#1739 Smooth Operator - Part 2

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Claire shares her story of being diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age 29 during her lunch break, only to board an international flight to Australia just days later. A long-time listener of the podcast, Claire discusses how she utilized the "Pro Tip" series and Jenny Smith’s book to prepare for a healthy pregnancy.

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DISCLAIMER: This text is the output of AI based transcribing from an audio recording. Although the transcription is largely accurate, in some cases it is incomplete or inaccurate due to inaudible passages or transcription errors and should not be treated as an authoritative record. Nothing that you read here constitutes advice medical or otherwise. Always consult with a healthcare professional before making changes to a healthcare plan.

Claire (0:10) I'm Claire, and I've had type one diabetes for ten years. (0:13) I'm really excited to talk today.

Scott Benner (0:18) Friends, we're all back together for the next episode of the Juice Box podcast. (0:21) Welcome. (0:22) Please don't forget that nothing you hear on the Juice Box podcast should be considered advice, medical or otherwise. (0:28) Always consult a physician before making any changes to your health care plan or becoming bold with insulin. (0:42) Alright.

Scott Benner (0:42) Let's get down to it. (0:43) You want the management stuff from the podcast. (0:45) You don't care about all this chitting and chatting with other people. (0:48) Juiceboxpodcast.com/lists. (0:52) They are downloadable, easy to read, every series, every episode.

Scott Benner (0:57) They're all numbered. (0:58) Makes it super simple for you to go right into that search feature. (1:01) In your audio app, type juice box one seven nine five to find episode one seven nine five. (1:08) Juiceboxpodcast.com/lists. (1:24) I'm having an on body vibe alert.

Scott Benner (1:27) This episode of the Juice Box podcast is sponsored by Eversense three sixty five, the only one year wear CGM. (1:35) That's one insertion and one CGM a year. (1:38) One CGM, one year. (1:41) Not every ten or fourteen days. (1:43) Ever since cgm.com/juicebox.

Scott Benner (1:46) This episode of the Juice Box podcast is sponsored by US Med. (1:51) Usmed.com/juicebox, or call (888) 721-1514. (1:57) Get your supplies the same way we do from US Med. (2:01) Today's episode is sponsored by the Tandem Mobi system with Control IQ plus technology. (2:06) If you are looking for the only system with auto bolus, multiple wear options, and full control from your personal iPhone, you're looking for Tandem's newest pump and algorithm.

Scott Benner (2:17) Use my link to support the podcast, tandemdiabetes.com/juicebox. (2:22) Check it out.

Claire (2:23) I'd say the first trimester first trimester, I kinda knew I was pregnant before I took the test just based on my CGM. (2:31) I was like, little insulin resistant today. (2:34) Mhmm. (2:35) So that was kinda cool. (2:38) So I immediately had changed my settings and just kinda increased my basal a little bit to compensate for that, reached out to my endo.

Claire (2:47) And I was seeing her the next week anyway, so it's perfect. (2:49) So went in, made some adjustments, and she basically just kinda cranked everything up a little bit

Scott Benner (2:53) Yeah.

Claire (2:53) To help with the resist the little bit of increased resistance I was having and to make sure I'm hitting those tighter goals.

Scott Benner (2:59) Mhmm.

Claire (3:00) And then we were keeping it a secret at first, which, you know, can everybody's probably gonna do it a little differently. (3:07) We kept it a little secret at first. (3:10) We wanna get all that blood work back. (3:12) We wanted to try and tell our family in person. (3:14) It was still very, you know, much COVID times.

Claire (3:18) So we were able to tell our family on Mother's Day. (3:22) And I think I was about ten weeks pregnant at that time. (3:27) And then I just was trying to be very cautious with what I was eating, count my carbs, know what I was eating, all that stuff, using all the tips and tricks I had, you know, previously read about and researched and experimented with. (3:42) Yeah. (3:43) But the first trimester wasn't too crazy.

Claire (3:46) Mhmm. (3:46) But then in that second trimester, it's probably around, like, eighteen weeks, give or take. (3:52) It just it was like Jenny says, you know, that roller coaster cranking up, cranking up, cranking up. (3:58) But I had a great team. (3:59) I had my OB, my high risk doctor, and my endo.

Claire (4:03) And the three of them are familiar with each other because, you know, they all work in the area. (4:08) My high risk doctor and my OB actually went to med school together.

Scott Benner (4:12) Okay.

Claire (4:13) And then my endo kind of led all the blood sugar insulin stuff. (4:18) Because I've heard a couple episodes where, you know, one person's driving. (4:22) One of those three doctors is driving, you know, the the changes insulin needs and, you know, all the changes. (4:29) But for me, it was my endo. (4:30) So every two weeks, we would connect through the messenger app.

Claire (4:36) She would review my log or she would review my CGM, all my pump data, everything, and then send me a message back with adjustments. (4:44) And then once a month, I would meet with her. (4:46) So I was making adjustments at least every two weeks. (4:50) And then anytime I would see a pattern change for two days instead of three or more, I would make adjustments accordingly.

Scott Benner (4:57) Okay.

Claire (4:57) So it just kept going up, up, up, up, up.

Scott Benner (5:01) How were you about I'm sorry. (5:02) How were you guys how were you guys connecting? (5:04) Was it texting? (5:05) Were you doing a portal? (5:07) How does phone

Claire (5:08) Message yeah. (5:08) Messaging through the portal. (5:10) Mhmm. (5:10) And then once a month I think at first, I was going in person and then we were doing virtual appointments where she would again review my data and we would talk in person.

Scott Benner (5:19) Okay.

Claire (5:20) So I was just in very close contact with her. (5:23) And as soon as anything went funky, I would just reach out and immediately get a response. (5:28) I remember I went into work. (5:31) I was 36. (5:33) I was, I think, right at thirty six weeks.

Claire (5:34) Went into work, and I my blood sugar just kept crashing. (5:38) And I was like, I don't think this is a good thing. (5:41) Now Jenny's book, she talks about it. (5:43) Must have missed that part. (5:45) But at thirty six weeks, your insulin needs kind of plateau or even dip.

Claire (5:50) So I reached out to my endocrinologist, and they called me right back. (5:54) And she was like, yep. (5:55) This is typical. (5:56) Just I think I decreased my basal 10%. (5:59) Everything leveled out.

Claire (6:00) It was fine. (6:02) So I was like, man, I didn't take Jenny's book to work today. (6:05) Should've.

Scott Benner (6:06) Why does that happen why does that happen at thirty six weeks? (6:09) Do you know?

Claire (6:10) I think it's I mean, Jenny would know. (6:15) But it's something about, like, everything kinda just settles out. (6:19) Like, I don't think it's and it all kinda goes back to the placenta. (6:22) I think a lot of that insulin resistance is from the placenta. (6:26) But I think everything just kinda, like, starts to settle out, level out, and your needs sometimes almost dip.

Claire (6:31) I don't know. (6:32) But at first, I was, like, worried that something was wrong. (6:35) Like, why why is this dropping?

Scott Benner (6:37) Mhmm.

Claire (6:38) But once I found out that it it was typical, expected, and the change was made and everything leveled out, then I was that was okay. (6:45) And my baby was moving fine too, so I was monitoring that too.

Scott Benner (6:49) Well, ironically, because eventually AI will stop us from needing to make babies, but it seems to know about this. (6:55) Let's check into it for a second. (6:58) Why insulin needs drop around thirty six weeks. (7:01) A shift can occur where insulin requirements plateau or even drop. (7:05) The main reasons would be, one, placental changes.

Scott Benner (7:07) As the placenta begins to age or mature towards the end of pregnancy, production of those insulin resisting driving hormones may decline. (7:15) Less placental hormone equals less insulin resistance equals lower insulin needs. (7:21) Fetal glucose use, the baby is growing rapidly and using more glucose directly from the mother's circulation. (7:27) That extra uptake by the fetus can reduce maternal blood sugar levels, again, lowering insulin demands. (7:33) And this one's listed as a clinical concern, early placental insufficiency.

Scott Benner (7:38) In some cases, a sudden and sharp drop in insulin needs can signal placental insufficiency, which is the placenta not functioning well. (7:45) That's why obstruction, obstetrics teams usually monitor closely if insulin requirements fall rapidly. (7:52) It can be an early red flag. (7:54) Practical takeaways are a modest reduction in insulin around thirty six weeks is common. (7:58) Normal physiological change and a dramatic drop should always be reported to the care team.

Scott Benner (8:03) There you go.

Claire (8:04) There we go.

Scott Benner (8:05) Nice. (8:06) And yeah. (8:06) And then one day, like, you'll we'll grow babies in labs, and AI will take care of all of it for us, and none of this will be important when it takes over and then turns us into the the machines that run the world.

Claire (8:16) But who's gonna name the babies?

Scott Benner (8:18) Well, if I can gain control, they'll all be named Scott.

Claire (8:22) Yeah. (8:23) If

Scott Benner (8:24) if my cult here's the plan. (8:26) I start a cult based around people taking care of their diabetes well. (8:29) Then, eventually, I get some coders in there. (8:31) We develop our own AI, and one day, we're can you imagine? (8:35) By the way, I I I if if any of are worried about AI, I I understand.

Scott Benner (8:39) And if any of you are excited about it, I understand too. (8:41) I'm very much hopeful that we fall somewhere in the middle where we're not slaves to computers, but yet it's helping us in different ways.

Claire (8:48) Yeah. (8:49) Mhmm.

Scott Benner (8:49) I I was listening to somebody talk about, medical research the other day. (8:54) And they said in their lab where they're researching, you know, a thing, that most of the people in that lab prior to AI would be people who were compel you know, compiling data and, you know, just making models so they could try to hopefully figure something out, then they'd end up calling, you know, somebody else that they know and said, hey. (9:14) Have you ever seen this? (9:15) Like, it was a very, like like, that kind of process. (9:18) And now those people, well, here's the downside of it.

Scott Benner (9:22) Those people don't have a job in the lab anymore. (9:24) But Oh, yeah. (9:25) But Yeah. (9:25) The AI is is doing the compilation. (9:29) And then how did he put it?

Scott Benner (9:31) He said, and then it considers things that would take me years of sitting there banging my head against the desk to see the the the the connections between it sees the connections in, like, a couple of hours and, and made it sound very hopeful. (9:46) And so I was like, awesome. (9:47) So, hopefully, that's the way I hope it goes, nevertheless. (9:50) Yeah. (9:50) Yeah.

Scott Benner (9:51) Although, in my mind, I just see that the the, the robot smashing the the skulls at the beginning of the Terminator movie. (9:58) So I'm

Claire (10:01) thinking of Spider Man with great power comes great responsibility. (10:05) Mhmm. (10:05) You can use it for good or for evil.

Scott Benner (10:07) Yeah. (10:08) And someone's gonna do one and someone's gonna do the other for sure. (10:10) Like, for every person who's out there, like, I wonder if it could help us compile data faster so that we could learn about medical advances. (10:16) There's someone else who's thinking, I wonder how I could get it to steal someone's money for me or house or, say, something like that. (10:23) Well Yeah.

Scott Benner (10:24) People. (10:24) What are you gonna do, Claire? (10:26) That that little kid you're raising over there, he could go either way. (10:28) We don't even know yet.

Claire (10:29) No. (10:30) Do you

Scott Benner (10:30) ever think about that? (10:31) Do you ever think about that? (10:32) Like, you could be raising a bank robber or, you know, somebody who's out helping people.

Claire (10:40) I think he'll be a helper. (10:41) Yeah. (10:42) He'll be a helper.

Scott Benner (10:42) Hope so. (10:43) It's nice. (10:43) I wonder if the people know. (10:45) Like, I'd like to get the people whose kids ended up being bank or bank is bank robber or real thing. (10:49) I'm saying something like it's 1965.

Scott Benner (10:52) But I wonder if somebody whose kid, like, grew up to do something like that. (10:56) I wonder if you could get an honest answer from them and say, hey. (10:58) When they were five, did you think this kid's gonna grow up to be a criminal? (11:02) Like, did you know? (11:03) You know what I mean?

Scott Benner (11:04) I'd love to know that.

Claire (11:05) Yeah. (11:06) Alright, Claire. (11:08) We've lost the threat. (11:09) Some there are probably some small signs.

Scott Benner (11:11) Small signs. (11:12) I'm like she's like, do not bum me out about my three year old. (11:14) He's awesome. (11:15) Stop it. (11:17) I'm thinking that.

Scott Benner (11:18) Claire, right now, she's like, oh my god. (11:20) He's gonna use heroin and rob banks? (11:21) That's not what I no. (11:25) Okay. (11:25) So you get that you get that drop at thirty six weeks.

Scott Benner (11:29) You you make your adjustment, and then how does it proceed from there?

Claire (11:33) So listening to the podcast episodes, I was like, okay. (11:36) Do I wanna manage my own blood sugar during labor and delivery or not? (11:40) Mhmm. (11:40) So, the plan was to induce it thirty nine weeks, which is, you know, the recommendation to anyone who's well controlled. (11:47) We're gonna induce you at thirty nine weeks.

Claire (11:49) They didn't wanna let it go on too long and risk placental failure. (11:52) That was, like, their concern about letting me go longer than thirty nine weeks. (11:56) Mhmm. (11:57) So I was like, okay. (11:58) Let's go with the plan.

Claire (11:59) And, you know, when I hit active labor, I was like, you know what? (12:04) I'm gonna I'll turn over the blood sugar control to you guys. (12:07) Because in my mind, was like, IV insulin's gonna work faster than subcutaneous, and I don't wanna be high. (12:14) So I was like, okay. (12:15) I'll turn it over to to you guys and, you know, one less thing for me to worry about.

Claire (12:18) That was my that was my plan. (12:20) Once we get there, I was managing my blood sugars during the early phases of labor all on my own, you know, at my I was wearing a Dexcom. (12:29) I was in manual mode. (12:31) This is before the Omnipod five algorithm existed.

Scott Benner (12:34) Mhmm.

Claire (12:35) I still was on my 10% decrease basal. (12:38) I think once I hit active labor, I actually had to drop it more because just all that energy expenditure of labor was bringing me low. (12:46) Anyway, so I'm, you know, I'm monitoring, managing, doing everything fine. (12:49) And my OB walks in, and she's like, are you you sure you wanna pass control over to us?

Scott Benner (12:55) Your your OB is like, you're doing a great job here. (12:57) Like She she did. (12:58) Yeah. (12:59) Yeah.

Claire (12:59) Actually she empowered me. (13:00) She's like, look. (13:00) You've been doing a great job so far. (13:02) Like, why don't you just keep doing it yourself? (13:04) And, you know, you can always change your mind.

Claire (13:05) You have ID access. (13:06) We can switch you over. (13:08) No big. (13:09) And I was like, really? (13:11) Like, you think I can do it?

Claire (13:12) Well, yeah. (13:13) You're right. (13:13) Like, I've I've been doing all of this myself here, and it's going really well. (13:18) I mean, my blood sugars are great between, like, 70 and a 100. (13:22) Mhmm.

Claire (13:23) And I was like, well, what's my blood sugar now? (13:25) 70. (13:26) I was like, well, what's your what would you do now? (13:29) Like, what's your protocol? (13:29) And I'm like, well, your blood sugar's only 70.

Claire (13:32) So we wouldn't give you any insulin. (13:33) I was like, wait a second. (13:34) You're not gonna give me any insulin? (13:36) I'm not gonna stay at 70. (13:37) I was like, yep.

Claire (13:37) Okay. (13:38) I got it. (13:38) I got it. (13:39) You guys, you do your job. (13:41) I'll do mine.

Claire (13:42) We're cool. (13:42) Got it.

Scott Benner (13:43) Nice. (13:44) Hey. (13:44) And worked out well?

Claire (13:45) It worked out really well. (13:47) There was only one minor problem.

Scott Benner (13:50) Mhmm.

Claire (13:50) But this is a great story. (13:52) So what happened?

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Claire (16:01) Eventually, my labor stalled and my doctor was like, okay. (16:04) I'm gonna give you an hour. (16:06) But if I come back in an hour and things are not ready to go, we're I would highly recommend a c section because I think if we just keep delaying it, we're delaying the inevitable. (16:16) I was like, okay. (16:17) Got an hour.

Claire (16:18) So in that hour, trying to, like, relax, keep it together, Look at my husband. (16:24) I'm like, okay. (16:25) You are gonna have to change my insulin pump settings for me when the time comes because I had my you know, all my prepregnancy settings, like, ready to go on my Omnipod and my PDM. (16:38) I was like, alright. (16:39) So take this in to the OR in your pocket.

Claire (16:41) And, you know, once the baby comes, we're all excited. (16:44) We're all happy. (16:45) Once the placenta's out, so we're gonna assume that happens, like

Scott Benner (16:49) oh. (16:50) Oh, where'd you go?

Claire (16:52) Sorry.

Scott Benner (16:52) No. (16:52) It's okay.

Claire (16:55) Speaking of, speaking of, what is it? (17:00) AI. (17:01) There goes my Amazon Alexa. (17:04) Okay. (17:04) So so my doctor says that, you know, I'm gonna come back in an hour.

Claire (17:10) Probably gonna need a C section. (17:12) If we keep delaying it, you know, an hour at a time, keep checking it every hour, she's like, think we're just delaying the inevitable.

Scott Benner (17:19) So You should have had your husband pinch your nose and blow into your mouth.

Claire (17:23) I I was trying anything. (17:24) Mentally, I was like, try and relax. (17:26) Like, baby, move. (17:28) Like, let's go. (17:31) But to me, c section wasn't the end of the world.

Claire (17:34) My my labor and delivery plan was I want the epidural, and I don't want my kid to get stuck on the way out. (17:39) Mhmm. (17:39) So as long as we accomplish those goals, we're good. (17:43) So I had epidural on board, you know, kind of mentally preparing. (17:47) Okay.

Claire (17:47) This might end in a c section. (17:48) But I had all my pre pregnancy settings and everything, like, ready to go on my Omnipod. (17:54) I just knew I had to switch it, and I knew how to switch it once the placenta was out since that was, like, the main driver of all the insulin resistance. (18:02) So so I turned to my husband, like, okay. (18:06) Here's my PDM.

Claire (18:07) Let me talk you through how to change it. (18:10) Okay. (18:10) You ready? (18:11) You're good? (18:11) Alright.

Claire (18:12) We're all good. (18:13) So I go in the OR first, and then he comes in right after me. (18:16) I'm like, you got the PDM? (18:17) He's like, yep. (18:18) Cool.

Claire (18:19) I actually feel terrible by this point. (18:22) Like, it's just been a long time, a lot of drugs. (18:24) I'm exhausted. (18:26) And I'm laying on the OR table, and I'm like, oh my gosh. (18:29) I'm gonna I'm gonna throw up.

Claire (18:30) I'm laying on my back. (18:31) I I can't throw up right now. (18:32) This is the best moment my life, but I feel like I'm gonna throw up. (18:35) So I was a I was a mess. (18:37) But my husband's there.

Claire (18:38) He had the PDMs. (18:39) We're good to go. (18:40) And then, you know, they're like, he's coming. (18:42) He's coming. (18:43) Baby comes out.

Claire (18:44) He's crying. (18:45) Looks great. (18:46) I can see him. (18:48) My husband goes over to him. (18:51) And then I'm like, hubby, you got you gotta change that.

Claire (18:54) You gotta change the the settings. (18:56) And I can barely talk because I feel like if I open my mouth, I'm just gonna, like, throw up

Scott Benner (18:59) everything. (19:00) Yeah.

Claire (19:01) And he gets if anybody's familiar with Omnipod five in manual mode, I had a temp Bazel running. (19:07) And when you have a temp Bazel running, you get an error message when you try and change your profile settings.

Scott Benner (19:13) Mhmm.

Claire (19:14) So here's my husband getting this error message. (19:16) He's never seen it before. (19:17) I haven't seen it in a long time. (19:19) And when we practiced him switching it over, he didn't actually hit go. (19:23) So neither of us anticipated this error message coming up.

Claire (19:26) And I can't talk because I'm gonna throw up if I open my mouth. (19:29) So I just grab my PDM from him with my left hand. (19:32) I'm right handed. (19:33) So with my nondominant hand, I change my insulin pump settings on the OR table.

Scott Benner (19:39) I would love to clip out this, like, five minutes and make, like, eighteen to 23 year old girls listen to it to hear you go. (19:46) It was the best moment of my life because they're probably like, oh my god. (19:49) What is they'd be like, what is happening to this woman?

Claire (19:52) Yeah.

Scott Benner (19:52) How is she describing this as the best moment of her life? (19:55) Oh my god. (19:56) Did he think you were mad at him?

Claire (19:59) No. (19:59) No. (19:59) He was just like he had this panicked look, like, I don't know what to do, and I literally was afraid if I opened my mouth to say anything

Scott Benner (20:07) Vomit was coming with it.

Claire (20:08) Yeah. (20:08) Yeah. (20:08) And I'm like, I probably shouldn't throw up when I'm flat on my back, and I probably shouldn't move because I'm on an OR table.

Scott Benner (20:14) Plus, I don't wanna dirty the, the memory. (20:17) You know what I mean? (20:18) Yeah.

Claire (20:20) But, anyway, so that was probably the second coolest moment of my entire life. (20:25) Was like, that was pretty badass. (20:26) Like, I just grabbed it, swiped it, and did it. (20:29) No. (20:30) I just think he was just, like he was, oh my gosh.

Claire (20:32) I had one job. (20:33) I don't know what I'm doing. (20:34) Like, what is this error message? (20:36) Yeah. (20:36) Just, like, moment of panic and

Scott Benner (20:38) there was, If like if and I can lend some perspective as a person who's been married longer than you. (20:43) Never mention it. (20:45) It'll just it'll loom large for him. (20:48) And then one day when you see his confidence come back and you realize he's forgotten about it, that's when you bring it up. (20:55) I don't have time.

Scott Benner (20:56) Yeah. (20:56) Yeah. (20:56) You have plenty of time to use this as a psychological manipulation is what I'm saying, if that's what your goal is. (21:02) No. (21:03) No.

Scott Benner (21:03) Because look at how nice you are. (21:04) People are like, god. (21:05) This guy's wife must be terrible. (21:06) She's not. (21:07) She's just Catholic and you know?

Claire (21:11) It was just so it was just so funny because in that moment, it was like, we had just you know, our son's born. (21:17) He's happy. (21:17) He's health well, he was healthy.

Scott Benner (21:20) Yeah. (21:20) You know if he was happy or not.

Claire (21:22) Yeah. (21:22) We don't know. (21:23) He was probably like, what the heck? (21:24) It's cold out here. (21:25) Pull me back.

Scott Benner (21:25) Yeah. (21:25) No clue.

Claire (21:26) But but it was just like this moment of, like, sheer panic on his part. (21:32) What's going on Slash. (21:33) I was like, I don't know what else to do. (21:35) Let me do it myself. (21:36) And I was like, wait.

Claire (21:37) I just changed my insulin pump settings while I'm lying on an OR table. (21:40) Was like, that was pretty cool.

Scott Benner (21:41) Yeah. (21:41) That's that's really awesome. (21:43) It felt empowering.

Claire (21:44) Oh, yeah. (21:45) Yeah. (21:45) I can do anything.

Scott Benner (21:46) I can do anything. (21:47) But then how long was it until you're like, I don't wanna do anything. (21:50) I'm gonna stop. (21:51) Because there's a moment where you're like, I'm exhausted. (21:53) There's a lot going on here.

Scott Benner (21:55) Where does your a one c and your goals change to? (21:58) How long do they stay there before you say to yourself, you know what? (22:01) Screw this. (22:01) I can I can be that healthy, like, forever if I wanna be?

Claire (22:05) Yeah. (22:06) Probably gosh. (22:08) There's just so much going on and so many changes occurring, like, day to day, week to week. (22:13) There was probably once I got back more in, like, a rhythm and a routine, probably, like, back to work. (22:19) And not, like, right back to work because that was that was a rough reentry.

Claire (22:22) But maybe when my son was about, like, six months old, I was like, okay. (22:24) I feel like we've got a little bit of rhythm, a little bit of routine. (22:27) My blood sugars are a little bit more understandable. (22:31) They're not quite so crazy. (22:34) But I was like, okay.

Claire (22:35) Like, I can I think I can do this? (22:38) And then Omnipod five had come out, and I I liked the idea of having that, kinda like that assistant to your blood sugar. (22:47) Right? (22:47) You've got you know, so a lot of adjustments going around in the background that you don't have to, like, mentally think about. (22:52) Mhmm.

Claire (22:53) So I was like, that sounds great. (22:54) Like, if I could get better control with a little more automation, that sounds perfect.

Scott Benner (22:59) Hey. (22:59) I wanna let people know you I think you did misspeak at one point telling the labor story where you said OmniPod five, but you were not using OmniPod five during the delivery. (23:07) Right? (23:07) I have always disliked ordering diabetes supplies. (23:11) I'm guessing you have as well.

Scott Benner (23:13) It hasn't been a problem for us for the last few years, though, because we began using US Med. (23:18) You can too. (23:20) Usmed.com/juicebox or call (888) 721-1514 to get your free benefits check. (23:28) USmed has served over one million people living with diabetes since 1996. (23:32) They carry everything you need from CGMs to insulin pumps and diabetes testing supplies and more.

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Scott Benner (24:04) That's usmed.com/juicebox or call (888) 721-1514.

Claire (24:12) Correct.

Scott Benner (24:13) Right.

Claire (24:13) I might have missed that.

Scott Benner (24:14) Yeah. (24:14) That's all. (24:14) I just wanna make sure because so it doesn't confuse people. (24:16) That's all.

Claire (24:17) Yeah. (24:17) I was on Omnipod, but in the plain old regular

Scott Benner (24:23) Using a dash and manual?

Claire (24:25) Yeah. (24:25) Manual. (24:26) Okay. (24:26) Mhmm. (24:29) So then I did that for a little while, and I still wasn't quite getting the results that I wanted.

