Time to turn back the clock on me developing diabetes!

2017 Jayne head shop_edited-2When you’re a Credentialled Diabetes Educator, a good part of your time is spent helping people live a healthy lifestyle. It has been said a healthy lifestyle is the ‘cornerstone’ of diabetes management’. A healthy diet, being physically active and managing stress to minimise its impact on a person’s health and quality of life is the foundation to managing type 1 and type 2 diabetes. I have to say, I’m genuinely excited when someone I’m working with starts to see the benefits from their decision to include regular walks in their week or to choose healthier food options. I celebrate the successes and plan how to help a person to get back on track when it has been hard to keep the changes going. I’m told I am pretty good at it too!

So, you would think with thirty years of experience helping people to understand the benefits of changing an unhealthy behaviour to a healthier one I would be doing so myself?

Nope. Here I am in my early 50’s living a sedentary life with poor food choices regularly made over healthier options. I am very overweight, unfit, disappointed and sad that, despite my excellent understanding of my increased health risks, I have neglected myself so much.

Well, as they said in the 70’s … It’s time!

Time for me to do for myself what I have helped so many others do over the past 30 or so years … Time to change to a healthier lifestyle for a better quality and quantity of life.

I’m sharing my journey with you, my on-line community, because I think it will help to keep me on track with the process required for me to change habits formed over a lifetime. I also believe there will be much for us, as professionals working in the healthcare industry, to learn from my journey. Unpicking the process is likely to provide insights into the challenge the people we work with/patients/clients experience as they try to change entrenched patterns of thinking and behaviour.

I’m sure there will be times of vulnerability … many people with diabetes have shown me their vulnerability in achieving lifestyle change … frustration and tears aren’t uncommon. Even contemplating this change has led to a few of my own tears already.

As I work towards improving my quality of life and turning the clock back on elevated health parameters I say out loud, as I have to so many of the people with diabetes who have shared their journey with me over the years … It’s time to turn back the clock on developing diabetes in my future!

8 thoughts on “Time to turn back the clock on me developing diabetes!”

  1. Good for you Jane and how brave of you to share.
    I have a great food plan that lowers triglycerides and increases your metabolism if you’re interested. It’s gotten so many people off insulin also. I can email it if you’re interested. Just in the process of ethics approval for the plan as I’ve been promoting it for 6 years now.

      1. Hi Jayne, love your blog, you go girl, I would love a copy of the food plan too, I worry about what the future holds for me, I don’t have diabetes and hope I don’t ever get it but have terrible trouble with my metabolism and thyroid. Wonder if this plan would help me at all. Lee-Anne Brown

  2. Hi Jayne
    Fantastic you are making yourself vulnerable in this way. I too have been fascinated with how our mind works, because despite education most people struggle to make the changes to apply the knowledge in our everyday lives. Health professionals also struggle to walk the walk.
    I have worked in chronic disease management for many years and I did a Counselling diploma as I realised that what I was doing what making a great deal of difference, that was great for understanding and helping me improve my approach. I then studied hypnotherapy as I believe our behaviour is driven by the subconscious because I often say one thing but I can do something different and I was never quite sure why.
    Self sabotage and ingrained habits can be addressed in Hypnosis.
    Look forward to following your journey

  3. HI Jayne, you have take the first step and surely the rest will come one after the other. I feel that i also struggle to practice what i preach with life style modifications. All the best.

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