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Diabetes Challenges - The Grown Up Edition

Diabetes Challenges - The Grown Up Edition
Growing up with diabetes was a challenge - just ask my mother, who mothered three children and a husband with type 1 diabetes.
Ask "Kelly In The Past," who had her share of trying to fit in and be normal - It wasn't always easy.
Ask my oldest friends, who saw the good, bad, and diabetesalicious of it all.

I think one of the reasons I became such a loyal friend is because of diabetes. I know the value of having friends who are there regardless of a faulty pancreas.

And now that I'm all grown up, diabetes is still a challenge - and new challenges have popped up.

There are fleeting moments that I forget about diabetes. OK, not forget, but some things, like testing my blood sugar, and immediately counting carbs when ever food enters my mind or is presented on my plate, have become so automatic that they've become second nature to me, like breathing and hating liver.

The longer I live with diabetes, the more I worry about "The Diabetes What If's." And I know that a little worry can be productive, but too much can be down right paralyzing.
I still struggle with the worry, but I'm handling much better than I have in the past - And that's directly related to being part of the Diabetes on-line community.

Then there's the challenge of people (mostly perfect strangers) asking me if I can have kids because, you know, I have (said in a concerned tone) diabetes. Or ,they switch it up a bit and ask me if the reason I don't have kids is because of my diabetes. For the record, diabetes is NOT the reason I have yet to be called "Mommy", but honestly, it's none of their business!
I don't ask (OK, most of the time I don't ask) those nosey nellies the last time they took a crap or had sex, so why is it OK to ask me about my reproductive long term plans, decisions, etc?

Diabetes and dating was never a problem before. I was always honest and upfront regarding my diabetes, but I was the one who decided when it was time to bring up my diabetes. When I did decide to share my diabetes, it was usually on the 4th or 5th date, when I knew that things were going well - And it was never a deal breaker in any of my long term relationships.
But now that I blog about diabetes on a daily basis, and the name of my blog is on my business card - And we live in the age where Google has become a pre-dating pre-requisite, the decision of when to share my diabetes with a potential significant other is no longer mine.

And I'll admit, not having control in that area bothers me.

With that being said, I would never go back to my life pre Diabetesaliciousness.
Diabetes blogging has given me a voice; a passion, a community, a career, and an irreplaceable support system that I need, want, and could not live without in my life.

Life will always present us with challenges, faulty pancreas or not. That doesn't mean we stop being or doing.
In fact, it's just the opposite, we learn new ways to continue doing, becoming and evolving.

And that my Diabetesalicious friends, is what living is all about!

Militant Skepticism and the Homeopathy Denialists

Militant Skepticism and the Homeopathy Denialists
This is an old Persian story - which seems to sum up the position of Homeopathy denialists!

"A man who had always lived in the city visited a farm and saw some chicken roosting and resting on one leg as they do.

"Based on his observation he reported to his older and wiser friend that chickens have only one leg!

"His friend could not change this man's observation no matter how hard he tried and how many photographs of birds and chickens all having two legs!

"He formed a group of prominent people who all confirmed that Chicken have only 1 leg!

This appears to be the way that Homeopathy Denialists function. They regularly attack these blogs. They believe that homeopathy does not work, that there is no evidence that homeopathy works, and that it is nothing more than placebo.

  • Every person who was sick but has been treated successfully with homeopathy is an 'anecdote'.
  • The many millions of former patients who can testify for the effectiveness of homeopathy are still just 'anecdotes'.
  • Evidence produced by scientific research is not acknowledged by them: it is either ignored altogether or is 'not of sufficient quality'.
What is the best way to deal with people whose beliefs and prejudices appear to overcome what everyone can see? 

Ignore them! Allow them to continue to believe that chickens have just one leg, and continue healing illness and disease, and curing patients through Homeopathy.



Recently, I have been blogging a lot from the "Why Homeopathy?" website, which seeks to examine and compare the homeopathic and conventional treatment of a variety of illnesses and diseases. In all of them conventional medicine either has nothing to offer (and admits it on the NHS Choices website), or offers drugs which can known to cause the most serious adverse reactions, or DIEs. Homeopathy offers gentle, safe and effective remedies, and in most of the illnesses covered, there is is scientific research to support it.

What is the militant skeptic response to these articles. Have a look at these typical examples, all sent to me via Twitter over recent weeks.

"Why Homeopathy is best treatment for Asthma"
It isn't, you complete charlatan.
SayNoToBullshit
Dangerous bullshit
Dangerous bollocks
Complete and utter twaddle
You dishonest charlatan
That fuckwit is currently advocating sugar pills for painful female problems which sometimes indicate serious conditions.
The public has a right to know... that you are a dangerous delusional fuckwit who smears opponents.
There's no homeopathic treatment for tetanus. Dangerously stupid and irresponsible.

So who do we have to thank for these insightful comments? Nat (@SecuLawyer); Enoch (@FruitOfNoah); Dragonblaze (who states that Homeopathy is 'faith based'); Vix (@lillal23); Anarchic Teapot; Paul Morgan; Secular Bloke, and many others.

You can see from the quality and the rationale of these comments that these are just the kind of people who, once they believe that a chicken has one leg, will continue to believe that chickens have just one leg.

But don't dismiss these people entirely, even though they produce no evidence to support their prejudices, even though their language is deplorable, even though they are clearly full of bile. There are some Homeopathy Denialists amongst theme who should know better. One of these is Edzard Ernst. Wikipedia describes him as follows:

"…. an academic physician and researcher specializing in the study of complementary and alternative medicine. He was appointed Professor of Complementary Medicine at the University of Exeter, the first such academic position in the world.

Perhaps we might expect something rather more edifying from him. I will be outlining some of his Twitter statements in a future blog, and unfortunately they are little better in terms of evidence and reason than his colleagues quoted above. Ernst, too, it would seem, is the kind of person who cannot be persuaded that chickens have two legs!


Dear DIabetes - WE NEED TO TALK:

Dear DIabetes - WE NEED TO TALK:
Dear Diabetes:

Hey, how goes it?

