Sat Nam Everyone,
Just checking in since I haven't in awhile. A lot has happened over the past several months. For starters Late last spring/early last summer I've been attending a gurdwara in Ovido called Sikh Society of Central Fl. I go when i can get a ride since there aren't any buses that go there. But it's nice because it lets me turn my brain completely OFF! (Which is very important to me since I intellectualize & study things to death all week!) & I wasn't getting that when i attended the 7th Day Adventist church. Between them encouraging-or more accurately pushing Sabbath School & offering take away questions at the end of the service. I mean give me a break! What's next? Homework assignments? Final exams at the end of the series? Thanks, but no thanks! I don't believe that God should be intellectualized, but related to with prayer & meditation. So I stopped going to church & started going to the gurdwara full time (either physically or watching it online). Then in September I started noticing the numbers on emy blood glucose meter start climbing up when I checked my blood sugar before I ate. (I was born with hypoglycemia & have been "spot checking" my blood sugar ever since I moved out on my own). Well as you can imagine I was pretty freaked out but didn't know what to do with that new information. So I continued to watch & when I saw my doctor in October I told her about it. She told me to keep checking it like I'm doing & if it didn't get better to come back in a couple weeks. Well it continued to climb & in late October I was officially diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes. At first I did lifestyle measures (including certain supplements) & started taking Metformin. Now we have a few new problems. For 1 thing it "petered out" before my blood sugar had a chance of lowering. The other thing is I had horrible cramps they were so bad at times that I was on the floor in "child's pose" doing Lamaze breathing techniques. UGH! Finally in November I couldn't take it anymore & my doctor started me on a long acting insulin called Levmir Flex pen. At the same time she wanted to put me in the hospital because my blood sugar was almost 500! I told her that I couldn't afford a hospital bill & didn't have any insurance. Besides if my number isn't up I wasn't going ANYWHERE! & if it was there wouldn't be a dang thing the doctors or nurses could do my bags are packed & I know where I'm going. Besides I NEED A REST!! The kind that I believe that ONLY an early death can give me! So naturally she had me sign a waver that I wouldn't sue the clinic. (I guess they're paranoid about Morgan & Morgan coming after them). Well anyway I just told her "Just tell me what to do & I'll do it." So the nurse gave me a few units of insulin, they watched me 4 a half hour, then i was sent home with a prescription & the instructions. Well all that weekend my affirmation, mantra, or whatever you want to call it went something like this: "I'm able & willing to do whatever it takes to stay out of the Emergency
Department & hospital with God's & Guru's help." I also prayed like gangbusters! I said "OK God please send me who you think would be best suited for this weekend." & I swear I sensed not only Jesus whom I've known all my life, but Gurus Ram Das (Who's the guru of miracles), Harkrishan, (The Guru of Healing), & Gobind Singh (The Guru of Radiance, battles, & wars. (I guess God sent him in case I needed a good S.K.I.A. (Swift Kick in the A**!) )OK I'm trying to keep it G rated but you get my drift). I swear at times the apartment felt kind of crowded, but I was very grateful for all the extra help because I couldn't have done it without them. Every so often I'd "hear" one of them say something like: "When did you drink/eat last?" Or "you better check your blood sugar." Stuff like that. Well I went to Gurdwara on Sunday morning & my fasting blood sugar was still kind of elevated even though I was taking 20 units of Levmir. I was very careful of not only what I ate, but also how much. I even skipped the gurprshad that's served before Lungar. I told people that I have Diabetes & can't eat that. After we got done with the meal I climbed up & down the stairs several times in order to help burn some of that excess sugar. One of the ladies kept insisting that I sit. I said, "No I can't DOCTOR'S ORDERS! (Even though doc didn't exactly "order" me to do that it seems that I use that it has more weight) Well no more had to be say after that. Well later that night I was still lost as far as what I should do was concerned (since I desperately wanted to avoid going into the hospital). I heard someone say "Increase your dosage to 30 units." I said, "OK I'm not going to argue with you. You know what I need more than I know myself." So I did. The next day my fasting blood sugar went from 250 the night before to 148 WAHE GURU!! Well I've had lots of us & downs with Diabetes (literally as well as figuratively). Like before my next A1C test I was beginning to question whether or not what I was doing to torture myself was really worth it. I felt like saying "screw it just give me a bag of chips or a thing of bonbons & let me sit on the couch!" Then I found out that it was worth it indeed because my A1C went from 13.5% in November to 7.1% in May WAHE GURU!!
Fast forward to April of this year. More specifically the 13th & 14th. On the 13th I had my self defense class with Winter Park PD. Which was both disturbing & enlightening. I sure hope I never have to use what I've learned, but my mantra is "better to have it & not need it than to need it & wish to heck you had it." Then on Sunday we celebrated Vaisakhi Day in Gurdwara. I was in all white. (See previous post of me in bana). It was a nice service, but it was funny (ironic not ha ha funny) that my self defense class was the day before Vaisakhi Day. I guess that was Guru's way of showing me how to be a warrior saint/saint soldier. Well that's it for now. I'll let you guys know if anything new & interesting comes up. Until next time Sat Nam, Amrita Kaur
kJH
