#220 Laura is a CDE with Type 1 Diabetes
Scott Benner
Laura has type 1 diabetes and is a certified diabetes educator…
Laura and Scott chat about type 1 diabetes like old friends.
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DISCLAIMER: This text is the output of AI based transcribing from an audio recording. Although the transcription is largely accurate, in some cases it is incomplete or inaccurate due to inaudible passages or transcription errors and should not be treated as an authoritative record. Nothing that you read here constitutes advice medical or otherwise. Always consult with a healthcare professional before making changes to a healthcare plan.
Scott Benner 0:00
Hello everyone and welcome to Episode 220 of the Juicebox Podcast. Today's show is sponsored by Omni pod Dexcom and dancing for diabetes. You can learn more at my Omni pod.com forward slash juicebox dexcom.com forward slash juice box or dancing the number four diabetes.com. If you're looking for the greatest insulin pump in the world, the best CGM man has ever made, or the most wonderful diabetes organization on the planet. These are the places you'll want to be. There are links in your show notes at Juicebox podcast.com. If you can't remember the links I just provided.
In this episode of the podcast, I'll be speaking with a CBE who also has type one diabetes and was diagnosed a little later in life, but is living with type one for quite some time. Please remember that nothing you hear on the Juicebox Podcast should be considered advice, medical or otherwise, always consult a physician before making any changes to your medical plan, or becoming involved with insulin. This episode was recorded a few months ago. So for those of you who have been missing bazel snoring in the background, because he's not near me anymore. When I record, you're gonna like this one. Because that little dog is like, in the background, you'll you'll hear it Trust me.
I'm going to ask you to introduce yourself and I want you to consider this before you do. I don't know what you're going to say or how comfortable you're going to be saying it. But because because you're a CD, a nurse practitioner, you work with people who have diabetes, I'm looking for some real like honesty from you. So if you want to be anonymous, that's fine with me. Or if you think that your honesty is not going to get you in trouble at work or anything like that. Do whatever you want. So you can use your first name, your first your last name, we can make up a name. I don't care,
Unknown Speaker 2:05
whatever we decide, yeah,
Scott Benner 2:07
sure.
Unknown Speaker 2:08
I don't know what I'm gonna say. Yeah, that's perfect. And
Scott Benner 2:10
I'm leaving all this in right just asked you about your name, too, because this is this is exactly what I want. So. Okay, so we'll have to make up a name for now.
Laura 2:20
Oh, you can call me Laura.
Scott Benner 2:25
I was gonna call you, Barack. And so. Okay, sorry. Okay, so, okay, Laura. You're a CD, a nurse practitioner? Uh huh. And I know nothing else about you, except that you sent me an email. That pretty much indicated to me that you were excited about how we talked about diabetes on the podcast. And the reason we're getting you on so quickly, is because it is my It is my very, you know, not so private goal, to reach every CD, so I can stop doing the podcast, I would like to have it. I would like everyone to think about things like this in a way that they tell newly diagnosed people. So a whole new generation of people diabetes aren't scared. And I can use my free time for something else. So that's, that's my goal. But but so just tell me a little bit about yourself. Do you have type one? If not, how did you end up working with a give any connection with it at all besides your work?
Laura 3:25
Well, yes, I have type one diabetes. And yeah, I was diagnosed in about 1994. And so under 25 years, but I've been 20 years,
Scott Benner 3:37
I had an A 24 Oh, good. I went 94 out of 10. I got to 2004 at a time where I was 2014. Then Then I knew that was 2018 and 84. Right? Boom, like that. I was right on top of it. So Oh, yeah. Oh, please, you have no idea how smart I am. Now. Um, but so 24 years ago when you were in the what range of age?
Laura 4:04
So it's fine. I was 31 I believe 3132 or 31. And I was pregnant.
Scott Benner 4:14
So did you didn't start as gestational or did you have type one immediately? or How did that go?
Laura 4:18
Well, it was really interesting. I was diagnosed with gestational. But in fact, it was really my diagnosis for type one. Okay. Okay, during my pregnancy.
Scott Benner 4:33
So those two things mimic each other and then they just assumed because you were pregnant. That's what was happening were
Laura 4:39
Yeah, in fact, they I was considered gestational diabetes completely. And I never and I was at a major university in Florida at the time, which it was. I had great care and you know, everything and basically they never had me check my Blood Sugar after I delivered. And so I went along my merry way thinking that I just had to do insulin during my pregnancy. And I thought, Oh, you know, after I had our first son, that was it. And then it was a, it was actually after I stopped breastfeeding at about 10 months that I started losing weight. And I just the total typical signs that I tried to ignore. And, you know, I was thinking, Oh, this is great. I'm, you know, getting my, I'm better than my pre pregnancy weight. You know, and I, it was a, I've heard you tell the story, like where people would always have this diagnosis, either on vacation or holidays? Well, it was Christmas Eve. And I had some time off from work. And I checked my blood sugar on this old meter that I'd had 10 months earlier been using for pregnancy. And I was 800. And or no 600. Wait. Yeah, I was oh, I had gotten this box of Christmas, Carmel from home from family in California. This was like popcorn and nuts. And it was all Carmel and I ate. I ate the entire little package and lost three pounds overnight. And I'm like, wow,
Scott Benner 6:28
I'm onto something here.
Unknown Speaker 6:31
Yeah, something's wrong. So
Scott Benner 6:33
I'm gonna have another baby and lose 15 more pounds.
Laura 6:37
Exactly. So I looked in the mirror and I was like, Oh, my God, I look like I'm starving. My app is just bones. It was not pretty
Scott Benner 6:45
your small frame, right? Like I just you popped up for a second when we were setting up, but you're a smaller person.
Laura 6:51
Yeah. And I was basically down. And I just thought, Oh, I'm working full time. I have a new baby. You know, I just thought. Yeah.
Scott Benner 6:59
Oh, finally get my stepson.
Laura 7:02
Yeah, exactly. So are you working then? Yes, I was as a neonatal nurse practitioner. Okay. Yeah.
Scott Benner 7:12
So Isn't it funny is it so you brought up a couple of things and I'll just kind of skip over them real quickly. But the the one that I think is most important, is that everybody always thinks, oh, everybody gets diagnosed on vacation. We're at a holiday. And really the truth is, is you slow down enough to start paying attention to your health on vacation or a holiday. You don't mean like life just kind of a lie.
Laura 7:35
You know? You I heard you say that in another cast. And I was like, That is so true. It is it's just you're able to I was definitely hyperglycaemic. And, you know, just didn't pay attention to the signs until I had, you know, a few days off for Christmas. Yeah,
Scott Benner 7:52
it's funny what your body can accomplish. Like when you when you don't feel like you have time to die, your body won't die. Do you know what it you know what I'm always stunned by it. I don't in any way mean this to be amusing because I really don't but do you ever see a mentally challenged adult who's in it's in their 40s or 50s and their parents are still with them and alive in their 80s? And I always think, Wow, those parents just must feel like I can't leave this kid alone. And and and somehow that takes them a you never don't see that. It's it's really, it's sort of spectacular what your body can accomplish when it feels like it has to. And so you you know you were you were doing what you needed to do and and everything was okay, right up until it wasn't and then it is funny than the minute it's almost like having a long exhausting day. Right? As long as you don't sit down. You're okay about it. Yeah. And the minute you sit down you go, Oh, this was a mistake. That did sleepy time. So so you're diagnosed later? Was there any? Any? Any? Like anything in your family type one?
