Category: Health & Well Being

An inconvenient “Tooth”

As life isn’t harsh enough living with Type-1 Diabetes, I’m sure I don’t need to remind everyone that Diabetes affects just about every system in the body. On Wednesday, I had a dental appointment. For the most part, I take pretty good care of my oral health. I brush every morning and evening and floss as often as I can. But even that can fall short of what’s required, depending on the circumstances. Since I changed jobs last year, I found myself without dental insurance for a period of time. And since I’m cheap to a fault, i refused to pay for dental visits until my new coverage kicked back in. I would regret that decision…

Since I hadn’t been to a dentist’s office in over a year and had taken no x-rays of my teeth in about five years, I accepted the full gamut. They took x-rays of my teeth and without even opening my mouth, the hygienist recognized that there would be some serious work to be done to remove all the plaque. I was in the chair for almost two hours while the hygienist scaled and cleaned my teeth. bear in mind that this was with an injured back and being in severe pain.

When the cleaning was done and the dentist came in to perform his examination, it was determined that I had receding gums over one of my bottom teeth. He issued a referral to a periodontist, which kind of pissed me off since he didn’t discuss it with me or ask if I wanted to be referred. It was until I was alone with the hygienist that she explained that they would assess the situation with my gums and any further action would totally be my choice. But based on how those procedures have been described to me and how painful they’re supposed to be, I’m kind of sceptical. I’ve had enough pain in my life…

Maintaining good oral hygiene is about far more than just preventing cavities or gum disease. Bad oral hygiene has been linked to heart disease, with bacteria and plaque making their way into the blood stream and causes all sorts of chaos. That same bacteria has been linked with respiratory problems, increased risk of infection and even erectile dysfunction. Makes you think twice about skipping that tooth brushing session, eh?

Cue the part where Diabetes comes in. Since Diabetes reduces the body’s resistance to infection, gum disease is more prominent among people with Diabetes. Lovely, eh? that same gum disease can also make it harder to control one’s blood sugar. I’ve never noticed an issue in that regard but it’s just one more thing to worry about. Honestly, the gums that are receding have been doing so for over 25 years. I’m doubtful that I’ll put myself through the pain and difficulty of grafting a cover. I’d rather have the tooth removed, if I’m being honest. Take care of your teeth, folks. You only get the one set (as an adult). ☯️

Less Than A Gentle “Ribbing”…

So, a few days ago I posted about how I attended an all-weekend karate seminar. this happened last weekend and was supposed to last all day, Saturday and Sunday. Sometime during the morning session on Sunday, I took a punch to the left side of my rib cage. The immediate feeling was having the wind knocked out of me. When I left the ring and stood off to the side, it took a few moments for the aching feeling and loss of breath to subside. once it did, i noticed a sharp pain in my side that I was able to ignore for at least the last twenty minutes until the session closed.

Once class closed, I was changing and noticed I was having difficulty getting out of my gi, with a sharp pain shooting up my left side and throwing bright, white stars behind both my eyes. I told some of the instructors that I wouldn’t be returning for the afternoon session. When I got home, I fell onto my bed and fell asleep from exhaustion. When i woke up, I could barely move. My first instinct was that my opponent had crushed a muscle and this was a muscle-based pain. But as the days passed and the pain worsened, I started to wonder if perhaps I had fractured/broken a rib.

It’s been a painfully brutal week. You really don’t realize how MUCH you use your core and abdominal muscles until you’ve suffered an injury that prevents it. The past week has seen me unable to comfortably sleep, do normal daily or chores or even get in and out of my car without wincing in severe pain. Hell, I haven’t been able to get in and out of a CHAIR without wincing in severe pain. And that sucks, since I don’t exactly have the most free time to be out of commission.

Once I realized I had a severe problem that wouldn’t be fixed on its own, I had to contemplate the possibility of finding a doctor. Problematically, finding a family doctor is quite, well… problematic, here in Saskatchewan. I still have a personal physician from my Mountie days but she’s located in Swift Current, which is a few hours away from where I am in Regina. Although making that trip wouldn’t usually be such a big deal, doing it when I’m in pain and my back is pooched isn’t the greatest. Luckily, my wife had a doctor’s appointment today that she no longer needed so she called in and had them exchange it to my name, instead.