Claire (24:37) My a one c has been really good and fine. (24:41) I've been in the sixes ever since my son was born. (24:45) But I think it's, like, it's this very interesting place I'm in now where, like, I kind of come up for air. (24:51) My son's a little older. (24:52) Come up for air.

Claire (24:53) I'm, like, kinda, like, okay. (24:54) I think I can handle a little bit more control. (24:58) I can handle a change. (24:59) I can handle, like, a little bit more interaction Mhmm. (25:04) With my diabetes because I want better control.

Claire (25:08) And even though my a one c is coming out good, fine, passing on, you know, medical standards, I still see these big fluctuations or stubborn highs. (25:19) And I'm, like, getting really frustrated with that. (25:21) Because I'm like, I know I can do better. (25:22) I know I feel better. (25:24) You know, I felt so good when I was pregnant, but I also put in so much effort.

Claire (25:28) Like, can I kind of find something in between here?

Scott Benner (25:31) Yeah.

Claire (25:31) So all the AID systems are, you know, coming out and, you know, everybody's upgrading and leveling up and this and that. (25:39) So I was like, okay. (25:40) Like, let me try. (25:41) I've I had Omnipod, and I really didn't want a tube because I'd never had a tube. (25:46) So I was like, alright.

Claire (25:47) I'm sticking with Omnipod or maybe looping, but just the idea of looping was just so overwhelming. (25:54) I was like, oh my gosh. (25:54) I can't I can't can't build anything. (25:57) I can, like, barely get my Apple products to work. (25:59) So so, actually, I met with Jenny through IDS.

Claire (26:03) I did a one time consultation. (26:06) I met with Jenny, and I was, like, kind of, you know, this Omnipod five algorithm isn't giving me what I want. (26:14) You know, I don't have enough options in there. (26:16) You know, it's doing so many things auto automatically, which is great, but it's, like, not quite enough. (26:21) Like, what else can I do?

Claire (26:22) So she gave me some, like, hacks for the Omnipod five, just some suggestions. (26:28) She was, or you could try another algorithm. (26:32) So she told me and, you know, she mentioned that Omnipod and Loop. (26:37) You know, when you Loop, you can use the Omnipod, so you're still tubeless. (26:43) I was like, Jenny, I I can't I can't build Loop.

Claire (26:47) Like, I no. (26:49) So she told me there's a company that will build it for you, and you pay them a monthly fee. (26:55) And I think you actually interviewed one of the guys who's working there now.

Scott Benner (27:00) Yeah. (27:00) I'm sure. (27:01) There's I think there's a couple, but yeah. (27:04) There's there's a couple. (27:04) So you got somebody to set it up for you.

Claire (27:06) Mhmm.

Scott Benner (27:07) That's awesome. (27:07) Yep. (27:07) Yeah. (27:08) That's Now I'm

Claire (27:09) on the loop algorithm using Omnipod Dash and the loop algorithm that was built for me. (27:15) And it's definitely giving me more options, which now I can you know, my brain can function and I'm using more options and features. (27:24) Whereas, you know, some days I was like, no. (27:26) You just do it all for me. (27:27) Mhmm.

Claire (27:28) Algorithm, you do it all for me. (27:29) I can't mentally deal with this right now. (27:32) But but now I'm in a headspace where I'm like, okay. (27:34) Can mentally deal with it. (27:35) I want more options.

Claire (27:36) I want more control to see the results and to feel to feel better, but without so much of the effort that I was putting in back in the day. (27:46) So I really like the algorithm. (27:47) I think it's helping me more. (27:48) I think I could definitely do more with it if I sat down. (27:54) I probably need to go back through the approach it series.

Claire (27:57) Probably need to learn more about the algorithm. (28:00) Excuse me. (28:02) And I can definitely do more with it. (28:03) But that's where I'm at now, and I definitely feel like I'm putting in less effort and getting better control, which is just such a hard balance to strike. (28:12) And then I think in the future, I'll be able to customize it more, learn about it more, customize it more, and have it serve me even better.

Scott Benner (28:19) Yeah. (28:19) And you went with Loop, not with Trio?

Claire (28:22) I did. (28:23) I think that just came out because I switched to Loop about a year ago.

Scott Benner (28:28) I see. (28:29) So just as you were doing it, it felt a little newer. (28:32) Arden's really, I I think having a lot of success with Trio, by the way. (28:38) Yeah. (28:38) Now that you're you're a professional, you could just jump back and forth.

Claire (28:43) I know. (28:43) Try them all.

Scott Benner (28:44) You know, plenty of people have both of those algorithms on their phone. (28:49) Wow. (28:49) Yeah. (28:50) And they'll just, like, start a pod on one or start a pod on the other one. (28:54) Yeah.

Scott Benner (28:55) You think you'd be that kind of person?

Claire (28:58) I don't know.

Scott Benner (29:01) I just like you. (29:01) You just went, ah. (29:03) That was great.

Claire (29:04) Good. (29:09) But I I do love the the Omnipod's tubeless and the other appeal when I was, like, hesitant to switch from MDI to to pumping. (29:17) Just, you know, change is hard. (29:18) Right? (29:18) And I was like, I don't know.

Claire (29:20) But the appeal was instead of purchasing the pump, you know, and having to wait four years for insurance to pay for another one or whatever. (29:28) Gives you a rough life cycle. (29:30) With the with the pods that you can really kinda do it month to month, I think, because instead of being DME, it's considered a pharmacy something or other. (29:39) Anyway, so I was like, that's appealing too if you're not, like, locked in committed for four years to a pump. (29:44) I definitely didn't wanna do that.

Scott Benner (29:46) Awesome. (29:46) Have you shared everything with me that you were hoping to share today?

Claire (29:52) I I think so.

Scott Benner (29:54) Got it over in your head. (29:55) Take your time.

Claire (29:57) I think so. (30:00) I think the only other tidbits I know you have interviewed ton of other people with type one with interesting stories of diagnosis or crazy things that happened or and, obviously, pregnancy. (30:12) The only other thing I can offer as just something a little different is when when I was pregnant, I was about eleven weeks pregnant, and we had a little bit of a scare where we thought we were we thought we were having a miscarriage. (30:27) We thought we were losing our son.

Scott Benner (30:30) Jeez.

Claire (30:30) So that was a very, very rough couple of days. (30:36) But what was interesting was looking at that CGM. (30:40) My CGM, my blood sugar numbers, my insulin needs were all behaving like I was still pregnant. (30:47) So I was oscillating back and forth between being absolutely devastated and still hopeful because those CGM numbers. (30:56) And then looking back on it, once we found out that, you know, every I went to the doctor.

Claire (31:01) I got checked out. (31:02) Everything's okay. (31:03) But it was just so cool to look back on it and realize that because I had type one, I was wearing a CGM. (31:10) And because I was looking at my CGM, my CGM was showing me, like, you're still pregnant. (31:16) Baby's okay.

Claire (31:17) And that was just, like, very cool to look back on because it's, again, like, very unique experience.

Scott Benner (31:22) Yeah. (31:23) What was, happening that made you think that the pregnancy was not viable?

Claire (31:28) Yeah. (31:28) I started bleeding. (31:30) It was, like, ten or eleven weeks. (31:33) I went to the bathroom and I was like, oh, I'm bleeding.

Scott Benner (31:39) And then what do they say to you? (31:40) Like, what what's the steps to take after that? (31:42) Rest and Yeah. (31:43) Let's see if it stops?

Claire (31:45) Yep. (31:45) Yep. (31:46) So and it was a it was a Friday.

Scott Benner (31:49) It's always a Friday too. (31:50) Been Friday, Claire.

Claire (31:51) Friday. (31:52) It was Friday. (31:53) It was 6PM. (31:55) And I was like, do I go to the emergency department? (31:57) What do I do?

Claire (31:57) Well, I called the OB on call Mhmm. (31:59) Who was great. (32:01) He was like, you know, he's like, okay. (32:04) It might be something or it might be nothing. (32:05) It's nothing you did.

Claire (32:06) You didn't do anything wrong. (32:07) It's nothing you did. (32:08) It's nothing you ate. (32:09) It wasn't the green Jell O. (32:10) He was just, like, you know, trying to, like, calm me down.

Claire (32:13) But I still remember that day. (32:14) It wasn't the green Jell O. (32:15) I was like, okay. (32:16) I didn't eat green Jell O, but just, you know, just trying to, like, relax me, calm me down. (32:20) He's like, look.

Claire (32:21) What you're gonna do is just rest this weekend. (32:23) See us first thing Monday morning, and we'll check and we'll we'll see what's what's happening. (32:29) And so I was like, okay. (32:31) Don't go to emergency department. (32:32) Also, whatever they told me, you know, that's not their area of expertise.

Claire (32:37) So I'm like, I could just go to the emergency department. (32:40) But also, I was like, alright. (32:41) Trust my OB. (32:42) If they say just wait, we'll wait, which is not a fun wait.

Scott Benner (32:45) Yeah. (32:46) Jeez. (32:46) I bet would he just sit in the house, like, staring at each other?

Claire (32:50) No. (32:51) We we thought about, yeah, canceling all plans and, like, just holding up in the house. (32:56) But I was like, okay. (32:57) We're gonna lose our minds. (32:58) We were gonna go to an outdoor concert, and we still went.

Claire (33:04) I just sat the whole time instead of standing.

Scott Benner (33:06) Yeah. (33:06) It wasn't

Claire (33:06) in to rest.

Scott Benner (33:07) It wasn't in Australia, was it?

Claire (33:09) Oh, gosh. (33:09) No. (33:10) It was only, a two hour drive away. (33:12) But, it was, like, out in the country outside, you know, big field music. (33:17) And, I was like, okay.

Claire (33:18) Well, we'll just bring, like, camping chairs to sit on because I was told, like, don't, you know, don't run, try and sit, rest. (33:24) Don't lift anything heavy. (33:25) You know, this stuff like that.

Scott Benner (33:27) Yeah. (33:27) Don't bounce to get around in there.

Claire (33:29) Yeah. (33:29) Yeah. (33:29) Don't make it any worse. (33:31) Stop jostling the baby. (33:33) Like, what did you do?

Claire (33:36) But, yeah, sometimes it just happens. (33:38) And so I went to the doctor Monday, and they're like, oh, yeah. (33:40) Sometimes this just happens. (33:41) But, you know, they're like, baby's fine. (33:43) Baby's fine.

Claire (33:43) Sometimes this stuff happens. (33:45) Just, you know, relatively rest. (33:47) And then eventually, everything was fine.

Scott Benner (33:49) It was just okay. (33:50) And and there's no answer after that? (33:52) There's no, like, great pronouncement about what happened or didn't happen? (33:55) Just like, oh, that's over. (33:56) Cool.

Claire (33:57) It's actually, hopefully, I'm pronouncing it right. (34:00) It's called a subchorionic bleed, and it's just blood fills somewhere in the uterus. (34:06) I forget. (34:07) I think it's between the uterus or placenta or something. (34:10) But it's just this little pocket of blood.

Claire (34:12) And usually, you know, depending on the size and the severity and symptoms, you know, sometimes bad things can happen. (34:19) It puts you at increased risk for other things. (34:22) But in in my case, it was small and it resolved on its own. (34:25) It was fine. (34:25) But that's what I was seeing.

Claire (34:28) And then as I think any woman would assume, you know, you're pregnant. (34:32) There's blood. (34:33) Like, that's it.

Scott Benner (34:34) It's over. (34:34) Yeah. (34:35) Yeah. (34:35) Yeah.

Claire (34:35) But I didn't know that this existed. (34:37) And it actually happened to a friend of mine who was pregnant at same time. (34:39) It happened to her a couple weeks later. (34:41) And we kinda circled back on it later comparing notes. (34:44) I'm like, oh my gosh.

Claire (34:44) That happened to you too. (34:45) So I was like, why doesn't anybody talk about this? (34:48) Probably because they don't want you to assume one thing or another. (34:50) They don't want you to assume that everything's okay or assume everything's the end of the world terrible. (34:55) Yeah.

Claire (34:55) But it was just very interesting, like, later on to compare our experiences. (34:59) And I think she probably didn't wait a whole weekend like I did to get checked out by the doctor. (35:05) But that weekend, I had that CGM information and, you know, my insulin needs were the same. (35:11) And I was like, I was like, I think I'm still pregnant.

Scott Benner (35:14) That's something.

Claire (35:16) So it was just interesting to have that. (35:18) It was kind of a comfort, but I didn't know, you know. (35:22) Yeah. (35:22) It was just different.

Scott Benner (35:23) Two questions. (35:23) If that would have been a Wednesday and not a Friday, do you think they would have had you write in? (35:27) You would have been examined. (35:29) Do you think that that exam would have alleviated all your concern right then and there or not necessarily?

Claire (35:36) Yeah.

Scott Benner (35:37) Maybe.

Claire (35:37) It probably would've given me answers sooner, but it probably would've been the same result. (35:41) Like, hey. (35:42) Hang out. (35:43) Wait. (35:43) Relax.

Claire (35:45) Yeah. (35:46) I don't know.

Scott Benner (35:46) What was the bleed called again?

Claire (35:48) I think it's called a sub chorionic bleed. (35:51) You can probably look it up on AI. (35:55) I know how to spell it and pronounce it. (35:57) But it was just a it was, it was just interesting to go through that as a type one with the CGM information while I was waiting to find out if everything was okay or not. (36:07) Mhmm.

Claire (36:08) Because all of my technology, my insulin needs, my blood sugar needs were all showing that I was still pregnant. (36:14) So I was, like, pretty hopeful that I was still pregnant, but I didn't know.

Scott Benner (36:20) Yeah. (36:20) But did you cling to that a little bit?

Claire (36:23) Yeah. (36:23) I was, like, holding out hope. (36:24) So I was definitely oscillating between, like, oh my gosh. (36:27) We're losing this kid. (36:28) We already know it's a boy and all all of that.

Claire (36:33) But I kept clinging on to that little bit of hope because I had that CGM. (36:38) And

Scott Benner (36:38) And you could see your blood sugar was still being screwed with by by a pregnancy. (36:42) And you thought, oh Yeah. (36:42) A kid must be okay in there. (36:44) Look at my insulin resistance. (36:45) Yeah.

Claire (36:46) Yeah. (36:46) Yeah. (36:46) Not just the CGM, but, yeah, my insulin needs were the same as the day before when I knew I was pregnant.

Scott Benner (36:51) Right.

Claire (36:53) My blood sugar wasn't crashing. (36:54) I wasn't going sky high. (36:55) I was like, oh, okay. (36:57) I was like, I think I'm still pregnant. (36:58) Mhmm.

Claire (36:59) I acted like I was still pregnant.

Scott Benner (37:01) Well, I have here that a pelvic, let's see, like a cervical dilation, whether the cervix is soft or thin, but it doesn't tell them how the baby's doing. (37:11) Fetal heart rate monitoring, Doppler in the office, continuous monitors in the hospital, the main tool to assess distress in the baby. (37:18) Patterns in the baby's heart rate show how well oxygenated they are. (37:22) Non stress tests measure how the baby's heart rate. (37:25) Did you end up doing all this when when the the week finally came around?

Claire (37:29) I think they just did a quick ultrasound. (37:31) I was like

Scott Benner (37:32) That's the next thing. (37:33) Ultrasound, NST to check movement, breathing motions, muscle tone, and amniotic fluid, contractions, stress test, ultrasound, double. (37:40) Okay. (37:40) Alright. (37:40) So Yeah.

Claire (37:40) So it was pretty it was pretty early. (37:42) Was eleven weeks. (37:43) You know, I went into the doctor's office, and they were like, okay. (37:46) Let's just they were like, okay. (37:50) Let's just let's take a look.

Scott Benner (37:51) Yeah. (37:52) Just

Claire (37:52) ultrasound take a look. (37:53) And she was like, oh, that's what it is. (37:54) I see the bleed there and spent a minute, like, listening to his heart rate. (37:58) She's like, oh, baby's fine. (37:59) It's

Scott Benner (38:00) his heart rate. (38:00) Yeah. (38:01) Now does that experience early on in the pregnancy, are you able to give it away, or does it stick to you the entire time the baby's in there? (38:09) Like, do you think about it?

Claire (38:13) It did for a while. (38:15) And then because I was getting so many ultrasounds and that was on my record, they looked, they checked, like, oh, it's gone. (38:21) It's resolved. (38:22) It's a nonissue now. (38:24) I think, you know, I didn't know as much about that.

Claire (38:27) I already knew everything was high risk for everything being type one and, you know, mid thirties. (38:33) And so I was more worried about that.

Scott Benner (38:36) Yeah.

Claire (38:37) I was like, ugh, just another thing. (38:38) But I was just more worried about all the other risks more being associated with type one and

Scott Benner (38:44) Yeah. (38:44) Yeah.

Claire (38:44) Not being 25.

Scott Benner (38:45) Awesome. (38:46) So you would tell people who have type one and are, thinking of getting pregnant, it's very doable, I assume?

Claire (38:54) Yeah. (38:54) I used to think it was impossible. (38:57) Like, there is absolutely no way these goals are insane. (39:00) There's no way I can do that. (39:03) But I did it.

Claire (39:04) So I'm like, okay. (39:05) If I can do it, anybody can do it. (39:07) I would do some research, some planning first, and it's hard to go from zero to 60. (39:13) So I'm really glad I took, like, a year to kind of hone it in, ramp it in, take the information in, do some research, listen to other people's experiences, but it is totally doable. (39:25) And I think we have a little bit of an advantage because we're all in better touch with all of the things, sleep, exercise, nutrition.

Claire (39:34) We're so so much in better touch with our bodies and the way we feel

Scott Benner (39:37) In the world.

Claire (39:37) More in tune, yeah, than somebody without type one or a chronic health condition that needs constant monitoring.

Scott Benner (39:44) Yeah. (39:44) So I

Claire (39:44) think we're already at a bit of an advantage there. (39:46) So, like, if anything funky does happen, I feel like we kinda know know our bodies best and trust our gut really well. (39:56) We've got this I feel like that. (39:57) It also needs and CGM is, like, an extra vital sign when they're doing all this monitoring and testing. (40:02) So

Scott Benner (40:03) That's really awesome. (40:04) I'm I'm very happy that you you took the time to share this with me. (40:07) Thank you very much. (40:08) I want you to know that, when you earlier said like, you sounded, like, embarrassed about how much you like college football, it made me find you on, Facebook. (40:17) And Yeah.

Scott Benner (40:18) Yeah. (40:19) Yeah. (40:19) You might have a problem. (40:20) I just wanna say.

Claire (40:21) I might have a problem. (40:23) I may or may not be wearing football attire right now. (40:29) Like, my second favorite day of the year. (40:32) It's, you know, big kickoff tomorrow. (40:34) It's beginning of the college football season.

Claire (40:36) So

Scott Benner (40:36) But you don't care about pro football?

Claire (40:39) I follow the football players I like in college. (40:43) I follow them to the pros, but then they change teams, like, 20 times and I get very confused.

Scott Benner (40:47) Yeah. (40:49) I like it when you're just forced to play for this one team. (40:51) It's better. (40:53) It's awesome.

Claire (40:53) Can you just stay in one place so that I can buy the jersey and it's still valid a few years from now?

Scott Benner (40:59) Now is this is there an irony here where, like, you know, we finally find a girl who loves football, but the guy you married doesn't care about it? (41:06) Or do you guys have that in common?

Claire (41:09) He knows what he married into.

Scott Benner (41:11) But he doesn't love it like you do?

Claire (41:14) He he will get into it for me. (41:16) He enjoys it, but he he doesn't seek it out in the same way. (41:21) Like

Scott Benner (41:21) He doesn't have an illness like you.

Claire (41:23) Exactly. (41:24) It's, like, I will seek it out. (41:26) I will turn it on. (41:27) I'm ready to go. (41:29) And he's like, wait, what time is it?

Claire (41:30) What channel is it on? (41:31) Okay. (41:31) It's on. (41:31) Yeah. (41:31) Let's watch.

Scott Benner (41:32) That's fine.

Claire (41:33) But, funny story about us is he actually proposed to me in on the 50 yard line of my college football, field, which is not easy to get on.

Scott Benner (41:45) Did you do it legally?

Claire (41:47) Yes. (41:48) Yeah. (41:48) Very nice. (41:49) Yeah. (41:49) We had an employee escort us out there.

Scott Benner (41:53) What does he tell you you're doing? (41:55) Because do you know you're being proposed to?

Claire (41:59) No. (41:59) I didn't know. (42:01) It was definitely a little odd. (42:03) He was like, you've never you've never taken a tour of the stadium? (42:06) I was like, no.

Claire (42:07) I was like, I have been on the field one time.

Scott Benner (42:09) Right.

Claire (42:10) But I was no. (42:11) I wouldn't take a tour. (42:12) I've never been on a tour. (42:13) I've been to many games there. (42:15) Why do I need a tour?

Claire (42:16) He's like, oh, well, I'm gonna take you on a tour. (42:18) I was like, okay. (42:19) We pull up and this employee, he shows up and he's like, oh, are you guys here for the tour? (42:26) So the the employee was totally in on it.

Scott Benner (42:28) The tour?

Claire (42:28) Has in

Scott Benner (42:29) the tour. (42:29) At what point were you like, I am not having sex with you on this football field, you creep. (42:33) Is that where this is leading to?

Claire (42:35) No. (42:36) No. (42:36) Wait. (42:37) My husband and I pulled up and there are these two, employees And they're like, are you guys here for the tour? (42:42) And we're like, I guess so.

Claire (42:45) And my husband's like, oh, yeah. (42:46) Yeah. (42:46) We're here for the tour. (42:47) And then, and at first, it seems like a legit tour. (42:52) Like, you know, here's the locker rooms.

Claire (42:53) Here's that. (42:54) Here's this. (42:54) And then we get to the field, and here I am being, like, the nerd that I am. (42:58) Like, how often do you have to paint the field before a game? (43:01) Well, we paint it, like, twice a week, but crazy lady, like, stop asking me questions.

Claire (43:06) I'm like,

Scott Benner (43:06) it's not really

Claire (43:07) a tour. (43:07) Boyfriend.

Scott Benner (43:08) And I don't I

Claire (43:09) don't know boyfriend.

Scott Benner (43:09) I don't know a lot about this stadium.

Claire (43:13) I mean, I think they they did. (43:15) So they were kind of trying to answer my question, but also facilitate getting me to center, like Yeah. (43:20) To the 50 yard line, like, center of the field. (43:23) And they're like, why don't you go just, you know, walk out there, see what it looks like from the center? (43:27) And that's where my husband proposed, and the employees got photos of the whole thing.

Claire (43:31) It was great. (43:32) And afterwards, I was like, okay. (43:34) That was amazing. (43:34) But was like, you didn't have to go to I would have said yes anywhere. (43:38) You didn't have to do that.

Claire (43:39) And he was like, no. (43:39) But it was cool. (43:40) Right? (43:40) I was like, oh, that was very cool. (43:41) Yeah.

Claire (43:42) The pictures are great.

Scott Benner (43:43) Set the bar too high. (43:44) He's gonna be he's gonna be chasing that dragon the rest of his life now.

Claire (43:47) I know. (43:48) Mhmm. (43:48) I know. (43:48) And then, like, all any any mutual friends were just like, oh, dude. (43:52) Come on.

Claire (43:53) Like Yeah. (43:54) You did that? (43:55) What am I gonna have to do? (43:56) Yeah.

Scott Benner (43:57) I I looked at my wife in the bedroom we were living in, and I said, you know, it should probably be easier if we got married. (44:03) And she's like, what? (44:04) I'm like, well, you know, we could afford the car insurance then. (44:07) My wife and I got married for car insurance. (44:10) Like, I'm not kidding.

Scott Benner (44:11) We were dating for a while, living together because of a bad circumstance in her family. (44:18) And she got a great job, but we couldn't afford to like, like, you couldn't afford anything. (44:25) So we figured out a way to lease her her a car because it was very inexpensive back then to get started. (44:30) Right? (44:31) And but we couldn't figure out how to like, she couldn't afford the insurance.

Scott Benner (44:35) But if we were married, the insurance would have been much cheaper. (44:39) So we got we planned a wedding and got married in a number of weeks, used the money that people gave us as gifts, which if I'm remembering correctly, did not equal more than about $750 to put a down payment on a leased car, and then we could afford the insurance because she was now on my insurance policy.

Claire (45:00) Wow.

Scott Benner (45:00) Not as sexy as your story. (45:02) But, like, that's now keep in mind, that seems like a terrible way to start a a marriage and a life, and we've almost been married for thirty years.

Claire (45:12) Yeah.

Scott Benner (45:12) Yeah. (45:13) Who knows how it works and how it does.

Claire (45:14) Thank you car insurance.

Scott Benner (45:16) Thank you. (45:16) Hey. (45:16) Yeah. (45:17) They they

Claire (45:17) insurance premium.

Scott Benner (45:18) Exactly. (45:18) Yeah.

Claire (45:19) I've heard of I've heard about health insurance, but not car insurance. (45:21) So

Scott Benner (45:22) She had to get it was a great job. (45:23) Like, we couldn't she couldn't not take the job, but it was too far away. (45:28) There was no other way to get there. (45:29) She needed a car. (45:30) It needed to be dedicated to her.

Scott Benner (45:32) We didn't have anybody that could help us with that. (45:34) And so those are the steps we took. (45:35) So if you're if you're sometimes wondering, like, how did Scott figure out diabetes without having any knowledge about it, that's how Scott figured out to get car insurance when he was broke and, you know, like, 20 some years old.

Claire (45:46) Yeah. (45:46) There's a will. (45:47) There's a way.

Scott Benner (45:48) I'm just a practical person. (45:49) That's all. (45:50) Alright. (45:51) Claire, you were great. (45:52) I'm gonna take a little breaky, and then I'm actually interview, I'm actually recording with your your friend Jenny in thirty minutes.

Scott Benner (45:58) So

Claire (45:59) Oh, awesome.

Scott Benner (46:00) I'm gonna go rest my voice and then come back and do it again.

