Side Effects

So I have been smoke free for 3 months!

Whoop de Do!

I know, I know. I am happy about that but I have turned into a food scarfing machine! I cannot stop eating. I am crazy hungry all the time. All. The. Freaking. TIME!

So sure I do not smell like an ashtray but I look like this guy...

nice huh?

And poor Master P (my insulin pump) did not notice a difference on Thanksgiving since I have been bolusing like there is no tomorrow for 3 whole months! That has been 90 days of non-stop eating, constant hunger, and filling reservoirs on a (what seems) daily basis. I have to start wearing maternity clothes or sweats or maybe...


a kilt?

The "Win Win"

Back in July, I wrote a post about searching for purpose.

That post was harder to read then it was to write. I look at it now and tears of relief fill my eyes because a very small but important purpose has shown itself to me.

Last Wednesday I met with a representative of the JDRF chapter here in Orange County. She brought me a “Teen Pack” for me to give to “M.” We had been emailing each other for a few weeks now and finally had a chance to hook up on my lunch hour.

The “Teen Pack” was filled with books, info, a BG kit, and a Teddy Bear that made me well up when I saw it. We talked about M and how he was doing. She was very upbeat, funny, and cool. We hit it off immediately. We swapped diagnosis stories which I find really interesting but seems kind of strange when you think about it, and she commented on how my diagnosis at 17 seemed worse to her then her diagnosis at 11. I thought the opposite.

I think people do that a lot. I tend to always think that it could be worse. “You should be happy with your life no matter what.” I almost scold myself. It could be worse! I always feel bad for others and not myself.

So, I told her about my new attitude this year. I told her about being a Born Again Diabetic and I told her all about all the OC and you guys! She thought that was cool and I told her, everyone in the OC is cool, duh!

I explained how I have been wanted to find a way to help other diabetics. She suggested one way that I could get involved with what she does.

When a newly diagnosed child’s family contacts the JDRF, she gets someone in the area to make contact with them. Let them know that they are not alone and take them a “Bag of Hope” or a “Teen Pack” and info about the JDRF. She told me that she would add me to her roster if I was interested.

I told her, “PLEASE add me to that list! I have wanted to get involved and this sounds great!”

She also talked to me about their Gala event and golf tournament that I could also help out with.

It was really a great meeting. I am excited about this new way that I can help.

I took that “Teen Pack” to church on Sunday to “M” and his family. His mom was so appreciative and said, “You have been such a great help. We are very blessed to have you in our lives.”

I told her how this whole situation got me in touch with the JDRF and how it has helped me as much as it has helped “M.” She agreed and was excited to check out the stuff with “M.”

That my friends is what is called a “Win-Win!”

Apple, Peaches, Pumpkin Pie!

I find that returning to playground rules and name calling sometimes just makes the most sense.

Here are some examples.

1. Dinner is done and we are all sitting at the table.

Dad says, “The table needs to be cleared… 1,2,3, NOT IT!”

2. My son is vacuuming under the couch using one of the attachments on the Hoover.

Dad says, “I see London, I see France, I see Georgie’s underpants!”

3. Mom and Dad finally go to bed.

Dad says, “Hey honey I am feeling a little frisky!”
Mom says,“ I know you are but what am I?”
OUCH!

Sometimes playground talk just works. It is simple and gets the point across plus it makes for lots of laughs.

The other night my daughter was making me laugh and I said, “stop being crazy, you little Chaka!”

Both of my kids started laughing saying, “who is Chaka?”

“Chaka is the coolest little dude from the Land of the Lost! Duh!”

“Um dad, what is the Land of the Lost?”

Well, being the geek that I am I hopped online and went straight to You Tube to find a Land o’ the Lost vid with the Chakster in it. And lo and behold, I find the very first scene where my little furry friend made his debut! Check it out!



About 10 seconds into the clip I look at my son and he is half covering his face.

“DUDE SHUT IT OFF, THAT THING IS SCARY!!!!!!!”

Oh my gosh, I could not stop laughing. How could any one be scared of Chaka? But then again, he was freaky! Oh how my side ached! It was so funny. So I had to mess with him.

I told him, “make me shut it off”

He replied,

“I don’t make Monkey’s, I just train them.”

Still Putting Together the Puzzle

I have been posting like mad this week and I apologize. There are many more exciting things going on in the OC.

Like Art-Sweet’s SUHWEET NEWS!!!!!!!

Or my buddy Scott’s news. You must check it out.

Or the OC Blog Awards. Get over there and vote!

