http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/feeds/type-2-diabetes-life?key=type-2-diabetes-life Healthline Health Blogger Patrick Totty - It's a Type 2 Life en-us Copyright (c) 2013 Healthline, All rights reserved. en-us Copyright (c) 2013 Healthline, All rights reserved. http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/goodbye-farewell-adieu This is my last Healthline blog. When I started blogging here in April, I had serious concerns about posting twice a week. There’s only so much you can say about type 2, I thought. But several months and 60-odd blog entries later, it turns... Thu, 15 Nov 2012 08:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/goodbye-farewell-adieu Patrick Totty 2012-11-15T08:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/do-sulfonylureas-add-to-cardiovascular-risks One of the challenges to having type 2 is trying to stay abreast of new research about the disease. That’s why routinely checking out sites like Healthline on the Internet can be a big help when it comes to talking to your doctor or endocrinolo... Tue, 13 Nov 2012 08:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/do-sulfonylureas-add-to-cardiovascular-risks Patrick Totty 2012-11-13T08:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/tomorrow-belongs-to-us Every one of us who has diabetes, and the people who love us, hope for the day when science finds a way to cure our disease. Not just kick it into remission, but cure. In the meantime, until that great day, it’s good to remember just how ... Thu, 08 Nov 2012 08:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/tomorrow-belongs-to-us Patrick Totty 2012-11-08T08:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/small-a1c-drop-big-life-expectancy-gain While controversy swirls around what A1c percentage is ideal for type 2s, no one denies that lower is better. Currently, the recommended A1c target is 6.5%, equivalent to a daily average of140 mg/dL. For older people who’ve been diagnosed for... Thu, 01 Nov 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/small-a1c-drop-big-life-expectancy-gain Patrick Totty 2012-11-01T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/a-rival-to-swiss-chocolate Although many people think that type 1 diabetics are the only people who take insulin injections, an estimated 11 million type 2s in Europe and North America are also on insulin therapy. They deal with many of the same hassles that type 1s do... Tue, 30 Oct 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/a-rival-to-swiss-chocolate Patrick Totty 2012-10-30T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/life-in-the-state-of-nanny William Barrett was a Columbia University professor who wasn’t a particularly gifted writer but was a fine thinker. He wrote a book, The Illusion of Technique, which described what happens when people outsmart themselves by substituting appearan... Thu, 25 Oct 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/life-in-the-state-of-nanny Patrick Totty 2012-10-25T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/words-not-spoken-facts-not-presented When it comes to dealing with diabetes, never forget that some of the information we get doesn’t always fully disclose the facts. If that sounds paranoid, I don’t mean to come off that way. But as a former newspaperman, I know how easy it is ... Wed, 24 Oct 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/words-not-spoken-facts-not-presented Patrick Totty 2012-10-24T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/im-walkin-yes-indeed-im-walkin I’ve often sung Fats Domino’s classic “I’m Walkin’” to myself as I’ve strolled around the neighborhood getting some exercise. Nobody disputes that walking is something almost everybody can do. For people with diabetes it’s just about the chea... Fri, 19 Oct 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/im-walkin-yes-indeed-im-walkin Patrick Totty 2012-10-19T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/a-diabetic-doctors-take-on-carb-cravings I’ve mentioned Dr. Richard Bernstein here before. Bernstein is the 78-year-old Long Island-based doctor who for years has been a thorn in the side of the American Diabetes Association. That’s because of his advocacy of a low-carb approach to bo... Mon, 15 Oct 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/a-diabetic-doctors-take-on-carb-cravings Patrick Totty 2012-10-15T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/iron-man-is-type-2-man Sometimes I wish I were a little less plugged in to the diabetes scene. I receive regular news updates from various institutions and companies that are researching causes—and potential cures for—diabetes. It helps me spot trends and try to c... Fri, 12 Oct 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/iron-man-is-type-2-man Patrick Totty 2012-10-12T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/priscillas-grits I mentioned recently that my wife and I were taking a trip through the beautiful red rock country of southern Utah. To get there, we drove along back roads through California and central Nevada. One of our stops in Nevada was the hamlet of ... Wed, 10 Oct 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/priscillas-grits Patrick Totty 2012-10-10T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/conflicting-views-on-cinnamon-for-type-2 There’s a story about a monastery in the Dark Ages where the friars are sitting around the dinner table disputing how many teeth are in a horse’s mouth. The elder monks are citing Aristotle for their