds like a good idea,will add it to my plan.Thanks
Aloha, marge