I’m not sure what the doctor will determine, whether it’s a broken rib or damaged muscle. My sincere hope is that there’ll at least be SOMETHING that can be done to alleviate some of the pain. I feel as though I was JUST hitting my stride, being back in karate. Just in time to get injured and have to take a break for a couple of weeks. Figures. Either way, it’s important to take the necessary amount of time to heal properly when you suffer an injury. Better to wait it out and get better than return early and suffer potential further injury. ☯️

The World May Burn While It Continues To Turn…

Life is tough. I don’t think I’m providing any enlightened insight, there. It’s even tougher when you’re alone. And that solitude is all the more difficult when it comes as no fault of one’s own. Throughout my youth, I spent many an hour by myself. Always a bit of an outcast, I didn’t have many friends during my childhood and the ones I did have were quick to leave me behind when they found someone better. By “better,” I mean better from THEIR perspective; not realistically better.

In fact, I remember a kid I used to spend time with that I considered to be my best friend, whatever that means at such a young age. He quickly started spending time with another kid who had more money, better gadgets and toys and access to a car when we reached our teens. It didn’t matter that the other guy was an absolute asshat who used people until he grew tired of them and then tossed them aside. I was left in the weeds despite all of that. Things don’t get much better into adulthood, with self-proclaimed “friends” often leaving you behind in favour of what they consider to be greener pastures.

You only get out of life what you choose to put into it. If life serves you lemons and all you do is stare at them, you’ll never get to taste the lemonade. It’s only through the effort of cutting, squeezing and zesting those lemons, then adding sugar and water to the mix that it will become the tasty accomplishment that we know as lemonade. Maybe that’s a bit of a cheesy comparison but it’s accurate. People will often use you and toss you aside when they’re done with you. In some cases, this doesn’t mean that they’re inherently bad people; it simply means they were never taught any better.

When life gets you down and you feel like you’re all alone, use that time to your advantage. Spend some time getting to know yourself and discovering who you are and what you want out of life. Read that book you’ve left sitting on your shelf for the past few years. Spend some time outside watching the world. Sit in on a movie at a theatre that you’ve wanted to see. Take a trip. Some time alone can be important in order to help one reflect and truly allow themselves to become who they are.

Take it from someone who spent most of his youth by himself; being a loner doesn’t mean that you ARE a loner. It simply means that you’re unique and outside the confines of the expected social norm. And there’s nothing wrong with that. If the people within your scope of existence don’t like who you are and don’t want to stick around, so be it. That means that they weren’t meant to be part of your inner circle. Eventually, people will come into your life that are worth keeping around. And at that point, you’ll discover that they not only appreciate you for who you are and HOW you are; they’ll also become an integral part of that journey and may help you discover a few things along the way. Food for thought… ☯️

Your Body Isn’t All You Should Take Care Of…

Training in the martial arts can be taxing on the body. Hell, scratch that… It WILL be taxing on the body. Even if you manage to come out of years of training unscathed from being struck and/or injured in that fashion, any reasonable physical exertion will cause pulled muscles, bruising and sprains. And on top of nursing those injuries and taking care of one’s body, it’s also important to maintain proper hygiene of one’s body, as I wrote about here. But what many people seem to forget is that good hygiene and cleanliness doesn’t stop with one’s body. There’s also one’s equipment and uniform that need to be addressed…

I’ve often noticed that when someone finishes a class, they have a tendency of packing their gi into their gym bag and head home. Some may pull the gi out and let it dry/air out but many will actually just let it sit in the bag, especially if they happen to have class a couple of nights in a row. There are some significant problems with this. For one, sweating into a garment for a couple of hours then containing it inside a gym bag is just asking for trouble. We’re talking bacteria growth and even mold and mildew if it’s allowed to sit for too long.

All of these things will cause noticeable issues for the practitioner, if allowed to continue unchecked. re-wearing sweaty gear can cause all sorts of skin issues, like rashes and dermatitis. Add to that the fact that re-wearing a gi that has absorbed sweat can potentially emit a bad smell reminiscent of bad BO, whether it dried inside the bag or not. What’s worse, is that the wearer often won’t be aware of that odour themselves. It’s others who will notice it. That’s why it’s so important to keep your gi and equipment clean and washed after every use.

The obvious exception is if your gi is freshly washed and you walk into a light class where you haven’t broken a sweat. You get home, take your gi out of the bag and lay it out and you should be fine. but as a general rule, you should be washing your gi after every use and your bag and sparring gloves at least once a month (less for the gloves, depending on their composition and how often you use them). I was reminded of this fact recently, when a student I was training with exuded a funk that could have easily been described as leaving a wet beach towel sitting at the back of a musty closet for a month.

