Just Talking... Live.

Just a quick note I want to throw up here - in case you missed the media blitz yesterday (okay, I guess it wasn't a blitz exactly, but it felt that way to ME), here's a couple of places to go to hear me talking about the You Can Do This Project.

1. I recorded a PSA (a mini-podcast, really - but don't tell the host I called it that) with Chris over at Just Talking. We spent around 20 minutes talking about the upcoming video project - how it came to be, what it is, and how you can participate. The subject of puppies came up, too. You can give it a listen here.
2. I was also the guest on last night's DSMA Live Blog Talk Radio show - it's an hour of conversation between myself, and the three hosts (Scott Johnson, George Simmons, and Cherise Shockley) where we talk about both the project, and the DSMA Twitter chat that took place the night before. We talked about YCDT, how social media has shaped our view of the world, and what we've learned from others with diabetes.

I hope you all have a great weekend - and are ready for the barrage of puppy pictures coming your way!

Free Coffee, Twenty Five, and e-Pharmony.

I'm feeling a bit list-y today, so here we go.

• Last night, I decided (after seeing another one of their commercials) that we need a version of e-Harmony for patients to be matched up with doctors. We could call it... e-Pharmony? You'd be matched up on dimensions of healthcare compatibility, like "bedside manner", "actually listens to me", "will reward progress with high fives and exploding fist bumps", and "takes my insurance/Medicaid/I can afford you".
• This weekend, my diabetes turns 25. (Does that mean the cost of my health insurance will go down? No? Darn.) I'm planning to celebrate that at least a couple of times this weekend - more on that next week.
• And in honor of that milestone, I got a hold of my hospital records at diagnosis. More on that later, too.
• One of the JDRF volunteers I met at JDRF Government Day has written a guest post over at the Diabetes Social Media Advocacy site, and is looking for input on how JDRF can help adults with type 1 - would you have some time to go over and check it out, and leave a comment with your thoughts? (She's totally a rockstar!)
• And finally - in celebration of Earth Day, head over to Starbucks with your own mug and get yourself some free coffee. I'll be there - maybe more than once. :)

2010 In One Word: A Guest Post.

I was asked to write something for the Diabetes Social Media Advocacy site, and what I wrote went up yesterday, and can be found here.  The topic was a wrap-up of this past year, and what we were looking forward to in 2011 - and the specific question I responded to was "If you could use one word to describe diabetes in 2010, what would it be?".  (And the post does have more than a one-word response.  Otherwise, that would be a little weird.)  I had already done a year-end recap, so this post delved a bit deeper into why 2010 was such a radically different year for me than any previous one.

Head on over there and give it a read!

Talking About Humor And Diabetes.

A couple of weeks ago (actually, the night before our 6:00am flight to NY), I had the honor of being the guest on an internet radio show run by the nice folks at DSMA.  It's called "Continuing the Conversation", and is based off of the Wednesday night #dsma chats on Twitter - which if you have diabetes and haven't participated in yet, I hope you do soon!  (The chat is from 8pm - 9pm Central time, and you can participate by adding the hashtag #dsma to your tweets, or by using the TweetChat room.)  "DSMA" stands for Diabetes Social Media Advocacy.

We spent an hour discussing things like how humor and diabetes are related, what Blunt Lancet is all about, and the eternal debate of cupcakes vs. ice cream.  (I'm on the ice cream side, by the way.)

If you've got an hour to kill, give it a listen.  And please, be kind...  it was my first time doing anything like this.  :)

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/diabetessocmed/2010/12/17/dsma-live

VH1 Behind The Music: Blunt Lancet.

They were the biggest-selling rock band of the 1990's.  The group known as Blünt Lancet rode a glucoaster of staggering highs and debilitating lows for years, but what set Blunt Lancet apart from their counterparts was the unending, crazed loyalty of the fans that stuck with them, and the scandals that came to define their career.  While the band's line-up may have changed every few months, weeks, and in some cases, daily - the group always had the same message:  "We knew we needed to dial this all the way up to 10, so we gave it our all at every show.  And our fans loved it - I think they would have bled for us, if we asked them to."  After almost 30 years as a band, the group is still driven by a need for their numbers to be "perfect".  "We're not going anywhere."

