My Story: Gary and Diabetes

Gary has always been physically active but was noticing strange symptoms of being tired after meals and relying on energy drinks. Today, he manages his type 2 diabetes and understands the importance of listening to your body and a positive outlook.

Transcript

00:00

GARY: You know with diabetes, it's known as the silent killer. You need to be your own best advocate. [WHOOSH] [MUSIC PLAYING]

00:07

[WHOOSH] Now you're looking at somebody who has the lifestyle always being active, always involved in sports.

00:14

My dietary habits were always decent. 15-odd years ago, my daughter and I would go out to lunch on weekends,

00:20

and we'd go see a movie after. And I'd be like falling asleep in the theater after lunch. You know, why I was getting that tired, I had no idea.

00:28

If I was playing golf at the time, drinking one of these energy drinks, I would have to urinate, like all the time, like every 10,

00:35

15 minutes. Again, I had no idea what that was. I had a physician measuring the sugar, the glucose in my blood,

00:42

and she said to me, you're diabetic. I am a type 2 diabetic. The hardest part of maintaining a diabetic regimen

00:51

is a lack of exercise. How many different types of sugar-free this and that you can purchase.

00:58

Vegetables and fruits that are available 12 months a year. I've been active and exercising probably since my single digits, up until this pandemic.

01:08

And I frankly think that's making me unhealthy also. I don't exercise quite as much.

01:14

We go for walks. We have a new puppy, and she is a ball of fire. So we go on long walks with her, and that's

01:20

basically my exercise. But I've lost a lot of muscle mass. I have a healthy living family.

01:26

I'm sure there are other people that live around people who don't eat right, don't exercise, you know, and all the rest of the stuff

01:34

that makes it very difficult for them. Because it is. You know, when you're in Rome, you want to do what the Romans do. I think listening to your health care team

01:41

is extremely important. But it's more than the health care team. It's listening to your own body.

01:48

It's knowing your own body. It's exercise. It's diet. It's medicine. It's also mood as well.

01:55

I mean, your outlook, I think, is extremely important. You know, I have a lot to live for. I want to see my kids grow up, my kids get old,

02:05

and I want to see my grandkids grow up. [WHOOSH] [HEARTBEAT] [MUSIC PLAYING]