An important detail to remember as well, is that not all gis are created equal. ironically, the less expensive ones will come out of the laundry flexible and fitting the same as when it went in. Although usually composed of cotton, a gi can be sanforized or not. Sanforized basically means that it’s been pre-washed and shrunk to its current size, so washing in hot or cold water makes no difference. A non-sanforized gi will often come out of the laundry tighter than when it went in. This will make it more difficult to move freely while training. It’s not a bad idea to stretch out your gi prior to use.

Hygiene doesn’t just stop with oneself. Good cleanliness habits extend to one’s uniform and equipment. not only will you avoid tons of issues surrounding your personal hygiene, your dojo-mates will certainly appreciate the lack of bad smells. It’s also important from a respect standpoint. For your dojo AND for your uniform. ☯️

Different Strokes For Different Folks (or “It could be worse”)

Some of the more difficult issues in living with any chronic condition are the stigmas that are often associated with them. Often, people will assume that one’s condition isn’t bad by virtue of what they may have heard about it, or they have pre-conceived notions about its severity because one may not present visible or physical symptoms. It’s an issue I’ve had to deal with often throughout my life, ironically from family members as well as peers, employers and friends.

It’s kind of like some of the videos I’ve seen online where someone walks up to an individual in a parking lot and starts betraying them for parking in a handicap spot, despite having a handicap placard. The old line of “but you look fine” or “you’re walking normally” usually comes into play. Or knowing someone has fibromyalgia but suggesting it’s nothing because they seem to be getting on fine with their day, not recognizing the immense pain and effort it takes simply to “get on with one’s day.”

The best line and the one that usually pisses me off the most, is when people say “it could be worse.” What does that even mean??? I’ve actually spent my entire life hearing that line from my mother, of all people. I know that she’s usually saying it in the context of trying to face the positive but it never feels that way and comparing a person’s medical condition to something YOU perceive as being worse helps no one.

This irks me far more than it probably should but when I have someone who suggests that matters could be worse, I could have cancer or flesh-eating virus or any score of other ailments, it cheapens the severity of my own condition. I may look fine, but inside I have a tumultuous typhoon of symptoms, pains, bodily issues and a strict check and balance that needs to be maintained, just so that I can “look fine.”

The irony is that for those of us who see fit to work hard and push through, we’re not rewarded by praise for maintaining our overall health. We’re told that it doesn’t seem so bad and that it “could be worse.” Do anyone with a chronic condition a favour; don’t assume or presume how a person is doing solely on what your eyes can see. And don’t lessen the severity of someone’s condition simply because you know someone else who may be worse off. That helps no one. Food for thought… ☯️

The Most Unfortunate Coincidences…

Yesterday was an extremely difficult day for me. It usually always is, every year but for some reason, this year hit me harder than most. Maybe it’s because of all the bullshit happening in the world worth no clear sign of any of it ever ending. Who knows? While critically buried in my own grief, yesterday’s post failed to bring up a key event: It was once again time for my eye injections.

By the time that I had posted yesterday, I was well on my way to packing a bag for the two and half hour drive to Saskatoon, where I would book into my usual hotel and go get flaming hot needles jabbed directly into my eyeballs. Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating a bit… they’re not ACTUALLY flaming or hot. It usually just feels like they are. I make a big deal out of getting these injections but as Diabetic complications go, they’re not the worst. They just seem like the worst I go through because I maintain a tight control and have no other complications (yet).

My travel to Saskatoon was markedly uneventful, with my thoughts focused on the loss of my brother and the distinct irony that I had some scheduled, physical pain to pile on top of my recurring, yearly emotional pain. That irony was not lost on me as I made my way there and followed my usual routine and made my way to the hospital. The only silver lining is that despite having bumped my injections from seven weeks to eight, my vision was still clear and my eyes were free of fluid or swelling. This is good news, considering that about five or six years ago, I was attending every four weeks.

I spent my evening last night at an Irish pub, drowning my sorrows and attempting to lessen the pain in both my soul and in my eyes. I’ve woken up this morning feeling as though someone rubbed both my eyeballs with sandpaper. But my vision is clear and I have scheduled work meetings from my room before checking out and hitting the road for home. Staying healthy with Type-1 Diabetes is a difficult task. Sometimes the efforts are painful and tedious but I like to think that keeping my sight is important enough to warrant the pain and discomfort.