Just checking in with you, to make sure that u and I are on the same page and see eye to eye.
We've had quite a long history together and have been through a lot, both good and bad.

I think you need a bit of refresher on what I expect out of this relationship so I've taken the initiative to write this letter and go over some House Rules.

FIRST OFF, lets discuss blood sugars. The way I see it, they’ve been pretty good as of late and I’d like to keep it that way. I’ve been checking in with said blood sugars about 10 times a day, and that’s not going to change. Yes, I know you think that that amount is somewhat excessive, but testing that often really does help me keep an eye on all your highs and lows.

Especially those times when u lean too much in either direction and try to throw me for a loop.

NEWSFLASH: I don’t like feeling lethargic when u decide to blow the BS sky high out of the water and I don’t appreciate the accompanying headache either. So I will continue to count my carbs and your just going to have to accept that.

AND WHEN U DO DECIDE TO GO LOW, that behavior is unacceptable as well. I do not appreciate breaking into a sweat and feeling my lips go numb. As far as that shaky feeling that shoots through my body, DON”T GO THERE. I know that it’s your way of letting me know my B.S has gotten way to low. But trust me, I’ve already figured it out, SO QUIT IT.

FYI: I see a CGM in my future if you don’t straighten up and fly right. I have no problem playing hardball.

SECONDLY, I have my yearly eye exam in March. I fully expect you to “make nice” when my Doctor dilates my pupils. Let him see exactly what’s going and continue to steer clear of my retinal area.
You and your kind are not welcome in these kaleidoscope eyes.

THIRDLY: My weight is dropping and I’d appreciate it if u continue to allow my waist to shrink. In order to do this I need you not to mess with my inflamed ligament in my foot.
The Ortho says it will get better and it is a result of exercising and a long second toe continually rubbing against my shoe. She also said that it is NOT diabetes related. LET’S KEEP IT THAT WAY.

AND LASTLY, please keep in mind that I am your host, and while I can’t make this a
“Dear John” letter and end our complicated relationship, I STILL OWN YOUR PERVERBIAL ASS. GOT IT? It's not the other way around and it never will be.

I WILL WORK WITH YOU; I have no problem with that. But I own you outright and you will do as I say.

My rules are simple. I want to be healthy, happy, and to live a great life. Occasionally I’d like to enjoy a coconut cupcake or a piece of dark chocolate without getting any crap from you.

Thank you for abiding by my rules.
Sincerely
Kelly K
Mistress of the Manor in which you reside - A.K.A Your Diabetes Hostess with the Most-ess

I Need Your Help, What Would YOU Do?

I Need Your Help, What Would YOU Do?
OK dBlogville, need your advice, as I’m ready to go medieval on someone whose taking care of my mother and yes, it’s totally diabetes related.

As I’ve told you before, my little 113 lb mom was diagnosed with t2 a few months back and put on Metformin once a day – lowest dose possible.

Now, normally her fasting b.s are only about 20 points higher than they should be, but since she going to have a surgery that had a high risk of infection, her docs decided to nip her slightly elevated blood sugars

Cut to last night – 7:30 PM. My mother calls me and says:

Hey Kel – guess what? They took my blood sugar and it was 250 – I wouldn’t let them give me insulin – I didn’t want another shot of anything.

Internal Voice: WTF, WTF, WTF, WTF!!!! Why not just tell me your having lunch with Serial Killer & stab me in the heart with a two-by-four????! She’s never been over 133 and visions of DKA started dancing in my head…but then, something made me ask the following question:

Me: Mom, when they took your B.S, had u washed your hands??


Mom: I always wash my hands when I go to the bathroom.

Me: That’s not what I asked. Did you by any chance have some chocolate or some Big Red Gum and just wipe your hands clean or did you get up and REALLY wash your hands?


Mom: Ummm, no.

Me: OK listens to me mom. Go wash your hands and don’t eat anything. I’m calling your nurse at the Nurses Station and asking her a few questions. If she comes in and takes your b.s again & it’s high, you have to take the insulin. If not – then we won’t worry about it.

Mom: I don’t want a shot.

Me: (Very exasperated) Listen to me mom – I know your veins are collapsing & your feeling like a pin cushion – I totally get that, but the insulin gets injected in the fatty tissue – not your vein – it won’t hurt as much and you won’t turn black and blue (OK – maybe I lied) but in order for your knee to get better, your blood sugars have to be perfect – or you won’t heel properly and your doing SO well.

So she promises me she’ll wash her hands and we hang up. I call the front desk and ask to speak to my moms nurse. They put me on hold for 10 minutes and finally Brenda the Nurse Practitioner from hell gets on the line.

NP from Hell: Yes, what can I do for you? (Can I just mention that she sounded really condescending?)

ME: I’m Marjory Kunik’s daughter Kelly and I just got off the phone w/her. What’s the story with her 250 blood sugar? She’s never been on insulin and her blood sugar is never over 130 = tops 140’s. She refused insulin, correct?

NP from Hell: (In the most irritated and are you f’ing kidding me voice ever): Your mom had a b.s of 250 and refused medication. This is a rehab and we cannot force the patient to take any meds they don’t normally take.

Me: I understand that – but,... I wonder if she had washed her hands - this was quite sometime after dinner, correct? I know she has chocolate in her room – she might have just popped a Hershey’s kiss and the remnants of said chocolate Kiss may have actually caused her high b.s. She’s never had such had such an elevated b.s in her life!

NP from Hell: Sugar has nothing to do with high blood sugars (yes –idiot banshee’s exact words, I kid you not!) and I swabbed her finger with alcohol.

Me: (Trying not to verbally annihilate her over the phone) Well, I’ve been a type 1 for 30 years and I’m also a Diabetes Advocate and beg to differ with you. Sugar, olive oil, anything on the hands can absolutely cause a false reading – articles have been written on the subject – go ask a CDE about it, I'll wait. Look, my mother barely eats as it is – hence the reason she has a bit of chocolate in her drawer – the woman only weights 113 lbs for god sakes. IF this is a TRUE high blood sugar, I want it dealt with Paula, immediately, and if not - thank God she refused the insulin – Does the name Sunny Von Bulow ring a bell? I want you to retest within the hour.

