#1869 F Around and Find Out

Summary

Juicebox Podcast: Type 1 Diabetes

Episode #1869: F Around and Find Out

Host: Scott Benner
Guest: Christine, Nurse Practitioner and Person with Type 1 Diabetes
Release Date: June 5, 2026

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Overview

This episode centers on the real-life, raw experiences of Christine, who has lived with type 1 diabetes for more than 20 years. The conversation candidly explores her evolving relationship with diabetes management, her frustrations with medical education and care, the psychological impacts of living with diabetes, and her journey toward more effective self-care. Host Scott Benner and Christine openly analyze the systemic obstacles in diabetes education, the pitfalls of early independence, mental health, navigating pregnancy with diabetes, and finding empowerment through common-sense strategies—especially those learned from the Juicebox Podcast.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Frustrations with Diabetes Education

• Medical Training Gaps: Christine notes a glaring lack of practical diabetes management education in both patient and provider training.
  • “I'm very pissed at everything that they teach us because they don't teach us anything about diabetes, which I know you've talked about in a lot of your podcasts, but it's crazy. It's actually, it's annoying.” (Christine, 02:20)
• Blame and Empathy for Providers: Christine expresses understanding that most providers aren’t willfully negligent—they’re undereducated themselves.
  • “I understand why it's not told as much...the doctors, honestly, they don't know. They just kind of tell you the basics of which we learn in school and then that's...They think they're doing a good job..." (Christine, 06:02)
  • “We can't just expect everybody to know everything they weren't taught.” (Scott, 05:15)
• The Initial Diagnosis Path: Scott posits that the initial information at diagnosis puts patients on a life-long “trajectory,” which can be hard to redirect later.
  • “Day one, step one, the direction you point them in isn’t just for today. It very well could be for the next 50 years.” (Scott, 08:11)

Early Diagnosis and Childhood Management

• Diagnosis Story: Diagnosed at age 8; only child in the family with type 1; admitted in DKA.
  • “I was in DKA when I went to the hospital...I remember getting an IV in my neck because I couldn't get any IVs anywhere else.” (Christine, 02:51)
• Transition to Pump Therapy: Insurance hurdles meant initial MDI, before trying early, inaccurate CGMs and eventually getting on a pump.
  • “I was fully injections for a year...No pens existed...I went into a pump a year later because insurance would not cover it for a year…I had to do this like it was like a two week...first version of a cgm.” (Christine, 12:13)

Institutional & Family Approaches to Disease Management

• Limited Medical Approach (“Band-aid solutions”): Christine and Scott reflect on the ‘prescription pusher’ model vs. her mom’s tilt toward functional medicine.
  • “Functional medicine is more so finding the cause rather than just slapping a band aid on it…” (Christine, 09:05)
  • “Every doctor who tells me they're a function medical doctor sounds to me like they said, I found a little office, we open up our own thing and do whatever the hell I want. And I don't take insurance anymore.” (Scott, 09:24)
• Early Independence in Management: Christine’s parents encouraged independence, perhaps too soon, leading her to 'fake' blood sugar logs and miss out on necessary guidance.
  • “I learned to lie a lot about what my blood sugars were, partly to get what I wanted, because I was like, if I'm going to live with this disease, I'm going to use it as an excuse whenever I can.” (Christine, 34:30)

Psychological Impact and Mental Health

• Food Relationship and Disordered Eating: Early strictness with food triggered lifelong preoccupations and cycles of restriction and bingeing.
  • “As a diabetic...you're always thinking about food. You're always. It's always on your mind.” (Christine, 17:39)
  • “I do think I'm in a good place now after many years after. Also I did do therapy for a while...” (Christine, 18:29)
• Anxiety and People-Pleasing: Underlying anxiety masked by achievement and people-pleasing tendencies; realization only after therapy.
  • “...my therapist was like, you have pretty bad anxiety here, huh? And I was like, is that what this is?” (Christine, 17:39)
  • “A mix of my anxiety with people pleasing people just thought that I was just like, in a good mood and made people happy...But meanwhile, my anxiety was, I guess, in an extent, because of my anxiety, that I was, like, trying to make everyone else happy.” (Christine, 22:19)

The Lifelong Learning Curve

• Discovering 'Bold With Insulin' Approaches: Only a year ago, Christine discovered the podcast while planning for pregnancy, leading to major breakthroughs in control and self-efficacy.
  • “From the day I started listening to your podcast, I was like, wow, I've been doing everything wrong for the last 23 years.” (Christine, 36:15)
  • Scott emphasizes simple interventions: “There are certain things you do around type 1 diabetes and if you do them at the right times, kind of works out.” (Scott, 38:49)
• Common Sense Over Complexity: Both agree that practical, everyday habits—like pre-bolusing and not over-treating lows—matter more than perfection or expensive coaching.
  • “If you're doing the right things, you don't even have to track it. It just works out. That's the math, Maths." (Scott, 53:37)
  • “I almost dropped a lot of thousands to be life coached by someone...But I was like, I've had diabetes for 23 years. I think I can figure it.” (Christine, 48:13)

Managing Pregnancy with Type 1 Diabetes

• Changing Insulin Needs & Fears: Pregnancy brings new management demands, but Christine feels empowered by her knowledge; she doesn’t fear lows (unlike many).
  • “I'm currently five months pregnant. Now I'm dealing all of the diabetes, the fun of diabetes and pregnancy.” (Christine, 21:15)
  • “I've never had a fear of lows. I've had a fear of highs...For me, Lowe's, I'm like, I can just eat something." (Christine, 16:29)
  • “There’s so much known damage that highs give that lows to me. I'm like, well, they don't really know what a lot of lows in the long term can do to someone.” (Christine, 44:47)
• Pregnancy Supports: Reading books (“Think Like a Pancreas”), tracking CGM trends, and engaging with the podcast increased confidence and in-range time.
  • “I also read the book Think like a Pancreas, which helped a lot, too.” (Christine, 53:44)

Notable Social Commentary

• Societal Deference to Authority: Scott and Christine discuss blindly trusting professionals (doctors, teachers, insurance agents) and the consequences when expertise is assumed but lacking, paralleling the experience in the medical system.
  • “You're raised to believe that a doctor, fireman, you know, a police officer, a teacher. Those people are beyond reproach...Well, in the last 15 years, I think everyone, you know, gave up...Now I think I'm the one out here trying to yell, like, every doctor you get is not going to be great.” (Scott, 30:14)
• Gatekeeping Information vs. Accessibility: Discussion of expensive coaching programs versus free podcast knowledge, and the importance of democratizing life-changing information:
  • “If I gate-keep the podcast with money, people just wouldn't listen...I think that democratizing the information, it's the only way I can sleep.” (Scott, 56:18)

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

| Timestamp | Quote | Speaker | |------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|------------| | 02:20 | “I'm very pissed at everything that they teach us because they don't teach us anything about diabetes.”| Christine | | 08:11 | “Day one, step one, the direction you point them in isn’t just for today. It very well could be for the next 50 years.” | Scott | | 17:39 | “I've always wanted to be thin...but then also being so restricted with what I could eat at such a young age...that kind of put in my head of like...I've gone through the whole, like, binge restrict type situations...” | Christine | | 36:15 | “From the day I started listening to your podcast, I was like, wow, I've been doing everything wrong for the last 23 years.” | Christine | | 38:49 | “There are certain things you do around type 1 diabetes and if you do them at the right times, kind of works out...” | Scott | | 41:15 | “If I can figure this out, you all can do it.” | Scott | | 48:13 | “I almost dropped a lot of thousands to be life coached by someone...But I was like, I've had diabetes for 23 years. I think I can figure it.”| Christine | | 53:08 | “My A1C before I got pregnant was 5.3.” | Christine | | 53:37 | “If you're doing the right things, you don't even have to track it. It just works out. That's the math.” | Scott | | 56:18 | “If I gate-keep the podcast with money, people just wouldn't listen...I think that democratizing the information, it's the only way I can sleep.” | Scott |

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:24–06:00 — The Knowledge Gap: Christine and Scott discuss systemic failings in diabetes education
• 12:13–15:37 — Transition from MDI to Pump and CGM; gaming the system for insurance
• 17:24–22:19 — Food relationships, eating disorders, and anxiety
• 35:08–38:49 — Discovery of “Bold With Insulin” and the practical revolution in management
• 41:15–44:47 — Pre-bolusing, habit change, and challenges in real-life situations like nursing shifts
• 53:08–54:35 — A1C improvements and embracing low-variance control
• 56:18–59:16 — Democratizing diabetes knowledge versus expensive coaching
• 58:32–61:37 — Partners, support systems, and pregnancy management
• 62:00–65:45 — DKA fears, online forums, and living through experimentation

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Tone and Style

Candid, humorous, and encouraging. Both Scott and Christine use self-deprecating humor, share common-sense approaches, and foster a genuinely supportive, realistic view of “what actually works” when living with type 1 diabetes.

