#1844 Valyrian Steel
Suzanne discusses her 34-year journey with Type 1 diabetes , navigating chronic fatigue syndrome , and the challenges of caring for her 85-year-old mother who also has T1D.
Companies that Support Juicebox
Key Takeaways
- Stress Directly Impacts A1C: High-stress situations, such as difficult relationships, can significantly alter blood sugar control and visibly impact A1C levels, highlighting the profound mind-body connection in diabetes management.
- Chronic Fatigue vs. Diabetes Burnout: While Type 1 Diabetes is a heavy burden, the predictability of its management differs greatly from the unpredictable, exhausting nature of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (MECFS), requiring intensive pacing and rest.
- Investigate Underlying Thyroid Issues: Unexplained fatigue, brain fog, and muscle weakness are classic symptoms of thyroid conditions like Hashimoto's. Medication sizing is crucial; overly high starting doses can cause anxiety and heart racing.
- Caregiving Complexities with T1D: Caring for an aging parent who also has Type 1 Diabetes introduces unique challenges, particularly when cognitive or dexterity issues prevent them from managing their own insulin pumps or CGMs.
- Dementia Symptoms Can Be Medically Induced: Apparent cognitive decline or dementia in the elderly can sometimes be the result of overmedication (e.g., stacked blood pressure drugs or statins). Reevaluating prescriptions can sometimes reverse these symptoms entirely.
Resources Mentioned
- Juice Box Podcast Facebook Group: Juice Box Podcast, Type One Diabetes
- Juice Box Podcast Lists: juiceboxpodcast.com/lists
- US Med: usmed.com/juicebox or call (888) 721-1514
- Omnipod 5: omnipod.com/juicebox
- Wrong Way Recording (Rob): wrongwayrecording.com
- COVID Institute: covidinstitute.org
Sponsors and Announcements
Scott Benner Here we are back together again, friends, for another episode of the Juice Box podcast.
Suzanne Hi, I'm Suzanne. (0:17) I've had type one for probably thirty four years. (0:21) I've had chronic fatigue syndrome for twenty four years. (0:25) I'm a musician, and I take care of my mother who also has type one, and she's been living with me for about seventeen months.
Scott Benner 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. (0:43) But everybody is welcome. (0:44) Type one, type two, gestational, loved ones, it doesn't matter to me. (0:49) 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. (0:59) Alright.
Scott Benner Let's get down to it. (1:00) You want the management stuff from the podcast. (1:03) You don't care about all this chitting and chatting with other people. (1:06) Juiceboxpodcast.com/lists. (1:09) They are downloadable, easy to read, every series, every episode.
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Scott Benner Always consult a physician before making any changes to your health care plan. (1:46) This episode of the juice box podcast is sponsored by US Med, u s med dot com slash juice box, or call (888) 721-1514. (1:57) Get your supplies the same way we do from US Med. (2:01) Today's episode is also sponsored by Omnipod. (2:05) Check out the Omnipod five now with my link, omnipod.com/juicebox.
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Diagnoses & Family History
Suzanne Hi. (2:29) I'm Suzanne. (2:30) I've had type one for probably thirty four years. (2:34) I've had chronic fatigue syndrome for twenty four years. (2:38) I'm a musician, and I take care of my mother who also has type one, and she's been living with me for about seventeen months.
Scott Benner Oh, I am excited to talk to you.
Suzanne Great.
Scott Benner Also, do you know that Suzanne is the name of the orangutan in the Jay and Silent Bob movies?
Suzanne In the what movies?
Scott Benner Yeah. (2:57) I didn't think you would know. (2:58) It's okay, Suzanne.
Suzanne No. (2:59) I did not know.
Scott Benner Yeah. (3:00) The people listening are the who know are like, oh, no kidding. (3:02) He's right. (3:03) Okay. (3:04) But the rest of you are going, I don't know what he's saying.
Scott Benner Anyway, let's figure out who you are. (3:10) How old are you?
Suzanne Okay. (3:12) I'm 62.
Scott Benner Oh, you have a young voice.
Suzanne Yeah. (3:16) You know, I I do. (3:17) I I think I've worked with kids a lot in my life, but I never had kids on my own, so it keeps me young.
Scott Benner I have to tell you. (3:24) I'm gonna take a I'm gonna take a page out of your book today. (3:26) I swear I thought you were in your thirties when you started talking.
Suzanne Oh, great. (3:31) Great.
Scott Benner I'm going
Suzanne with that. (3:32) Some days I feel like I'm in my nineties, so there you go. (3:35) Yeah. (3:35) We'll we'll get to that as well.
Scott Benner So Okay. (3:37) You're 62. (3:39) And when were you diagnosed with type one? (3:40) At what age?
Suzanne I was 28.
Scott Benner That's thirty four years ago.
Suzanne Yeah.
Scott Benner Okay.
Suzanne Yeah.
Scott Benner And you say your mom has type one?
Suzanne She does. (3:50) Well, I mean, she when she was diagnosed, she was diagnosed as type two, and then she began to need insulin.
Scott Benner Okay. (3:58) What age was that for her?
Suzanne She was in her fifties, I believe.
Scott Benner Okay.
Suzanne Yeah. (4:05) It it wasn't too long. (4:06) It was probably within a decade after I was diagnosed. (4:09) Well, how old is she now? (4:11) She's 85.
Scott Benner Damn. (4:13) Alright.
Suzanne Yeah. (4:14) Well, good for her. (4:15) She's got a fascinating story too.
Scott Benner So I think we're gonna pick through the whole thing, Suzanne. (4:20) Don't worry.
Suzanne Okay.
Scott Benner Okay. (4:21) So you're diagnosed thirty four years ago as an adult out of nowhere. (4:25) Did it feel Yes. (4:26) Yeah?
Suzanne Yeah. (4:27) It like, I have some distant relatives that had it, but it wasn't something we talked about in our family.
Scott Benner Mhmm.
Suzanne I was a complete textbook case, but I had no idea. (4:37) And I was diagnosed in December, and I wasn't feeling well since the spring. (4:43) And I was a I'm a singer. (4:46) And the first thing was I lost my vocal range. (4:49) I had a range of about five notes, and I have a huge range.
Suzanne But so that was one thing, and then there was just all these little weird clues along the way. (4:57) And then it was a big surprise, finally.
Scott Benner You said distant relatives had type one, like aunts, uncles, second cousins, like
Suzanne Great great grandfather maybe and my grandfather's sister or something like that.
Scott Benner Okay. (5:12) So no nobody who you even were around any frequency. (5:16) Okay.
Suzanne Right.
Scott Benner How about other autoimmune stuff in your extended family?
Suzanne Not that I No? (5:24) Really know of. (5:25) That's okay. (5:25) Yeah.
Scott Benner How about your mom? (5:26) Does your mom have anything besides the diabetes?
Suzanne She's got some eczema, and she's got she's got fatty liver disease, but I don't I don't think that's autoimmune. (5:36) But the eczema probably definitely is.
Scott Benner Yeah. (5:39) Is she overweight?
Suzanne She was. (5:41) Now she's very thin.
Scott Benner Through the process of the end of her life? (5:45) Is that what's doing it, or do you think they're leaving her blood sugar?
Suzanne It probably could be. (5:51) We thought she had dementia when she moved in with me, but it turns out she doesn't. (5:55) But that's a whole another story in itself.
Scott Benner Oh, we're gonna get to how you misunderstood that your mom had dementia. (6:01) That's gonna be good too. (6:02) You Yeah. (6:03) You're gonna be a fount of conversation. (6:04) This is excellent.
Scott Benner Yeah.
Suzanne Know. (6:06) I'm like, I I hope we can like, hope I can get everything. (6:08) Yeah.
Scott Benner Yeah. (6:09) Everyone settle in. (6:10) I feel good about this. (6:11) Okay. (6:11) So you're Yeah.
Dating and Stress Impacts on A1C
Scott Benner You're you're single person. (6:13) Now you said you're not married, but have you ever been?
Suzanne No. (6:16) I I've never been married. (6:17) A few near misses, but no. (6:20) Yeah.
Scott Benner Do you mean that sadly or happily?
Suzanne Both. (6:27) You're like, oh, I got away with it a couple of times. (6:29) Scott, I almost got hooked up to a real dud. (6:32) But but, you know you know what? (6:34) I have an anecdote that you might be interested.
Suzanne First of all, three guesses who was my I I I live in Iowa, but I lived most of my adult life, and I was diagnosed living in Boston. (6:44) Okay. (6:45) So three guesses who one of my doctors was for a number of years.
Scott Benner God. (6:50) Just tell me.
Suzanne Doctor Handy was my doctor.
Scott Benner Really?
Suzanne Yeah. (6:55) Yeah. (6:55) I I he was great.
Scott Benner You heard him on the podcast. (6:57) You're like, that guy used
Suzanne to be my doctor. (6:59) Yeah. (6:59) I'm not I'm like, oh, doctor Handy. (7:01) Yeah. (7:02) And and it's funny because I didn't even know he was a weight expert because my weight was fine then.
Suzanne He was meant to tell me
Scott Benner Yeah. (7:08) Yeah.
Suzanne He he used to tell me my weight was perfect. (7:11) I mean, who doesn't need a guy in their life telling them that their weight is perfect?
Scott Benner Could use that, by the way.
Suzanne But, anyway, so I was I was yeah. (7:18) Anyway, I was trying to make a relationship work with somebody, and it was really affecting I I didn't really realize it until, of course, you know, I'd ended everything. (7:32) But it was really obvious from my a one c, and I told him, you know, I was trying to make a this relationship work. (7:39) Like, my a one c came way down after all of the stress. (7:42) And then, I'm not saying all relationships are that stressful. (7:46) This was a definitely a I've been in other relationships before that were not that stressful.
Scott Benner Can you explain to me? (7:52) This is after you're diagnosed?
Suzanne Yes. (7:54) And
Scott Benner Yeah. (7:55) And you're working through it's it's tough dating as an adult, isn't it?
Suzanne Yeah.
Scott Benner Yeah. (7:59) Yeah. (8:00) You don't get to grow with the person. (8:01) You get, like, the fully formed person, then you have to see if you can make it fit, I would imagine. (8:05) Yeah.
Scott Benner Yeah. (8:06) Yeah. (8:06) You're dating someone. (8:07) It's going what you think is well enough to put effort into it, but it was stressful?
Suzanne Very stressful. (8:13) And and it was very obvious, the difference between my a one c when I was trying to make the relationship work and when I had ended it. (8:21) Wait. (8:22) Because of, like, adrenaline, cortisol, etcetera, or because you just weren't
Scott Benner focusing as well on yourself at that point?
Suzanne No. (8:28) I think it was just yeah. (8:29) I think it was just this this was a really, really stressful situation.
Scott Benner Oh, I didn't know that could happen. (8:35) I'm probably killing my wife and not realizing it. (8:38) Oh, well, if you hear this, Kelly, I'm sorry. (8:41) Yeah. (8:41) And
Suzanne No. (8:44) No. (8:44) It was just super stressful, and and and it was very obvious in the difference of my a one c. (8:49) And I I I mentioned that to doctor Hamdi. (8:51) So the next time I came to see the him, he's like, so what's going on with the boyfriend?
Suzanne And, you know, so
Scott Benner Did doctor Hamdi make you break up with him? (9:00) Is that what happened?