NP from Hell: I plan on going in at 10.

Me: Paula, I need you to do me a favor and go in at 8:30 - PLEASE.

NP from Hell: FINE.

Me: Thank-you Paula I’ll check back with you at 9.

SO, basically I’m fuming at this point and those of you who were privy to my Tweets and FaceBook status last nite can attest to that fact.

8:15 my sister calls and I fill her in – she calls my mom.

9:00 my mother calls me and says: Hey, guess what? They took my blood sugar and it’s 140. Washing my hands must have REALLY helped!

Me: Thank God. Listen – you must scrub your hands every time they check your blood sugar, OK?
Mom: OK – Good night, I love you!

Me: I love you mom, goodnight!

Cut to this morning - her blood sugar was 111.

Me – I've been checking in all day and blood sugars are text book. I've talked to her nurses & told them that they must call me if her b.s is over 150 and to make sure her hands are washed with soap and water before they test.
My sister met saw her today and sat in on a cumadin meeting with my mom and her team this afternoon - I haven't talked to her since this morning so I'm not sure what she said about last night.

Me, I still wanna kill Paula,Nurse Practitioner from Hell. I found her actions and attitude incredibly irresponsible and potentially lethal and I plan on discussing in excruciating detail during the meeting we have tomorrow with her doc's.

Any suggestions on How I should deal with the Dr’s regarding Paula, Nurse Practitioner from hell almost killing my mother or do you think I'm overreacting??

Those Strips Get EVERYWHERE - And I'm A TOTAL BLORK


Work started late today thanks to the threat of Snowmagedden, and speaking of snow- I'm "snowwwwwover it!" Worn out pun? YES. Is it true? ABSOLUTELY.

Anyway, I was on my way out the door when I spied the following on my stoop and snapped it with my iPhone, and than ran back inside to upload and post.

Actual Aeriel footage/evidence that Kelly K does indeed test~

I guess that act makes me a "Blork," A.K.A, Blogger Dork, which I'm more than OK with!

Back to the pic, I have no doubt it's one of mine - those darn test strips get EVERYWHERE!

HAPPY FRIDAY

Whooping Cough

Whooping Cough
Whooping Cough, or Pertussis, used to be a killer disease in the 19th Century. However, with better living standards, improved diet, better housing, the disease declined throughout the 20th century. Much of the credit for this decline has been wrongly claimed and attributed to conventional vaccine treatment, but the decline in Whooping Cough was happening long before the vaccine, and the decline continued, unchanged and unaffected, after the vaccine was introduced.

Now, however, in the 21st century there are signs that it is now re-emerging.

Indeed, the re-emergence of Pertussis has taken place mainly in countries where conventional vaccine treatment (usually the DPT vaccine) has been most evident, notably in the USA and Britain. Yet all the Conventional Medical Establishment seems able or willing to do, when faced by these new outbreaks, is to urge people to have the vaccination - even pregnant women it would appear! But before pregnant women, or indeed anyone else, does so we should examine the evidence first - particularly the evidence that our doctors, ConMed generally, and even, sadly, our mainstream media, will almost certainly not tell us about.

First, it is now apparent that those being affected by the new outbreaks of Whooping Cough are those who have already been vaccinated. Those of us who have not been vaccinated appear not to be affected. See these links for more information on this.
Worst whooping cough outbreak in over 50 years happening among the fully vaccinated
Whooping Cough Outbreaks in Vaxed Children More and More Frequent
Whooping Cough May Spread Through Vaccinated Populations

Indeed, it has been shown that vaccinated children account for some 90% of those getting Whooping Cough in these recent epidemics. In other words, we are all safer from the disease if we don't accept conventional vaccine treatment!
Recent Evidence Shows Vaccinated Kids Account For 90 Percent of Cases of Whooping Cough

What this clearly shows is that the vaccine is not working.

It has probably never worked, as I have already noted that the 'decline' in Whooping Cough cases was happening for nearly one hundred years before the vaccine was introduced.

Major Whooping Cough Epidemics – Vaccine Not Working. Child Health Safety
Outbreaks Proof That Whooping Cough Vaccines Don’t Work. International Medical Council on Vaccination
Whooping Cough Vaccine Doesn’t Work. GSK Says “We Never Bothered to Check” Child Health Safety

Yet it would appear that another story is beginning to emerge too. The Whooping Cough strain giving rise to the new epidemics, after years of suppression through the DPT vaccine (and its successor, the so-called 5-in-1 vaccine, has changed. And it is now more virulent, more dangerous than every it was before.
Deadly new pertussis strain linked with whooping cough vaccine
Whooping Cough Epidemic Caused by Virulent New Pertussis Strain—And It’s the Result of Vaccine

So Whooping Cough is now killing people again. Even BBC News appears willing to admit this, although as usual they fail to inform their viewers, listeners and readers the full story about the disease, and the problems created by conventional medical vaccnine treatment.
BBC News - Whooping cough: Three more babies die in outbreak
Five-year-old girl dies after being given just twice the normal dose of over-the-counter cough medicine

So the failure of conventional vaccines is not just that they do not work. They actually make the problem worse. 

Just as antibiotic drugs in recent years have created numerous deadly 'superbugs' they can no longer deal with, vaccines are getting progressively less effective, and leaving us with more deadly strains of the disease.

In other words, the ConMed war being waged on disease is being lost, Conventional, drug-based medicine is failing.
• Whooping cough strain 'breaking through' vaccines - ABC News (Australia) 
• Whooping Cough Spreads Through Pertussis Vaccine Itself
• Massive outbreak of whooping cough proves vaccine is ineffective

So desperate is the Conventional Medical Establishment becoming, there has even been an admission that vaccine treatment has failed!
http://www.naturalnews.com/035466_whooping_cough_vaccines_outbreaks.html failure admitted: Whooping cough outbreaks higher among children already vaccinated

So what should we do if we contract Whooping Cough?