Unknown Speaker 8:58
Oh, yeah. They're
Scott Benner 8:59
endo issues. There was? Yes.
Laura 9:01
My sister has two children. They're adults now. But my sister's daughter was seven when she was diagnosed, and her son was three when he was diagnosed. And so and this was before CGM. So it was actually my niece was diagnosed before I was. And it was so funny because our family was like, Oh, it's got to be on, you know, the dad's side of the family. And then, you know, just a couple few years later, I get diagnosed. No, no, no,
Scott Benner 9:36
everybody sort of blaming each other. It's like, Oh, that's your that's your family, not mine.
Unknown Speaker 9:42
Yeah,
Scott Benner 9:43
well, so that's a shot I have to imagine. Right? You were I mean, even though you're in the medical field, you don't expect to get type one diabetes in your 30s even though people around you are habit and did you ever I mean, you weren't living like that thinking Oh, it's gonna get me eventually right?
Laura 9:58
Not Not at all. Not at all. Yeah, in fact, like, as I've kind of read about it and learned about it, it's kind of interesting, like 30% of new onset type ones are over the age of 30, new onset type one are over the age of 30. And now that I'm working, I work with kids, but I also work with adults. And it's amazing how many adults are diagnosed with type one. Yeah,
Scott Benner 10:22
absolutely. And later in life, and at all that all varying, I think by now, on this podcast, we must have somebody in every five year increments, you know what I mean? Like I was between 40 and 45 is between 55 and, you know, 50 and 60 seconds. I've hit everybody at this point. And, you know, so there is no, there's no magical age, like people were, you know, believing, you know, years ago, or when they call it juvenile diabetes. Okay, so, you've had type one now for 24 years. What did you when you were first diagnosed? I mean, that's so fairly, you know, just to put us in the right place, there's a meter and some insulin and,
Laura 11:01
yeah, there you go. Just like everybody else's story. It's really, although it's happening today at the same time, and I was at a major university. Like I was saying, in Florida, which were like trial net started. And, you know, it was very much type one, it was awesome. But yeah, I went to the emergency room on Christmas Eve. And they gave me a vial of insulin, but I had been, you know, I was a nurse and I had been gestational diabetes. So I felt, you know, I was I was equipped and, you know, the place I was living was a small college town. So I was going to a Christmas party where there was a CDE that was going to be there.
Scott Benner 11:37
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Unknown Speaker 13:40
Did you get that?
Scott Benner 13:42
What do they call that? White Coat blindness or I forget there's a name for it. I'm getting it completely wrong, where medical people kind of give short shrift to other medical people because they don't think you need the explanation of what's happened to you.
Laura 13:56
Um, I think though I am inquisitive. So I didn't feel that. No, I was like kind of trying to learn as much as I could. And talking to everybody. I could Yes,
Scott Benner 14:08
you ruin somebody's Christmas party. So you would just stand out for a second. Tell me what are ketones. Okay, so now you find out you're type one. How old's the baby at that point? Just 10 weeks, like a couple months. Okay. Were you back at work by then? Oh, yeah.
Laura 14:25
I mean, I went back, you know, just like, after three months.
Scott Benner 14:30
How did you find managing at that time? Like, what did you call success? I guess like what were you shooting for?
Laura 14:38
Boy, it was a long time ago. And you know, the meters were so different. And I didn't even start they didn't have lantis like, Well, I think lantis was fairly new. I was on ultra lenti these weird influence that would peak at different times. And I think it was on reget. Well, human log was kind of new and, you know, so it was it was Kind of just take some insulin, you know, try to eat in a healthy way, I don't remember ever being told to carb count, necessarily at the very beginning. But that came later. But I also felt like I was in a good place, I felt like I had lots of support, and you know, had a good, good start, you know,
Scott Benner 15:24
so diabetes was at some point, type one was, at some point, just this thing that was sort of no different than a medication, like a disease where you had to take a pill, like, just take your pill the way you're supposed to. And, you know, once a once every year, we'll give you a blood test and stay alive. And that's your goal.
Laura 15:44
Yeah, or even, like, things have changed, like I've worked at a diabetes camp for it's a day camp here in my area. And at the beginning, like I, this was like, early 2000s, most of the kids didn't have a lunchtime shot. Because they would take you know, this intermediate acting with their short acting in the morning, and the intermediate acting would cover their lunch. And so basically, it was just checking blood sugars. For most of the kids, there was a writ, you know, we had a few kids on pump. But there was very little interaction, the kids would, you know, be high all day. And that was kind of the they would tell the parents, you know, like, your kids are going to be high this week, don't you know, and then it was just kind of the norm now camp is like, No, no, no, no, no, we try to make goal and you know, it's a different story. Yeah. So
Scott Benner 16:36
So basically, the tools change the medication and the tools change what At what point did you start counting carbs and sort of doing that? Do you know how long?
Laura 16:46
So I started on a pump? Probably within the first year, okay. I, and those pumps, you didn't put in your carbs. This was before the smart, you know, putting, so you just put in? Yeah, yeah. And so I would just Yeah, and I am like, you could already tell I'm not a real math person. So I would totally just have my calculator with me always and be doing the math for that. Isn't it funny? I've
Scott Benner 17:17
always wondered why older people, you know, in the last 10 years that I've met, were so excited that pumps had bolus calculators when I when I was already looking at them and thinking, and I would rather just make this decision myself. But they were always so like, oh, does your pump have a bolus calculator? That's fantastic. What is the bolus calculators that you know where people like my kit, you know, they'll get on line. They'll say my gave my son insulin, and his blood sugar still going up? What should I do? Well, what does your pump say your iob is? And I was like, yeah, who cares? You know, like you obviously didn't use enough insulin, your blood sugar's high. I will tell you this morning this morning. This is why this podcast is great. Why diabetes is great for a podcast, no matter when I sit down to record it. I have a fresh story about diabetes from six hours prior. But but but this morning, Arden gets up extra early. Because there's picture retakes today. She told him she told me and I don't want to. I can't curse here. But she told me she told me privately I She goes, I really eff up my pictures. Wait till you wait till you see. And then the picture came and I was like, Oh, wow. Yeah. What were you thinking? smiled like that, you know, she goes, I'm gonna retake them. I was like, okay, so she gets up extra early. She's straightening her hair and putting on makeup and doing all this stuff. And as we're leaving for school, she goes, I want to grab something to eat. And I said, Okay, you know, like, so she reaches out, she reaches in and she grabbed some sort of this like little baked pastry thing. And it has some icing on it. I don't even know where it came from the perfectly honest. I didn't I didn't buy it. And and she's like, I'm gonna have this and I was like, Okay, well bolus this much and do this with your bazel. And this is what's worked in the past with this thing. And she leaves the house and I'm watching a little bit as I'm coming home and from dropping her off, and it's gonna be okay. And then I get see it starts to creep up. I was like, hey, let's bump it a little bit. She bumps a little bit and at 140 the arrow turns diagonal up and I think, oh, we missed, and I'm texting or China like razor and I can see it's in between classes. So she's traveling through the harm thing and she's not going to see this. And I'm texting and I'm texting I'm telling you, we went from 140 diagonal up to 200 to up and I don't think we'll never see double arrows around here. And I was like, I'm like I'm like whoa. And she's like, what am I double your bazel for an hour and Bolus two and a half units. And I have to tell you, that was a blind blank I guess as I could have made and now we are two hours later and she's 130 diagonal down. So like I we caught it but it was crazy. It went from 140 to 250. And back to it's it's insane. Yeah, you know
Laura 20:00
And just like you were saying, it's having these tools now. So back in the day, we couldn't watch that we couldn't, it was much more static, you would check a blood sugar, and then you'd see the results, you know, like three or four hours. So you didn't really have a sense that you could intervene like we can now Yeah. And so to me, these tools that we have, have changed it from this static way of thinking of dosing, and that to this more dynamic process that we go through, on a most I mean, like, kind of what you're describing on a regular basis.
