Duh: Today Is The First Day Of The Rest Of Your Life!

I would like to find the person who first said “Today is the first day of the rest of your life”. It’s listed without attribution as an American proverb. It’s obviously a statement of the blatantly obvious because if you are alive, then this day is the first day of the rest of your life. I suppose it is intended to encourage us to make the best of each day. And, my how the make up of your days change as you grow older and are presented with new challenges!

Take for instance my recent dealings with this diabetic diagnosis deal. Nothing on my radar screen but a few aches and pains from arthritis and then KABOOM! I went from spending zero time on thinking about my health to being somewhat preoccupied with a variety of medical related activities such as checking my blood glucose levels, weighing every morning, checking my blood pressure, and taking my six different medications on schedule. So let me put it this way, the first day of the rest of my life today is quite different than it was only four months ago. And, don’t even mention the diet changes!

Now some have commented that I joke a little too much about my health, my treatment, and all the related stuff going on. Just for the record, I asked my mom who reads my blog every day and she said she thought it was not only okay but very entertaining. She also told me to tell anyone who asked that she had given me permission to keep on writing about my medical issues. So, there. My mom said it’s okay and that more or less settles it.

My point is how your day can change quickly and suddenly as things become rearranged based on new requirements. A great illustration of this is how we all became very knowledgeable about Leukemia after my baby sister contracted the illness and valiantly fought it for eighteen months. When all of it started we knew none of the terminology, treatment options, are anything else because we had never concentrated on learning any of it. In a very short time we became able to discuss with medical staff all kinds of things we had never dreamed about.

That’s kind of how I feel about the diabetic challenge I’m suddenly dealing with. While my last blood test was a really good improvement which I thank God for, I’m now dealing with a brand new set of medicines and trying to sort through the side effects and those that are not working. I will again say that my trials here are minuscule compared to a vast number who deal with life threatening challenges every moment of every day. But, my world has definitely changed and especially in the dietary area, it has been turned upside down.

My desire is to not let this process dominate my life. This has been somewhat complicated by dealing with the variety of issues my doctor desires to address simultaneously. It’s not only dealing with the primary but it’s the interaction and counteraction when dealing with multiple corresponding factors at the same time. Let me be clear. I am so very thankful that many of these other issues are not in the danger zone so they are being dealt with as simply as possible in a preventative mode. This does not, however, change the process which requires ongoing assessment, records keeping, and discipline to track what works and doesn’t work.

The medications are doing their work. I’m thankful they are. I am fortunate to be able to fax my doctor with information from my tracking and he is able to adjust on the fly as we gather input. I’ve said all of that to say this: “Yes, today is the first day of the rest of my life but it is one that includes a different arrangement of my 24 hour day than what I would have expected just a short time ago”. With God’s help and the prayers of so many which I feel humbled by, we will go forward and continue to do our best to honor Him with the time He provides to us. And, before He calls me home, don’t be surprised if you read a few more stories about my health related experiences. That’s all for now because I need to get busy on a new fax to my doctor about one of the meds he changed. ....More later.