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Conclusion

Christine’s story exemplifies the journey of many with type 1—thrust into early independence, let down by limited education, but ultimately empowered by seeking out community-sourced, practical knowledge. The episode underscores the necessity of questioning received wisdom, the power of self-advocacy, and the potential in sharing freely: “If I can figure this out, you all can do it.” (Scott, 41:15)

For those struggling, this episode is a relatable blend of honesty, lived experience, and hard-earned wisdom.

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Resource Highlight:
Check out the “Diabetes Pro Tip” series and “Defining Diabetes” series at juiceboxpodcast.com, episodes 1000–1025, for actionable fundamentals in diabetes management.

Join the Community:
The private Juicebox Podcast Facebook group (75,400 members as of recording) is a hub for real-life, practical support.

Transcript

[A]

Friends, we're all back together for the next episode of the Juice Box Podcast.

[B]

Welcome.

[A]

When I created the Defining Diabetes series, I pictured a dictionary in my mind to help you understand key terms that shape type 1 diabetes management. Along with Jenny Smith, who of course is an experienced diabetes educator, we break down concepts like basal time and range, insulin on board, and much more. This series must have 70 short episodes in it. We have to take the jargon out of the jargon so that you can focus on what really matters, living confidently and staying healthy. You can't do these things if you don't know what they mean. Go get your diabetes defined. Juiceboxpodcast.com go up in the menu and click on series. Nothing you hear on the Juice Box Podcast should be considered advice, medical or otherwise. Always consult a physician before making any changes to your healthcare plan or becoming bold with insulin. This episode of the Juicebox podcast is sponsored by the Dexcom G7, the same CGM that my daughter wears. Check it out now at dexcom.com juicebox Today's episode is also sponsored by the Omnipod 5. And at my link omnipod.com juicebox you can get yourself a free. What'd I just say? A free Omnipod 5 starter kit. Free. Get out of here. Go. Click on that link omnipod.com juicebox check it out. Terms and conditions apply. Eligibility may vary. Full terms and conditions can be found@ omnipod.com juicebox links in the show notes [e-mail] okay, my name is Christine.

[B]

I am a diabetic for over 20 years and. Yeah, perfect. Nurse practitioner.

[A]

You're what? A nurse practitioner?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Nice. We'll find out about that. Over 20 years. How old are you?

[B]

I am 31. Almost 32. I became a diabetic when I was eight.

[A]

Eight. Okay. Wow.

[B]

I am very pissed at everything that they teach us because they don't teach us anything about diabetes, which I know you've talked about in a lot of your podcasts, but it's crazy. It's actually, it's annoying.

[A]

Are you still mad, Christine?

[B]

I'm still mad, yes.

[A]

Okay, well, let's find out why. But first. But first, I watched a lot of television growing up. Uh, but first, let's find out a little bit about what you remember about being diagnosed.

[B]

Okay, so I remember I was an 8 year old and I was fully potty trained at that point.

[A]

Good for you. Um, what a. What a flex. Good job.

[B]

And my mom is a doctor, so she saw signs, like, leading up to it that it. It could be diabetes. But I think it's that denial phase of. No, it can't possibly be, because I am the only one in my entire family, both sides, that has type 1 diabetes. So she was like, there's no way that this could be it. And then I peed the bed. And she was like, oh, okay. So now we got to see what's actually happening here, because this is not normal for my 8 year old that's been potty trained for very many, many years. So then I. Yeah, I was in DKA when I went to the hospital. I think my blood sugar at her office was like 300 and something. And then I don't know how much it was when I was admitted, but I was definitely in the five, six, hundreds, I believe. Yeah. I remember getting an IV in my neck because I couldn't get any IVs anywhere else. I remember playing Life on the computer.

[A]

That game sucked, by the way. I can't believe you got stuck doing that.

[B]

I actually like that one more than the board game version.

[A]

Oh, oh.

[B]

I was also playing by myself.

[A]

So I remember you're probably out of your mind, bored. But I just remember when they ported those first couple board games over into computers, I was like, this is not really doing well, Life. They did Monopoly, and I was like, I don't know, play Monopoly on my cell phone. That's ridiculous. Anyway, sorry, that was a weird road to turn down. It's funny, when you started talking and you introduced yourself, you went right into how frustrating it is. And prior to us recording, you said, I don't remember what I put in my note. But your note is all about the frustration about the education of type one. Yeah, yeah.

[B]

Did you just.

[A]

Go ahead. Did you just remember it? Or is it just the thing that naturally comes to your mind when you think about this?

[B]

It's. It's naturally comes to me because it is so frustrating how much like. And I'm. And then that makes me like, I'm not mad at my doctors for not telling me anything that was truly important. Sure. Because they didn't learn it, because I know I didn't learn it. So I'm like, how did I go this long in school? And like, it was like a brief. Type 2 diabetes, you give this, this, and this. They make you memorize all these type 2 diabetes medications, which there are a lot of them, if you're wondering. And like, they're like, oh, yeah, type one, you need insulin. Completely insulin dependent. But I'm like, okay, that's not at all what you need to know. Like, sure, it's, it's, we need to know that, but there is so much more that goes into it.

[A]

Yeah. You know, when people talk about this also, just so everybody's clear, I'm going to get frustrated during this conversation and probably lose my mind like 30 minutes from now. But you are one of the only people who started not from the. So some people will say, I don't blame my doctor, but it's because they're overtly kind or they're people pleasers. They have trouble, they have a tough time being critical of other people. But you're the first one who was just like, look, there's a reason. You know, it's like a human failing. We can't just expect everybody to know everything they weren't taught. Even if they were taught, how would they keep it all in their heads? They're busy making you, you know, remember the correct spelling of jardiance and, you know, and, and that kind of stuff, you don't have as much sympathy for them as you do sympathy for the situation. Is that how I'm reading you?

[B]

Yeah, I mean, I'm also a chronic people pleaser, so a little bit of both. But yeah, I mean, I, I understand why it's not told as much too like as people coming into type 1 diabetes, because the doctors, honestly, they don't know. They just kind of tell you the basics of which we learn in school and then that's. They think they're doing a good job because, I mean, I hope that most providers that are in the industry are trying to do their best. I can only hope.

[A]

Right, well, so in there lies that what I've, I mean, sussed out is the issue. Right. Which is you don't know and they don't know, but you think they do know and then they say incorrect or incomplete things to you. Or maybe you get lucky and you get a doctor who lays it out for perfectly who knows. Right. So that's why I always tell people like, you don't know which one you got. You just walked into an institution, they wrote your name down, you were randomly put in front of an ER doctor. Maybe that doctor now has the bedside manner and the knowledge that they have. You can't control that. You don't get to grab them like an avatar and turn up their, you know, it's like not Madden Football. You can't practice a bunch and make them a 99. You're stuck with whatever they tell you. And then it's my, my Honest belief that starting from that moment, you are placed on a path, and your path will forever be moving in that direction until someone stops you and says, hey, that information you got was not good.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Then you have to find the courage to either believe them or accept the new information. Be able to assimilate it. Maybe. It's possible. You hear all the time, right? People just. I just always did it like this, so I kept doing it like that. Some people can't break their habits. And I find it incredibly frustrating to talk to somebody in their 50s who's telling me about their trigger finger. And I've only, you know, I had to get the injections in my eyes, but only a couple of times. And, you know, like. And. And they're like, it's not going too bad. I just. I can't see out of my right eye and my fingers bent. I'm like, oh, that's. That's not going great. You know? And then you say, well, what about your doctors? Oh, they're great. My doctors are fantastic. I'm like, are. I don't understand how that's possible.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And so in there is. Is the. I think, the real issue. We made an entire series about this that I don't think five doctors listen to. It was set up to explain that idea of, like, day one, step one, the direction you point them in isn't just for today. It very well could be for the next 50 years. And you know how important it is.

[B]

So.

[A]

Well, so your mom is what kind of a doctor?

[B]

So she's family practice, and she's gone into functional medicine. So instead of just like, if you come in with hypertension, it's not just giving you a hypertension medicine and letting you go on your way. It's kind of saying, like, okay, so why did this happen? Like, something in your life is going on that is causing this, because it's not a natural body system to have this. So functional medicine is more so finding the cause rather than just slapping a band aid on it and having you go on your merry way. Which is exactly what traditional medicine teaches everyone.

[A]

Exact code for, she doesn't take insurance anymore.

[B]

She does not take insurance anymore. No. So I work. I work with her. So we do a lot of men. Like, we've transitioned more into, like, menopause and, like, aesthetic business. Yeah. When I was in school, I was like, wow, I feel terrible. Like, I'm not really helping anyone. I just felt like a prescription pusher.