Scott Benner 20:38
So then tell me, tell me something that because as we're as we're discussing this, what it occurs to me is that we have this, this, you know, current way of dealing with things, you know, many people have glucose monitors ways to see their blood sugar moving pumps, where they don't have to inject constantly, if they want to give themselves more insulin, they can push a button. But the but the rulebook doesn't. It's almost like we took the rulebook from 1980, and handed it to the people with the technology from 2018. Is that is that what's happening? Because why do people get such bad information about how to manage their type one?
Laura 21:17
But I just think it's, I totally agree, I think we haven't caught up. And I think that it's changing so fast. It's just, and I just think it's changing so fast. And if you're not, like living with it, day to day, moment to moment, right. It's, it's hard to provide guidance for that in a safe way.
Scott Benner 21:45
Have you checked out dancing for diabetes yet? I mean, have you gone to dancing for diabetes.com, or found them on Facebook or Instagram to see what they're really up to? Well, if you haven't, I'm encouraging you to do so. But additionally, if you're in the Orlando area, once you go to dancing for diabetes.com, click on the Events tab, and check out what's happening in May. That's right, the touched by type one conference will be held on May 18. This annual conference is designed for all ages, kids, teens and adults. And the goal is to educate, encourage, and empower everyone touched by type one diabetes, if you have type one, this is the place for you to be, especially if you'd like to hear me speak live about how to be bold with insulin. You're intrigued. I believe what you said not let's let's I'm gonna go with your premise that things are moving so fast. And you know, I come to work every day. Yeah, I don't fall, you know, an endo or anybody because they're they're doing they're doing what they know to do. And the world's pulling away from them. Like you said, you know, it's funny, just put up an episode with tide pool. Yesterday, art and pictures are during the launch, so we won't Pre-Bolus because I don't know how long it will be.
Unknown Speaker 22:56
And I say okay,
Unknown Speaker 22:58
yeah.
Scott Benner 23:02
Text me, as you know. So I was talking to Chris, and I said the same or he just made it, she just knocked it out of my head. Oh, my God. Wait, hold on a second speed of Arden knocked my phone out of my head with their text. Okay, oh, actually, you know, what, my inability to remember what I was gonna say is my point. How is it possible that me, the guy who just had to read a text and then forgot what he was going to say, could could figure it out, but a doctor can't figure it out.
Laura 23:33
I think this really this technique really works for you. And it really resonates to a lot of people and and like the more people I talked about your podcast with and you know, it's, it's fascinating, but there are people that think in a very linear way and you know, this method so so like, you kind of have to find what works for different people's brain in terms of what management is going to work for different people's abilities.
Scott Benner 24:13
But is it actually working for those other people? Yes, yes, there
Laura 24:16
are other people walking around with five to eight one sees who count carbs put it in at a certain time don't think about it again for three hours. They do it in a different way. They do it in a way that works for them like I'm sure and I haven't heard much about like Stephen ponders, we're, you know, kind of that whole thing of that sugar surfing stuff. So that is very much like kind of ORed with the same john Walsh's pumping insulin, you know, where it's all kind of laid out exactly how to dose and, and and that works for some people. So it's like you kind of have I really feel like you have to find what works for you what's safe for you with the tools You have over certain you
Scott Benner 25:01
have to have the right tools. You can. Yeah, I mean, what I'm doing right now with a meter is, I mean, would probably have you testing 20 times a day? I would more or more. Right, right. I would definitely think,
Unknown Speaker 25:15
yeah, yeah. So
Scott Benner 25:16
so I have, so I want to be clear, I don't care how anybody does this. I just want it to work for them. Yeah, I just I don't want
Laura 25:23
no. And I have people that listen to your podcast, they don't do kind of what you're doing. But they love the message. They love the like, hearing people struggle, you know, hearing people go through the same thing. But they're not on CGM. They're not on an pump, and they don't want to yet you know, there's issues, emotional, other, there's all kinds of reasons why. And so they just, they get something from this, so and it's helped them and they're seeing better numbers, and it's just kind of this awareness, this discussion, that doesn't happen in other places. Okay, so
Scott Benner 26:04
it's that you think that it's, it's funny, um, you think the discussion is where the value lies, as much as anything else.
Laura 26:11
So I think for some people, the methodology that can work for, for some people and other people, it's they cannot go there. But they still love listening to people their experience, how they're dealing with it. And so there's an and, and listening about the gift, they're not ready. I know it's hard to believe in this day and age, but some people are not ready for CGM. And it for them to hear all these people talking about it and how useful it is. And that is more than than someone just saying, you need a CGM, you know, it's very much a cut gives value to what their experiences and then they're open to hearing other ideas. Cool.
Scott Benner 27:00
Tell me the this the statement, they're not ready. This What is there?
Unknown Speaker 27:06
And there, you don't want it?
Scott Benner 27:07
And why why do people say they don't want it? Because I have my thoughts, but I want to hear yours, please.
Laura 27:14
There's different reasons. Some people and I deal with kids, but I also deal with adults. And so right now, when I'm thinking I'm thinking of the adults that I that she don't want to feel like they have to be thinking about it all the time. And if it's continuous, they feel like they have to think of it all the time. Whether or not that's based in what their reality should or shouldn't be. That's their reality. And so some people don't want to be tied down to this
Unknown Speaker 27:53
constant
Laura 27:55
thing that they have to look at and respond to.
Scott Benner 27:58
So here's how that strikes me. I'm gonna sound like such a jerk. Oh, wow, I don't do this very often. This is great. I'm gonna be jerky there are some people listening are like, dude, you're jerky all the time. Calm down. But But okay, so that would be to me, like saying that I smoke two packs of cigarettes a day. But I only worry about the health effects of my cigarette smoking on Saturdays between noon and 3pm. Because it's not like me not thinking about it doesn't make it not happening.
