Personal Diabetes Stories

Letter of the Week: Any More Honeymooners Out There?

July 27, 2008 marked the eighth full month that my son has not used insulin. His last A1c was 5.9%, on July 9, 2008. On August 14th of this year, it will be one year since he was originally diagnosed with type 1. As you know, he was taken off insulin on November 27, 2007, about a month after getting the experimental drug teplizumab. I don't know if it is the drug or not, but others have taken it with good results. It will be interesting to see if they ever get the drug approved and can use it quickly on newly diagnosed type 1s.

15 comments - Jul 31, 2008 -

Finding Community in Diabetes Blogs

You might think that having a disease is the last thing you would want broadcast over the World Wide Web. But for some writers, getting the word out there is the main idea. In a world inundated with celebrity gossip and angst-ridden posts, a few people rise above the online mess and use their blogs to foster a sense of community in what could otherwise be an isolating dilemma: living with diabetes.

10 comments - Jul 25, 2008 -

The Star-Fish Story, Diabetes, and the Poorest Nation in the World

Have you heard the story of the little boy who was on the beach after a storm? Thousands of starfish had washed ashore, and he picked up one after another and threw them back into the sea. A man watched him work and after some time said to the boy, “Look at all these starfish. You’re never going to be able to save them all. Do you think all your work will make a difference?” The boy thought for a minute as he looked up and down the beach. “I don’t know,” he said as he picked up another starfish and flung it into the brine, “but it sure will make a difference to this one!”

4 comments - Jul 10, 2008 -

Bon Voyage: You CAN Take that Trip You’ve Been Dreaming About… Just Plan Ahead

I’ve always been a pretty good traveler. I simply checked the weather at my destination and packed accordingly. Easy. Then I learned that I had diabetes, and suddenly even weekend trips required an intense amount of additional preparation.

2 comments - Jul 3, 2008 -

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Flying on Insulin

Every pilot’s nightmare is the thought of losing his medical certification and being stopped from flying. That happened to me in May of 1986, when I was diagnosed with type 1. In accordance with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Standards and Recommended Practices, Canada, along with every other country in the world, would not allow insulin-dependent pilots to hold any type of pilot’s license. My short eight-year career with Air Canada came to an abrupt end, and I was told in no uncertain terms that I would never be allowed to fly an aircraft again.

9 comments - Jun 26, 2008 -

Letter of the Week: Reader Reassured in Crisis by <em>Diabetes Health</em> Online Article

Letter of the Week: Reader Reassured in Crisis by Diabetes Health Online Article

Dear Editor:

A few weeks ago, I was reading in bed at around one o’clock in the morning. I got up to administer my twice-daily Lantus dose and a small amount of Humalog to "cover" the carbs I'd consumed about an hour earlier.

Comments 1 comment - Jun 26, 2008 -

Watch Out for Aftershocks

It doesn’t matter whether your doctor is a blunt bull-in-a-china-shop type or a hand-holder who tries to deliver the news as softly as possible: it’s a shock when you learn you have type 2.

3 comments - Jun 19, 2008 -

Letter of the Week: Phoenix Lawyer with Diabetes Takes Pro Bono Cases to Help the Phoenix Diabetes Community

Dear Editor,

Sometimes the personal challenges we confront lead us to recognize value and opportunities we had not discovered before. That has been my recent experience, and that’s why I am especially proud to be a member of the Phoenix legal community.

3 comments - Jun 12, 2008 -

Letter of the Week: Mother Caught Between Medtronic and BlueCross BlueShield Refuses to Give Up

Dear Diabetes Health,

After reading the story in the April/May Diabetes Health about the mother and daughter who won approval from Blue Cross/Blue Shield to pay for the continuous monitor, I wanted to share our story.

5 comments - Jun 12, 2008 -

Diabetes Is Woven Into the Fabric of My Family

Let me start with my maternal grandmother, Helen. Helen had diabetes and lived to the age of 73. We all assumed that she didn’t do a good job with it, as we would often find candy wrappers under her bed. When it came to taking care of herself, Helen was my mother’s role model.

5 comments - May 15, 2008 -

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