Suzanne No. (9:00) No. (9:01) No. (9:01) No. (9:01) No.
Suzanne And I and I I don't even think I'd mentioned him until, like, I saw, like, wow. (9:06) This is pretty this is pretty intense. (9:08) And he he wasn't like, oh, that couldn't be. (9:10) He was like, no. (9:10) Yeah.
Suzanne This happens.
Scott Benner No kidding. (9:12) I get I should probably tell people just because everyone doesn't listen to every episode of the podcast, much to my chagrin. (9:19) But Hamdi is in episode it would be nice if spell checker didn't change what I typed. (9:29) Fourteen eleven GLP essentials with doctor Hamdi. (9:33) He was really excellent.
Scott Benner Like, I got a lot of a lot of good feedback about him being on the podcast, actually.
Suzanne Yeah. (9:39) No. (9:39) I wish I I wish he was still my doctor right now.
Scott Benner Yeah. (9:42) So you moved away from him? (9:43) You broke up with him and the guy?
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Suzanne No. (9:45) No. (9:45) I moved back to Iowa. (9:47) I I, moved back to Iowa because I had I ten years into diabetes, I got chronic fatigue syndrome. (9:53) Oh, okay.
Suzanne I was I was really having a hard time just, you know, making life. (9:59) Very expensive to live in Boston for one thing.
Scott Benner Yeah. (10:02) But And cold. (10:03) I don't like the idea of how cold it is.
Suzanne You know, it's kinda the same here. (10:06) It's it's it's not always at the same time, but it's it's pretty much the same weather.
Scott Benner The same thing. (10:11) So would you you move home to be with your mom or to be around family?
Suzanne Yeah. (10:15) I I moved to to be with my mom, and I I lived with her for three years, and then I got my own apartment.
Scott Benner Wow. (10:21) It took you three years to get on your feet after that? (10:23) Was that was that financial or medical?
Suzanne Financial for one. (10:28) Yeah. (10:28) And I was I was able I was trying to get on disability when I was in Boston because I I loved being in Boston. (10:34) I got denied, and then I moved here. (10:37) And I I wasn't even gonna apply again.
Suzanne I was so frustrated, and I applied, and I got on right away. (10:44) And so then I I was able to get my own place after that.
Scott Benner What year was this?
Suzanne This was I moved at the 2014.
Scott Benner 2014. (10:54) Okay.
Suzanne And then I I think I got my own place at the 2018.
Scott Benner And how did that impact diabetes, the chronic fatigue?
Suzanne It's hard to say, but I I will say one thing. (11:06) The difference between chronic fatigue and diabetes. (11:09) So diabetes, you know, I'm feeling sick. (11:13) I finally go to the doctor. (11:16) He sends me to the ER.
Suzanne I'm in DKA. (11:19) I spend a week there. (11:21) I was in intensive care for the first three or four days. (11:24) I was a mess. (11:25) My doctor didn't think I was gonna he was surprised to see me the next day.
Suzanne But I'm there. (11:30) I come out, and then I live my life. (11:32) I have to check my blood sugar. (11:34) I have to take insulin, but I'm living my life. (11:37) With chronic fatigue, you feel sick.
Suzanne You go to lots of doctors, and they don't have any answers. (11:43) And, you know, and you don't get your life back. (11:46) So
Scott Benner Has anything helped over the years?
Suzanne Yeah. (11:51) I'm sure lots of little things that I don't even realize that if I stop doing, it's just a lot of pacing and having to yeah. (11:58) It it Sounds like long COVID. (12:00) Yeah. (12:01) It it it a lot of people say it's pretty much the same thing.
Suzanne And I I even had my doctor, like, go on a a doctor had me go on a protocol, and I was lot of supplements, and I was just too sensitive to a lot of the supplements to
Scott Benner Have you ever had in the past, like, Epstein Barr? (12:19) Or
Suzanne I don't know. (12:20) Like, it's like, the tests I've had for that are kind of what's the word? (12:25) Either equivocal or unequivocal or like like like, probably.
Scott Benner Said, I don't know. (12:31) Is that right?
Suzanne Yeah. (12:32) Yeah. (12:32) Yeah. (12:32) Yeah. (12:32) And I've I've had one virus called h h v six.
Suzanne That's a virus that I have had, and I've I've I I was gonna treat for it, and then I decided not to. (12:44) I you know, it's kind of a six of one half dozen of the other dealing with side effects and all that. (12:50) So I mean, I've tried so many different things. (12:52) I've recently done like an adrenal program and I've worked with the same doctor previously when I was first diagnosed, but it's still yeah. (13:03) I feel like I'm getting worse lately, like, my fatigue.
Suzanne And and I feel like I'm having new issues now, and I'm just like, okay.
Scott Benner I'm I'm doing some picking while you're talking. (13:14) Viruses linked to the onset, Epstein Barr virus is just mono HHV six influenza, SARS viruses that are COVID relatives, but, you know, it was 2014. (13:25) Not that you couldn't have gotten a different virus previous to that. (13:29) It often goes hand they don't call it autoimmune, but there's doctors who talk about it like it is.
Omnipod and US Med Promos
Scott Benner This episode is brought to you by Omnipod.
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Scott Benner So one time, I didn't respond to the email And the phone rings at the house. (15:02) It's like, ring. (15:03) You know how it works. (15:04) And I picked it up. (15:05) I was like, hello?
Scott Benner And it was just the recording. (15:07) It was like, US Med. (15:08) Doesn't actually sound like that, but you know what I'm saying. (15:10) It said, hey. (15:11) You're, I don't remember exactly what it says.
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Hashimoto's and Thyroid Symptoms
Suzanne Yeah. (16:02) Do you
Scott Benner have Hashimoto's?
Suzanne When okay. (16:03) When I was first getting the, dealing with the fatigue, I went to a naturopath, and she took some tests and I had a lot of antibodies for my thyroid. (16:14) I've never been able to take thyroid medication. (16:16) I have a doctor that tests my thyroid on the regular. (16:19) With diet and such, I was able to get all my antibodies to go away, but I feel like I probably should be tested again.
Scott Benner Yeah. (16:26) I mean, do you remember how long ago was it that you were tested the last time you got a full thyroid panel?
Suzanne A full thyroid panel. (16:33) Probably probably within the year.
Scott Benner Do know what your TSH was then?
Suzanne It's always super normal. (16:39) Like, it's You know what that TSH what?
Scott Benner Numbers. (16:43) What does that mean? (16:44) Numbers?
Suzanne Ugh. (16:45) I forget.
Scott Benner Because I say I'm super normal, but then people meet me and they don't say the same thing.
Suzanne So Okay. (16:50) I can I can look it up while we're chatting?
Scott Benner Would probable.
Suzanne Yeah. (16:53) Yeah. (16:53) Absolutely. (16:54) Okay. (16:54) Absolutely.
Scott Benner Thank you. (16:55) I wanna keep talking about this for a half a second.
Suzanne Sure.
Nicotine Patches and Long COVID
Scott Benner You're describing feeling like, you know, my wife talks about long COVID. (17:04) We we, like, zapped her out of long COVID with nicotine patches.
Suzanne Wow.
Scott Benner And so if you haven't heard that, it's, like, at the end of an episode somewhere. (17:14) So I'll I'll go back over it with you for a second, and I have no idea if these two things, like, will interact. (17:21) But while I'm talking to our overlords and you're speaking, I said, can nicotine help with this? (17:27) And it says some people think nicotine might help. (17:29) But right now, the evidence is very weak and mostly theoretical.
Scott Benner Nicotine affects several systems that appear abnormal in MECFS, nervous system, brain alertness, inflammation, etcetera, anti inflammatory pathways. (17:42) Nicotine can activate something called the, oh my god, cholinergic anti inflammatory pathway, which may reduce inflammatory signaling from the immune system. (17:52) So I'm gonna ask it in COVID in long COVID patients. (17:58) The nicotine spike protein idea. (18:00) Some research proposes that SARS CoV two spike protein interacts with nicotine receptors.
Scott Benner These receptors are involved in automatic nervous system regulation, inflammation control, brain signaling, muscle function. (18:13) The theory suggests the spike protein might interfere with these receptors, which could contribute to symptoms seen in long COVID, POTS, severe fatigue, and brain fog. (18:23) So nicotine binds to those same receptors. (18:26) So the idea is is that nicotine might compete with the spike protein at the receptor and restore the signaling. (18:32) And I will tell you that, you know, my wife was sort of at wit's end with long COVID.
Scott Benner And I had heard
Suzanne this know what it's like. (18:41) You know what this is like.
Scott Benner Parifying. (18:43) Absolutely. (18:43) So, you know, go to the mall, come home, three days resting?
Suzanne Yeah. (18:48) Yeah. (18:48) Exactly. (18:48) Exactly. (18:49) Like like, I'm I'm very excited about this interview, but I'm like, okay.
Suzanne At least I'm very glad I don't have anything else that I have to do today.
Scott Benner Right. (18:56) No. (18:56) No. (18:57) No. (18:57) I've I've I've seen it for a while now.
Scott Benner I saw some people online talking about it. (19:01) Seemed like bro science at that point. (19:04) And but I still mentioned it to my wife. (19:05) Let me clear my throat. (19:06) Anyway, she, poo pooed me.
Scott Benner And Uh-huh. (19:09) As she should have, by the way. (19:11) And Yeah. (19:11) And then I'm talking to a lady on the podcast a few years later a few months later, excuse me, and she says, oh, I've, you know, really getting my long COVID, under control. (19:21) And I was like, how'd you do that?
Scott Benner And she goes, oh, you know, I hope this doesn't sound crazy, but I use nicotine patches. (19:25) And I was like, oh, I've heard of that. (19:27) We talked it through, and I went on Amazon, ordered nicotine patches, and, you know, basically said to my wife, like, know, just do this. (19:35) What could Mhmm. (19:36) You know, it's not gonna hurt you.
Scott Benner It's not like it's not it's not like your your head's gonna pop off. (19:41) Like, put the nicotine patch on once every twenty four hours, and let's see what happens. (19:44) And I'd say about three weeks into it, I overheard her on a call with a colleague telling them, my husband, like, he suggested this, and I feel a lot better now. (19:53) And it really did help
Suzanne her Wow.
Scott Benner Astonishingly. (19:56) Anyway
Suzanne I I mean, I I it might be worth a try. (19:58) I'm very sensitive, like, to a lot of things, so it's like I have to be careful with, like, regular coffee.
Scott Benner Start with half a patch. (20:06) Cut it in half.
Suzanne Yeah. (20:08) Yeah. (20:08) You know, I I mean so I I I did find my TSH, and I'm 2.23.
Scott Benner Yeah. (20:13) See, I would tell you to listen to episode four thirteen of the podcast where, integrative doctor and endocrinologist is gonna tell you that anything over two one with symptoms needs medication.
Suzanne I've tried thyroid medication many times, and I
Scott Benner It brings your TSH down, but doesn't make you feel better?
Suzanne I can't even take it for, more than a week. (20:33) What happens? (20:35) I what's the word? (20:37) I can't describe it, but I feel horrible. (20:39) Like, I it's it's it's kinda makes me, like, race.
Suzanne Like, I I can't
Scott Benner Oh, your heart races?