Claire (46:02) Yeah. (46:03) Good.

Scott Benner (46:03) You were terrific, really. (46:04) I I really genuinely appreciate it.

Claire (46:06) Oh, this is really fun. (46:08) It was really fun to be a part of something that I've, you know, been listening to for so long. (46:12) It's influenced me positively for so long. (46:14) So it's it's really cool. (46:16) I've been telling a lot of people.

Claire (46:17) I'm like, oh my gosh. (46:18) Guess what I'm doing? (46:19) I'm so excited. (46:20) And it's really cool to talk to you in person too. (46:23) I just wanna thank you for all this all of this hard work.

Claire (46:27) So many episodes. (46:28) I'll tell people, like, this is, you know, the number one diabetes podcast. (46:32) It's this many episodes and they're just floored. (46:34) They're like, oh my gosh. (46:35) I know.

Scott Benner (46:36) I appreciate that So very

Claire (46:37) much time, energy, and effort.

Scott Benner (46:39) I I'm I would certainly not I am not complaining, and I certainly would not complain. (46:43) But if you were here and watched me every day, you would be like, I think maybe Scott should go outside a little more often. (46:49) Or, you know, like, I'm worried that he's not, like, living a life just making this podcast. (46:54) But I just see it as a, I mean, it's a moment in time. (46:58) It's it's not gonna be here forever.

Scott Benner (47:00) And, you know, the more conversations, the more ideas, you know, the more people get stretched a little bit and and come up with new ideas and come back on and have time to share. (47:13) I I think it's just important, you know, and and I think it's I think it's a time in my life where I'm dedicating more time to a job than I probably should be, for me personally. (47:26) But I think that, hopefully, you know, big picture, it's gonna be something. (47:30) Like, when I leave it, when I put it down at the end, and I go, here it is. (47:33) You guys can do whatever you want with it.

Scott Benner (47:35) I think it might keep helping people. (47:37) So Yeah. (47:38) That that's my my goal, certainly. (47:40) And I appreciate you speaking so nicely about it. (47:42) Thank you.

Claire (47:43) Yeah. (47:43) And it'll keep helping people even if you were to stop tomorrow because it's all out there just sitting and waiting on the Internet.

Scott Benner (47:52) Yeah. (47:52) I can't stop that now though. (47:54) Like, I keep seeing connections to other things. (47:56) Like, I interviewed a guy the other day, and at the end of talking about, you know, this really amazing conversation about how the podcast helped him get his daughter on her feet in just a few years before she was on her way to college. (48:08) Then she had this experience, like, right away at college, and she handled it really well.

Scott Benner (48:13) And he related that all back to the podcast. (48:16) And we're kinda done talking, you know, forty five minutes, an hour later. (48:20) And he just sort of pops up and he's like, oh, also, I listened to your weight loss series and changed my life. (48:26) And I was like, oh, and he's like, I've lost 36 pounds in the last six months and talked about all the good things that happened for him personally. (48:33) And and I was like, my gosh.

Scott Benner (48:34) Like, there are there are days, Claire. (48:36) Like, I just record this stuff. (48:37) I just assume, like, no one's listening to it. (48:40) Like, you really like, it have to be a maniac to just think I'd be insane if I actually believe that the number of people listening to this were the number of people listening it. (48:49) Like, I know functionally that's how many people are listening, but when you sit down and talk, you can't think, I'm about to speak and x number of people are gonna hear the words.

Scott Benner (48:57) Like, it's just not a way to think about it. (48:59) So when Yeah. (49:00) He comes around and he's like, this helped me, I spent, like, a half an hour after I'm recording thinking, like, wow. (49:07) Like, I decided to do a thing and listen to what happened for him. (49:09) Listen to what happened for his daughter.

Scott Benner (49:11) Listen you know, like, that's it's awesome. (49:14) Like, I wanna do more of that. (49:15) And then you start seeing connections with it, and you're like, you know, we gotta keep talking about this. (49:19) Like, I'll I'll tell you right now. (49:21) I was out ahead of talking about injectable GLPs for type ones.

Scott Benner (49:25) And when I started talking about it, I took a lot of from people about it. (49:28) And I've been out ahead on a couple of things, but I think I'm only there because you guys are all coming in, like, having these conversations. (49:37) And I'm seeing, like, like, through lines. (49:39) And I'm like, no. (49:39) That really does feel like something that's that's positive right here, something we should pay more attention to.

Scott Benner (49:45) We have to keep talking about that so we can grow. (49:48) I think that, one of the saddest things about content in general is that it's it's fleeting. (49:57) Like, most content creators that you listen to, they burn out pretty quickly or the the algorithm gets tired of them or whatever happens. (50:04) And before they can really build a compendium, they're here and gone. (50:08) And because there's no financial incentive to keep going, they just stop.

Scott Benner (50:12) And so I I think that's part of why the podcast grows and becomes more and more valuable is because we're able to put this much effort into it for such a long time. (50:22) That's a lot of, like, high minded talking about me making a podcast, but that's sort of how I think about it. (50:26) Yeah. (50:27) Yeah. (50:27) So, anyway, I really appreciate you saying that.

Scott Benner (50:29) It's very kind of you.

Claire (50:30) Yeah. (50:31) Awesome. (50:32) Yeah.

Scott Benner (50:32) Awesome. (50:33) Alright. (50:33) Hold on one second for me. (50:34) K. (50:42) Head now to tandemdiabetes.com/juicebox and check out today's sponsor, Tandem Diabetes Care.

Scott Benner (50:49) I think you're gonna find exactly what you're looking for at that link, including a way to sign up and get started with the Tandem Mobi system. (50:57) Arden has been getting her diabetes supplies from US Med for three years. (51:01) You can as well. (51:02) Usmed.com/juicebox or call (888) 721-1514. (51:09) My thanks to US Med for sponsoring this episode and for being longtime sponsors of the Juice Box Podcast.

Scott Benner (51:15) There are links in the show notes and links at juiceboxpodcast.com to US Med and all of the sponsors. (51:22) Today's episode of the Juice Box podcast is sponsored by the Eversense three sixty five. (51:27) You can experience the Eversense three sixty five CGM system for as low as $199 for a full year. (51:34) Visit evercentcgm.com/juicebox for more details and eligibility. (51:40) My diabetes pro tip series is about cutting through the clutter of diabetes management to give you the straightforward practical insights that truly make a difference.

Scott Benner (51:49) This series is all about mastering the fundamentals, whether it's the basics of insulin, dosing adjustments, or everyday management strategies that will empower you to take control. (51:59) I'm joined by Jenny Smith, who is a diabetes educator with over thirty five years of personal experience, and we break down complex concepts into simple, actionable tips. (52:09) The diabetes pro tip series runs between episode one thousand and one thousand twenty five in your podcast player, or you can listen to it at juiceboxpodcast.com by going up into the menu. (52:20) If you're looking for community around type one diabetes, check out the Juice Box Podcast private Facebook group, Juice Box Podcast, type one diabetes. (52:29) But everybody is welcome.

Scott Benner (52:30) Type one, type two, gestational, loved ones, it doesn't matter to me. (52:35) If you're impacted by diabetes and you're looking for support, comfort, or community, check out Juice Box podcast, Type one Diabetes on Facebook. (52:44) Hey. (52:45) Thanks for listening all the way to the end. (52:46) I really appreciate your loyalty and listenership.

Scott Benner (52:49) Thank you so much for listening. (52:51) I'll be back very soon with another episode of the Juice Box podcast.

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#1738 Smooth Operator - Part 1

You can always listen to the Juicebox Podcast here but the cool kids use: Apple Podcasts/iOS - Spotify - Amazon Music - Google Play/Android - iHeart Radio -  Radio Public, Amazon Alexa or wherever they get audio.

Claire shares her story of being diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age 29 during her lunch break, only to board an international flight to Australia just days later. A long-time listener of the podcast, Claire discusses how she utilized the "Pro Tip" series and Jenny Smith’s book to prepare for a healthy pregnancy.

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DISCLAIMER: This text is the output of AI based transcribing from an audio recording. Although the transcription is largely accurate, in some cases it is incomplete or inaccurate due to inaudible passages or transcription errors and should not be treated as an authoritative record. Nothing that you read here constitutes advice medical or otherwise. Always consult with a healthcare professional before making changes to a healthcare plan.

Claire (0:10) I'm Claire, and I've had type one diabetes for ten years. (0:13) I'm really excited to talk today.

Scott Benner (0:18) Friends, we're all back together for the next episode of the Juice Box podcast. (0:21) Welcome. (0:22) Please don't forget that nothing you hear on the Juice Box podcast should be considered advice, medical or otherwise. (0:28) Always consult a physician before making any changes to your health care plan or becoming bold with insulin. (0:42) Alright.

Scott Benner (0:42) Let's get down to it. (0:43) You want the management stuff from the podcast. (0:45) You don't care about all this chitting and chatting with other people. (0:48) Juiceboxpodcast.com/lists. (0:52) They are downloadable, easy to read, Every series, every episode, they're all numbered.

Scott Benner (0:58) Makes it super simple for you to go right into that search feature. (1:01) In your audio app, type juice box one seven nine five to find episode one seven nine five. (1:08) Juiceboxpodcast.com/lists. (1:25) Cozy Earth is back with a great offer for Juice Box podcast listeners. (1:29) Right now, you can stack my code Juice Box on top of their site wide sale, giving you up to 40% off in savings.

Scott Benner (1:37) These deals will not last, so start your holiday shopping today by going to cozyearth.com and using the offer code juice box at checkout. (1:45) This episode of the Juice Box podcast is sponsored by US Med, usmed.com/juicebox, or call (888) 721-1514. (1:55) Get your supplies the same way we do from US Med. (1:59) This episode of the Juice Box podcast is sponsored by Omnipod five. (2:04) Omnipod five is a tube free automated insulin delivery system that's been shown to significantly improve a one c and time and range for people with type one diabetes when they've switched from daily injections.

Scott Benner (2:15) Learn more and get started today at omnipod.com/juicebox. (2:19) At my link, you can get a free starter kit right now. (2:22) Terms and conditions apply. (2:23) Eligibility may vary. (2:25) Full terms and conditions can be found at omnipod.com/juicebox.

Claire (2:29) I'm Claire, and I've had type one diabetes for ten years. (2:33) I'm really excited to talk today.

Scott Benner (2:36) Awesome, Claire. (2:37) How old are you now?

Claire (2:38) 39.

Scott Benner (2:39) 39. (2:39) Diagnosed when you were 29.

Claire (2:41) Yeah.

Scott Benner (2:42) Yes. (2:42) Yeah. (2:43) Okay. (2:44) Why are you excited to talk?

Claire (2:47) I'm excited to talk because I've listened to several episodes of the Juice Box podcast, and I feel like it's been really influential on my life and my diabetes management. (2:56) So it's just really exciting to kinda pay it forward, and, you know, contribute to the conversation, and I don't know. (3:04) That's nice. (3:04) Sorry to put it into words, but Yeah.

Scott Benner (3:05) You got something you wanna get out. (3:08) Sure.

Claire (3:08) Yeah. (3:08) Wanna share. (3:09) Wanna collaborate.

Scott Benner (3:10) Yeah. (3:10) And, Claire, I don't wanna, make you feel badly, but the person I interviewed yesterday had listened to 1,500 of the episodes. (3:16) So I'd like to suggest that maybe you quit your job or stop taking care of your family or whatever it is that takes up your time and and listen to more of my podcast, please.

Claire (3:26) Yes. (3:26) On five times speed.

Scott Benner (3:27) Thank you. (3:28) I don't care how you do it. (3:29) Just do it. (3:29) So

Claire (3:31) I talked to somebody who listened to all the podcast episodes or claims to. (3:35) So

Scott Benner (3:35) What do mean claims to? (3:36) Of course, they have. (3:38) I haven't heard all the episodes of the podcast. (3:40) I mean, I've I've been involved with them, but I've I've not listened to them back. (3:44) Who the person that you, that you talked to, were they the person who introduced you to the podcast?

Claire (3:52) I'm not sure the exact person, but there's a support group, a type one support group that I joined, and that definitely was how I learned about the podcast. (4:00) Somebody in that group. (4:01) And then there's somebody in the group who says that they listen to all of them.

Scott Benner (4:04) Is that an in person group or online?

Claire (4:07) It was in person, and then once COVID happened, it was online and virtual.

Scott Benner (4:11) Oh, so you've had a a support group prior to 2020?

Claire (4:15) Correct.

Scott Benner (4:15) Oh, what what sent you so wait a minute. (4:17) That's, like, five years ago. (4:20) So you were a few years into your diabetes, and you thought I need to meet more people who have type one. (4:25) What what drove you to to seek those people out?

Claire (4:29) I was kind of peer pressured into joining the group. (4:32) I had run into somebody in person. (4:35) They're like, why are you not in a support group? (4:36) You should join our support group. (4:37) And I was like, what?

Claire (4:39) Okay. (4:39) So joined the support group, and that was about a year into my diagnosis.

Scott Benner (4:42) Okay. (4:43) Cultists? (4:44) Did you find Yeah. (4:45) Yeah. (4:45) They were just they're trying to build a a small army of people with type one?

Claire (4:49) I did feel a little pressured, but, like, in a good way. (4:53) You

Scott Benner (4:53) know? (4:53) Okay.

Claire (4:54) Just like, why are you not in a support group? (4:56) You should join our support group.

Scott Benner (4:57) Did you what did you gain from it?

Claire (5:01) It was definitely nice to have that community. (5:04) You feel less alone. (5:06) Everyone's got their own little pro tips. (5:09) So I showed up there pretty newly diagnosed, and everyone's like, oh, you don't have a CGM? (5:14) Look what it can do.

Claire (5:15) You don't have a pump? (5:15) Look what it can do. (5:16) And I was like, woah. (5:17) Okay. (5:18) I was like, I was just looking to come and meet some people, but now you guys are, like, showing me I don't know.

Claire (5:23) They just kinda showed me the ropes, like and it was different hearing it from somebody living with it than a doctor.

Scott Benner (5:29) Yeah.

Claire (5:30) You know, when your doctor's like, oh, you know, these things are out there. (5:32) I'm like, yeah. (5:33) Yeah. (5:33) Yeah. (5:33) Okay.

Claire (5:33) Cool. (5:33) What do I have to do now? (5:35) Mhmm.

Scott Benner (5:35) So at first, they feel like the people at Costco are trying to get you to drink coconut water, but then it it quickly you decide, like, this is valuable. (5:43) I should maybe hear what these people have to say and look into this stuff.

Claire (5:47) Yeah. (5:48) And more eye opening. (5:50) And it's kinda like drinking from the fire hose at the beginning when you're getting diagnosed. (5:54) You're I'm like, I'm just trying to get day to day, you know, try and figure out what's going on here. (5:58) Just day to day, minute to minute, meal to meal.

Scott Benner (6:00) Yeah.

Claire (6:01) And then so going to the doctor and having them talk about all the technology is just, like, a little overwhelming. (6:06) I was like, alright. (6:07) Let me just take this one bite at a time. (6:09) But it was cool to hear other people's experience with it, spend a little more time learning about it instead of a fifteen minute doctor's appointment. (6:17) It was, like, an hour or two Mhmm.

Claire (6:20) Meeting. (6:21) And then, you know, during the meeting, everything's beeping. (6:23) Everyone's beeping, and, you know, nobody flinches because it's so normal. (6:28) So it was just it was just interesting to be in that environment because I'd never been surrounded by type ones before. (6:34) Yeah.

Claire (6:35) Did That was cool.

Scott Benner (6:36) Did you find it like, obviously, you found it easier to get information from the support group than from the doctor, but why? (6:42) What what about at the doctor's office makes that difficult?

Claire (6:46) I think because it's brief. (6:50) And I love my endo, but they don't have type one. (6:55) And, you know, they have to get their checklist y things done. (6:58) And it's different when you're sitting with somebody with a little more time. (7:01) There's less time constraint.

Claire (7:03) There's less of an agenda. (7:04) It's more just natural flow. (7:06) And then they can also give you their real life experience about why it's helpful for them and why it's meaningful for them.

Scott Benner (7:12) I see.

Claire (7:13) So I think that was different.

Scott Benner (7:15) And then at some point I'm sorry. (7:17) At some point, they say something that just, like, connects with you. (7:20) Right? (7:20) And you go, oh, that is a struggle I have or a concern I have or something I'm trying to get to. (7:25) And then that helps you kinda key in on the thing that they're saying being potentially valuable for you.

Claire (7:31) Yeah. (7:32) Like, real life examples. (7:33) And, I was running a lot of the time, and my friends were explaining, like, oh, well, you could see what your numbers are doing while you're running. (7:42) And I was like, oh, that would be really nice. (7:45) So I did I did get on the CGM quite quickly after hearing their experiences and seeing the value in it.

Scott Benner (7:51) Okay. (7:51) Awesome. (7:52) And what did you learn what did you learn in that because it had been a year. (7:55) Right? (7:56) And you and you slap on a CGM.

Scott Benner (7:57) I'm interested in your your initial takeaway as soon as you could see your blood sugar twenty four seven like that.

Claire (8:03) Yeah. (8:03) I think I kinda label it. (8:05) I had a little bit of, like, a CGM depression almost because when I was doing finger sticks, my numbers were nine times out of 10 really good. (8:13) So I was like, I've got this. (8:14) I've got this.

Claire (8:15) You know, I got this down. (8:16) But then when I could see what was happening between those snapshots, between those finger sticks, I was having these huge swings. (8:22) So great that, you know, five times a day I was in range, but I had no idea what was happening in between. (8:28) And so I kinda had this moment of like, oh, I thought I was doing a great job. (8:31) Oh, no.

Claire (8:31) I'm doing terribly. (8:33) But then it was like motivation to do better, to learn more, to try and fix those spikes. (8:39) Yeah. (8:40) And then again, kinda circled back to, like, information gathering, seeking, using my peer support group to kinda help figure out, like, where else to go. (8:47) And I think at at that point, somebody had either mentioned Juice Box Podcast or at that time had mentioned Juice Box podcast.

Claire (8:54) And I was like, okay. (8:55) Like, I just began to just devour information. (8:58) Mhmm. (8:58) Not not listening to all your podcast,

Scott Benner (9:01) but I was just teasing you. (9:02) If if listen. (9:03) If any of you are listening to all of them, that's awesome. (9:06) I don't expect you all to do that. (9:07) But Yeah.

Scott Benner (9:08) So I I guess I wanna stay for one more second in this idea of, like because it sounds like it's not a linear process. (9:16) You didn't just it wasn't step one to step 10, and now I understand better. (9:20) You got diagnosed. (9:23) You thought you were doing great, met some people, they gave you some suggestions, you filter through them. (9:28) Eventually, end up on a CGM.

Scott Benner (9:30) You go, oh, what what I thought was happening isn't happening. (9:33) You get that moment of, like I mean, the I don't know. (9:36) It makes probably makes you feel like, oh, I've been putting all this effort into this and it's not even working. (9:40) But but instead of feeling that way, you say, well, at least I know now. (9:43) I'll go look for more tools.

Scott Benner (9:45) And so this is sort of I guess the way I think about it is more about how I feel like people find the podcast. (9:53) Because I think what can happen is that people can find it podcast or the or the Facebook group. (10:00) Right? (10:00) They find it either at the right time when they're looking for it or not at the right time. (10:04) But a lot of them can find their way back to it if when they initially intersected, it wasn't the right time for them.

Scott Benner (10:10) And it makes me like, I think of it more from my perspective. (10:15) But to to sit back and listen to you talk about it, it almost feels like you're, what's that game we played when we were kids? (10:21) Like, you had to run over the line and grab something and get back before somebody hit you with something. (10:26) Do you remember that? (10:26) Are you not old enough for that?

Scott Benner (10:28) Or did you grow up when they you weren't allowed to throw things at people?

Claire (10:32) I think we could still throw things

Scott Benner (10:33) at throw

Claire (10:34) things people. (10:36) The can. (10:37) What else? (10:37) Red Rover

Scott Benner (10:38) Yeah.

Claire (10:38) Oh. (10:38) All that kind

Scott Benner (10:39) of stuff. (10:40) I think it's more like that where, like, you sometimes like, you're outside of it for a minute, and then you think, oh, I need a thing. (10:47) I gotta run back in and grab it. (10:48) Hey. (10:48) You go get back and get it.

Scott Benner (10:49) You bring your piece back. (10:50) You build a little more. (10:51) You go back again. (10:52) Like, some people learn that way. (10:55) Yeah.

Scott Benner (10:55) That sounds like where you are.

Claire (10:57) Yeah. (10:57) I was just kinda taking it, like, one kind of thing at a time, one phase at a time. (11:02) And I think I yeah. (11:03) I was initially, like, kinda overwhelmed. (11:06) But then just, you know, kinda took it one one piece, one thing at a time.

Claire (11:10) But, getting diagnosed in my late twenties, like from day one, every time I walked in that office, they're like, okay, pregnancy? (11:17) I was like, woah. (11:19) Not even married. (11:20) We have Jets. (11:22) But it was just so I mean, were doing their job.

Claire (11:25) They're like, woman of childbearing age. (11:28) But every time I walked in there, pregnancy? (11:30) I'm like, no. (11:31) No. (11:31) So in the back of my mind, being, you know, in my late twenties, I was like, okay.

Claire (11:35) This is like a thing. (11:38) So I need to eventually kinda figure this out maybe. (11:41) My endo was always just like, give me your a year notice if you ever wanna get pregnant. (11:46) Like, okay. (11:46) Cool.

Scott Benner (11:47) Fun.

Claire (11:47) I'll call you later.

Scott Benner (11:48) Yeah. (11:48) To pre bolus your baby?

Claire (11:50) Basically. (11:51) I was like, so let me do, like, some reverse calculations here. (11:56) No. (11:56) I'm just kidding. (11:57) But, that was an interesting dynamic going in.

Claire (12:00) Like, I'm 28 year old female or 29 year old female, but, like, no. (12:03) Not yet. (12:04) But in their mind, I'm, you know, late twenties female.

Scott Benner (12:08) So oh, so they're concerned you're gonna get pregnant before you know what you're doing and have a problem in the pregnancy. (12:14) But the way it's feeling to you is more like a judgment of where you are in your life. (12:19) Perhaps the best gift that you can give to yourself or to a loved one is that of comfort. (12:24) If you use the offer code juice box at checkout at cozyearth.com, you won't just be getting something that's comfortable, you'll also be doing it at quite a discount. (12:33) I use Cozy Earth towels every day when I get out of the shower.

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Claire (14:38) Oh, like a little bit, but also just, you know, they're just looking at me like a number on a paper, and I'm like, okay. (14:44) So just so you know where I am in my life, nowhere near close to that. (14:47) Yeah. (14:49) But also, did give me the sense of, like, that is a thing. (14:53) Because I had no idea when I was diagnosed how tightly controlled your blood sugars need to be for a healthy pregnancy.

Claire (14:59) Mhmm. (14:59) Just wasn't on my radar. (15:00) I was like, how do how do I eat my lunch today? (15:02) Like, let's talk about that. (15:04) I'm still trying to figure out my basal insulin.

Claire (15:06) Like, let's talk about that.

Scott Benner (15:07) I'm staring at my food, and I feel like I'm gonna cry. (15:09) Is there a way we could get past this place? (15:12) Yes. (15:12) Yeah. (15:12) Yeah.

Claire (15:13) Can I eat this? (15:14) Can I not eat this? (15:16) Yeah. (15:17) You know, an initial diagnosis, it could be, like, the sliding scale of I don't know. (15:22) It's just

Scott Benner (15:22) Did they give they started you sliding scale? (15:24) Yeah. (15:25) About where in the country are you?

Claire (15:28) I'm on the East Coast. (15:30) Yeah. (15:31) And I'm outside of a major city.

Scott Benner (15:33) Okay.

Claire (15:33) But I'm not rural. (15:35) But, yeah, I got started. (15:36) This is actually kinda crazy. (15:38) I got diagnosed on my lunch break at work. (15:41) Went to the doctor on my lunch break, and they handed me insulin pens.

Claire (15:44) I'm like, okay. (15:45) Here you go. (15:45) Inject.

Scott Benner (15:46) What what What's talking about? (15:48) What what got you moving to the doctor? (15:50) Like, what how were you feeling?

Claire (15:52) I was feeling pretty bad at that point. (15:56) Long story short, I ended up running a marathon, which was awesome. (16:01) Caught the flu because your immune system is gets a big hit when you do intense exercise like that. (16:08) And then I just, like, never recovered from the flu. (16:10) So I'd lost a lot of weight.

Claire (16:12) I wasn't getting it back. (16:14) Everyone was like, are you okay? (16:16) I was like, oh, yeah. (16:17) I just ran a marathon and got the flu. (16:18) It's a great diet.

Claire (16:19) You should try it. (16:20) Just kidding. (16:22) But I was very underweight, and I started getting thirsty, peeing a lot, yada yada. (16:27) And I had a random it was a cholesterol test. (16:31) And I didn't realize that your they also check your blood sugar with that, or I guess it's you can.

Claire (16:36) And they called me over and sat me down. (16:37) They're like, are you okay? (16:38) I was like, what are you what are you talking about? (16:40) What's my cholesterol? (16:41) And they're like, no.

Claire (16:41) No. (16:41) No. (16:41) Your blood sugar is really high. (16:43) And I was like, what are you talking about? (16:45) So they suggested I see an endo.

Claire (16:48) Probably should've just gone to the emergency department, but I was just following their orders. (16:52) Like, go see an endocrinologist because your blood sugar's over 300. (16:56) I was like, okay.

Scott Benner (16:57) You think they thought you had type two diabetes at that point?

Claire (17:01) I think they were a little confused. (17:03) And I was otherwise, like, besides being underweight and recently ill, probably looking healthy. (17:10) But looking back, I'm like, maybe I should've just gone to the emergency room. (17:12) But I think I was also in denial too. (17:14) It was like, I'm too old for type one and too healthy for type two.