Laura 28:25
But let me put it in another way. Please. So so when I listened to you manage Arden's blood sugar's when she was younger, you did it, you know, like she didn't, you didn't want to burden her with all of that. Right? And so you are doing so you kind of it's, it is there for some people is seen as just too much, you know, whether it's where they are, emotionally developmentally, you know, so, so there is this component of Yes, it's a lot of information. And you do have to deal with it if you have that information. Or maybe not, but so I just feel like people are in different spaces, different places. And I would you know, if someone could manage me all the time, I think that would be great. But I'm like, I'm not offering that up to my husband to
Scott Benner 29:24
he doesn't have a podcast, or how's he gonna do so here would be my response to that kind of concept that made me think I guess I don't really know how to say what I want to say
Laura 29:40
this, but I mean, some people are ready and some people aren't and just like some people can't, but I feel like with smoking as an addiction, and that's, you know, I think that's a different place to just stop, you know, but there's also an emotional to this too.
Scott Benner 29:54
Yeah. And I may have had a bad apples to apples there. Maybe I was more like apples to like grape apples, but My thought was is that you can't you can't ignore something for a number of days and pretend that that's taking care of it. Because I don't know what's happening, or I'm not going to think about what's happening. But what I was going to say about the other part was, I hear that it could be my response to this would be, I understand that people might think that what I'm doing with art takes up a lot of time. But what I'm going to tell you is, is that it takes up less time. It once you understand the basic concepts that we chat about here on this podcast, it takes less effort and less thought to keep my daughter's blood sugar between 70 and 120. than it would to not.
Laura 30:37
Yeah, I believe you. I mean, I totally believe you once your blood sugar's high, it's so hard to get it into a good place. And then you're bouncing all over. Yep, absolutely.
Scott Benner 30:45
Stupid analogy, you're driving down the road, your car starts to drift. Do you nudge the car back to the left? Or do you wait till you're in a pothole and off the side of the road, you start turning because that takes more effort. Now you're being pulled off the road. There's other things at play, you have to steer more, it's dangerous, there's a tree there, etc. But when you saw the white line coming, all you really had to do was turn your steering wheel, just maybe a quarter of an inch to the left, you went back again. And so it's simpler to react in those tolerances with smaller adjustments because smaller adjustments create less counter adjustments so when you start swerving that's the roller coaster if you just a little this way a little that way. That's that's the other side of it. So I get the podcast in itself doesn't explain every, every week. What the diabetes that you know how to handle something does that you have to kind of listen through the whole thing and that you do, I do hear a ton of people who say, look, I listened for a while and I finally got it. Some people get it quicker. Some people get it slower. I also hear from there's a guy, Michael who listens, hi, Michael, who said one day sent me a note and he said, okay, you when I'm getting it on the pot. And what I what I took from his from his statement was, oh my god every week, but the sound the pot that I'm just gonna buy it if you like, leave me alone, you know, like, and and now he loves it.
Laura 32:07
Yeah. And so no, I, I just and I can tell you person after person that I've talked to listening to your podcast, and some of them are doing it. And it's and almost everybody is more engaged in their diabetes after when listening to you and kind of this. And, you know, yes, some are following kind of the formula that isn't really a formula, but just, you know, it works. Some people can do that other people. They're not there, but they're still getting value. You know, they're still making changes in their life. And yeah, it's awesome. Yeah. Listen, I
Scott Benner 32:44
got a message from yesterday, I joked with my wife when we got home. When she got home from work. I said, She's like, how was your dad's like, today was since got an email and tell him how great the podcast is today. I said, because I got seven of them today. Which by the way, thank you, everyone. And I will, I will respond to it at some point. But one of them was, you know, from from a woman who was just like, just talking like you like I love the podcast and changed how I think about things and everything. And I said, Can you tell me, you know, would you mind me asking what what struck you the, you know, the hardest? Like, what? What, what about the podcast, catch you looking for whatever I might have said. So I can know to say it again, basically, you know that it works on that it works and people hear it. And she said just not to be afraid. It was such a simple part of the idea because in my mind, and I don't know how I can run through it off the top of my head. But in my mind, managing Type One Diabetes begins with not being afraid. Once you're not afraid, you have to learn how insulin works in your body. You can't do anything until you learn how the insulin works. And then from there, it's all about timing and amount. And in the end, in the end, I don't see it as any more difficult than that base. There's more to it. But if you go back to those three concepts, you're a one sees going down a point and a half just for those three ideas.
Laura 33:59
Yeah. And I have I've so many patients, so many people that I work with that have had a bad experience with a low blood sugar. Yeah. And then they just they they cannot they cannot keep they keep their blood sugar in this very tight range between 200 and 300 all the time, because they're paralyzed with moving it down. And so that at least you know, if the were a CGM, then we just work on 20 points, you know, let's get it instead of 280. Let's try for 250 as your top, you know, yeah, all the time. I
Scott Benner 34:41
say if you keep it steady somewhere, you can keep it steady. Any Yeah. Right. It doesn't like what is the difference between 250 and 150, except your fear? What's the difference between 150 and 80? Except for you're concerned that your blood sugar is going to drop too quickly. And so, I mean, people say but really difficult when when you're faced with, you know, some
Laura 35:04
unknowns. Yeah, or just fear. Yeah, anxiety. Yeah, God,
Scott Benner 35:08
you have no idea of course, perhaps. Yeah, absolutely. I'm gonna tell I don't know if I've ever I've, I've said this yet, but I go to the dentist about six months ago. And I'm a person I hydrate a lot during the day. So I don't think clearly and drink probably what is the equivalent of 110 ounces of water in an hour and a half prior to going to get my right. So I roll into the dentist's office, they're like, Hey, you can come back. I'm like, Yeah, right after I pay. So I go and go into the bathroom. I go in now the girls working on my teeth, 20 minutes or so. And I look at her and I go, Hey, is this a good time for me to get up for a second? Because bathroom again. And so I do it again, right? And then later in the in the visit, she has the doctor come in to look over what she's done. And, you know, talk to me. And as I'm sitting there, she says that she ratted me out to the doctor. She says, you know, he's he's gone to the bathroom twice since he's been here. I'm like, well, that's like, holistic dentist's office. What are we doing here? Like, don't worry about my whole thing, just how's my teeth. And so, and I so I joke, I could go again, like trying to impress them. But I'm saying that because again, I i've consumed a cooler swath of water, you know, right before heading there. And he goes, you really could go to the bathroom again. I said, Yeah, I just I drunk. I drank a bunch of water. He looks right at me. He goes, that could be type two diabetes. Oh, my God. And I went, I went, wait, what? No, I just drank a bunch of water man. And he's like, Well, no. And then he starts talking about it. So the point of telling you the story is I get home, you know, I'm hungry. And I can't bring myself to eat. Because I'm like, What if I have type two diabetes, and no joke, like a rest of the day I kind of could meet. But I got up in the morning, I thought I'd forgotten about it. And I couldn't eat. I couldn't bring myself to eat because everything I know about insulin and my daughter's diabetes. And then this guy puts it in my head that I could have tied to it by 10 o'clock, I'm on the phone with my doctor, I need a physical and and he's like, wow, I'm