Suzanne Not my heart. (20:46) No? (20:46) Just my whole being. (20:48) I I can't even explain it.
Scott Benner It's How much are they giving you?
Suzanne Always go with the lowest doses. (20:53) We always start with the and I and I have a great doctor.
Scott Benner I believe you.
Suzanne Well, I it's funny. (20:58) Like, she has a a functional medicine practice, but she can't see me there because I can't afford her prices. (21:06) But I see her at another clinic that she works at through my insurance, so she doesn't have all the time to but but she she does what she can for me. (21:14) And so she she tests she constantly tests my and I'm always on the low end of normal. (21:20) So she's like, well, let's just try something.
Suzanne So I've tried different forms. (21:24) I've tried Cytomel. (21:25) I've tried I think I did Armour a long time ago, and I didn't think it did anything, and so I stopped. (21:32) But I think I should try that again, but my insurance doesn't pay for it. (21:35) Not that I wouldn't She was giving you the t three without the t four?
Suzanne We've tried everything. (21:40) Oh. (21:40) We've tried the we've tried all the things. (21:43) Did you ever tried sakes.
Scott Benner Tirosint? (21:46) It's like a Yeah. (21:47) Yeah. (21:47) You tried that either.
Suzanne It's funny.
Scott Benner Okay.
Suzanne It's funny because I was going through some stuff, and I found it the other day. (21:51) And I you know, I was like, oh, yeah. (21:53) I should probably throw this out. (21:54) Or
Scott Benner pop one in your mouth and see what happens. (21:57) Yeah. (21:57) So you're telling me that when you're on the lowest dose, it speeds you up?
Suzanne Yeah. (22:03) And not a and not a and not a comfortable way.
Scott Benner Okay. (22:06) I you know, I understand that part. (22:07) Like, did you try to go to, like, every other day? (22:10) Or
Suzanne Did I might have. (22:12) I don't remember.
Scott Benner Because what other what do you have all the classic, like, Hashimoto's symptoms?
Suzanne Lately, I have the weight gain, and that's been in the last few years.
Scott Benner Mhmm.
Suzanne Remember what the classic symptoms are?
Scott Benner Well, fatigue, persist yeah. (22:28) Yeah. (22:29) Persistent tiredness, low energy even after sleeping, weight gain. (22:33) Yeah. (22:33) Usually, five and twenty pound range happens even when you're eating less.
Scott Benner Cold intolerance, do you have that?
Suzanne Sometimes, but not all the time. (22:43) I get actually, I get hot a lot.
Scott Benner Okay. (22:45) Brain fog, slower thinking memory? (22:47) Yeah. (22:48) Okay.
Suzanne Big time. (22:48) I mean, that's been for twenty four years.
Scott Benner Depression or low mood?
Suzanne Can be. (22:54) Yeah.
Scott Benner Hair, skin, and appearance. (22:55) We're looking for hair loss on
Suzanne the scalp, loss of the outer third of your eyebrows. (23:00) Probably the eyebrow thing. (23:01) And I I've gone through bouts of hair loss. (23:04) Right now, I'm I'm not, but, you know, like, it just kinda comes and goes.
Scott Benner Yeah. (23:08) Suzanne, do you wanna keep going, do you wanna assume that you have Hashimoto's? (23:12) Rough or flaky skin, pale or yellowish tone?
Suzanne No. (23:16) Not really.
Scott Benner Okay. (23:17) Puffy face around your eyes?
Suzanne Maybe.
Scott Benner Brittle nails?
Suzanne Yeah. (23:22) That's I mean I mean yeah. (23:24) Definitely.
Scott Benner Constipation, muscle weakness?
Suzanne The muscle weakness is new. (23:29) I mean, the fatigue has been going on for twenty four years. (23:31) Yeah. (23:32) But the the muscle weakness is really within the last few years.
Scott Benner Okay. (23:35) Joint or muscle aching?
Suzanne They'll come and go.
Scott Benner Back in the day, heavy or irregular periods?
Suzanne Yes.
Scott Benner Low libido? (23:44) Sorry, Suzanne.
Suzanne Probably not. (23:46) Oh,
Scott Benner no. (23:47) You're still getting after it? (23:49) Suzanne, is that what you're telling me? (23:50) What is what is happening right now?
Suzanne I'm just saying I'm just saying
Scott Benner Oh, probably you don't wanna answer?
Suzanne No. (23:54) It's just kind of a sensitive question, but Sure it is.
Scott Benner Well, maybe that's a podcast. (23:59) If it was Yeah. (24:00) You know, if it was PBS, I probably wouldn't have asked you. (24:03) So you don't have to answer anything you don't wanna answer.
Suzanne Okay.
Scott Benner Okay? (24:07) Anxiety, heart palpitations, sweating, irritability.
Suzanne That can be. (24:11) Yeah.
Scott Benner Okay. (24:12) Wow.
Suzanne Also Go ahead. (24:14) That's all I mean, I I just don't I don't know. (24:16) I just don't think I have Hashimoto's, but but I I know that if I if I don't eat right, like, well, maybe, you know, maybe because diet has kinda kept things at bay. (24:26) But right now, yeah, nothing's keeping anything at bay.
Scott Benner I mean, listen. (24:30) A lot of these things are, like, vagaries that, like, apply to a lot. (24:34) It's a it's a problem with, like, a lot of autoimmune stuff, actually.
Suzanne Right? (24:38) Right. (24:38) Right.
Scott Benner Is it you just can be like, hey. (24:40) Do you have this? (24:40) Like, yeah. (24:41) Sort of 40 other things.
Suzanne Yeah. (24:43) No. (24:43) No. (24:43) The yeah. (24:44) The the nonspecific symptoms.
Scott Benner Yeah.
Suzanne Yeah.
Scott Benner When you're on the meds, racing heart, anxiety, jitteriness, sweating, trouble sleeping, shakiness, feeling amped up. (24:53) You had those things? (24:55) Okay. (24:56) Did it start with palpitations?
Suzanne No. (24:59) I don't I don't think I had palpitations that
Scott Benner I know of. (25:02) The Internet says that it that very possibly just has to do with the dose being too high.
Suzanne But we always we always started low. (25:10) Like like, if if the doctor said, oh, take this dose, I'll be like, oh, no. (25:14) Let's take it even lower.
Scott Benner You were able to, like, take half even or,
Suzanne Yeah.
Scott Benner Yeah. (25:19) Did it happen, like, as soon as you put the first pill in, or did it take a little bit of time?
Suzanne Both. (25:25) Usually we usually took a day or two, at least.
Scott Benner Yeah. (25:28) You are a lightweight, though, generally speaking. (25:30) Like, a lot of stuff impacts you.
Suzanne Yeah. (25:32) I'm I'm very sensitive.
Scott Benner Yeah. (25:33) Yeah. (25:33) That was nice. (25:34) So a nicer way to say it. (25:35) Yeah.
Scott Benner Yeah. (25:35) I'm sorry. (25:36) Yeah. (25:36) I am very similar. (25:37) Like, when I if I go for a procedure and they put me out, I'm like, you're not gonna eat much of that.
Scott Benner I'm like Yeah. (25:42) I'm like, I'll go out pretty easy. (25:43) Okay. (25:43) Well, I mean, listen. (25:44) I'm sorry.
Scott Benner I'm not I would just I'm just trying to help you, like, think through it.
Suzanne Appreciate it. (25:49) You know? (25:49) I feel like I wish I had house in my life except without the drug problem and the snarky attitude.
Scott Benner I don't know.
Suzanne You know? (25:56) Somebody who's like, we're gonna figure this out. (25:58) You know?
Scott Benner I thought the attitude was fun. (26:00) The drug problem was weird.
Suzanne Well, wouldn't be a show without the attitude.
Scott Benner I I guess you're right. (26:04) Yeah. (26:05) I guess you're absolutely right. (26:08) I yeah. (26:09) I don't know.
Scott Benner Like, it I mean, if it's Hashimoto's and you need the medication, then just splitting doses or just using a much lighter dose could possibly be your answer. (26:20) Like, as much as you didn't like how you felt when you were on it, did it dissipate some of the other problems?
Suzanne Not that I know of. (26:27) And and I think I think the reason I got so crazy on it is because I don't really need it. (26:34) I don't think that's really my root issue.
Scott Benner Yeah. (26:36) I take your point. (26:36) Like, if you didn't need it, this is exactly the outcome that would come from it. (26:39) Yeah. (26:40) Yeah.
Scott Benner For sure.
Suzanne But but I I I don't know. (26:41) But but I I am gonna have I was thinking I should have doctor my doctor do a, a thyroid panel next time I go see her a full one.
Scott Benner Yeah. (26:50) It's a shame. (26:50) I mean, honestly, though, I mean, for $30, you got nicotine patches coming from Amazon. (26:55) So
Suzanne Right.
Scott Benner You know, I mean, I would tell you the same thing I told my wife. (26:59) If there's seven milligram patches, it's $30 for 14 patches. (27:03) So I basically I think I paid $60 for a month. (27:06) She did it for a month, and she was, like, better. (27:09) So Okay.
Scott Benner I but I will tell you, I have dabbled with them just so I understood what was happening to her. (27:16) And it would be fair to tell you that after not using one for a while, I I tried to just slap one on again because she stopped and started, I wanted to see what was coming from stopping and starting. (27:28) And it like, I did like, I got nauseous from it. (27:32) Like, it was too much for me. (27:33) So I would if I was if you do this, I would definitely start slower.
Scott Benner Like, there's a world where I might even, like, quarter those patches up and wear, a quarter of it for twenty four hours just to try to get yourself accustomed to it or be you know, make a science experiment out of it and figure out how much of it. (27:49) I'm not saying a quarter is the right amount, but, like, just to give yourself a little bit of it and see if you can ramp up to it. (27:55) Because, I mean, honestly, for, you know, for a month's worth of trying something, if it actually helped you, like, think how amazing that would be.
Suzanne Right. (28:04) Right. (28:04) No.
Scott Benner She's not continuing to do it. (28:06) She just did it, and she stopped.
Suzanne Wow. (28:09) That's that's interesting. (28:10) Yeah. (28:10) Look at you can look it up.
Scott Benner There's a website online that talks about, nicotine and COVID if you wanna look into it.
Suzanne Can you recommend a brand?
Scott Benner I was using Havitrol.
Suzanne Havitrol?
Scott Benner H a b I t r o l. (28:23) There's other ones. (28:23) Okay. (28:24) Some of them are Okay. (28:25) Less expensive.
Suzanne Okay. (28:27) Well, just sometimes you go you go to look for something, and there's a million choices. (28:31) Yeah. (28:31) Yeah.
Scott Benner Yeah.
Suzanne Can somebody just give me a the work for the
Scott Benner Tell me what to do, please. (28:36) Yeah. (28:37) I'm not yeah. (28:37) I I have to find let me see if I can find the, nicotine protocol. (28:46) It's covidinstitute.org.
Scott Benner It it'll talk about nicotine. (28:54) What nicotine cannot do, nicotine doesn't it's it's so funny. (28:57) Like, everyone online says nicotine, like, like, interacts with the receptor. (29:03) And so it doesn't actually it doesn't touch the spike protein itself, and I don't even know. (29:10) I'm I'm looking here.
