Being prepared is a crucial part of managing diabetes, and it can significantly enhance your daily life in many ways. It’s all about having your supplies ready and knowing how to effectively monitor and manage your blood sugar levels. With a little bit of knowledge, you’ll feel empowered to handle unexpected situations, like dealing with hypoglycemia.
Consider keeping some fast-acting carbohydrates, like glucose tablets, easily accessible in your car, along with other longer-acting snacks. It’s also a good idea to have a blood glucose meter, test strips, and any other necessary supplies. If you think it’s necessary, a glucagon kit can provide extra peace of mind in emergencies.
Remember, a little bit of preparation goes a long way in helping you navigate your day with confidence and ease!
And as we tag along on your journey, I’d like to take a moment to reflect on the strength of my great-grandmother, who bravely traveled to America from Italy with her two sons. Her pioneering spirit is a wonderful reminder that we can face challenges with resilience and grace.
Keeping data related to diabetes, especially blood glucose levels, is essential for effective diabetes management.
This data helps you understand how various factors, such as food, sleep, exercise, and medications, affect blood sugar levels.
This data, shared with your doctors, allows for adjustments to your treatment plans, setting realistic goals, and making lifestyle choices to manage your diabetes better.
It also provides valuable information to healthcare providers, enabling them to make informed decisions about treatment and care.
Diabetes causes blood sugar levels to fluctuate. Tracking these levels helps you and your team identify patterns and understand what triggers high or low readings.
By monitoring your blood sugar, you can work with your healthcare team to adjust medication dosages, meal plans, and exercise routines to optimize your blood sugar levels.
Carmel, Indiana’s Art and Design District has 23 of J. Seward Johnson Jr.’s bronze-painted sculptures.
J. Seward Johnson Jr. was a grandson of Robert Wood Johnson I, the co-founder of Johnson & Johnson. He was one of six siblings who sought to overturn his father’s will, which left his vast fortune to a former maid, Barbara Piasecka Johnson, whom he had married late in life.
Johnson & Johnson (J&J) has faced numerous lawsuits and scrutiny regarding its diabetes drugs, particularly Invokana (canagliflozin), and its management of patients’ care. A few years ago Johnson & Johnson stopped manufacturing their insulin pump and sold their LifeScan blood glucose monitoring.
Casey Johnson, who was the great-great-granddaughter of Robert Wood Johnson, died from complications from type 1 diabetes. According to sources, she had a long history of poorly managed diabetes dating back to childhood.
In 1964, Mr. Johnson married Cecelia Joyce Horton, who sparked his interest in art. When he was fired from Johnson & Johnson, Seward and Cecelia would paint together, although he wasn’t very good at it.
“I didn’t like what I could do with paint,” he told The New York Times, “so my wife suggested sculpture because I had some mechanical ability.”
He took some classes and created his first piece, made of stainless steel. It won a contest sponsored by U.S. Steel.
Carmel has the largest collection outside of Mr. Johnson’s home state of New Jersey, and cost the city $2.4 million. His goal for his sculptures was to celebrate the familar. The Carmel Art and Design District has over 200 art and design-focused businesses, including the Indiana Design Center.
“Most people who like my work are timid about their own sense of art,” he told The New York Times. “I love to draw it out of them, because they have strong inner feelings. They’ve been intimidated by the art world.”
This May, join FANDROSS in Los Angeles, CA, for two exciting Mother’s Day weekend events honoring Luther Vandross.
On Saturday, May 10, 2025 explore Luther’s Artistry and Elegance costume exhibit at the GRAMMY Museum featuring trivia, rare photos, memorabilia, and a panel discussion with Max Szadek, Luther’s former assistant.
On Sunday night, May 11, 2025 enjoy Terry Steele‘s wonderful Luther Tribute Concerts in Bel Air at Vibrato Grill, in Bel Air, CA with special guest Pat Lacy-Aiken at 6 and 8:30 PM.
It is a privilege for Max Szadek to be featured in the NAACP Image Awards-nominated documentary Luther: Never Too Much, where he shares his story of discovering Luther Vandross after experiencing a stroke due to mismanaged type 2 diabetes. He hopes to inspire others to proactively avoid a similar health crisis through advocacy.
Remember, if you notice any signs of a stroke, don’t hesitate to seek help right away – swift action can greatly impact your recovery. Let’s look out for each other! It’s essential to seek help, connect with a caring community, and share your journey.