like, I need a physical now I'm in now I'm at the physical. Right. And, and my doctor, you're gonna get the whole story, Barbara, why not? Let's tell it right here. So my doctor's services you come in the first time, you just meet with the doctor, let them know what's going on. It's 15 or 20 minutes. Excuse me, and then we'll make the real appointment. So that's what I believe I'm doing this day, I'm just coming in to sit with a doctor. I thought it was stupid. I didn't understand it. But I was doing. So I'm in with the doctor for a couple minutes, he starts asking some questions. He puts a stethoscope on my chest. And I think this seems more like a physical than to talk about a physical. It goes a little farther. And he looks at me and he says, I'm gonna need you to take your pants down. And I was like, What is happening? This is the weirdest meeting in the history of my life. And I think I gotta stop you for a second. I was like, is this the physical? And he says yes, the physical. And I'm like, but I was told I was coming in for a meeting. Oh, I don't know why they do that. So five minutes later, for everyone listening, I'm facedown on the thing with the doctor standing behind me thinking when I get out of here, I'm gonna go find this dentist and punch him in the face, right? Because look what has happened to me. And then the whole thing gets done, because we'll do a little blood work because it's part of the physical everything and he hands me the orders for the bloodwork. And I say my I see you didn't put a one C on here. And he goes, Oh, you don't have type two diabetes? No, no, no, I'm like, I want the a one c done. I was like, I don't care about the rest of this. And, and you're gentle man. But please do the a one seat. So anyway, there's a way funnier part of the story that's inappropriate for the podcast. But nevertheless, I get my one seat on May once he's fine. And, and but thank you, but but the point is, is that for three days, I couldn't barely bring myself to eat, because I was so afraid of what my blood sugar might be doing. And so I now have a renewed sense of how people must feel when they say they're scared. It's a little it's different. But I'm a little closer to the understanding at this point. You know, yeah, it really was sort of insane. I say it all the time. I get that if you're if you live alone, and you're an adult that what we talked about might be more difficult. If you don't have a CGM, it's in it would be a leap to do some things. Right. But what I would say is if you have insurance and you are financially able, in my opinion, just go into the podcast player, click on the link and check out Dexcom because that's how you could do this stuff. I mean, look at Arden's blood sugar right now is 112 now, so so it's so sweet. We
Unknown Speaker 39:45
want 12 right now,
Unknown Speaker 39:47
are you really? Yeah,
Scott Benner 39:48
I just looked down that might be the name of the episode. So but but but I mean, think about what happened. Arden ate something completely. Sugar rific this morning, we weren't able to Pre-Bolus the We wanted to we missed on the Bolus, readdress the Bolus within 25 minutes. And squelched a pretty severe spike and brought it back without making it. And, and that's, that's, that's common and wearing a pump. That will that was because we use temp basals in there and all kinds of other stuff. Unlike a blood glucose meter, which provides just a single glucose reading Dexcom provides real time dynamic glucose information every five minutes up to 288 readings, a 24 hour period, you can gain valuable insight about your glucose levels, including rate of direction and change. This will give you additional insight to proactively manage diabetes. What can that lead to? How about a reduction in a one C, reduced hypoglycemia, and active monitoring while you're sleeping. These are a lot of fancy ways to say peace of mind while you're sleeping, and the ability to see the speed and direction of your blood sugar. And if you want to know how someone gets an A one c reduction with a glucose monitor, here's how we do it. You hear us talking about all the time in the podcast. But if Arden's blood sugar tries to go over 120, we bump it back down again, the dexcom g six tells us, hey, you're rising. And then we can use a tiny bit of insulin to stop that rise when you only use a small amount of insulin for the rise. And you know very frequently, what I find for us, you know, your results may vary. But for us, when we use a little bit of insulin to stop arise, the likelihood of a low later. pretty unlikely, because you've only used a tiny amount of insulin to stop that 120 that's just starting to come up. And then you stay off the diabetes roller coaster, no bouncing all over the place. That's just one way that Dexcom helps us. The next thing you need to do is go to dexcom.com forward slash juice box or click on the links in your show notes. Where Juicebox podcast.com to get started today with the Dexcom g six continuous glucose monitor the best decision you'll ever make. In your opinion, if you could if you could take away people's you know how they feel for a second. We'll just we'll just take away people's Free Will for a second. If you could take freewill away from people for a second. And you were in charge of how people manage their diabetes. Would you put them on a pump?
Laura 42:29
I don't think a pump is as important as CG CGM. Okay,
Scott Benner 42:34
so you would definitely put them on a CGM. If I took away their Well, you would.
Laura 42:38
But it's so interesting because we can't get it covered by so for so many people. It's not covered.
Scott Benner 42:45
How is that? What what what ends up happening? Because their insurance covers it. You just can't sort of No, no, no,
Unknown Speaker 42:52
no, not at all. Not at all.
Scott Benner 42:54
Is it an age thing? Is it a? Is it an A one c thing?
Laura 42:58
No. We just got like Medicare to cover it about a year and a half ago or so. So that's been a huge. It's been wonderful. I mean, there were people that turn 65 and had to lose their CGM. Yeah, this is like crazy. So, um, but so that's good. Medicare is now covering it, but like the state insurances aren't. And yeah, and then the cost like some people have these, you know, they work for a small company, and the insurance isn't great. And they have to pay exorbitant amounts, basically, almost the whole cost of it. So I mean, there are a lot of people that if anything, we could change to me, it is the standard of care. We need everybody to have the availability to have it available to them. It would, it would save so many hospitalizations. You know, there's so many things that would be a benefit. But yeah, people can't get it.
Scott Benner 43:53
And so what are the What does the What do most insurance companies try to say when you say this person needs to see gym they go? No, they don't? Do they say they don't need it as they call it? not medically necessary? What do they? Yeah, so
Laura 44:04
then we have to do these prior authorizations. We write letters and they still say no, no.
Scott Benner 44:10
And does it once in a while workout, or do you have to have like some like PDF to show
Laura 44:14
we had the patient and this is gonna sad, very sound very sad, but he didn't have any fingers. And so out of all of these patients, one patient I know of God
Scott Benner 44:25
because he couldn't test his blood sugar because he didn't affect
Unknown Speaker 44:28
Oh, well. And that's what I mean. He could still test his blood sugar but but not it was Yeah, yeah. Yeah. Oh, my God. Yeah, that's
Scott Benner 44:34
not good. Oh, yeah. realities. I do think that we're probably I mean, I don't know. I really do. I'm not. I'm not being coy. I don't know. But I would imagine that once Dexcom gets the transmitter portion of the process smaller. That probably is the space where they can then say okay, We're gonna make this more mass consumable financially, like you would, you would think that's what is because they've that, you know, here's what I don't think people get about diabetes companies in general right is they're smaller companies than you think they are. They're not these giant, you know, they're not for the most part giant conglomeration. spintronics have, of course, a much bigger part of a pharma company, but are a smaller part of a pharma company, which makes them bigger and more powerful. But if you have on the iPod, or even Dexcom, those kinds of these are companies that sell one.
Laura 45:33
Yeah, and I live in Southern California. So I'm right there where Dexcom is, and yet I've gone into the factory or whatever you call it and, and talk to them. They are I it really feels like a small business as it is. Yeah. Love that. Yeah, they're very helpful. They're wonderful. But yeah, I just think we just need to get we need we need more help to make it so it workable. Yeah.
