Month: October 2011

Your old cell phone can buy life-saving, in time, care

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Chelsea Clinton wants your phone!

This is such a great cause. Chelsea Clinton and supermodel Christy Turlington Burns have started an action at George Washington University – that you can be part of – to collect old cell phones so women in Congo and Nepal can get critical care fast. 

Money from the sales of your recycled phone will be used to buy new phones and given to women in developing countries so they can get vital information from far-away health care providers and connect for critical hands-on care in life-saving time. It’s about taking an old cell phone and creating a health care infrastructure where none exists. 

Your donated phone will generate two to three new cell phones. Smartphones can yield five to 20 cell phones. 

To donate your phone, ipad, ipod, digital camera or other mobile devices,register here, fill out the ticket Information, click “Register” and you’ll be led to a registration page. Fill it out, click “Complete Registration” and you’ll be led to a page that says “Order Confirmation.” Click on “Hope Phones mailing label” and you’ll be provided a Prepaid Shipping label to affix on a padded envelope and drop in the mail. 

The postage is free, the padded envelope is on you. 

In these days of all bad news all the time, this is a great way to make a huge difference in the lives of others.

A coaching conference in health leadership

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So, can I say I’m a Harvard graduate when I come back from this weekend in Boston? 

I’m going to the Institute of Coaching, a Harvard Medical School affiliate for the fourth annualCoaching in Leadership and Healthcare conference. 

It promises to be both educational and interesting with some of the leaders in the coaching field leading discussions and facilitating workshops. Many also come from the field of positive psychology. People like Margaret Moore, Carol Kaufman, Bob Kegan and Richard Kogan. 

This is an annual conference designed for those in psychiatry, psychology, behavioral medicine, mental health clinicians, physical medicine & rehabilitation and coaches.And healthcare providers who want to add coaching to their repertoire of skills. Here’s a detailed itinerary.

While we know patients with diabetes are still failing, in droves, to adapt healthier lifestyle habits, coaching patients is beginning to be recognized as a key instrument and support to help patients improve their diabetes self-management. 

Of course I’m looking forward to the great seafood tonight as I’m meeting a friend on the waterfront by my hotel.

“My Sweet Life” shares women’s success stories living with diabetes

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Screen Shot 2015-02-07 at 3.38.54 PMAvailable now for pre-order

Calling all patients – whether you’re newly diagnosed or have been living with diabetes for decades – and health care providers. 

 

There’s a new book hot off the presses, “My Sweet Life: Successful Women with Diabetes.” Published by PESI HealthCare, “My Sweet Life” is available for pre-order now and will be widely available next month, diabetes month.

 

“My Sweet Life” brings together twenty plus stories from successful women who have found a balance in their personal, professional and diabetes-management lives. One of the themes in the book is how diabetes can be viewed as a blessing in disguise. 

 

Clinical psychologist and CDE, Beverly Adler, gave birth to the book. I happen to know because only two months ago I was writing my story to be included in this compilation. While there seem to be a number of books that feature inspiring stories of living with diabetes this one is strictly of women, and predominantly women with type 1 diabetes. While a type one woman will no doubt see herself in these stories, I imagine there are things a woman with type 2 will relate to as well. If you’re a man married to or dating a woman with diabetes, particularly type 1, it may give you greater insight what your woman deals with.

 

Living with a chronic illness we all – newly diagnosed and long-timers – need to dip into a well of inspiration and hear each others’ stories every so often to feel less alone and recharge our batteries. Patients will find it here. These are stories of women accomplishing their dreams and, every day, dealing with the realities of living with diabetes.

 

Health care professionals may better understand what it’s like to live with insulin-dependent diabetes and how diabetes not only doesn’t have to stop anyone from accomplishing their dreams, it can actually be the jet-fuel. With that in mind, you may see a different, more hopeful, future for your patients. 

 

This may encourage you to approach your patients with an expanded view of what’s possible for them and find your relationship with patients and their outcomes improve. Within these pages are what you can’t get in an office visit; the deeper insights of what your patients live with, the intense management and how they balance their diabetes and their life. 

 

I’m joined in this book by an illustrious group of women including many well-known diabetes bloggers . 

