Author Archives: StephenS

Hello… I’m Stephen. I live in Baltimore, Maryland, USA with The Great Spousal Unit, Maureen. I’ve been living with Type 1 Diabetes since January 1991. I’ve been a pump user since April 2010, and I’m currently wearing the Animas Vibe pump. Also wearing the Dexcom G5 continuous glucose monitor.

I found the Diabetes Online Community in the summer/fall of 2011, and that discovery has changed my life. I started this blog in April 2012, and since then, my diabetes advocacy has continued to grow. Among other achievements, I’ve attended and spoken up at FDA workshops and participated in clinical trials.

I’ve been thrilled to serve as a facilitator for the Diabetes UnConference. And I’ve been honored to volunteer for Diabetes Patient Advocacy Coalition. You should Google both of those.

I’m currently serving as a member of the State of Maryland’s Advisory Council on Health and Wellness, where I am co-chair of the Diabetes committee. In addition, I’m part of the 2018 Reader Panel at Diabetes Forecast magazine.

I’m always searching for the perfect balance between the highs and lows of my blood glucose level and my life… always searching for the Happy Medium.

Anything you’d like to share? Please let me know… I’d love to hear from you.

Our second dog is a cat.

July 27, 2012 – 7:21 am

I’m not the first person to write about this. But here goes:

Myself, The Great Spousal Unit, and The Live-In Niece share our house with a dog and a cat. The dog(Boomer) is a big, loving Golden Retriever who’s a lot of fun but not very smart. The cat(Max) is the first cat any of us have ever lived with. Both are rescues. Boomer spent almost all of his first two years in a cage before we found him. Max was a stray who never left. They both get along famously. Maureen likes to say “Who would’ve thought that our second dog would be a cat?”.

Over the course of the last year and a half that Max has been here, I’ve become increasingly aware of his ability to recognize low glucose moments. Sometimes he bugs me in bed while I’m sleeping. Other times, like last weekend, he walks across my lap while I’m watching TV. Then, he goes into the kitchen, climbs on the refrigerator, and starts knocking things off the top onto the floor until I get up. Then he looks at me, and looks at the fridge. Back and forth, looking at me then the fridge. A quick check with the meter, and it looks like he’s right. I need a BG boost. Once I open the fridge, he hops on the counter and looks at me with those cat eyes until I drink all the juice. And if it’s not enough, he bugs me some more.

Okay, maybe I’m overdoing it a bit. But this cat has a knack. And you’re hearing that from someone who’s definitely a dog person. I’m allergic to cats. Never been a fan. But this guy can stay with us as long as he wants. Unless someone wants to borrow him for a while.
 
 
 

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Random Glucose.

July 26, 2012 – 7:29 am

I finally got out my brand new Accu-Chek Nano this past weekend. I’ll talk more about it after I’ve used it a bit. And I’m sure that hundreds of others have already reviewed this product. Anyway, I wanted to try it side by side with my old reliable Contour meter for a few days, so that’s what I’m doing. Each test on a different finger, different hand. And guess what the first reading looked like:

Dinner went down really well after this.
 
 
 

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Recipe!

July 25, 2012 – 7:21 am

Sunday mornings in Baltimore mean, among other things (church?), the Sunday morning Farmer’s Market. It’s one of those wonderful urban farmer’s markets that’s tucked into a gritty little piece of downtown. In this case, under the elevated part of the expressway, a few scant blocks from City Hall, the Courthouse, Police headquarters, and about 15 strip joints. Only in a place like Baltimore could Police headquarters be across the street from all of the nudie bars. But I digress.

In all seriousness, this market provides a valuable service to many who live in the area. In a city that has about three or four big box grocery stores for about 650,000 residents, this market gives thousands a chance to get fresh food from the source. In many cases, it’s the only access to fresh produce, meat, and dairy. What? This is America! But I digress.

So Sunday morning we went, and came home with a week’s worth of eggs, corn, beans, blackberries, hummus, and more. Even a bouquet of flowers for my honey:)

Sunday night we made this recipe. I have to give credit to Sara Moulton for this one. It’s in her book Sara’s Secrets for Weeknight Meals. My version is quite different from hers, but the gist is the same. It works in an oven or on the grill outside. Here goes:

Preheat your oven (350 degrees farenheit) or your grill (on high)

Start with a good-sized Eggplant
Get a good, fresh Tomato
Find a block of Feta or Mozzarella cheese (we used Mozzarella here)

In a big bowl, whisk together a mixture using 3 Tablespoons Red Wine Vinegar and 1/4 Cup Olive Oil

Chop up some fresh herbs (we used Oregano and Sage)

Add in Salt and Pepper to taste (I also added Old Bay seasoning)

Don’t forget to peel your Eggplant

Now, slice your Eggplant, Tomato, and Cheese… about 1/4 inch slices. Dump your Eggplant and Tomato slices into your vinegar/oil/herb mixture. Then start your stacks! Stack them any way you like, but start with the Eggplant on the bottom. In our case, we went Eggplant, Cheese, Tomato. And we topped with fresh Basil and shredded Parmesan.

Cook in your oven or on the grill for 10-12 minutes, but keep an eye on them. They go from looking good to overdone in no time.