But, nevertheless, my narcissistic self emerges and now I give you the story of the day.

The Podiatrist.

It has been several years since my abnormally large feet have been manhandled by a dude in scrubs. I am probably the most ticklish person in the world. You know, one of those that you stick your finger out and start nearing my waist and I will giggle like a little kid? I have almost kicked many loved ones in the face when they have grabbed my foot or attempted to give me a foot massage. Not happening.

I was a little nervous since I do not want to kick a doc in the grill. I can’t even imagine the co-payment for that. Luckily, Diabetes has taken away so much feeling in my feet that I can hardly feel his hands checking me out. (that was sarcastic BTW)

He did say that my pulse is good so hooray for that. Also, he noticed some discoloring but he thinks I should not worry about that too much.

All and all it was an easy appointment. He put a referral in to get me sized for diabetic shoes. I asked, will they would be Type 1’s or Type 2’s? He laughed. I thought, “Man that was lame. But he’s seems like a cool cat!”

So another piece of the care team has been found. Dang, this Born Again Diabetic crap is a lot of work!

The Follow Up Appointment

I went this morning to have a follow-up appointment with Dr. F-Bomb. He looked at all of the paperwork from the hospital, pressed around on my stomach (in my head, the Jell-O song was playing **watch it wiggle, see it jiggle), and said, “My guess is that it’s Pancreatitis. Pretty common with diabetes. I will give you a lab slip to get some blood drawn. We will start there and see.”

Darn it! No F-Bombs today.

Okay, I am glad I am not dying. Truly I am but really, this whole package deal with diabetes really pisses me off. It just seems like such a cop out. Sore foot? Diabetes. Headache? Diabetes. Blind? Diabetes. Leaky roof? Diabetes. I apologize for the random rant but sometimes stiff like that just comes pouring out.

So there it is.

I have an appointment tomorrow with a podiatrist (my first in a very very long time) so before that I plan to hit the lab and give them some blood.

He also reminded me that I am due for an ophthalmology appointment.

Lovely.

Gally Gee Willikers!

I went to the Emergency Room last night to get checked out. I had posted before about the fatigue, aches, and chest pain.

Wow! I did not know that saying “Chest Pain” in a hospital is like shouting “Roach!” in a fancy restaurant. A nurse came out of nowhere and pulled me into room. I was lying down, topless and covered in medical pasties (those little stickers) faster that you can say “Diabetes.” I was on a heart monitor which I was glad about since I was scared that my heart was doing weird things.

I have a history of heart problems in my family. The worst being the death of my father from a heart attack at the very young age of 43. Chest pains scare the shit out of me.

My heart is fine.

I must have been asked about my symptoms 10 times. It got to the point where I was trying to find ways to cut back the story. I think by the end of the night I would just say, “I do not feel hot and I usually feel very hot!” (I actually did say this to one of the nurses. She thought I was funny, and then stuck an IV in my hand).

Another nurse came into the room and asked me the typical questions.

“How old are you?”

“33”

“Allergic to any meds?”

“Nope”

“Are you taking any meds?”

“Yes. Insulin, Lis…”

Interrupting my list Mr. Nurse says, “What do you take Insulin for?”

I really wish you could have heard it. He said is almost as if I was crazy or if I purchased it over the internet and decided to just check out insulin. It was almost as if I was being scolded. Very VERY weird.

“um Diabetes?” I said almost as a question.

“Oh. What is that on your side?”

“My insulin pump”

I SWEAR THAT THIS NEXT LINE IS WHAT HE SAID TO ME! HONEST!

“That pumps insulin?”

All I could get out without laughing was, “yeah.”

Then he asked if the Giant, almost as tall as me, tank of oxygen that was sitting and probably had been sitting in this room forever was mine.

“Is that Oxygen tank yours?”

“No ho ho HO ha HAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHH!!!!!!!!” I could not stop laughing. It was the funniest thing. I know it was a bit rude on my part but I just could not help it. If I don’t laugh I freak out and this dude was not helping at all.

Anyhow, when I finally get to a room and not the little triage area a nurse comes in (see above for “hot” joke) hooks me up with an IV, takes blood, BP and brings my wife in.

An X-ray tech comes in and takes a chest X-ray just to rule that out.

Lungs are fine.

I thought beforehand, “My luck is that I quit smoking 1 week too late.” I am so scared of my quitting being too late or something. Knowing my lungs were okay was a huge relief. Chest pain scares the shit out of me.

So now the doctor comes in. Looks at everything and says. “I think it’s GI, not coronary.” The GI Joe theme song is ringing in my head at this point.