[A]

Yeah. No, no, I take that. I take that point also. I'm just, I'm joking a little bit. But every doctor who tells me they're a function medical doctor sounds to me like they said, I found a little office, we open up our own thing and do whatever the hell I want. And I don't take insurance anymore.

[B]

I mean it's, it's kind of the case. I mean, she went, she said she went like six months and the insurance companies weren't paying her and she's like, if I can go six months without being paid by insurance, I don't really need them.

[A]

Yeah, maybe I can actually just go help a smaller group of people. Better, right?

[B]

Better, exactly. Yeah. And we don't have like 10 minute appointments, we have 45 minute appointments. So it's, you can actually see what's happening with the person rather than just pushing them along. It's more of like a psych appointment than like a medical appointment. But it's what people need. People need connection.

[A]

Oh, I take your point. The saddest thing that's happened to me in the last five years is maybe the best thing that's happened for climate science in France, which is that our doctor's husband got a job in France with the government. And she, she was of the age where she was like, I'm going to retire. And I thought, I actually, I've said it a couple of times here, but like I outright on the phone said to her, I was like, you've been married a really long time, must be sick of him. Why don't you get divorced and stay here and be our doctor? And she was like, no, I'm going to go to Paris. And I was like, ah, because same thing, walk in, sit down in a comfortable chair next to a table with a pad if you want to take some notes. There's soft lighting. You're not, you feel like you're in someone's den. There's a table on the other side of the room where you do sit for, you know, the, the doctor in part. You have a nice conversation where you can sit and stretch out and talk about how you feel and what's been going on and everything. After some information's the room, you both look eye to eye, you know, and you, you try to hash through it and try to figure out a plan or an idea or think through something. Takes about an hour. If it takes an hour and five minutes, nobody's like upset. And in the end, by the way, my insurance covers that mostly that's great. They just won't pay her. So yeah, you have to have The. You have to be able to pay her.

[B]

Reimbursed. Yeah.

[A]

You got to be able to float the cash, you know, and that's not a thing everyone can do. Nevertheless, that's. You know, it'd be nice if things went that way. Okay, so your diagnosis, you're playing life. You really are playing at life. Right. And then things begin. But 20ish years ago puts you. What year was that? 90.

[B]

So it was 2003.

[A]

Oh, it was 2003.

[B]

So I've been diagnosed for 24 years. Yeah.

[A]

Okay. I'm sorry.

[B]

I did the math on my calculator.

[A]

I did bad math.

[B]

Almost a century.

[A]

Art. What? You're. So you're saying 8,000 years ago? No, no. So because Arden was diagnosed in 2006 and she's been 20 years, and you said a little over 20 years. Okay, so around that time, then you're not. I mean, would you. You got a meter and maybe.

[B]

Yeah, so I was fully. Injections for a year. Md, I guess they call it mdi. That was never a term I knew growing up, but yeah, it was MDI injections. No pens existed at that point. I went into a pump a year later because insurance would not cover it for a year. And then I had to. I remember having to test to make sure that I even qualified for a pump. I had to do this like it was like a two week. It stayed on my body for, I guess, two weeks. And I guess that was the first version. No, not of a pump. I think it was the first version of a cgm.

[A]

You had to wear a blind CGM and it reported back and you were the whole. Imagine this for people listening. You were wearing it, praying to God you would get low, because then the insurance company would say, oh, they get low. It's okay for them to have this. Today's episode is brought to you by Omnipod. Did you know that the majority of Omnipod 5 users pay less than $30 per month at the pharmacy? That's less than $1 a day for tube free automated insulin delivery. And a third of Omnipod 5 users pay $0 per month. You heard that right? Zero. That's less than your daily coffee. For all of the benefits of tubeless, waterproof, automated insulin delivery, my daughter has been wearing an Omnipod every day since she was 4 years old and she's about to be 21. My family relies on Omnipod and I think you'll love it. And you can try it for free right now by requesting your free starter kit. Today at my link omnipod.com Juicebox Omnipod has been an advertiser for a decade, but even if they weren't, I would tell you proudly, my daughter wears an Omnipod omnipod.com Juicebox terms and conditions apply. Eligibility may vary. Why don't you get yourself that free starter kit? Full terms and conditions can be found@ omnipod.com juicebox you can manage diabetes confidently with the powerfully simple Dexcom G7. Dexcom.com juicebox the Dexcom G7 is the CGM that my daughter is wearing. The G7 is a simple CGM system that delivers real time glucose numbers to your smartphone or smartwatch. The G7 is made for all types of diabetes, type 1 and type 2, but also people experiencing gestational diabetes. The Dexcom G7 can help you spend more time in range, which is proven to lower a 1C. The more time you spend in range, the better and healthier you feel. And with the Dexcom Clarity app, you can track your glucose trends. And the app will also provide you with a projected A1C in as little as two weeks. If you're looking for clarity around your diabetes, you're looking for Dexcom. Dexcom.com Juicebox when you use my link, you're supporting the podcast Dexcom.com Juicebox Head over there now.

[B]

See, I was just living life, so I was eight or I guess nine at that point and I was just like, okay, just go about. I don't remember if it was one week or two weeks, but they were like, the results came back and they were like, oh yeah, she definitely needs this.

[A]

If I told you that I had a nurse practitioner look at me and go, they only are going to care if she gets low, so if you want this, she's got to get low while you're on this. And I was like, what are you saying to me? But you know, back then I don't think I was following, but now I

[B]

understand nothing was like automatic. So I had to write down all my blood sugars.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, fun times.

[B]

And you can imagine that I did not do that. So every time the three month mark would come and I'd have to bring that little piece of paper with three months worth of information, I just sit there and write down whatever I wanted.

[A]

And 84 and 210. This is fun. It's like Sudoku without meaning.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Which by the way, I've played Sudoku a few times and it feels like it doesn't have meaning one way or the other.

[B]

Apparently they say Sudoku is very good for your brain.

[A]

I do it sometimes, but I have to be honest with you, I don't find it. I don't find it that hard, and I don't find it that.

[B]

That invigorating.

[A]

Yeah, yeah. I'm just like, all right, so good

[B]

thing to pass the time when you're on a flight, because they have that as the games on the screen.

[A]

Yeah, no, that's much better than some of the things I see people doing on flights.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

But as for the lows that you were talking about, so I think I mentioned this in my thing that I wanted to talk about. I've never had a fear of lows. I've had a fear of highs.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Which I know is the opposite for a lot of people.

[A]

Yeah, but who put that in your head?

[B]

I think my mom or one of the doctors from when I was younger. They were like, oh, if you run high, you're going to lose your toes, you're going to lose your eyesight, you're going to lose your kidneys. And I was like, well, I don't want that. Yeah, for me, Lowe's, I'm like, I can just eat something. Which I always had a sweet tooth. I was like, oh, I get to eat a snack. Because at that point I had to eat at very. Like when I was mdi, there was no. I could eat whatever I want whenever I wanted. It was. I had a meal at 8am, a snack at 10am, lunch at 12, a snack at 2, dinner at 6, and it was like all carb counted exactly what I could eat, what I couldn't eat if I wasn't hungry. Doesn't matter. I have to eat it if I was hungry at. At the other point. Doesn't matter. Can't eat it.

[A]

Yeah, no.

[B]

So that was that. I'm sure you can imagine that has put in many years of trying to get over eating disorder type behaviors.

[A]

Where do you feel like it impacted you? And. And what did you have trouble with? What was your pathway with eating disorders?

[B]

Well, I've always wanted to be thin. As the 90s, kids grew up with just insane diet culture, but then also having. Being so restricted with what I could eat at such a young age. I think that that kind of put in my head of like, you're always. As a diabetic, you. I mean, obviously, you know, you're always thinking about food. You're always. It's always on your mind. So it's not like I could just pick something up and not have any sort of, like, thought about it. So then I've, I mean, I've gone through the whole, like, binge restrict type situations. I don't know. I've been dealing with my relationship with food basically my entire life. I do think I'm in a good place now after many years after. Also I did do therapy for a while and I did not know I was an anxious person. But my therapist was like, you have pretty bad anxiety here, huh? And I was like, is that what this is?

[A]

What do you mean? I just, I'm just constantly waiting to die. Is that, is that a problem?

[B]

And then she pointed out. So the fact that I have been revolved around food my entire life, that could be why I do have this bad relationship with food, which makes a lot of sense. When she, once she said it, I

[A]

was like, oh, oh yeah, you're not. I mean, obviously food being medication and the variableness of diabetes and the way it can come out of nowhere and how quickly it will, you know, potentially take you from being in control of your thoughts and how easily that could lead to you not being able to help yourself and becoming unconscious or, you know, whatever or worse. I don't know how that's not, that's not a thing. You know what I mean? Like, it's, there's food in weird places all over my house.

[B]

I have a bedside drawer of honey and juice boxes. Like, I don't think no one does that.

