Hi Carolyn:

You are amazing. I read your post and I said to myself "I can learn from this person". Many people with diabetes (and this includes ALL of my friends who are diabetic), well they have no clue about insulin levels, and carbs and anything like that.

I have 3 friends with type 2. The other day my friend (she's 63), called me up and said "My sugar is getting better" and I said 'oh, what's the number?" and she said "175". and I said 'that's better???" and she said "well, it's been 265 for 2 years".

I just sat there dumbfounded. She could have gone into a diabetic protocl with me at Cornell Medical Center where they supply you with everything (including blood pressure meds if you are on them), They have been conducting a special protocol to check heart disease in diabetic women The only necessary factor was that you had to be over the age of 45.

She fit into this category. I was obese and so is she. I said 'come with me", we can do this together. All I got was excuses.

I said to myself "this is a no-brainer, if they will monitor me, give me excellent check-ups, check me for neuropathy, provide me will all my meds, my testing strips, my meter, and all I have to do is go there once a month (initially), and once every two months after that", well, to me, it was a no-brainer. They hooked me up with a nutritionist and the rest was history.

See, the thing was, "I HAD TO WANT TO DO IT'. I had to want to change my behavior. If I wasn't willing to do this, I would not have gotten my sugar reading down to normal levels.

It was explained to me that most Type 2 diabetics (not all, mind you, but the majority), have developed Type 2 because of obesity. So this fit me to a tee. Bad eating habits, pigging out in front of the tv at night with chips and dips. I call this self-medicating with food.

Once I got the light bulb moment and took the blinders off, I acknowledged that I was not handling my diabetes in the best manner. I was kidding myself.

So I took myself to Cornell and they really did help me. I went there taking 8 oral meds a day and my sugar once got to 400. It only got to 400 because I shoveled snow that day. Usually it was 235. When I saw the 400 I called my primary care physician and said "You must help me, my sugar is 400". I immediately went to him and he said "what the heck did you put in your mouth"? I said 'nothing, I went out and shoveled the sidewalk for 45 minutes". He said "oh that explains it". I said 'that explains it??? what the heck does shoveling snow do to a person's sugar"?

He explained how excessive exercise (when a person does not usually do this type of behavior), can trigger insulin response and the pancrease.. blah blah, well, the doctor can explain this to me 100 times, and I still don't get it, but suffice it to say, that was the reason for my sugar to go to 400.

I remember, when I came back from shoveling show, I told my husband "boy, I bet my sugar is 100, I just exercised by shoveling snow for 45 mintues".

You should have seen the look on his face when we saw the reading on the meter.

So I went to my doctor and the said 'listen, I want you off all this oral crap, and I want you to go on Lantus".

I told him "I have contacted Cornell and they are doing a diabetic protocol and he said "terrific".

I went that week, (that was almost 3 years ago, maybe a bit more) I had the health examination of my life. It was explained to me all about diabetic neuropathy. I did not have it at the time. I was diabetic for about 17 years by the time I went to Cornell.

Forget about what I weighed, I was in complete denial. I did not understand the IMPORTANCE OF GOOD SUGAR CONTROL.

But I learned. I stopped eating the white stuff and I started listening to the nutritionist and to my doctor at Cornell.

They put me on Lantus along with 4 of the Metformin. Slowly, I got off the metformin (which ruined my stomach, I went to the bathroom every day, all day long).

I was extremely happy to get off of metformin.

So I started on 46 units of the Lantus. I am now down to 26.

I go back this friday for my big checkup, blood work. Perhaps they'll put me down to 22 of the Lantus (they always reduce by 4 points when they take me down on the Lantus).

Who knows?? But I am on Zestoretic. My pressure is just fine. I'm on it to protect my kidneys but I've been on high blood pressure meds since I'm 26 because of hypertension. I'm very high strung and I acknowledge this. I do all I can to face my fears and stop being so neurotic. I do try, believe me.

But as we age, we become more fearful and I fight this every day.

So I look better, and the bonus, (and believe me, this is a bonus), I get to wear pretty skirts and blouses and I stopped having to wear black all the time. Fat people think that wearing black makes you look thinner, and while it is slimming, when you wear a size 24 1/2 dress, it can be black, purple or dark brown, you are still wearing a size 24 and 1/2.

I once ballooned up to 300 lbs. Did that stop from from eating?? Not on your life. I just had to be READY TO CHANGE MY EATING HABITS.

Thankfully, I got to that point.

I wish I could take every obese person and sit them down and explain what is going on in their bodies. Instead, I watch the Biggest Loser on TV and I cheer right along with these people.

I'm not young, but I'm not dead either.

I will go down fighting.

There's a pretty skirt I saw in the window. And guess what???

This summer, I will start wearing belts. May not seem like a big thing to anybody else BUT I NEVER WORE A BELT IN MY LIFE.

This year, I shall wear belts.

And every morning I juice fresh juice and veggies in my Juiceman Jr. machine.

It really tastes good and it has live enzymes.

I mean, I only have one life, so I want to make the most of it.

I also have neuropathy, but I take Methyl B-12 and it greatly helps with the burning.

Caroline, I can't imagine being type 1, and having to wear a pump. I think you are doing the best you can and I believe you can survive without anyone.

You are a fighter. Let's hope you never get separated from your insulin.

Here's a pretty graphic showing how women have fighting spirits.

Take care!!!