When I found out I had Type 2 diabetes, I was upset because I knew nothing about the condition and had nothing to fight it with,” said “Touched By An Angel” actress and music legend Della Reese. “So I sought out as much information and support as I could,” the entertainer explained. “I talked to my doctor about an aggressive diabetes management plan that included daily exercise and smaller portions.
Before landing the role as Tess on “Touched by an Angel,” Reese was an accomplished singer who rose to national fame in 1957 with her song, “And That Reminds Me.” She had several other hits, including “Not One Minute More,” “And Now,” “Don’t You Know?” and “The Most Beautiful Words.”
When she made the move to television, Reese saw success in parts on series including “The Love Boat,” “MacGyver” and “The Young and the Restless.” She also had her own television variety hour called “Della” and was the first black woman to co-host “The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.” She went on to play Tess in “Touched by an Angel’s” 1994 debut and continued through the end of the series in 2003.
“I’m proof that you can take control of your life. You can be stronger than diabetes,” she added. “I lost 20 pounds and lowered my blood sugar from between 275 and 300 to between 67 and 110.”
According to the University of Michigan, blood sugar levels of 300 mg/dL or more can be dangerous. If you experience mental confusion, nausea, or dizziness, proceed to the emergency room. Please be proactive and talk to your doctor if you’re worried about any symptoms of high blood sugar.
Click HEREto convert your blood sugar levels to an A1C using the American Diabetes Association’s Conversion Calculator.
Della Reese passed away in 2017. She was 86.
Looking for a fun way to socialize without putting your diabetes wellness at risk? Do you need a little help staying on track with your diabetes self-care?
Join the happy healthcare host, Mr. Divabetic, hosts this free, fun Virtual Mother’s Day-themed Baking Party with special guests, Stacey Harris, aka The Diabetic Pastry Chef and Divabetic Image & Style Advisor Catherine Schuller, on Thursday, April 28, 2022, 7 – 8:30 PM, EST on Zoom.
Win gifts courtesy of Arthel Neville Design FABULOUS East/West Tote, Dr. Remedy’s Enriched Nail Care gift set, Best-Selling Author Tonya Kappes‘s Camper Cozy Mystery, Walden Farms Zero Calories, Zero Net Carbs Salad Dressings, and Peak 10Skin’s Save My Sole Foot Rescue Cream during Mr. Divabetic’s random drawings. You must be present at our Baking Party to enter our gift drawings to win.
Over 150 people registered for our last Divabetic Baking Party on Zoom, so don’t miss out!
Our favorite “Divabetic” Patti LaBelle is living proof that diabetes doesn’t have to dim your dazzle!
Her diagnosis of type 2 diabetes hasn’t stop two-time Grammy-winning legend Patti from taking on new challenges in her career. She just released a new album, “Bel Hommage,” a jazz covers album executive produced by her ex-husband Armstead Edwards (“he’s known me and my voice for over 30 years, so why not?” she says of the musical marriage) on a new label (GPE Records) she co-owns with their son and her manager, Zuri Edwards of Edwards Entertainment.
“Now you know that’s just how I roll,” Patti told Variety in a recent interview.
It’s been 55 years since her debut single and she’s still going strong even though she admits it took awhile for her to get in tune with her diabetes self-care. Patti now eats right, exercises daily, and takes her medicine regularly and is riding high on the success of her Good Life foods imprint with Walmart, starting with the famed “Patti LaBelle Sweet Potato Pie,”and her show for the Cooking Channel’s “Patti LaBelle’s Place”.
However, we happy to hear that music, jazz in particular, remains the godmother of the ‘Divabetic’ movement’s first and truest love. When her ex-husband, Armstead Edwards, suggested that she record her jazz favorites, she jumped at the process, even though — at the time — she wasn’t completely confident in her vocal abilities. “I just didn’t like how I sounded. My voice wasn’t being kind to me. I knew I could be better. I didn’t think I could do it, but Armstead said ‘Blanche’ — that’s his nick name for me and my drama — ‘I know you have it in you.’ So I did it, and was in it to win it. Now, it sounds more beautiful than I ever imagined.”