Philadelphia’s beloved WDAS Radio personality, Patty Jackson, is a true inspiration! After surviving a stroke, she continues to bring joy to her audience behind the microphone and camera.
This May, join FANDROSS in Los Angeles, CA, for two exciting Mother’s Day weekend events honoring Luther Vandross.
On Saturday, May 10, 2025 explore Luther’s Artistry and Elegance costume exhibit at the GRAMMY Museum featuring trivia, rare photos, memorabilia, and a panel discussion with me, Max Szadek, Luther’s former assistant.
Then, on Sunday night, May 11, 2025 enjoy Terry Steele‘s wonderful Luther Tribute Concerts in Bel Air at Vibrato Grill, in Bel Air, CA with special guest Pat Lacy-Aiken at 6 and 8:30 PM.
Yesterday, in 1991, Luther Vandross released Power of Love / Love Power as a single for his seventh studio album, Power of Love. This song occupies such a powerful place in my heart.
We’d play it at the end of every Divabetic – Makeover Your Diabetes free outreach event to celebrate our community and pay tribute to Luther. His stroke, related to mismanaged type 2 diabetes, gave me a mission in life to help others in upbeat, thoughtful, and powerful ways.
His opening phrase, “when I say goodbye is never for long because I know our love still lives on …” motivated me to jump into diabetes outreach without any experience, keep climbing over challenges and doubts and successfully present diabetes education in an entertaining way to thousands of women at risk, affected by, and living with diabetes and their loved ones.
Witnessing Luther’s health crisis and recovery firsthand motivates me to listen to my body, treat it well, and maintain wellness daily. This song reminds me that every day is a chance for me to do something to help others achieve greater health.
The Power Of Love was also the opening song on my first Luther tour, Never Let Me Go, in 1993. It was one of the last songs Luther sang when he accepted the Grammy for Song Of The Year via video on live TV.
I’m heading to Los Angeles on Mother’s Day weekend (May 10 and 11) to celebrate the amazing Luther Vandross!
I can’t wait to meet fellow fans, share stories behind the sequins, and honor Luther’s incredible legacy. Stay tuned for more details—this is going to be a memorable celebration!
I hope you will join us for Divabetic’s free diabetes outreach program in partnership with the Frazier Family Coalition on Saturday, November 8, 2025 at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadlephia, PA.
On a recent visit to a popular cookbook author’s East Hampton home, I was captivated by her extensive collection of cookbooks. There are hundreds of popular titles by renowned authors like Julia Childs, Fanny Farmer, Martha Steward, Dorie Greenspan, and Nancy Silverton, as well as unique cookbooks like The Berdorf Goodman Cookbook.
Purusing her vast collection piqued my interest in learning more about the history of cookbooks in the US. A quick Google search reveals that the US cookbook began with poet Amelia Simmons’ American Cookery in 1796.
A hundred years later, regional cookbooks like The Virginia House-Wife and the rise of influential figures like Fannie Farmer were published. Fanny Farmer‘s cookbook popularized the modern recipe format, and it was a fitting guide to food and home life in a modernizing country.
Another cookbook, the Boston Cooking School Cookbook, was filled with recipes for such familiar 19th-century dishes as potted pigeons, creamed vegetables, and mock turtle soup. But it added a forward-looking bent to older kitchen wisdom, casting ingredients such as cheese, chocolate, and ground beef — all bit players in 19th-century U.S. kitchens — in starring roles. It introduced cooks to recipes like hamburg steaks and French fried potatoes, early prototypes of hamburgers and fries, and fruit sandwiches, with peanuts sprinkled on fig paste that were a clear precursor to peanut butter and jelly.
Today, recipes serve many purposes, from documenting cooking techniques to showing off a creator’s skills to serving as leisure reading for the food obsessed.
Most cookbook authors admit that applicability is crucial when creating a recipe. A good recipe imparts enough information to allow a cook to reproduce a dish in roughly the same form in the future.
Ina Garten feels a recipe should be foolproof, easy to prepare, and enjoyable. Her recipes are known for being approachable and easy, which I can attest to. I use her roast turkey recipe every year for Thanksgiving, and it’s delicious!!
I was lucky enough to attend a talk with Samin Nosrat, the author of Salt, Fat, Acid , Heat. Her charming disposition, generous laugh, and humility made her presentation informative and entertaining. She spoke about how often she tests her recipe and forgoes using a Viking oven for a small, standard oven found in New York City apartments to test results.