It was a strange coincidence that the anniversary of my brother’s death landed on the same date as my eye injections. If my doctor and I hadn’t decided to try for eight weeks, I’d have gotten the injections last week. It’s kind of like one of those strange happenings on a calendar, like this year being the only 2-2-22. But enough of my ramblings… It’s time to get on with the day. ☯️

Guilt No More…

I think it’s safe to say that Diabetes is one of those “invisible” illnesses. After all, if one were to see me walking down the street, one would never be able to KNOW that i have Diabetes. Contrary to what you may see joked about on mainstream media and in the movies, having Diabetes doesn’t unilaterally mean that one is obese, missing toes or eats too much candy and junk food. Granted there ARE some like that, but it isn’t the standard. Most people don’t see what’s happening below the surface and they don’t realize the effort and control it takes just to get through the day. Some of that has led to some extremely uncomfortable situations throughout my life.

When you reach a certain age, you start to contemplate your life. And that isn’t a bad thing. Although I’ve grown to accept and acknowledge that I live my life without regret, contemplation is a completely different thing. My life is pretty awesome; I can’t deny that. To live with any regret means that I wouldn’t want my life being what it is now, and that just wouldn’t be true. But like anyone else, I’ve made some mistakes and have hurt people along the way with the choices I’ve made. And that’s what I’ve been contemplating.

For the most part, I was a pretty stubborn kid during my teen years. This cost me a lot, when i consider friendships, relationships and even experiences. Always a bit of a loner, I went it alone and dealt with the many ups and downs that Diabetes caused without ever sharing what I was going through with anyone. That includes my parents. Given the significant lack of control I had over my blood sugars, I tended to be cold, distant and a bit of an overall asshole. I know what you may be thinking: how is that different from how I am now? Well, first of all, fuck you! Second of all, I’m going to explain…

Wildly varying blood sugars can cause all sorts of behavioural issues, including fatigue, depression, mood swings and unprovoked anger. This didn’t bode well for friendships and relationships. And wouldn’t you know it, I just HAD to be going through it during my teen years when i was trying to be a typical teen… have friends, date girls and go out and have fun. None of that was conducive to good blood sugar control. I think back to the number of times I had to bail on friends and just stay home because In felt like absolute shit due to my Diabetes.

This doesn’t even begin to cover how much of a dick I was to girls I dated (NSFW pun fully intended). My mood swings and behavioural issues due to Diabetes made for some pretty harsh treatment from me. Couple that with the typical torrential wave of teenage hormones I was subjected to that just made all of it worse. This led to some pretty in-depth guilt, which cause some of the aforementioned depression. Unlike most teenagers of my generation, I never touched drugs or alcohol. In fact, as I’ve written in previous posts, I only had my first beer when i was 23 years old. So I had to ride the guilt wave with none of the safety or floatation devices that most people have.

Even now, knowing what I know and having the control that I do, my time is better preferred sitting at home relaxing with my wife than making plans and trying to leave the house. I keep a pretty tight reign on my Diabetes nowadays and since absolutely everything tends to affect blood sugars, I also keep a tight reign on how late I stay up and how I spend time outside my house. But I no longer feel the guilt that comes with the issues I faced during my teen years. As an adult, i recognize that my life and family come first. And there can be no guilt in that. The rest of the world will simply need to understand that. ☯️

Insulinoma

Because Diabetes on its own isn’t bad enough, I recently read about something called Insulinoma. For those who may not be familiar with it, insulinomas are rare tumours that develop in the pancreas.Most medical professionals will tell you that they can’t stand to watch hospital shows because of the lack of reality but that’s actually where i heard about them. I was watching a hospital drama when the concept of insulinomas came up. I was curious enough to look it up and lo and behold! It’s a real thing… Here’s some information that I found.

According to an article posted by HealthLine.com, an insulinoma is a small tumour located on the pancreas that causes an excess of insulin production. It usually isn’t cancerous but needs to be removed before the production of excess insulin can be stopped. It can be life-threatening, since excess insulin can cause hypoglycaemia, loss of concsciousness and can mimic symptoms that if undiagnosed, can lead a person to believe they’re developing Diabetes or Epilepsy.

According to an article by one of my favourite websites, WebMD, the usual treatment is to simply remove the tumour surgically. Once this is done, the symptoms usually disappear. In some instances, they may have to excise a piece of the pancreas that has the tumour but that’s pretty rare. Getting an insulinoma is pretty rare, in fact. And in those rare instances where surgery is not an option, there are treatments to help prevent the blood sugar lows.

