Because I have to be immunosuppressed to control yet another autoimmune disease I got from the same genetic predisposition that caused type 1 diabetes in the first place, I can’t have any indwelling attachments from machinery into my circulation, given the heightened infection risks I have.
I guess I qualify as one of the “lucky” ones! I passed the 60 year mark earlier this year. Actually, it’s a bit more than that, since I’m absolutely certain I was diabetic for at least several years before being diagnosed.
I’ve had two eye doctors over the last 30 years or so. Both have said that if I hadn’t told them, they wouldn’t have known I was diabetic from their many exams and photographs. I do have some eye problems, but they are not related to diabetes.
My control during the first 18 years is about what you would expect using only Testape as a guide — all over the map, with highs and lows on a regular basis.
That all changed in December of 1976 when I contacted Richard Bernstein. In January, I had my first blood sugar meter. That was a game-changer, but I still struggled to figure out how to fine-tune the process. And it’s only in the last year or so that I’ve dropped my A1c to 5.9 So for most of the past 60 years, my control has been poor to fair.
Given the quality and duration of my treatment, I’ve had very few serious complications. I might have a slight bit of neuropathy in my feet, but I can still pass the whisker test each year. My eye doctor even suggested that because there were no signs of retinopathy that perhaps I could back off tight control. I must have something protective going on, she said!
Still, I think I feel better on tight control. I used to get a couple of colds each year that seemed to linger on forever. So far, so good on that score. I lost about 30 lbs. since I started on a low carb diet and kept it off for over a year. I could stand to lose some more, but just losing and holding on are something I wasn’t able to do previously.
I’m grateful for whatever protection I inherited, but I don’t want to count on that to back off on my control.
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