Bridget McNulty

How diabetes changed my life:

// June 22nd, 2009 // No Comments » // Diabetes, Inspiration, Life (and the living of it), Writing, travelling

That’s the theme of the story I wrote for Real Simple magazine in July last year. It was called ‘Sugar Rush’ and it was about how being diagnosed with diabetes made me reassess my definition of success, and start living the life of my dreams.

And… It just won the South African leg of the Novo Nordisk 2009 Diabetes Media Prize! Which is a huge honour. And makes me very happy because it means it’s going through to the international leg of the competition, and so am I! They’re flying me to Vienna in September for a 4 days diabetes conference. Fantastic!

I’m going to try and copy the article below (let’s see how web-savvy I really am – turns out, not that web savvy! You can click on it and download it, but not too sure how to make it a PDF in the blog post). I just read it for the first time in almost a year, and I have to say I’m rather pleased with it. I managed to capture the mood of how I feel about this subject, and I think that’s all any writer can ask for…

Sugar Rush

Looking back is a funny thing.

// April 9th, 2009 // No Comments » // Life (and the living of it), Strange Nervous Laughter

We’re mere hours away from a 4 day Easter weekend here, and Lordy Lord am I ready for it!

My man and I are heading off to a little cottage up the West Coast tomorrow, for a glorious 2 nights and 3 days, and I can’t wait! We’re not going to do anything but read, eat, go for long walks and relax… Just exactly what I need. Check it out: www.fairfieldsguestfarm.co.za

What’s interesting about this impending weekend, though, is that we’re going back to a place we went just over a year and a half ago, at the beginning of September 2007. I had been working nonstop doing marketing stuff for Strange Nervous Laughter’s impending release, and we decided to take some time out without computers or deadlines or to-do lists and spend a few days of quality time with each other.

Now, a year and a half later, I’ve been working nonstop doing marketing stuff for Strange Nervous Laughter’s impending US release, and we’ve decided to take some time out without computers or deadlines or to-do lists and spend a few days of quality time with each other.

There are a few, giant differences, of course. I’m diabetic now, I wasn’t then. I’m a freelancer, I worked full-time then. My man is a freelancer, he worked full-time then. We’re about to go on a round-the-world trip. I’m about to go to America for my US book launch. And I feel, in many ways, older and wiser. But at the same time, I still think I have a lot to learn from my younger self. Take a read of that day’s blog post and let me know what you think…

And until we meet again, I’m taking a big deep breath in, and out, and relaxing into the Easter weekend…

Our home for the weekend!

Let me rephrase that…

// April 7th, 2009 // 1 Comment » // Diabetes, Life (and the living of it)

Can we make it Supergirl With Diabetes?

The only problem with starting a new exciting exercise regime is that my blood sugar doesn’t necessarily agree with it. And by that I mean my blood sugar doesn’t like it at all. One little bit.

That’s always been another reason for the mild-exercise-excuse of walking: I know exactly how it affects my diabetes. It doesn’t wake me up at 2am with low blood sugar, and again at 7am, and leave me feeling like I’m walking around with a heavy, aching head simultaneously filled with cotton wool and nails. Yup. That’s what it feels like now.

There are few things I really hate about diabetes. I don’t mind the injections, or the testing, I don’t even mind the dietary restrictions, most of the time, because I’m able to eat a healthier diet, and it keeps me on track. But there is one thing that I hate, hate hate hate hate hate, and that is waking up low.

You’ll be fast asleep, snoring away happily, when suddenly you wake up, totally alert but completely disorientated, with your heart pounding and a funny lightheaded feeling. You drag yourself through to somewhere with light, prick your finger, test your blood and see that it’s low. And then you have to make a decision – generally at 2am in the morning, when you’re still mostly asleep but feeling rotten – about what to eat. And then this intense sugar craving kicks in, so that even when you drink sweet fruit juice you don’t quite feel satisfied. And then, once you’ve had your rationed amount of sugar, you drag yourself back to bed and lie down, heart still pounding, alternately going hot and cold, until your heart finally slows, your blood sugar rises, and you can go to sleep again.

Only to wake up feeling unrefreshed and like a car ran over your head during the night.