[A]

The car pocket of art in store is like juice boxes and gummy bears. Like, we have a, like we have a system to swap out stale gummy bears. That's not a thing other people think about. You know, I think you're going to get an unnatural relationship with food one way or the other. If you have type 1 diabetes.

[B]

Yeah, yeah. I think, I mean, if, if you don't, then you, you have superpowers.

[A]

Even a person who, you know, goes on an incredible, like, journey of healthy eating, that's. And you can't argue that that's not a good thing for them. Like, it obviously is, but it might not have been their decision. It might be a decision they made because of their fear of, of you know, using too much insulin that makes them low, late or whatever. You know what I mean? High blood sugars. So whether you're a super healthy person running around, you know, on a keto diet having eight carbs a day or whatever, and, or you're a person who's got gummy bears in the door pocket of their car like you're all interacting with food in a strange way.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Yeah. Because the rest of the world, who doesn't use insulin, just sort of eats when they get hungry.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

You know, and. And it's a thing you don't have to think about that sucks, you know?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Really does.

[B]

A thousand percent. So.

[A]

Geez. And what kind of therapy did you do? Is it just talk therapy for that?

[B]

It was just talk therapy. Yeah. My. My dad had died, like, very suddenly, and obviously that. That makes the person quite sad. So I was like, maybe I'll do some therapy just to kind of work through some. Some things. And then, yeah, diabetes came up and

[A]

you found your way through it. That's nice.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

How old were you?

[B]

I was 26, 28.

[A]

Oh, I'm sorry. That's a terrible. I mean, I don't know if there's a good time to lose your father, but, you know, that sucks. Did he get. Get married, anything like that?

[B]

I did get married. I got married in 2020 through 24.

[A]

Right.

[B]

And I'm currently five months pregnant.

[A]

Oh, wait a minute. This is your first.

[B]

This is my first. Yes.

[A]

Graduation.

[B]

Now I'm dealing all of the diabetes, the fun of diabetes and pregnancy.

[A]

I'll ask you about that right after I asked you about how it's possible you didn't know you were anxious. So

[B]

honestly, I think I was in a delusional state because I've always. I guess I've always been a type A personality. Like, needed to do well in school. In high school. I thought if I didn't do well in school, I would somehow live on a box in the street.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And I don't know where that thought process came from, but I think your

[A]

doctor mom could have floated you a couple of bucks.

[B]

You thought it was like, my parents have never been, like, neglectful, where they would just be like, oh, you didn't get into college. All right, see ya. You're on your own. Like, they would have never done that. I could have been a deadbeat and they would have still helped me, but for whatever reason, my mind went that way and I was very much stuck on that path.

[A]

I love that you're old enough to remember when we called anxiety type A. They're just very type A. She's wound tight. Remember that one?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Yeah. I wonder what they'll pick after anxiety.

[B]

But I think a mix of my anxiety with people pleasing people just thought that I was just like, in a good mood and made people happy. So they're like, oh, no, she's fine. But meanwhile, My anxiety was, I guess, in an extent, because of my anxiety, that I was, like, trying to make everyone else happy.

[A]

Make everyone else happy? Yeah. I have. I mean, I don't. I work through it pretty well, but, like, after my parents got divorced and then I got married, like, I had a pretty high level of anxiety. If people were upset, I got. I was like, oh, no, we can't be upset. People can't walk out of this room upset because then none of us live here anymore. Like, you know, I mean, like, it was a. It felt like a tumble into, like, you know, the disillusion of your life. But I don't have that feeling any longer. Also, some of these people want to leave. I'm okay with it. You know what I mean? Yeah. It's an authority.

[B]

My people pleasing has definitely gotten better.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Over the years, but I still, I still catch myself and I'm like, why did I say that? That was stupid.

[A]

Yeah. Where else does the anxiety pop up? Does it pop up for you singularly or only with other people? Usually.

[B]

See, I still don't think I'm anxious, but I guess, like, I guess I am. I'm not anxious enough that I take any kind of medications for it. I can definitely control my people. What the professionals say is anxiety.

[A]

When the therapist said you're anxious, did it occur to you go, no, I'm not.

[B]

I. I thought it, but I didn't want to upset her.

[A]

So you're people pleasing. You were like, hey, you wonder how many things you're doing you don't mean to be doing right now. Like, I don't know. The lady at the mall said, I smell with this on. I've been wearing it for 10 years. I don't even like it. I just don't want her to be let down. She was running that whole kiosk by herself. Do you do that with your husband? No. Right? He can go to hell.

[B]

Yeah, he can go. I mean, there's points where I'm like, that was a stupid thing to say. But then I also voice that and I'm like, no, wait, I don't actually think that. So he's gotten the. At this point in our relationship. So we've been together for six years. Six years. So he's. He's gotten the. The people pleasing phase that has now shifted over to the. I'm comfortable enough with you that I'm just going to tell you exactly what you.

[A]

My. I watch my wife with the people that work for her, and I always think I should get a job. With her, she's so nice to them. I think she wastes it on. Well, she uses it on them all day. And then when she gets to me, she's like, oh, thank God. I don't have to pretend to be this nice. That's what I think. But then when she tells me, she's like, I'm a very nice person. Everyone that works for me likes me. And I'm like, I hear you. I said, they also think you could fire them. So I don't know if we can trust them or not. Okay, so you don't feel that kind of anxiety, by the way, do your mom or dad have anxiety? Any brothers or sisters?

[B]

I would say no. My mom is very much go with the flow, like, almost to a fault. Yeah, my dad was the, like, the most easygoing person I've ever known. He was. He was definitely a people pleaser, though, because my mom would always say he would never say no to me, but he would just do whatever he wanted. So she was like, I can't argue with you because you're not arguing back, but you're just gonna do it anyway.

[A]

Did she like that?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Yeah. I mean, you're like, oh, she didn't go anywhere. So, I mean, yeah, she.

[B]

They had a very good relationship, thankfully.

[A]

I always say to my wife, I'm like, I respect you too much to insult you by pretending that this isn't what's happen happening. And then the people I know, other people I know are married, are like, you could just not say that to her and she's not going to care. And I'm like, I don't know. It is a weird position to be in. Like, you know, like, if somebody's having an unbalanced reaction to something, and you can either let them know, even in a kind way, or, you know, and say, like, hey, you know, I think your reaction's odd here and try to talk through it. Which is a thing that you say in therapy, but isn't really work in real life. Like, nobody talks through any. I just want to make you all. It's what we should be doing. It's not what we actually do. Sort of like the doctoring thing, where they should know about your problems and help you with it, but it's not exactly what happens. I almost want to get back to that idea, like, that human part of it. Like, you brought it up, so. And I feel like I know a bunch of your story now, so I don't know if that's a thing. You and I can sit and like, hammer through or not. But when so much of the world works like this, where meaning, like, there's people holding positions and we have to just assume that they know what they're doing and move forward. But the truth is, nothing works that way. I started to talk about this on another episode, but I didn't really get through it. The other day, I had a phone call with the people who do the insurance on my car, right? And I had a phone call with a bank about a payment that had to be made, and there was a third phone call about something else. And not. And trust me, I'm very genial on the phone, and I'm not a person that jumps on and is like, this is. You don't start yelling at people. Nothing like that. Not one of those people seemed to fundamentally understand their job. When they were intersected with a problem that wasn't on a flow sheet in front of them, it felt like they did not know how to answer. And the one person I got to the end and I said, so if I show up, I need to bring this and this, and that'll be okay? And she went, maybe. And I said, maybe you work there. If you don't know, who knows? And she went. I swear, she went. She just made a noise. And I was like, what in the hell is happening? And I went downstairs.

[B]

And at that point you asked chatgpt.

[A]

Well, I mean, you know what I did? I just applied my own common sense to it, showed up with that stuff, and it was fine, but, like. But she worked there. Yeah, right. The guy with the car insurance, he said to me, listen, here's how this is gonna go. Just so you know, like, we had a little damage on a car. Like, not even a fender bender happened in a park, like a parking lot. So there's a car that needs a front bumper and a hood, Right. But once they put on a front bumper and a hood, the paint on the fenders isn't going to match the front bumper and the hood.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

So the auto body said, listen, I want you to know that when I go back and tell the insurance company the bumper and the hood don't match the fenders, I have to overspray the fenders. They're going to try to not pay for that. And so I said that to the insurance company. He goes, oh, that is what he would say to you. He's like, he's. What he's not telling you is you'll never know the difference. And I'm like, wait, what? Like, are you telling me you are going to decline the figures. Well, that's not damage. And I was like, I mean, my car looks like a clown car. That's kind of damage. I have to resell it one day. Is that not damage? And, you know. Well, and what I ended up having was two people explaining to me how broken the system is and how each one of them was going to try to manipulate it to get me what I wanted. But they both ended by saying they probably wouldn't be able to help me. And I was like, well, what are you going to do about it? And they went, well, we're not going to pay for it. And the other guy goes, well, you know, we're not going to do the work if they're not going to pay for it. And I was like, well, what is all this about? And then they got to the end and they went, oh, you're going to have to decide what you want to do. I'm like, wait, isn't it your job to fix the car? And isn't it your job to pay for the car, be even fixed? Like, I said to the guy, I'm like, I'm 54 years old. I've had car insurance with you since I was 16. I've used it twice. You can't shake a grand free so that my car doesn't, like, mismatch itself. It's not what we do. And I was like, all right, okay.