She lays me down and starts pressing around my stomach. “Does this hurt? Does this hurt? Does this..”

“OUCH!!!!!!!”

“hmm lets get an ultra sound. That could be your gall bladder.”

Ultra sound was done. I did ask the tech if she could see if it was a boy or girl. She gave me the fake giggle. That’ll do.

Gall Bladder is not fine.

Not exactly sure yet but it appears to be enlarged and very tender. My Amylase levels in my blood were elevated so it could be my pancreas according to the internet. I am trying at this moment to get into my doctors today to try and get more tests done.

The saga continues.

Oh, and I am off of the Lipitor my Doctor started me on. They think that may have caused the fatigue. I already feel better today.

My chest still hurts though.

From the "Whoa?" Department

Check out this article. Contacts that measure your BG?

FYI - I am going to the doctors today. I will update you on what happens.

Feeling Left

The past week or so I have been feeling strange. I would say the best way to describe it is very tired. Like extreme sleepiness. Not exhaustion or physical fatigue. I mean, I am ready to sleep all day long.

Just not right I guess (hence the title).

This morning my tiredness has turned into dizziness, confusion, inability to concentrate and sort of a glazed look about me. I just fell asleep in the restroom at work. The other day I fell asleep at a stop light. Luckily a nice guy behind me woke me up with his horn.

My body hurts like I am getting the flu. I have a weird pain in my chest that feels muscular but I don't know. I also have the chills like mad. I am freezing!

The weird part is I seem to have no flu systems at all. No cold. No stomach problems. I have no clue.

I want to go to the doctors but I don't even have the energy to do that.

I just want to go to sleep.

My new condition

I am not sure if this is a real ailment or not but I swear I am suffering from a Blog Hangover!

I was up very late (let's just say, I went to bed today) reading and reading and reading!

I do not have a headache at all or anything negative like that. Well, my index finger on my right hand does hurt from "over-scroll syndrome." :)

It was so awesome BUT I cannot work at all. All I can think about is all of the great posts I read. Tears and laughter. Education. Openness. So many voices. So many stories. So many!

D-Blog day was perfect.

Blogging and Insulin

They both have saved my life.

Sure one is a little more vital to my day to day living but the other one is necessary to stay focused, inspired and optimistic!

Before I started blogging I felt alone. I was not healthy. I was riding a sugar quake that measured 12.5 on the A1C scale. I smoked a pack of cigarettes a day. I checked my BG about once a week on a good week. I was sure I would be blind, limbless, and on dialysis by now.

When I first decided to blog, I thought to myself,

“I wish I was a sweet writer. I wish I had insane literary skills. No one is gonna read my blog. Who cares about me? I’m ugly and my momma dresses me funny!”

But I decided to do it anyway (No “S” by the way! That is a major pet peeve of mine. “Anyways” is not a word) and I cannot even begin to tell you how great it is.

I know I do not write the most interesting stuff. I know I write in incomplete sentences. So what!

The most important part about this whole blogging thing is the community and friendships that have been developed.

I cannot imagine my life without it!

I love you guys!

Team Beat the Bete!

Over 500 people turned out for the ADA walk on Saturday at "The Block in Orange" which is a local outdoor mall here in sunny Southern California.

It was the first walk for me and for Team "Beat the Bete!"
I came up with a sweet logo for the team and my
wife ironed the logos on shirts for all 11 of us walking.

My wife, kids, mother, sisters, cousin, friend, and future brother-in-law all came to walk with me.

It was a little like the night before Christmas for me. I was pretty excited and hardly slept. I was really looking forward to doing this since I had never done anything like this before.

I could not believe I was able to raise over $1000 which I thought was an impossible goal and I set the team goal for $2000 and we pulled that off too! WOW For our first walk ever, Team Beat the Bete was kicking some serious booty!

When we went to check in, my mother handed me a bandanna. Every 21 seconds a bandanna was handed out to people there to walk. By the time the walk began, pretty much everyone there had a bandanna. What a crippling visual. Every 21 seconds someone is diagnosed with Diabetes. In just a short period of time, the amount of people here at the walk represented all the people that had just been diagnosed.

It is difficult to get your head around.

I found myself crying several times
that day. Sometimes because my little sister and my son would decide to be the coolest looking walkers of all and strut their stuff especially for the
camera and laughter would bring me to tears!