Every time I think I’ve learned everything there is to know about my condition and the pancreas, something new pops up. Not that this condition is relevant to me, per se… And this isn’t the most stimulating post I’ve ever made. But I can easily see how someone could mistake the symptoms of an insulinoma as contracting Diabetes. And learning something new is never a bad thing, right? ☯️

Creamy Dill Dip…

Alright, so despite the fact I often harsh on the negative aspects of social media (despite the fact I operate on several platforms), I have to give credit where credit is due. Social media can be extremely useful in reconnecting with people from your past that you DIDN’T walk away from, intentionally. Enter: several of my high school classmates. In the past year, I’ve reconnected and friended several of the people I graduated from high school with.

One of those friends shared a meal that she prepared that included salmon and a homemade, creamy dill sauce. I’m a big fan of salmon and fish in general (Hello, Maritimer over here!) so I was taken. But what also caught my attention was the dill sauce. My entire household is a fan of dill. We have dill powder for our popcorn, we use dill-flavoured dill dip with our chips and include actual dill in many of our recipes. Not least of which is the fact that we eat dill pickles. Because, dill pickles. But I digress…

My successful dip

I was curious to the point where I asked her for her recipe, which she generously provided. I’m usually a bit leery about trying new recipes as I’m no Gordon Ramsay, by any means. But the recipe was super simple and only took about ten minutes. As it was shared with me, so shall I share it with you. Here we go:

  • 1/4 cup of mayonnaise;
  • 1/4 cup of sour cream;
  • 3 tablespoons of dried dill;
  • 2 tablespoons of rice wine vinegar;
  • 1 teaspoon of dijon mustard;
  • garlic salt and pepper to taste.

Mix all those ingredients in non particular order into a small bowl, whisk until everything is combined and go to town! My friend made a point of mentioning that she doesn’t usually use actual measurements and eyeballs everything to taste. I don’t have that level of skill. One thing I will mention is that after two tablespoons of dill, I started to panic and think three would have been too much. It wouldn’t have been. It definitely could have used the added dill kick. But it was definitely delicious and I’ve used it with chips, wings and on fish. Absolutely delicious.

Like anything else someone with Type-1 Diabetes consumes, one should be mindful of portions, carbohydrate counts and proper monitoring of one’s blood sugars. But this dip is quite versatile and goes with SO many different foods. It’s definitely worth a try, if you’re looking for something new. Food for thought (pun fully intended)… ☯️

Life-Saving Modern Techniques…

I’m usually not one for paying attention to the mass plethora of ads that get thrown my way when I wander the digital super highway… If I had to stop every time a Facebook pop-up suggested I need male enhancement pills or I can meet horny matures in my area, I’d never get shit done! But once in a while, something will actually catch my attention and will motivate me to check. This is the case with this item: the LifeVac. I don’t make a point of endorsing or recommending SPECIFIC products, but once in a while I find myself making an exception.

The lifeVac is basically a CPR mask equipped with a suction device that allows someone without CPR training to release an upper-airway obstruction when traditional CPR methods don’t work. For me, it means peace of mind in the event of a choking hazard if I’m not home. Although my wife and I have both taken First Aid, mine is a bit more recent given the nature of my law enforcement work and my wife has never had to use it. This seemed like a good addition to our home’s medical supplies.

I found a Canadian website that would allow me to order the LifeVac and have it shipped to me in Saskatchewan. They had a variety of packages including one device or multiple, and even a hard shell plastic case one can mount to a wall for easy access; a bit like mounting a fire extinguisher. Although a bit on the pricey side, there’s no value to the potential life of a beloved family member. I ordered a “home kit,” which includes one device, an adult mask, a child mask, a practice mask (whatever the fuck THAT means) and instructions.

I got my package and opened it up with barely contained excitement. true to it’s advertisements, the device had a one-way valve that prevents air being pushed INTO the victim when pressing down. It provides a significant amount of suction that’s meant to dislodge and bring up whatever may be obstructing the upper airway. It requires no strength, training or effort but could potentially save a life. I love it. LOVE IT!!!

Ignore my double chins…

I think we can all agree that unless one has taken some specific training and are willing to use it, most people will succumb to the unfortunate phenomena where they sit there and watch when someone needs help. Some of that can be alleviated with a device that takes out the majority of the guess work. I’ve never been so excited about something I hope NEVER to use… If you’re a Canadian resident and are interested into looking into them, you can find them on LifeVac’s Canadian website here. ☯️