Amber Clour and Ryan Fightmaster, both T1Ds since childhood, host a website, the DiabetesDailyGrind, and a pocast, the Real Life Diabetes Podcast. They recently interviewed Dr. Stephen Ponder, pediatric endocrinologist, author of Sugar Surfing, and a T1D for over 50 years.
I encourage readers to listen to this podcast and enjoy the knowledge and wisdom of Stephen Ponder. Dr. Ponder’s easy communication style salted with self-deprecating humor makes for an easy way to learn more about diabetes and insulin. It’s hard not to like someone willing to wear whimsical hats to break the ice! It’s one of those interviews that I wish went on longer.
I won’t give you any more on the interview itself except to comment on his closing remarks when the hosts asked him to leave us with three things to take from his interview. Here’s his list:
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“Don’t judge yourself too harshly.” I think this is great advice. As diabetics who use insulin, we make dozens of decisions every day. some of them good, some not-so-good. We need to keep our spirits up as diabetes is a long game and our enduring attitude is a key asset.
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“Time your insulin and your food as well as you possibly can.” It took me a long time to figure out how critical a customized pre-bolus time was to my after meal blood glucose success. Timing is a big deal when it comes to dosing insulin.
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“Never forget to follow-through.” This lesson is so universal, whether we’re talking about a tennis swing, a school or work project, or treating your diabetes. Follow-through with diabetes means taking a look at your blood glucose results after you’ve made your best dosing decision. Ponder talked about how a good marksman will always look at the result of his shot and then use that observation to improve the next attempt. My diabetes performance improved a lot once I started uploading my CGM results so I could make some personal cause and effect analysis.
I’ve been listening to the Real Life Diabetes Podcast for a year or more. Amber and Ryan do a great job of “keeping it real” while we try to live our lives and keep up with the demands of our diabetes treatments. While this show targets T1Ds, I think anyone who takes insulin will find it useful.