Real Life

Warm Weather & Low Carb - How I Arrived Here

The desire to move, to change, to grow, to learn is sometimes unquenchable. No matter what the experience, clarity comes with time. "If You Plant A Seed Today, It Won't Grow By Tomorrow. But If You Water And Feed It Everyday, Eventually You Will See The Flowers!" - Victoria Uzzell

Severe Hypoglycemia & Angels

Severe Hypoglycemia & Angels

The morning of January 15th was unlike any other in my life. Convulsions and a BG of 19 mg/dL, which led to a pinched nerve in my neck and continuing symptoms. This severe hypoglycemia was not a result of low carb, as some would like to blame, but of exhaustion and making one bad decision. 

Low Carb Profile Week 2: Adam

This is the second of 6 weekly low carb profiles of others who are following Dr. Bernstein's recommendations for diabetes management.  We're asking their diabetic history, their thoughts/feelings about eating low carb, and what changes they've seen in their lives since switching how they eat. Everyone, meet Adam. 

Low Carb Profile Week 1: Susanne

Low Carb Profile Week 1: Susanne

For each of the next 6 weeks, we'll feature an interview with a person with Type 1 Diabetes who follows Dr. Bernstein's plan for low carb eating and diabetes management.  We're asking their diabetic history, their thoughts/feelings about eating low carb, and what changes they've seen in their lives since switching how they eat. 

Control: How I Regulate Diabetes

Control: How I Regulate Diabetes

Is being a control freak really a bad thing? What if I say that i don't really "control" my Type 1 Diabetes, but because of my controlled diet and corresponding small  amounts of insulin, T1 Diabetes is somewhat self-regulating? Absolutely impossible? Read more....

What I Eat - Metrics For A Week

What I Eat - Metrics For A Week

What I eat on a daily basis has been documented both the diaVerge Facebook page, here in the food gallery, and within the post What I Eat- A Typical Day. Until now though, I've never published the exact metrics of my daily food consumption, or a week's average. 

For the past 7 days, I weighed and tracked everything I ate. 

9 Tips for Low Carb in a High Carb World

9 Tips for Low Carb in a High Carb World

We all encounter times when we have no low-carb support: your workplace, a relative's house, a restaurant.... even in your own home. Everywhere we go, we're faced with other people's eating habits. This time of year is particularly bad. Between Halloween and New Year, it's a constant barrage of high-carb foods and the common practice of Celebration = Treats. 

Low Carb is Diabetes Empowerment

Low Carb is Diabetes Empowerment

For several years (during both of my pregnancies and the time in between) I maintained  A1c levels of 5.8% to 6.3% (this falls within the ADA's recommendations of "Tight Control") and my doctors were thrilled. BUT these levels were due to dramatic daily highs and lows, which lead to a lot of danger, uncertainty and stress. I often had no idea what was causing high blood glucose levels and would blame my pump, or my calculations, or myself.

Use Your Words

Use Your Words

I ask my girls to use their words frequently. They might be having trouble expressing their emotions, or telling a story, or trying to figure out what to say to friends in certain situations. Together, we talk about how to talk about things. 

Then about a week ago, I read this beautiful post from Momastery.com about how to help your kids choose the right words to avoid peer pressure.  Because, as she writes, when we're put on the spot, we panic. 

This applies to our low-carb lifestyle, too. As people who eat very differently from the general population, we face pressure every day and need to have responses ready those times we feel pressure.

A Handful of Nuts

A Handful of Nuts

Eating nuts can be a challenge for many people because it's so easy to overeat. I struggle with this on a regular basis, as written in the previous post, Perfection is A Myth.           

We justify it by saying, "I'm just going to grab a handful," but then we don't stop at just one. Well, what actually is a handful of nuts? How much does it weigh? How many carbs and how should we better control this seemingly uncontrollable habit?