answer, but there’s an argument over the ... Thu, 04 Oct 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/conflicting-views-on-cinnamon-for-type-2 Patrick Totty 2012-10-04T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/life-is-good-at-65-percent I just got back my latest A1c results and I’m a happy man. In early June my A1c was fluctuating between 9% and 10% (210 to 240 mg/dL), high enough that my doctor said it was time to start on insulin. I decided then and there to make one ... Tue, 02 Oct 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/life-is-good-at-65-percent Patrick Totty 2012-10-02T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/the-panic-in-needle-park "The Panic in Needle Park” was the name of a 1971 film about an ill-fated love affair between two New York City heroin addicts. (It featured a young actor named Al Pacino in his second-ever Hollywood role.) By 2022, however, that title might ... Thu, 27 Sep 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/the-panic-in-needle-park Patrick Totty 2012-09-27T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/10-nifty-diabetes-apps In 1987 I was researching an article about a young man who was making big waves in San Francisco commercial real estate. One day as I was interviewing him he asked me to accompany him on a walk to a client’s office several blocks away. He wa... Tue, 25 Sep 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/10-nifty-diabetes-apps Patrick Totty 2012-09-25T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/barsoom-map-of-type-2 My wife and I have two globes of Mars that we pass by each time we go from the living room into the kitchen. The first one, 6 inches in diameter, was made 40 years ago just after the Mariner probes began sending back the first really detailed... Fri, 21 Sep 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/barsoom-map-of-type-2 Patrick Totty 2012-09-21T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/the-september-potpourri Red wine improves insulin sensitivityIs there anything that red wine can’t do? A Spanish study shows that men who are at risk of developing heart disease who drink a glass of red wine daily—regular or dealcoholized—enjoy lower insulin resistanc... Tue, 18 Sep 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/the-september-potpourri Patrick Totty 2012-09-18T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/coaching-type-2-kids A friend of mine who has counseled many parents with type 2 children says that although each child is unique, there are some general principles parents can apply as they teach their diabetic children to cope with the disease. Here are some o... Fri, 14 Sep 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/coaching-type-2-kids Patrick Totty 2012-09-14T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/hitting-the-road-with-type-2 My wife and I will soon be driving out from the San Francisco Bay Area to southern Utah. We haven’t visited the glorious red rock country there in years, so we’ve been anticipating this trip for months. Our goal is to shun freeways and inter... Wed, 12 Sep 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/hitting-the-road-with-type-2 Patrick Totty 2012-09-12T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/improved-test-strip-mileage Pricking our fingers to get blood glucose readings involves two necessary evils: sticking needles into sensitive finger tips to draw blood and having to pay month in and month out for test strips. Those are the two big reasons why millions of... Tue, 11 Sep 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/improved-test-strip-mileage Patrick Totty 2012-09-11T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/ulysses-and-the-seven-siren-cheetos My wife, who is extremely slender and has never suffered from being an ounce overweight, rediscovered the Cheeto about two years ago. The Cheeto, as we all know, is the devilish combination of salt and tangy, orange-y fat that the Frito-Lay C... Thu, 06 Sep 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/ulysses-and-the-seven-siren-cheetos Patrick Totty 2012-09-06T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/spreading-the-word-about-type-1-diabetes For several years I’ve been writing news summaries and filling in as a back-up feature writer and copy editor for a diabetes publication. Today the editor asked me to look over an article by one of our best writers, a type 1 woman who lives ... Fri, 31 Aug 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/spreading-the-word-about-type-1-diabetes Patrick Totty 2012-08-31T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/will-type-2s-be-the-new-gurus I set aside a few bucks each month and when the total reaches $80 or $100 send the money to an international non-profit organization called Heiferthat offers relief to families in need by providing them with a long-term food source. Twenty dol... Tue, 28 Aug 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/will-type-2s-be-the-new-gurus Patrick Totty 2012-08-28T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/bobbing-the-sargasso-seas The Sargasso Sea is a section of the Atlantic Ocean that almost every sailor on earth knows about and fears. It’s not that the sea has dragons, or violent weather, or pirates, or unexplained disappearances. What it has is nothing, as in no wi... Fri, 24 Aug 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/bobbing-the-sargasso-seas Patrick Totty 2012-08-24T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/giant-temptations