Scott Benner It weakly binds to the alpha seven nicotine receptor on a different site, the spike protein. (29:17) So it's unable to dislodge the spike protein from the nicotine. (29:19) Oh, see, this is interesting. (29:21) So covidinstitute.org is telling you nicotine is not gonna work on long COVID.
Suzanne Mhmm.
Scott Benner That's interesting. (29:29) And if you go to a different
Suzanne website didn't know that. (29:33) Right?
Scott Benner No. (29:34) No. (29:34) I mean, honestly, like, yeah, I just went with what the lady on the like, the conversation. (29:38) Like, look. (29:38) I tried it, and it really helped me.
Scott Benner And I thought, well, for $30, we can get going and see.
Suzanne Yeah. (29:43) Yeah. (29:43) It's all
Scott Benner over the place. (29:45) Nicotine patches could help. (29:46) Nicotine patches won't help. (29:48) Blah blah blah. (29:49) The world is so interesting, isn't it?
Scott Benner Yeah.
Suzanne When I when I, was first dealing with the fatigue, everybody was tell all the doctors were telling me I was depressed, and that's why I was tired. (29:59) And so they started me on the tour of SSRIs and and I didn't have a good experience with those. (30:06) I took several and finally, I was like, I'm done with this. (30:09) And I'd read about this stuff called five HTP
Scott Benner Mhmm.
Suzanne In a magazine, and I thought, what the heck? (30:17) And I tried it, and it really helps with my mood.
Scott Benner Okay.
Suzanne It it really so, you know, it's like sometimes you're just like, I'm just gonna try this.
Scott Benner And Hey. (30:26) Listen. (30:26) When you're in your situation, I say why not?
Suzanne Yeah. (30:29) Yeah.
Scott Benner Yeah. (30:31) Because if it's not thyroid and, I mean, the SSRI thing, that's just what they do to ladies when they I know. (30:37) They have your complaints. (30:39) That's just the bull thing they do.
Suzanne That's that's why when I go to the doctor and they say, are you depressed? (30:45) I'm like, I'm good. (30:46) Just like, don't wanna
Scott Benner Now everything's fine.
Suzanne I'm I don't wanna go down that route.
Scott Benner I love chronic pain and fatigue. (30:53) Thank you. (30:53) Yeah. (30:54) Yeah. (30:54) And five HTP precursor to serotonin serotonin, it can increase serotonin or melatonin, help with mood calmness, pain regulation, sleep.
Scott Benner Yeah. (31:05) It's interesting. (31:05) Mood and anxiety. (31:06) Low thyroid function could be associated with lower serotonin signaling, so raising serotonin may help with low mood, irritability, anxiety, feeling mentally overwhelmed. (31:16) Interesting.
Suzanne Yeah. (31:18) Yeah.
Scott Benner Very good.
Suzanne So I under I'm I'm I'm I'm not adverse to just trying something.
Scott Benner Sure. (31:23) No. (31:23) It doesn't sound like it. (31:24) Yeah. (31:24) Now you were like, hey.
Scott Benner I heard of something in a magazine. (31:26) I'll swallow it.
Suzanne Yeah. (31:27) Exactly. (31:28) It
Scott Benner sounds crazy. (31:31) I mean, a little, but I think maybe one more generation of people living on the Internet, no one's gonna think of that oddly anymore. (31:38) You know what I mean?
Suzanne Like Right.
Scott Benner Yeah. (31:40) Because you and I are old enough to remember if somebody said something to you, you're like, that is crazy because you didn't know about it or couldn't talk to anybody else.
Suzanne Yeah. (31:48) Right. (31:49) Right. (31:49) Right.
Caregiving for an Aging Parent with T1D
Scott Benner How do you deal with the the diabetes? (31:53) Is it a pretty successful thing? (31:55) Is it a background thing for you, or is it a thing that even years later, you still struggle with?
Suzanne Well, here's the thing. (32:01) I I feel like when I was first diagnosed, I took it in stride. (32:06) Like, I it was a background thing.
Scott Benner Okay.
Suzanne You know? (32:10) I mean, like like you always say, you know, if you're gonna have diabetes, this is the time in the world to have it. (32:15) You know? (32:16) Like, we've got the tools. (32:18) You know, I was grateful to to be able to do finger sticks even at the beginning.
Suzanne And and right now, I I do a closed loop with tandem, and that that's been pretty good. (32:29) But the thing about it is now that I have chronic fatigue, it's it's just another burden. (32:37) Diabetes is like a burden. (32:39) And then now taking care of my mother with diabetes Yeah. (32:42) And and just everything from dealing with customer service to dealing with, you know, just the site changes and like, if I'm gonna go away I mean, this is a big thing right now.
Suzanne Like, I I was able to travel a couple times last year. (32:57) Mhmm. (32:57) I went for I used to go for, like, six weeks at a time because I don't I don't have a lot of money, and all my close friends are in Boston, so I'll just go there.
Scott Benner Yeah.
Suzanne But now I, you know, I I could only I went for first, I went for one week. (33:09) The second time, I went for, I think, two or three weeks. (33:13) And finding people to change her stuff was really hard. (33:18) And we live in a smallish city, and so just finding people to deal with that was was really, really difficult. (33:26) So now it's it's it's more it's it's more of a burden.
Scott Benner Okay. (33:31) Yeah. (33:31) Be because it's two people?
Suzanne Because it's two people and I have chronic fatigue.
Scott Benner And you have chronic yeah.
Suzanne And and also because just finding caregivers that like, my mom almost went into an independent living facility a couple months ago. (33:48) I talked to one of the administrators, I'm like, Well, the thing is are we gonna be able to have somebody that can help her? (33:55) Because she can't do her site changes now. (33:59) Yeah, she stopped being able to do that about seventeen months ago.
Scott Benner Mhmm.
Suzanne So I have to do all that for her. (34:06) And just to and the guy was like, oh, yeah. (34:08) We have a lot of people in her situation. (34:10) And then when I talked to the actual people that do it, they had no idea what to do with a pump, no idea not much idea about a CGM. (34:18) A lot of people there do wear CGMs, but they're able to do them themselves.
Suzanne And it it was just like, woah. (34:25) This is this is crazy.
Scott Benner I like when they're like, no. (34:27) We know all about it. (34:28) We mistreat people with type one diabetes all the time here.
Suzanne Yeah. (34:31) And and then when when it came down to it, they found somebody that could do it, but it was gonna cost about $560 a month just for somebody to come in for, you know, like, ten minutes and, like like, a few a couple of times a week.
Scott Benner Really? (34:47) And what what do you do? (34:48) Are you going over and helping her?
Suzanne Well, see, this was in a different town that I live in. (34:52) And I would I would eventually move there, but I'm I'm just not ready to pick up and move right now. (34:57) She had a friend there, and it would kinda be a fun place for her to be. (35:01) Like, she'd have a lot of of social interaction. (35:03) And so it was it wouldn't I wouldn't be able to just come over and do it.
Suzanne Mhmm. (35:09) Or at least for a while until I, you know, packed up and moved.
Scott Benner Is there a big, mental health component to this? (35:17) Like, do you feel like you're not helping her as much, or is it more of a strain on you? (35:22) Like, what's the the, I guess, the psychological impacts to your mom being in this situation?
Suzanne The cycle impact on me? (35:30) Yeah. (35:31) On you. (35:31) Yeah.
Scott Benner Do you feel like you're
Suzanne I yeah. (35:33) You know
Scott Benner what I mean?
Suzanne It's it's too much. (35:35) It's and and it's, actually, it's it's been amazing, though. (35:39) I'm I'm grateful, but it it has been a lot. (35:43) Like, it it's not even just that. (35:44) It's that I have to do all her financial stuff as well.
Suzanne And it's just it's just kind of and and I I have you know, I'm I'm wanting to to work on some music right now. (35:54) And so it's just it's just hard to find time to to, you know, balance everything. (35:58) And I and I teach a little bit as well. (36:01) So it's it's just kinda like I sometimes I feel like I'm just kinda circling the know?
Scott Benner Suzanne's like, listen. (36:07) I'm giving up. (36:08) This is what I'm this is what I would do. (36:09) Yeah. (36:10) Would just I'm here to tell you all.
Suzanne Yeah. (36:13) No. (36:13) I mean, it's just I'm and also, I'm I'm I'm kind of I'm kind of sick of of self care for myself, you know, just I have, a special diet and all and I'm just I'm just like, ugh. (36:24) You know? (36:24) Like
Scott Benner Too much to to to be thinking about constantly.
Suzanne Yeah. (36:28) It's just it's just kinda too much. (36:30) But but but my mom is a really delightful person, and so I'm grateful that I'm able and I I was just talking to a friend of mine this morning, and she reminded me that if I didn't have diabetes and I hadn't learned a whole lot about natural medicine, I wouldn't be able to help my mom the way that I have been.
Scott Benner Yeah. (36:47) I mean, there's high sides to all this, but it doesn't change what a burden it
Suzanne is. (36:50) No. (36:51) It doesn't. (36:51) It it doesn't. (36:52) It doesn't take that away.
Scott Benner Are you anxious?
Suzanne I can be, but I'm not usually, but I I can be.
Scott Benner Okay. (37:00) The burden of this is really about time and energy then?
Suzanne Yeah. (37:04) Yeah. (37:04) Okay.
Scott Benner Yeah. (37:05) You think if you had energy the way other people do, maybe it wouldn't feel the same to you?
Suzanne Oh, yeah. (37:10) Oh, yeah.
Scott Benner Okay. (37:11) Yeah. (37:11) Because you do seem excited to help her. (37:13) Actually, like, happy to help her, I guess.
Suzanne Yeah. (37:16) Well, in most days, yeah. (37:18) A
Scott Benner lot. (37:18) Yeah.
Suzanne Yeah. (37:19) It's it's like, you know, some days when I've like like, my pump has run out and I've had to do like, it it only takes, like, five, ten minutes, but it's like and then then hers will run out or her her pump will, like, malfunction or, you know, just something like that, and you gotta call customer service and da da da. (37:35) You know, it all happens at the same time. (37:37) And
Scott Benner I just had to go to the pharmacy yesterday, and they messed everything up so much that I got home and nothing was the way it was supposed to be, and I had to go back. (37:46) And as I left the house, I said to my wife, I feel capable of dealing with this, but just in case things go sideways, I'll see you at the police station.
Suzanne And I and I and I was
Scott Benner I was on my way out the door again. (37:58) I know how you feel.
Suzanne Exactly. (38:00) Yeah.
Scott Benner Yeah. (38:01) Ex Do you have brothers or sisters?
Suzanne I do. (38:05) I have a brother.
Scott Benner Is he not helpful?
Suzanne He's got a lot going on. (38:09) He's got three adult kids in three different states, and he kinda leaves things to me.
Scott Benner The answer is yes. (38:14) He's not helpful?
Suzanne Okay. (38:18) I you know You're so polite, Suzette. (38:22) I you're you're fine. (38:22) Ask him for something if I ask him for something, he'll he'll try to do it. (38:27) But he's not like, oh, how can I, you know, how can I do this?
Suzanne How can I help?
Scott Benner That's how I describe my marriage after thirty years.
Suzanne If I ask her to do something, she'll try to do it. (38:35) No.
Scott Benner I hear what you're saying. (38:37) Do you and your mom ever look at each other and are like, look at us in this thing with this diabetes? (38:41) Do you guys talk about it?
