Diabetes, Type 2

Being diagnosed with a disease is quite the ride, I can tell you.

It's been a while since I noticed something not quite correct, sweating for no apparent reason. I left it until I had my checkup before heading to Wales for a few months. 

Before the checkup I had got a bunch of blood tests done, as always. The doctor let me know that I was moving closer and closer to being in the diabetic range. He and I agreed that whilst it had been building slowly over a year or so I should not worry, go travelling, and on my return get some more blood tests and we'll take it from there.

[.. Flight out. Wales Trip. Flight back ..]

Back at the doctor's in February, yeah, definitely have diabetes, type 2.

Diabetes is a chronic disease as a result of the body not creating enough insulin to keep blood glucose (sugar) levels in the normal range. Everyone needs some glucose in their blood, but if it’s too high it can damage your body over time

[source: Diabetes NZ: Understanding Type 2 Diabetes]

So, what to do about it?

Luckily I have been changing my diet for a while, less sugar, cutting down on beer, and a lot less red meat. I've also boosted my walking, mostly from my time at Waitārere Beach, but carrying on in Wellington AND loads whilst in Wales.

All of this I am to keep up and do more of. I am borderline diabetes, obviously the wrong side of the line, and everything I do may mean I drop back onto the other side - so I was told, but also:

While type 2 diabetes cannot be cured, it can be managed and people with type 2 diabetes can and do live active and healthy lives.

If I went hell for leather, ate shit, became a couch potato, drank full on Coke I would be in trouble fairly quickly. 

• Having diabetes can damage your sight.
• Kidney disease is a real issue for many people with diabetes.
• More likely to develop foot problems.
• Problems affecting their gums, teeth, and mouth.
• More likely to develop heart or blood vessel problems.
• The incidence of hypothyroidistm seems to be increased with diabetes.
• More chance of developing a range of infections.

So, we'll stay far away from that lot eh!

I have a wee pill to take, alongside my happy pill, and another ½ pill to keep my cholesterol in check. My cholesterol is fine BUT Diabetes can, if it progresses, cause heart issues and one needs the blood roads to be clear (and it may even help me lose weight, a side effect I can be happy with).

To close this post (feels like a Press Release, LOL), it's weird but knowing that Anika Moa has Diabetes makes it, normal, in a sense I'm not alone. Weird eh. As we all know she was initially diagnosed as Type 2 but then, eek, it turned out to be Type 1:

People don't really understand Type 1 diabetes. We're, only about 5% of the diabetic population, maybe a little more. So roughly, there might be close to 300,000 Type 2 diabetics in New Zealand and about maybe 20,000 Type 1's. So not that much is known by the general public about it. I don't think they realise the amount of maintenance that goes into it.

[source: Guyon Espiner: Tough interviews and Type 1 Diabetes, from It's Personal with Anika Moa]