What a difference a month makes

Today marks a month since I came home from the hospital. The week I spent there took its toll on my physical, mental, and spiritual well being.

When I got home from the hospital:

I could not get up the stairs without my legs cramping up.

A lap around the couch was my workout.

I couldn’t get anything for myself and had to rely on my family to even get me water.

I was taking between 24 and 39 units of my fast-acting insulin and 25 units of my slow-acting insulin a day.

I could not watch television without noticing that every commercial was a commercial for food I was gonna miss.

I just remember feeling frustrated, sad, angry, weak, and lost.

Then I remember thinking to myself my first week home:

“Well, this didn’t kill me, so I must be getting stronger.”

That’s it. Its time to stop feeIng sorry for myself. It’s time to start making myself stronger. I knew I was still recovering from gallbladder removal surgery so I knew my limitations. I began to challenge myself by adding more laps around the couch. Then I pushed myself to go up and down the stairs a second and a third time. I began to take walks around my block. Read up on diabetic eating and the reasons for my dietary needs.

Now that it’s been a month, I can celebrate the following:

I made my goal of getting up and down the stairs 54 times in one day. (once for each card in a deck of cards-including the jokers-and yes, I physically brought a card upstairs each time.)

I can walk on the treadmill for 30 minutes at a time at an incline.

I’ve taken up carrying a pedometer. I haven’t been able to do 10,000 steps in a day yet but I’m working on it.

I now take about 12 to 15 units of fast-acting insulin a day and only 10 units of slow acting insulin a day. Writing this just made me realize that my doses have been cut by more than half!

I’ve gotten back to making the meals for my family, something I take great pride in.

I started this blog in the hopes of helping others as well as myself.

The blog has a section in which I will try to continue to be thankful daily.

I’m very hopeful and happy to be living with diabetes instead of feeling as though I’m dying of it.

I’ve got a lot to be thankful for this last month and I now celebrate every day.

Don’t forget to “cut the B.S.!”