Diabetes Changed My Life

May 2007 : Diagnose Diabetes !

When I was 35 years old, the doctor at a hospital told me I am a diabetic ! Not type 1 or type 2, but a MODY. This completely changed my life. How ?

Before the diagnose, I drank a lot of water each day. Don’t think 2 liters, but 6 liters or something was normal. Personally I didn’t feel me different. I lost some weight without doing something and I liked that ! Who doesn’t want to have a nice body without workouts ?

By coincidence I had to go to the hospital for some additional tests, because during a health check they found too much sugars in my urine. It was Friday and and I got the results. My blood sugars were way to high (24) and they wanted to keep me for the weekend in the hospital. I wasn’t happy about that and after a lot of meetings I didn’t have to stay in the hospital. I got meetings with the Diabetic Nurse about what is diabetes and I had to change my food pattern.

In the beginning I only got Metformine, but it was already sure I had to use insulin in 2 or 3 years.

Drastically I cut my carbs and this was working. I could get my sugars at a very nice level, but it was a hard diet ! I ate a lot of vegetable and that was it. No cakes, soda’s or what ever. I was very hard to myself. Just wanted to control my sugars in my own way.

Insurance

For buying house a life insurance was needed and because I am diabetic, I had to fill in extra form, asked my Internist for a letter which was telling how I handled diabetes and what my HBA1C value was over the last year. Finally I got the insurance, but at a high price. Compared with the past I am now paying triple (3x) the normal amount of money for the insurance. The reason ? Diabetes is an incurable illness. This was a shock for me ! It hit me and I knew that I always have to life with diabetes, if I like it or not !

In 2009 I had to use insulin. 4 times a day. Even at the office I had to use insulin. Luckily no one did difficult when I had to take a shot before lunch. Some people are ashamed and go to the toilet. I never did that. It’s part of my life right now. The biggest problem I had was the pain during each injection. So I changed the injection to a insulin pump, the omnipod.

Omnipod

Omnipod

During the years my eat pattern changed and my HBA1C was getting higher and higher. So I had to do something about it. I got for 4 days a continue glucose meter attached to my body to see if I could be having very good values. I started with fitness. It was nice while it lasted and right now I am running. This is something I never liked and right now I can run 6 km. It’s still not a lot although it’s a good start.

My values when I was watching my food and did fitness

My values when I was watching my food and did fitness.

Sometimes I need a purpose to do a thing, I registered myself for the 6 km mudmaster run in Biddinghuizen. Now I had to practise running. The mudmaster was in september 2016 and right now I am practicing for the mudmasters in Haarlemmermeer, april 2017. Not the 6 km, but the 12 km. My purpose is that I have enough condition to run 12 km in one run. Mudmasters is totally different, but atleast I got a goal.

Maybe I am living healtier then a “normal” person and if I don’t do that, a lot of complications I can get !

 

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