Claire (17:18) Like, I just ran a marathon. (17:19) Also, both of those things are not true. (17:21) Those are just, you know, some assumptions that I had made at the time. (17:24) Right?

Scott Benner (17:24) Stuck in your head. (17:24) How did you even have an assumption about that?

Claire (17:29) Just when they were they when they checked my blood sugar and it was high, I was like, how's that possible? (17:33) Like, I'm in my late twenties, like and not realizing you could get diagnosed as type one as an adult. (17:39) In my head, was like, oh, I'm too old for type one because it's for kids. (17:42) And then I don't think I have type two because I just ran a marathon.

Scott Benner (17:45) Yeah. (17:46) You know? (17:46) Why did It's been. (17:47) Why did you think type one was for kids? (17:49) Like, you know how you had that idea?

Claire (17:51) I think it's just, lack of awareness, lack of information. (17:55) I'd never really knew any type ones growing up. (18:00) So I just didn't know.

Scott Benner (18:01) Yeah. (18:01) Okay. (18:03) That's interesting. (18:04) When so you're on your on your on your lunch break. (18:08) Do you go back to work and go back to work?

Claire (18:10) I did. (18:11) I did. (18:12) I went back to work, and I was like, okay. (18:15) I purposely didn't call my parents. (18:16) I was like, I can't call them right now because I'm gonna, like, lose it.

Claire (18:19) Mhmm. (18:19) So, I called them at the end of the day. (18:22) We all had a little cry on the phone and, like, alright. (18:25) What's next?

Scott Benner (18:27) What's that what's that like when you're when you feel like you're too old to be parented but still would like to talk to your parents? (18:33) Is like, do you think I guess I'm asking, like, why did you reach out to them, and what do you think their response was when they hung up the phone? (18:45) Like, have you ever talked about that in hindsight? (18:47) Like, how it made them feel to know that this had happened to you, but you were older and and not really under their under their roof any longer? (18:55) This episode is brought to you by Omnipod.

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Scott Benner (19:51) Find my link in the show notes of this podcast player or at juiceboxpodcast.com.

Claire (19:56) Yeah. (19:57) I think they probably felt like a whole spectrum of emotions. (20:01) And we talked about it a little bit, but not recently. (20:03) So I think, you know, part of them felt, like, guilty, like it was their genes that did it. (20:07) Right?

Claire (20:09) But it really doesn't run-in our family. (20:12) They also felt bad that they weren't, like, physically with me. (20:17) They also, I think, felt some component of maybe relief that, like, they didn't have to go through me as a child and them having to manage my blood sugar and, you know, being worried when I was out or worried in the middle of the night and all of that stuff, which I'm sure you can relate to. (20:32) Like, they they didn't have to do that. (20:35) So they were kinda probably kinda like, oh, kinda got lucky with that.

Scott Benner (20:40) I don't know if they felt lucky. (20:41) I bet you they felt like I wish we could have been, like, more involved.

Claire (20:46) Yeah. (20:46) You think? (20:47) There's more they could do.

Scott Benner (20:48) Yeah. (20:48) But Are they that kind of people? (20:50) Maybe I'm just putting my feelings onto them.

Claire (20:52) Yeah. (20:53) No. (20:53) They're great. (20:56) Yeah. (20:56) I think they just kinda felt bad they weren't, like, there.

Claire (20:59) There wasn't anything they could really do in that moment, except for, like, be there for me.

Scott Benner (21:05) Yeah. (21:07) And And what did that look like?

Claire (21:09) I think just lots of lots of phone calls, lots of on the phone. (21:13) And I think they probably would have jumped on a plane to come see me that weekend, but I was going out of town that weekend, which is also crazy.

Scott Benner (21:26) Where did you go? (21:27) They

Claire (21:28) I I was diagnosed on a Wednesday of my lunch break. (21:32) And Sunday, I had already bought and paid for my ticket to go to Sydney, Australia. (21:36) So I got on an international flight on Sunday.

Scott Benner (21:39) Okay. (21:39) Hold on. (21:41) I, you know, I thought you're gonna be like, I I went away for the weekend and that's I was like, oh, that's not crazy. (21:46) So did you have a diagnosis? (21:48) You hadn't seen the endo by then.

Scott Benner (21:49) Right?

Claire (21:50) Oh, I saw the endo Wednesday lunch break, and they were like, look. (21:54) I think it's type one. (21:55) We'll do the blood work. (21:56) If the blood work comes back negative, then we have to do some imaging to make sure it's not pancreatic cancer. (22:01) I was like, okay.

Claire (22:02) Cool. (22:04) And the blood work came back, and I had a voicemail from the doctor. (22:07) It was like, yep. (22:07) You have antibodies. (22:08) It's type one.

Claire (22:08) Keep doing that sliding scale we talked about. (22:12) I think she wanted me to come back, like, as soon as I was back in the country, like, you know, soon, like two weeks later.

Scott Benner (22:17) Mhmm.

Claire (22:18) But, yeah, looking back on it, I'm like, what was I thinking? (22:22) But, yeah, I got on an international plane flight.

Scott Benner (22:25) And and it worked. (22:26) You were okay?

Claire (22:27) I was okay. (22:28) I filled my insulin prescription on the way to the airport.

Scott Benner (22:30) Oh my god.

Claire (22:32) I know. (22:34) It was crazy. (22:35) I tried to get it filled the night before, and the pharmacy I went to was out. (22:40) So in my defense, I did try and go the night before. (22:43) So I had to go to another pharmacy.

Scott Benner (22:44) What if you would've what if you would've not been able to fill that on the way to the airport? (22:48) Do you think something would've stopped you from getting on the plane?

Claire (22:52) Maybe. (22:53) But I did have at least a couple sample pens, but then I didn't know how many pens to bring. (22:59) I brought way too many. (23:01) But I knew when I got to Australia, I would be okay.

Scott Benner (23:05) Why is that?

Claire (23:07) I was with good family friends in Australia.

Scott Benner (23:10) Okay.

Claire (23:11) And, one of them is a nurse, and they they knew they knew what was coming in.

Scott Benner (23:18) See, yeah. (23:18) What was coming in? (23:19) I like how you talk. (23:20) You're you're talking about yourself like you're a package.

Claire (23:22) Yeah. (23:23) At that point, I was I was I was a bit of a bit of a mess, but I came in.

Scott Benner (23:27) I'm gonna jump ahead to jump backwards. (23:28) Yeah. (23:28) Right? (23:29) Do you have kids now?

Claire (23:31) I do.

Scott Benner (23:32) Oh. (23:32) I do. (23:33) Imagine this happened to one of them. (23:36) You know, what would you say to them if they were like, I'm still going to Australia?

Claire (23:40) I'd be like, are you sure I'm coming with?

Scott Benner (23:44) Sure. (23:44) You can come, but I'm going. (23:45) Yeah.

Claire (23:46) I'm coming too. (23:48) And I would be like, you're getting all the technology right now.

Scott Benner (23:51) Right. (23:51) Yeah. (23:52) Yeah. (23:52) I wonder if, I wonder if there's not a ton of value in doing that, not even knowing it was that much of a risk, but taking it, living through it. (24:05) Like, I I imagine there's a ton of value for you, like, long term, but that's only because it went well.

Scott Benner (24:10) Right? (24:10) Like, if something would've got upside down, then, you know, you'd be on here right now saying, like, oh, I've made, you know, biggest mistake. (24:16) I did this thing. (24:16) I shouldn't have done it. (24:17) I didn't know what I was doing enough with diabetes.

Scott Benner (24:19) I had to stay home. (24:20) It's interesting how just maybe a little bit of the randomness of it outlines how it is we're gonna talk about it later. (24:28) But, but that's that's crazy. (24:29) Okay. (24:30) So you get back.

Scott Benner (24:31) Fast forward a year later, you're looking for a support group. (24:35) Well, you're not looking for a support group. (24:36) People force you to go to a support group.

Claire (24:38) Kind of.

Scott Benner (24:39) Yeah. (24:39) You get good stuff out of that. (24:41) You're on your way. (24:42) Eventually, you make it to the podcast. (24:44) And Mhmm.

Scott Benner (24:45) Where would you describe the level of your, I don't know, knowledge base the day before you started listening, and and how did it help you?

Claire (24:54) I think at first, it was it was kinda seeking more community, more stories, you know, because everybody has a diagnosis story, most of them are interesting. (25:07) Some of them are terrifying. (25:08) So part of me is like, oh, you know, you know, I wasn't diagnosed in a coma. (25:14) I would didn't end up in a hospital. (25:15) Like, I'm very grateful for that.

Claire (25:18) And then as the podcast evolved and you guys started doing more of, like, the pro tip stuff, I started listening more of those just to, like, learn more about, you know, how food hits you versus how insulin hits you and Mhmm. (25:34) How the timing is so critical and the amount. (25:38) Eventually, I switched to a pump. (25:40) So when the time came where I wanted to switch to a pump, I definitely listened to some episodes around that just to gather more information, more people's real life experiences. (25:49) I definitely listened to a bunch of the, interviews with the employees of Dexcom, Omnipod.

Claire (25:59) All of those, just found really interesting just to learn more about the products and the technology.

Scott Benner (26:04) Interesting. (26:04) When do you think what year was it when you started listening?

Claire (26:08) It was I think I learned about it. (26:12) It was probably, like, 2016, '17. (26:16) And then I went through phases of listening to episodes and then kinda taking a break. (26:20) But I definitely lean more into the listening more episodes around when Dexcom is going from g five, g six, g seven, when Omnipod came out with the Omnipod five.

Scott Benner (26:33) Wow. (26:33) You've been listening for

Claire (26:34) about that.

Scott Benner (26:35) A long time.

Claire (26:37) Yeah. (26:37) Yeah. (26:38) Because I think I started you know, over the ten year history I've had with diabetes, I think I started pretty early on. (26:44) But it was more just, like, dabbling here and there, and then seeking out the episodes that I thought I would gain more from.

Scott Benner (26:51) Yeah.

Claire (26:52) And I had met my husband. (26:53) Iron ironically, I met my husband one month after I was diagnosed. (26:57) So he has never known me as someone without type one.

Scott Benner (27:00) Okay.

Claire (27:00) Like, that's kind of a fun fact. (27:02) But he and I on some road trips with us into some episodes, because as you can search through the episodes, we would find some more, like, about the support person or yeah. (27:14) There were a couple that had that were more focused on, like, the person with type one and their their partner

Scott Benner (27:19) Mhmm.

Claire (27:20) In that way. (27:20) So we listened to something like that, and, you know, it it was cute because we're like, oh, yeah. (27:24) We can kinda relate to that too. (27:26) And then we wanted to start a family so that we started listening together often to the episodes you did with Jenny, about type one in pregnancy.

Scott Benner (27:34) Oh, okay. (27:35) So you did take them seriously back in the day when they were like, you have to tell us a year before you're ready.

Claire (27:40) Yeah. (27:40) I was like, okay. (27:41) I'm gonna start with these episodes, and then okay. (27:43) So Jenny wrote a book. (27:45) Okay.

Scott Benner (27:46) And you and you you did you use Jenny's book?

Claire (27:49) I did.

Scott Benner (27:50) Good book. (27:50) Yeah.

Claire (27:51) It lived next to my bed at all times.

Scott Benner (27:54) Yeah. (27:54) Yeah. (27:55) This is something can I ask, like I wanna get back into that, but I I'm gonna ask, like, a question that's more for me? (28:01) Yeah. (28:01) It's more for me and no one else listening.

Scott Benner (28:04) I I love that I love it. (28:06) You're not like a you're not like a crazy wait. (28:09) That was the wrong word. (28:10) I love all you that listen every day. (28:12) You're not like somebody who yeah.

Scott Benner (28:13) You're not a rabid fan, but you you have enjoyed the podcast. (28:17) It's done a lot for you. (28:19) You've been in and out of it over, you know, almost a decade, really.

Claire (28:22) Mhmm.

Scott Benner (28:22) Who am I to you? (28:25) Like, am I I don't even wanna put a word in your mouth. (28:28) Like, if if like, describe who I am in your life or though the podcast if it's harder to talk about me while you're talking to me.

Claire (28:35) I feel like a podcast is probably like the first one that comes to mind is coach. (28:42) Right? (28:42) Like somebody who's kinda always always there for you if you need them, but they're not they're there for you if you need them, but they're not gonna be, like, knocking on your door every day.

Scott Benner (28:51) Mhmm.

Claire (28:51) Right? (28:55) Yeah. (28:55) Kinda like coach, a guide, maybe like may maybe not like a grandfather, but like a godfather. (29:03) You know?

Scott Benner (29:04) Thank you. (29:04) That was very nice of you.

Claire (29:05) Yeah. (29:06) Jesus Christ. (29:07) No. (29:07) No. (29:07) But just like you don't have that family tie no.

Claire (29:09) No. (29:09) Not to age you. (29:10) Sorry. (29:11) That that was not my intent with that. (29:12) But more just like, you know, people have godparents, right, that are not their bloodline

Scott Benner (29:17) I

Claire (29:17) see. (29:17) But they're always gonna be there for them. (29:19) So you've got that one degree of separation. (29:20) Like, they're not gonna be at every, you know, Thanksgiving, Christmas. (29:22) They're not knocking on your door, but they're always there if you need them.

Scott Benner (29:25) Yeah. (29:25) But if you showed up at their house, they're they're not gonna lead you wrong or anything like that.

Claire (29:28) Right.

Scott Benner (29:29) Yeah. (29:29) Right. (29:29) And they'll and they'll stop and look at you and and be like, alright. (29:32) What do you need? (29:33) And Yeah.

Scott Benner (29:33) Yeah. (29:34) Yeah. (29:34) Yeah.

Claire (29:35) Like, you're calling me and not your parents. (29:37) What did you do?

Scott Benner (29:38) We've by the way, as you get older, everyone at some point has that experience where someone else's kid shows up to you and you're like, oh, well, I see what's happening now. (29:47) Alright.

Claire (29:47) Yeah.

Scott Benner (29:48) Yeah. (29:48) This is weird, but I'll I'll get in. (29:51) Okay. (29:52) And I'm not don't wanna again, I I don't wanna lead you at all. (29:56) Does this seem like a thing to you, or does it seem like what do I mean by this?

Scott Benner (30:03) You know how if you do you listen to any other podcasts?

Claire (30:09) I dabble with a lot of pod

Scott Benner (30:11) Okay. (30:11) Okay. (30:11) Great. (30:12) So have you heard, like I'm trying to pick one with, like, a lot of famous people. (30:15) Have you heard of Smartlist?

Scott Benner (30:17) No. (30:17) No. (30:18) What are some of the more famous ones you listen to?

Claire (30:23) I have talking about rabid fans, I am a big college football fan, so listen to some college football podcast.

Scott Benner (30:29) Okay.

Claire (30:29) Kinda silly. (30:32) But diabetes wise, there are a couple other diabetes ones that Sure. (30:37) I've listened to, but probably more juice box than anything else.

Scott Benner (30:39) I mean, like, I mean, like see, I I might not be getting to this correctly. (30:43) Like, do you listen to any any podcast that have, like, an actual famous person in it? (30:51) No. (30:51) No. (30:51) Okay.

Scott Benner (30:52) Really? (30:52) So your podcasts are more people with information or conversations that you're interested in hearing. (30:58) They're niche y.

Claire (30:59) Yeah.

Scott Benner (31:00) Yeah. (31:00) Okay. (31:01) And so and I do I seem to fit into that category pretty well for you?

Claire (31:05) Yeah. (31:06) Like, you're definitely famous in the diabetes community.

Scott Benner (31:08) Man, that's that's just there. (31:10) Like, I've But Yeah.

Claire (31:11) But you're not on, like, Taylor Swift, Kelvin.

Scott Benner (31:14) Oh, no. (31:15) Stop. (31:15) Stop. (31:15) Stop. (31:15) No.

Scott Benner (31:16) That's not what it wasn't my point. (31:17) But to go back to your point, like, the if you if you would see it at a diabetes event, it is crazy. (31:24) Like like, I'm still not right with it. (31:28) But if you drop me in a place where everyone has diabetes, I am I am famous. (31:34) It's it's in that spot.

Scott Benner (31:35) And then it's a great relief to be able to walk outside and, like, no one know who you are. (31:40) But I didn't expect, obviously, it's not a thing you expect, but that's not why I was asking. (31:45) What I was asking was is do I or does the podcast seem like this big shiny produced thing that someone's delivering to you, or does it still seem like I'm sitting in a room with a microphone?

Claire (31:58) I kinda feel like you're I don't that's a tricky one. (32:03) I I feel like you're sitting in a room with the microphone. (32:07) Like, it everything's very real. (32:08) It doesn't seem like you have an agenda or you're like you know, it doesn't seem like you're doing anything more than just really trying to help as many people as possible with the this medium

Scott Benner (32:21) of That's what I wanted to know. (32:22) Thank you. (32:23) I'm sorry it took us so long to get to it, I didn't wanna lead you to But I wanted to Claire's like, listen. (32:28) Could you just, like, let's get back to my story? (32:30) But I

Claire (32:31) No. (32:31) No. (32:31) No.

Scott Benner (32:31) I just

Claire (32:32) was like, I wanna answer this truthfully, but also, like and I wanted to answer it truthfully and honestly, but I was also like, oh, I hope I'm not going the wrong way.

Scott Benner (32:41) No. (32:41) You're not there's no right way to go. (32:42) Just whatever you say is what you say. (32:45) I I I was trying to figure out as this thing has grown if I'm successfully keeping it what it was. (32:54) That's what I want.

Scott Benner (32:55) Like, I want it to be me in here sharing things that I've heard, things that I've tried, things that other people have told me about, your story, a little bit of, like, technology from companies where, you know, when we can get a hold of it without turning into, you know, like, some, to you ever use your word, like, rabid YouTuber who's just, like, jamming. (33:16) Like, did you know that dexcom. (33:18) You know, dexcom. (33:18) Dexcom. (33:19) Dexcom.

Scott Benner (33:19) I know that I know that people click on dexcom videos, so I'm gonna make a thousand dexcom videos. (33:23) Or I'm gonna jump out and talk about, like, hey. (33:26) I heard that there's a new pump coming next year. (33:28) Did you know somebody was gonna, I think somebody's working on a a cure, like, all that kind of clickbaity that that Mhmm. (33:34) I just think is I think it's, like, garbage filler.

Scott Benner (33:37) And, like, you know, and sometimes, like, to your point, like, sometimes there's actually something to say, and it's nice to get a little update. (33:44) But this, like, making content every week, it's really just supposed to get people to click on it. (33:49) You know? (33:49) Like, watch me, you know, like, is there a reason to watch somebody put on their device? (33:53) Yeah.

Scott Benner (33:54) I think that can be really helpful. (33:56) Does there need to be a thousand videos of people putting on their devices? (34:00) You know? (34:01) Yeah. (34:02) I don't wanna be involved in that, I get I guess is what I'm saying.

Scott Benner (34:06) So I was just trying to see if from your perspective, because of how you've listened off and on, but still connected over at different times. (34:15) And, you know, also, we're about to talk about you making a baby with diabetes, and I'm gonna guess that that I'm gonna hope it went well, and I'm gonna think that

Claire (34:22) Oh, yeah.

Scott Benner (34:23) A lot of that came from from what you learned from here. (34:25) So, I appreciate you sharing that with me very much. (34:28) Thank you. (34:29) And, so what happened? (34:31) You decided you wanted to have a baby.

Scott Benner (34:33) You went and told your endocrinologist. (34:34) You kept your husband away from you for twelve months, and then you began to have a baby. (34:37) Is that how it worked?

Claire (34:39) Kind of.

Scott Benner (34:40) Really? (34:41) Go ahead. (34:41) Tell me what happened.

Claire (34:42) Kind of. (34:44) Well, my husband and I, we got married. (34:46) We knew we wanna start a family. (34:47) He knew the situation where it's like, okay. (34:49) We gotta tell the endo a year in advance.

Claire (34:53) And then I just started really honing in on, you know, alright. (34:58) What are our goals during pregnancy? (35:00) How do we get there? (35:02) And then trying to connect the dots. (35:04) I definitely listened to several of the episodes that that you made interviewing women with type one and their pregnancies, talking with Jenny, bought Jenny's book.

Claire (35:16) So I started doing my homework. (35:17) Right? (35:18) Mhmm. (35:19) Talking to my doctor, making small little changes. (35:22) And I I know you've interviewed, like, several women with type one pregnancies.

Claire (35:26) And so I think a lot of things that I had heard, I would say same same here, you know, just tightening my CGM time and range, just kinda going from, you know, what kind of the blanket 70 to one eighty that most people have their CGM set at

Scott Benner (35:44) or are

Claire (35:44) told to set their CGMs at. (35:46) Just bumping down that that one eighty gradually over time.

Scott Benner (35:51) What was your a one c goal for pregnancy?

Claire (35:57) My endo, OB, MFM oh, I had a prepregnancy consultation with MFM. (36:02) Yeah. (36:02) I I was doing my homework. (36:04) Their goal for me is to be under six and a half at conception and then preferably under six during the pregnancy. (36:11) And I think I was I definitely met both those goals.

Claire (36:14) I think I was under six the whole the whole pregnancy.

Scott Benner (36:16) Yeah. (36:18) MFM I'm sorry. (36:19) Monday football my my name is?

Claire (36:21) Monday night football. (36:22) Yeah. (36:23) Maternal fetal medicine.

Scott Benner (36:24) Gotcha.

Claire (36:25) High risk pregnancy doctor.

Scott Benner (36:26) I knew. (36:27) I just for other people. (36:28) You you know?

Claire (36:29) Oh, yeah. (36:29) Yeah.

Scott Benner (36:29) Yeah. (36:30) Yeah. (36:30) I know everything, so it's not I I make a podcast. (36:33) How would I not know?

Claire (36:34) Yeah. (36:35) And you've definitely interviewed women with type one.

Scott Benner (36:37) Yeah. (36:37) I actually I did. (36:38) Pregnancy. (36:38) I was not following what MFM was. (36:40) I just want to I I just wanna be clear.

Scott Benner (36:43) No. (36:44) Those episodes are really interesting. (36:46) Like, to because it separates the line between, you know, I don't know, your mental health in diabetes and your physical health in it. (36:56) Because what it what I think what those pregnant women show over and over again, what you showed was that all these health outcomes specific to diabetes are very doable and you can accomplish them. (37:07) They're not impossible.

Scott Benner (37:09) But almost every one of those ladies says, like, the baby came out, I was like, oh, I'm so happy. (37:15) I don't have to do it like that anymore. (37:17) Did that happen to you?

Claire (37:19) At first, yes. (37:20) Because it was just you know, life was crazy at first. (37:22) Mhmm. (37:24) But then I started to wanna switch gears into getting that better control. (37:29) But at this phase of my life, I feel like I don't have as much energy or bandwidth to dedicate to it like I did when I was pregnant.

Claire (37:38) Like, when I was pregnant, there was you know, I didn't have a toddler running around. (37:43) You know, my work schedule is pretty same every day. (37:46) There there was a lot of I had a lot of control and autonomy over my time. (37:52) So I could do those really long pre boluses in the third trimester, and I could count all the macros and all my meals. (37:59) And I could prepare all my food all the time and and stuff like that.

Claire (38:02) Oh, got a little spike there. (38:03) Let me go for a walk. (38:04) So I had all of that going for me too.

Scott Benner (38:07) Right.

Claire (38:07) And I didn't it was fine at the time. (38:10) Everything worked out. (38:11) But I was like, okay. (38:11) Long term, don't know if I wanna do exactly that much effort. (38:16) I don't know if I can.

Claire (38:19) But it was when I was pregnant, it's so funny because people would talk about how tired you are. (38:23) And I was tired, but at the same time, I felt like I had great energy. (38:28) And I think it was because my blood sugar was so tightly controlled. (38:31) Like, I think mentally, I was, like, felt great because my you know, I wasn't getting these big swings. (38:37) My blood sugar control was tight.

Claire (38:39) I had great time in rain. (38:40) I was sleeping pretty well with having good blood sugars overnight, stuff like that. (38:45) So it was just very interesting to look back on. (38:50) And what what I thought the coolest part about being pregnant with type one was having that CGM information was like an extra vital sign. (38:59) Like, I could tell my body was making this baby placenta.

Claire (39:05) Everything was going on because of how my CGM numbers were shaping out, you know, because I was getting a little more insulin resistance. (39:13) So that was just so cool. (39:13) Like, that's something that people with type one don't get to experience during their pregnancy. (39:18) I thought that

Scott Benner (39:19) was cool. (39:19) Yeah. (39:19) That's awesome. (39:20) So that's pretty great. (39:22) How do you did you just make one, or have you made more since then?

Claire (39:26) No. (39:26) Just one for now.

Scott Benner (39:27) Just one for now. (39:28) How old how old is that one right now?

Claire (39:30) He's about three and

Scott Benner (39:32) a half. (39:32) Yeah. (39:32) His name's Scott, by any chance?

Claire (39:35) No. (39:35) But when we were going through the names, once we knew it was a boy, you know, we did throw that in the list. (39:40) We were like, oh, should we name him Scott?

Scott Benner (39:42) Thank you. (39:43) Did it stay for more than a day or no on the list?

Claire (39:46) I don't know if it made the official list.

Scott Benner (39:47) Maybe it made

Claire (39:48) the long list but not the short list.

Scott Benner (39:49) Did you see that somebody got a tattoo yesterday that says bold with insulin on it?

Claire (39:53) No. (39:54) That's great.

Scott Benner (39:55) It's a juice box. (39:56) The microphone's coming out of the top instead of a straw. (39:58) It says bold with insulin. (39:59) I am taking that as almost the same as a, as a baby name. (40:03) Somebody immediately jumped in and said, well, you'll notice he didn't name a baby after you.

Scott Benner (40:08) And I said, no. (40:09) This is this is pretty I think a baby naming would be the pinnacle. (40:13) And then I and then I stopped myself, and I said, well, maybe not the pinnacle. (40:16) The pinnacle would be if you had a baby named it Scott and then got in a bolt with Insulin tattoo. (40:19) But All

Claire (40:21) at the same time.

