Talking About Control
Wednesday, October 27, 2010 at 9:41AM Is diabetes controllable? I mean really controllable? I feel like sometimes I can do everything right and still I will get numbers that make no sense.
Also, how many times have you done the same exact things over and over and still get different results? Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. Is that control?
So why do I continue to beat myself up about bad numbers and bad control? I know I can do more but frankly when I do try harder it helps a little but it is never the sought after “control” my doctors talk about.
I recently had a wonderful phone call with Jessica Bernstein, a Psychologist who has been living with diabetes since she was a year old and Director/Producer of an upcoming documentary called “Blood and Honey.”
Jessica and I talked about the struggles we face as people with diabetes. The guilt we feel when numbers are “bad,” and the way many health care professionals are quick to blame us when truly, the disease is to blame.
The need for a new perspective on diabetes is vital. No longer should PWD’s avoid the doctors because of “bad” numbers. Children should not feel like they are “bad diabetics” when their numbers are all over the place. The fact that most of us have fudged numbers on our logs or starved ourselves before Endo appointments proves the point. We should not be to blame for bad control since it seems control is impossible.
“Blood & Honey” presents life with diabetes is a radically different way. Please check out this trailer for the documentary.
If you are in the Southern California area, I would like to invite you to a talk with Jessica Bernstein on Thursday November 11th called “Taking ‘Control’ Out of Diabetes.” The talk is being presented by the Los Angeles chapters of the American Diabetes Association and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. The talk is scheduled for 8:00 to 10:00 p.m. and will include raw footage of the film “Blood & Honey.”
The talk will be held at Fairfax High located at 7850 Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90046. The event is open to the public at no cost and all type 1’s, 2’s, and 3’s are invited to come! Donations to the film are appreciated but not required. See bloodandhoney.org/talks.html for details about parking. RSVP by emailing Jessica at Jessica@bloodandhoney.org. Volunteers are needed so if you can help, please let Jessica know.
I know there will be at least one Ninja there so if you can come, please be sure and introduce yourself. I would love to meet you!
Reader Comments (11)
Blood & Honey looks like an awesome film and the event on the 11th sounds great!
I wish I could attend- but I'm on the other side of the country!
Any chance it a similar event will happen on the east coast?
kelly k
I am glad you spoke with her; I think the idea of changing the language (vernacular) of managing diabetes needs change as she suggests, but whether the healthcare profession will do so is a big unknown ... after all, they have decades of "blaming the patient" for poor "control" and therefore almost anything that goes wrong when it comes to diabetes. That kind of thinking doesn't change overnight!!
be there!...and passing it along...
I try not to blame myself and a lot of the time, I know I did everything right, same meal, same bolus, and 100 point difference in the outcome.
What comes into play for me is not the blame game so much as what I know it is doing to the vessels in my eyes and kidneys. :(
Makes me overwhelmingly sad and then I start to think of the future and perhaps not being around for my nieces and nephews life events.
This looks awesome! I'm planning to go to the Nov. 11 talk.
I'm going to try. It's a really important topic. I think the real issue is who gets to define control. We should be aware of our options, and what different choices MIGHT mean, and then be supported to make informed decisions. Most of us have more to balance in our lives than just diabetes.
Looks like a great film and it's so great to see her trying to get at the meat and bones of how we all and the general public view diabetes, and illness overall. Deep stuff, indeed. And it's even better when she gets at "the cure within X years", Oprah, and Zen Moments all in the same trailer! Wish I could attend, but will look forward to finding out more on this otherwise and of course reading your feedback on it. Thanks for sharing and passing along, George!
I am in agreement with Scott's comment. As a health care professional...I hate that we also used the phrase "non-compliant" - UGH. Yep, the whole dialogue must be changed. "D" is not a "controllable" beast. We manage it, we do not "control" it.
Well said George,
Hope all goes well and the evening is a winner
Let us know how it goes... it's too far to walk from New Zealand so I need you to fill me in! Looks quite interesting.
The word "control" is such a touchy one - because it is an absurd word to ever use in the same sentence with the word "diabetes". Sometimes trying to control diabetes is like trying to control the weather. But the thinking that we should be able to control it leads to that counterproductive guilt when things go amiss. For me, when I do things right and get "wrong" number, I blame myself and try to figure out what I did wrong. But when I do things "wrong" and get good numbers, I don't give myself credit - I say diabetes was in a good mood that day. We need to stop blaming ourselves and start giving ourselves more credit!!
I hope you have a wonderful time at the event - I look forward to hearing more about it!