Wendy Williams – Divabetic

11/14/202111/14/2021

Divabetic Celebrates World Diabetes Day

World Diabetes Day is celebrated every year on November 14 to mark the birthday of Sir Frederick Banting. He discovered the insulin hormone along with Charles Herbert Best in 1922. According to experts, an estimated 463 million people worldwide are living with diabetes.

The theme for World Diabetes Day 2021-23 is “Access to Diabetes Care – If Not Now, When?”, putting across the timely message for diabetes care.

The World Diabetes Day organization highlights a greater need for education on disease and treatment, dietary changes, and exercise to keep blood sugar levels within tighter management.

We’re advocating for insulin for all. A hundred years ago, Frederick Banting and Charles Best sold the patent for $1 each to be accessible for all. Today the cost of insulin has increased by over 1,200%. Why the cost of insulin has skyrocketed is more complicated than a hashtag or meme to explain. You can point the finger at manufacturers, insurance companies, middlemen, politicians but still, miss a few others. Regardless of who is to blame, the hard truth is that this crisis forces people to resort to drastic measures to stay alive. Many, many, many people are rationing their insulin with tragic consequences. This has to stop. Maybe it’s time on World Diabetes Day to advocate for #insulin4all?

Artwork courtesy of Miss Diabetes. Visit: https://missdiabetes.com

Over the years, Divabetic has presented many free outreach programs and podcasts supporting World Diabetes Day.

Earlier this week, we hosted both a podcast and virtual program in support of World Diabetes Day.

On this podcast, we’re celebrating people’s ability to thrive living with diabetes with inspiration from the great Italian composer Giacomo Puccini, who lived with diabetes before the discovery of insulin. Guests include Toby Smithson, MS, RDN, LD, CDCES, FAND Patricia Addie-Gentle RN, CDCES. Hosted by Mr. Divabetic. Throughout this podcast, we feature music from Puccini: Great Opera Arias courtesy of SONY Music.

This past Thursday, we hosted a free program, ‘Once In A Blue Moon’ featuring Dr. Wendy Satin Rapaport LCSW, PsyD, MaryAnn Nicolay MEd, NDTR and Catherine Schuller on Zoom

We have proudly partnered with the American Diabetes Association, Mount Sinai and Beth Israel Hospitals in New York, NY, and Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, PA. We’ve also taken to the streets and hosted free health fairs at Union Square Park and the Apollo Theater in New York, NY.

However, one of our fondest World Diabetes Day memories dates back to a decade ago. Divabetic Image & Style Advisor Catherine Schuller persuaded Wendy Williams to “GLAM MORE, FEAR LESS” on national TV! As a result, Wendy wore a blue dress on her daytime TV show supporting World Diabetes Day. It was a fantastic moment!!

https://youtu.be/6b0a7Ic0YEs

In early September, Wendy Williams was allegedly rushed to the hospital for psychiatric services. One source said,” Wendy was drinking every day, even while filming the show,” leading to her hospitalization.

Thankfully, the TV star recently posted this message on Instagram: “HOW YOU DOIN’? I MISS YOU ALL! As everyone knows, my health has been a hot topic.” She added, “I’m a woman of a certain age, and I know enough to listen to my doctors and will return to my purple chair as soon as we all agree I’m ready. I’m doing everything I can to get back to work, but right now, Wendy has to focus on Wendy.”

09/14/201909/14/2019

Wendy Williams Reveals She Has Lymphedema

Talk Show host, Wendy Williams has suffered from multiple health concerns, including hyperthyroidism and Graves’ disease. She’s been extremely open about her ongoing health struggles to her audience.

Recently she appeared on the Dr. Oz Show to talk about her struggles living lymphedma.

Lymphedema occurs when lymph—a fluid in your body that contains white blood cells to fight germs—builds up in your soft tissues because your system is damaged or blocked, according the U.S. National Library of Medicine. When this happens, most commonly in your arms or legs, symptoms like swelling, limited range of motion, thickening of the skin, and a heavy or tight feeling in the legs or arms can occur.

“Lymphedema is not going to kill me, but I do have a machine—and how dare you talk about the swelling of it all,” she explained . She uses a compression machine, the FlexiTouch Plus, every day for 45 minutes to manage her symptoms.

The machine’s arments inflate and deflate to create a “wave-like motion” to stimulate circulation of lymph fluid.

https://youtu.be/_oXiw5M5Fuk

According to the Mayo Clinic, some causes of lymphedema include infection, scar tissue pertaining to the lymph nodes, inherited lymph node issues, or cancer. According to the NLM, treatment can help control symptoms and typically includes exercise, compression devices, skin care, and massage therapy.