Scott Benner (40:21) Yeah. (40:21) Yeah.

Claire (40:22) On the same day.

Scott Benner (40:23) Then I would be like, I won. (40:24) It's over. (40:24) I'm I'm done. (40:25) I'm not even gonna make the podcast anymore. (40:27) But, no, being being super serious, it was really lovely and strange to see somebody, like, tattoo something on them that's from this podcast.

Scott Benner (40:42) Like, it's a real leap. (40:44) You know what I mean? (40:45) Like, I I I I and I know the I I know enough about the person's life to know that they, I I don't think I'm speaking for them. (40:52) I think they feel like their vision is intact because of me. (40:55) And that's, you know, a big it's a, obviously, a big deal.

Scott Benner (40:58) But at the same time, like, from my perspective, I was like, wow. (41:02) That's surreal. (41:03) Surreal is the only real world to to put to it. (41:05) That is not a thing. (41:07) That was not on my bingo card as they say.

Scott Benner (41:09) Yeah. (41:10) Yeah. (41:10) That somebody was gonna be like, hey. (41:11) I got a bold with insulin tattoo. (41:13) I'm like, oh my god.

Scott Benner (41:13) That make that I felt pressure. (41:14) I'm like, I don't have a I don't have a tattoo about the podcast. (41:19) Like, do I have to do it now? (41:21) But but, nevertheless, it was it was really lovely. (41:24) And I appreciate you even pretending for a minute to consider naming your child, Scott.

Scott Benner (41:28) Thank you. (41:29) And that, for people who don't know, is just a running joke through the pregnancy episodes where women are always like, oh my god. (41:35) I had such a healthy pregnancy because you, and I was like, but not healthy enough to name your baby after me. (41:41) So

Claire (41:41) yeah. (41:41) Yeah. (41:42) Yeah. (41:42) But it is. (41:43) It's definitely in the in the episode.

Scott Benner (41:45) So Yeah.

Claire (41:45) When the time came, we were, you know, joking around and about what to name our son. (41:51) And we we found out really early what, gender we were having, which I appreciate because then we had extra time to try and think about the name.

Scott Benner (41:58) Yeah. (41:59) How do you find out early? (42:00) Was he like, are you bragging? (42:01) Was he, like did he ever really, like how do you

Claire (42:05) Well, he was never shy on the ultrasound, but, as a high risk pregnancy, you get a bunch of blood tests done at, like, about ten weeks, including the gender. (42:16) They can find out the gender through a blood test when you're ten weeks pregnant.

Scott Benner (42:19) Oh, I thought maybe, like, in every, like, image, the kid was just, like, Spread Eagle, like, jamming his balls towards the camera or something like that. (42:25) He's like, it's me. (42:26) I'm here.

Claire (42:28) I'm here.

Scott Benner (42:30) Take a look at these, my friend. (42:31) You're gonna have a boy. (42:34) You're

Claire (42:34) like, it's definitely a boy, and he's not shy.

Scott Benner (42:37) Then you had a lot of time to think about the name. (42:39) That's awesome.

Claire (42:40) Yeah.

Scott Benner (42:40) Yeah. (42:40) Yeah. (42:40) Yeah. (42:40) I like that idea. (42:41) So you were you felt really now it's how many years later?

Scott Benner (42:44) Three, you just say?

Claire (42:45) Mhmm. (42:45) Yeah.

Scott Benner (42:46) Do do you still love the name or do you are are you like have you had one of those moments? (42:49) Like, oh, we should've went with the other name.

Claire (42:51) No. (42:52) But we did take our time deciding because we're, like, so on the fence and, like, you know, first name, middle name that, the records department. (42:59) Somebody was calling our hospital phone, and they're like, you have to name this kid before you leave the hospital. (43:04) I was like, okay. (43:04) I'm kinda busy right now.

Claire (43:05) Oh. (43:05) Call you back.

Scott Benner (43:06) That happened to us with Cole because my wife and I were still we were horse trading. (43:12) I was I I know I've said this before, and it's probably not appropriate to talk about, but, you know, I have a podcast. (43:18) There's not much I can do. (43:19) She wanted to name him Nicholas, and I wanted to name him Cole. (43:23) And she wanted to get him circumcised, and I was living through that part in time where people are like, don't do that to get boys.

Scott Benner (43:30) And I was like, I don't know if we should, even though in, candor or clear, I am. (43:35) And so, like, we're busy having that conversation and just we're in the hospital, and I said, you can circumcise him if I can call him Cole. (43:43) And she was like, okay. (43:44) That's Like, deal.

Claire (43:46) Strike on it.

Scott Benner (43:47) That's how, yeah, that's how his name ended up being Cole. (43:50) But so you were but we had the same experience where they were, like they came into the room. (43:54) They're like, you gotta name this baby. (43:57) Yeah. (43:57) And we were like, hey.

Scott Benner (43:58) We're in the middle of it. (44:00) Like, it's you know? (44:01) Yeah.

Claire (44:02) Kinda busy here.

Scott Benner (44:02) Yeah. (44:03) I'm busy. (44:03) I'm busy. (44:04) I'm I'm my my wife and I are trading right now. (44:06) Like, we're getting to it.

Scott Benner (44:07) Don't worry about it. (44:08) It's all gonna work out.

Claire (44:10) The negotiations in the process.

Scott Benner (44:12) Also, everything in our relationship is, like, a it's we are so different than each other that everything turns out to be, like, I don't know, like that. (44:20) Know she said something the other day, and I responded back, and Arden looks at me and goes, yo, man, read the room. (44:29) I was like, he's like I'm like, what did she he goes she said to me, whatever you're about to say, just keep it to yourself. (44:36) She's not a she's not into this at all. (44:39) And I was like, your mom can handle a tough conversation.

Scott Benner (44:42) And she goes, not now. (44:43) She's not looking for it right now. (44:46) And I called I called Kelly's name, and she she had headphones on. (44:49) She's working. (44:49) And she's wearing headphones so that, you know, she I don't know what she honestly, I don't know what she does when she's she does a lot of really technical reading and seems to be doing something else in her ears at the same time.

Scott Benner (44:59) And, like, you know, I bothered her enough that she had to take one of the headphones off, and I asked her the question, and she just glared at me and put the headphone back on and turned away. (45:07) And and Arden looks at me, and she's like, I told you.

Claire (45:10) Like, I told you so.

Scott Benner (45:12) It's like I was like, I will not be disrespectful of your mother. (45:15) I was like, she can handle this. (45:17) She's like, she might be able to handle it, but she's not looking for you right now. (45:20) And I was like, no. (45:21) You're making a point.

Scott Benner (45:22) Anyway, that that's all neither here nor there. (45:25) So okay. (45:26) So let's go through it a little bit. (45:28) You, start making that baby.

Claire (45:30) Mhmm.

Scott Benner (45:31) What do you experience during the first trimester? (45:33) When does it pivot? (45:34) How do you pivot with it? (45:36) How many times do things change throughout the process?

Claire (45:39) Yeah. (45:39) A lot.

Scott Benner (45:40) Speaking of a lot, there was a lot of words in this episode, so we had to split it into two parts. (45:45) And part two is coming right away tomorrow. (45:47) I promise you it will be there. (45:49) Go look right now. (45:57) A huge thanks to my longest sponsor, Omnipod.

Scott Benner (46:00) Check out the Omnipod five now with my link, omnipod.com/juicebox. (46:06) You may be eligible for a free starter kit, a free Omnipod five starter kit at my link. (46:13) Go check it out. (46:14) Omnipod.com/juicebox. (46:16) Terms and conditions apply.

Scott Benner (46:18) Full terms and conditions can be found at omnipod.com/juicebox. (46:23) The conversation you just enjoyed was brought to you by US Med. (46:27) Usmed.com/juicebox or call (888) 721-1514. (46:33) Get started today and get your supplies from US Med. (46:37) The music ran out, but I wasn't done talking yet.

Scott Benner (46:40) A huge thanks to Cozy Earth for sponsoring this episode. (46:43) Cozyearth.com. (46:45) Right now, you can stack my code JuiceBox on top of their site wide sale. (46:49) This is gonna give you up to 40% off in savings, and these deals are definitely not gonna last. (46:54) I'm talking about sheets, towels, clothing, everything they have.

Scott Benner (46:58) Get that holiday shopping going right now today. (47:00) Do it. (47:00) Do it. (47:01) Do it. (47:01) Cozyearth.com.

Scott Benner (47:02) Use the off code JuiceBox. (47:04) My grand rounds series was designed by listeners to tell doctors what they need, and it also helps you to understand what to ask for. (47:12) There's a mental wellness series that addresses the emotional side of diabetes and practical ways to stay balanced. (47:18) And when we talk about GLP medications, well, we'll break down what they are, how they may help you, and if they fit into your diabetes management plan. (47:25) What do these three things have in common?

Scott Benner (47:27) They're all available at juiceboxpodcast.com up in the menu. (47:31) I know it can be hard to find these things in a podcast app, so we've collected them all for you at juiceboxpodcast.com. (47:38) Hey, kids. (47:38) Listen up. (47:39) You've made it to the end of the podcast.

Scott Benner (47:40) You must have enjoyed it. (47:41) You know what else you might enjoy? (47:43) The private Facebook group for the Juice Box podcast. (47:47) I know you're thinking, Facebook, Scott, please. (47:49) But no.

Scott Benner (47:50) Beautiful group, wonderful people, a fantastic community. (47:54) Juice Box podcast, type one diabetes on Facebook. (47:57) Of course, if you have type two, are you touched by diabetes in any way? (48:01) You're absolutely welcome. (48:02) It's a private group, so you'll have to answer a couple of questions before you come in.

Scott Benner (48:05) We'll make sure you're not a bot or an evil doer, then you're on your way. (48:09) You'll be part of the family. (48:11) I wanna thank you so much for listening today and for listening all year long. (48:15) I know this is the beginning of 2026. (48:17) 2025 was a banner year for the podcast, but 2026 is starting out with a real bang.

Scott Benner (48:23) Our downloads are up. (48:24) The amount of people listening are up. (48:26) I'm super excited about the show this year. (48:28) I hope you are too. (48:29) Juiceboxpodcast.com if you need anything else.

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DISCLAIMER: This text is the output of AI based transcribing from an audio recording. Although the transcription is largely accurate, in some cases it is incomplete or inaccurate due to inaudible passages or transcription errors and should not be treated as an authoritative record. Nothing that you read here constitutes advice medical or otherwise. Always consult with a healthcare professional before making changes to a healthcare plan.

Scott Benner (0:00) Hello, friends, and welcome back to another episode of the Juice Box podcast. (0:10) Nothing you hear on the Juice Box podcast should be considered advice, medical or otherwise. (0:14) Always consult a physician before making any changes to your health care plan. (0:21) Have you tried the small sip series? (0:23) They're curated takeaways from the Juice Box podcast, voted on by listeners as the most helpful insights for managing their diabetes.

Scott Benner (0:30) These bite sized pieces of wisdom cover essential topics like insulin timing, carb management, and balancing highs and lows, making it easier for you to incorporate real life strategies into your daily routine. (0:41) Dive deep, take a sip, and discover what our community finds most valuable on the journey to better diabetes management. (0:48) For more information on small sips, go to juiceboxpodcast.com. (0:52) Click on the word series in the menu. (0:58) If you're looking for community around type one diabetes, check out the juice box podcast private Facebook group.

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Erin (2:30) Hi. (2:30) My name is Erin, and I have type one diabetes. (2:35) I was diagnosed in 2020, and I have a couple of other autoimmune issues as well.

Scott Benner (2:41) Erin, how old are

Erin (2:41) you? (2:42) 50.

Scott Benner (2:42) You say you were diagnosed at 45?

Erin (2:44) Correct.

Scott Benner (2:45) Okay. (2:46) A couple of other auto oh, wait. (2:47) We'll find out about it. (2:48) Let's not rush. (2:50) Do you have kids?

Erin (2:51) I do. (2:51) I I'm married. (2:52) I have two kids. (2:54) I have a dog that I tried to drug with trazodone before we started recording, so he would stop annoying me. (3:01) That has kind of failed.

Erin (3:04) Mhmm. (3:05) And yeah. (3:06) Like, teenager teenagers, two of them, 13 and 16.

Scott Benner (3:09) You don't have drugs in the house to calm them down. (3:11) Right? (3:11) Just the dog?

Erin (3:12) I gave everyone a trazodone slurry before we started reporting.

Scott Benner (3:16) What kind of dog do you have that needs to be medicated so that

Erin (3:20) Neurotic. (3:21) He actually just had surgery, so that's why we

Scott Benner (3:25) he Oh.

Erin (3:26) He's he is getting trazodone every day just to help him chill out, to not ruin his stitches. (3:33) He ate a bunch of rawhide, and he had to have $15,000 abdominal surgery. (3:38) Oh my god. (3:40) And now Christmas and Hanukkah are ruined, and no one's going to college. (3:45) So I

Scott Benner (3:46) I what kind of dog is it?

Erin (3:47) He's a mutt. (3:48) He's like a 40 pound Australian shepherd slash schnauzer mix.

Scott Benner (3:55) Can I say something unfeeling? (3:56) How much would a new dog have cost?

Erin (3:58) Don't even get me started.

Scott Benner (4:00) How old is he?

Erin (4:01) Oh, no. (4:03) Wait.

Scott Benner (4:03) How old? (4:04) Eight. (4:05) Oh my. (4:05) How what's his life expectancy?

Erin (4:08) I know. (4:09) Trust me. (4:09) I've already done all of this math, and I just couldn't do it. (4:12) I think maybe 15 was what I was hoping. (4:15) I always looked at him and thought, this dog is definitely gonna live a long, long time to be one of those, like, blind, stumbling, stinky mutts.

Scott Benner (4:25) Let me

Erin (4:26) You're so Hopefully, now he can still do that.

Scott Benner (4:28) Well, let's hope. (4:29) Here here's the most important question. (4:30) Who gave him the rawhide? (4:31) Who's at fault?

Erin (4:32) It's actually the best of circumstances. (4:35) It's my fault. (4:36) So I can't blame my husband or my kids.

Scott Benner (4:40) I just I just wanna point out what a fully actualized adult female sounds like. (4:44) Did you hear what she said? (4:45) It's the best of circumstances. (4:48) It's my fault. (4:49) And you meant by that, Erin, if it was someone else's fault, you would carry this anger to your grave.

Scott Benner (4:53) Is that correct?

Erin (4:54) There would be hell to pay. (4:55) Yeah. (4:56) Yes. (4:57) Yep. (4:57) I was like, you need to they called it milking.

Erin (5:01) They actually had to, like, squeeze the mass up through his duodenum and pylorus and then pull it out with, like, a scope down his throat.

Scott Benner (5:12) Yeah. (5:14) I'm imagining fifty years from now, you're 100. (5:18) Your husband's dying. (5:20) But it was his but it was his fault about the rawhide in my alternate universe. (5:24) And instead of telling him about your wonderful long life or how happy you are with your children and you can't believe that you've lived to a 100 years old, you say to him, do you remember the time you cost us $15,000 by giving that dog a ride?

Scott Benner (5:37) Do you imagine that was what would have because that's what I feel like. (5:39) You know, I I am so worried that the end of my life is just gonna be a four days of my wife sitting in the hospital telling me all the things I did wrong.

Erin (5:46) Yeah. (5:46) She probably has a list.

Scott Benner (5:48) Oh, you thin her head. (5:49) The

Erin (5:49) actual list.

Scott Benner (5:50) It's etched right on her head, and it's definitely written down somewhere. (5:53) I I I I'll say this over and over again till the day I die. (5:56) That girl is still mad at me for whatever the first thing is I did wrong to her. (6:00) For she's still aware of it.

Erin (6:02) Okay. (6:02) Well, you crier, like, unrolling, like, a scroll of just, like Well,

Scott Benner (6:08) let me ask you another question. (6:09) Why did you try to kill the dog?

Erin (6:11) Oh, well, I was actually the rawhides are dental enzyme rawhide chews, so they were I was trying he he had had some dental issues, and they were supposed to just be I was buying them to help his teeth and help him stay healthy. (6:28) I think what was happening was that the idiot was swallowing them whole, and they weren't really they weren't passing through.

Scott Benner (6:35) Okay. (6:35) So this is, the other day, our puppy is vomiting on the floor. (6:40) I go, what is happening? (6:41) What did you people do to this dog? (6:43) Nothing.

Scott Benner (6:44) Nobody knows what happened until we dig it out of the pile of vomit, this thing that my wife gave him. (6:50) And I was like, Kelly, I swear to you, I know this is not the right way to talk to you, but I have told you a thousand times not to give these to the dog. (6:58) They throw up when you eat them. (7:01) Why do you keep buying them? (7:02) She doesn't know.

Scott Benner (7:03) I think it's because the package is nice or they look cute or or I I can't figure it out, and she's not dumb. (7:10) She's actually really, really smart until it comes to stuff like this. (7:14) And then Yeah. (7:15) I I I don't what happens to you girls? (7:17) Seriously.

Scott Benner (7:17) You just

Erin (7:18) I don't know. (7:19) I know. (7:21) I honestly didn't know. (7:22) I thought I was doing something good, and now here we are.

Scott Benner (7:25) I'm shaming you about it. (7:27) I'm so sorry. (7:27) I'm only saying what your husband was thinking and was too smart to say when he found out it was $15 to get the dog help.

Erin (7:33) Oh my god. (7:34) No. (7:34) He still doesn't know. (7:35) He doesn't wanna know. (7:36) He wants to remain completely ignorant about the whole situation.

Scott Benner (7:39) He's unaware of the cost of the of the dog fixing.

Erin (7:42) Yeah.

Scott Benner (7:43) Does he know that you are at fault?

Erin (7:45) Yes. (7:45) Oh. (7:46) He does.

Scott Benner (7:46) And he has not you've now you're gonna tell me you've been married for more than seventeen years. (7:50) Is that correct?

Erin (7:51) Oh, yeah. (7:51) Yeah. (7:52) Twenty some

Scott Benner (7:53) Mhmm.

Erin (7:53) Years, and he's a lot nicer than me, so he won't hold it against me for till the end of time. (8:00) Like, I would have.

Scott Benner (8:01) In that level. (8:01) Oh, I hope this has been a nice reflective mirror for everybody who's been listening. (8:04) Let's move on to your stuff. (8:06) You had diabetes five years ago. (8:08) How did it present?

Scott Benner (8:09) What did you, what did you see first? (8:11) When you think of a CGM and all the good that it brings in your life, is the first thing you think about, I love that I have to change it all the time? (8:19) I love the warm up period every time I have to change it. (8:22) I love that when I bump into a door frame, sometimes it gets ripped off. (8:25) I love that the adhesive kinda gets mushy sometimes when I sweat and falls off.

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Erin (10:17) I took a course of steroids to break a migraine cycle in, I don't know, maybe May 2020, and then I immediately started noticing symptoms of increased thirst, frequent urination. (10:34) Just as, like, a sub context about the health care system, the reason that I had the cycle of migraines that needed to be broken is because I hadn't gotten my my Botox injections. (10:48) I I'm supposed to get those every three months, and they've really been life changing for my migraines. (10:53) I used to spend a lot of time in a dark room, tried a bunch of different medications, and the Botox has been really helpful.

Scott Benner (11:00) Where do they I'm so sorry. (11:01) Where do they shoot the Botox to help the migraines?

Erin (11:04) They actually do a ton of small injections all around your skull, around your, like, around your face. (11:11) Like, they do it around my eyes. (11:13) Mhmm. (11:13) They're nice, and they give me a couple of little extra boosts in between, like, my eyebrows to get rid of that little wrinkle. (11:21) And then they do, like, down your neck and across the shoulders, anywhere that you have tension.

Erin (11:27) Like, so if you hold your headaches kind of, like, in your jaw, they might put it in your jaw. (11:32) But it's not a pleasant procedure. (11:34) It it's not I mean, it's not terribly painful, but it's it's it definitely hurts a bit. (11:40) A lot of little little tiny injections. (11:41) Yeah.

Erin (11:42) Yeah.

Scott Benner (11:42) A lot of little injections. (11:43) Right? (11:43) Yeah. (11:44) Okay.

Erin (11:44) So wait. (11:45) Wait. (11:45) So And the reason I didn't get it is because at the time, it was going to cost me, like, 7 or $800, and I had just had my first of two heart attacks. (11:59) I had a spontaneous coronary artery dissection in 2019, and I had so many medical bills from that that by the time my Botox appointment rolled around, I was like, I'm not doing this. (12:11) I just can't.

Erin (12:12) I I can't.

Scott Benner (12:13) Arin, let's slow down a little bit. (12:14) Hold on a second. (12:15) You wait. (12:16) Okay. (12:16) Let's do the list.

Scott Benner (12:18) What's start at your earliest age. (12:21) What was your first medical issue?

Erin (12:23) I was 12, and I got my first period. (12:27) And I almost bled stuff because I had it's called ITP. (12:34) It stands for immune thrombocytopenia purpura, and it's basically a really, really low platelet count. (12:42) So I didn't have any clotting. (12:45) You know, I wasn't able to clot.

Erin (12:46) So and I didn't know because it was my first period that it it that it was abnormal.

Scott Benner (12:54) Oh, you were just draining to death and nobody knew?

Erin (12:57) Correct. (12:57) Yeah. (12:58) And I prior to getting my period, while I was 11 years old, I did have a lot of bruising. (13:05) You know, you would just practically bump into me or touch me, and I would bruise. (13:08) My parents thought my brother was beating the top of me.

Scott Benner (13:12) Oh my gosh. (13:12) Hey.

Erin (13:13) You poor guy. (13:14) Immune thromb say it. (13:17) Thrombocytopenia purpura.

Scott Benner (13:20) It's an autoimmune disorder.

Erin (13:21) It is.

Scott Benner (13:22) Yeah. (13:22) So you got your first autoimmune disorder when you were 12. (13:25) It tried to kill you through your lady bits, but you fought back. (13:28) And then how did you fight back? (13:30) Did your parents, like, go, hey.

Scott Benner (13:31) Did did did Dracula just bite Erin? (13:35) What's going on? (13:35) She's lying on the floor. (13:36) She's very pale.

Erin (13:37) Yeah. (13:38) That I was lying on the floor very pale on Thanksgiving, and they took me to the emergency room. (13:45) And I got blood transfusions and was in the hospital for a bit. (13:49) And that's store sort of where my mistrust of doctors and nurses started. (13:56) Just even with that experience, I remember a nurse in the emergency room arguing with me and telling me she asked me how many pads I had on, and I because I was, like, stuffing them in there Yeah.

Erin (14:08) To try to collect all this blood. (14:10) And I told her, I said I have five, and she argued with me about how many I had, and she ended up being wrong. (14:17) But it was just like this crazy experience of just being a child and being very vulnerable and, like, having this nurse. (14:24) Like, there aren't five. (14:26) There are only three.

Erin (14:27) Like, why are you lying about how many pads you have on? (14:30) Like, I mean, just it was

Scott Benner (14:32) That was said to you? (14:33) Why are you lying about how many pads you have on?

Erin (14:35) Yeah. (14:35) It was really not a good experience

Scott Benner (14:38) You know,

Erin (14:39) the like that because I didn't know how to, like, advocate for myself. (14:42) Yeah. (14:43) Although, yeah.

Scott Benner (14:43) Why would you ask? (14:44) Why would you think you should have to? (14:46) Or or I mean, also, you're 12. (14:48) Maybe it's your first period. (14:49) You didn't know what was going on.

Scott Benner (14:50) Right? (14:51) Also, don't go to the hospital on a holiday if you can help it because

Erin (14:54) That's true.

Scott Benner (14:55) Was it was their b team. (14:56) If you get stuck working on Thanksgiving, it's not because you really know what you're doing. (15:00) You know what I mean? (15:01) Yeah. (15:01) Yeah.

Scott Benner (15:02) Sorry for all of you who are nurses that are like, hey. (15:05) I I had to work on Thanksgiving last year. (15:07) But, like, it usually means newer or, you know, less you you don't have as much swing about or say about the the schedule.

Erin (15:12) You know? (15:13) True.

Scott Benner (15:13) So Yeah. (15:14) Okay. (15:14) So you're there, and and and did they diagnose this issue at the hospital? (15:19) It takes a while for that.

Erin (15:20) It did take a while. (15:21) And from what I understand, the treatment for ITP is different nowadays, and it's not as complex as it was at the time back in the eighties. (15:32) First of all, they thought maybe I had leukemia at first. (15:34) And then I I finally wound up at a pediatric oncologist, hematologist office, and they diagnosed me correctly. (15:46) The treatments at the time were I got frequent, like, short injections of, like, chemotherapy drugs.

Erin (15:54) So I would have to go into the doctor's office, and they would they would they tried that. (15:58) I also went to the hospital every every month or so for something called, like, gamma globulin treatments, which is basically, like I think it's, like, concentrated blood product of some kind, like platelets maybe that that help boost your your platelet count.

Scott Benner (16:16) Okay.

Erin (16:17) So I was doing that. (16:18) And then, ultimately, I ended up having my spleen taken out because none of the treatments worked. (16:24) I continue my platelet count just continued to fall back to almost nothing, and it can be dangerous to to be walking around being able to clot.

Scott Benner (16:33) They took the spleen out because of

Erin (16:36) The way it was described to me is that the spleen kind of is the filtration sys system for your blood, and it would if if you remove it, your platelets don't get filtered out. (16:46) That's the simple way the doctor explained it at the time.

Scott Benner (16:49) Yeah.

Erin (16:50) And that kind of stuck with me. (16:52) I don't you know, that's probably a very simplistic description, but that's what Yeah.