I left the talk feeling confident I could make one of the New York Times recipes, whereas before it, I believed the newspaper’s recipes were too lofty for my limited abilities.
However, baking cakes might be a bit beyond my skills especially after seeing my friend, Navah Frost’s delightful, detailed and stunning cake decorations. She’s an incredible artist. I look foward to one day owning a copy of her cookbook.
I feel that if someone envies your life, talent, health or temperment, you owe it to yourself to embrace the joy they see in it. Too many times, we deflect a compliment, deny or dismiss their appreciation by making excuses or saying, “you don’t know the half of it.” Let’s be grateful for what we have today.
Join us for our upcoming free Divabetic outreach program in partnership with the Frazier Family Coalition and Thomas Jefferson University Hospital on Saturday, November 8, 2025 in Philadelphia, PA.
For the past twenty years, Divabetic has been presenting free diabetes outreach in persona and online for thousands of women living with, at risk and affected by diabetes.
This month’s topic was ‘Check Yourself Before You Wreck Yourself.’
These free monthly motivational meetings are for people touched by diabetes in Philadelphia, PA, Cleveland, OH and New York.
Pattern Management is a skill that you can help you to manage your diabetes like a diva!
Mr. Divabetic talks to author Riva Greenberg about her new book, 50 Diabetes Myths That Can Ruin Your Life and the 50 Diabetes Truths That Can Save It at the Divabetic Club – NYC.
The Divabetic Club presents an upbeat mix of diabetes education and support. The safe environment of the Divabetic Club allows for participants to voice their failures and frustrations without judgement. It’s fondly referred to as a 12 step program for women living with diabetes by health professionals and patients alike.
Diabetes Late Nite podcast host, Mr. Divabetic and co-star Poet Lorraine Brooks joined comedians Tom Ragu and Nicky Sunshine on stage for a special performance at the Greenwich Village Comedy Club. As the member of the Diabetes Late Nite podcast team, Poet Lorraine Brooks writes original poems specifically for each monthly Diabetes Late Nite podcast.
Mr. Divabetic challenges Poet Lorraine Brooks to play his favorite game, Shady Sugar to help raise awareness for the alarming amount of added sugar contained in many of today’s most popular beverages. If you play along you just might be surprised by the results: Dannon Dairy Drink Mango flavored (28 grams of sugar), VitaCoco Lemonade (30 grams of sugar), and Red Bull Energy Drink (39 grams of sugar).
Did you know the average American consumes around 22.2 teaspoons of added sugar every day? Both the World Health Organizationand the American Heart Association (AHA) note that we should really be eating only a fraction of that amount. The AHA says that adult women should get 5 teaspoons (20 grams) of sugar per day, adult men 9 teaspoons (36 grams), and children 3 teaspoons (12 grams). If you quickly do the math, you’ll soon discover that one 12 fl oz Red Bull Energy Drink is way more than the recommended daily average.
With her strong, distinctive alto, Angela Bofill carved a niche as an outstanding interpreter of soul ballads and became a mainstay on the Quiet Storm radio format. Angela Bofill suffered two strokes but neither stroke could take away her positive, humorous personality and her fighter spirit.
Angela Bofill released 10 studio albums and numerous hit singles, including I Try, This Time I’ll Be Sweeter, and Angel Of The Night, and was also inducted into the Women Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2023.
After she lost the ability to sing, she returned to the stage for The Angela Bofill Experience in which she skillfully narrated her life story, while her band and other singers.
Stroke is the fifth leading cause of death and a leading cause of adult disability in the US. As many as 5 to 14 percent of stroke survivors have a second stroke within one year.
Keeping a food journal can be a fantastic way to manage diabetes! It’s a helpful tool that lets you track what you eat, when you eat, and even how different foods and meal timings impact your blood sugar levels. This makes it easier to take care of yourself and stay on top of your diabetes management.
Jotting down your meals and snacks can give you valuable insights into your eating patterns. It can also help you spot particular foods or times that might lead to cravings or less healthy choices.
You might even find out about food intolerances (gluten) or sensitivities that could be causing you some discomfort.
And the best part? Just knowing you’re keeping track can motivate you to make healthier choices and stick to your goals. It’s all about feeling your best!
