The Writing Life
Today is World Diabetes Day. As a Type 1 diabetic, I always take a time out from the usual content to do – what else? – write about diabetes. I decided to write a letter to my younger, pre-diabetes self after reading Christel Marchand Aprigliano’s letter.
[Read more…] about World Diabetes Day: A Letter to My Younger Self
This year, I’ve partnered with Margie Clayman for SXSW 2014. We’ll be introducing Marketing Backwards in its full scope, a project I’ve mentioned on the blog and on the Facebook page. We’ll be joined by Puffin whose role is going to take better form and mature in the coming months. [Read more…] about Let’s Go to SXSW 2014
My birthday is this month, which means I’m celebrating it all month long. The rules are simple: anything I attend, do, or start is in honor of my birthday regardless of anyone knowing. I know, and that’s the important thing.
Marketing Backwards is a collaboration of Margie Clayman and myself. We’ve spent the past few months looking at our idea, poking and prodding it, and finally deciding it was time to announce it. Actually, neither Margie nor I are the most patient people, and, the more we saw things starting to come together in advance of the established announcement date (today), the more we wanted to share something, anything about the project.
I know some of the readers asked on the post “Diabetes, Tough Mudder, and Resilience” that I share how the Tough Mudder event went. More precisely, they wanted before and after photos. I’m happy to acquiesce with that request. I’m also happy to share the list of obstacles, both man-made and natural.
Although I finished the Tough Mudder, I skipped the Berlin Walls and Dirty Ballerina. I just couldn’t do the whole “mind over matter.” It didn’t help that I’d already scaled some walls and had to have a lot of help to do that. By the time I reached the Berlin Walls, I had developed an overwhelming case of self-consciousness. The Dirty Ballerina simply scared me. I overcame my fears on Walk the Plank and Balls to the Wall, but I just couldn’t do it with the Dirty Ballerina. In the interest of full disclosure, I also skirted the Firewalker obstacle. Jumping over the fire just didn’t agree with me. I edged along the fire, then jumped into the muddy water below.
My diabetes didn’t behave very well for the first few hours. The medical stations had limited supplies, which resulted in testing only when I saw my brother at a spectator station. One of those readings told me my blood glucose was high, so I took steps to bring it down. Unfortunately, my high blood sugar meant I didn’t take advantage of the snacks (bananas and CLIF bars) at the refueling stations, which perhaps explains the muscle cramp I experienced later in the day. The Aquapac (a waterproof pack) kept my insulin pump dry, but it left me wondering if the high blood sugar could be attributed to it. The instructions that came with the pack say the delivery of insulin can be impeded by it. I can’t prove anything in that regard; my blood sugar sometimes spikes when I panic, and I panicked on a couple of obstacles.
It’s taken a while to get to the photos, but here they are. Enjoy.
Since today is World Diabetes Day and I’m diabetic, I thought I would share some of my story. We’ll return to the regular schedule tomorrow.
I don’t talk about diabetes very often, even though I am diabetic. Before I’m asked what type, I’ll say it: I have type one diabetes, which used to be known as juvenile diabetes until adults started to be diagnosed with it (hence “juvenile-onset” and other terms). I like to be clear about which type I have. Mine can’t be controlled through a strict diet and exercise. Those things help me to manage it and to be a healthy person, but they don’t have any bearing on my ability to break down glucose and to transmit that glucose throughout my body. I have to rely on an external source for that. It used to be insulin injections, then insulin pens. These days, I use an insulin pump, and it looks like a pager.