[B]

The amount of money you've already paid with your car insurance over the years, none that they can't scrape by any of that.

[A]

I had a problem with my credit card the other day. I've had that credit card for, like, 40 years. Like, and I count myself lucky. We're people who pay off our credit card at the end of the month. But, like, I asked for something, and she said, we can't do that. And I said, how many countless thousands of dollars have I sent you over the last 30 years? I was like, you can't do this one thing. And they're like, no, Nope. But those are people who at least understand that their job is to tell you to go to hell, and they're good at it. I'm talking about people who, like, you're like, hey, you're the one that sells the widgets. How much of the widgets? And they go, I don't know how much the widgets are pointing that, like that thing that we, you know, we all recognize in the world. Like, I think at this point, everyone recognizes or has said the phrase out loud. No one knows how to do their job. Right. We all think we know how to do it, but nobody else does. I don't even know if I know how to do my job. I have a fairly unique job, you know, so. But most of us are probably out there failing on some level or another because we're human, and that's just how it goes. But for some reason, we. You know, I used to say when I started making this podcast, there's a lot of, you know, you're raised to believe that a doctor, fireman, you know, a police officer, a teacher. Those people are beyond reproach. Like, you don't question them. They do a great job. Well, in the last 15 years, I. I think everyone, you know, gave up on, like, every cop's a great person, which, you know, is a silly statement to begin with. Not every. Anybody is a great person. Right? So there's the thing that people are starting to like, why? Well, I'm going to wait and see. And, you know, teachers are another situation where, like, you know, you can get a great teacher. You can get a teacher who is. You know, some of the stories that my kids have lived through in general, you're like, wow, how did that. Like, how did that person get that job? Right? And now I think I'm the one out here trying to yell, like, every doctor you get is not going to be great. So, you know, it's fine if they misdiagnose your. I don't know, your. Your flu is something else. You'll probably live through that. But again, when they put you on this path, so kind of, that's the thing I'd like to understand from you, I guess, is, like, what path were you on? Who set you on it, and what did you do to, like, change it for yourself, if at all?

[B]

So, yeah, I diagnosed, like, things were going along, I guess, fine. I don't really remember too much. Like, young, young years. I went onto the pump. I went through, like, a bunch of pumps. I tried one of the first sensors that came out with Medtronic, which was terrible. Like, just completely inaccurate. So then I just completely stopped using it. And then I would say my A1Cs were always fairly controlled, like, as. Like, going through the teenage years, I know, with the hormones and stuff that, like, affects it. I never remember being, like, so off base. I think there was, like, after the dka, I think I did go into DKA a year later once the pump started, because we were so new with it that I think that the tubing clogged.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

And, like, we didn't know why that was happening, like, what was going on, why, whatever. And then I did end up in DK once after that, after I got on the pump.

[A]

Okay. Because you just weren't getting insulin delivered.

[B]

It wasn't getting inside. Yes.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

But then after that, like, my. From what I remember, my. My agencies have always been in, like, the set, like, eight, seven sixes, but, like, a lot of highs and a lot of lows. So that gave a good average.

[A]

Okay. Eight, seven, six. Did that number come down as you got older or as technology got better or.

[B]

Technology got better and as I got older and kind of started to understand a little bit more to take care of myself. But I do think I was. I was put on my, like, own pretty early on. So my parents were kind of at the thought process of, like, she's. We're going to make her pretty independent, so to make her an independent person in life, because we're not going to be around forever to do this for her. And I think with just the limited technology, like, there's only so much that they could really do well.

[A]

And I think, too, with your people pleasing, you probably seemed like you were doing a great job and you were okay.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

So they probably thought it was okay to pass to you. But were you really, like, did you really need their help still?

[B]

I definitely did still need their help. Yeah. For sure. I learned to lie a lot about what my blood sugars were, partly to get what I wanted, because I was like, if I'm going to live with this disease, I'm going to use it as an excuse whenever I can. So to get out of tests and stuff, I had to go to the nurse three times a day. I would just say my blood sugar was whatever, and I would stay there and have to either have a snack or take a nap if my blood sugar was high.

[A]

Oh, a nap at school. That sounds. That sounds. I hated school. That would have been fantastic.

[B]

But I still did well in school, so it was more so of my anxiety of, like, I don't think I'm going to do the best of this test. I want to study a little bit more. I'm not going to take it today.

[A]

That is not the way I would have manipulated that. No, no. So I bear. I can't believe I graduated. Like, when they gave me my diploma, I was like, sucker.

[B]

But, like, like I said a lot of highs and a lot of lows. Like, I didn't really realize that after eating I should come back down to 120 like that. And Then. And then now I'm thinking, like, when I find you found your podcast, it was because I was starting to think about, like, pregnancy and diabetes. And I don't even know where I heard that that would be more difficult. But, like, no one ever told me that I couldn't get pregnant. I was not in that phase of. I guess, like, the. The older people that have had diabetes for a long time, they were told they could never have kids. Yeah, I was never told that. So I was like, oh, yeah, maybe I should kind of like just look into it. And you know how our phones are always listening. I started getting, I guess, an Instagram reel from a different. I don't even remember what it was. It was like a diabetes person. And then someone in the comments mentioned your podcast. So then I was like, oh, let me. Let me take a look. So then I started listening to it. And from the day I started listening to your podcast, I was like, wow, I've been doing everything wrong for the last 23 years.

[A]

How long ago was that?

[B]

I would say maybe a year ago.

[A]

Only a year ago? So you're how old you are? You say 30. Would you say 31? 31. Okay, so for. This is. So this is super interesting because I think that at a, you know, at a pulled back, you know, kind of macro level, kid gets diagnosed, people pleaser, trying hard, you're smart, obviously, right? Mom's a doctor. You go into medicine as well. They would look at you. And if I said, hey, guess, guess. Christine's A1C, they'd be like, well, she's probably in the low sixes. Right? She's got all this stuff going for her, but none of that actually helps you.

[B]

I have been in the low sixes for like, five, six years at this point.

[A]

Having said that, though, like, that's still 10 years of diabetes otherwise. Right. Using hindsight, what stops that from being sooner? Is it just. Is it immaturity? Is it the fact that your parents gave the. The rains over too soon? Was it technology?

[B]

A mix of both? I think it's a mix of everything. Okay, so I think it's a lack of knowledge that knowing, like, what, like I was always told and like the endocrinologist that I ended up with, they. They were good with diabetes, but because I was at a young age, they always told me and my parents not to pre bolus because they didn't know when I was going to eat or what I was going to be eating. Exactly. So then you're risking going low. And because I was Low pretty often wanted to try to avoid that.

[A]

So they were better high than low.

[B]

Better high than low.

[A]

Yeah. Not really understanding the concept of what happens once you get high and then eventually you put in a bunch of insulin and get low. You weren't getting low from the meal. You were getting low from trying to fix the problem. That not pre bolus thing made.

[B]

Exactly. Yes. And then over treating. So over treating all the time. Because I was like, oh, this is my opportunity to eat as many snacks as I want. And especially with my. My history of binging and restricting. Yeah, that was like an open door to be like, oh, I can do whatever I want now because I'm low

[A]

and it's a health reason I have to eat all this. Yeah, yeah. But you weren't bolusing while you were eating.

[B]

No, absolutely not. I would just go high and be like, why am I high? I was just 32aminute ago. Or not that quickly, but you know what I mean.

[A]

So, Cristine, is it fair to say. Tell me if you would agree with this, because when I try to think about. I mean, it's a little. It's really lovely to hear you talk about the fact that you found this a year ago. Seriously, Because I've been making it for 11 years when you found it.

[B]

I know, I've been listening.

