About | The Diligent Diabetic

The Diligent Diabetic

Hi, I'm Constance C. Stallworth. I'm a wife, a mother and a grandmother. My life’s motto comes straight from an old hymn my grandmother would sing, If I can help somebody as I pass along then my living shall not be in vain. If I can do my duty with a word or song, then my living shall not be in vain. This is where I find great joy and peace, knowing that when we help others we help ourselves. Yes, I am that person, the one who lives to take care of others, so you can imagine the blow I received on March 26, 2012 when I learned that I was diabetic, type 2. Words cannot begin to express the heartbreak and emotion I felt at that moment. My first thought was denial, no…this can’t be right. I can’t be sick. Some of you reading this might think, Oh, she’s so dramatic, but let me assure you Diabetes is no joke. It is a disease to be taken seriously. I remember thinking, where do I go from here, what do I do now. I experienced such a rush of emotions that ranged from restrictions on what I would be able to eat, confusion, fear, and again denial. However, there was one constant in the back of my mind, the fact that mental illness ran in my family made me know that no matter what, I had to go forward and not get depressed. With that, the question I asked myself was, “Do you want to live?”.

WHAT CAN I DO?

With tears welling up in my eyes I knew I had to educate myself on what was going on with me. I work in a setting where there are diabetics (children and adults) and I help to care for some of them, I know I need to understand and figure out how to survive and how to live with diabetes. I had to accept the fact that now I had to lean on others for help. I have a Care Team second to none. Even though all diabetics have a medical care team we also have a support care team and I know that they are just as important as my medical care team. There is one thing I must say before talking about my amazing support care team. I often hear about the person with diabetes not doing the right thing; whether its eating, taking medicines, exercising or strengthening mental health. Please know if this is someone you love, then diabetes affects you too. You as a husband, wife, child, family member, extended family member, loved one, co-worker, neighbor, or friend, diabetes effect, you too. My husband encourages me by eating the same meals as I eat. We both have bicycles, even though mine sees more rides than his. He exercises almost every night. He’s working on living a healthier lifestyle and this makes it easy for me to stay on track.

LEARNING TO ACCEPT HELP

When a couple of the children with diabetes found out I was diabetic it was a very surreal and humbling experience to have them talking to me and trying to take care of me. Giving me tips on what I could eat and counting carbs. I’ve even had them to come by and check on me and bring me a healthy snack. My coworkers know every alarm I have set and if I’m not in the area when they go off, they’ve been known to come look for me or to remind me as soon as I get back to my office…Ms. Stallworth you need to check you blood sugar or you need to eat a snack. By the way, thank goodness for technology. I set alarms with titles for everything. I don’t forget to take meds, eat snacks, get to appointments on time. You name it I have an alarm set for it. This is the life of a diligent diabetic.

EDUCATE, ENCOURAGE AND SHARE

I created The Diligent Diabetic because even though there are many resources for diabetics, there are many diabetics that don’t have the support, encouragement or community that is so important in living a healthy lifestyle. By sharing a community, a network and even having a platform we can encourage each other to take charge of our diabetes each day.

The last six years I have spent time reading everything I could get my hands on, including listening to and watching videos about how to take care of my diabetes. All information shared on The Diligent Diabetic website is intended for your general knowledge ONLY. This information is not to substitute for medical advice or treatment. The Diligent Diabetic encourages all visitors to the site to seek prompt medical care in case of an emergency and for any specific health issue.

Thank you for visiting The Diligent Diabetic. I hope you find this website helpful and that you’ll return as The Diligent Diabetic continues to gather information to inspire and encourage all to live a healthier lifestyle.