Suzanne Yeah. (38:43) Yeah. (38:44) We do.
Scott Benner What's her takeaway of a life with diabetes, do you think?
Suzanne Well okay. (38:49) She's only had it for, like, since she's been in her fifties.
Scott Benner That's a long time.
Suzanne It is. (38:54) Is long
Scott Benner time. (38:55) Yeah.
Suzanne Yeah. (38:55) I think so so she was probably I guess she was probably, like, 55 maybe when she was so so I guess
Scott Benner Thirty years?
Suzanne Yeah. (39:02) So she's had it for thirty years. (39:03) I've had it for thirty four. (39:05) So yeah. (39:08) What's her take?
Suzanne I don't know what her take is.
Scott Benner Does she seem did she seem burdened by it prior to not being able to take care of herself?
Suzanne You know, she you know, it's funny because I got it first. (39:22) And so she was just kinda she just kinda and she she was able to diagnose herself by kinda looking at me with some of the symptoms. (39:30) Mhmm. (39:31) So I think she just thought I was kind of like a a a good example to her. (39:36) And so she was just like, well, Suzanne can do it.
Suzanne I can do it kind of thing.
Scott Benner Yeah. (39:40) She just went on her way and did it. (39:41) Okay. (39:41) Yeah. (39:41) Hey.
Overmedication vs. Dementia
Scott Benner Why did you think she had dementia, but she didn't?
Suzanne Oh, well okay. (39:45) So she thought she had dementia. (39:47) Okay. (39:48) And well, for what there was a certain political, person that, she would look at the TV and go, I have what he has. (40:00) And because of look in his on his face.
Suzanne One day, she drove over to my house. (40:05) I was gonna help her with something with her insulin pump.
Scott Benner Okay.
Suzanne And in the course of the conversation, it came out that she didn't feel safe living alone anymore. (40:14) She didn't feel safe driving anymore, and she didn't wanna drive anyway. (40:19) And I was like, well, you can stay here. (40:21) I mean, I didn't know what else to say. (40:22) Like, you can stay here tonight.
Suzanne You know? (40:24) A week and a half into that, and she had she had scheduled herself for a cognitive evaluation.
Scott Benner Really? (40:31) How old and what age did this happen?
Suzanne She was, like, 83.
Scott Benner Oh, just a couple years ago. (40:36) Okay.
Suzanne Yeah. (40:37) Yeah. (40:37) Yeah. (40:37) This is, like, seven. (40:38) Yeah.
Suzanne Like yeah.
Scott Benner Okay.
Suzanne We finally well, and then a week and a half of her living with me, she broke her arm.
Scott Benner Oh my gosh.
Suzanne Fell and broke her arm. (40:47) So that was really hard. (40:49) That was talk about burden. (40:51) That was really hard. (40:52) Yeah.
Suzanne You know? (40:53) Like, I had to help her with everything. (40:54) So she got her cognitive evaluation in, like, October year, and they do this little test called a slums test. (41:03) I it's Saint Louis something. (41:05) It's like this little cursory, you know, cognitive evaluation, and she got 13 out of 30 on it.
Suzanne I'm kind of about natural medicine when you can be. (41:16) I mean, I would never go a day without my insulin or or, you know, like, there's a place for but but I I also think a lot of things are overprescribed. (41:25) The the doctor said, oh, let's hold she was on three blood pressure medications.
Scott Benner Okay.
Suzanne And so I took her off two of those, and now she only takes the other one once a day where she was taking it twice a day and her blood pressure's fine. (41:40) I took her off a statin drug and she was shuffling her feet. (41:45) She does not shuffle her feet anymore. (41:47) When she moved in with me, she was not interested in food. (41:51) She was not interested in reading, the things that she loves.
Suzanne She just didn't care. (41:55) And over the course of time, she she got another slums test in March, and she got 19 out of 30. (42:07) And then last October, she got another one. (42:09) She got 27 out of 30, which is pretty much normal.
Scott Benner Is this the blood pressure meant? (42:14) I mean, first of all, this is, this might sound crazy to people, but this is not incredibly uncommon for older people to go to a doctor. (42:20) They put her on a blood pressure medication. (42:22) Then they go to another doctor. (42:24) They add a med, but don't take the other one away.
Scott Benner Yeah. (42:26) Yeah.
Suzanne Yeah. (42:27) Exactly.
Scott Benner Right.
Suzanne So I I think it was just maybe she was just over medicated. (42:32) Yeah. (42:32) And and I I also, you know, I I help her with her food, you know, and I help manage her diabetes. (42:38) Like, her her a one c's have been great lately. (42:40) Like, they've been, like, six something.
Scott Benner Wow. (42:43) Good for you. (42:43) I'm sorry. (42:44) Does this whole process of being with her make you start worrying about yourself as an older? (42:49) Because you Oh, yeah.
Scott Benner Because you don't have a you when you get older.
Suzanne Exactly. (42:53) Yeah. (42:53) No. (42:53) I don't. (42:54) And I yeah.
Suzanne And I don't have kids. (42:55) And, yeah, I don't have kids to take care of me. (42:57) I I yeah. (42:58) So exactly. (43:00) Yeah.
Suzanne It definite definitely.
Scott Benner To answer your question, yes, I'm scared out of my mind. (43:04) Thank you.
Suzanne Yeah.
Scott Benner Well, yeah, no. (43:05) I hear you. (43:06) If you left her to her own, like, what would stop her from taking good care of herself? (43:10) Is it dexterity? (43:11) Is it clarity?
Scott Benner Like, what would stop her from taking care of her diabetes by herself?
Suzanne Well, I think she said the with the pump, it's like her eyesight. (43:21) Mhmm. (43:21) You know, like, being able to see the you know? (43:24) And she does wear glasses, but, you know, like, her eyesight kinda, changes. (43:27) She keeps all her glasses because she had a doctor tell her, keep all your glasses because your eyesight will change even if you get a new prescription.
Suzanne But still, for her to living alone was just hard for her. (43:41) Sure. (43:41) I mean, we were in touch. (43:42) Like, we we spent time together. (43:44) It wasn't like like I just left her out there on the farm.
Suzanne But, like, we ate together frequently.
Scott Benner And Is it is it strange for you to still be this in touch with your mom, or do you like it?
Suzanne I really liked living alone. (43:57) I really did. (43:59) I really did. (44:00) But I I'm like, I don't know. (44:02) Like, I'm I'm grateful.
Suzanne You know, I think it would be great. (44:05) She may get another apartment in this building. (44:08) That might be good. (44:09) I'm I'm not sure if I wanna stay in this building. (44:11) I want some green space too.
Scott Benner Okay.
Suzanne Fortunately, I have an extra bedroom. (44:15) Like, what if I didn't? (44:16) Yeah. (44:16) You'd be on the sofa. (44:17) Your mom be sleeping in your bed.
Suzanne Yeah. (44:19) Yeah. (44:19) Exactly. (44:20) Exactly. (44:21) So You live in Iowa.
Suzanne Have you tried meth for all these problems, or
Scott Benner is that not something you've gotten into yet?
Suzanne Meth. (44:26) Why is why is meth an Iowa thing?
Scott Benner I don't
Suzanne know, isn't it? (44:30) I don't
Scott Benner Listen. (44:33) If I'm just gonna generalize and you guys would've hold me down to all the details, this is gonna be a problem making this podcast. (44:38) Okay? (44:39) Okay.
Suzanne Yeah. (44:41) Well, you need a fact checker.
Scott Benner Well, let's not get crazy. (44:44) I guess I was leading into, like, how did you avoid medicating yourself other ways, like, through your life with all this? (44:52) Like, how come like, you're not a drinker. (44:54) Right? (44:54) You don't get high?
Scott Benner Like, why do you not
Suzanne Well, a friend's prayer, a lot of prayer.
Scott Benner Yeah.
Suzanne A lot of friends that that, you know, are committed to the same ethic. (45:06) Yeah. (45:06) But most of my close friends don't live in my state.
Scott Benner They're in Boston?
Suzanne Yeah. (45:11) They're in Boston or in Virginia or Texas or
Scott Benner Yeah. (45:15) Yeah. (45:15) People move around. (45:16) What do you do for a living?
Suzanne Most of my income is disability, but I still teach a little bit of music. (45:21) Mhmm. (45:22) And I'm learning music production.
Scott Benner Oh, nice. (45:25) Throughout your adult life, it's been mostly disability?
Suzanne No. (45:29) No. (45:29) I I I got on disability when I moved home to Iowa.
Scott Benner Okay.
Suzanne But I Okay. (45:34) When I was in Boston, I worked for a nonprofit, and I went around to different schools and taught music and produced big shows with kids.
Scott Benner And Oh, wow.
Suzanne So I I look back, and I'm like, how did I do that? (45:44) I mean, I I still in Boston for, like, ten years with with chronic fatigue at least. (45:51) Yeah. (45:51) Yeah.
Scott Benner Just kinda power do you feel like you were powering through it?
Suzanne Oh, yeah. (45:55) Yeah. (45:55) I mean and I had to pace. (45:57) Like, I couldn't I couldn't work enough. (45:59) Fortunately, I I worked at a job where I contracted, So you didn't you weren't there, you know, five days a week.
Suzanne You would maybe be at some places two days a week and and maybe not for the whole day. (46:12) So but I would I was not able to keep up enough contracts to really
Scott Benner Float the whole thing.
Suzanne Yeah. (46:19) Yeah. (46:19) Yeah. (46:19) Well, that's Yeah.
Scott Benner It really is just terrible to be impacted so much by something like that.
Suzanne Right.
Scott Benner Yeah.
Suzanne So I right now, I have six private students. (46:28) And last month, I subbed online for a colleague, and it was just three students. (46:33) Absolutely delightful, but by the end of the month, I was a mess. (46:37) Just three like, it was about an hour and a half of extra time at you know?
Scott Benner And it exhausted you.
Suzanne And I was a mess, yeah, by the end of the month. (46:45) And I'm just like, ugh. (46:47) Yeah. (46:48) So and and I I love teaching. (46:50) I absolutely love it, but I just have to really pace myself.
Scott Benner Yeah. (46:53) How long does it take you to bounce back when once you get, like, kind of, like, not burned out is the wrong word, once you get exhausted?
Suzanne It depends. (47:01) Like, sometimes it'll take a day. (47:03) Sometimes it'll take, like okay. (47:05) So I was subbing for my friend in, like, towards the end well, anyway, like, the whole week after, I had, like, one and a half I counted. (47:16) I had, like, one and a half good days that whole next week.
Scott Benner Like,
Suzanne it was it was a mess. (47:22) Describe to people the difference between a good day and a bad day. (47:24) A bad day, you feel like there's this magnet pulling you towards your bed. (47:29) Like, yesterday was Saturday was kind of a bad day, and I I I actually dragged myself out. (47:35) One of my students was in a musical, and I dragged myself out and went to it.
Suzanne But the whole time, I was just really like, I just wanted to be in my bed and and just not having to interact with people, and and I can't explain it.
Scott Benner But not depression. (47:52) It's not you don't feel depressed. (47:53) You feel exhausted. (47:54) You
Suzanne you kinda do, but you know it's a more of a physiological thing.
Scott Benner Mhmm. (48:00) So you need to, like, get ramped up somehow. (48:03) Like, yeah, like, your battery your battery is low.