LaBelle told Variety she fought with Edwards throughout the entire “Bel Hommage” recording process, “even when I knew he was right, just to stir thing up. There’s a lot of laughs, joy, and pain in that album.”
Several years ago, the rhythm-and-blues diva passed out on stage during a singing performance. That night, the doctor asked if she knew she had diabetes. “I didn’t have a clue,” Patti told Diabetic Living magazine. “I hadn’t gone to the doctor because nothing was hurting me.”
Our May Divabetic inspiration, Della Reese also experienced a situation similar to Patti Labelle’s when she was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. She passed out on the set of her hit TV show, ‘Touched by An Angel”. Patricia Addie-Gentle RN, CDE shares ways to help you overcome the initial shock related to a diabetes diagnosis on May’sDiabetes Late Nite podcast s with musical inspiration from Della Reese.
Patti’s diagnosis made her angry, even though she knew diabetes ran in her family.
Anger frequently contributes to diabetes burnout, a person’s anger may encourage them to seek ‘freedom’ from the condition and neglect their self-management.
According to Diabetes UK ‘mindfulness based approaches’ are recognized as an effective and lasting means of aiding the management of anger. Research has shown that by becoming aware of the triggers as well as the emotional, mental and physical impact of anger, an individual is able to recognize and respond rather than react to triggers which may have initiated an automatic reaction.
Eventually, Patti, like Della, decided she needed a ‘new attitude’, just like the title of her 1985 chart-topper. “I realized my blood glucose levels weren’t getting any better,” she says. “So I knew I had to stop playing around and get serious about this disease.”
https://youtu.be/vnDuExwDaxU
That’s good news because we just learned that Patti LaBelle has several albums ‘in the works’ including a gospel album, a dance-music album, and an album featuring the new first songs penned by fellow Philadelphians Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff .
“This is like a new beginning for me,” says LaBelle of “Bel Hommage,” “new, but still an old friend.”
‘Caught Bread Handed: A Bakeshop Mystery’by author Ellie Alexander is what I like to call a ‘one day’ book because you’re able to read it in one day or more accurately a lazy afternoon. It’s quick and fun.
Welcome to Torte—a friendly, small-town family bake shop where the oven is heating up as high as the body count…
Jules Capshaw is still chewing over her husband Carlos’s return to Ashland, Oregon. Could there be too many cooks in the kitchen? Whatever is stirring between those two will have to wait. Despite the Oregon Shakespeare Festival being dark for the winter, the bakeshop is bustling, the dough is rolling, and there’s no rest for the weary…especially when murder is thrown into the mix. READ MORE
My only complaint is that the the nuisances of baking outweigh the mystery behind the murder in this story. Chapter after chapter, I kept wondering when the main character, Juliet ‘Jules’ Capshaw, was going to take off her apron and get down to the business of investigating. However, you will find yourself falling love with Ashland, Oregon and the crazy characters that inhabit it.
The author also does a great job of giving you a slice of ‘cake without the frosting’ when it comes to describing the daily grind of owning and operating a bakery/restaurant. The rhapsody of creating a new recipe is liberally sprinkled over the nonstop, never ending cycle of early mornings, financial worries and physical exhaustion. I don’t think there’s enough coffee for me to put on a chef’s hat! Now, that I’m eating ‘gluten free’ I appreciated her gluten free baking tip too.
The gay character, Lance hooked me. He’s smart, witty, sarcastic busybody; a bit like Paul Lynne. And right before you think he’s going to be a total stereotype of a ‘theater queen’ the author reveals another, truthful side to the character by hinting at his issues with intimacy.
I read this book for inspiration. Currently I’m working on rewrites for this year’s ‘Mister Divabetic Mystery: Gypsies, Tramps & Peas’as well as researching and outlining my next ‘Mister Divabetic Mystery: One Murder Tutu Many’podcast script. The purpose of our annual diabetes mystery podcasts is to educate you about diabetes self-care in an entertaining way. I also want to encourage you to become a diabetes detective and investigate the reasons behind why you may be experiencing unexpected high’s and low’s with your healthcare team.