Scott Benner 46:05
Well, I have a, it's, it's, it really is such a crazy conversation, because it should, of course, everybody should have it. And at the same time, you know, there's an argument to be made for if the company doesn't make money, then none of us are going to have it. And you know, like and, and insurance companies should be you know, Bob, there's just there's so much it's just such a I imagine you see it every day, right? It's such a convoluted web of BS, I imagine.
Unknown Speaker 46:32
Yeah. Yeah.
Laura 46:34
It is. And it's frustrating because people just want it. People want nobody wants to do poorly with their diabetes. Right, right. Nobody does. Nobody does.
Scott Benner 46:47
That getting too low is a good reason to need a CGM. But getting too high is not like like, why is that? Why Why is it isn't it? I mean, so the insurance company values not dying today, but they don't value not dying next week? Like what? Yeah, what what why would that even be so it really isn't about your health as much as it is about
Unknown Speaker 47:11
I guess sweating out, I
Laura 47:13
guess. I don't know. I hate I'm not a cynical person. But, um, but you know, just know that it there are challenges out there. Why people can't use these tools that are available. Mm hmm. Yeah.
Scott Benner 47:26
I hear you. Okay, so, jeez. Well, what would you Okay, so you would give you would give people a CGM. If you if you were, if you were great and powerful Oz, you could take care of everything and just do whatever you want in that CGM would definitely be there. What do you think about?
Laura 47:42
Like, there's still, there's still especially there's people that don't want to have things on their body? And so it's not gonna be for everybody. But um, you know,
Scott Benner 47:53
Oh, absolutely. No, I hundred percent agree that there is there. There is a trade off though, right? though, if you if you, it's no different than if you look back to, you know, go back 30 or 40 years, and someone says, Look, I've been taking care of my diabetes for a long time without a meter. I don't need a meter. And, and because that is really I ever, you know, I know, people who were diagnosed when
Unknown Speaker 48:13
I see patients every day like that, yeah,
Scott Benner 48:15
yeah, I don't need a meter, I'll be fine. But but in the long run, they're not going to be fine without a meter. Right.
Laura 48:21
I, so I worked for, I don't know, 17 years, or no 15 years, with kids with diabetes. So I rarely saw complications. And then in the last three years, I started working with adults with diabetes. And so that changed my whole perception of what we do in pedes. And I still work one day a week at at the Children's Hospital and four days a week now with adults and young adults with diabetes, but it's just seeing all the complications has really changed my focus on our pediatric care to really engage kids, so that they're more like, active in their own care, and transitioning to adult, you know, independent care in a more seamless way.
Scott Benner 49:18
And that takes time. Is that is that your I mean, that's how I see it.
Laura 49:22
Yeah. Oh, yeah, it starts. Yeah, yeah. Very, very young. Yeah.
Scott Benner 49:27
And that's just I think it's a very slow I see it just like every other parenting idea like you don't, you don't grab your eight year old and start yelling at them about this is something you need to do get it done right. This second, like, you know,
Unknown Speaker 49:40
yeah,
Scott Benner 49:40
I think I think as a parent, my I was telling my son this recently, I'm like, he's like, what do you think your biggest job is like in parenting? And
Unknown Speaker 49:49
I said, Well, I
Scott Benner 49:50
think it's repeating things without getting annoyed. You know, because I think there are certain things you're going to need to hear a dozen times 100 times 1000 times. In a way that doesn't make you tired of hearing it.
Unknown Speaker 50:02
Right, you know, I
Scott Benner 50:03
think it's my job to kind of watch what's going on and keep directing you in a certain direction without you sometimes knowing you're being directed, you know, asking you, I did it to him the other day, and he's a college I, I told him something about his sister that I wanted him to know about himself. And if I would have told it to him about himself, he wouldn't have heard it. But when I told it to him about somebody else, he was like, Yeah, I see that. So you know, like, I think that's my job. My job is to manipulate you privately behind in a very kind of loving, right, yeah, yeah, let them let them have the idea. But you're basically showing them something in a way that doesn't make them immediately put up a defensive wall about that's, that's my thought. And, and so he was, you know, and I've seen it work, and it's working with the diabetes very slowly, just you know, even last week, or this, excuse me, this, it's been Arden's been a freshman now for about a month and a half or two months. And she's like, I don't want to set alarms anymore to remind us to Pre-Bolus for lunch, I'm gonna keep track of it. And I was like, Okay, great. Oh, great. Oh, good. So, you know, last week, I'm losing track sheet
Unknown Speaker 51:20
today. How did you do with that?
Scott Benner 51:22
I'm fine. I don't, I'm just I just stay fluid. My whole thing is just a float. So I'm like, so I'm like, okay, but she has a days and B days, and there's lunch on different times a day, and I lose track. You just saw me read a text and forget what I was gonna say. So I don't know if today's in a day or a B day, right. She either has lunch today at 1030 or 1130. I don't know. Because I don't know what that is. So one day, I'm like, oh, it must be. I don't know what day 1130. And 11 1030 goes by and it's quarter 11. It's 11 o'clock, and all of a sudden, I see her CGM change in a way that like, I was like, I didn't expect that that you know, and then the diagonal up arrow, which you know, I'm like, wait, what, what's happening? And then boom, I text her. I'm like, hello. She's like, um,
Unknown Speaker 52:09
I think I want to eat.
Scott Benner 52:20
Oh, my God, I eat. I'm like, how much is I've been done for 20 minutes. So everyone knows Arden's, you know, lunches are like a conglomeration of like, stops. I was like, uh, uh, and I think about what's in there. And I think, okay, if we would have done this on time. I think this is like 12 units. But now she's 20 minutes past having eaten, she'd probably been eating for 40 minutes. I'm, we're screwed. You know. So like, I was like, double your basal for an hour and a half. And then I bolused what I thought the food was gonna take plus, like three more units. And it went to 280. You know, but it came back. Right. And so and I wasn't upset. I was like, this is how most people rock, you know, like, so I was like, it'll be okay. And yeah, right. And everything was fine. And she got home and I was like, Hey, no big deal. Like we got your blood sugar back. No problem. I said, but you know, I need you to, you know, it's fine. If you don't, yeah, just remember, she's like, okay, like, five days later, it happened again. And now and now you see her? Like, she just texted me, hey, they're gonna do our pictures during our lunch. So we can't Pre-Bolus now that in my mind, is my daughter learning a lesson without feeling bad about it right without being like yell, yelled at, or directed or dominated or something like that. Just let it let let some experiences happen so she can learn from
Laura 53:41
them. And I think you know, that's awesome. Because, you know, some, I see some situations where it's all on the kid. And that doesn't work. Well, you know. And so it's just this intermingling of an adult brain and the kid and, you know, kind of helping that person figure it out. Helping the child figure it out, is key to success. And so that they're not alone. They're in that you guys are talking about it awesome. And that's how people can kind of transition to independent care in a more seamless way for sure.