Suzanne But that makes it worse. (48:08) Like, when you ramp yourself up, it's like you're using energy that you don't have, and so it kinda makes things worse.
Scott Benner Oh, you get, like, an adrenaline crash afterwards?
Suzanne Yes. (48:16) Yes.
Scott Benner Okay. (48:18) Yeah. (48:18) Do if you do ramp yourself up for something, then the you pay you pay harder at the end. (48:23) You pay.
Suzanne You you gotta pay the piper. (48:25) You you yeah. (48:26) That's the hard thing about it.
Scott Benner Nothing's ever helped. (48:30) There's not a moment where you thought, like, as crazy as it sounds, like, you know, the the the oddest thing felt like it had an impact for you?
Suzanne Not permanently. (48:39) No. (48:40) And and I'm very quick to pronounce myself cured if I have a good day.
Scott Benner I'm like,
Suzanne this has all been in my head all these years. (48:47) It's it's
Scott Benner Figured it out. (48:48) It's green beans. (48:49) Yeah.
Suzanne It's all been in my head. (48:51) So there's nothing that's that's like, oh, yeah. (48:55) I'm consistently friends paid for me to do an adrenal program and lots of different supplements. (49:01) I I felt like I was I was very sensitive to a lot of the supplements even you you know? (49:07) And they encourage you, like, take it really, really, really, really slow.
Scott Benner You know? (49:12) How about your iron? (49:13) Do do a full iron panel ever?
Suzanne You know, I used to have low iron when I first started all this. (49:19) And I would but that didn't even help. (49:21) I mean, I would take iron, and it didn't
Scott Benner So you had a moment where somebody's like, oh, you're anemic. (49:26) This is gonna help you, and they jacked you back up, and then nothing changed? (49:29) Yeah. (49:30) How did you get your iron back up? (49:32) They give you infusions?
Suzanne No. (49:34) They just tablets.
Scott Benner Yeah. (49:36) Ew.
Suzanne And then I think when I went through menopause, my iron was fine again. (49:41) You know? (49:41) Okay. (49:42) I I haven't had problems with iron, but I I probably should have my doctor test that this this I'll I'll see her at the end of the month.
Scott Benner Yeah. (49:50) Make sure they test your ferritin too.
Suzanne Yeah. (49:53) No. (49:53) She's she's a really smart doctor. (49:55) Yeah. (49:55) And she she doesn't do the just cursory stuff.
Scott Benner Suzanne, listen. (49:59) I'm always interested when people say stuff like this. (50:01) Like, she's
Suzanne a really great doctor. (50:03) You have a lot
Scott Benner of problems. (50:04) I don't see her fixing any of them.
Suzanne Yeah. (50:06) I know. (50:07) I know.
Finding Hope and Coping Mechanisms
Scott Benner She's I I know. (50:08) So you mean she's thoughtful, thinks outside of the box, just trying to help you in ways other people wouldn't, etcetera.
Suzanne That.
Scott Benner But she hasn't gotten to the, like, the the promised land where she said something that ended up being valuable. (50:20) Do you think there's nothing that will help?
Suzanne I don't know. (50:23) I I mean, I I don't know. (50:25) I hope there is.
Scott Benner But What keeps you looking? (50:29) Like, what what keeps you motivated to keep hoping and, like, thinking like, you know what I mean? (50:33) Like, where's the hope come from that makes you think, like, I'm cured. (50:36) I figured it out. (50:36) Like, where do you get that from?
Suzanne I I don't know if it's just a hope for a cure, but I don't know. (50:41) There there there's a fragment of a psalm that says, why are you downcast, oh my soul? (50:46) Why are you so disturbed within me? (50:48) Put your hope in God for I will yet praise him. (50:51) And I just I you know, whether I get better or not, I know that God is giving me something to hope for, whether it's in this life or the next.
Suzanne I don't I don't that's all I can say, really.
Scott Benner No. (51:03) You find you find your hope through faith.
Suzanne Yes. (51:05) Yeah. (51:05) Yeah.
Scott Benner Well, listen. (51:07) I I I would think you you deserve it wherever you can get it from, so that's awesome that you found it somewhere. (51:12) Because I I can imagine people would be I mean, this is a thing I think about a lot. (51:16) Right? (51:17) Like, with, you know, the people around me and the people that listen to this podcast, you know, lot of you are on difficult paths that don't always end with, like, some successful outcome.
Scott Benner And you still have to get up and do it again and, you know, you have bouts of time where you feel better and worse and, you know, like, how do you keep going when the worst times come and how do you enjoy your life when the good times are there without thinking, oh, it's just gonna get bad again? (51:43) It's a lot. (51:44) You know?
Suzanne It is.
Scott Benner Yeah. (51:45) I mean, there's a lot of you can see even with, like like, you've you've mentioned money a number of times. (51:51) Like, I don't have money for that or anything. (51:53) Like, you know, you're watching, what, Selena Gomez out in the world. (51:56) Right?
Scott Benner She has, what, lupus or something like that? (51:58) Like, it's
Suzanne She's got her own she's got her own Oreo too. (52:01) Did you notice that?
Scott Benner She has her own what?
Suzanne Oreo. (52:04) I I was in the grocery store the other day. (52:06) Yes. (52:07) I was in the grocery store the other day, and they had Selena Gomez Oreos, and I'm like
Scott Benner Well, I didn't know that, but that makes my point better. (52:13) Like, she's got
Suzanne I guess you've made it when you've got your own Oreo.
Scott Benner You have you when you have Oreo money to pay for your treatments is what I'm saying is you're getting great, like you know, you're probably getting cutting edge help, and I've still seen I've seen her struggle over the last number of years pretty heartily.
Suzanne I didn't realize she had lupus.
Scott Benner Is that what she oh, listen. (52:30) I might have made that up. (52:31) Hold on a second.
Suzanne She just said that. (52:33) I I mean, I'm just I'm not familiar with her music or and I know she's a she's a, like, a pop star, but I don't I'm not all that familiar with her music.
Scott Benner Hold on a second. (52:42) Let me just make sure I'm right about that. (52:45) I didn't just give her something.
Suzanne I think said you said yeah.
Scott Benner She has Do you not watch Only Murders in the Building?
Suzanne No. (52:52) Oh my goodness.
Scott Benner Oh, okay. (52:53) So so she does have lupus. (52:55) She's had a kidney transplant because of kidney failure. (52:58) Woah. (52:59) 2020, she publicly revealed she has bipolar disorder, anxiety, depression.
Scott Benner Wow. (53:05) But the lupus specifically like, there's a lot of, like so if you watch Only Murders in the Building, you'll, like, watch a season of it, and there's a version of Selena Gomez that's acting in it. (53:16) And then the next season of it, she looks like she might weigh forty or fifty pounds more. (53:21) And then in the next season, it's gone again. (53:23) And I think that's all the lupus and the inflammation and all that stuff.
Scott Benner Wow. (53:27) My point was is that, like, when you've got her money and you still can't overcome stuff like this
Suzanne Exactly. (53:34) Yeah.
Scott Benner Yeah. (53:34) Yeah.
Suzanne Like, it's maybe it's not a matter of affording being able to afford treatment. (53:40) It's just life.
Scott Benner Yeah. (53:42) But maybe this is just and you're 62. (53:45) Like, so I think we're forgetting that because, again, you have a very youthful voice and way about you. (53:49) But, like, at 62 years old and you've been at this for for as long as you have been, I mean, at what point do you just say to yourself without being sad, this is it? (54:00) Like, this is my role.
Scott Benner Like, so just I'm gonna do the best with it I can and stop, like you know what I mean?
Suzanne Well, I mean, sometimes that's why I'm not like, oh, let's try this. (54:09) Let's try this. (54:10) Because I'm just like, I just wanna I just wanna wake up and and work on a song or something or, you know, like Yes. (54:15) Just do my thing and and not have to, like, constantly be thinking about, you know. (54:20) I had kidney issues a couple years ago.
Suzanne I was able to, get back to normal kidney function. (54:26) So, like like, you talked about Selena having Mhmm. (54:29) Like, it's just it's just always something. (54:30) I feel like I'm playing whack a mole. (54:32) You know?
Suzanne It's like Let's dig into that for
Scott Benner a second because I think that's really interesting. (54:35) The idea of, like, you you're trying to live. (54:37) It probably feels like you're always in college. (54:40) Meaning, as soon as I do these things, complete these tasks, then I get to go live my life.
Suzanne Yeah. (54:46) Yeah.
Scott Benner Right? (54:47) Except that never stops happening.
Suzanne Yeah. (54:49) Exactly.
Scott Benner You don't go to therapy?
Suzanne I had a therapist for a while. (54:53) I didn't feel like she was helping. (54:55) Ugh. (54:55) I I need to find another one. (54:58) But but who even has time to go?
Scott Benner You're like, when am I doing that?
Suzanne Yeah. (55:02) Yeah. (55:02) Exact this sounds like another thing, and I'm like, like, I'm so burned out on self care.
Scott Benner Like, I'm just I guess isn't that funny?
Suzanne Like yeah.
Scott Benner Seriously, there's a real conversation in there because if self care, which is the thing that's supposed to elevate you and help you do better, is the thing that's burning you out, then where's the tipping point between the value and and the harm?
Suzanne That that's why I'm trying to figure out.
Scott Benner Oh, you thought I was gonna help with that?
Suzanne I not necessarily, but
Scott Benner I can't even remember to put my face cream on. (55:34) Arden's like, you're wrinkly. (55:35) If you just use cream, I'm like, how am I supposed to remember to do this? (55:37) She goes, it's on the sink. (55:39) She's like she's like, when you get
Suzanne out of the shower, rub some of it on your hands and put it on your face.
Scott Benner And I go, I don't It seems like a lot. (55:46) So
Suzanne Yeah. (55:47) No. (55:47) There's there's so many crazy things I have to do to just keep going, and I'm like, ugh. (55:52) Yeah.
Scott Benner Yeah. (55:52) No. (55:53) I think that's important. (55:54) The I'm glad that came up, actually. (55:56) Yeah.
Scott Benner Yeah. (55:57) Because everybody's in that I think everyone to some level or another is in that space where they're trying to find the balance between living and staying alive. (56:06) Right? (56:07) Like, you're trying to, like, like, how do I stay healthy without giving away every ounce of who I am to that process? (56:14) Because then am I not then I don't have time for anything else.
Suzanne Exactly. (56:18) Exactly. (56:19) I'm I'm trying to start releasing music, and I I released my first song last year. (56:24) Oh. (56:25) And I've got songs in the pipeline, and I'm just like you know, it's just trying to figure out how to
Scott Benner make kind of music? (56:32) Mumble rap? (56:32) What do you do?
Suzanne I'm I'm I'm pretty eclectic as far as genres. (56:39) Most most of it is is Christian music, but styles are are fairly eclectic.
Scott Benner Mhmm. (56:44) How do you release it? (56:45) Like, through, like
Suzanne Like, YouTube. (56:50) There's a whole process, and I and I've done it once. (56:52) Now I'll have to, like, revisit how to do it again once I get another song ready.
Scott Benner Right. (56:58) How long does it take to put a song together?
Suzanne It depends. (57:02) I guess it depends if, like like, I'm new with the production process.
Scott Benner Mhmm.