First, we should not get embroiled in the panic of the Conventional Medical Establishment. Whooping Cough can be a killer disease for people who are living in poverty, with a poor diet, and inadequate housing conditions. But it is not usually a disease that kills healthy, fit individuals. I remember my mother being involved in parties for young children during outbreaks of childhood diseases, including Whooping Cough. The basis on which parents used to do this was that disease is usually experienced in a minor form, and contracting the disease naturally provides a more 'natural' immunity.

Yet when someone does contract the disease, there are lots of ways to limited its impact, and speed recovery. Even something as simple as Vitamin C is known to be helpful.
Vitamin C for Whooping Cough. International Medical Council on Vaccination

But Homeopathy, above all, is a therapy that deals calmly, effectively and safely with Whooping Cough (as it does for other childhood diseases). Reading this, and the following articles will tell you why, and they also mention a number of remedies that have been successfully used for treating this illness for over 200 years now.
Help For Whooping Cough When Prevention Fails
Homeopathy Makes a Real Difference in Whooping Cough | NAB Communities
The Homeopathic Option for Whooping Cough

Indeed, as this article says, Homeopathy treats Whooping cough dramatically more effectively than conventional, drug-based medicine.
Homeopathy dramatically more effective at preventing and treating whooping cough than allopathic medicine

All the dangers of the DPT and '5-in-1' vaccines have not been considered here. But they have been known for many decades. The dangers of the DPT vaccine, in particular, has been know for many decades now. Harris L Coulter, and Barbara Loe Fisher wrote their book "A Shot in the Dark. Why the P in the DPT vaccination may be hazardous to your child's health" over 20 years ago, in 1991. The 'P' stands for Pertussin!

The Conventional Medical Establishment, however, continues to ignore this, and present us with vaccines they continue to tell us are safe and effective.

You should make your own judgement on this, after considering the evidence.

FACs. Fetal Anti-Convulsant Syndrome. A disease created by Big Pharma drugs?

FACs. Fetal Anti-Convulsant Syndrome. A disease created by Big Pharma drugs?
Some years ago, I came across a family with two children suffering from this syndrome, and wrote about it here.

This 'new' illness has affected 37,500 children in Britain, according to the British Epilepsy Association. FACS produces a range of neural, behavioural, and physical disorders, and can include conditions such as cleft palate and spina bifida, learning difficulties, behavioural problems and abnormalities in movement, speech, vision and hearing.

So what is FACS, and where does it come from? 
Yet another new, strange and rare disease with no known cause? 

Well, not really, the cause is well known. 

These children were damaged in the womb when the mother had taken anti-convulsant drugs, such as Epilim and Carbamazepine.

So FACS is, in fact, another ConMed 'mistake', another disaster for parents and families where the 'science' of drug testing and drug regulation has proven to be no safeguard to public safety.

At the time of writing, this condition has had little publicity, but this, in itself, is something that should be a matter of public concern. 

  1. *Why are we not being told about such disease? 
  2. *What is preventing this information becoming more widely known?

Janet Williams, who has two sons affected by FACS, founded the Organisation for Anti-Convulsant Syndrome (OACS). She says:
"We want to hear from any family with a child with problems whose mother took any anti-epileptic drug in pregnancy".
She goes on to say that many of these children have been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders (ASD)
What do the drug companies say about it? Well, the usual denials.
* Anti-epileptic drugs are vital to the health of people with epilepsy, who should not stop taking them without consulting their doctor (so it is a balancing act again, weighing up the 'benefits' and the 'risks' of taking drugs).

Health authorities regularly routinely and continually review the safety of all licensed medications (including, presumably, these drugs, so no comfort for the children or their parents who suffer from FACS).

That warnings were given about valproate (the basic ingredient of epileptic drugs) in respect of possible effects in children born to mothers taking the product during pregnancy, and that "this information was approved by the regulatory authorities as consistent with current scientific knowledge" (which suggests that the dangers of the drugs were known to medical authorities, but they were prescribed to patients anyway).

I've Been "Lanced!" OR Kelly's Moretic Move # 5467

I am one of those individuals who need coffee in the morning; I'm also one of those people who are not naturally up at the crack of dawn. I set my alarm and get every up every morning at 6:40ish, but until I have that first cup, I’m not really coherent.

About a month ago, I had to get up at 5 am and to my credit, I was up at the first siren of my cell phone alarm. I shuffled to the kitchen and grabbed my test kit. I reached for new lancet (a rarity I know, but I guess the whole get a new lancet and fill up your damn Test Strip bottle art thing) got the better of me.

I tested, it was 66, my cheek (the one on my face people – mind out of the gutter please) itched so I scratched it, and then scratched it again. I packed up my kit, quickly fixed a small banana with peanut butter and washed it down with some Vanilla Sil
k Soy, made the coffee, and waited as the coffee slowly dripped from the machine. While I waited, I prepared my “Wicked, The Musical” coffee cup with 3 sugars and some half and half.


I poured the coffee, gulped ½ a cup down and walked in the bathroom to take a shower.

I flipped on the light, took my glasses off and looked in the mirror- then did a double take!

And…
here’s why:


A few days after my Moretic Move # 5467

Yours truly had lanced herself with a brand spanking new lancet – and hadn’t even felt it!
I guess I still had the lancet in my hand when I scratched my cheek, and some how got “lanced” in the process. I knew there was reason I hated getting new lancets!

Anyway, I cleaned up the blood, took a shower, and covered my “war wound” with makeup. It’s been over a month and it’s healed quite nicely.
There’s an ever so faint red line that still runs across my chin and it’s easily covered with sunscreen and makeup. Hopefully it will be gone for good by summer.

So....what have we learned from this?

1. Perhaps I need to drink a few drops of coffee before I actually test – obviously I can’t be trusted with sharp instruments sans caffeine.
2. New lancets are so sharp that they don’t hurt – hence the reason we should change them often, but never really do.
3. Kelly is a Moretic – and has another scar to prove it!