Scott Benner 54:26
Don't forget to check out dancing for diabetes at dancing for diabetes.com they're also on Facebook and Instagram. That's dancing the number four diabetes.com if you'd like to see me speak live about being bold with insulin I will be at touched by type one and event run by dancing for diabetes, go to dancing for diabetes.com and click on the Events tab. You can't You can't say you can't do your thing. You can never throw your hands up with anything but diabetes especially can't go I don't know where this is the best I can do. Like, that can't be an answer. And I and I, I heard a person say the other day about their child with diabetes, that they were, you know, unable to mad, like pay attention to this kid's blood sugar as much as they wanted to during the day. And their blood sugar was getting pretty high from it. And as I was trying to imagine ways to affect that, they said, well, it's, you know, it's just, I can't do it. And I was like, wow, wait, what? Like, like, that's a strange idea. Like, like, to me like the the idea of, well, it's beyond what I can do. And I understand there could be a ton of reasons could be work related, it could be sleep related, it could be money, there's a lot of different reasons. But there's also usually a different way. If you if you just keep, keep wondering about it, like, just keep looking into it. Don't just keep running into the same wall over and over again. But think differently, you know, what I mean? Like, like your outline, or whatever you want to say outside of the box, or whatever. But once you've applied your thoughts to this, and you've come to know, answer, find someone else's thoughts. You know, because they said this to me, and I said, Well, have you considered this? I gave them my idea. I'm being very vague, because I don't want to ask somebody, I gave them my idea. And it turned out, they hadn't considered that. And now that's what they're gonna try. And I do the same thing. My wife said to me the other day, hey, we're not going to be able to go on this spring trip with with Cole's baseball team because of this. And I said, Well, why not? Why don't we try to figure out how to do it? And she's like, yeah, maybe we can. But it was her first inclination that it wouldn't work. And you always have to, if you if you can't imagine how to do something, find someone who can. That that's all I please never say the the dreaded sentence about diabetes. That's just diabetes, I please you make you make me crazy. If I even think you're saying that somewhere in the world. Never say that's just diabetes. It's something else. And keep trying. Reach out, find community, ask a person ask your doctor ask. Write it on a Facebook page. I don't know yell it out your window. Maybe your neighbors got diabetes, though. Y'all back Bolus. I don't know how it'll go. Tell me. So tell me this as we wrap up, what you think fears, the biggest hurdle that you see people have? Right? What do you think gets them past the fear?
Laura 57:21
For people that are really struggling with that fear? I think small changes, make big differences. So just kind of that idea of, you don't have to be 75 to 120 all the time. And that's just overwhelming when they're comfortable in this 250 range. But just you know, just for a week, and it's gonna be really, really hard. Try accepting. If you're, if your comfort zone is 252 30, for a week to you know, just bring it start bringing it down and wearing a CGM. You know, that, to me, that really seems to help. But I think also, I think everybody in diabetes needs to see a therapist, I really do. I think you're dealing with something that you have to think of every moment of every day. I think, you know, whether you're going to sleep or you're working out, or you're eating things that are basic to life. You have to have this other thing in your mind. And so it's overwhelming. And so I think it's a good idea if you're struggling, if you if you're having a hard time getting to goal, you know, keeping your time in range, then yeah, go talk to somebody. I think the emotional thing is, is pretty high. Spectacular advice.
Scott Benner 58:52
Quick question. Yeah. How low is too low? If you're steady at it? So let's say you're not falling, right? There's no danger, you're gonna fall. My blood sugar's 80. That's fine, right?
Unknown Speaker 59:04
I think so. Okay. 70.
Laura 59:09
Because you have insulin, working on your body.
Unknown Speaker 59:14
For
Unknown Speaker 59:17
most people
Unknown Speaker 59:19
70 is you're on the edge,
Scott Benner 59:23
because you're considering you're gonna keep falling.
Laura 59:26
Not necessarily everybody. So let's say they got to 70 after being 200 or 250. You're not going to feel good there, either. So some people, like when they've had highs for a long time, they may start feeling a low at 120. Right? They just, you know, they need to get to a spot where they're not in the two to 300 all the time. So they feel normal at 100. But 70 to me, especially in kids, and if you don't have a CGM, no way so So, to me, there are some limits and, and, and there were some studies early, like I don't know, 10 years ago about brain development and hypoglycemia, but those were studies before CGM before, you know, so I don't, you know, but so I don't I don't really know. And then there were studies in adults with a when seagulls you know, with type two, these were older people with type two and they thought, Oh, if sevens good, maybe we should get them lower. And that accord study showed that there was in this is an adult older population with type two diabetes so not really relatable. But there was more sudden cardiac death in patients who had a one sees less than 6.5. So how are we saying that a low A when C is that great either we don't have the data. So
Scott Benner 1:00:53
we have two mixed thoughts here. So let me let me unpack them for a second. So I get that if you're a person who's had a high blood sugar for a very long time that a 120 could feel like low, and that you want to come down slowly as your body gets used to it to stay on there. My but my question that I probably didn't phrase correctly was, I'm just wondering, when is it in the moment not forget long term, but in the moment, when does it become detrimental to your brain for your blood sugar to be at a certain thing, like I here's my thought, and, and I don't want Arden to be under 70 for any long period of time. But if she gets to 65, and it's going to sit there for a few minutes, I'm okay with that. If she hits 55, overnight, and I can trim a bazel and bring it back in 20 minutes or an avoid juice. I'll do that. Don't get me wrong, if she's 55. And she's falling. If she's 55. And she has, you know, I would counteract it with carbs right away. But if she drifts to 55, and then bounces right back again, and I'm talking about in 15 or 20 minutes, I don't think of that as horrible. It's not something I would want. And I don't think it's that it's healthy. But I don't think she's about to die either. And, and so I think that there's all I'm saying is I would like Arden's blood sugar to be above 70 and sitting as stable as possible. But I think it's important for people to understand that if their blood sugar should go to 65. They're not about to expire, and they haven't caused a third of their brain to die, or. Right, right. They just
Laura 1:02:26
need to act on it. Yeah,
Scott Benner 1:02:28
right. Do something. Yeah. But see, the reason I bring that up is because is because Do you have any idea how many people you see whose blood sugar's get to 120. And they start eating carbs. Because they feel incredible.
Laura 1:02:43
I talk to people and they say, my content, like a medium for the first time. And they're like, my comfort zone is I like to be 150 to 200 because that's where I feel good. If I'm lower than that, I feel low. And and so then there's this discussion, they just help, you know, they, it's just a matter of getting more information and getting, you know, because they're just going on how they feel like
Scott Benner 1:03:09
they made their body accustomed to something. Yeah, not right for that health. You saw a post online once, that said, we almost lost our daughter last night. And I was like, Oh my god, this is horrible. Her blood sugar got to 68 they thought she was going. And I was like, wait, what, what are we talking about? And so it said, I'm reading and I'm like, wait, maybe I'm thinking maybe she was 68. And they used a you know, like, like, I don't know novolog that Atlantis at night or something? They put it but eight units. And I'm like I'm so I'm trying to figure out what's going on? No, no, her blood sugar just gonna see jam. She drifted to this number. And, and sat there for a few minutes. They they were breaking out the glucagon. And I was like, Oh my god, it's 68 I'd be like, if I trim her bazel back 50% for an hour. We sleep all night. And I wake up and she's like, like, that's how I started thinking about it. This poor girl was almost in the hospital. And I was like, oh, gosh, and that's the misconception.