Suzanne And it took me, like, from, like, August through April to do my first one. (57:14) But but other people you know, it's just with everything else going on in my life, like, that was it it just took a lot longer than it was supposed to.
Scott Benner Yeah. (57:23) Well, right. (57:23) Because every everything is extra. (57:26) Right?
Suzanne Right. (57:27) Right. (57:28) Like, I I try to work in little fifteen, twenty minute increments. (57:32) And then, you know, when I when I finally put put it out, it took, like like, there was hours of time just, you know, trying to work through, you know, like, the distributor and figuring out all that stuff online. (57:44) I I went through a, like, a accelerator mentorship process to do that.
Suzanne But even with that, it was it took a it took some time.
Scott Benner I'm sorry. (57:53) I have to do something here. (57:54) This is we don't allow political, like, posts on the Facebook group. (57:58) Right? (57:59) Because it's I know it feels like a left turn person.
Suzanne There's no you don't have
Scott Benner to
Suzanne explain
Scott Benner it. (58:03) Because well, because it just it'll devolve no matter what. (58:06) And people like to put something up that's very political and then say, this is not political.
Suzanne Exactly.
Scott Benner I'm putting it up there because it's very important for people with diabetes. (58:18) And I'm like, it is incredibly important for people with diabetes. (58:21) It doesn't make it not political, or it doesn't mean it's not going to be five minutes from now when everybody start yelling at each other about it. (58:28) And this is a this is a community for people to support each other with their diabetes, not for them to argue about, you know, politics.
Suzanne So Yeah. (58:36) Yeah. (58:36) No. (58:36) You don't have to explain that to me.
Scott Benner Well, yeah. (58:38) It's nice.
Suzanne It's the world we live in. (58:40) My my yeah.
Scott Benner It's my favorite thing that people do. (58:43) They're like, okay. (58:44) Listen. (58:45) This isn't political, so don't talk about it that way. (58:48) You know what politician really sucks because they're not helping people with diabetes?
Scott Benner I'm
Suzanne like Yeah.
Scott Benner Yeah. (58:54) That's political.
Suzanne Yeah.
Scott Benner It's very funny.
Suzanne Yeah. (58:58) Just Yeah. (58:58) Put a a popcorn GIF on there.
Scott Benner I don't know. (59:01) I'm not getting I No. (59:03) My group runs very well for a very specific reason, and it's we politics, religion, pretty much, you know, we we we don't go down those roads. (59:12) And it's tough in times like this. (59:14) Like, I don't have any trouble talking about it here, it's tough in times like this.
Scott Benner There's a lot of people who wanna stick up for islet cell legislation and everything, and I'm I'm with them. (59:22) I think that's great. (59:23) But I you can't start making a pod a post about it in the Facebook group. (59:27) It doesn't work that way. (59:28) So Wow.
Scott Benner Yeah. (59:30) It sucks. (59:30) It's a weird line to have to draw when you're me. (59:32) And then I get yelled at for not being something. (59:35) You know what I mean?
Scott Benner Yeah. (59:36) Yeah.
Suzanne Right. (59:37) Well, we we have that dynamic also in my family too. (59:40) So it, like, it it does hasn't really helped. (59:44) There's some political spectacles in my family. (59:46) So And
Scott Benner and then what happens? (59:48) It it gets in the in the way of, like, personal relationships
Suzanne and Yes. (59:53) Yeah. (59:53) Yes.
Scott Benner Well, that's my point. (59:55) If none of you knew each other's politics, you wouldn't be having any of those other problems.
Suzanne So Exactly. (1:00:00) Exactly.
Scott Benner At the very least, in a Facebook group, we're gonna avoid it. (1:00:04) That's pretty much
Suzanne it. (1:00:04) Yeah.
Scott Benner Okay. (1:00:05) Is there anything we haven't talked about that we should have? (1:00:07) Anything? (1:00:08) Because I don't I don't wanna shortchange on and
Suzanne make sure. (1:00:10) Tons of stuff I'd love to talk about, but but let me just say my mom so she she had a formal evaluation with her dementia Yeah. (1:00:18) In January, and she it's so it's March now. (1:00:22) And they they decided she doesn't have dementia because she's just a normal 85 year old. (1:00:27) But I think she's she's transformed a lot since she's been living with me.
Suzanne And she so now she loves to read. (1:00:34) She can walk to the light. (1:00:35) She doesn't shuffle her feet anymore. (1:00:37) Yeah. (1:00:37) She can walk to the library, buy a book, or check out a book, or there's a little bookstore over there, and she she prefers buying a book.
Suzanne And so, like, she's she's really transformed, but it's still like, I wish I had others that could care for her and her diabetes.
Scott Benner Yeah.
Suzanne That would make my life, little little easier.
Scott Benner Mahersh too, maybe. (1:01:00) I'm sure she has some level of guilt around having you take care of her.
Suzanne Yeah. (1:01:05) Yeah. (1:01:05) She's on Medtronic closed loop, and the CGM right now that we're using is a little bit complicated as far as the what how to how to
Scott Benner Is it the one that recharges? (1:01:18) Like, you have to plug it in sometimes?
Suzanne Yeah. (1:01:20) You just plug that. (1:01:21) But but also the procedure of putting it on is a little bit crazy.
Scott Benner They have the new one.
Suzanne I know. (1:01:27) I know. (1:01:28) So they the her doctor has already ordered that. (1:01:31) So but we just got a shipment of the old one. (1:01:33) So when we go work through that, we'll we'll start with the new one.
Scott Benner How many is in the shipment of the older model?
Suzanne Three months worth. (1:01:41) Jesus. (1:01:42) Yeah. (1:01:43) She just called them up and
Scott Benner say say it didn't come. (1:01:45) And and yeah.
Suzanne I know. (1:01:47) I mean, we we might be able to start earlier and that I probably will if I decide to travel soon. (1:01:53) Like, sometimes I'm just too tired, but I wanna start training her to redo her infusions to to be able to put on her own infusion set. (1:02:02) But sometimes her brain will glitch a little bit, so it can it can be one time when I was traveling, she was like, oh, yeah. (1:02:09) I I she I had to take a shot, and I was like, took the whole syringe, you know, for three units.
Suzanne I'm like, mom, you put in 30 units. (1:02:17) She didn't do three units. (1:02:19) Yeah. (1:02:20) Jeez. (1:02:20) So she was okay.
Suzanne She was able to eat enough to get through it, but so there's you know, like, it's it's not like, she she doesn't have dementia, and I don't worry about her doing something crazy like wandering, but it's still she probably shouldn't be alone for for too long.
Scott Benner No. (1:02:38) I hear you. (1:02:38) I I mean, my mom lived into her early eighties, and there's just parts of being that age that are just come with being that age. (1:02:46) Like, you know, my mom had a a cancer at the end of her life, so there's, like, some scans that she got done. (1:02:51) And I remember, you know, they did a brain like, a brain scan.
Scott Benner And, you know, just looking at the report, just, you know, the way the report is written, it said something about, like, frontal lobe deterioration equivalent with age. (1:03:06) Yeah. (1:03:07) And you think, oh, that's not a thing you think about when you're younger. (1:03:11) Yeah. (1:03:11) You know?
Scott Benner Yeah. (1:03:12) So
Suzanne But, you know, our bodies aren't meant to well, I mean, they were meant to last forever, but they don't, and it's part of life.
Scott Benner Yeah. (1:03:20) No. (1:03:21) It it really is. (1:03:22) So she's experiencing things that are just commiserate with being her age. (1:03:26) Yes.
Scott Benner Yeah. (1:03:27) Yeah. (1:03:27) And then having to deal with diabetes on top of all that.
Suzanne Mhmm.
Scott Benner Yeah. (1:03:32) Well, she's very lucky to have you. (1:03:33) That's for certain.
Suzanne I'm lucky to have her. (1:03:35) Oh oh, the other thing too is she she does a lot of cooking now. (1:03:39) Like, she didn't care about food anymore. (1:03:41) Now she on the days I work, she makes dinner. (1:03:44) She does all the dishes.
Suzanne She does a lot of the laundry. (1:03:47) You know? (1:03:47) So it's she's been great.
Scott Benner Oh, let's go. (1:03:49) That's awesome. (1:03:50) I'll take her here if she's gonna cook and clean. (1:03:54) Ship her over. (1:03:55) I'll take care of her diabetes.
Scott Benner I have no trouble.
Suzanne Yeah. (1:03:58) Hey. (1:03:58) There's an idea. (1:03:59) Next time I travel
Scott Benner If the end of this podcast was just me taking on older people with type one diabetes to get free cooking and cleaning out of them?
Suzanne Not not a not a bad strategy. (1:04:10) Not a
Scott Benner I don't know.
Suzanne She makes a she makes a really good pork chop. (1:04:15) I'll tell you. (1:04:16) Yes. (1:04:16) It
Scott Benner might be cheaper for me to just, like, hire a cooker than Yeah. (1:04:22) Than to take care of a person in the eighties.
Suzanne That's true.
Scott Benner Boy, that's some
Suzanne but you have a really interesting story.
Scott Benner Is there any did we miss anything that you think really solidifies your story, or do you think we hit the big parts?
Suzanne Nothing that necessarily you know, the lots of lots of all kinds of things, you know, that or I I just thought it was really interesting that I was diagnosed in Boston. (1:04:42) That was kind of a cool thing because of access to Jocelyn. (1:04:46) I worked at Camp Jocelyn for a summer. (1:04:49) Just lots of lots of little different little things, but nothing, you know, super.
Scott Benner You know, you've had touch points with with that. (1:04:55) I mean, there's a lot of research in hospitals in Boston for sure.
Suzanne Yeah. (1:04:58) I remember when the DCC ten first came out and going to a a big thing at a hotel where they announced the, you know, the findings of the DCC 10. (1:05:08) And I and I was very newly diagnosed at the time, so that was, like, a really good way to set my mind. (1:05:15) Like, okay. (1:05:16) Self care really does does make a difference.
Scott Benner Yeah. (1:05:20) I I hear you. (1:05:21) So tell people a little more about it, the DCC 10.
Suzanne Well, d c c 10, it was this big study that they did to find out if if, you know, the way you cared for yourself would make a difference in in long term complications.
Scott Benner Okay. (1:05:36) And? (1:05:36) And and
Suzanne What did they come up with? (1:05:39) Well, I thought she I thought that you've mentioned it before on the podcast.
Scott Benner Have I? (1:05:42) I mean, honestly, you heard me earlier say that I really don't know a lot about what I'm doing. (1:05:46) So go ahead.
Suzanne Heard it. (1:05:47) I've heard you meant but it but, yes, absolutely. (1:05:50) You know, like keeping your a one c down, keeping your blood sugars normal as possible. (1:05:55) Yes. (1:05:56) It it it really does you know, it's it's not like a foregone conclusion that, oh, I have diabetes, so, of course, I'm gonna have all this litany of stuff.
Scott Benner Right.
Suzanne So, yeah, it was it was a nice way to, you know, have my mindset at the the beginning of the of but but your podcast really helped too. (1:06:13) Like, I was kind of like, when I first moved home, I was just I was tired. (1:06:17) I was looking to for stuff to listen to when I was, you know, resting, and I was like, I wonder if there's any diabetes podcasts out there. (1:06:25) Well, yeah. (1:06:25) Yeah.