Tonsillitis. Why Homeopathy is a safer and more effective treatment

Tonsillitis. Why Homeopathy is a safer and more effective treatment
Tonsillitis is the inflammation of the tonsils in the throat. It is a common infection in children, although it can also affect adults too. The symptoms include sore throat, difficulty swallowing, high temperature, coughing, which can  be painful, headache. nausea, and swollen neck glands. 

Conventional Medical Treatment

As the NHS Choices website openly admits, there is no “specific” treatment for tonsillitis. Instead, it recommends several things that can be done to help alleviate symptoms, such as:
  •     paracetamol or ibuprofen / Nurofen to help relieve pain - with all the usual warnings about their use, of course
  •     plenty of bed rest, and drinking plenty of fluids
  •     antibiotics if the cause is a bacterial infection, although it rarely is

NHS Choices goes on to say that most cases of tonsillitis get better within a week. “A small number of children and adults have tonsillitis for a long time or it keeps coming back. This is known as chronic tonsillitis and may require treatment with surgery”.

So conventional medicine can, on their own admission, offer little effective treatment for tonsillitis. And when the condition becomes chronic it can offer only the surgical removal of the tonsils. And this operation has, in recent decades, been found to be damaging to our longer-term health (however, there is no mention of this in the NHS Choices website).

Perhaps this is why, for many decades, conventional medicine appears to have considered the tonsils to be an unnecessary, even useless organ! Through most of the 20th century, tonsils were removed, almost routinely, by surgeons. Indeed, it is widely admitted that the purpose of the tonsils was largely unknown. Only since the 1960’s was it gradually understood that the tonsils played an important role in our body’s immune function. The absence of tonsils is now even thought to have contributed to the outbreaks of Poliomyelitis. Now, our tonsils are known to be part of our first line of defence against pathogens - they are an integral part of our immune system. 

“Tonsils are filled with lymphocytes which detect harmful intruders and fight off infections. When danger is discovered, the tonsils swell with these guardian cells to ward off the invaders, a process which often causes a sore throat. 

So, inflamed tonsils did not indicate dysfunction, as conventional medicine appears to believe, but are organs that are importantly, and actively involved in protecting us. Despite this, conventional medicine continues to be prepared to remove them.



Homeopathy offers many remedies that are known to treat tonsillitis successfully, even where the condition has become chronic - with repeated and painful episodes. The main aim of homeopathic treatment is to avoid surgery, and the damage that this can do to our immune system. A good description of the many homeopathic remedies known to treat Tonsilitis is given on the Similima website (click here), from which these remedy pictures are taken.

BELLADONNA - congested’ red, hot face and skin, ‘Strawberry’  tongue, right side is worse

ARS-IOD - Scrofulous affections. Tonsils swollen, burning, Persistently irritating, corrosive  discharges, Breath fetid and glandular involvement

CAPSICUM -Tonsillitis, burning and smarting sensation as from cayenne pepper, not better by heat, Constriction of throat. Intense soreness, Inflamed, dark red, swollen

CANTHARIS - Inflammation of throat with severe burning and rawness, Great constriction of throat and larynx, with suffocation on any attempt to swallow water

FERR PHOS – Chronic enlarged hyperaemic tonsils, smooth swelling. Right sided. The typical Ferr Phos subject is nervous, sensitive, anaemic with the false plethora and easy flushing. Prostration marked. Worse Night, 4-6pm, touch, jarring, motion. Better for cold applications

KALI-IOD - Suited to pale, delicate, subjects with glandular swellings. Extreme sensitiveness of parts affected. Nocturnal aggravation. Discharges are ichorous, corrosive and green

LACHESIS - Left tonsils affected, tendency to go to right. Throat purplish. Sense of constriction, as if something was swollen which must be swallowed. External throat extremely sensitive to touch
Liquids more painful. Pain radiates to ear. Better hot drinks. Worse after sleep

LAC CANINUM - Begins on left side, changing from side to side every few hours or days. Sensitive to touch externally. Constant inclination to swallow, painful almost impossible. Pain extends to ears
Sore throat and cough are apt to begin and end with menses. Probably no remedy presents a more valuable pathogenesis in symptoms of the throat

LYCOPODIUM - Chronic enlargement of tonsils, which are covered with small ulcers. Affects right side, right to left. Children weak, emaciated, with well developed head, but puny, sickly bodies. Worse 4-8 pm, cold drinks. Better for warm drinks

MERCURIUS - More advanced stage, when pus has formed, great swelling, whole fauces deep red
tonsils darker than any other parts, ulcers form. Profuse sweating without relief. Profuse salivation, breath offensive. Tongue large flabby with imprint of teeth. Moist tongue with thirst. Worse at night, damp, cold rainy weather

MERCURIUS IODATUS FLAVUS - Right  sided. Throat affections with greatly swollen glands. Tongue  coated thickly yellow at the base. Constant inclination to swallow. Better for cold drinks

MERCURIUS IODATUS RUBER - Left sided with  marked glandular swelling. Parenchymatous tonsillitis. Will often abort peri-tonsillitis if given frequently

BARYA CARB - Suppurating tonsils from every cold, stitching and smarting pain, worse for empty swallowing. Can swallow only liquids. Tonsils inflamed with swollen veins.

HEP.SULPH - Sensation as if a plug and of a splinter in throat. Quinsy with impending suppuration.

ECHINACEA - Tonsils purple or black, grey exudation extending to post.nares and air passages.
Eucalyptus, Tonsils enlarged, ulcerated and throat inflamed

NITRIC ACID - Suited to thin persons of rigid fibre, dark  complexions, black hair and eyes. Catches cold easily. Sensation of splinter in throat, worse from touch. Extreme fetidity and corrosiveness of all discharges. Chilly, loves salt and fat. Depressed and anxious. Worse, evening and night, cold climate. Better riding in car.