Logically, I know, it’s pretty remarkable that my body can wake me up when my blood sugar goes too low, and I’m very grateful for that. But I am not grateful for the feeling I have today, of being useless, and tired, and over-emotional, and 100% diabetic.

And that’s my diabetes rant for the next few months, I promise!

UPDATE: It’s the next day, now, and I’ve woken up feeling fantastic – full of energy, clear head and all-round well. Interesting, too, that after some in-depth research it looks like it wasn’t the exercise to blame for the night-time lows at all! We had a three day heat wave from hell here in Cape Town last week, and I was out and about a lot. Insulin isn’t supposed to get hotter than 30 degrees Celsius, but it was definitely over 35 for a couple of days there… So the too-hot insulin’s potency is reduced, resulting in less effective control from low blood sugar. FASCINATING!

Who said diabetes wasn’t an interesting condition?

Do you exercise?

// April 6th, 2009 // 1 Comment » // Cape Town, Decisions, Life (and the living of it)

I do, but don’t tell my body!
I’ve always had a rather unusual relationship to exercise… If I can pretend I’m not doing it, I’m happy. This has led me to trampolining (fun, but a little repetitive on a mini-trampoline), swimming (lovely, but haven’t found the Cape Town equivalent to the Westville Pool in Durban, which I loved), yoga (fabulous, but always a mission to drag myself to classes) and, finally, walking.

The beauty of walking is that I don’t need to get dressed up in special gear or drive myself to a classroom to do it. I don’t need to schedule in walking time, or prepare my day around my walk. I can simply finish work for the day, lace up a pair of walking shoes, plug in my iPod, and I’m off. Plus, it offers fresh air (beat that, gym!), people-watching, and a chance to clear my head after a busy day of being all in the mind. All in all, walking is my ideal exercise. Especially seeing as we have a beautiful reservoir just up the road, complete with ducks, mountain views and lots of trees. *sigh!*

Except, it came to my attention a few weeks ago (courtesy of my man, who is on a mission to get strong) that walking might fulfil the cardio part of Necessary Exercising, but it’s not doing much for strength. So although I’m walking fit, I’m not anything else fit.

Enter the biokineticist. What’s that? I hear you ask. Well! A biokineticist is an extremely smart person who can look at you and tell you exactly how you’ve damaged your body thus far, and how to make it better. That sounds pretty dramatic, but it isn’t really (unless you’ve done some pretty dramatic damage, that is). You do a series of exercises and stretches, and the biokineticist works out where your muscles are strong, and where they’re weak, where you could do with lengthening or straightening or balancing, and what you can do about it. Then you get given a list of stretches and exercises to do at home (4 times a week) and you’re released to turn into Supergirl.

At least, that’s how I look at it.

I have 2 weeks till I go back to my biokineticist, and until then I am going like a boeing. It’s surprisingly fun to strengthen muscles you didn’t know you had, and surprisingly satisfying to ache in unexplained places. And I love the feeling of getting strong. It’s quite addictive, actually.

Best of all? I don’t have to go to gym. I can do all the exercises on my yoga mat in my flat. The whole thing – from early-morning warm-up walk (while the world wakes up around me) to sweaty, need-a-shower conclusion, takes an hour. And it’s a whole hour of being out of my head. Fantastic!

If you’re in Cape Town and you want to find out more about biokinetics, email Sarah Hall (she’s so great). If you’re elsewhere in South Africa, you can look at the Biokinetics Association website. For those out of SA who want to take up the Supergirl challenge, I’d suggest a Google search!

How full are your days?

// February 10th, 2009 // 1 Comment » // Blogs, Inspiration, Life (and the living of it), Time

As most of you know by now, I used to be a crammed-full-days kind of girl. I wanted every day to be full to overflowing, or I felt it was wasted. I rushed a lot, I didn’t pause much, and I made sure I was doing as much as I possibly could.

Then, after I got sick with diabetes, I went the other extreme. I realised the importance of chilling, of taking an afternoon off to lie in my hammock and read, of slowing down, of sometimes just resting in stillness.

I love it!