[A]

But my point being is that it's just. It's nice to know that it's still working. But when you stop and think about why it's still working, and when I do that, the situation seems to me that there are decisions that can be made, actions that can be taken, and there's not actually that many of them. And for some reason, people put them on the wrong part of their. Of the game board. You know what I mean? Like, they're. They're bolusing in the wrong times. They're doing things. What I mean is, is that somebody's having your outcomes prior to finding the podcast. You're probably doing more work than you're doing now by just reordering when you accomplish these tasks. Is that fair to say? Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Right. It's just, it's. You're putting in a ton of effort all in the wrong places. If you take even sometimes a fraction of that effort and just put them in the correct place, you'd be surprised how easy all this can be. And by the way, that's just my. That's my. That's just the way I think about life laid over top of diabetes. Like, I don't like you Know what I mean? Like, it's not some, like, I don't know, like I, I'm not some great genius. I don't understand everything like you, like maybe people would want to give me credit for all the time. I just know there are certain things you do around type 1 diabetes and if you do them at the right times, kind of works out like, like that's pretty much what I know. And I just, it's fascinating to me that, that a doctor could look at you say, oh, she's low all the time. You know what she shouldn't do pre bolus her meals. This is the exact wrong thing. Or, you know, or the simplicity of like she's, you know, she's low. I mean, I've had doctors tell me this in the past, like, well, your daughter's getting low at 2:00am Will just, we'll turn their basil down at like, I don't know, you know, like maybe one. And I'm like, that's. And then you go, okay. And then all that does is create a high blood sugar four hours later. And, and nobody, like, nobody can like follow that through and understand it. Like, it's not that. It's just not that hard, I guess is my point. I've tried not to do this over the last couple of years, but I'm being serious. If I can figure this out, you all can do it. Okay. Like, it's just, I am not, I am just not that my brain does just not work that way. Like, you know what I mean? Like, I am not the kind of person who you would think would figure this out. So my point is, is that it's not that hard if you just do the right things at the right time. It's. Yeah.

[B]

So when you, you can imagine if you've been doing this for 23 years the way that I've been doing it, and then you tell me, okay, now you need to pre bolus like 15 to 20 minutes before you're going to eat. But I, in the last 23 years have been just eating whenever I could. And as, like a nurse, like when I was in the hospital as a nurse, I, I honestly, I couldn't pre bolus because I had no idea when I was going to get two minutes to sit down, scarf down my food and then eat it. Like there was no way that I could be like, okay, in 30 minutes I'm going to have a few minutes to eat. So then I would just bolus eat and then move along.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

But like now it's like, I Know that I can give myself time. I work in an office that, like, I could make someone wait 10 minutes if I'm still eating without a problem, but I'd like to remember to do it. Is the problem because I've been doing it wrong my entire life?

[A]

Well, I don't know, did I? I think that's a problem in general. I don't think it's because you've been doing it differently your whole life. I think it's because that's a really difficult thing to do. Like, we talked about it earlier. Right. Like, most people don't think about food all the time. They just eat when they're hungry. And, and having to, like, remember that you're going to be hungry in a half an hour is a. It's a strange thing to ask people. All I know is that if you find a way to accomplish it, a lot of this goes a lot better. Normally.

[B]

Yes. And I mean, now that our phones are attached to the hip, I do set an alarm to eat good. I like, be like, okay, I'm gonna eat soon, I'll set an alarm and then I'll go along and eat it. But now with pregnancy, everything is changing even more. So I'm like, yeah, and my 15 minutes is now 30 minutes, and by the time 30 minutes comes along, I am starving. Pregnancy also doesn't help with that. So.

[A]

Yeah, no, it is. Listen, being pregnant with type 1 diabetes, everything I've gathered from the conversations I've had is it's a nine month process of, you know, really being focused and, and, you know, making sure you're doing the things you're supposed to be doing. And it's also a lot of insulin at parts of the, of the, of the pregnancy, which scares the hell out of people sometimes.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

You know, are you up to that part? I mean, you're in fifth month, you haven't hit it yet.

[B]

Yeah, I mean, I feel like, because, like, a lot of women complain that during their cycles, like, you have to change the amount of insulin that you get. I've never noticed a difference. And I mean, I guess in the last year that I've been listening to your podcast and paying attention to different things I should be paying attention to. I never noticed a difference in, like, my cycle. So I think because I guess my hormones just haven't really affected my blood sugars too much. I haven't needed a huge increase. Insulin?

[A]

Yeah. Maybe your, your hormonal impacts just might be different from people, other people, that's all.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And I mean, I did. I did read the pregnancy type one book, so that's been helping me, like, month to month kind of what to expect. So, I mean, I think this pregnancy has been going fairly well. I. I am much more aware of my highs so that I don't get them because I know that that can affect the baby. And to be honest, like, low, like I said, I'm not scared of lows at all. I can sit at like a 50 and be completely feeling okay, which is not a good thing because I know that that can turn very quickly. But it doesn't scare me, you know,

[A]

like, you're not scared by it?

[B]

No.

[A]

Why. Do you know why that is?

[B]

I think it's just because it just feels like an easier fix than highs.

[A]

Okay, so you. You. You don't want to be 50, but you know that if you're 50 and you eat a little something, you're gonna

[B]

be okay Again, there's so much known damage that highs give that lows to me. I'm like, well, they don't really know what a lot of lows in the long term can do to someone. So, like, I think I'm kind of living on that.

[A]

Well, I don't. I. Well, listen, I'll say this. I'm not your dad. Obviously, I don't want you to be that low. And you're right. They don't know what it does. But I also don't think it's a thing you want to, like, test out and find out later. You know what I mean? What's that acronym? F around and find out what's the acronym? Yeah, yeah, yeah, let's not do that. But. But I. I watch people have this conversation online all the time. And I have to admit, it's fascinating, right? Like somebody's going to tell you, well, you know, there's no studies that tell you what happens from all these lows. And, you know, so I don't want to try that. I don't want to end up with, you know, cognitive issues. And I have to agree. I agree with everybody. I don't think you want to be low all the time. I don't think you want to be high all the time. I don't understand why that's the argument. You know what I mean? Like, why are the better high than low? People are like, well, you don't want to be low, something bad's gonna happen. And the lower the people are like, well, I'd ra low than high. Like, I don't know what's. You know, what's going to happen from high blood sugars. You hear, you know, the possible complications that are going to come from that. Like, why are we having that argument? Why does life always work like this? Why are we arguing out on the fringes constantly?

[B]

Just everyone love to be right.

[A]

Just meet in the middle and don't have problems.

[B]

Like it's help a lot with our politics if people just met in the middle.

[A]

I mean, honestly, it's all the same thing. Like, why are you out here arguing about something, something that it's just, just, it's so freaking fringe. Just walk towards the middle a little bit and everyone live a nice comfortable life in here where most people can agree and most, most things work out. Well. You, you know, like it's. But with the diabetes. Exactly. Like, I just don't understand why there's a, you know, either an eat everything or ultra low carb fringe. What about people who just eat some carbs? You know what I mean? Like it's. I don't know. I. That alone. If you, if you told me I could have an extra lifetime to find out why people think that way, I, I probably pretty willingly spend it trying to like figure that out because I'm fascinated by that whole idea. Why in the hell are we all fighting? Just don't be 50 and don't be 350, okay? Like, you know, when your blood sugar gets to 160, think to yourself, huh, I might have messed something up here. I might need more insulin, you know. And when you're 90 and you're falling, don't do the. It'll probably be okay. Start paying attention to it and, and stop it. Just kind of bump it back up again and be done. Like this is. It's. You can just listen to that pro tip series and just do that. You'll be fine.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

You know, by the way, not medical advice, I'm not a doctor, but it's. It really, I swear to you, if you go back and listen to any of the management stuff that I've ever made, what you're going to hear is me talking about diabetes in what I think of as a common sense way and Jenny jumping in to make sure that we understand the technical parts of it, that is really what you're going to hear. And if you brought me, if I was a Christine, if everything goes upside down on me and I need a job ever, I'm definitely going to end up being a life coach because it seems like an amazing scam, okay.

[B]

Where you can definitely make a lot of money. Because when I was on this journey of, like, finding your podcast. I almost dropped a lot of thousands to be life coached by someone.

[A]

You don't have to say who, but I think I know who. Will you tell me when we're done recording?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Okay. If I'm right about that, if I'm right about that, I'm gonna like, really?

[B]

I was like, maybe I can do this on my own. Like, let's try to figure this out first.

[A]

If I say the name out loud, I'll get the editor to cut it out completely. You just say yes or no.

[B]

Okay, I did. Like, I went through the whole chat and then they were like, saying all these nice things, but they don't give you a price anywhere. And then they dropped the price and I'm like, oh, my God.

[A]

How much was it?

[B]

It was a lot.

[A]

Wait, believe this out too, Rob. How much was it? Oh, wow.

[B]

For an eight week program. And like, I'm sure you learn a lot. Like, I'm not gonna sit here and say you don't. But I was like, I've had diabetes for 23 years. I think I can figure it. I'm smart. I would say I'm kind of smart. I have a master's in science. I was like, I think I could do this.

[A]

Oh, wow.

[B]

Also, my husband was like, we just paid for a vacation. Are you sure you really need this? If you do, we can pay for it. But if not, I was like, oh, let me try.

[A]

That's crazy.

[B]

And I tried and I did it on my own.