Scott Benner (16:57) I understand. (16:57) That's how they told it too. (16:58) So when IEP doesn't respond well to first line treatments like steroids or IVIG, doctors may recommend a splenectomy, surgically removing the spleen so that it, a, is where many antibody coated platelets are destroyed, and two or b, I guess, it's also a major site where those antibodies are produced in the first place. (17:19) So they're trying to take a piece out of the chain that's so if you take out the spleen, they say fewer platelets get destroyed, antibody production may decrease. (17:29) Many people see their platelet counts rise significantly afterwards.

Scott Benner (17:32) So did it work?

Erin (17:33) It did.

Scott Benner (17:33) Yep. (17:34) Oh, hold on. (17:35) You're fixed. (17:35) Yeah. (17:36) Yeah.

Scott Benner (17:36) Happily ever after. (17:37) No? (17:38) No.

Erin (17:38) No. (17:38) The end. (17:39) It was nice talking to you. (17:40) Yeah.

Scott Benner (17:41) What a great little episode. (17:42) Yeah. (17:43) What happened next? (17:43) What what happened after this?

Erin (17:45) Well, while I was in the hospital for one of those actually, I think the gamma globulin that I'm referring to is what you had mentioned, the IVIG Mhmm. (17:53) Treatment. (17:54) I think that's what that's called, but I don't remember what IVIG stands for. (17:58) Anyway, when I was in the hospital for one of those treatments, there was a doctor who came in to visit me while I was alone. (18:06) My parents worked a lot when I was young.

Scott Benner (18:09) Arin, I'm not gonna be able to take this. (18:11) Is going where I think it's going? (18:12) Because I it's only Monday. (18:14) Yeah. (18:15) Go ahead.

Erin (18:15) I mean, it's not as bad as it could have been. (18:17) And, honestly, I didn't realize what happened until I was in my twenties and was like, wait a minute. (18:22) But he came in and just, like, undid my gown and, like like, touched me in places that he should not

Scott Benner (18:32) Right.

Erin (18:33) Just to say the least. (18:35) And I didn't know how to handle that at all. (18:41) I just got I just completely shut down and froze. (18:46) I mean, I just literally physically froze, couldn't speak, was very angry. (18:52) I didn't like it.

Erin (18:53) I wanted him to get the heck out of the room. (18:55) You know? (18:56) And then later on, he came back when my parents were there. (19:00) And I, you know, I didn't have the words to tell them what happened. (19:04) I didn't really understand what happened.

Erin (19:07) So I just was pretty nasty to him, and my parents were kinda, like, embarrassed because, you know, back in back then, you know, you were supposed to be respectful and polite and bow down for a doctor. (19:20) You know? (19:21) So

Scott Benner (19:22) yeah. (19:22) So did it ever get brought up in as in the rest of the no. (19:26) Do your parents know today that that happened, or would they if they were alive? (19:29) No. (19:30) Okay.

Scott Benner (19:30) Alright. (19:31) Yes. (19:31) Oh, well alright. (19:32) Well, I mean, I guess we gotta give you a pass on trying to kill the dog. (19:36) Right?

Scott Benner (19:36) Like, I mean, seriously, you you Yeah. (19:39) Somebody owes you a pass.

Erin (19:40) And it it it's just it's just one of the many things that's happened over the years that has just been so disappointing with doctors. (19:50) And, you know, just to bring it back to more recent times, when I was trying to figure out about this thirst, I immediately stopped taking the steroids because it was obvious to me. (20:03) My vision was actually the first thing to to go really blurry. (20:07) I couldn't see to drive. (20:09) Thankfully, I didn't really it was COVID times, so I didn't really need to to drive for work.

Erin (20:14) Mhmm. (20:15) But the blurred vision was terrible, and then the thirst and frequent urination came. (20:22) So I called the neurologist who had prescribed the steroids, and I explained what was happening with me. (20:29) And they were like, you're having vision problems? (20:31) You know, that could be a thousand different reasons you should call your PCP.

Erin (20:35) So I called the PCP, and she said, well, you really should talk to the neurologist because they're the ones who prescribe the steroids, and it's clearly, you know, a reaction to the steroids. (20:47) So that was leading me in a circle. (20:48) So I went to the eye doctor, an ophthalmologist, and told her what my symptoms were. (20:55) And she shrugged and said, well, welcome to your forties.

Scott Benner (21:00) Awesome.

Erin (21:01) I'm like, I understand that my vision over time will probably deteriorate, but this kind of happened overnight. (21:08) Is that is that a typical experience? (21:10) Like, maybe I'm just unaware of this part of the aging process. (21:15) Yeah. (21:16) But she just shrugged it off.

Erin (21:18) I ended up going to the emergency room, and then I also went and they they just sent me home. (21:24) They checked my eyes to see if there was any, like, damage to my eyes. (21:28) They really don't have a lot of tools at the ER to deal with, like, vision stuff. (21:33) So they did what they could there except test my blood sugar, whatever. (21:38) And then I also went to my endocrinologist.

Erin (21:42) And I sat in the endocrinologist's office, and I told the nurse, I think I have diabetes. (21:47) Because at that point, I've been reading a lot about my symptoms. (21:51) Mhmm. (21:51) And I thought maybe I had diabetes. (21:54) And I told her that, and I talked to the endocrinologist.

Erin (21:59) And he said, well, I'm gonna give you a prescription to get blood work done, and you can come back in four months. (22:06) So that's what I did. (22:09) And it was long enough that by the time I went back, I had an a one my a one c was 14, and my blood sugar I think that morning, it was, like, 300 and something. (22:21) Okay. (22:22) They finally pricked my finger, when I went back for that follow-up appointment with the with my blood work results.

Scott Benner (22:29) And you told them, I've been doing a little digging, and I think I have diabetes.

Erin (22:34) Yeah. (22:34) I told them my symptoms. (22:35) I'm like, I'm peeing a lot. (22:37) I'm so thirsty. (22:38) And I know people have talked about the thirst and on the on the podcast before, but it is just I remember chugging a Nalgene bottle beside my bed at night and choking on the water.

Erin (22:51) Like, I I was trying to swallow it just so I was trying to get it down so quickly that I couldn't swallow fast enough. (22:59) It was just a really intense thirst that I can't quite describe.

Scott Benner (23:03) Yeah. (23:04) So But you have other so you're also a person who gets are they cluster headaches or migraines, or what do you get?

Erin (23:11) Yeah. (23:11) I have the history of migraines, which I've had since I started my getting my period. (23:17) I think that hormonal change is where they started, and, I'm hoping that when I'm finished with menopause that they'll go away just because I've heard anecdotally that that does happen with some people.

Scott Benner (23:28) Question is is, like, your husband's used to not feeling well, but could he tell that you were extra sick before your diagnosis with type one?

Erin (23:35) Just the vision. (23:36) The vision. (23:36) He had to drive places. (23:38) I couldn't drive and see.

Scott Benner (23:40) So your vision's oh, wait a minute. (23:43) There's no so there's no answer about the vision just like, hey. (23:46) You can't see anymore. (23:47) Oh, well. (23:48) And then you're like, and I'm peeing a lot.

Scott Benner (23:49) I'm super thirsty, and no one says anything.

Erin (23:52) Right.

Scott Benner (23:52) Okay.

Erin (23:53) And I just imagine that when I was sitting in the endocrinologist's office that day that I mean, how many they have to have meters in every room, in every exam room. (24:03) I don't know why they didn't just just check my blood sugar.

Scott Benner (24:07) Right, man.

Erin (24:07) They just do

Scott Benner (24:08) it. (24:09) Well Just Why? (24:10) I mean, so far, you've got three stories. (24:12) Not nobody stood up in any of these stories and done the right thing. (24:15) So Yeah.

Scott Benner (24:16) Yeah. (24:16) It you figured out how. (24:19) Like, what's the last way they just finally you said they figured it out, but what I'm sorry. (24:23) Tell me again what happened where it was like, hey. (24:25) You have diabetes.

Erin (24:26) Yeah. (24:27) So I went back for the follow-up appointment with my test results. (24:31) They the the nurse looked at my results and then looked up at me, and she was like, and you're you're telling me you haven't eaten yet today? (24:40) I'm like, no. (24:41) And she was like, I'll be right back.

Erin (24:45) So I was like, oh god. (24:47) So she left the room. (24:49) She came back. (24:50) She said, I'm gonna have you talk to the doctor. (24:52) So I did, and I this doctor is such a nice man.

Erin (24:57) I'd been seeing him for about twenty years for my thyroid at this point. (25:01) I know his wife. (25:03) I watched his son grow up in the community. (25:06) I I looked at him like a father figure. (25:08) I know that he cares about me as a person, as a patient.

Scott Benner (25:12) Mhmm.

Erin (25:13) At that point, he definitely was taking things seriously, and I am very sure that he was regretful that he hadn't dealt with it four months prior. (25:22) Yeah. (25:22) But he he told me that I had diabetes, and he said, look. (25:26) Our office is about to close for lunch. (25:28) So what I'm gonna ask you to do is go and get yourself lunch, and then come back at 01:00, and we're going to show you how to use insulin.

Erin (25:39) So I think he knew I had type one just because I think he understood that I had a history of autoimmune disease. (25:45) So I think he he he I I at least didn't get a type two diagnosis. (25:50) Mhmm. (25:50) I didn't have to deal with that nonsense. (25:52) But so I left and went back after lunch.

Erin (25:55) And when I walked in this time, he said, you know, I've thought about it, and what I really think we need to do is send you down to the ER. (26:02) So I went down to the emergency room. (26:04) And from what I understand, he wanted me to go there so that I could get immediate testing, and that was the fastest way to do it. (26:10) Okay. (26:10) Was to send me in through the ER.

Erin (26:12) But when they tested me, they saw that I wasn't, like, fully in DKA, but whatever I don't know if your body becomes, like, acidic or whatever, but whatever test that measures that was concerning. (26:25) So I did get admitted, and I spent a week in the hospital where they brought my blood sugar down slowly with the, you know, the IV insulin. (26:35) Of of kind of funny incident about that is my my nurses were switching shifts at about eleven at night, and the nurse who was leaving said, okay. (26:49) Well, the doctor said that we're not supposed to put the rate above, you know, whatever the rate was. (26:55) And but he didn't put that in his chart in my chart notes.

Erin (27:00) So the nurses were standing there at 11:00 at night arguing with each other about where to set my insulin. (27:06) And I'm sitting there, and I'm like, oh my god. (27:09) If they give me too much insulin, I'm not gonna feel good. (27:12) I mean, I I didn't really understand diabetes

Scott Benner (27:14) Right.

Erin (27:15) At that point at all, but I did know that if they gave me too much, I wouldn't feel well, that I would go low. (27:21) Mhmm. (27:22) So I was like, pardon me. (27:24) Like, I I hate to interrupt

Scott Benner (27:26) You're arguing.

Erin (27:27) This conversation, but I I I I was present when when the doctor said not to go above this rate. (27:34) So if you could please consider setting it at the lower rate just because I don't wanna feel sick or get low blood sugar or whatever. (27:43) I don't even remember what happened. (27:44) I just remember them arguing at my bedside, and I thought it was insane.

Scott Benner (27:49) Hey, dummy. (27:49) Look over here. (27:50) I was listening, and I just need you to just pick the lower number. (27:55) Okay? (27:55) Especially because it sounds like one of you is going home, and the other one's probably about to go smoke weed then fall asleep in the lobby.

Scott Benner (28:01) So I really I need somebody to just just take care of me a little bit. (28:04) So now you have four stories, and nobody's, like, sticking up for you or doing a good job. (28:08) How does this keep happening to you? (28:10) Do you have bad luck? (28:11) Do you have a face people don't like?

Scott Benner (28:12) What is going on exactly?

Erin (28:14) I don't know. (28:15) I really feel like I'm, like, contagious almost with autoimmunity. (28:20) Like, I feel like I'm even though my kids are fine, they don't have the markers. (28:26) I did have them tested through TrialNet. (28:29) So, thankfully, they don't have anything.

Erin (28:31) But I just feel like I don't know. (28:33) When I well, I I mentioned this in my note to you. (28:35) I don't know if you remember, but my dog, my other dog, died of, apparently, there's, like, a canine version of ITP.

Scott Benner (28:45) What the

Erin (28:46) And he had it. (28:48) And I suspected that he had it because he was sneezing blood around the house. (28:53) And I was like, oh my gosh. (28:55) This dog is, like, bleeding through his, like, membranes. (28:59) And so me being, you know, a doctor, I'm like, oh, he must have low platelet count.

Erin (29:06) So I take him to the vet, and I'm like, he's bleeding. (29:09) And they looked at him, exam examined him, said he was it was fine. (29:14) He probably injured. (29:16) There's probably an injury inside of his nose that we couldn't see, and it continued to happen. (29:20) And I took him back to the bed about a month later, and he his platelets were so low that they he he had to be put to sleep.

Erin (29:27) It was so sad, but I felt like it was just a really crazy thing to have happen. (29:32) I I felt like this is nuts. (29:34) What? (29:34) Like, why am I so cursed with this crap?

Scott Benner (29:37) Yeah. (29:37) I think you're I think we have to call your, episode gesundheit too. (29:40) But I wait. (29:42) Stop. (29:43) This odd autoimmune issue that you had when you were 12, how many years later killed your dog?

Scott Benner (29:50) It was in 2022. (29:51) Get the fuck out of here. (29:52) Are you serious?

Erin (29:54) I am not kidding.

Scott Benner (29:55) Oh my god. (29:56) Oh my god. (29:57) Did dad flip you out a

Erin (29:58) little bit? (29:59) Like, the vet even. (30:01) I had I was having the same ridiculous conversation with the vet that I feel like I keep having on repeat with every medical professional that I see, which was, I think he has low platelets. (30:11) Can you test for that? (30:12) Can dogs get, you know, ITP?

Erin (30:16) And the vet is like, well, that's very unlikely. (30:19) What this probably is is blah blah blah. (30:21) And then he has to come back in the exam room later with his tail between his legs. (30:26) Literally. (30:27) Yeah.

Erin (30:27) Exactly. (30:29) Telling me, oh, yeah. (30:31) His platelet count. (30:32) It was so low. (30:33) It was, like, in the single thousands, which is very low.

Erin (30:37) Unbelievable. (30:38) Treatments for it at that point were so ridiculous and not it was gonna be torture for the dog. (30:44) Right. (30:45) And he was a very large, beautiful dog, so it was gonna be hard to take care of him.

Scott Benner (30:50) I gotta tell you. (30:51) This is insane what you're telling me. (30:53) That is the the oddest I mean, bad luck I've I think I maybe have ever heard.

Erin (30:58) Oh, well, actually, I I should mention. (30:59) I'm like, oh, so what happened? (31:02) I was so grief stricken by this by this dog dying that I had another spontaneous coronary artery dissection a few days after we had to put him to sleep. (31:12) Because you haven't asked yet, but I am Irish, and that relates to the autoimmunity. (31:18) But, also, I like to shove my emotions deep down inside.

Scott Benner (31:21) Mhmm. (31:22) Well, I could tell by you you having to use Botox to get the stress out of your forehead.

Erin (31:26) Yeah. (31:27) Instead of letting, you know, letting my emotions out, I just kind of stifle them, and then I feel like it comes out in bad ways, like, the heart attacks. (31:38) So I ended up in the hospital again with another coronary artery dissection.

Scott Benner (31:42) The first heart attack happens at what age?

Erin (31:44) 40 it was 2019, so 44.

Scott Benner (31:47) 44. (31:48) The year before you got diabetes. (31:50) Yeah. (31:50) The next the next one happens after the doc wait. (31:54) When does the next one happen?

Erin (31:55) 2022, so three years later.

Scott Benner (31:56) How come they don't kill you? (31:58) What's happening when like, what what's the process of I don't feel well to

Erin (32:02) Well, our cardiologist said it's because I'm lucky. (32:05) So it's

Scott Benner (32:06) Just say, I am not lucky. (32:08) Here's a story I'll tell you.

Erin (32:10) Yeah. (32:10) Yeah. (32:12) A a spontaneous coronary artery dissection, which is called a SCAD for short, which is I think is funny because of your stories about your child going

Scott Benner (32:21) to That'll also break your heart, SCAD Will, by the way.

Erin (32:24) I would always I I we drive to Florida pretty often because my in laws live there, and we always stop in Savannah on the way down. (32:32) So I always take selfies in front of the SCAD sign because I'm like like, it it just struck me as funny.

Scott Benner (32:38) Yeah. (32:38) Awesome. (32:38) Send them to me. (32:39) I'll cry. (32:40) That's fine.

Scott Benner (32:41) So It's when a tear What

Erin (32:43) it is?

Scott Benner (32:43) Hold on. (32:43) It's when a tear forms the wall of a coronary artery, the blood vessel that supplies the heart muscle. (32:48) Blood seeps between the layers of the artery wall creating a false channel that can compress the true lumen where blood normally flows. (32:55) This blockage restricts blood flow to the heart muscle causing chest pain, heart attack, or even sudden cardiac arrest. (33:01) Awesome.

Scott Benner (33:02) So you've you've had cardiac arrest, or how do you

Erin (33:04) I did not. (33:05) Okay. (33:05) I did have a myocardial infarction. (33:08) So I did not have cardiac arrest. (33:11) Thank god.

Erin (33:11) But I my dissections occurred more distally. (33:18) So the closer they are to the big heart muscle, the more dangerous it is and the more serious it is. (33:23) When they occur more distally like mine did, there's going to be less damage. (33:28) And so, you know, I am lucky, really, that they didn't occur closer to the big heart muscle. (33:35) And the only treatment for it they do a heart catheterization.

Erin (33:39) They did that both times, which is just a procedure, but it's still a little scary to be put under. (33:44) Mhmm. (33:44) And we you know, they read you all of the, like, things that could happen, including death. (33:48) You know? (33:49) Yeah.

Erin (33:49) It's a little it's scary to go through that. (33:51) But, really, the treatment is just time and a little bit of medicine. (33:58) I'm I'm only on a I'm I'm just on a beta blocker now. (34:03) So, you know, all things considered, they were you know, I really was lucky. (34:07) So in fact, you know, something I wanted to mention to you about the heart heart attacks is that I I've just listening to the stories, and I've listened to the podcast.

Erin (34:18) I think I'm up through episode, like, fifteen eighty something at this point. (34:23) I'm not caught totally caught up, but I've listened to all of them from the beginning. (34:27) And this type of heart attack occurs a lot of times in women who've just had a baby. (34:33) It happens to younger, healthier women. (34:36) And one of the stories that you had on real early on was about a gram was with a grandmother.

Erin (34:41) Mhmm. (34:42) And her I think her daughter had died of a heart attack pretty shortly after giving birth. (34:47) And I thought, oh my goodness. (34:49) I wonder if, like, that was what had happened to her.

Scott Benner (34:52) So Super interesting. (34:54) I I have to tell you, like well, first, let me ask. (34:57) Is there any other issues that we haven't gotten to yet? (35:00) I have Graves' disease. (35:02) Oh.

Scott Benner (35:02) Awesome. (35:03) When were you diagnosed with that just real quick?

Erin (35:06) In college.

Scott Benner (35:07) College. (35:07) Okay. (35:08) So the thing Graves' disease oh, okay. (35:11) Other autoimmune in your family line including My

Erin (35:15) dad has Graves' disease.

Scott Benner (35:16) Dad has Graves'. (35:17) Does anybody have type one? (35:18) No. (35:19) Okay. (35:20) Does anybody have bad luck?

Scott Benner (35:22) I'm just kidding. (35:23) I was teasing you. (35:23) I'm sorry.

Erin (35:23) We do tend to have Irish luck where we always have to do things more than once to get it right. (35:28) But Is that what they call

Scott Benner (35:30) is that what they call that? (35:32) Okay. (35:32) So your dad has Graves', but, like, going back to your family line, celiac because somebody got celiac. (35:36) No?

Erin (35:37) No. (35:38) And I I did get tested for that. (35:39) Thanks to you. (35:40) And I did also get tested. (35:42) This is an autoimmune, but one of the hardest things medically that I've dealt with has been low ferritin.

Erin (35:49) And I didn't know what ferritin even was before you started talking about it.

Scott Benner (35:55) Wait. (35:55) Is this the story, Erin, about how I've saved you? (35:57) Yes. (35:57) Speak slowly. (35:58) Speak slowly.

Scott Benner (35:59) Go ahead. (35:59) Thank you.

Erin (36:00) Yeah. (36:01) I insisted when they went to test my iron after. (36:04) I was so fatigued. (36:06) It was just absolutely crazy. (36:07) And I remember feeling the way you described.

Scott Benner (36:11) Okay.

Erin (36:11) I felt like you described with super fatigue. (36:15) I remember you said at some point you bent down to reach something off the ground, and you felt like you were just gonna keep falling

Scott Benner (36:21) Yeah.

Erin (36:21) On the floor or something like that. (36:22) I was like, bingo. (36:24) Yes.

Scott Benner (36:24) That's how you fell.

Erin (36:25) Yeah. (36:26) And I finally got and I had almost I I think my ferritin was one, and my iron and hemoglobin and all of that were were low as well.

Scott Benner (36:36) My goodness.

Erin (36:37) I ended up going to the emergency room with that because I was just there was I I just thought something was very wrong. (36:43) I thought I was gonna die. (36:45) Mhmm. (36:45) And I ended up getting three consecutive days of iron infusions.

Scott Benner (36:49) Okay.

Erin (36:50) And those brought my iron up to, like, six or something or my baritone.

Scott Benner (36:56) Not high not high enough? (36:57) So No. (36:58) Not You know why? (36:59) Because in the hospital, they give you this little pissy amount of it. (37:02) Not like they would if you went to an infusion center and had a hematologist working with you.

Scott Benner (37:06) They give you they give you a little bag instead of the the the whole the whole game.

Erin (37:11) Yeah. (37:11) Yeah. (37:11) Yeah. (37:11) And I did. (37:12) That's what I had to do was go into the infusion center and then get another like, get an infusion.

Erin (37:17) And so far, so I mean, I just actually had it tested, and it was, like, 46. (37:22) It went up

Scott Benner (37:23) a little higher. (37:24) Are you still bleeding?

Erin (37:25) No. (37:25) No. (37:26) Okay. (37:26) I got an IUD placed after because I wanted to rule that out as, like, a cause of the low iron.

Scott Benner (37:33) But that's not been it.

Erin (37:34) Well, I mean, it's we'll see. (37:36) I I get the test done every three months, so I I'll get tested one more time before I go back to the hematologist. (37:43) So I'm curious if it will continue to fall down lower than 46. (37:47) But

Scott Benner (37:48) Four so 46 for your ferritin is not terrible. (37:51) Like No. (37:52) We it's not as high as we want it to be either.

Erin (37:54) Right.

Scott Benner (37:55) Yeah. (37:55) Yeah. (37:55) Yeah. (37:55) Right. (37:55) So do you still

Erin (37:56) have symptoms? (37:57) If I'm tired. (37:57) I'm like, I've been tired since 2009. (38:01) Like, I have children. (38:02) Bitch, though.

Erin (38:03) Tired. (38:04) Like

Scott Benner (38:05) Wait. (38:05) So what what is your plan? (38:06) Are you gonna get another infusion if the number comes back lower again, or are you having a doctor that's even willing to to talk about that 70 ferritin? (38:14) Because you remember doctor Yeah. (38:15) Benito said 70 bare bones for a woman of menstruating age.

Erin (38:20) Yes. (38:20) Yeah. (38:21) Yeah. (38:23) Yeah. (38:23) I'm I'm definitely gonna talk to him.

Erin (38:25) I'm gonna kinda wait and see where it goes from 46 and and see what he see what he thinks. (38:30) I'm gonna give him a chance. (38:31) He disappointed me with his when I developed the low ferritin and low iron, I also when I was in the hospital for that, they they saw that I had really low blood pressure, and I also had developed, like, a tremor. (38:49) And I was and and I don't know why. (38:53) I don't know what the cause is.

Erin (38:55) I mean, I assume it's autoimmune, but I don't know what the cause is of these additional problems. (39:00) So I've been talking to all my doctors about it because I'm not sure what the answer's going to be or if I even will get an

Scott Benner (39:08) Right.

Erin (39:09) So whenever I described my tremors to him, I described them like this. (39:15) I said, they're sort of like when you're cold and you're shivering. (39:19) That's I like, I wake up, like, just with that kind of tremor.

Scott Benner (39:25) Okay.

Erin (39:26) And he looked at me and said, have you considered that you might be cold?

Scott Benner (39:30) Oh, is he still alive, or where'd you hide his body?

Erin (39:32) And this guy is, like, seven feet tall. (39:34) He's seriously so tall. (39:36) I'm like, I'm gonna stand up on the exam table. (39:38) Like, punch.

Scott Benner (39:39) Beechy to death. (39:40) That's

Erin (39:40) in hey.

Scott Benner (39:42) You considered that you might be cold? (39:44) Also, have Graves' disease. (39:45) Right?

Erin (39:45) Right.

Scott Benner (39:46) So can't that be impactful on that as well?

Erin (39:48) It it definitely could. (39:50) I mean, I I did have the radioactive iodine treatment for that, and I'm on I'm on levothyroxine. (39:56) Right. (39:56) So it could have but it could have been possible that I was being overmedicated for the thyroid. (40:01) I was really hoping that you would ask me what my TSH is.

Scott Benner (40:06) You can just tell me. (40:07) Y'all don't have to wait till me. (40:08) Yeah. (40:08) I guess.

Erin (40:09) It's like, don't play games there. (40:11) Shit. (40:11) It's it was ten last time. (40:14) Oh. (40:15) I know.

Erin (40:16) And I don't I don't know why that my TSH is over 10, and my free t four is normal. (40:23) It's, like, perfect. (40:24) And I don't Graves' disease is one of the things. (40:27) I just haven't done a nosedive into research about the thyroid. (40:31) I, like, I just can't.

Erin (40:33) You know? (40:34) I've already learned way too much about diabetes and the SCADs. (40:38) I'm done learning things. (40:40) So I don't really truly understand the relationship between the TSH being elevated and still the three t four showing as normal.