KALI MUR - Valuable remedy in a/c or c/c tonsillitis with much swelling. Almost a specific in follicular tonsillitis. Throat has a gray look, spotted with white

NAT MUR - Especially for the anaemic and cachetic. Great emaciation, losing flesh while eating well
Great liability to take cold. Craving for salt, aversion to bread. Consolation aggravates. Worse in heat of sun, by sea shore. Better in open air, cold bathing

NUX VOMICA - Patient Is irritable and oversensitive to external impression. Coryza dry at night, fluent by day, worse warm room, better cold air. Easily chilled, avoids open air. Frequent ineffectual urging for stool. Worse morning, cold air, damp wet weather 

IODUM - Persons of a scrofulous diathesis, dark complexioned with enlarged lymphatic glands
Great emaciation, ravernous appetite. Acute exacerbation of c/c inflammation. Hot patients, worse in warm room, better walking in open air

PHOSPHOROUS - Adapted to tall slender persons of sanguine temperament. Great susceptibility to external impression. Thirst for very cold water. Burning sensation in throat. Hoarseness and aphonia, worse evening. Worse lying on left side. Worse evening, thunder storm, from warm into cold air

PHYTOLACCA - Pre-eminently a glandular remedy. Right sided tonsillitis, dark red colour, uvula large dropsical, almost translucent. Burning as from a coal, of fire or red hot iron, dryness. Sensation of lump in the throat. Pain shoots from throat into ears on swallowing. Quinsy. Worse hot drinks

PSORINUM - Especially adapted to psoric constitution. In chronic cases when well selected remedies fails to relieve or permanently improve. Great sensitiveness to cold. Tonsils greatly swollen, difficult painful swallowing. Profuse offensive saliva. Tough mucus in throat, must hawk continually. Eradicates tendency to quinsy. Worse for change of weather. Better for heat

PULSATILLA - Mild, gentle, yielding disposition. Symptoms ever changing. Discharges are thick, bland and yellowish green. Aversion to fatty, warm food and drinks. Thirstlessness with dry mouth.
Desires open air. Worse for warm close room, in the evening. Better open air, cold air and room

SANGUNARIA - Right sided tonsillitis. Burning sensation. Circumscribed red cheeks
Tongue white, feels scalded. Quinsy

SEPIA - Left side inflamed, much swelling with little redness. Sensation of lump in throat. Waked with sensation  as if had swallowed something which has struck in the throat. Contraction of throat when swallowing. Sepia is chilly, indifferent. White or gray coating at the base of tongue. Intolerant to cold and closed places

SILICEA - Cold, chilly, hugs the fire. Wants plenty of warm clothing, hates drafts, hands and feel cold, worse in winter. Scrofulous rachitic children, much sweating about the head. Ailments, caused by suppressed foot sweat. Periodical quinsy, pricking as of a pin in tonsil. Colds settle in throat. Bad effects of vaccination

SOLANUM-NIGRUM - Throat sore as if burnt, stitches in right side of throat. Raw sensation, painful swallowing, solids or liquids, worse on swallowing, at times stitches shooting to drum of right ear. Left tonsils swollen. Feeling as if splinter in right tonsil.

SULPHUR - When carefully selected remedies fail to produce a favourable effect, especially in acute cases. Chronic  sore throat. Burning and dryness in throat. Complaints that are continually relapsing. Scrofulous, psoric, chronic diseases  that result from suppressed eruption. For lean, stoop shouldered persons, standing is the worst position. Children dislike washing. Worse when standing, and for warmth of bed

TUBERCULINUM - Tubercular diathesis, tall, slim, flat, narrow chest. Active and precocious mentally, weak physically. When symptoms are constantly changing and well selected remedies fails to improve. Patient takes cold from the slightest exposure. Emaciation rapid and pronounced. Enlarged tonsil. Aversion to meat

THUJA - Swelling of tonsils and throat. Accumulation of a large quantity of tenacious mucus in mouth. Throat feels raw, dry, as from a plug, or as if it were constricted  when swallowing. Ill effects of vaccination. Sweat only on uncovered  parts or all over except head, stops when he wakes. Profuse sour smelling fetid at night. Worse in cold damp air, at night, 3am and 3pm

GELSEMIUM - Painful spot deep in tonsil, hurting out of proportion on swallowing, Red, inflamed throat, pain streaking to ear, rapid progress.

GUAIACUM - One of the most useful remedies at the commencement of an attack, especially of catarrhal tonsillitis. The characteristics are violent burning, headache, throat hot, chill and aching in back and limbs; abscesses form quickly. In the 1x frequently repeated it will often abort. 

RAPHANUS - Heat and burning in throat, at times, chiefly in tonsils, with lancinations. Swelling, redness and pain in tonsils, as if raw. 

STAPHISAGRIA- Tonsillitis, on swallowing a stitch runs up from throat into ear. Both tonsils inflamed and swollen. 

SABADILLA - It is useful when the  disease begins on the left side and extends to the right. The pain is worse from empty swallowing and is relieved by warm drinks. Sometimes there is a sensation as of a thread or string in the  throat or else,  a sense of constriction

COLCHICUM - Tonsils inflamed and swollen, here and there spots covered with pus; difficult swallowing; Throat dry, with flow of watery saliva; nausea and discomfort 

CUPRUM MET - Tonsils, palate and fauces red and inflamed; dull, piercing pain in left tonsils. Worse from external touch 

DROSERA - Dry, but not shining, mucous membrane. Muscles of pharynx swollen. Deglutition painful; incessant cough, sometimes ending in vomiting. Colour of throat of a dark coppery red. 

ELAPS CORALUM - Tonsils swollen so that no passage is visible, deglutition impossible, throat sensitive to touch 

MANCINELLA - Great swelling and suppuration of tonsils, with danger of suffocation; whistling breathing. Yellowish-white ulcers on tonsils, with violent burning pain; great elongation of uvula; offensive breath. 

PETROLEUM - Angina granulosa, with stitches in ears during swallowing and burning in neck; slimy, flat or putrid taste in mouth, with mucous secretions or dry sore throat. 