Today, we explore the agonies and triumphs of the band, Blünt Lancet: the story Behind The Music.

It all began in a quiet New England suburb called Dis-maah.  As students at the University of Twitter, these five friends shared a need for health information, and a panache for puns and trouble-making.  The core of the band consisted of  Simon "Syringe" on lead vocals and guitar, Kelly "RawSugar" on keyboard, Moby "Testkit" on bass, Kim "Pancreas" on drums, and their invaluable roadie/booking agent, Jeff "Lancer". 

The friends formed a band and released their debut album, Control Solution, in 1984, but their sound just didn't stick.  RawSugar suggested the group try a variety of styles, and thus began their journey into rock infamy.  Follow-up albums included the country/western classic, "Blood On The Meter"; a forray into R&B, titled "Rhythm and Bruise"; a regrettable rap/rock album, "The CGM-C"; and of course, the power rock classic, "Rage Bolus", which debuted at 5.6 on the A1C charts in the spring of 2006.

Aside from their musical diversity, Blünt Lancet was also an innovator in music technology.  Syringe partnered with Luthier Music Corporation to develop a line of guitar strings made from discarded insulin pump tubing, and guitar picks from the tops of test strip tubes.  "We'd never seen anything like it - but the concepts stuck with me.  We had to give it a shot.", said Luthier's CEO.

The band's fans, who dubbed themselves "Lancetheads", like to gush about how powerful the Blünt Lancet live concert experience is.  One fan, Dr. Strange, shared his experience:  "It's like they infuse the audience with some kind of hormones.  I mean, the songs just get stuck in your head.  People would hold up their backlit glucose meters like lighters during the ballads, and I just felt like part of one big community.  There's never a dull moment with these guys.  I hope this never changes." 

Blünt Lancet has had their share of difficulties.  Record sales often fell out of their target range at the end of the 1990's, and the group had to wait years for the rebound.  Blunt Lancet added some back-up lancers for the "Use Once And Destroy" tour, which ended up being a waste of money when the lancers got lost in the back of the venue "The Supply Drawer" in downtown L.A.  "I didn't think we'd ever have a need for them, and after that incident we decided that, ultimately, we weren't going to use them", confided Testkit.

Original image credit: Sara Knicks

Scandals plagued the group throughout much of the 90's, which only seemed to spike their popularity.  Frontman Simon Syringe was busted by the diabetes police for possession of syringes in 1995, claiming that they were for "insulin".  Kim Pancreas would often show up to band practices with a hanglowver, and was known for throwing her Ketostix into the audience after performances - she was briefly kicked out of the band in 1996.  Moby Testkit confirmed:  "She could be a real prick."  There were also rumors swirling in 1999 of the band's relationship with some frequent "strippers", but the band's manager woud not confirm or deny the allegations.  The fall from grace forced the band to downsize; performing at smaller venues for several years in the early 2000's under the alias, "Dull Poke".

The stars re-aligned for Blünt Lancet with a reunion performance at the much-anticipated D-Prom event in 2011.  They debuted a new rock ballad, Let's Stick Together, and the band saw their post-prandial record sales skyrocket.  The band plans to release a collection of "overwrought, Fall Out Boy-esque" songs this fall, with titles such as If You Were Any Sweeter, There'd Be A Bolus Involved and I Don't Need Your Alcohol Swabs (I'm A Licker).  A subsequent worldwide tour is being considered, and the band is testing different sites.  "We're trying to rotate, so we don't run out of real estate with this thing", said Lancer.

What does the future hold for Blünt Lancet?  Kelly RawSugar:  "We want our fans to know that we'll always stick with them.  I can't gauge what the future holds, but Blunt Lancet has staying power." 

Lancetheads all over the world are, as they like to say, "pumped".