Scott Benner (40:49) Right. (40:49) Right. (40:50) And so you're having trouble. (40:52) You just don't know where it's coming from. (40:53) Do you wanna do do you wanna do a fun exercise for a second?

Erin (40:56) Sure.

Scott Benner (40:56) Do you wanna ask the Internet?

Erin (40:58) Oh, I definitely have. (40:59) I'm a

Scott Benner (40:59) huge What did you

Erin (40:59) talk GPT fan.

Scott Benner (41:01) What did it come up with?

Erin (41:02) No. (41:03) I mean, it it didn't really have any answers. (41:06) It's it did suggest POTS, I think, for the blood pressure and tremor. (41:11) I had my neurologist do, like, a Parkinson's. (41:14) She did, like, a little neurological exam on me, and she was she said that the results were were good because I was worried that I had something like that.

Scott Benner (41:22) Hey. (41:22) Have you had COVID?

Erin (41:23) I have.

Scott Benner (41:24) Do you think you have long COVID?

Erin (41:26) I mean, I guess I could, but I don't not not that I've ever been told or I haven't noticed anything in particular.

Scott Benner (41:32) You haven't noticed anything? (41:33) Like, you don't get, like, wasted, like, after activity and can't bounce back for days or anything like that?

Erin (41:39) I I do kind of but I always attributed it to the heart attacks because I do have a little bit of impact from those just on my, like, energy level. (41:49) So

Scott Benner (41:49) Yeah. (41:50) No. (41:50) You mean you have a a a number of different issues going on. (41:52) That's for sure. (41:53) It's a lot to kind of try to consider while you're trying to figure out, like, what's going on with you.

Scott Benner (41:58) So let's do real quickly just to to check. (42:01) Persistent per per oh, excuse me. (42:03) Persistent fatigue or extreme tiredness. (42:05) Yes or no? (42:06) Yes.

Scott Benner (42:07) Fever, chills, or sweats? (42:08) No. (42:09) Unexplained pain, muscle aches, joint pain? (42:11) No. (42:12) Brain fog?

Erin (42:13) Oh, yeah.

Scott Benner (42:13) Headaches, dizziness? (42:15) Yes. (42:15) Yes. (42:16) Sleep disturbances, pins and needles sensation?

Erin (42:18) Sleep disturbance, but no pins and needles.

Scott Benner (42:20) Shortness of breath, difficulty breathing? (42:22) No. (42:23) Do you have a cough? (42:24) No. (42:24) Chest pain, palpitations, faster pounding heart?

Erin (42:28) No. (42:28) I I have intermittent chest pain, and that's normal from the heart

Scott Benner (42:31) of think that might be the Irish thing too. (42:34) Diarrhea, stomach pain, constipation, bloating? (42:36) No. (42:37) Changes in smell or taste, skin rashes, hair loss?

Erin (42:40) Hair loss.

Scott Benner (42:41) Hair loss. (42:41) So, I mean, a lot of this stuff overlaps with different things, obviously. (42:45) I don't know that you classically feel like long COVID. (42:47) I'm not sure. (42:49) But it would be a thing you'd really notice.

Scott Benner (42:51) It would have been like you had COVID and then it ended, and then you were like, my god. (42:56) My just changed a lot. (42:58) Like, you have you didn't have a big shift like that. (43:00) Right?

Erin (43:00) No. (43:01) I didn't. (43:01) Okay.

Scott Benner (43:03) We're not really ready to talk about it here on the podcast, but I interviewed a lady not long ago who told me how she used nicotine patches to help her with her long COVID. (43:15) And right? (43:16) And I went down to my wife who was struggling and been struggling for a long time, and I said, I'm gonna slap a nicotine patch on your ass every day for thirty days and see what happens. (43:26) And you know what happened? (43:27) What?

Scott Benner (43:28) She feels a lot better.

Erin (43:29) That's nuts.

Scott Benner (43:30) Yeah. (43:31) It's cray cray. (43:32) But I'm not ready to talk about it yet because I don't have enough of the, like, long range details of it. (43:36) But

Erin (43:37) I happened to have some nicotine patches because of my 16 year old convincing the doctor that he needed nicotine replacement therapy for his Zinn's addiction.

Scott Benner (43:47) Oh my god. (43:47) Did you try just hitting him? (43:49) Like because that's what we would have done in the seventies. (43:51) They would have just, like, smacked him and then put him in a room and left him there for a couple weeks then brought him out again. (43:55) Do people know how parenting used to work?

Scott Benner (43:57) You grew up with it, Erin. (43:58) Right?

Erin (43:59) Exactly. (43:59) And I do. (44:00) I tell him. (44:01) I'm like, if this were 1987, I would be hitting you with my shoe right now.

Scott Benner (44:07) Just so you know.

Erin (44:08) If not, it's not not allowed to do that.

Scott Benner (44:10) So we're gonna get you a nicotine patch for your zen. (44:12) And by the way, where do you get money for that?

Erin (44:14) Exactly. (44:15) I have no idea. (44:16) I don't I probably don't wanna know.

Scott Benner (44:18) Yeah. (44:19) Possible. (44:20) So dig a little more into your heritage thing. (44:22) Like so I mean, you've brought it up a couple of times. (44:25) I didn't bring it up.

Scott Benner (44:26) But anxiety, stress, chest pain, what else do you think is from your Irish background?

Erin (44:34) I don't know. (44:35) You have a lot What do you Do

Scott Benner (44:36) you do do does your does your life, health wise, and your mental health and all that, does it mimic your mom or your dad?

Erin (44:43) Just the shoving the emotions deep down definitely is, you know, I yeah. (44:48) I mean, that that's huge.

Scott Benner (44:50) You went to church every Sunday, did you?

Erin (44:52) Yes. (44:52) Mhmm. (44:52) Oh, I'm Jewish now, though. (44:54) I I I I converted.

Scott Benner (44:56) For a boy? (44:58) Yes. (44:58) Oh, that's nice. (44:59) Does the does the guilt transfer? (45:01) Does it feel the same?

Erin (45:02) It's completely transferable. (45:04) It's coming in quite handy.

Scott Benner (45:05) I I just but I I mean, look. (45:07) My wife has a background, like, similar to yours probably, like, bright, like, Irish English, that kind of thing. (45:13) And and, I mean, the the amount of the amount of times that I look over at my wife and she's rubbing her chest, and she's like, I'm gonna have a heart attack. (45:20) And I'm like, I mean, I really feel like you would've had it by now. (45:23) It's it's been

Erin (45:25) Yeah. (45:25) I mean, I have that feeling all the time. (45:27) I mean and some certain stressors definitely make me hold my chest and take deep breaths and try to remember where I put the nitro.

Scott Benner (45:37) But it's yeah. (45:38) Well, but you've had one, though. (45:39) I mean, it's a different story for you. (45:41) You know what I mean? (45:41) Like, my wife's had, you know, stress tests and blah blah blah.

Scott Benner (45:45) She doesn't have any problems with her heart. (45:47) Like, she's just you know, she's works really hard, and she has a high stress job. (45:52) And sometimes the stress gets to her, and I see her pushing, you know, between her clavicle and, like, over here and, like, wondering. (45:58) And I'm like, you alright? (46:00) She's like, oh, my chest hurts.

Scott Benner (46:01) I'm like, in the same place. (46:02) Always in the same place. (46:03) It's always top right more. (46:05) You know? (46:05) Yeah.

Scott Benner (46:06) Yeah. (46:06) And is she you know, you should try stop working. (46:09) I can't stop working.

Erin (46:10) That's where my pain was in my it radiated more to the right side of my chest and then in my in my joints. (46:18) I had pain in my joints, in my upper body Mhmm. (46:21) And only my upper body. (46:23) I thought it was so bizarre that I didn't have you know, every knuckle hurt in my hands, but my knees didn't hurt. (46:29) My elbows, my shoulders

Scott Benner (46:31) Yeah.

Erin (46:32) All my joints were so sore. (46:34) And I think I did a really good job convincing the emergency room doctors that I had Lyme disease because that was what I thought. (46:43) I thought, I have I think I have Lyme disease. (46:46) Okay. (46:46) So my dad had just had it, and he described it as, a roving joint pain.

Erin (46:52) And that's kinda like what I was feeling. (46:54) And they were about to send me home with some pain pills. (46:58) And, thankfully, my troponin levels came back right before they discharged me, and they were like, actually, never mind. (47:04) We're gonna

Scott Benner (47:04) You might get to stay for a little while. (47:06) Yeah. (47:07) Are are you are you a hypochondriac? (47:10) Like, do you see a lot of ill no. (47:11) You're you're always right?

Erin (47:13) I mean, like, isn't that, like, if you're wrong?

Scott Benner (47:16) Yeah. (47:17) No. (47:17) No. (47:17) I I just wanted to make I I wanted to make sure that you weren't leaving out the other 37 things that you thought you had that you didn't have. (47:22) That you just you just got lucky on four of them.

Scott Benner (47:25) That's

Erin (47:25) all. (47:25) I thought that was a reasonable guess as to what was wrong with me Mhmm. (47:30) With the with the joint pain.

Scott Benner (47:31) Okay.

Erin (47:32) But it turned out to be and I and that's that happened again with the second incident too, so I kinda knew what

Scott Benner (47:37) to look for. (47:38) Right on. (47:39) Well, I mean, honestly, limes is a thing that everybody limes, pots, all that stuff is where people land when they can't get they can't get answers about the sorts of things that you're describing. (47:50) Right. (47:50) Because it it leaves you in nebulous land.

Scott Benner (47:53) What do you have? (47:53) I it it sounds like lupus to me. (47:55) Like, well, what does that mean? (47:56) Like, you know what I mean? (47:57) It and especially the way doctors you know, the way medicine's set up, a lot of these things are diagnosis of, how do they put it?

Scott Benner (48:04) Diagnosis of elimination. (48:06) Right? (48:06) Like, you don't actually know that this, this, and this equals that. (48:10) It's well, you don't have all these other things, so we've eliminated these things as your possible issue, which leaves us with this smaller pool of more nebulous stuff that it could be. (48:19) Yeah.

Erin (48:19) And it's not as satisfying of an answer.

Scott Benner (48:21) No. (48:22) Of course not. (48:22) No. (48:22) There's no answer that's satisfying.

Erin (48:24) Yeah. (48:24) You probably you know?

Scott Benner (48:26) Uh-huh. (48:26) No. (48:27) The answers are satisfying when your problem goes away. (48:30) That's that's that's the end. (48:32) And that doesn't happen enough for people who have stuff that overlaps like this, which a lot of the times does with autoimmune.

Scott Benner (48:37) A lot of overlapping stuff.

Erin (48:39) Yeah. (48:39) Yeah. (48:40) Well, you know, I heard you say something recently, about blood pressure low blood pressure and how it could be connected to the thyroid. (48:47) So I thought you know, I I did get the doctor to write me a script for a higher dose of levothyroxine.

Scott Benner (48:53) Mhmm.

Erin (48:54) So, hopefully, my TSH will come down. (48:57) My hair will be better, and maybe my blood pressure will be better too. (49:01) Who knows?

Scott Benner (49:02) Yeah. (49:02) I don't know. (49:03) It's but it really is something, like it's interesting to watch you, like, track it a little bit. (49:09) But you said you're tired of tracking it too. (49:11) Like, when you got to the Graves thing, you're like, it's a it's a bridge too far?

Erin (49:14) Yeah. (49:14) Yeah. (49:15) And even though that diagnose I I think because that diagnosis was, it was just a little bit of an you have a sickness. (49:22) Here's a pill. (49:23) Mhmm.

Erin (49:23) You know? (49:24) I mean, I did have the radioactive iodine stuff, which was more of a procedure, and it was kind of a pain in the butt. (49:29) For the most part, for the thyroid, it's just here. (49:32) Take this pill, which is a lot easier than dealing with with diabetes.

Scott Benner (49:38) Yeah. (49:38) So So let's pivot a little bit here. (49:41) Okay? (49:41) Like, you've been through a lot. (49:43) You're doing a good job of tracking your own health and figuring things out for yourself, but it hasn't gotten you to exactly where you'd need to be.

Scott Benner (49:50) You've figured out a lot of it by listening to me talk through other problems too. (49:55) Right? (49:55) Because that is really what's going on. (49:56) Right? (49:56) Like, you you listen, and I'm like, oh, maybe it's this.

Scott Benner (49:59) Maybe it's that. (49:59) You start doing that for yourself. (50:00) You figure things out. (50:02) What what would you wanna leave in the podcast for other people? (50:05) Like, what what do you know what I mean?

Scott Benner (50:07) Like, what about this conversation do you think would end up being helpful for someone like you?

Erin (50:11) You know, I I'm

Scott Benner (50:13) It's not an easy question. (50:15) I just don't know. (50:15) Like, is there something that you can identify about the podcast that you think, like, there should be more of this right now? (50:23) Is it a is it a I mean, did you have be

Erin (50:26) get so much out of the podcast. (50:30) I can't even tell you how much I get out of it. (50:33) And I I actually found myself worrying about what would happen if you got hit by a bus because I was like, well, he's got all these episodes that aren't, like, published or whatever you call about call it. (50:45) Like, what's gonna happen to those? (50:47) Because, like, who's gonna who's gonna do all of those

Scott Benner (50:50) Oh, Aaron.

Erin (50:51) Things. (50:52) I mean, I know you're gonna be an AI bot or whatever, but if we can ask questions about diabetes to you to, like, your avatar or whatever.

Scott Benner (51:01) Can I talk to you, like, with your friends for a second?

Erin (51:03) Sure.

Scott Benner (51:03) Honey, do you go to therapy? (51:04) Are you okay?

Erin (51:05) Oh my god. (51:06) The last time I went to therapy, I actually did really like my therapist, but I did wanna talk about diabetes and how stressful it is. (51:14) And it just came she had type two. (51:16) Oh. (51:17) And I was just like she just kept telling me all about type two, and I just couldn't.

Scott Benner (51:22) Bad therapist. (51:23) I like telling you about her.

Erin (51:25) Yeah. (51:26) And and, you know, a lot of that's partly why I wanted to talk to you and come on the podcast Uh-huh. (51:30) Because I feel like you're talking to you is, like, the pinnacle of having a conversation with someone about type one who really gets it. (51:40) Like, that that need to have understanding, to have community, just to talk to anyone, someone please understand. (51:49) Yeah.

Erin (51:49) Like, that is such a strong sense that I have that that need to kind of connect, and I really don't have anyone. (51:56) I mean, I do use the Facebook group. (51:59) I'll I'll go in and Google certain issues just to see what else has been posted about it. (52:04) You know, I I I check what people are posting every now and then. (52:08) So I do appreciate that that community is there.

Erin (52:10) But where I get the most sense of it is from listening to your conversations with people through the podcast, like like we're doing now.

Scott Benner (52:17) Yeah.

Erin (52:18) Just to be able to relate. (52:20) These people get it, whether they're a parent or a person with it. (52:24) And then sometimes you'll get those extra actually, not just sometimes. (52:28) I mean, often. (52:29) Like, I'm getting things to consider about thyroid, things to consider about iron and ferritin.

Erin (52:35) Ozempic, had you not done your weight loss series? (52:38) That was you know, I'm on Ozempic. (52:41) I lost 80 pounds.

Scott Benner (52:42) Wow.

Erin (52:43) I've I've just been really influenced by the by the podcast, and I'm so thankful for it. (52:49) So I'm glad I'm getting an opportunity to tell you that in person.

Scott Benner (52:51) Oh, I'm glad for you. (52:52) That's awesome. (52:53) You lost how much weight? (52:54) 80. (52:55) In how long?

Erin (52:57) Like, a year and a half.

Scott Benner (52:58) Does does the time you've been on that and lost weight coincide with your iron going back up by any chance?

Erin (53:04) I started no. (53:06) No. (53:06) Okay. (53:06) In fact, I'm wondering

Scott Benner (53:08) If it's going

Erin (53:08) I'm wondering if, like, the blood pressure might be my my my endocrinologist suggested that it's possible that, like, my homeostasis is a little out of whack from the rapid weight loss and that my he's hoping that my blood

Scott Benner (53:23) pressure will

Erin (53:24) regulate better once I'm and I'm I'm pretty I'm holding steady at around a hundred and forty pounds, so I'm doing and I've been there for a couple of months. (53:33) Really, four or five months.

Scott Benner (53:35) So Well, that's awesome. (53:36) If you wouldn't have mentioned the, the TSH being higher, I would have thought maybe you lost weight, your medication's too strong, and maybe that's what's making your blood pressure lower.

Erin (53:45) Well and that did happen where the the Ozempic impacted my thyroid meds, and I am the one who did need to, you know, ask the doctor about that and get it get my medicine decreased. (53:57) I was on a hundred and fifty milligrams, and I ended up down to eighty eight. (54:01) And now I'm back on to a hundred to try to get that TSH down.

Scott Benner (54:05) Oh, damn. (54:05) Again. (54:06) That's good. (54:06) It sounds like your doctor's pretty flexible about the thyroid and doing a good job with you. (54:11) You're like

Erin (54:11) He's pretty flexible. (54:12) I mean, you know, I I see how much he charges for my hour that I go and see him, and it's, like, $4,800 or something like that.

Scott Benner (54:20) Really?

Erin (54:20) Oh, I'm just like, yeah. (54:22) I think it's crazy.

Scott Benner (54:23) Wait. (54:23) Yeah. (54:24) I helped you more than him? (54:26) Oh. (54:26) Why am I not charging for this podcast?

Scott Benner (54:28) How come the I the podcast cost $4,800 now to listen to. (54:32) That's it. (54:33) Everybody send it over. (54:34) Find out where my no. (54:36) I don't wanna say that.

Scott Benner (54:37) Anyway, just you figured out a way to get me the money.

Erin (54:39) Do you take UPMC Health Plan?

Scott Benner (54:42) Listen. (54:43) Maybe I maybe I should. (54:45) I don't know. (54:45) No. (54:46) I'm just teasing.

Scott Benner (54:46) That's but, yeah. (54:48) I mean, I'm just saying any any doctor who's willing to move your thyroid med around even is a pretty good doctor because a lot of them won't do it. (54:55) So Okay. (54:56) You know, like so that's pretty great that you have somebody that's listening to you and being flexible about that. (55:01) So the podcast helped you how long have you been listening to it?

Erin (55:05) Since about probably the very beginning of 2021.

Scott Benner (55:08) Wow.

Erin (55:08) I found it just a few months after I was diagnosed.

Scott Benner (55:11) How did you find it?

Erin (55:13) Well, I ended up on a diabetes Facebook page.

Scott Benner (55:17) And

Erin (55:19) I so I I joined I don't remember the name of it, but I joined a diabetes Facebook page, and it turned out it was really more for type two. (55:27) And I didn't, that point, really understand The difference. (55:30) The differences. (55:31) Yeah. (55:31) Someone in there suggested that I listen to the Juice Box podcast.

Erin (55:37) Awesome. (55:37) And and I did.

Scott Benner (55:38) Very cool for people to do that. (55:40) Yeah. (55:41) And you I guess we should talk about a little bit your diabetes.

Erin (55:44) Oh, jeez.

Scott Benner (55:45) Where's your e one c at? (55:46) What's your variability like? (55:47) What kind of gear do you use? (55:48) Do you have a pump? (55:49) That kind of stuff.

Erin (55:50) Yeah. (55:50) So I'm on the Omnipod five with the Dexcom g six. (55:55) I recently found out about the twist pump, so I'm getting that soon.

Scott Benner (56:01) Gonna try the twist?

Erin (56:03) Yeah. (56:03) Okay. (56:04) Yeah. (56:05) I'm I would because I've been thinking about looping. (56:08) It's just hard to

Scott Benner (56:10) You don't wanna get involved in that?

Erin (56:12) Well, the barrier to entry is just a little bit more than I can handle right now, just like setting it up and stuff. (56:18) It it's not that I couldn't do it. (56:19) I just don't I just don't have the mental wherewithal at the moment.

Scott Benner (56:23) I hear you.

Erin (56:24) I think When I heard about the twist, I thought You think wow. (56:27) It uses a more aggressive algorithm. (56:30) Because the Omnipod five is a little disappointing. (56:34) It's just not aggressive enough with keeping me in range.

Scott Benner (56:38) You like to be more aggressive?

Erin (56:39) It can't even handle, like, my morning, my feet on the floor. (56:42) Like, I'll shoot up to, like, one eighty. (56:45) And if I didn't eat and I just let the Omnipod five, you know, handle it on its own, it would take, you know, six hours to bring me down.

Scott Benner (56:53) Oh, no. (56:54) I don't think you're gonna get away with not bolusing with

Erin (56:56) Yeah.

Scott Benner (56:56) I I wanna be clear. (56:57) I don't think you're getting away with not bolusing with the twist either.

Erin (57:00) Yeah. (57:00) No. (57:01) But I I think it has some benefits that I'm gonna really like.

Scott Benner (57:06) I hope so. (57:06) I think the first version of Twist is based on basil, and I'm hoping that they release maybe another version of it that maybe does more microbolis thing for higher blood sugars. (57:17) It's As long as you use my link, I think that's really what matters.

Erin (57:20) Every once in a while, I just go into one of the podcast details, and I just click on all the links. (57:25) Right.

Scott Benner (57:26) Gonna buy something to wear once in while. (57:28) Thank you. (57:28) Oh. (57:29) Yeah. (57:29) That's for everybody.

Scott Benner (57:29) Please Click on the links and click on the links and buy a thing. (57:33) I don't care. (57:33) Do you need sheets or anything like that?

Erin (57:36) I did order a T shirt, but, that's not what you mean.

Scott Benner (57:39) No. (57:39) I needed cozy earth. (57:41) Cozyearth.com. (57:41) Use the off code juice box to check out to save. (57:44) I think it's don't I wanna say now.

Scott Benner (57:45) I'll be wrong. (57:46) Well, this isn't actually the ad. (57:47) I think it's maybe 40%. (57:48) Is it 40?

Erin (57:49) I do get their texts.

Scott Benner (57:51) They are persistent.

Erin (57:53) Very. (57:53) Oh my god.

Scott Benner (57:54) They want you to buy more sheets. (57:56) That's for sure.

Erin (57:56) Want me to wear their loungewear? (57:58) It does seem comfy.

Scott Benner (57:59) I have to tell you, that's not a bad decision. (58:01) I I exclusively fly in Cozy Earth clothing.

Erin (58:04) Oh, that's so funny.

Scott Benner (58:05) Anytime I get into a plane, I have a Cozy Earth sweatshirt and sweatpants on every time. (58:11) Like, it's just I don't know.

Erin (58:12) It's Well, I'm not wearing a cozy earth or getting on an airplane anytime soon because I have this $15,000 dog.

Scott Benner (58:18) No. (58:18) Yeah. (58:19) You can't afford anything. (58:20) $15,000 dog. (58:21) It's not even the dog that was worth $15.

Scott Benner (58:23) It's the that's like that's like having trees cut down. (58:26) Like, you start with an amount of money and trees, and when you end, you don't have the money or the trees.

Erin (58:31) That's so true.

Scott Benner (58:33) You have you but that's maybe the most Caucasian thing I'm gonna say today. (58:36) And then And and it's

Erin (58:38) like a and it just a metaphor of being an adult.

Scott Benner (58:41) Like Yeah. (58:41) No. (58:42) It really is. (58:42) Like, when did everything start costing a a thousand dollars? (58:46) Every every time somebody says something to you, it's like, is that how much is that?

Scott Benner (58:49) And it feels like it's always hundreds or you know what I mean? (58:52) Like, it's never like a a low it's never $20. (58:55) Nobody ever needs $20, I guess, is what I'm saying.

Erin (58:57) Oh, and it's never fun. (58:58) It's not fun to have trees cut down or get a new HVAC system.

Scott Benner (59:03) I had a guy tell me one time, like, hey. (59:05) I think you're gonna have to replace this air conditioner. (59:07) I said, yeah. (59:07) What's the He goes, it's shot. (59:08) And I was like, what's it gonna cost to replace?

Scott Benner (59:10) Goes, $7,000. (59:11) And I was like, does it work? (59:12) And he said, yeah. (59:12) I said, I'll I'll be riding it a little longer. (59:14) By the way, I've been riding it for four years.

Scott Benner (59:17) He told me, like, it has to be replaced right now. (59:19) It's not gonna make it through the summer. (59:20) I'm like, you son of a bitch. (59:22) You know he just had a bill he had to pay. (59:24) And, they talked me into replacing an air conditioner I couldn't afford to a place.

Scott Benner (59:28) Okay. (59:29) So, I mean, I I I'm going back to my question because I I I don't I don't love the answer, but I understand why you don't have one about, like, what what do you think people need to hear that's valuable for them. (59:40) So, like, what about listening to the stories gave you the, like, the motivation to just go out there and try a weight loss drug for yourself or, you know, try to get better answers from a doctor? (59:50) Like, what about this does that for you? (59:53) Do you know?

Erin (59:55) I I just think it goes back to the sense of community and whether that's on a micro level or or a macro level, like, with the Facebook page or just in general listening to the because it's more on, like, a micro level of relating to the person you're speaking to. (1:00:10) You know, the other day, I heard someone say the Omnipod five wasn't aggressive enough for me, so I I upped my insulin or my my insulin to carb ratio. (1:00:21) And I was like, you know what? (1:00:23) I couldn't mean to do that, and I did it. (1:00:25) I just did it.

Erin (1:00:25) I just took the thirty seconds that it takes, and it was listening to that person say that thing.

Scott Benner (1:00:31) Did it work?

Erin (1:00:32) It did. (1:00:33) Yeah. (1:00:33) Yes. (1:00:34) Because I've been and, you know, it's a little hard with the Ozempic because it messes with your insulin sensitivity, and it messes with it in a way that's not

Scott Benner (1:00:42) Consistent.

Erin (1:00:43) You know, it's it it makes your insulin sensitivity stronger when you first give the injection, and then it kinda peters out by the week's end. (1:00:50) Yeah. (1:00:50) So, like, you you just have to kind of it's part of that mental math that you have to do where you're considering, like, all the different variables when you're going to dose yourself. (1:01:00) So it's just another variable that I have to consider. (1:01:02) I've before I and so I'd gotten a little bit shy about bolusing because I really wanted to avoid the lows.