My friend Mike has a sixth sense when it comes to finding bargains. A few years ago, he heard that a long-time San Francisco Giants baseball team season ticket holder was looking to sell her rights to two prime seats at the Club Level above hom... Thu, 23 Aug 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/giant-temptations Patrick Totty 2012-08-23T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/paul-floats-on-air My type 2 neighbor Paul, whose pessimistic outlook I wrote about recently, is a new man. He went to an endocrinologist a few days ago to discuss a long list of questions, fears, and concerns about his condition. Is his A1c low enough? Too lo... Fri, 17 Aug 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/paul-floats-on-air Patrick Totty 2012-08-17T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/nostalgia-just-isnt-what-it-used-to-be The French are masters at coming up with descriptions that we English speakers just grab and use because even our great language just can’t say it as well. Nostalgia is one of those words, from the French nostalgie, a version of the German word ... Tue, 14 Aug 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/nostalgia-just-isnt-what-it-used-to-be Patrick Totty 2012-08-14T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/my-numbers-are-great-whats-wrong-with-me I’ve written about my neighbor, Paul (not his real name), who’s a type 2 like me. But when it comes to our diabetes, our formal designation as type 2s is really about all we have in common.Otherwise, we’re pretty different. I’ve taken metformin ... Thu, 09 Aug 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/my-numbers-are-great-whats-wrong-with-me Patrick Totty 2012-08-09T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/high-tech-high-touch I spent last weekend working with several people located in far parts of the country putting together a funding proposal for a study aimed at older type 2s. The study is designed to see how effective a mentoring program aimed at type 2s ages 65... Mon, 06 Aug 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/high-tech-high-touch Patrick Totty 2012-08-06T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/a-new-throwing-stick-for-type-2s I remember the first time I saw a throwing stick attached to a spear. The stick works as an additional lever that aids the primary lever—the arm—in hurling the spear. Ancient man’s invention of it made it possible to toss spears with greater force... Thu, 02 Aug 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/a-new-throwing-stick-for-type-2s Patrick Totty 2012-08-02T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/no-pony-in-the-manure There's an old joke about twin brothers, one of whom is an incurable optimist. On their eighth birthday, the parents put a beautiful wooden rocking pony in one son’s room and a waist-deep pile of manure in the optimist’s room, hoping to teac... Tue, 31 Jul 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/no-pony-in-the-manure Patrick Totty 2012-07-31T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/what-smoking-taught-me-about-diabetes I was a heavy smoker for 12 years. When I quit, I was up to two packs per day. I don’t know where I got the willpower, but by the time I’d gone three weeks without a smoke, I knew I was done with cigarettes forever.My older brother, who’d been smo... Wed, 25 Jul 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/what-smoking-taught-me-about-diabetes Patrick Totty 2012-07-25T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/shock-and-awe-comes-to-type-2 For years treating type 2 has followed a predictable path: First, try to modify symptoms through diet and exerciseAs the disease progresses, add metformin to the mixWhen metformin becomes less effective, introduce a sulfonylurea on top of th... Mon, 23 Jul 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/its-a-type-2-life/shock-and-awe-comes-to-type-2 Patrick Totty 2012-07-23T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/not-yet-needles-pens I went to my insulin management class this morning. It lasted 90 minutes and was an eye opener. The instructor, a certified diabetes educator, surprised me when she said that my recent experiment to try lowering my blood sugar averages with ste... Wed, 18 Jul 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/not-yet-needles-pens Patrick Totty 2012-07-18T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/prioritizing-pauls-fears My neighbor Paul (not his real name) has type 2 diabetes and we often compare notes. He’s a bit of a hypochondriac, so when we discuss what going on with ourselves, certain of his fears emerge. So far, I’ve just listened. If you listen long e... Tue, 17 Jul 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/prioritizing-pauls-fears Patrick Totty 2012-07-17T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/pilgrim-progress I’m entering the fifth week of my experiment with a low-carb diet and a renewed exercise regimen to see if I can put off starting insulin therapy. I started with the high hope that I could drive my fasting numbers down far enough to avoid start... Wed, 11 Jul 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/pilgrim-progress Patrick Totty 2012-07-11T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/swimming-information-sea Besides coming to Healthline and reading what various contributors have to say, how do you stay abreast of all the growing volume of news about diabetes? One of the simplest ways is to Google