How I Won the Battle Against Diabetes Type 2

It was in 2003 when, while on the job as an intensive care unit nurse, I began feeling faint and "strange" inside. I was lightheaded as if my brain was floating on air. I decided to check my blood sugar and to my surprise, discovered it to be extremely elevated at 500mg/dl. A repeat test registered too high for the blood sugar machine. I knew that normal blood sugar values range from 80 to 120mg/dl so I immediately notified my supervisor and proceeded to the emergency room.

The emergency room physician checked a blood sample and confirmed my worse fears; I was most likely diabetic. At that point, I did not know if I was an insulin dependent diabetic or not but that did not stop my medical mind from thinking of all the complications that come with being diabetic.

After several insulin injections to drop my blood sugar below 200mg/dl, I was sent home to see my private physician for a definitive diagnosis. The next day, I was diagnosed with Type 2 adult onset diabetes. My mother suffered the same fate but this type is not hereditary. I was subsequently placed on pills to control my blood sugar.

Type 2 diabetes is generally adult onset, which can be managed by weight control (diet) and/or oral medications. Some causes include alcoholism, liver cirrhosis/damage, medications like steroids, and obesity.

During this time, an attorney's class action lawsuit advertisement began airing about a medication possibly causing diabetes and I was on that medication. Therefore, I asked my doctor if it were possible the medication was the culprit, he acknowledged that it could be because the medication causes weight gain and I gained at least fifty pounds, weighing 175 lbs. at 5 feet 5inches tall. He was unwilling to admit that the medication was the primary cause of my diabetes. Besides, when the medication was discontinued, I was still diabetic.

Then the media reported a certain soft drink might be linked to diabetes. Of course, I was basically addicted to that soft drink, using it as my water. It is possible that the diabetes is related to the high sugar content of the soda, especially since diabetics are unable to metabolize (breakdown) complex sugars (carbohydrates) well due to inadequate or no insulin production.

One of those strange but true stories occurred when the person who just completed training me for my new position also developed diabetes about 4 weeks after my diagnosis. His was Type 1 insulin-dependent diabetes but he still attempted to find some correlation between our workplace and our diagnoses. He began researching if it was possibly a virus or chemical exposure but he never found any definitive answers.

I have cared for many diabetics but I wondered if I could properly care for myself. To me, this diagnosis was like a death sentence, a life-long battle against a disease that severely punishes those who mismanage it.

Upon hearing the diabetic diagnosis, I began the process of grieving. My first step was "why me?" Denial was the most difficult step to overcome. Typically, I was not one who craved sweets, but suddenly, I could not get enough. I would eat a small box of chocolates every other day with cookies and ice cream. I had lost control and willpower somehow believing it was all a dream but it was no mistake because subsequently, I suffered from the too high and too low blood sugar effects of diabetes.

I had recently witnessed a diabetic patient go completely blind within 3 hours so, despite being a nurse, I was very apprehensive about developing and managing complications of diabetes. My fiancé's mom succumbed to the diabetic complications of limb amputation and kidney failure on dialysis in her 60s. My mom died from cancer in her 60s so my fears were validated.

In 2007, I suffered an unintentional weight loss but continued taking my diabetic medication. Suddenly my blood sugar began plummeting, leading to fainting spells, blackouts. I switched to unsweetened soft drinks and stopped taking my medication. Subsequently, my blood sugar remained within normal limits of 80-120mg/dl. Today, I do not have to take anything for my blood sugar and I can eat whatever I want regardless of the carbohydrate content. My weight is 140 lbs. and I am diabetes free.

My sister is overweight and has diabetes. I encourage her and anyone who is obese to start a weight loss program to possibly avoid or recover from diabetes and its major complications.