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Diabetes & Eye Health (Brandy) |
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March 7, 2010 If you received the March Newsletter, you probably saw the headline article about eye health written by Laura Ely. She pointed out some things that I was not aware of…such as vision changes during pregnancy and increased eye dryness during/after menopause. Granted, this is not earth-shattering news. But, I am certainly glad to be aware of these potential issues now. For those of you who haven’t been pregnant yet, you now have a license to ‘not freak out’ if/when you notice some slight vision changes during your pregnancy. Certainly, you should mention it to your physician, but at least you don’t have to spend your time in between doctor visits worrying about something that will return to normal after the pregnancy is over. This is a little off subject, but I remember being very concerned about ANYTHING that might cause harm to the baby growing inside me when I was pregnant. Early on, I was also freaked out by almost every high blood sugar. It’s amazing how having a child changes your mindset! I was so much nicer to my body when there was a little one growing inside of it. I ate all kinds of fruit for snacks..and that’s a biggie for me because I am not a big fan of fruit at all! My blood sugars were also the best they had ever been IN MY LIFE! My A1C stayed under 6% throughout the nine months of my pregnancy…and I went through more test strips than I have ever gone through in a nine month period. But, the hard work paid off…my daughter was born at a healthy 7lb. 13 oz. on April 12, 2005! Her blood sugar was a little low at first, which is common among babies born to mothers with diabetes. So, after a brief period of monitoring to ensure her blood sugar was rising to normal levels, she was brought to my room. She also had a little bit of jaundice after we brought her home, so she had to have one of the medical blankets for a couple of days. However, since then, she has been a wonderfully healthy, energetic child!
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Diabetes & the Female Heart (Brandy) |
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February 28, 2010 Greetings Sisters! There’s so, so much going on in the world of women with diabetes. It is an exciting place to be right now! First of all, I must tell you that the Weekend for Women Conference in Raleigh, NC is FULL. Who would have thought that it would fill up THAT FAST?!?!?! I was optimistic, but filling up the registration in 8 weeks surpassed my expectations! The good news is that having such a positive response lays the groundwork (and illustrates the need) for more Weekend for Women Conferences to take place so that DiabetesSisters can serve more women with diabetes! If you would like to be put on a waitlist (in case we are able to open more spots) or if you would like to be updated when registration for our next conference is open, please send an email to
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with “Waitlist/Updates on Conference” in the subject line. You can also register for our monthly newsletter on the DiabetesSisters homepage (www.diabetessisters) to receive monthly updates on the conference series. Since February is American Heart Month, I felt it was important to bring an article to your attention that illustrates one of the the gender differences that exists in heart disease (Diabetes Care, October 2009): http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/32/10/1851.full
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Diabetes & Driving Privileges (Brandy) |
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February 22, 2010 Hello Sisters! First, I must provide everyone with the latest update on the Weekend for Women Conference! I am excited to announce that the registration is almost FULL! We have women coming in to the Conference from ALL over the country. In fact, women from 20 different states will descend upon Raleigh, North Carolina on the weekend of Mary 22-23, 2010 for a heart-warming, life-changing, educational, good time! To provide a little info about the diversity and the truly amazing women who you will be able to mingle with at the Conference: We have a group of 30-somethings who have Type 1 diabetes from around the country who are meeting up at the Conference. We also have a group of 10 women with Type 2 diabetes from Brooklyn, NY who are driving down to NC together! Aside from these women, we have numerous pairs of women who are meeting up at the Conference and far more women who are attending as individuals with hopes of meeting their “lifelong” diabetes buddy. If you have not registered yet, THERE ARE ONLY 10 SPOTS LEFT! So, registration will likely be filled by March 1st! If you want to look at the Agenda or read the Speaker Bios, click here: http://www.diabetessisters.org/weekend-for-women-conference. But, do so quickly! J This past month, I have had to give some thought to diabetes in relation to my driving privileges. Why? You ask. Well, since the age of 16, the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles has required me to get a physician/diabetes specialist to complete medical paperwork every two years (like clockwork!) on my ability to drive a car. Every time I see the forms come in the mail, I feel a certain amount of stress. Stress because the letter always says something to the effect of, “If this paperwork is not completed and received in our office within 30 days from the date this letter was written, driving privileges will be suspended. “ Talk about scaring the life out of me! I honestly don’t know how I would live without the ability to jump in my car and go somewhere when I need to go. I don’t know if anyone else has to do this (or something similar) in order to maintain their driver’s license. In fact, I’ve never talked to anyone who has had to get these forms completed! L It all started when I went to get my driver’s license at the age of 16. I was so excited! Unfortunately, they went through a list of questions when getting me registered, one of which included, “Do you have diabetes?” I answered yes, unaware that it would result in a barrage of paperwork from the DMV every two years. I was also EXTREMELY disappointed to leave from the DMV that day without a driver’s license. You see, I couldn’t get my license until a physician gave me “the ok” with completed paperwork. Thus started my 20 year adventure with diabetes and driving.