or Bing the topics “diabetes news,” “type 2 diabe... Fri, 06 Jul 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/swimming-information-sea Patrick Totty 2012-07-06T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/wonderful-one-hoss-shay Back in the day—I’m dating myself here—when they taught poetry in the public schools, one popular poem was “The Wonderful One-Hoss Shay,” a famous 19th-century verse by Oliver Wendell Holmes. A shay was a small two-person buggy, drawn by one... Thu, 05 Jul 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/wonderful-one-hoss-shay Patrick Totty 2012-07-05T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/symbiosis-hope-huckster A couple of weekends ago my Sunday paper had a four-color, full-page ad from a chiropractic doctor who was inviting people to come on down to a suburban hotel, eat a fancy dinner (the ad had a photo of an expensive cut of roast being sliced on ... Thu, 28 Jun 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/symbiosis-hope-huckster Patrick Totty 2012-06-28T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/insulin-avoidance-gambit A couple of blogs ago I discussed my experiment to see if a low-carb diet could alter my blood glucose readings. The idea was to drive them down far enough to let me hold off taking insulin therapy. I’m happy to go on insulin if I need to. But ... Tue, 26 Jun 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/insulin-avoidance-gambit Patrick Totty 2012-06-26T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/flozin-in-time Putting aside all the crummy problems that come with diabetes, it’s a pleasure to watch good minds in action as they focus on how to control, and eventually defeat, the disease. One of the best places to see what they’ve come up with is the ... Thu, 21 Jun 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/flozin-in-time Patrick Totty 2012-06-21T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/buying-time-before-insulin Last week I wrote about my high blood glucose levels and my doctor’s recommendation that I begin taking insulin. I agreed and signed up to take a course on how to prepare insulin and use a syringe. As I write this, I’m waiting to confirm my... Mon, 18 Jun 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/buying-time-before-insulin Patrick Totty 2012-06-18T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/my-private-rubricon The expression “to cross the Rubicon” means to make a choice that’s not only life-changing but may be impossible to undo. It comes from ancient Rome when the city tried to protect itself from generals who were coming off of big victories in ... Thu, 14 Jun 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/my-private-rubricon Patrick Totty 2012-06-14T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/unwelcome-wonders-never-cease I’ve mentioned before that I occasionally participate in drug trials for my endocrinologist. The arrangement is very enticing: I get regular checkups, including ECGs and blood tests. Sometimes the test sponsor pays for my regular diabetes medic... Mon, 11 Jun 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/unwelcome-wonders-never-cease Patrick Totty 2012-06-11T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/pattern-detectors-part-2 Here is a series of steps I mentioned in my last blog for learning about your blood glucose patterns and how they are affected by diet, exercise, medications, and your own unique physiology. Learn how to test yourself. This means knowing how... Fri, 08 Jun 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/pattern-detectors-part-2 Patrick Totty 2012-06-08T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/pattern-detectors-part-1 Temple Grandin is an autistic college professor known for two things: First, her high degree of social skill has made her the rare autistic person who can communicate the perceptions and thought processes of autistic people to the larger world.... Tue, 05 Jun 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/pattern-detectors-part-1 Patrick Totty 2012-06-05T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/little-machine-loving-grace In 1967 Richard Brautigan wrote a poem about a paradise where humans who had forgotten how to be responsible adults were protected from their ignorance by “machines of loving grace.” While I never liked the poem for imagining a post-industrial ... Tue, 29 May 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/little-machine-loving-grace Patrick Totty 2012-05-29T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/friend-eye-view-diabetes I have a friend I pal around with for a day every few months. We’ll go into town with some sort of grown-up, goal-oriented theme, such as visiting rooftop parks or checking out produce markets in Chinatown—anything to make us feel less guilty a... Thu, 24 May 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/friend-eye-view-diabetes Patrick Totty 2012-05-24T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/fat-lady-singing We’ve all had the experience where experts say something is good for us only to find out later that they’ve changed their minds. Coffee is bad for you; now it’s good for you. Multivitamins are good for you; now they’re unnecessary. Gl... Mon, 21 May 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/fat-lady-singing Patrick Totty 2012-05-21T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/neuropathy-gets-comeuppance There’s some hopeful news for type 2s who suffer from diabetic neuropathy: A team of British researchers has found how high blood sugar levels lead to painful nerve damage in limbs, especially feet. While the medical community has known for ... Thu, 17 May 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/neuropathy-gets-comeuppance Patrick Totty 2012-05-17T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/my-pill-is-not-my-savior I’m lucky enough to have hooked up with a great endocrinologist who happens to be one of the people pharmaceutical companies rely on for Phase III trails of their anti-diabetes drugs. (Phase III trials are the last step before drugs go to the F... Thu, 10 May 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/my-pill-is-not-my-savior Patrick Totty 2012-05-10T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/this-roman-was-right The ancient Romans left behind many impressive things, including long-lasting aqueducts, outdoor theaters, and roads. Another durable thing they left behind was the dramatist Terence’s memorable recommendation, “moderation in all things.” Whe... Tue, 08 May 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-two-life/this-roman-was-right Patrick Totty 2012-05-08T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/seducing-hope My wife and I keep a list on our refrigerator of the greatest things people have invented—everything from zippers and manmade fire to insulin and smartphones. Trying to come up with things to add to it is one of our favorite pastimes. We bot... Fri, 04 May 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/seducing-hope Patrick Totty 2012-05-04T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/identify-yourself We type 2s know we should carry or wear medical alerts to let emergency doctors and technicians know about our condition. And we certainly want law enforcement people to be able recognize that what may look to them to be drunk and disorderly ... Thu, 03 May 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/identify-yourself Patrick Totty 2012-05-03T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/a-gathering-storm It’s always prudent to check the horizon for oncoming storm clouds. Sailors and aviators do it all the time. So should people with diabetes. In our case as type 2s, there’s a gathering storm over how much other people will intervene in our l... Fri, 27 Apr 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/a-gathering-storm Patrick Totty 2012-04-27T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/the-war-and-the-stalemate It started out as a Crusade. Now I’m content with an armed truce. When my doctor bluntly told me that summer day in 2003, “You have diabetes,” his announcement wasn’t unexpected. I’d been having bouts of thirst and excessive urination for so... Thu, 26 Apr 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/the-war-and-the-stalemate Patrick Totty 2012-04-26T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/resistance-is-not-futile A few years ago the History Channel produced a TV series called “Life After People,” a look at how earth and its creatures would change if humans suddenly disappeared. One of the things that I soon noticed in each episode was how quickly pla... Tue, 24 Apr 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/resistance-is-not-futile Patrick Totty 2012-04-24T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/smelling-the-honeysuckle After I was diagnosed with type 2, I became reacquainted with one great truth and one great joy. Both centered on walking. My diagnosing doctor had wagged his finger at me and said, “Get moving,” and for me the easiest way to do that was to s... Mon, 16 Apr 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/smelling-the-honeysuckle Patrick Totty 2012-04-16T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/keep-watching-the-skies In Howard Hawks’ classic 1951 sci-fi thriller, “The Thing from Another World,” a ravenous flesh-eating alien (actually an incredibly grumpy intelligent vegetable) is finally outsmarted and fried to death by a group of U.S. airmen after they fin... Thu, 12 Apr 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-life/keep-watching-the-skies Patrick Totty 2012-04-12T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-diabetes-life/bypass-ahead The expression “unintended consequences” usually applies to bad things that come from good intentions. For example, the noble goal of producing enough food for people to eat has created a worldwide epidemic of obesity. But sometimes an unint... Tue, 10 Apr 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-diabetes-life/bypass-ahead Patrick Totty 2012-04-10T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-diabetes-life/were-all-scientists A few days ago, while I was walking my doofus boxer, Baxter, I noticed a couple of eight-year-old boys who had just overturned a big rock along the path. Their faces wore fascination at what they’d found underneath: tiny salamanders, which they... Thu, 05 Apr 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-diabetes-life/were-all-scientists Patrick Totty 2012-04-05T07:00:00Z http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-diabetes-life/welcome A publisher I once worked for had a policy about what you call people who have diabetes. “You call them ‘people with diabetes,’” he said. He hated the word “diabetic” because he thought it implied that diabetes is all that you are, and not jus... Mon, 02 Apr 2012 07:00:00 GMT http://www.healthline.com/health-blogs/type-2-diabetes-life/welcome Patrick Totty 2012-04-02T07:00:00Z