Most of the time it was because I saw a t-shirt with a loved one's picture on it who had passed away due to diabetes. Or talking to my cousin who lost her father-in-law only a few years ago to the D. Thinking about my co-workers who donated so much money to the Team. My OC friends who sponsored me and who encouraged me to do this. My family who wanted to be there by my side in hopes to someday see a cure for their dad, husband, brother, and son. I thought a lot about little O and M who are just taking those first steps on the D journey. Praying for them and their families.

Most of all, I was just so thankful that I could be apart of a great event. It was a good day. Emotional. Fun. Exhausting. Hopeful and comforting .

All these people want the same thing I do.

A cure for Diabetes.

Let's Beat the Bete, shall we?

Failed Test

It is so difficult not giving in.
I know I shouldn’t but they are right there. So close.
How can anything called a “Kiss” be bad?
I hate this disease.

Honestly this is the sight from my desk. Actually that is the end of my desk about 2’ from my keyboard. There are plenty of places in this office for candy but for some reason, they land right there. What sucks is that I have helped empty those candy dishes. Why do we need more then one?

If you noticed, there is a poster about the ADA walk I attended this last week. I am awaiting a Team Photo to be emailed to me so I can share that event with you. I have a lot to tell you but I need the picture to tell the story.

I just had to show you what I am up against each day.

A quick side-note, a co-worker told me that she did not hear a thing or see anything about the walk. She said that the Diabetes people need to get with the marketing team from the Breast Cancer people because they know what they are doing. Also, AIDS isn’t nearly as popular as it used to be.

…

I just popped another Kiss in my mouth and didn’t say a thing.

I am way too slow! I'VE BEEN TAGGED!!!!

Dang! I’ve been tagged by my pal Kerri at Six Until Me.

I am supposed to list 5 random facts about yours truly that you do not know. Probably because I didn’t want to scare you away! Anyhow, enjoy having a new reason to laugh at me and then see who I’ve tagged below. It might be you!

Random Facts about George

1. I do not like clowns at all. And I also hate their close relatives, mimes. I have figured out that this fear must have started with a screening of Poltergeist that I saw in the theater. I believe I was probably 8 when I saw it and even to this day, I will not watch that movie! I avoid the circus at all costs and never look a clown in the eye. I have found that I am not the only one who has this fear thank goodness.

2. I cannot eat chicken on the bone. I have this weird hang up where digging through bones and ligaments makes me nauseous. In fact the thought of biting into a chicken leg makes me absolutely sick to my stomach.

3. I must have blankets with ribbon on the ends. This is a requirement for sleep. The ribbon must lie on my face, above my nose but below my eyes. If it is hot at night, I will turn on a fan, crank the AC or wet my hair before bedtime just so I can sleep with blankets. Me loves them.

4. I used to be a lead singer in a band. We played all over LA for a few years but never really went anywhere. Our band was called Six Degrees and although we never “made it” we did write several great songs so as far as I am concerned, we were pretty successful.

5. My father gave me the nickname, Jim. He used to call me Little Bo Jangles when I was a kid. Then it evolved into Jimbo and then Jim. With a sister named Jennifer, hearing JIM or JEN being called sounded exactly the same. I guess he named me George after himself or maybe after my grandfather but he rarely called me that.


So there you have it. Five little facts that only further my trek into therapy. Man I need help!

I tag…

Keith at Dead Islets
Allison at Lemonade Life
Hannah at Dorkabetic
Kevin at Parenthetic (diabetic)
And Minnesota Nice at Purple Haze

Highs and Lows for Thursday

Low - Had an Endo appointment yesterday and I’ve gained 18 lbs! Lovely! I knew that I had put on some serious weight but to see the number just made me sick.

High – I am almost at my goal for the ADA walk I am doing on Saturday! Maybe I can shed some poundage as I raise awareness of the “D”. Team Beat the Bete is rocking!

Low – I am so freaking broke and I just got paid.

High – I have 2 more days worth of nicotine patches and then I am totally drug free. Except for the life saving ones! J

Low – I have been sneaking candy from my kids, co-workers, and the candy dish when I walk into my office. I have no control.

High – Get over to the Diabetes OC website and vote for your favorite blog. The OC awards are coming up and you need to vote! Allison rocks BTW!

Low – I am now on a cholesterol medication and I realized my pharmacy gave me someone else’s prescription last night. Guess I’ll start taking those tonight.

High – A representative of the JDRF is giving me a “Teen Pack” to give to M. He is so cool. We have been chatting on AIM and he is a great kid!

When I look at all of the Low’s above I have to remember I have quit smoking, I own a home and have a nice car, candy makes me smile, and one more pill is not that big of a deal.

I am just gonna focus on the Highs. I have a lot to be “high” about!