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TEAM WORK makes THE DREAM WORK (Brandy) |
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February 15, 2010 Happy Valentine’s Day, Sisters! I am disappointed to tell you that we were forced to cancel our DS Quarterly Meeting that was scheduled for this past Saturday (Feb 13th) in Raleigh, NC due to inclement weather. However, our next Quarterly meeting is scheduled for Saturday, June 12, 2010 at Brio Steakhouse at Crabtree Valley Mall in Raleigh, North Carolina. For those who like having the ability to choose their own meal, Brio allows each person to order from their menu individually. I hope you will join us! Prior to the Quarterly meeting, I REALLY hope you will join us at the Weekend for Women Conference at Marriott City Center in downtown Raleigh, North Carolina on May 22-23, 2010. Registration is already ¾ full. We only have 25 spots left out of the 100 allocated spots. If you are considering registering, I encourage you to do so now as the Conference will likely be FULL by the end of the month! To register, visit: http://www.diabetessisters.org/weekend-for-women-conference. Over the weekend I heard someone make the comment, “Team Work makes the Dream Work” and I immediately knew that phrase would become a permanent part of my vocabulary. Often, people can’t comprehend all that goes on behind the scenes of an organization. To outsiders, it seems as if the website automatically gets updated, events just pop up totally organized out of nowhere, and money just drops into the bank account. However, I can strongly attest that for an organization to make it past the initial start-up stage, there must be a team of quality people in place (behind the scenes of an organization) who are dedicated to ‘the dream.’ This TEAM must take pride in the work they are accomplishing for women with diabetes- not for me, not for themselves. From the beginning of this organization, I have talked endlessly about how strong our voice can be….if we come together and work as a TEAM. In reality, no organization can be successful if everything has to go through the Executive Director or if the Executive Director has to be involved in every activity to ensure that it is accomplished with excellence. More importantly, it is important for the volunteer leaders to understand the mission and vision of the organization and use their individual leadership skills to propel the organization to the next level. That’s how American Diabetes, American Heart, and American Cancer grew to the size they are today!
