My August 23, 2012 and everything after.....

I 'celebrated' my three month anniversary with Type 1 Diabetes this past Friday (11/23/12) and thought it might be apropo to give some dignity and honor to this last three months of transition into life with Type 1 diabetes by starting a blog. There have been a number of occasions over the years that I have started one and not so soon thereafter I lost the desire it took to devote to daily or even monthly updates. I have learned very quickly, that life with Type 1 is not only a daily part-time job, but a continuous moment by moment paying attention to my body and all of the factors that can tip the sugar levels one way or another. Sleep patterns, stress, hormones, travel, time changes, working out, inconsistency you name it, can affect the reading I see on the glucometer. And, no doubt I am a much 'happier camper' when my readings are within my target range and I feel better! I recall a conversation I was having recently with one of my diabetes support team and I don't ever want to forget saying this. I was having a couple of good and quite productive diabetes days in a row, so it makes some sense that I was feeling this way, nevertheless I told Susan that while glancing over to my Dexcom CGM materials I had this thought pop into my mind as clear and as real as a thought could be, "I like my Diabetes", I said to myself. I then caught hold of my thought and pondered, "Where in the world did that come from"? Moments later I realized that I was coming to more acceptance of my condition and that it was actually a gift that had landed into my life to help me take even better care of myself and to use as an opportunity in my personal life, relationships and sphere of influence as a therapist and advocate for others. My niche had now just grown another dimension: the diabetic community. I began to ask myself, "How can I reach the diabetic community at large in the areas of soul care, mental health, advocacy and personal/vocational empowerment? How beautiful a gift, the thing that at first felt messy and out of control and in a fairly short time has shifted into something that I can use to have an even greater purpose and calling in my community. There is a Counting Crows song called August and Everything After (thus the inspiration for the title of this post) and in appreciation of the lyrics of this song.....'In August and everything after, I'm after everything'. After everything that will make life as a Type 1 more fulfilling, more healthy, better balanced and fruitful.