But I worry, sometimes, that it’s giving me a foolproof excuse to be lazy. Take a look at Color Me Katie (www.colormekatie.blogspot.com), my new favourite blog, and see how much she crammed into her weekend – it’s incredible! Me, I like to have long stretches of ‘nothing to report’ time. But what if I’m slowly, without even noticing it, turning into a bit of a slobbo? That won’t do!

Then again, I think of how much travelling I’m set to do this year, and I realise I should just take a few deep breaths, sit back and relax. Chill time is pretty precious, after all.

Immune booster, please!

// January 26th, 2009 // 3 Comments » // Decisions, Diabetes, Life (and the living of it)

I have to be honest, the last week hasn’t been my best health-wise.

I wasn’t full of energy like I usually am, and the last half of the week was dogged with a persistent mild headache and achey eyes. What from? I think I was fighting off a virus – it was a general tired malaise, with the headache thrown in for good measure.

It’s the one thing about diabetes that really bugs me (apart from the four injections every day!) – my weakened immune system. Diabetes (type 1) is an immunological disorder, which means that my immune system isn’t as strong as it used to be. And it used to be so strong! I could bounce back from anything within a day or two. Now I still bounce back, but it takes me a couple of days. I feel fantastic today, but it’s the first time since… Thursday? Too long!

So I’ve decided to Take Action. I’m going to strengthen my immune system. Want to join me?
Here’s the advice I’ve found, feel free to throw in any other tips you might have!

* Eat a varied diet with lots of fresh fruit and vegetables, whole grains and a multivitamin to fill in the gaps. (I’m doing this, especially the fruit, although maybe not the variety of veggies I should…)

* Sleep the right amount of hours every night. (I’m definitely doing this, I’m a great sleeper).

* Exercise often, don’t eat excessive sugar, wash hands regularly (?!) and don’t overdo alcohol. (Yes, yes, yes and yes).

But then I found some more specific advice:

* Drink your lemons. Apparently drinking freshly squeezed lemon juice in water or tea helps to keep your body’s pH balance stable. Sounds good!

* Drink enough water. Easy to forget to do during a busy day!

* Cut down on caffeine. Ouch. Jury’s still out on whether tea is as bad as coffee, but if it is I’m in trouble. I am totally addicted to tea. And not at all sure how to cut down, because I hate herbal teas!

So those are my three challenges for the moment – drink more water, with more lemon juice, and cut down on tea… Maybe I’ll just cut down on the size of my teacups… From a bucket to a small mug.

Have you got any other tips for me?

The thing about being diabetic…

// October 20th, 2008 // No Comments » // Diabetes, Life (and the living of it)

… is that, even when you’re extremely healthy (as I am – I boast about being the world’s best diabetic!) there are days when you feel a little off.

Like today.

I woke up at 2am last night with low blood sugar (or hypoglycemia, to those in the know). How can I describe how awful this feels? It’s 2am, so you’re all groggy, and you wake up with a pounding heart… At first you’re not sure if you’re going to be sick or if it’s a low or if it’s a nightmare that’s made your heart beat so fast. After a few minutes, you get it together enough to test your blood, and then get up to go to the kitchen and eat something to correct the low.

Now, midnight snacking is all fun and games when it’s a game… with friends… and you’re hungry… and feel like eating. But when you’re feeling low – fuzzy head, disconnected, slightly headachey, still that horrible fast heartbeat – it’s no fun. No fun at all.

This is only the second night-time low I’ve ever had, the first was when I was in Malawi learning to scuba dive. All the info I can find says it’s usually to do with exercise the day before (i.e. yesterday) and it’s true my man and I went for a bit of a hike, but I didn’t think it was too extreme… Can you believe exercise can affect your blood sugar for up to 24 hours after you’ve done it? Crazy.

So now today I feel a bit hung-over, and more prone to going low than usual. And much as some days I love the freedom of being able to eat more sugary foods (which I can do when I’m low), I also love the joy of eating well, and feeling healthy.

If diabetes has taught me anything, though, it’s to listen to my body. So instead of pushing through this feeling, I’m going about my day in a calm and peaceful way, chipping away at the mountain of work I have to do, drinking lots of tea, and quietly grateful for all the other days I have, the days when I feel wonderful.