Laura 1:04:09
box the reality of everybody's coming from different places in terms of their understanding. And, you know, they're with they've been taught it's, you know, and and yes, we I think, you know, keeping your blood sugar over 70, you know, is a good idea. But when people are in tight control, they are going to drift down and just so long as they're dealing with it and bringing it back up. And yeah, you do not want to be you know, in a danger zone. Or often. Yes. Right, right. And that whole thing about the CGM is to kind of look at that time and range. You know, you can have a great day one See, but if you're having more than say 5% in that low, two areas, you know, yeah, you know, you kind of want To think, what could I do to get myself more in the green?
Scott Benner 1:05:04
By the way, too, I wanted to I don't have the person's name. I'm not calling anyone out, but to the person who said their clarity app from 50 to 300. And then posted Look at me, I was in range 100% of the time. Shame on you. Okay. I mean, seriously, between 50 and 300? Where are you in? 24 hours a no hitter? Uh huh. And I was just like, it was like, Oh, my gosh, like, look at this. This is like, and because joking aside, this poor person doesn't understand what they're supposed to be doing. They said, they said, it's like saying, you know, I don't know, I've got all five lanes of the highway, I never left my lane. Like no way what you're supposed to stay in between the white lines over here. If you drift a little bit, you've left your lane. And and I all I could really think was two things. First of all, what a horrible misunderstanding of what, what their health is about. And, and secondly, look at what they're showing to all these other people, because people are like, Oh, my God, that's amazing. I'm like, it's amazing. Was it How was that amazing? It's, it's, it's a misunderstanding of what you're doing. And, and so my point is this. And we started off by saying this in the beginning, and I still steadfastly believe what I'm gonna say. You said, Just now, it all depends on where they come from and what they've been taught. In my heart, I want people to be taught that that insulin is dangerous, and they need to respect it, but they can't be afraid of it, if they're afraid of it, that their health is going to, it's going to, at some point, suffer that they have to make smaller adjustments, because that keeps you off the roller coaster that highs cause lows, because you use a lot of insulin at a time when eventually the food leaves your system and and what's left behind is the insulin. If your blood sugar is high, you've likely have mistimed your insulin or miscalculated or combination of the both. And if your blood sugar is low, you've likely Miss times your insulin miscalculated, or a combination of the both. If you can afford this technology, please give it a try. I know you don't want it attached to you, or whatever else you're thinking. But just give it a try. If you don't like it after you try it, and then don't use it. But don't say, That's not for me, if you've never tried it before, I think if people got that simple direction earlier in their time with diabetes, that we'd see more people who could say, who would understand the 275 is not in their range. And and I just want you to know, it's your job now, to go tell every CD that I would do it, but no one's asked me to.
Laura 1:07:33
It's funny, you know, like, you talk about it, like a tug of war. And, um, I kind of think it's more to me, I mean, I like the tug of war thing. But, um, I kind of like the idea of it's like, it's like driving a stick shift. Okay. So when I, my husband and I met in high school, and like, I was learning how to drive. And he was teaching me and I was, like, I was very linear at the time, I think. And I said, Okay, and write down exactly when I'm supposed to change gears. You know, like, I want it exactly. I want you to spell it out. Exactly. And he goes, Hey, Laura, you just got to feel it, you got to know when you know, to lead off and when to give and, and, and to me, and then yeah, sometimes you saw, sometimes it's not perfect. But you can still get up the hill, you know. And so it's like to be it's kind of like that kind of it's a given take, it's kind of like how you have to feel it. And now we have these tools, like you know, the CGM to be able to see the result. You know, I don't know what that is in a car. But you know, like, basically,
Scott Benner 1:08:53
it's your head not jerking around when you shift. I like what you're saying about the idea of you have to feel it. I fear though the concept of a stick shift analogy has just struck three people that are listening and no one else. My I said to my daughter the other day.
Unknown Speaker 1:09:08
Right? I'm so old. Yeah.
Scott Benner 1:09:11
Not at all. But that's so funny.
Unknown Speaker 1:09:13
I know. I
Scott Benner 1:09:14
just I really believe that. There's, I genuinely think and I understand what you were saying before about doctors are in the moment. They're teaching it there. They're not living it. But if I could figure it out, and I can find a way to pass it on to somebody else, because the podcast is all well and good. But I could line up hundreds of people for you who've called my house. And we've had 45 minute conversations that have changed their entire perspective and put them on a new path. If If I can do that, then certainly a doctor can do that. And I'm sure maybe not everybody I've ever spoken to has gotten off the phone and been like, Wow, my life has been changed. Some people probably hung up and went well, that's not for me. And I get that. But there's no there's no reason And not to present that information to people? Yeah.
Laura 1:10:04
Yeah, I think I feel really fortunate because the university that I work at two of the attending, I have type one also. So it's like, and they teach the fellows. So they are teaching. So it's a different, it's a really good setting for that I feel like to get to what it's really about. Which I don't think everybody has to have diabetes to treat, I don't want that to be the message at all. But I think having a personal connection, and understanding and and that's true with any aspect of anybody's job, if you can connect with people on a personal level, and really try to understand what they're going through day to day. And if you can, you know, basically walk in their shoes, understand what's going on, whether you have type one or not. But just understand that you know, what people are facing every single day and the decisions they have to make to stay in a good place is important that you're
Scott Benner 1:11:06
not just reading to them from a manual, which is, as we talked about earlier, likely was written 20 years ago for technology. Nobody's using now. Okay. All right. I hear you. All right, go to work. And everyone, please log on at 630 her time with me in the morning. If someone said to me that there was $1,000 in my backyard, but I had to get it at 630 in the morning and be showered and dressed I'd say you know what, how badly Do I really need that money. And so and Laurie did this for free. And so thank you very much. I really appreciate you sharing your insight, especially with the work you do. And I genuinely appreciate you getting up so early to do it too. So I really do. I just want to say thank you.
Laura 1:11:48
Well, thanks for having me come and talk. I really appreciate it but I want you to know that there are so many people that aren't reaching out to you that are also I mean, I've someone from Mexico told me about your pot I mean, like you're reaching people all over and it's it's just powerful and I just want to thank you so that people can listen to these conversations and and just feel like they're they they're not alone in these decisions they have to make every moment
Scott Benner 1:12:17
I appreciate that so much it's so incredibly such a nice way for me to start my day so thank you and anytime someone mentions the podcast to them please pass my thanks on I really appreciate that
Unknown Speaker 1:12:27
they listen. I will thanks Have a great day. You too
Scott Benner 1:12:34
long show so I'm going to give you a short outro Thanks so much to on the pod dex calm and dancing for diabetes for sponsoring this episode of the podcast please go to my on the pod comm forge slash juice box dexcom.com forward slash juice box or dancing the number four diabetes.com these links are available in the show notes of your podcast player at Juicebox podcast.com. And by now I'm assuming seared into your brain because you've heard me say it so much. And even though they didn't buy an ad on this episode if you find yourself at real good foods.com use the offer code juice box to save 20% of your order. Thank you so much to Laura for coming on and being open and honest. In this episode. I quite enjoyed our conversation. I hope you did too. We'll be back next week and every week with another episode of the Juicebox Podcast.
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