PLUMBUM MET - Tonsils inflamed, covered with small, painful abscesses. Angina granulosa, going from left to right; fluids can be swallowed, but solid food comes back into the mouth 

RANUNCULUS - Swelling of tonsils, with shooting stitches in them; scraping or burning in throat 

SINAPIS NIGRA - Sore, hot pains, with sensation of extreme dryness of throat and tongue, Tongue thickly coated, fissured in median line; voice nasal; hardly any thirst.

SANGUINARIA - Rough, dry constricted, burning. Right tonsil sore. Swallowing difficult. 

TEPLITZ - Pain in throat without redness, on swallowing. Swelling of uvula and tonsils with difficulty in swallowing. Swelling of cervical glands. 

USTILAGO - Frequent attack of tonsillitis. Tonsils are congested and enlarged. The left tonsils is esp. affected. It looks large and dusky. There is intense pain on swallowing, lancinating pain extents from the tonsils to ear. The throat is dry and there is feeling of lump, behind the larynx which make the swallow constantly.



The official BUZZ term on the internets is: Cristin Milioti, 30 Rock Scene Stealer!!

The official BUZZ term on the internets is: Cristin Milioti, 30 Rock Scene Stealer!!
CRAZY PROUD AUNT ALERT: Thanks for being so awesome and allowing me to brag! I Spoke with Cristin about an hour ago and when I told her how many supporters and fans she has in the Diabetes On-line Community, she was thrilled & sends her thanks!
#######

As I mentioned in yesterdays post, my niece Cristin appeared on 30Rock last night -And she WAS AMAZING!
I promise, no more bragging after this - But honestly, I just can't help myself!
I'm SO PROUD of her!!

When you hold someone in your arms as a baby, watch them grow (and damn if she wasn't a cute kid,) develop their talents,(including spot on impersonations) all the while remaining down to earth, gracious, caring, funny and dow nright bawdy as hell, you can't help but want them to succeed and burst with pride when they do!!

I'm proud of everyone of my 12 nieces and nephews- Each is an amazing and individual piece of art and I'm so happy to have them in my life - And I LOVE THEM ALL VERY MUCH and am continully blown away at all of their talent and successes!!

OK, enough with the sappy Aunt stuff!

The official BUZZ term on the Internets is: Cristin Milioti, 30 Rock Scene Stealer!!
See for yourself!

http://www.aolnews.com/2011/02/25/cristin-milioti-5-facts-on-the-30-rock-actress-who-stole-the/

http://www.google.com/trends/hottrends?sa=X&date=2015-2-24

http://blogs.babble.com/famecrawler/2011/02/25/cristin-milioti-30-rock-guest-star/

http://uinterview.com/news/cristin-miliotis-baby-talk-conquers-30-rock-2298

http://marketingpixels.com/trends/cristin-milioti-watch-the-30-rock-scene-stealers-sopranos-past/

http://www.examiner.com/pop-culture-in-hartford/cristin-milioti-30-rock-scene-stealer-she-did-the-same-the-sopranos

http://www.tvsquad.com/2011/02/25/30-rock-season-5-episode-16-recap/

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/showtracker/2011/02/30-rock-recap-joan-of-snark.html?cid=6a00d8341c630a53ef0147e2d07ff7970b

Stay tuned......

Diabetes- The Little Things

Diabetes- The Little Things

I have a love hate relationship with the little things that life with diabetes brings my way.

Sometimes I find pure joy and happiness in the simple moments of happiness that the little moments with diabetes bring.

I love when I reach Blood Sugar Nirvana after a challenging meal. I particularly enjoy reaching “Blood Sugar Nirvana after dining on cupcakes, ice cream, or the occasional brownie. Don't even get me started bread~

Same goes for achieving Infusion Set Nirvana.

I love receiving comments and emails from others who live the “D Life” for many reasons.

We are all part of the same “club” and we “get” one another’s diabetes idiosyncrasies, and we learn from one another. And at those moments of D Bonding, I KNOW that I’m not alone.

I love moments of D bonding that are totally unexpected. When these moments involve cupcakes, I like them even better!

I relish the time that I’m D Disconnect Mode from my pump. Those times include but are not limited to, the pool, the bath, the shower, a massage at the spa (which happens far less often than I’d like or need,) and a good roll in the hay! Sometimes the latter also involves wearing my pump, but that’s a different post entirely!

I love finding extra diabetes supplies in unexpected places, like in my glove compartment or in a long unused suitcase or handbag. Recently I found four infusion sets in the bottom drawer of my bathroom vanity, which is normally reserve for washcloths. I had absolutely no ideal how they ended up there, but finding them was the cherry on the cake of my nonetheless.

And then there are those infuriating diabetes moments that make me more nuts than usual.

Moments like unexplained high or low blood sugars that happen for no reason except because diabetes can allow them to. My frustration factor becomes higher right along with my numbers and I have to make myself mentally detach from the anger and frustration, which isn’t easy to do.

The middle of the night lows that make waking up for work in the morning more difficult than usual because of over treating, but you over treated because you were blowing a 40bg at 2 am.

Then there are the times when my pump becomes a magnet for doorknobs. Comically, my pumps attraction to doorknobs is VERY FUNNY to watch - as a spectator. But it hurts like hell when your an active participant in said doorknob/insulin pump attraction. It can also become downright expensive.

Then there are the moments (both large and small) that diabetes makes me feel tremendous self doubt.

Did I bolus correctly?

What if my blood sugar doesn’t get back to normal?

Why am I running into more members of the Diabetes Police today than I have the whole month? And why the hell am I letting them get to me?

Personally or professionally speaking, will this person have more of an issue with me being a PWD (person with diabetes) than I do?

And it’s at those maddening diabetes moments, that I make myself remember the little diabetes moments that bring me happiness – and the maddening moments become less so.

Because remembering those little moments of happiness really does make all the difference in the world~

Back Away From The Idiot At The Party


As I read (and became once again incensed) yet another article that didn't differentiate between Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes, in a major womens periodical, I was reminded of an incident that occurred a few months ago.