*Editor's note:  A friend of mine was kind enough to create the logo and album cover art for me in this post - if he manipulated an image of yours and you would like credit for your work, please let me know!  I'd be happy to credit you.

Twitter, Mental Health, And Ponies.

[Let me preface this post with this:  if you use Twitter (or even if you don't - sign up!), there is a weekly discussion about all things Diabetes that you should know about.  Our fearless leader, Cherise, hosts organized discussions (via Twitter) on living with diabetes, advocacy, health, meters, support and more. If you would like to participate, look around or just hang out log on to Twitter every Wednesday at 9PM, EST. Follow @DiabetesSocMed, #dsma or log on to http://tweetchat.com/room/dsma.]

Tonight's DSMA discussion centered around the connection between diabetes and mental health.  Trying to find a happy balance between diabetes and "life" is a never-ending challenge.  As many of my fellow d-bloggers have discussed, it can feel like this connection to mental health is largely ignored by the medical community.  We are asked by our doctors and CDE's "how we're doing" with our diabetes, but the question is posed in the context of blood sugar control.  We don't often get asked how we're really doing - mentally, emotionally.

Diabetes affects every single part of my life, and and will affect it during every single moment of forever.  Eating always involves math (How many carbs are in this?  How much insulin should I take for it, based on at least ten different factors that play into this?).  Exercise is a risky proposition (Do I have active insulin in my system right now that will make me drop too low?  Did I eat enough carbs to cover the amount of exercise I plan to do?  Is it going to be aerobic or anaerobic?).  Sleeping can be perilous (What if I drop really low while I'm sleeping, and this is the time my body doesn't wake me up?  Do I have an unexpired Glucagon kit handy if A needs to revive me Pulp Fiction-style?).  It's a major financial burden (Have you ever priced out test strips for someone who tests 15+ times a day?).  It can cause immense amounts of frustration (No, I didn't get this because I ate too much sugar/weigh too much/didn't take care of myself.  Yes, I can eat this, actually.  I know you want me to stop sitting in my parked car and back out so you can have my spot, but my blood sugar is too low to drive right now.)  It can also cause immense amounts of guilt (I wish this didn't affect my parents/husband/family/friends/co-workers.  Why, if I'm doing everything "right", am I still a "bad diabetic" for not having an A1C of 6.0?  Will I be able to have kids safely?  Am I selfish for wanting that?)  It can be a little mind-numbing and overwhelming.  We're trying to do the job of an essential organ of the body, for Pete's sake. 

I can say that with time, acceptance and the ability to balance the two has improved for me.  It can, and does, get better in some ways.  I learn what to expect, but every day is a fight, and some days you're just tired of it.  Every day involves intensive attention.  Every.  Single.  Day.  And even with that, sometimes things go wrong anyway, for no apparent reason. 

I find that with more years of diabetes under my belt, I tend to think more about how diabetes has and will affect my life.  The things I've missed out on, or done in spite of.  The things I still want to do, but have no idea if I can do (or if I will live long enough to see).  I know none of us have that guarantee, but not every child gets told "Hey, you know that thing you have?  The thing you didn't ask for, cause, or deserve?  That's going to shorten your life by five to seven years."

I'm a pretty optimistic person, but optimism can only take you so far some days.  The reality of the disease hits you pretty hard sometimes.  The worst doesn't happen to everyone, but you never know which side of the coin you're going to be on. 

So, what can we do about it?  First, we can know that feeling down about diabetes is normal.  Totally, completely normal.  We can know that there doesn't have to be any shame in asking for help, in whatever form that comes.  Have a support system - family, friends, the DOC, whoever.  Talk to your doctors not only about how things are going, but how you're feeling about those things.  Make them aware of the impact this chronic condition has on you, and help them realize that it needs to be addressed.  It would be great to get that kind of help at diagnosis, though many find that the mental angle of the disease isn't acknowledged.  Those people?  They should get a pony.  (Read the transcript from tonight's #dsma for an explanation.  And join us next week!)