[A]

I want to just tell you something. Hold on a second. I know I'm not going to tell you how many people listen to the podcast, because, I mean, it's a lot. I'm just gonna do the rough math real quickly. If the amount of money you just said was given to me every eight weeks by the number of people listening to the podcast, you would be a

[B]

very, very rich man.

[A]

Hold on a second. So every. Oh, God. I'd make $550 million every eight weeks?

[B]

That sounds great.

[A]

Wait a minute. How you all owe me money. Damn it. Start sending it right now. This is insane. I don't even need the whole 550. What do you think of that? I'll just take a little piece of that and I'll give the rest of charity after that. Because that was every eight weeks. How many eight week sections are in the year? Oh, my God. What's 52 divided by eight?

[B]

I think they do like two to three programs a year from what he was saying.

[A]

Six. There's six chunks of eight weeks a year. I don't think my, my calculator will. I don't think my. Hold on a second. I don't think my calculator will do that. Yeah, I think it's gonna break. Hold on. Let's look. I'm gonna go with Chat GPT because she's the easiest to talk to. Hey, girl. Hey.

[B]

Hey, Scott. How's it going?

[A]

I mean, I'm. Let's not chit chat. I need to know 550 million times six. Just say out. Don't, don't give me the math. Just say the number.

[B]

The number is 3,300,000,000.

[A]

I'm a billionaire. This is excellent, Christine. Yeah. In just one year, I'm 100%. I'll tell you what too, you guys make me a billionaire. I won't even retire. I'll just keep making the podcast. I love talking to people. I would, I would. Honestly, after I don't record for a couple days, my wife's like, what's wrong? I'm like, I haven't talked to anybody in a while. Well, yeah, I mean, what the hell?

[B]

Yep.

[A]

Well. And in the end, listen, whoever we're talking about, maybe they would have done a great job and God bless, like, that's fine. And if you can afford it, then also. I don't, I don't care. My point is, is that I'm pretty certain that no matter where you go, all they're going to tell you is to pre bullish your meals. Don't over treat your lows, don't let your blood sugar get over a certain level. And you're going to have an A1C in the low sixes.

[B]

Yeah. And just pay attention to what your blood sugar is doing. And like a, like take five minutes a day and just look at your, your, your, your graph.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

They'll probably tell you to put on a CGM too, because that's really important.

[A]

It's all good. But that's not my. Oh my God, what am I doing here? I do not make, I don't make $550 million every eight weeks. Is it five? Is that right? Hold on a second. God damn it.

[B]

I mean, they don't do it every eight weeks, so I think they only.

[A]

No, but I would make it. That's how many times. Yeah, that's what I would. Forget them. Let's talk about me. Now. Hold on a second. I want to make sure this is right because I know how many people I talk to every eight weeks.

[B]

Scott, you're missing out a good business opportunity here.

[A]

Well, listen, you all have to send me 10 bucks now. Like, like, at least, because, like, don't. Please don't send me money. If I. Yeah, 10 times. If I just got $10 from each of you, I'd make $2.2 million. Like, oh, my God, what am I doing? You're all. You're all welcome.

[B]

But to be fair, they did lead me to your podcast that led me to be a very independent and successful diabetic. My A1C before I got pregnant was 5.3.

[A]

Good for you. Look at you. I did that. You're saying. I mean, you did it, but I did it. You know what I'm saying?

[B]

With your help. Yeah. Because I was. I mean, I was. I was sitting in the high fives, like, low sixes, like I said, for the last few years. But a lot of highs and lows. Like, I would never open up my graph and be like, wow, I am 90% in range. It was like 60, actually. I never really even opened the Clarity app to see what my range was, to be honest. It was just, like, kind of living day by day. It is what it is. I'm a diabetic. This is just how you live life also.

[A]

That's such a good point. When you're doing the things, you don't even have to track it. It just works out. That's the math. Maths. If you're doing the right things.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And by no means am I, like, a perfect diabetic, but I definitely sleep a lot better now. Like, I didn't realize that when you. I also. Oh, I also read the book Think like a Pancreas, which helped a lot, too.

[A]

Yeah. Well, and not for nothing, I don't know if you know this or not, but the guy that wrote that book, Jenny, works for him.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Yes. So, you know, she's, you know, talking about it in the same way as. Well, it turned. You know, it's so funny. I. And no disrespect to Gary at all, I've never read that book. I don't. And this is not a flex, but I don't read, so. But my point is, is that the things I talk about in the podcast are literally just the common sense things that occurred to me while I was figuring out how to take care of my daughter. That's all it is. And I'm chatty. That's pretty much. That's. That's the mix. So, you know, I figured this stuff out, and I'm good at explaining it and somehow came up with the, you know, pretty much the same exact stuff that much more learned people figured out and wrote down in books.

[B]

Yeah, I'm so. I'm conflicted with, like, how helpful you are with your daughter versus how much, like, I do. I read a lot of the comments in the. In the Facebook group and like, I get very angry at the parents that are so, so involved in their kids care because I'm like, they're not going to know how to do it. But then I'm also like, it's not just me being upset that I didn't get that kind of help. I do say anytime I see a podcast that's like, oh, my son has T1D for X years, I'm like, I'm not gonna listen to this one. Just gonna piss me off.

[A]

Well, but that might be a good thing for you to get through because if you even stop and listen to what you've said over the last 55 minutes, you said your parents handed over control to you too soon and that your A1Cs were in the eights and the sevens for a while and that like, so you would have benefited from somebody like me being involved with it longer.

[B]

Oh, absolutely. Like a 1000%. I am not saying that what you're doing is wrong.

[A]

No, no, no, no. I know you're not. I know you're not. I'm saying free. I'm talking about you. Listen, we talked enough about me. I mean, so with my 550, you've got. Damn it. I'm going to try not to think about that. Okay. And let's keep moving forward. You know what? The truth is, is that if, If I, If I gatekeep, if I gate. Kept the podcast with money, people just wouldn't listen to it. Like, so there's a decision you have to make. Like, are you going to take a large amount of money off of a small number of people and become wealthy, or are you going to try to spread the information out over everybody? Because some people can't afford it, or some people wouldn't pay for it one way or the other even if they could afford it. Or how are they going to even know that it's valuable enough to reach in their pocket to find out. Right. Like the. I think that democratizing the information, it's the only way I can sleep.

[B]

Okay, well, there's. We're very, we're very lucky to have people like you. Most people, I would say, are the other way around, where they would rather the Money than help more people.

[A]

I know, but like, we're only here for a certain amount of time and what's the point? Like, you know what I mean? Like, I can pay my electric bill. I'm okay. You know what I mean? Like, I, I think I'm gonna retire and I think I'm gonna be able to afford like a mid level ass wiper when I'm older. So I think it's fine, you know what I mean? As long as I don't get the low level ass wiper, I think I'll be okay. Like, I don't want them on their phone while they're wiping my ass. I would just like them to be. You understand what I'm saying?

[B]

I would say invest in a bidet. Very good.

[A]

Oh, sorry. I don't want to say this out loud, but the other day I said to my wife, like, if we ever put in another toilet, we should get one with a bidet.

[B]

You should definitely get there. There's attachments. You can even buy like a hose and attach it to your, the water in your toilet.

[A]

I don't want to get too involved, but you know what I mean? Like,

[B]

Scott, I'm telling you, it changes your life. Yeah, yeah.

[A]

All right, well, if I ever.

[B]

They're not expensive.

[A]

I know. You get a nice toto toilet now at a reasonable price. Yeah, yeah. I mean, for a toilet, like, the other ones are 99 bucks. It's not reasonable compared to that. But like, I, I, you know, it's not a, it's not a crazy amount of money to give your balls a good splash once in a while or whatever else you do down there. I don't know what you're doing. So listen, we naming this baby after me or. No, this is pretty much what everybody wants to know.

[B]

It is a girl.

[A]

So scatina is out of the question, Is that what you're saying?

[B]

I'll add it to the list of names we have so far.

[A]

Yeah, I bet you won't.

[B]

I'll run it past my husband and see his thought process.

[A]

Well, I already know you don't listen to him, so I don't think it matters what he thinks. So.

[B]

That's true. I mean, I think it's cute that he keeps throwing out these names and I'm like. But at the end of the day when I push this baby out, it is going to be whatever I want.

[A]

I'm calling this kid whatever I want to. Or this is the last view of you're getting of me without pants on. I Just want to say that, my gosh, how is your husband with your diabetes? It's interesting to me that you, because you got married, would you say you've been six years?

[B]

Six years, yes.

[A]

You have diabetes a good long time. But did you let him in or what's his level of understanding?

[B]

Very minimal. Which is like a process I'm trying to like, work through because I've never been someone to ask for help. I've always been the one to help others. And that's kind of just with everything, as you can probably imagine, with not asking my parents for any more help, even though I needed it.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

So I've never asked him for help, but. And then he like, before I got pregnant and like kind of started this journey of learning how to actually treat my diabetes, he would get mad when I'd let my sugar go low and he'd have to help me. And I'm like, I didn't. It's not like I let this happen. It's not like I want to be this low where I can't like, okay, drink my juice box without your help. Like, I mean. And it rarely does it get to that point.