‘Mister Divabetic Mystery: Gypsies, Tramps & Peas’ takes place at the Mermaid Parade in Coney Island, New York. The happy healthcare host’s first foray into healthy catering gets off to a soggy start when the guest of honor is found swimming with the fishes! Tune in to Diabetes Late Nite for all the action and laughs sprinkled with diabetes information in September.
My ‘Mister Divabetic Mystery: One Murder Tutu Many’ is set in the word of ballet. My character, Mr. Divabetic’s gluten-free cheesecake gives his team of amateur sleuths goosebumps when it’s found covering the face of a dead body. I’ve been busy consulting with Author and diabetes advocate, Zippora Karz, Janis Roszler MSFT, RD, CDE, LD/N, Cookbook author, Holly Clegg, Dr. Beverly S. Adler PHd, CDE and Stacey ‘The Diabetic Pastry Chef’ Harris on the various themes and recipes related to the story.
Wondering what life’s like for a ballerina living with type 1 diabetes?
Check out the ‘The Sugarless Plum’ by Zippora Karz. For dancer Zippora Karz, a rising young star with the famed New York City Ballet, being diagnosed with diabetes could easily have ended all her dreams. She was just twenty-one when she was plucked from the corps de ballet to dance solo roles like the Sugarplum Fairy in The Nutcracker. It was near the end of a grueling season when she became exhausted, dizzy, and excessively thirsty. READ MORE
Four years ago I met USA Today Best-Selling Author Tonya Kappes at BookCon in New York, NYC. Our chance meeting has lead me to researching, writing and producing a yearly diabetes mystery podcast with my Diabetes Late Nite cast for our Divabetic community. Tonya’s been a great support throughout my painful and joyful writing process.
One day soon I hope to turn one or more of my scripts featuring diabetes self-care tips and information and healthy recipes into a book (!) or not. In the meantime I’m going to keep on reading and writing!
By the way, my Mister Divabetic Mysteries (Pink Panther, Phantom of the Okra, Suspect Boulevard and Gypsies, Tramps & Peas) are available for free at blogtalkradio, i-Tunes and divabetic.org
Can’t wait until September? Check out May’s Diabetes Late Nite podcast featuring the music of Della Reese on Tuesday, May 9, 2017, 6 PM, EST. It’s not an mystery podcast but it’s filled with great advice on how to overcome the sudden shock of being diagnosed with diabetes, and advice on navigating your local farmers market and the best ways to go gray.
In 2000, Della was officially diagnosed with diabetes after collapsing on the set of the hit TV show “Touched By An Angel”. Since then, she’s battled with her health to fight against wheelchair confinement. Her rep claims she’s still able to walk and refuses to be confined. At this point, let’s just hope she continues to fight like we know she can! Guests include Diabetes Diabetes Alert Dog Trainer and Author from Chilbrook Kennels, Debby Kay, Central Farm Markets Co-Founder, Debra Moser, Master Hairstylist Karline Ricketts, the Charlie’s Angels of Outreach, Poet Lorraine Brooks and Mama Rose Marie
In May, we’re shining the spotlight on singer, actress Della Reese who is living with type 2 diabetes. Della is best known for her gospel talents and long career in television, including her role on the show ‘Touched by an Angel.’
On Diabetes Late Nite scheduled for Tuesday, May 9, 2017, 6 – 7 PM, EST we will discuss ways to help you overcome the shock of being diagnosed with diabetes, especially if it occurs after a traumatic health crisis.
“Every 25 seconds someone in the United States is diagnosed with diabetes,” said Vice Admiral Richard H. Carmona, the U.S. Surgeon General. “It’s the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States, costing thousands of lives and billions of dollars every year.”
Della Reese was officially diagnosed with diabetes after collapsing on the set of ‘Touched By An Angel.’
“I was feeling great. so I don’t even know how long I had had type 2 diabetes. I have no family history of diabetes whatsoever,” says Della Reese.
The diagnosis of a major disease truly shakes a person to their very core. It can changed your picture-perfect life completely.
Our lives certainly doesn’t stop once we’re diagnosed with a diabetes. There are many ways to get through the initial shock including:
Surrounding yourself with people you love: You need to connect with people who can be your rock/anchor, encouragement, or support, and most importantly, make you feel loved.