Since we used mozzarella in this recipe, it was a little gooey at the end. But oh, so good. Hope this makes a nice meatless meal for you!

Total estimated carb count: 5 grams (only the tomato has measurable carbs)

Carb counts are estimates only. Check with a registered dietician to find out what a healthy carb count is for you.
 
 
 

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July DSMA Blog Carnival. The DOC.

July 23, 2012 – 8:02 pm

Cherise at Diabetes Social Media Advocacy was kind enough to let me guest post for the July DSMA Blog Carnival. This, and a lot of other super posts are out there at the link at the bottom of this post. Cherise, sorry I couldn’t get the timing right. But thanks for the kind words and the opportunity to participate!

July’s DSMA Blog Carnival touches on a question from the June 13th DSMA Twitter Chat, talking about the Diabetes Online Community, and asking us to fill in the blanks:

The diabetes community has taught me how to _______ and _______.

I remember saying then that the Diabetes Community has taught me how to tell my story and that the future counts more than the past.

This photo is a small, but good, example of the kind of impact that the DOC has made on me.

I’m going to tell you a secret: I’m a pretty smart guy, but sometimes, I miss the most obvious things. For years… for decades, in fact, I kept my glucose meter at home. With few exceptions, it stayed in the kitchen all the time. I couldn’t take that thing out in public, could I? Actually, it just didn’t occur to me to check my BGs in the truck, at work, on a day trip somewhere. I never saw anyone else doing it, so I didn’t either. Stupid, right?

I have to admit: I just didn’t think about doing something that comes so naturally to almost all of you reading this.

Enter the DOC. Now I’m reading about glucose checks on the beach, in school, at work, at the mall, in a restaurant, in a restaurant at the mall… you get the idea. I was like: What? You can do that? Get outta here! My eyes were opened.

So in the past year (almost) since I’ve discovered this cozy community along the Information Superhighway, here are some of the places I’ve conducted my own personal blood glucose screenings:

– My truck (pictured)
– On the subway (not the restaurant)
– At the grocery store
– On the bus to New York
– On the bus from New York
– On the beach at Ocean City
– At the gym
– On my 100 mile bike ride (no, I can’t check while riding– yet)
– At the airport
– At the Washington Monument (in Baltimore– look it up)
– At the Washington Monument (actually in Washington, DC)
– In a restaurant (not at the mall)

Hey, I realize this sounds silly. But honestly, there are so many meaningful things I’ve learned from D-Veterans and D-Rookies, D-Wives and D-Husbands, D-Moms and D-Dads. Product reviews, tips and tricks, even relationship advice (don’t tell the Spouse). I often think about people who were like me, living this life alone, lacking information and support, with no sense of how full their lives can be.

Mostly, I’ve learned how to tell my story. Okay, I’m learning to tell my story. Honestly and without pulling punches, without shame. And thanks to the Diabetes Online Community, I feel like there’s a lot more story to tell. The best is yet to come. Rock on, DOC. Keep the information coming.

This post is my July entry in the DSMA Blog Carnival. If you’d like to participate too, you can get all of the information at http://diabetessocmed.com/2012/july-dsma-blog-carnival-2/
 
 
 

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A Hall of Fame Worthy Speech.

July 22, 2012 – 8:36 pm

Disclosure: Even though I’ve lived in Baltimore for almost 18 years, and in Columbus, Georgia for a couple of years back in the 80’s, I was born in, grew up in, and lived many years in Cincinnati, where I became, and remain, a HUGE fan of my hometown Reds. So I tuned in to MLB Network Sunday afternoon in anticipation of watching the Baseball Hall of Fame induction speech of Barry Larkin, who will likely be the last Reds player inducted in my lifetime (Dave Parker? Dave Concepcion? Anyone? Bueller?).

Before Larkin’s speech was the speech from Vicki Santo, widow of Ron Santo, who was also inducted this year. His induction comes mere months after losing a long battle with diabetes at the age of 71. He’s not the first baseball player with Diabetes inducted into the Hall of Fame (the great Jackie Robinson comes to mind). But Vicki’s speech, honoring her husband, and his life with diabetes, was an inspiring wake-up call to all of us. It reminds us that the work for a cure goes on, and that great things can be accomplished in spite of what diabetes does to our lives. She reminds us that Ron Santo helped raise over $65 million for JDRF, and that when you walk, ride, or give to a Victoria Cumbow, a Moira McCarthy, or a Jeff Mather who is Riding for a Cure, you are helping to find a cure too. And she reminds me that I have a long way to go in the advocacy department.

The link to the full video is below, courtesy of MLB Network. A few snippets that resonated with me:

“Ron said that playing the game was easy… that only the diabetes made the game hard”.

“He embraced his gift and his hardship equally– believing that one would not have mattered without the other. He believed in his journey and he believed in his cause. His journey has led him here to Cooperstown. And his cause is finding a cure”.

“…in his legacy let it be known that here is a man who attained the highest honor his sport can give, while playing with an insidious disease”.

The speech starts at about the 1:55 mark in the video. If you can, please take the time to listen. And let this speech inspire you to make a bigger difference.

Baseball Hall of Fame | Ron Santo is inducted into the Hall Of Fame – Video | MLB.com: Multimedia.

 
 
 

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