Suzanne The one
Scott Benner thing I feel sad about, in our interview today and that I would like to return to before we say goodbye is that before we started recording, you were super excited to talk to me. (1:06:36) And then that love and adoration did not come out with as vociferously as it was coming out before we were being recorded. (1:06:43) So, do you wanna tell all the people why this is such a special moment?
Suzanne Oh. (1:06:47) Oh.
Scott Benner Why am I so great? (1:06:48) Tell everybody that at the end, Suzanne.
Suzanne Go ahead. (1:06:50) Mean, I just I just I think I opened I said, I'm talking to the Scott Benner. (1:06:54) You know, I I I felt like I feel like I know you because I've listened to the podcast so much. (1:06:59) You know? (1:07:00) Like like, it's funny when when you listen to or read an author, you think you know them, but you don't really.
Suzanne But but, you know, it's like, wow. (1:07:07) You know? (1:07:07) I mean but, yeah, you you've, you know, just I I think you've helped me. (1:07:12) You've helped a lot of people.
Scott Benner Oh, well, that's very nice. (1:07:14) How how do you think the podcast has helped you mostly?
Suzanne I think a lot of the, like, the practicals try I can't even think of specifics, but I know when I was first started listening, just a lot of the practicals and and and I feel like you gave me permission to not have to write everything down. (1:07:33) Oh, really? (1:07:34) You know, they yeah. (1:07:35) Like, they they were like, oh, you have to write all your blood sugars down, and you have to write down all your carbs and count them all exactly. (1:07:42) And I you know?
Suzanne And maybe I'd do better if I did that, but it just I just never did well with all that stuff. (1:07:48) And, you know, like I like we were talking about trying to live your life Like,
Scott Benner I who
Suzanne who has time to, like, write all down everything they eat and measure it just exactly? (1:07:59) And Well, what do you mean you could do better? (1:08:01) Like, what what are your outcomes like right now?
Scott Benner I mean, your mom's got an a grade a one c at 85. (1:08:06) So what's yours?
Suzanne I'm I'm like I hover around, like, seven one, seven six nine.
Scott Benner Mhmm.
Suzanne I mean, you know, probably could be better. (1:08:14) Sometimes I get insulin resistant in the mornings usually, and I I probably need to just tweak something in my basil, but but yeah. (1:08:24) I mean, mean, just I just like hearing people because you just don't hear people talk about this stuff every day.
Scott Benner Yeah. (1:08:29) That that ends up being the I think one of the values of the podcast is that it pulls together a lot of voices that you are hard to find in your regular life.
Suzanne Right. (1:08:39) And people that are trying to live their lives too that have, like, you know, normal lives as well, but they're trying to live them and but then they have to deal with this on top of it.
Scott Benner Yeah. (1:08:48) No. (1:08:48) I I hear you. (1:08:49) Yeah. (1:08:49) Well, I'm glad that it's it's
Suzanne been valuable for you.
Scott Benner Also, I think your a one c sounds terrific. (1:08:53) Wait. (1:08:53) What system are you on?
Suzanne I'm on a closed loop tandem.
Scott Benner So, like, are you using the, t slim or are using the Mobi?
Suzanne T slim.
Scott Benner Okay. (1:09:03) And you have, like what'd you say? (1:09:04) Like, a seven?
Suzanne Yeah. (1:09:06) Around I have her around seven.
Scott Benner Oh, your mom around seven. (1:09:08) But where are you at?
Suzanne I'm I'm around seven. (1:09:10) My mom is, like, six something usually.
Scott Benner Your because your mom eats differently than you?
Suzanne Well, she actually has kind of gone a little lower glycemic since she's been with me, but but she can eat other things than, her diet's more expanded than mine is.
Scott Benner Okay.
Suzanne She can eat dairy, which I wish I could.
Scott Benner What happens when you have dairy?
Suzanne I get earaches and sore throats.
Scott Benner Earaches and sore throats. (1:09:36) Okay. (1:09:37) Yeah. (1:09:37) There's a lot going on for you.
Suzanne Yeah.
Scott Benner Do you have a lot of allergies?
Suzanne No. (1:09:44) Okay. (1:09:44) Not not really. (1:09:46) But a few things, but not nothing.
Scott Benner Mhmm.
Suzanne Yeah.
Scott Benner Okay. (1:09:50) Alright.
Suzanne Like, I'm I'm allergic to echinacea, and I'm allergic to Valyrian and, you know, like, weird stuff.
Scott Benner It sounds like you're allergic to economics and the metal that the swords are made out of on Game of
Suzanne Thrones is what I just heard. (1:10:03) But yeah. (1:10:07) That.
Scott Benner That? (1:10:08) Yeah. (1:10:09) The Valyrian steel really gets to you?
Suzanne Yeah. (1:10:12) Well, I don't know. (1:10:13) Trust me.
Scott Benner I don't know. (1:10:14) But Valyrian steel makes a lot of sense to me because you're listen. (1:10:17) I'll tell you why, and then I'll let you go back to your life.
Suzanne Okay.
Scott Benner You're obviously a strong person. (1:10:22) You're going through a lot. (1:10:23) You're being pulled down by a lot, and I do not hear it in your voice or in your actions. (1:10:28) You're helping an elderly parent who also has type one diabetes in a society that does not really always do that for people. (1:10:37) And, you know, so it's not set up that way, and it's an extra effort there to help there.
Scott Benner You're doing it on a low budget, and that's just another example of your desire to be valuable and to work hard at this. (1:10:51) I mean, every answer you gave me sounded like an answer that is born out of a lot of experience and the knowledge that there's no real other answer except keep going. (1:11:03) And, you know, I think that's a pretty steely attitude to have. (1:11:06) So you're getting Valyrian steel, like it or not. (1:11:09) I'm sorry.
Scott Benner And if you have not watched Game of Thrones, go watch it. (1:11:12) You'll enjoy it. (1:11:13) It's excellent.
Suzanne I probably won't.
Scott Benner Why not? (1:11:15) It's so good. (1:11:19) I mean, you when you're laying in bed, watch Game of Thrones.
Suzanne I I don't I don't like to I you know, I don't watch a lot of TV anyway.
Scott Benner Suzanne, don't ruin this by telling me you don't love television, the greatest American art form.
Suzanne I'm I'm that's that's a contempt my mom wants to have a TV, I'm like, no, mom.
Scott Benner You won't let your poor mother have a television at the end of her life. (1:11:40) What is wrong with you? (1:11:41) I'll buy her a TV.
Suzanne It'll be great when she gets her own apartment, and she can enjoy that. (1:11:46) I just I I just can't. (1:11:48) I just can't have a TV going on.
Scott Benner Oh my gosh, Suzanne.
Suzanne Yeah. (1:11:52) This this I've changed
Scott Benner my whole opinion of you now.
Suzanne Okay. (1:11:55) So, also, like, I I do like watching occasional things.
Scott Benner Like what? (1:11:59) Tell me what you do like on television.
Suzanne What do I like to watch? (1:12:02) We like to watch, All Creatures Great and Small every Sunday. (1:12:05) We like to watch The Chosen. (1:12:07) I like to watch House of House of David, which is
Scott Benner This sounds like real is this, like, religious programming?
Suzanne It is. (1:12:13) But House of David, you'd like you'd probably like House of David.
Scott Benner What is it?
Suzanne It's a story of King David. (1:12:19) Sometimes I've said to myself
Scott Benner Oh, I see it. (1:12:21) Why it's on Amazon Prime?
Suzanne Put why don't they put this stuff on prime time TV? (1:12:24) Because this is this is pretty racy stuff. (1:12:27) You know?
Scott Benner Well, I gotta tell you, Suzanne. (1:12:28) I watched an episode of fear factor the other night that was awesome. (1:12:32) So I don't think I'm gonna be digging into the house, David. (1:12:34) I am watching, yeah. (1:12:37) I don't think our our television probably doesn't jive well.
Scott Benner Like, I do I I watch bad TV through the winter. (1:12:43) So, like, good TV, bad TV. (1:12:45) I don't know how to like, I'm watching paradise right now on Hulu, which I'm enjoying for some reason that I can't completely wrap my head around. (1:12:51) I think I just got done shrinking, season three. (1:12:56) My wife and I just watched Task.
Scott Benner Is it Task on HBO?
Suzanne Okay.
Scott Benner But it's almost baseball season. (1:13:02) I'm just gonna put baseball on television for for, like, the next nine months, and then I'll get back to it at some point. (1:13:08) But the once a mighty king Saul falls victim to his own pride, this is House of David. (1:13:14) In case anyone's interested, it's on Amazon Prime.
Suzanne It's good stuff. (1:13:18) I have a yeah. (1:13:18) I have a friend that's doing editing for it. (1:13:21) It's it's good stuff Yeah. (1:13:22) I think.
Scott Benner Listen. (1:13:23) I'm not arguing with your style.
Suzanne Oh, but but my my point too is I can't I sometimes I can't watch TV for very long Why? (1:13:31) Because I'm that sensitive. (1:13:32) My Are you serious? (1:13:32) Yeah. (1:13:33) I'm serious.
Suzanne I I can't like, I'm too tired to watch TV. (1:13:37) Like, it's just it's like it's a whole other
Scott Benner Thing to do?
Suzanne Thing. (1:13:41) Yeah. (1:13:42) It's like,
Scott Benner oh kidding.
Suzanne This this gonna drink.
Scott Benner Paying attention is exhausting?
Suzanne I guess.
Scott Benner Mean, it's your life. (1:13:48) I you'd have to answer. (1:13:49) I I don't know exactly.
Suzanne But, like, they like, the actual, like, Well, that's interesting, isn't it? (1:13:54) Yeah.
Scott Benner Well, maybe if you're watching Fear Factor, it wouldn't feel that way.
Suzanne That would probably ramp me up and I'd
Scott Benner Last week, they made them eat pies made out of bugs. (1:14:05) Oh. (1:14:05) It was horrifying. (1:14:07) Oh. (1:14:07) There was wretched.
Suzanne Yeah. (1:14:08) I think I I think I'll pass on that one.
Scott Benner We watched it while Arden was baking. (1:14:12) It was hilarious. (1:14:13) Because Arden was like, turn
Suzanne it down. (1:14:14) Turn it down. (1:14:14) Turn it down. (1:14:15) I can't I
Scott Benner don't she's like, don't I don't wanna hear that. (1:14:19) One of the pies was made out of scorpions, I just wanna say.
Suzanne So Was she baking pies?
Scott Benner She was making cookies at the time
Suzanne Oh, okay. (1:14:26) Okay.
Scott Benner For her boyfriend. (1:14:28) Aw. (1:14:28) Yeah. (1:14:28) It was nice. (1:14:29) Okay.
Scott Benner I'm gonna let you go. (1:14:30) This was fantastic. (1:14:32) Thank you very much for the time. (1:14:33) Hold on a second, though. (1:14:34) I'm gonna tell you a couple of things about how it comes out and everything.
Scott Benner So hold on
Suzanne one second. (1:14:37) Great.
Scott Benner Great. (1:14:38) Thanks again. (1:14:47) A huge thanks to my longest sponsor, Omnipod. (1:14:50) Check out the Omnipod five now with my link, omnipod.com/juicebox. (1:14:56) You may be eligible for a free starter kit, a free Omnipod five starter kit at my link.
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