Don’t make rash decisions: Relax. Breathe. Take a time out. Do some research and get a second opinion (if necessary). These make all the difference in getting the best doctor and treatment.
Focus on your health: Stick to your self-care routine and your doctor’s appointments. If you need to let go of unnecessary things at the moment, do so.
Don’t let your emotions get the best of you: Trust that the intensity of your anger, sadness and/or frustration will subside with time.
Make some adjustments to your lifestyle: Taking good care of yourself is a start. Remember to reward yourself for getting enough rest, exercise, and choosing healthier options like brown rice, whole grains and fresh fruit and vegetables.
Join a diabetes support group: You will discover new ways of coping through the advice of others living with diabetes. Be sure that everything is kept confidential within the group.
According to a Health Guide online resource, bottling up your emotions increases your stress even more, and could lead to many more health problems.
In 2002, Reese announced on Larry King Live that she had been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, but didn’t come as a surprise considering what she ate and what her diet consisted of, as well as her weight. She loved cake, especially chocolate. She became a spokeswoman for the American Diabetes Association, traveling around the United States to raise awareness about this disorder.
Della felt she could to control her disease when she did the best, “With diet, exercise and medication, I took control of my diabetes,” she stated. “I lost 20 pounds and lowered my blood sugar from between 275 and 300 to between 67 and 110.”
More recently, Della admitted to suffering from diabetes, “My life is at stake,” she said. “I don’t have type 2 diabetes — type 2 diabetes has me.”She contributed her declining diabetes health to years of eating her old, nightly snacks of fried chicken, potato chips, ice cream, candy bars and cola, who was very frustrated because she didn’t do anything to prevent herself.
How different is Della Reese’s diabetes health story from others living with type 2 diabetes?
Despite the national epidemic of type 2 diabetes, two out of three Americans with the disease don’t meet the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists’ target for blood sugar goals.
“People with diabetes face many daunting obstacles, but in my over 20 years of working as a certified diabetes educators, I think the biggest struggle is figuring out how to fit diabetes management into your life, so that diabetes doesn’t take over your life. Learning how to combine regular blood glucose testing, exercise, healthy eating, medications, regular eye exams, and daily foot care can seem overwhelming and seemingly impossible, says Lynn Grieger from Sharecare.“Taking a proactive approach, where diabetes self-care becomes a part of your life without taking over your life, is key for both a happy and fulfilling life, as well as a healthy life.”
According to the results of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists’ survey, 98 percent of people with type 2 diabetes believe blood sugar control is important. However, 61 percent weren’t aware of the A1C test. Even after they were told what it is, 51 percent didn’t know their last A1C result.
How well do you manage your diabetes?
According to the world health organization, diabetes affects 347 million people worldwide. However, the majority of people with diabetes are originally diagnosed with pre-diabetes, which presents the opportunity to alter unhealthy dietary habits and prevent full diabetes. Additionally, those with diabetes can prevent negative complications by heeding the advice of their healthcare professional, engaging in regular physical activity, and accurately managing glucose levels. In other words, diabetes health-related complications are largely preventable.
There is a distinction between living with diabetes and dying from it. The difference is YOU! Take action and take action early.
“The biggest struggle for people with diabetes is how to balance management of diabetes in one’s lifestyle. It is essential to seek emotional and medical support from family, friends and your health care team to feel your best. Be honest and positive, control your diabetes and do not let it control you,” says Laura Motosko, MSEd, RD.
TUNE IN: Diabetes Late Nite inspired by Della Reese. Guests include Diabetes Diabetes Alert Dog Trainer and Author from Chilbrook Kennels, Debby Kay, Central Farm Markets Co-Founder, Debra Moser, Kathy Gold RN, MSN, CDE, FAADE, Master Hairstylist Karline Ricketts, the Charlie’s Angels of Outreach, Poet Lorraine Brooks and Mama Rose Marie.
Throughout the podcast we will be featuring selected songs from Della Reese’s albums including ‘Swing Slow & Cha Cha Cha’ courtesy of SONY Music.