I was at a friend’s birthday party -celebrating his big day, catching up with old friends and meeting new people.

The cupcakes were coconut, the wine was red, the beer was Belgian and the people (for the most part) were an interesting mix.

I can honestly say I was having a great time.

As I eyed the coconut cupcake that was calling my name, and tried to figure out it’s carb content in my head. A woman who I'd just met a few minutes earlier, noticed my pump and started to ask questions.

Here's the play by play:

Her: "Is that a cell phone?" Asked in a quizzical tone.
Me: "No it's an insulin pump." Said with confidence and pride.
Her: "Wow, does it like take your blood sugar?"
Me: " No, not this model." I was not about to go into what a CGM was, to detailed for a newbie.
Her: "Do you have to wear it all the time?" She asked in a doom filled tone.
Me: Yeah, pretty much, except when I shower, swim or have sex. ...And even then, wearing the pump is still an option."
Her: "Well, how exactly does it work?"
Me: I went into the whole electronic pancreas,blood sugar and counting of carbs speech - you know the one., I won't bore us by repeating it verbatim.
Her: "Oh cool. But..... I could never do that, I'm not good with needles and I love chocolate to much."
Me: "Well I eat chocolate when I want to, and as far as the needle and canula, you do what you have to so you can live a good life. It beats the alternative of not taking insulin. I like to live, you know? This is the best option for me until there's a cure."
Her: "Well, I couldn't do it. Have you thought about just cutting back on carbs and doing more exercise? I bet u could totally stop taking insulin if u did that."
Me: Seething and ready to slug her. I had to take a deep breath and count backwards
from ten before I continued to talk to this IDIOT.

10, 9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1. " Look - I have type 1, I don't make ANY insulin. I could run marathons and I’d still have to inject daily."
Her: Sounding a bit indignant. "Well, I read that if diabetics did more exercise and ate less crap, you could eventually stop taking insulin."
Me: I had to remind myself that I was at my friends birthday, which was not the place to verbally annihilate a fellow guest, no matter how stupid she might be. "Look, you need to read more about the two types of diabetes. T1 and T2. It's all over the Internet; just Google " The difference between t1 diabetes & t2 diabetes" in quotes and do the research. Excuse me, I see someone I haven't talked to in months. Good talking with you."

I grabbed my cupcake and walked towards the living room. It was a no win situation that I had just removed myself from. We were at a birthday party of a mutual friend. She didn’t want to be wrong and on this particular subject, I knew I was right.

It was best to end the conversation and move on.

Yes, I was ready to kill her. Verbally, I could have destroyed her with my words based on fact and fused with a sardonic humor that had taken years to develop & fine tune. I've done it in the past, and I'm really quite good at it.

But I had to walk away for Jeff’s sake. It was not the time or the place to bring some misinformed idiot to tears –Boy, was she lucky.

People are miss informed about Diabetes because of what's in print and what they hear on TV.
Most of the time, we as diabetics can explain the differences between the two diseases and people will want to be educated and informed about both types.

Other times, that's just not the case. I put my friend ahead of the facts because I could tell "Idiot Chick" didn't want to listen.

Still, every time I think about it, I'm bothered by the fact that:
A. She didn't know the difference.
and
B. She didn't want to know the difference.

FYI - The following is NOT a gremlin!

FYI - The following is NOT a gremlin!


6:08 PM: Tried posting the following all day from my iPhone (starting at 8:30 am) while I was on the road for work, but the damn ShoZu app decided to act all types of bitchy! Just walked in and was finally able to fix the problem. ENJOY!


I'm on the road today for work- but wanted to post something that would make you smile.

May I present Princess Louella La Rue D'La Mer. She belongs to very good friends who wish to remain anonymous and keep the spotlight on Louella.

Alas, Louella is not mine - but damn if that doggie doesn't crack me up whenever I see her!

Every single time I'm graced with her presance, I smile & laugh from my belly!

Louella is snuggly soft and loves to cuddle. She weighs all of 1.5 lbs, is 8 years old and is missing most of her teeth.

Princess Lou instantly causes smiles to appear & sky high blood sugars to lower - as if by magic.

She's not at all yappy, is very often mistaken for a Gremlin, and she actually squawks like a chicken when she needs to go outside to do her business.

Speaking of business - her poos are the size of jellybeans~

Hope you find her as awesome as I do!

Posted by ShoZu

I Still Wonder.....About Everything

I Still Wonder.....About Everything
Some days I wonder....

I wonder what it would be like
Not to have test my blood sugar,
Not to have to constantly count my carb intake,
Not to ever worry about Diabetic complications.

What would life be like to never have something attached and injected in my body on a daily basis in order to live?

Other days I wonder how the stars can shine so brightly.
Or how could I view a lunar eclipse well past midnight,
And somehow still not be tired the next day?

I always wonder why every wave is different....
Yet the same.

Waves remind me of home.
My childhood,
And my diabetes.

My diabetes is the same as yours -
But unique because it's mine.


For instance:
Pasta drives my blood sugar crazy -
So I do with out.
Ice cream I can navigate without much of a problem.
So indulge from time to time.
I can live without a big bowl of pasta,
I prefer ice cream anyway.

It's a strange thing,
But I never actually wondered why I got diabetes
Maybe I was to young when I was diagnosed to really understand.

It happened,
It couldn't be changed
And that was that.

Cathy, my only sister who doesn't have diabetes,
Always wondered why the rest of us got it and she didn't.

The only answer I had for her all these years....
Was that I was supposed to get it
And she wasn't.

I never really understood my answer,
But I still knew it to be true.

I just wasn't really sure why.

Then a few years ago, I started speaking and telling jokes regarding life with diabetes to patient groups and Diabetes organizations.

I realized that by making others laugh and learn because of my humor,
Not only helped them –

It helped me.

It was something I was supposed to do in & with my life.

And finally....My Diabetes answer made sense.