Erin (1:01:11) But, really, my insulin to carb ratio is not correct, and it's better now. (1:01:18) And listening to your podcast is sort of the same as, like, setting a lower target from my Dexcom on my on my app. (1:01:28) Oh, it keeps you engaged. (1:01:30) Keeps it it just keeps me more cognizant of what I'm doing. (1:01:34) Mhmm.

Erin (1:01:35) I I I have pre bolus thing on my mind a lot more. (1:01:39) When I take breaks from the podcast, I my I, you know, I swear my a one c goes up just because it's not on the top of my mind. (1:01:48) Like Yeah. (1:01:49) Like it needs to be. (1:01:50) I'm actually hoping that with the twist that I can get my settings dialed in really well so that I can think about diabetes a little bit less.

Scott Benner (1:01:59) I wish I could remember the person who said it to me so I could thank them every time this comes into my mind. (1:02:04) But, you know, I'll I'll tell this really briefly again. (1:02:08) I was interviewing this person, I think, her late twenties, and she was telling me, like, being really effusive about how much the podcast helped her. (1:02:15) And I was it was years ago, I think. (1:02:17) I just leapt to the idea, like, oh, I must have explained to her how to bolus or something like that.

Scott Benner (1:02:21) Right? (1:02:21) And I so I started saying, like, oh, what helped you? (1:02:24) Was it the pro tips or the buy and she goes, no. (1:02:26) I knew how to do all that. (1:02:27) And I was like, oh, I don't understand how the podcast helped then.

Scott Benner (1:02:30) And that's what she said. (1:02:31) She said that it somehow keeps her connected to her health without making it feel front of mind so she doesn't feel like she's always thinking about diabetes, but yet somehow she is, and she's doing better for herself almost not on purpose or unknowingly.

Erin (1:02:46) And Right. (1:02:46) Exactly.

Scott Benner (1:02:47) That is what you just said too. (1:02:48) Okay.

Erin (1:02:49) Right. (1:02:49) And even in the beginning, I remember calling the endocrinologist after listening to the podcast for a couple of months, and I said, I didn't know that I could correct a high blood sugar. (1:03:01) I didn't. (1:03:01) Oh. (1:03:02) He put me on a sliding scale.

Erin (1:03:04) He put me on enough basil to, like, kill me. (1:03:07) I had I tapered down to get to the right dose. (1:03:10) I'm glad that occurred to me. (1:03:12) I just didn't it didn't even occur to me that I could correct a high blood sugar. (1:03:15) I and I I feel so stupid saying that, but it's true.

Erin (1:03:19) I just didn't know. (1:03:20) I did I and the the nurse practitioner just she said, well, we can't really tell you everything all at the same you know, all upfront.

Scott Benner (1:03:32) You could've mentioned that.

Erin (1:03:33) Yeah. (1:03:33) I mean, I thought that was a pretty basic thing to share. (1:03:36) But it's been that way. (1:03:37) I mean, I've learned so much about all of the different kinds of pumps, about I love when you have the experts on.

Scott Benner (1:03:43) Mhmm.

Erin (1:03:43) Doctor Blevins, I I love listening to him. (1:03:46) I think he's so fantastic. (1:03:48) I love Jenny and Erica. (1:03:51) I'm and and and then the regular conversations that you're having with regular people too, they're just fascinating. (1:03:57) Just love it.

Scott Benner (1:03:58) I'm glad.

Erin (1:03:59) So but even, like, hearing about back in the beginning, I had a really strong honeymoon period, and I I used diluted insulin. (1:04:08) And I set I, you know, I set all of that up for myself, and I'd heard heard about it through through the podcast.

Scott Benner (1:04:14) That's awesome. (1:04:15) Oh, I can't tell you how happy I am to hear that. (1:04:17) Thank you for sharing that. (1:04:18) I really do appreciate it. (1:04:20) I I swear to you, I mean, it's been a long time now, so it's not that I don't have, like, a cognitive understanding of it, but I'm not doing it on purpose.

Scott Benner (1:04:29) Like like, I I I'm glad it's helping you, but if you think I sat down and I thought, let me do this, this, this, and this so that Aaron does better. (1:04:36) Like, it's not I just I think there's something about the mix of how it occurs to me to make this thing that works for some people.

Erin (1:04:43) You're very good at what you do.

Scott Benner (1:04:44) No. (1:04:44) It's not. (1:04:45) I don't know what it is I do, though. (1:04:47) I I just know that the I think there's some basic ideas that people need to have, and when they have them, they do better. (1:04:53) It just and you have to keep saying you have to be willing to continue to say I did a talk on Saturday afternoon.

Scott Benner (1:05:00) It was, an hour and fifteen minutes for a camp in Georgia. (1:05:03) And I there was a a big group of parents in the room, like, isn't you know? (1:05:07) And and I sat there and I thought, like, I I've given this talk so many different times. (1:05:12) I don't know that I couldn't say it with my eyes closed, but I did it because I know that's another 40 families that get off in the right direction. (1:05:21) You know?

Scott Benner (1:05:22) And then they've got a chance, and their kids have a chance, and they have an opportunity to learn more stuff or to see some a b testing workout in a way that makes them think, like, well, I should look further into this, or let me keep doing this thing that works. (1:05:35) Or I wonder if this works. (1:05:36) What the hell else might help? (1:05:37) You know? (1:05:38) And and I I don't know.

Scott Benner (1:05:40) I just I sat there and I thought, like, the it would be easy to make fun of me and say, like, oh, there's that talk he gives people all the time. (1:05:47) And I just think it's I think people need to keep saying it. (1:05:51) So I

Erin (1:05:52) Absolutely. (1:05:53) Reach more and

Scott Benner (1:05:53) more people.

Erin (1:05:54) Yeah. (1:05:54) Unfortunately, we keep having people diagnosed with this, and I feel like I mean, you're so well, you're good at what you do, but I also feel like you're very lucky that you have a purpose driven life. (1:06:06) I think that's admirable and enviable that that you that the work you do is so meaningfully impacting people.

Scott Benner (1:06:14) Thank you. (1:06:15) I I feel that way as well. (1:06:16) I am very, lucky to not get up in the morning and just do a thing because somebody pays me for it. (1:06:23) You know? (1:06:24) Like, it it is good to feel the way you're describing.

Scott Benner (1:06:27) I did some stuff over the weekend. (1:06:29) I'm just trying to pull ideas together for you guys for later, and I I have to admit, like, it felt that lucky is the right word. (1:06:36) Like, I was standing there. (1:06:37) It was it was the weekend, but I was still like, I had my laptop out, and I was kinda noodling around with ideas. (1:06:41) And and I was like, oh, this will probably be a good thing for us to do next year.

Scott Benner (1:06:45) I can see how this might help people. (1:06:46) And and it's it's an interesting decision because you have to do new enough that the podcast is still new, but core enough that it still does the thing it's supposed to do. (1:06:59) Like right? (1:07:00) So it's and then you I don't know. (1:07:02) That's more of the management stuff and the ideas and the directions we talk about things, and then you gotta keep digging and having conversations with people so that you can have these conversations like this.

Scott Benner (1:07:11) It's a No. (1:07:12) And I think

Erin (1:07:12) it's a perfect mix.

Scott Benner (1:07:13) Yeah. (1:07:14) You

Erin (1:07:14) try to have something management style in there and

Scott Benner (1:07:17) It's a lot. (1:07:18) It can be a lot if it's too much. (1:07:20) You know what I mean? (1:07:21) Yeah. (1:07:21) And, again, you you want enough, but it can't be the whole thing

Erin (1:07:24) at all. (1:07:24) I think you're right. (1:07:25) And that's why people keep coming back because it would it would be very boring if we were just, like if you were just getting on and then you were a talking head about what about anything, really, but especially about diabetes management. (1:07:39) I mean, what could be more boring

Scott Benner (1:07:40) than that? (1:07:41) I know.

Erin (1:07:41) Right? (1:07:42) That people learn through storytelling, for sure.

Scott Benner (1:07:45) I think the same thing. (1:07:46) Oh my god. (1:07:46) If this was just content like that altogether, I'd be like, ugh. (1:07:50) Like, just I would do anything not to listen to it. (1:07:52) You you know?

Erin (1:07:53) But I have to tell I I think it was one of your real early episodes, and I think you already know this, but it's about, like, get achieving a steady low blood not low, but healthy blood sugar overnight

Scott Benner (1:08:03) Mhmm.

Erin (1:08:04) Back in the very beginning. (1:08:05) And I just that was, like, really eye opening for me. (1:08:09) And I think that's what kept me coming back was that particular episode.

Scott Benner (1:08:14) Something was helpful and made sense and worked. (1:08:16) Mhmm. (1:08:17) Yeah. (1:08:17) No. (1:08:17) I go ahead.

Scott Benner (1:08:18) I did listen to that. (1:08:19) I'll tell you right now. (1:08:19) I did the whole talk on Saturday just from the bones of the small sip series.

Erin (1:08:24) Oh, yeah. (1:08:25) I just that.

Scott Benner (1:08:26) Yeah. (1:08:26) I just literally just followed those however many it is, like

Erin (1:08:30) And the nutrition ones, and I feel like I I think of Jenny every time I pour myself a gigantic bowl of cereal. (1:08:36) Like, don't do this.

Scott Benner (1:08:38) I've had thoughts where I've done something and I thought, oh, Jenny would be mad if I'd if she sold this. (1:08:43) And she wouldn't, by the way. (1:08:44) She's not judgmental. (1:08:45) She wouldn't be mad. (1:08:46) She'd you know, she'd be disappointed.

Erin (1:08:48) She wouldn't do it herself.

Scott Benner (1:08:50) Yeah. (1:08:50) No. (1:08:51) You you know, you're right. (1:08:52) Again, she wouldn't be disappointed in you. (1:08:54) She would is not a thing she would do.

Scott Benner (1:08:56) Like, it is a what would Jenny do situation because Jenny would not eat that. (1:08:59) And and it's you know, like, if you use her as the barometer on the one side and you come anywhere near her way of eating, I think that ends up being, you know, healthier for the for the person who's thinking that way. (1:09:10) So she'd be thrilled to know that you're that you're that she's your she's your, little guilt idol when you're making cereal.

Erin (1:09:17) Yeah. (1:09:17) The little angel on my shoulder.

Scott Benner (1:09:19) Yeah. (1:09:19) Hopefully. (1:09:19) Right? (1:09:20) Oh, that's awesome.

Erin (1:09:20) And I do have a better answer for you, I think

Scott Benner (1:09:22) Go ahead.

Erin (1:09:23) About about what what I could give that that that you know, similar to the kind of thing that I've received. (1:09:30) Like, what can people listening get from me? (1:09:33) And even though it sort of might seem like we just went through, like, a whack a mole, like, list of all of my health conditions, what I ended up doing after I got the diabetes diagnosis, after I'd been to see so many doctors, is I do you did you watch Game of Thrones?

Scott Benner (1:09:53) I listen. (1:09:54) I did, but I wanted you to know that I don't remember anybody's name or much of the story.

Erin (1:09:58) Well, the there's a character, Arya. (1:10:01) She's like the little girl

Scott Benner (1:10:02) With the the stabby girl. (1:10:04) She's the stabby girl.

Erin (1:10:05) She makes a list.

Scott Benner (1:10:07) Uh-oh.

Erin (1:10:07) And I was like, I am like, Aria. (1:10:10) I am making a list, and I'm going around. (1:10:13) And I did. (1:10:13) I went around to each one of those practitioners, and I told them exactly what they did that wronged me. (1:10:21) So, no, I didn't kill them.

Scott Benner (1:10:22) You didn't stab them with a small knife?

Erin (1:10:24) But but I did. (1:10:25) I went, and I was like, this is the way this is what happened. (1:10:28) And I wanted to let you know that this was my experience and that, you know, it had a negative impact on my health. (1:10:35) And then I went for six months with a really high a one c, and I ended up in a hospital for a week. (1:10:41) And it I wanted you to know.

Erin (1:10:43) And each of them had their reaction, and now I have a new PCP, a new endocrinologist, a new eye doctor. (1:10:50) So I made my list, and I I went I, you know, I didn't wanna just ghost them. (1:10:55) Mhmm. (1:10:56) I wanted to tell them what happened.

Scott Benner (1:10:58) Were any of them contrite or apologetic, or do you feel like it helped them?

Erin (1:11:02) Yeah. (1:11:03) I they they really were. (1:11:05) They all reacted like you would hope that a human being would. (1:11:09) They apologized, and but I was still done with them. (1:11:13) I thought maybe if they reacted in a way that I approved of, that I would continue seeing them, but that apparently wasn't the case.

Erin (1:11:20) I just thought

Scott Benner (1:11:21) It felt did it feel like they cheated on you? (1:11:23) Well Or on your on your on your cheat on your your trust?

Erin (1:11:28) Yeah. (1:11:28) I mean, they definitely did. (1:11:30) And, you know, the PCP, even after all of the stuff with the diabetes, I called her and said, hey. (1:11:36) I'm having these crazy heavy periods. (1:11:38) And she was like, oh, that's that's perimenopause.

Erin (1:11:41) And meanwhile, it ends up with me becoming, you know, low iron, low ferritin, and feeling like I was gonna die and another hospitalization. (1:11:49) So I just you know, you you and I think everyone who listens to the podcast already knows this, but you you do have to advocate for yourself, and sometimes that means finding a new provider.

Scott Benner (1:12:02) Yeah.

Erin (1:12:02) I know that seems like a small thing. (1:12:04) It might be obvious, but you don't have to continue going back to someone who makes you feel stupid or unheard or unseen Mhmm. (1:12:12) Or and is impatient with you, you don't have to do that. (1:12:15) There are nice people out there too who are practitioners.

Scott Benner (1:12:18) Well, I appreciate that. (1:12:19) Can I try real hard to do something that I know won't work? (1:12:22) But I just every time I look at my wife, I I went so badly for this to be the answer. (1:12:26) Can I try it on you?

Erin (1:12:27) Okay.

Scott Benner (1:12:29) Please calm down. (1:12:30) Thank you. (1:12:32) Just relax. (1:12:33) Can you just relax and chill out? (1:12:35) Is that a possibility or no?

Erin (1:12:37) I'm sorry. (1:12:38) Did you just tell me to calm down? (1:12:42) How dare you?

Scott Benner (1:12:44) Did it not work? (1:12:45) Did it not work, Aaron? (1:12:46) I'm sorry. (1:12:47) I tried my hardest. (1:12:49) Oh my gosh.

Scott Benner (1:12:50) I do wonder why why, like, like, that kind

Erin (1:12:53) of Is it the list? (1:12:54) What was it?

Scott Benner (1:12:55) Well, yeah. (1:12:55) I made a list, and I went around and I went and made a list of everyone that wronged me, and I spent three years making sure they all knew. (1:13:02) My heart's exploded twice. (1:13:04) And

Erin (1:13:05) There's smoke coming out of

Scott Benner (1:13:06) my ears. (1:13:06) There's smoke. (1:13:07) Oh, yes. (1:13:07) I'm I'm literally my brain is on fire. (1:13:09) I'm I'm just I can't tell you how angry I am about everything.

Erin (1:13:14) Oh my god. (1:13:15) Did I mention I'm Irish?

Scott Benner (1:13:16) It's awesome.

Erin (1:13:18) Oh my gosh. (1:13:18) Yes. (1:13:19) Which actually reminds me of, yeah, the episode that you did with someone kept saying she was Irish Catholic. (1:13:26) You're like, yeah. (1:13:27) I know.

Scott Benner (1:13:27) Know. (1:13:27) I can hear it. (1:13:28) Yeah. (1:13:29) Yeah. (1:13:29) Everything you said has told me that already.

Scott Benner (1:13:31) How did your what what happened to your husband? (1:13:33) Did he did he get thrown out of the tribe and he had to go get an Irish girl, or what happened?

Erin (1:13:38) I mean, he's always said that I've looked Jewish. (1:13:42) So he thought I would fit right in, but, yeah, he's he was raised in Maryland, very Jewish Mhmm. (1:13:48) Family involved with know, we had a bar mitzvah and everything, and we we ended up raising the kids Jewish, and I'm down with it.

Scott Benner (1:13:57) Yeah. (1:13:57) You know? (1:13:58) Do you have, like, little red haired Jewish boys, or is it not that

Erin (1:14:01) No. (1:14:02) They have, like, light brown hair, and they are I don't know how the two of us ended up with such good looking kids, but we did.

Scott Benner (1:14:10) Sorry. (1:14:10) You're so listen. (1:14:12) I'm not gonna lie to you. (1:14:13) There are times when my kids were growing up, and they were, like, you know, running across a giant piece of ground and catching something, and I was like, oh, those are definitely not my kids. (1:14:22) Like, I'd look at my wife like she 100% cheated on me.

Scott Benner (1:14:25) And I, you know, I'd, like, look to see if the mailman looked super athletic or something like that. (1:14:29) And but she said she always felt the same way too.

Erin (1:14:32) Yeah. (1:14:32) That's amazing.

Scott Benner (1:14:33) Yeah. (1:14:34) I I I have to I I this will sound terrible too, but my kids are also more attractive than they should be.

Erin (1:14:40) That's what I'm saying, man.

Scott Benner (1:14:43) I'm like, I don't know why you guys got so lucky.

Erin (1:14:46) I know. (1:14:47) My older son is like he's like a physical specimen too. (1:14:50) He does power lifting, and he's just really into, like, protein, etcetera. (1:14:55) He's kind of a gym bro.

Scott Benner (1:14:56) He just, like, had it to the staff. (1:14:58) And yeah. (1:14:58) No. (1:14:59) I know. (1:14:59) I stared at that rowing machine for thirty minutes this morning before I decided not to row.

Scott Benner (1:15:03) So I could have done it twice in the amount of I only wanted to come on for fifteen minutes. (1:15:08) Like, I literally could have done it twice the amount of time that it took me to

Erin (1:15:11) If you can't multitask.

Scott Benner (1:15:12) Yeah. (1:15:12) I think I'd be a horrible test. (1:15:14) Yeah. (1:15:14) I think I'd be a horrible day trader. (1:15:15) You know what I mean?

Scott Benner (1:15:16) Like, I'd like, think I just have to jump in here and jump out there, and I'd like, and I would stare at it till it was over. (1:15:21) So, nevertheless, you were fantastic. (1:15:24) I really do appreciate you doing this. (1:15:26) Thank you. (1:15:26) We are a 100% calling this episode some oh, you know what we should do?

Scott Benner (1:15:30) I said we should call it gesundheit, but, like, what's the Yiddish term for Sundheit?

Erin (1:15:39) So you do know more Yiddish than me Well I do think.

Scott Benner (1:15:42) Yeah. (1:15:42) Well, where did you grow up?

Erin (1:15:44) Pittsburgh.

Scott Benner (1:15:45) Yeah. (1:15:45) It's a little too west for you to get what I got. (1:15:49) So, I guess that you know what? (1:15:52) If I make it that, no one's gonna listen. (1:15:54) I might go with.

Erin (1:15:55) We're just I don't know.

Scott Benner (1:15:59) I well, I listen. (1:16:00) I wish you a ton of success. (1:16:01) I'm proud of you for, like, looking into all of your your elements and and coming up with so many answers. (1:16:06) It really is impressive. (1:16:08) I hope you find some energy and go after your Graves thing and and and see about that.

Scott Benner (1:16:14) You know, good luck getting your fireturn up a little higher. (1:16:17) I think that would definitely probably help you a little bit. (1:16:20) When's the last time you had a, an infusion?

Erin (1:16:23) It was last last year. (1:16:25) I think towards the end of the year. (1:16:27) So it's, yeah. (1:16:28) It's been about a year, I think.

Scott Benner (1:16:30) And I would imagine if they checked it before and after. (1:16:33) Right?

Erin (1:16:33) They did, and I have my appointment coming up in March. (1:16:37) So

Scott Benner (1:16:38) So if it's still going back down Mhmm. (1:16:40) Then you need to figure out why, obviously. (1:16:43) But if you can't figure out why, then you need to get you need to get on a schedule. (1:16:46) Because if it's gonna go up and then come down naturally, I'm gonna use the word naturally, then you need to get an infusion before you bottom out.

Erin (1:16:54) Yeah.

Scott Benner (1:16:55) Yeah.

Erin (1:16:55) And I I think that with getting checked every three months, I I think that might I think I'll catch it.

Scott Benner (1:17:01) Yeah. (1:17:01) Yeah.

Erin (1:17:02) And then I'll see him in March, and it'll be

Scott Benner (1:17:04) Do it again.

Erin (1:17:05) Good. (1:17:05) I'm gonna retest in January.

Scott Benner (1:17:07) Awesome.

Erin (1:17:08) And then he'll test me again when I go in for the March appointment. (1:17:10) If it's low in January, I'll call him

Scott Benner (1:17:13) Yeah.

Erin (1:17:13) Or send a message or whatever.

Scott Benner (1:17:15) Well, the next time someone in my life doesn't listen to me, which should be in the next thirty five minutes, I assume, I'm gonna say, you know, Erin listened, and she's doing better. (1:17:23) You guys you guys could try listening.

Erin (1:17:25) They're gonna be like, who the fuck is Erin?

Scott Benner (1:17:27) Well, that's their problem. (1:17:28) They should

Erin (1:17:28) know you. (1:17:29) Have of your stupid

Scott Benner (1:17:30) Oh, I guess. (1:17:31) Is that one of the podcast people? (1:17:32) Yeah. (1:17:32) The podcast people. (1:17:33) That's my son's phrase, podcast people.

Scott Benner (1:17:35) One of these podcast people is gonna murder you one day. (1:17:37) That's his favorite thing. (1:17:39) And we did we did have this we we we did all go on vacation re not not recently, this summer. (1:17:45) We went away for a week, and we were all walking, like I don't know. (1:17:49) We were, like, walking through a town, and we got to a traffic light.

Scott Benner (1:17:52) We're waiting at the light to cross, And someone yells our name out, and we are, like, across the country. (1:17:58) You

Erin (1:17:58) know? (1:17:58) Wow.

Scott Benner (1:17:58) And it just turned out to be people who literally live two blocks from here who were on vacation at the same time.

Erin (1:18:03) Oh, that's funny.

Scott Benner (1:18:04) Which is bizarre enough. (1:18:05) But as, like, you know, we had our pleasantries. (1:18:07) It was really cool to see them. (1:18:08) We said hi for a little bit. (1:18:09) We walk away, and we get across the street, and Cole goes, I a 100% thought that was one of your podcast people.

Scott Benner (1:18:15) And Yeah. (1:18:15) When the we were dead. (1:18:16) He's like, I literally felt myself making a fist. (1:18:19) And I was like, what did you think? (1:18:20) I said, what do think's gonna happen?

Scott Benner (1:18:21) I they're lovely people. (1:18:22) And he goes, till they're not.

Erin (1:18:24) I mean, I'm telling you, going on a cruise, that's like you're setting yourself up for

Scott Benner (1:18:29) a No.

Erin (1:18:30) Everybody was so awesome. (1:18:31) But it's a murder mystery.

Scott Benner (1:18:32) Yeah. (1:18:33) Every yeah. (1:18:33) It'll be only murderers in the building, on a boat. (1:18:36) But, no, everyone boy, everyone on that cruise was so lovely. (1:18:39) Like, it's funny when you brought it up just now, it made me think, like, oh, I can't wait for the next time we do it.

Scott Benner (1:18:45) Gonna be it's gonna be awesome. (1:18:46) I had such a such a wonderful time with all of them. (1:18:49) I hope that they did as well. (1:18:51) But I actually, I know they did, but that's not the point. (1:18:53) The point is is, like, it was lovely.

Scott Benner (1:18:55) Like, it it really was lovely to be around people. (1:18:58) I couldn't could, with a 100% honesty, tell you that there was not one person on that cruise with me that I looked at and thought, oh god.

Erin (1:19:06) Nobody gave you the creeps.

Scott Benner (1:19:07) No. (1:19:07) I yeah. (1:19:07) Like, I did and everyone was just really wonderful. (1:19:10) It was awesome. (1:19:11) So,

Erin (1:19:11) anyway No. (1:19:12) It does it does sound it's what an opportunity for for you and for the and for the attendees. (1:19:18) That would be that would be really neat.

Scott Benner (1:19:21) Listen. (1:19:21) Also, tell your husband I said you're welcome because it sounds like I've done a lot of things that he's benefiting from as well. (1:19:31) Head now to tandemdiabetes.com/juicebox and check out today's sponsor, Tandem Diabetes Care. (1:19:38) I think you're gonna find exactly what you're looking for at that link, including a way to sign up and get started with the Tandem Mobi system. (1:19:46) The podcast episode that you just enjoyed was sponsored by Eversense CGM.

Scott Benner (1:19:51) They make the Eversense three sixty five. (1:19:54) That thing lasts a whole year. (1:19:56) One insertion. (1:19:57) Every year? (1:19:58) Come on.

Scott Benner (1:19:59) You probably feel like I'm messing with you, but I'm not. (1:20:01) Ever since cgm.com/juicebox. (1:20:06) The conversation you just heard was sponsored by Touched by Type One. (1:20:10) Check them out, please, at touchedbytype1.org on Instagram and Facebook. (1:20:15) You're gonna love them.

Scott Benner (1:20:16) I love them. (1:20:17) They're helping so many people at touchedbytype1.org. (1:20:22) I created the diabetes variable series because I know that in type one diabetes management, the little things aren't that little, and they really add up. (1:20:30) In this series, we'll break down everyday factors like stress, sleep, exercise, and those other variables that impact your day more than you might think. (1:20:38) Jenny Smith and I are gonna get straight to the point with practical advice that you can trust.

Scott Benner (1:20:43) So check out the diabetes variable series in your podcast player or at juiceboxpodcast.com.

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