[enigmalady777]

So far there have been great posts in response to the OP.

I have been a type 2 diabetic for some 15 years now. I went through a period of "not caring" also.

I ate whatever I wanted. When I wanted. Didn't test.

You know what happened?

My toes went numb on my left foot.

"Okay. I can deal with the numbness" I told myself.

Then the toes on my right foot went numb.

"So what" I told myself. "Who wants to live forever anyway?" I reasoned.

Then the pain came. In both feet. All the time. Especially at night. I couldn't sleep because of the pain. Then the fatigue hit during the day. And the depression.

My doctor nagged me. My family nagged me. My latest A1C shot up to over 8.1 (average blood sugar of 200). I wanted to just curl up and DIE. Why bother at all, I reasoned. I'm too busy, too this, too that.

Then suddenly, something in me SNAPPED. I came out of the "coma of not caring" and decided that I had the ability to change all of this.

What made me change? I couldn't tell you.

Maybe it was looking at my darling baby granddaughter and realizing that I wouldn't be around to see her grow up if I continued to be careless.

Maybe it was the realization that I wouldn't be well enough to travel, something I enjoy immensely.

Maybe it was my doctor's phone call telling me I was "maxed out" on my oral meds and I needed to go on insulin.

Maybe it was my mother, who died from complications from diabetes at only age 60, sending me a message of the other side.

Whatever it was, I am thankful for it. "WAKE UP WOMAN!!!" was the message I heard and I heard it loud and clear!

I started reading everything I could get my hands on that was available on the internet about diabetes, insulin therapy and low carb diets. I Joined this board and a couple others.

I started taking insulin along with a low carb lifestyle. I went back to diligently taking my BG levels 6-8 times a day. I saw trends, I tested, I adjusted my diet. I even went back to my doctor after a month of using just a long acting insulin and asked to have a mealtime insulin added to my therapy to gain better control. I learned how to manage this beast.

Yes it was difficult. Yes it was a pain in the rear. Yes it requires LOTS OF WORK. Is it worth it???

YOU BET!!

And guess what? The pain has gone away. No more sleepless nights due to burning feet and shooting pains. No more lethargy during the day from too high blood sugars.

My biggest fear was that I had let this monster get so out of hand that I had damage to my vision. I had avoided having a retinal scan each time the doctor suggested it. I just DID NOT WANT TO KNOW if there was damage. I was in true denial.

I finally got the courage to have the scan done this time.

I have no diabetic retinopathy (loss of vision) as of my last retinal screening a few weeks ago. I dodged a bullet. My late mother was not so lucky.

People can nag you. Your doctors can chide you. But until YOU decide to take care of yourself, nothing is going to help you.

Do not wait until complications set in. They WILL set in. Maybe not today, not tomorrow or next week. But rest assured, this disease is a monster. It is progressive. It will damage your organs and like humpty dumpty, some of that damage is very difficult to "put back together".

Don't wait.