Coming Down From a High

I awoke Saturday morning and packed my things in preparation to visit my parents. I checked my phone and realized that my vision was gone. The screen was blurred and I couldn't make out any of the messages. I ran downstairs and was pleased to see that Chris hadn't left to surf yet. Thank goodness! He read me my messages and double-checked my meds to make sure that I drew them correctly. I sat down to a quick meal of Oat Bran and decided that I needed to get on the road before it got any worse.

Thankfully, I was previously informed that my vision could temporarily take a turn for the worse. I changed the font on my phone to 14 pt. (I'm pretty sure the jitterbug phone has smaller font) and donned my reading glasses for the drive. I made it to my parent's house safely and decided that while I was in town, I would make a quick trip to visit my best friend, Stacey.

I arrived at her parent's house and was greeted by her family. Her father has been battling type 2 diabetes for fifteen years and the visit helped to fill in the gaps on unanswered questions. They shared their cookbooks with me and I strained to skim the pages to see which book would work best for me. I was going strong until nine pm. All of a sudden, things became fuzzy and I knew it was time to head home.

I walked through my parent's door and I felt like I was hit by a ton of bricks. I was hungry, but nearing my daily intake for calories and carbs. The room was spinning around me-- it didn't matter how much I gripped the couch and tried to focus. My brain seemed like it was slamming against my skull. It was the most miserable night I have had thus far. Now I know that when the doctors tell me that I might feel badly, they mean it!

The week was extremely difficult. I told my family that I would create a slideshow for my grandpa and bam, my eyes were shot! I pushed through and finished everything I needed to get done, but as a result of that, I incurred some horrendous headaches.

I can't thank my parents enough for everything they did for me. When I got to town, my dad immediately took me shopping for cookbooks. We bought Better Homes and Gardens: Our Best Diabetic Living Recipes (my favorites include: Blueberry Oat Scones with Flaxseeds, Blueberry Buckwheat Pancakes, and Mixed Greens with Herbed Balsamic Vinaigrette) and Betty Crocker's Diabetes Cookbook (my favorites include: Chicken Enchiladas and Halibut with Lime and Cilantro). We mapped out our meals and he took me shopping for everything under the sun. My mom spent her days cooking delicious meals for us to eat. It really helped to have my meals taken care of while I concentrated on adjusting to normal glucose levels.