I've Got a Friend
Thursday, January 14, 2010 at 11:00AM At last year's TCOYD event I picked up some of these "Diabetes Etiquette" pamphlets from the Behavioral Diabetes Institute booth and left one on my desk at work. Typically when people come into my office they do not notice it but that was not the case yesterday.
Danielle is a coworker who stopped into my office yesterday to ask me a question. When she came in she could see that something was wrong. I was in the middle of a battle with a high blood sugar. So high in fact that my meter just read "HI" which means it was over 600!
"Are you okay? Your eyes look funny."
I was squinting from a terrible headache as my head felt like it was spinning and ready to expload. "I am just high."
"High on what?!" She was joking but was trying to cheer me up. She sat down and I saw her grab the pamphlet.
"Sugar. Or I guess I should say popcorn." I knew why I was high. I had eaten a bunch of popcorn after lunch that was sitting out in the break room.
As Danielle was looking at the pamphlet she said very carefully, "What kind of snacks could we have that would help you avoid bad highs like this?" Her tone was that of concern which I appreciated.
"Well all we have around here is candy and popcorn. It's a total carbfest in this place! Maybe some mixed nuts or something. At least the carb count is lower and it's something I like."
This morning I found 3 bags of mixed nuts on my desk. Danielle had dropped them off this morning before she had to make some appointments.
It made me wonder how many people in our lives truly want to help us but because of their approach or wording we automatically toss them into the ranks of the Diabetes Police. Granted I do believe that there are those who love to tell us what to do. But more often then not, my guess is people need some help on how to approach us.
If we were willing to help them respond to us in a way that was not "telling us what to do" or was nagging then maybe our run in's with the D-Police would be lessened. I would love to know what you think about that
Honestly, I think people want to know how to help us and be there for us without upsetting us.
They just need some help!
So I want to say "thank you" to Danielle for being such a great friend. You are officially a type 3 in my book!
Reader Comments (11)
Wow! What a great friend! From all of us. .give her a big hug!
I have a great group of friends like that. We all meet for dinner every Sunday night and they have, several times, changed the venue because the original choice was a carb-difficult restaurant. They now save those establishments for when I'm out of town or not meeting-up with them for some reason.
I agree with you. I think we sometimes mistake a concerned friend for the diabetes police. They're not the one dealing with it day in and day out, so I try to excuse their lack of diabetic-correctness when trying to ask me what I can eat, or not. I try to give them the benefit of the doubt that they really are trying to learn and be of help rather than pointing out my possilbly flawed choices.
BTW. .I'll take this opportunity to tell my own diabetic-police Captain that yes, "P.L." I CAN eat this tiny chocolate square, it's 5 carbs, I'll bolus for it and I'll live to eat another one tomorrow. . . thanks for bringing it to my attention that indeed, I DO have diabetes. :-)
AWW! I *heart* Danielle!!! And you're gonna heart me... I put something in the mail for ya! xo
What a great co-worker!
I think you're absolutely right. We need to help people know how to help us.
I agree...most people do want to help & understand...it can be frustrating to me to have to repeat myself over & over again, what seems I've said the same things 100 times over but education is key and we can't stop talking about it to others....Danielle Rocks! \ m / It must have felt great to see those on your desk :)
I am so glad that you came down yesterday, sorry about the lows that followed that awful high. Such an exhausting day for you! So glad that Danielle is taking huge steps to understand! YEAH!
Danielle rocks the body rock!
I told Danielle how much I appreciated her attitude yesterday and the snacks today. She is a great friend who really wants to know about what we go through.
I high fived her for the OC! Boo Yah!!
It does sound like Danielle is a sensitive and compassionate person. As the parent of a Type 1 Diabetic, I fear that I may often sound like the D-Police. I work hard not to assign "good" or "bad" to different foods, but we all know that some foods make her feel terrible despite how much insulin her pump will deliver. Danielle's approach is a fantastic reminder to keep trying in a loving and gentle way to encourage healthy choices.
As a self-proclaimed sugar addict, I can only imagine how difficult it must be to refrain from the white salt and butterly popcorn. To see just how much I struggle to avoid the temptations of my favorite neutral colored foods, please visit my blog at goodmeasures.com/blog.
"You can tell a lot about a person's character by the way they treat those they don't have to be nice to." Philip Seymour Hoffman in mission impossible 3
sounds like a classy lady and she is a keeper. did you welcome her into the official type 3 club.
Actually Ronald she told me that her doctor thinks she may be insulin resistant and considering diagnosing her with Pre Diabetes. I did tell her about her type 3 status too. Let's hope that is the only "type" she becomes!
She sounds like the kind of coworker we all need. YAY for Danielle!!!