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Oprah on Diabetes?!?!? (Brandy) |
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February 7, 2010 Did you see Oprah’s show on diabetes on Thursday- (America’s Silent Killer: Diabetes)? Those in the diabetes world sit on two very opposite ends of the spectrum in their opinions about the show—those who really liked the show vs. those who really DID NOT like the show at all. Among people living with diabetes, there’s not much “in between.” In case you didn’t see it, the show was highly focused on type 2 diabetes with a brief mention about the differences in type 1 and type 2 diabetes. There were numerous scare tactics sprinkled throughout the hour. For example, they visited a hospitalized woman whose feet had been amputated and required dialysis. Physician Ian Smith spent lots of time telling worst case scenarios. Art Smith, Oprah’s personal chef, has Type 2 diabetes and shared how he lost weight and eliminated his need for medication. And last but not least, the words “You’re a ticking time bomb” seemed to be used a lot. As many of you know, my previous career was in the pharmaceutical sales industry selling diabetes medications. In this role, I talked about/explained the disease of diabetes from a patient’s perspective with primary care physicians every day. I always cringed when a physician would discuss their frustration with diabetes patients and proudly tell a story of scaring a diabetes patient by showing them photos of foot infections or amputations. The shock on the patient’s faces made them think that they had gotten through to the patient and the patient “had no choice but to change now!” What I came to realize is that scare tactics tend to be used by those who don’t know any better…those who don’t have a good understanding of the disease. Forgive me for saying so, but it is a short-term, simple-minded way of influencing someone to change his or her life. In fact, stories of diabetes-related amputations and complications are nothing new to those of us living with diabetes. We’ve heard it all and seen it all, especially if we have lived with the disease for more than 10 years. Even those who don’t have diabetes or don’t understand the disease (i.e. average Americans) can always recall a story of Aunt Phyllis whose leg was amputated because of her diabetes or Uncle Joe who lost his vision due to diabetes. If there’s anything that people in America understand about diabetes it’s that diabetes CAN ravage your body and cause horrific complications. Essentially, that is old news and doesn’t really get to the core of the issue.
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Oprah was AWESOME! (Brandy) |
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January 31, 2010 Needless to say, I had an awesome week! I flew out to Chicago on Monday morning, did some sightseeing, walked around bundled up in the snow, and sipped my favorite mixed drink (Amaretto Sour!) sitting on the top floor of the John Hancock Building (96 floors high!) while taking in the view of the beautiful city! The diabetes packing routine before leaving was grueling as usual. My husband packed the night before we left in 15 minutes flat! I always start packing knowing that it will be a few hours before I feel confident everything I need is in the suitcase. Now, that doesn’t mean that I actually spend 3 continuous hours packing. What generally happens is that I start packing, take a few breaks along the way, and get distracted a few times. Hey! What can I say….I am a multi-tasking woman! You probably do something similar! Right?? I hope so. The thing that I always do FIRST is to ensure I have enough reservoirs, test strips, and insulin to make it through the trip and a little longer (just in case something goes wrong while traveling). My motto is: The only things I MUST have to live on this trip are my diabetes supplies. As long as I have all of these things, everything else is negligible. So, when I get out of town and realize I forgot my favorite pair of shoes or my blush, I just remind myself of the motto! We ended up attending the 7am taping of the Oprah Show on Thursday, January 28th. It was the show about the Jay Leno/Conan O’Brien fiasco. Oprah had already interviewed Jay Leno in LA, so we watched the interview in the studio. Then, Oprah came out and discussed the issues with the audience. We were sitting on the 3rd ROW, so we had GREAT seats! My husband, Chris, was on the end of the aisle, so he got to shake Oprah’s hand when she walked into the studio. Then, she disclosed that she was sick and came back to give him some Purel to ensure she didn’t get him sick. You can watch a video of the show here: http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Oprah-Talks-About-the-Tonight-Show-VideoBe sure to take note (or fast forward the video) to 31:00. My husband spoke directly with Oprah on the topic from 30:09-30:39. We both have on orange sweaters—You can’t miss us! (We’re the only interracial couple in the audience!) Before you ask, Yes, Oprah was just as nice and down-to-earth as she seems on television. She stayed and talked with the audience long after the video crew tried to usher her out of the studio (She just ignored them because she was so engrossed in the conversations with the audience!) I guess you can do that when you own the Show! J I also have to give a shout out to Oprah Show Staff Member, Freddy! She has a number of female family members who have diabetes and live in Raleigh and Winston-Salem. She was excited to learn that there is an organization for women with diabetes! She immediately understood what DiabetesSisters is all about because she is a woman who is trying to live a healthy life and avoid the seemingly inevitable diagnosis of type 2 diabetes. She too would like the support, wisdom, and education of other women who are living successfully with diabetes. I hope to introduce you to Freddy and her family at the Weekend for Women Conference in May!
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