Opus 2026-287: Benefits of Diabetes

I have a friend who’s going through a lot of trauma because of a retina problem.  As far as I know diabetes is not part of his package.  It emerged suddenly and they got him in for surgery within two weeks, which gives you an indication of how bad it was.  And he spent a week on his belly and things still aren’t looking good.

I don’t know that I expect this to happen to me because I have diabetes, or at least at one time I had raging diabetes.  When I admitted that reality, it made me first of all change my lifestyle.  Many people with type two diabetes can beat it back or at least put it back in the garage if they will change the way they do things.  People being what they are we tend to want a pill instead of not eating so much.

I was blessed with a fear of the needle and so I managed to distance myself and lose the weight.  The problems went away.  I am still diabetic, but there are no side effects at this point.

Which brings me to the second benefit.  I get better health care than I would if I was not diabetic.  It’s amazing how many adjustments are made to things simply because you have a history of diabetes.  I can go in and have my feet examined on a regular basis.  When I go see the doctor for my eyes I pretty much get the whole treatment, including a new prescription, glaucoma checks, and a very careful examination of my retina.  All of that is covered by insurance.  Why?  Because I have been diabetic.

I am aware when I write things like this that everybody’s diabetes is different.  You can do everything right and it still doesn’t get better.  You can get the wrong doctors.  You can simply refuse to change anything.  And one of the things that surprise me was that many people with diabetes do not take the medication that is prescribed.

We’re all different.  Although it’s irritating to have to worry about my A1c, it is still a joy to know that there are benefits in my infirmities.

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