[A]

Sure, sure.

[B]

But it's like he has seen that a few times and obviously it scares him. He doesn't want me to be like that. But in his defense, it's like, well, how did you let this happen? And I'm like, well, let's not blame me. Is diabetes. Like, let's kind of back up a little bit and kind of just like I have been slowly but surely kind of using the pregnancy as like, okay, well, when I can't reach behind my back to put on my pump and my Dexcom, you're going to have to do it. So here's, here's how you do it. I've always showed him how to either how to use the glucagon because I know that that's life saving and he needs to know how to do that. But like day to day management, he doesn't really get involved in. I don't really know if I want.

[A]

You don't know if you want him involved. And he doesn't sound like he's particularly interested in being involved. Am I right about that?

[B]

I think if I let him know that I wanted his help, he would definitely jump in. But I've never told him that I wanted to sell because I don't know if I know if I want, if I want it.

[A]

Can I say something? Ever seen those interviews where someone goes to the park and sits down with like, 90 year old people and asks them questions and they answer their questions about life. Ever seen one of these?

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Yeah, yeah.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

When you're 90 and someone asks you, you're going to say, oh, I should have told them about it sooner.

[B]

Yeah, yeah. Hindsight's always 20 20.

[A]

It doesn't need to be. Here's a good rule. Don't overthink things. You know what I mean? Yeah, yeah. Just what's the point? Like, whatever. The only reason you wouldn't want him to know is something that if you had time to get rid of in therapy, you probably would willfully give it away anyway.

[B]

Yeah, sure.

[A]

Right. Yeah. So just jump in, see what happens. He's not going to leave you. You're pregnant now. You're good.

[B]

Stuck.

[A]

Yeah. You're not. You're not letting him leave. So, like, you'd be like, I'm leaving you back. No, you're not.

[B]

Well, I told him I was like, we're never getting divorced, so you know that this is forever.

[A]

No kidding. You want to end up chained to the radiator, Make a move for the door. That's fine. You can live your whole life in the other room if you want to. I don't care. Everyone works online now. I'll just throw a laptop at you and you can just keep working. So does that. Everyone's job's not at home. Right. Like, it just feels like that to me because my. My whole family, like, works in this house. Frustrating, by the way. Sometimes you walk around, everybody's right there.

[B]

I mean, that would be very useful because me and my husband work at, like, different sides of New Jersey, so.

[A]

Oh, I didn't know you were here in the. In the motherland with me.

[B]

We. I am in the motherland.

[A]

Oh, geez, look at that. All right, well, we'll share that part later too. Is there anything we didn't talk about that we should have? Anything we've left out? I'm enjoying our conversation, but we have been going at it for over an hour now, so I just want to make sure we're doing. We're getting everything.

[B]

So I see in the Facebook group, like, the. How quickly people can go into dka, and that always surprised me because, like, I don't know. I don't know if my day diabetes is just like, it doesn't affect me as most people do because like I said, with the hormones, like, I feel like I was never, like, severely affected by not having insulin for that many hours.

[A]

How long have you gone without insulin?

[B]

This was only a one time deal that I tried this. But in college when I was more carefree and I was like, I'm gonna live my life and do whatever I want and go out and drink and have fun. My pump did not go with my outfit, so I did not put it on when I went out.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

And then I ended up staying out and I came home and I was, I mean, I was high for sure. Like, the meter was reading high, but I put insulin and I felt fine.

[A]

How many hours do you think that was?

[B]

I would say close to eight.

[A]

Oh, yes. Hey, listen, I remember when I was like 20, 21 years old. If you've heard me talk about my friend Mike, like, you know, back in the day, like, you know, we had telephones in our houses and, you know, some people had answering machines. Like, that's the level of communication. So if you didn't hear from somebody for a week, like it's. You call them and if they didn't answer the phone, then you weren't going to hear from them. Like, that was the end of your ability to contact them. And I was like trying to hang out with Mike and like, he wasn't answering and not answering. And finally his mom answered the phone one day and I was like, hey, I've been trying to get a hold of Mike for a couple days. She goes, oh, Scott. She's like, he's in the hospital. Hospital. He just decided he didn't want to have diabetes anymore, so he thought he would just stop taking care of it and see what happens. And he made it a. You know, he made it a couple of days before they put him in the hospital. And then he was in the hospital for over a week recovering from the decay. And it really, it was really bad. It almost like it almost killed him.

[B]

And yeah, I mean, I, I know that diabetes could definitely. Like, I'm not sitting here and saying, like, do what I did by any means. I only did it once because also my pump was screaming and my roommate was like, what the. What the is this? Yeah, please make it stop.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, listen, I, I don't like it that much to be putting up with all this. What are you saying? You're seeing people online saying like, they're. Are you sure they're going to DK or they just have ketones? They end up running to the hospital.

[B]

Yeah, I think that might be the case. But then like, when you read, when I read the comments, it's like, oh, if you're more than like just a few hours without Insulin, you can go into dka and I'm like, is that true?

[A]

Well, you. Yes, for some people in some situations, sure. Like, you know, and I think what you're seeing there is an abundance of caution in a place where, you know, I think abundance of caution is a good idea. You should never be without insulin. You have type one. Yeah, I have.

[B]

I have never done that again. That was a one time thing.

[A]

Yeah, but I understand it too. Like, you're younger and you're like, what the hell? Listen. Also, you know, the people that come on this podcast, generally speaking, are people who are trying to take good care of themselves or are figured out, you know, that they should be, or something like that. And once in a while they'll tell their stories and you'll hear, you know, my A1C was 14 for 10 years. Like, from people. And they're like, how does that happen? And they go, I just didn't always take my insulin or I would only shoot basil, but never for food or, you know, there's all different levels of, of that going on in the world. So I think sometimes when you listen to this, you're hearing Christine, who had diabetes for 20 years and then wanted to get pregnant and found the podcast and like, you know what I mean? Like, it's. They're sort of. You're almost hearing people in hindsight, talk about that stuff. And I don't know, like, you don't get a lot of people coming on right now who are in the middle of not taking care of themselves purposefully, knowledgeably not doing it and are excited to share that story. But I think, But I think it happens more than you think.

[B]

Yeah. Yeah, I guess you're right.

[A]

Anyway, Christine, I did a silly thing today and I booked myself twice, so I have to go so I can get a drink and do this again. But I really do appreciate this. You were fantastic. I enjoyed this very much.

[B]

Thank you, Scott.

[A]

Yeah, no, absolutely. I'm gonna jump off and find out where New Jersey you are. Okay.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Today's episode of the Juice Box podcast is sponsored by the Dexcom G7. And the Dexcom G7 warms up in just 30 minutes. Check it out [e-mail] JuiceBox this episode of the Juice Box podcast is sponsored by the Omnipod 5. And at my link omnipod.com juicebox you can get yourself a free. What I just say? A free Omnipod 5 starter kit. Free. Get out of here. Go click on that link omnipod.com/juicebox. Check it out. Terms and conditions apply. Eligibility may vary. Full terms and conditions can be found@ omnipod.com juicebox links in the show notes links@juicebox podcast.com okay, well, here we are at the end of the episode. You're still with me. Thank you. I really do appreciate that. What else could you do for me? Why don't you tell a friend about the show or like, leave a five star review? Maybe you could make sure you're following or subscribed in your podcast app. Go to YouTube and follow me. Or Instagram TikTok. Oh gosh, here's one. Make sure you're following the podcast in the private Facebook group as well as the public Facebook page. You don't want to miss, please do you not know about the private group? You have to join the private group. As of this recording, it has 75,4000 members. They're active. Talking about diabetes. Whatever you need to know, there's a conversation happening in there right now and I'm there all the time. Tag me. I'll say hi. My Diabetes Pro Tip series is about cutting through the clutter of diabetes management to give you the straightforward, practical insights that truly make a difference. This series is all about mastering the fundamentals, whether it's the basics of insulin dosing adjustments or everyday management strategies that will empower you to take control. I'm joined by Jenny Smith, who is a diabetes educator with over 35 years of personal experience. And we break down complex concepts into simple, actionable tips. The Diabetes Pro Tip series runs between episode 1000 and 1025 in your podcast player, or you can listen to [e-mail] by going up into the menu. If you have a podcast and you need a fantastic editor, you want Rob from wrong way recording Listen. Truth be told, I'm like 20% smarter. When Rob edits me, he takes out all the, like, gaps of time. And when I go and stuff like that and it just, I don't know, man. Like, I listen back and I'm like, why do I sound smarter? And then I remember because I did one smart thing. I hired [e-mail].