While not directly related to diabetes, the New York Times posted an article Doctors and Patients Start Talking that points to a new series being written by an oncology doctor, Dr. Pauline Chen. She is the author of Final Exam: A Surgeon's Reflection on Mortality. I have not read the book, but there's a huge amount of discussion on her article at the NYT site.
Those of us with chronic illnesses understand the importance of good, honest communication with our healthcare team. Some doctors and nurses aren't good at that, others don't have time to really explain things or answer questions. So we turn to help from folks on TuDiabetes.com and other supportive sites. I think this is part of how healthcare is evolving in the US. What do you think? Maybe you can leave a comment on the NYT site.
While I'm talking about reading, here's a free book that may be really useful if you're dealing with the US healthcare system. I just started reading My Healthcare is Killing Me! earlier today and I've already got some ideas for better handling myself within our (sometimes challenging) system.
Finally, if you're one of many of us who'd like to see insurance coverage for CGM devices, please go and sign Gina Capone's petition. If you'd like to know more about Gina and the petition, read Amy's interview with her.
You know how challenging it is to live with diabetes. Those days when it seems nothing is going right. You can't control your blood sugars, then you get a bleeder when changing an infusion set and your meter runs out of batteries at the worst possible time. The countless times when the possibility of complications weigh heavily on our hearts. The frustrations of not being able to eat something without first having to do some math.
You get the picture, you know the story.
It's hard to see any positives to diabetes, but they do exist.
Given my love of carbs, if I didn't have type 1 diabetes I probably would have eaten myself to death by now. Despite diabetes I've been able to do pretty much anything I want. And diabetes has led me to things I wouldn't have done without it.
So I see joy is some aspects of diabetes. And it seems I'm not the only one.
I got a copy of Bob Hawkinson's excellent book The Joy of Diabetes, and I've read it twice. I plan to try and do this every other month.
Bob's message is simple but important. Diabetes is serious, but if you take care of it properly then you can have joy in your life despite the big D. His book is also a great high-level overview of type 1 diabetes, outlining what's important without drowning the reader in details. Excellent reading for diabetes newbies.
His book starts six points for a 'Life of Joy'
Accept the disease
Understand the disease, as much as possible
Manage diabetes
Be there for folks who need you
Remember to laugh at myself from time to time
Relax and take charge of my life
For me, this was a quick read. It helped me focus on some important points. I especially liked the idea of ensuring that I will be there for others. The best way to do this is to take charge of my diabetes.
I like the colorful drawings and I especially liked the slightly larger type face. Some might think this makes it more like a children's book - it's certainly approachable enough to be read by teenagers. But this choice of font makes it easy to read and is probably even better for folks who may be struggling with eye problems.
This may not be for everyone, but I see the book (and some magnets he kindly sent me) as great parts of the toolkit I use for living with diabetes. Joyfully.
Authoring this blog for the last 15 months has given me a good excuse to work on my writing skills.
I know that I'll never be a novelist or poet. But that doesn't mean that I can't improve how I explain things or write about something that happened to me. I know that I'll benefit from this, and hopefully you will also.
Recently I've been reading, or listening to, some books on writing. And I thought I'd share these with you. You should find most of these at your local library. So all you may need is an investment of time to improve your writing abilities.
I like Anne Lamott's style and she's written several books that just make me laugh. I borrowed an audio version of her book Bird by Bird and I've enjoyed listening to it several times. She writes it around how she teaches students to write and to approach tackling the challenges of writing. I especially like sections on first drafts and getting down to actually producing writing. With these tips I might even feel up to tackling NaNoWriMo in a few years!
I just finished reading Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg. Then I was chatting with one of my sisters in Ireland and she's also in the middle of reading this one. We both like it a lot. It's got very short chapters with gentle advice on writing, how to think of topics to write about and how to get help in improving your writing. She's also got an interesting idea about having a writing booth at fairs and other public events. I'll definitely read this again.
Finally I'm almost through Mary Pipher's book Writing to Change the World. This book is really a combination of tips about writing and gentle activism, combined with thinking about where you've come from. One example from a section called Finding Your Voice is
Your self-exploration is a way to pay attention to the world, within yourself and outside yourself, and to experience what Allen Ginsberg called "surprise mind".
Try answering these questions on paper: What makes you laugh, cry, and open your heart? What points do you repeatedly make to those you love? What topics keep you up at night, or help you fall asleep? ...
These books have a good deal of overlap. So reading them has helped me attack some basic writing problems and improve slightly.
All that's needed to finish is a lot of practice in both writing and reading. This blog gives a great opportunity for the former and others help me with the latter.
Have you read any good books that have helped you to improve your writing?
Those of us living with diabetes already know how much it impacts our lives.
Too many times each and every day we have to pause in what we're doing to make some allowance for diabetes. And this is just as true when we're being romantic with a loved one.
The Well blog on the New York Times site has a post today about a new book, Sex and Diabetes, that examines how diabetes affects our romantic lives and gives various strategies for dealing with it.
Go to his new website and fill out a simple form. They'll send you a free copy of this new booklet.
In the booklet, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective PeopleŽ with Diabetes, written by Covey in collaboration with the American Association of Diabetes Educators (AADE) and with support from Bayer Diabetes Care, you will learn habits that will help you become more effective in managing your diabetes on your own, with your medical team, family and friends.
I've ordered mine. It's not too late for me to learn something new.
The Diabetes Technology Blog is focused on using technology to life better with diabetes. I review: blood glucose monitors; continuous glucose monitor; blood sugar meters; diabetes software and living with diabetes.
About Me
Name: Bernard Farrell
Location: Massachusetts, United States
I was born in Ireland and now live in the US.
I have had Type 1 diabetes for over 36 years. I struggle with my blood sugar, the same as most people with diabetes.
I wear a Cozmo 1800 insulin pump and a Dexcom SEVEN Plus CGM to track my blood glucose levels.
I'm blessed by God, and every day brings the possibility of a cure.
I got a copy of Bob Hawkinson's excellent book 
-737135.JPG "Picture of the book cover for Sex and Diabetes")