Anyone with both diabetes and lymphedema faces special health challenges and must take extra care in managing these conditions to minimize complications. Before bandaging make sure to carefully examine the tissues to be bandaged for any signs of circulatory problems.

Enjoy Divabetic’s 6th Annual Mystery podcast, Gingerbread Men Prefer Blondes features Mama Rose Marie, Best-Selling Author Tonya Kappes, the Charlie’s Angels of Outreach (Patricia Addie-Gentle RN, CDE and MaryAnn Nicolay BA, DTR), The Happy Diabetic Chef Robert Lewis, Seveda Williams, Coach The Cure’s Trisha Artman, Jillian Walsh, Wendy Radford, Dave Jones, Lorraine Brooks and Max Szadek.

Throughout this podcast we will be featuring music from the original Broadway cast recording of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes courtesy of SONY MUSIC.

LISTEN NOW

11/01/201711/01/2017

Wendy Williams Educates Us About Stroke

TV talk show host, Wendy Williams fainted on-camera yesterday during her live broadcast. She did not have a stroke. But it looked scary. And I think Wendy’s fainting spell is a teachable moment for people to learn about stroke since what she experienced appeared to be very similar to the symptoms of a stroke.

If you missed the show, this is what happened:

Roughly 48 minutes into the show Wendy Williams was dressed in costume as the Statue of Liberty and her speech started slowing down as she spoke to the audience and she stumbled before falling to the ground.

She described being overtaken by a “hot” and “dizzy” feeling, adding, “The costume got hot. Right before passing out, I felt like I was in the middle of a campfire.”

Since a lot people thought she suffered a stroke I think it’s important to clarify a few things about stroke:

What Is a Stroke?

In a stroke, one of the many blood vessels that supply your brain with oxygen becomes damaged or blocked. If the blood flow is cut off for more than 3 to 4 minutes, that part of your brain begins to die

There are two types of strokes:

Hemorrhagic strokes account for about 13 percent of stroke cases.

It results from a weakened vessel that ruptures and bleeds into the surrounding brain. The blood accumulates and compresses the surrounding brain tissue. The two types of hemorrhagic strokes are intracerebral (within the brain) hemorrhage or subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Ischemic strokes result from a blocked artery. Ischemic stroke can be divided into two main types: thrombotic and embolic. Deprived of oxygen and other nutrients, the brain suffers damage as a result of the stroke. A thrombotic stroke occurs when diseased or damaged cerebral arteries become blocked by the formation of a blood clot within the brain.

Ischemic Stroke Treatment is tissue plasminogen activator (tPA, also known as IV rtPA, given through an IV in the arm). tPA works by dissolving the clot and improving blood flow to the part of the brain being deprived of blood flow.

How an you tell if someone is having a stroke? These signs include:

Sudden numbness or weakness of the face, arm or leg, especially on one side of the body.

Sudden confusion, trouble speaking or understanding.

Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes.

Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination.

Sudden, severe headache with no known cause.

A great way to remember how to detect a stroke is to use the acronym, ‘FAST’. The acronym stands for Facial drooping, Arm weakness, Speech difficulties and Time to call emergency services. Facial drooping: A section of the face, usually only on one side, that is drooping and hard to move.

Risk Factors for Stroke

Because of the potential for high blood glucose levels, diabetes itself is a risk factor for stroke. Yet, many people with stroke also have other conditions that put them even more at risk.

These risk factors include: • Being over age 55 • Being African-American • Already having had a stroke or heart disease • Having a family history of heart disease • Being overweight • Smoking

People who have diabetes are two to four times more likely to have a stroke than people who do not have diabetes. They also tend to develop heart disease or have strokes at an earlier age than people without diabetes

Diabetes can also make it harder for your body to respond to a stroke. When your oxygen supply is cut off, other arteries can usually serve as a bypass. But if you have diabetes, those vessels may be hardened or clogged with plaque, a condition known as atherosclerosis. This makes it harder for blood to get to your brain.

While multiple studies say diabetes puts you at risk of conditions such as heart disease, stroke, and kidney failure, you can help keep your risk low. Talk to your healthcare professional about the connection between diabetes and stroke, recognize the risk factors and take steps to stay healthy.

For more information contact the National Stroke Association: 1 (800) 787-6537

To avoid any misunderstandings I’d like to reinstate once again that Wendy Williams did not have a stroke. And if you don’t believe me, then you should tune in to her show. She appeared on her show today and addressed online commenters who suggested she suffered a stroke or heart attack. “No, I had neither,” she said.

EMTs soon arrived backstage, where she was evaluated. “The paramedics are in my office and they hooked me up to every EKG situation,” she said. “I was low on hydrogen — you know, the water. Not just any water, electrolytes.” Her blood pressure and heart rate checked out fine, nor did she suffer any bumps, bruises or aches from her fall.