 

List of Contributors:
Brandy Barnes, MSW
Claire Blum, MS Ed, RN
Lorraine Brooks, MPH, CEAP
Sheri R. Colberg-Ochs, PhD
Carol Grafford, RD, CDE
Riva Greenberg
Connie Hanham-Cain, RN, CDE
Sally Joy
Zippora Karz
Kelli Kuehne
Kelly Kunik
Jacquie Lewis-Kemp
Joan McGinnis, RN, MSN, CDE
Jen Nash, DClinPsy,
Vanessa Nemeth, MS, MA
Alexis Pollak,
Birgitta Rice, MS, RPh, CHES
Kyrra Richards
Lisa Ritchie
Mari Ruddy, MA
Cherise Shockley
Kerri Morrone Sparling
Amy Tenderich, MA

Heartha Whitlow

A New, All Natural Glucose Tablet

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All natural glucose tablets

 NewImage

 

Ten days ago, while presenting at theTCOYD event in Tampa, I wandered around the Exhibition Hall looking to see what’s new – and I actually found something, and someone.

I found Chris Angell, a young man with type 1 diabetes standing behind a table with his product, GlucoLift. 

GlucoLift is, unlike other glucose tablets, all-natural. It contains no artificial color, flavoring or dextrose from genetically modified corn.

GlucoLift contain the same 4 grams of glucose/per tablet as the glucose tablets you’re familiar with and come in three flavors: Orange Cream, which Chris likened to those creamsicles of yore, with which I agree, Cherry and Wildberry. While taste is personal, and I didn’t find they taste that different than regular glucose tablets, I do like the idea of no artificial ingredients. 

GlucoLift also have the advantage of a flip-cap top on their sleeve of tablets. It’s a one hand operation, easier to open when working with a muddled brain, heart palpatations and shaky hands from a low. These tabs also carry the banner of being the 1st “TCOYD approved” product.

Since GlucoLift are more expensive than other glucose tablets here’s a sweet introductory offer: Go to Amazon (or hit the “Buy Now on Amazon.com” button on the GlucoLift web site) and enter either of these two codes for a 15% discount. If you enter “TCOYD15G” a portion of the sale will go to benefit TCOYD. Enter “IN15GLUC” and a portion of the sale will go to benefit Insulin Independence, an organization helping people with diabetes maximize their management capabilities and reach their personal fitness goals.

We’ll have to see what comes next from this Angell. Chris admits if he could  alter the laws of physics he’d fit 15 grams of glucose into one chewable tablet the size of a breath mint. Ah, we can dream, can’t we?

Actors Paul and Mira Sorvino are diabetes co-stars

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images

Last Friday I went to the “Diabetes Cook-Off,” an event sponsored by SANOFI and hosted by father and daughter actor team, Paul and Mira Sorvino. The event was a pie competition. Two woman had sent in recipes for their healthy pies and they baked them up with the Sorvinos in NYC where a panel of judges awarded one the winner. (Recipe below) It was a generous event – all invited got to eat pie! 😉

But I was attracted to the SANOFI initiative Paul and Mira Sorvino are involved in, “Diabetes Co-Stars.” It’s awareness-raising around healthy eating and exercise, but also particularly, the importance of supporting a loved one who has diabetes. Paul was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes five years ago. 

I had the opportunity to interview the two actors for a few minutes after the event. (There will be a longer interview in November which I’ll post on the Huffington Post.) 

When I asked Paul Sorvino, “Why do you do this work?” he extolled the pleasure of helping others and gave me a great quote, “I wasn’t going to,” he said. “I was afraid it would hurt my career. But then I thought this is doing something good in two ways, educating others and it makes me more fearless to say, yes, I have diabetes.”

It turns out Mira didn’t even know her father had diabetes until he slumped over his plate during a family dinner. As for Mira, she said, “What can you give someone who’s given you everything, but sticking together through the hard times. It’s about family values.”

It was a lovely morning and all it took was one question to get these two sharing stories, recipes – now I know how Paul likes his salad – and I even have an invitation for dinner at the Sorvino’s should I ever be in L.A.  

But here’s the take-away. If you have diabetes, don’t go it alone. We all do better with support.