Even though I have alluded many times that the effects of neuropathy and other parts of type 2 diabetes can make you feel 
like you are going crazy, this is not directly about that!
The many “voices” I am referring to are the ones that tell us what to do, how to treat the condition, what we can and cannot eat, etc. They tell us so many things that there are times when it sounds like just noise and no longer any real words of advice or wisdom. Read on to take a closer look at what I am referring to.
The “wise” doctor
Don’t get me wrong, there are many doctors and health practitioners that are wise. What I am referring to here is the doctor who has the knowledge, but it is not updated with the most current findings of type 2 diabetes.
It’s easy for this to happen. Things shift and new discoveries are made and it can be hard to keep up with all of the research and findings.
This practitioner will tell you ways to treat the condition. They will give you sage advice like, “Lose weight. Walk more. Take this medication.”
When the first step in treating a condition like type 2 diabetes is medication, I think we are being mistakenly mistreated. That is not to say that all medication is bad and we should never take any. However, since type 2 diabetes is an inflammatory condition shouldn’t we treat it as such?
According to documentation on pubmed.gov type 2 diabetes is being considered an inflammatory condition, although the “wise” doctor would likely disagree with that.
Here is the abstract of the findings as published on pubmed.gov.
“Components of the immune system are altered in obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2D), with the most apparent changes occurring in adipose tissue, the liver, pancreatic islets, the vasculature, and circulating leukocytes. These immunological changes include altered levels of specific cytokines and chemokines, changes in the number and activation state of various leukocyte populations, and increased apoptosis and tissue fibrosis. Together, these changes suggest that inflammation participates in the pathogenesis of T2D. Preliminary results from clinical trials with salicylates and interleukin-1 antagonists support this notion and have opened the door for immunomodulatory strategies for the treatment of T2D that simultaneously lower blood glucose levels and potentially reduce the severity and prevalence of the associated complications of this disease.”
That’s a lot of big words to basically say that the changes in the immune system may be attributed to inflammation, in part.
Well, how do you treat inflammation?
Some doctors or health professionals will strictly use medication to treat inflammation in the body. Some will suggest changes in the foods we eat.
Why the food we eat?
Because a lot of our health problems can be traced back to the food we ingest. Don’t believe me? Check out this article.
We will share more about treating inflammation in future articles. For now, just remember that a lot of our physical and even mental health problems can come from the food we eat!
The “Know-It-All”
The know-it-all is very well-meaning, but that doesn’t make them very helpful. They know just enough to make their advice dangerous. They take a little from here and a little from there and combine it into what they think will be helpful, but really is just a bunch of nice words strung together.
They give you all kinds of advice about what you should do. They insist you must do these things because—well, because they just know it will work for you because it worked for their best friend’s sister’s uncle’s son’s nephew so it will definitely work for you, too!
We all know this type of person. In fact, some of us ARE this type of person (you know who you are!).
While there is good advice in what they say, the know-it-all insists that you follow what they tell you. The more they put their voice into your head, the more they think you will know. If you know more, then surely you will get better. If you don’t get better it must be because you didn’t heed their advice!
Sometimes we all fit into this category. It can be hard to sort the good, the bad, and the ugly, so to speak.
I may fall into this more than most because I do a lot of research and do know things that others may not know. But I honestly do not think I “know it all” and am certainly willing to be corrected by someone who knows more than me!
Tying it together
The bottom line is it can be hard to know who to listen to. Very well-meaning, well-intentioned doctors, healthcare professionals, friends, and family members may all be saying things to you and it can get hard to know which voice to listen to. As we explore type 2 diabetes more and more, we will look at clinically or scientifically proven methods for reversing type 2 diabetes and the things we have found that work. I will tell you now that it will mostly focus on food as I am convinced that what we eat is vital to our health.
My New Normal
I did fairly well with my eating yesterday until about 10 p.m. Then I decided I was hungry and I threw good sense out the window and ate about 20 pizza rolls!
I am working on setting up a data table for this site so that it is easier to show what I eat and the exercise I do along with my blood sugar numbers. It will help keep me accountable as well as provide you with the information you may want to see what path I am taking and how it affects my blood glucose numbers.
Until later, be good to yourself and others.
Thank you for visiting my site. I would love to hear your thoughts on this post. Please leave questions or comments below and I will get back to you very soon!
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About the author
Karin Nauber is a professional journalist who has worked in the newspaper business for the past 25 years. She is also a grandmother who, along with her spouse, is raising one of their granddaughters. Karin has nine grandchildren with whom she enjoys spending as much time as possible. Karin also was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes about 13 years ago and has faced many challenges with the disease. If you would like to contact her, please do so at karin@diabeteshealthnuts.com.
Hello Karin, as a Mexican-American, diabetes I am familiar with the toll diabetes takes on a family. Mexican-Americans have a high prevalence of type-2 diabetes.
I appreciate your down-to-earth communication style. I’ll admit that sometimes I can come off as a “know-it-all” myself. When I feel that way I try to talk less and listen more. After all, you can’t be a know-it-all if you don’t speak!
Writing that, I am about to come off as a know-it-all.
I have a huge bone to pick with the medical establishment. I believe it is no longer serving us as a civilization. Doctors are trained to push pills and surgeries, not address the actual causes of ailments. We have a sick care system, not a health care system. A patient cured is a customer lost.
I’m sure you’re aware that doctors receive very little (around 20 hours) schooling on nutrition. Can you imagine that? Our food is the source of our energy, it makes up our bodies! Why is it that doctors are taught so little about the importance of what we eat? (hint: our sickness benefits the medical establishment)
I regularly get into arguments with my friends, many of whom are doctors, about the status of healthcare. I’m not afraid to say that most doctors are ignorant about how to actually heal people. And I can say this because I’m a human being, I know what it feels like to be healthy/sick. We don’t need to have degrees in medicine to be able to know what makes us happy and healthy. This is contrary to what we’ve been made to believe; that we always need “expert authorities” to tell us what’s good for us. That’s a load of nonsense, in my opinion.
As far as your struggles with eating, it sounds like you could use some scientifically-proven tips to change your habits! I highly recommend reading “Atomic Habits” by James Clear. He breaks down the process of installing/removing habits into an amazingly simple process. Applying what the book says has helped me change my eating habits; I no longer eat as much sugar as I used to. As a plus, you can apply the knowledge in the book to all other areas of your life.
All the best,
Erick
Hi Erick and thank you so much for your comments. I agree, I think our healthcare system is sick. It is in great need of a BIG change and a cleansing, so to speak.
I don’t think you come off as being a know-it-all at all. You come off as someone who is fed up with the compromised medical profession. Don’t get me started on that topic. I feel so deceived by the medical profession in many ways.
I will check into the book, Atomic Habits. It has been recommended to me previously and I think it would be a good resource for me.
I thank you for your time and for your encouragement!
To our health,
Karin 🙂
Hi Karin, I just read your article about “The many voices of type 2 diabetes”, which was a pleasure to read. Your journalistic qualities show through, which is not the case with many of the articles I read! I do no suffer myself, but my mother was diagnosed with T2D in her mid 70s. I think your “many voices” article is a unique way of addressing the subject, and I like that it deals with inflammation, the foods we eat and exercise. Sound advice for the many sufferers of T2D.
Thank you for visiting our site and for your very kind and thoughtful words, Jenni. I truly appreciate what you have written.
Having the condition ourselves or watching others go through who have the condition—while not on equal terms—does lead to greater understanding. Until I had the condition myself I did not know the daily struggles with the condition.
Thank you again. I hope you will check back often on my site!
To our health,
Karin 🙂