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I had a physical today. It was my the first physical I have had in about 18 months. It was not the most fun I have ever had. I learned that I have diabetes (type 2), my LDL cholesterol is extremely low, and my liver counts are wrong (probably due to a fatty liver according to my doctor).

The outlook isn’t all bad though. At Christmas I was a little too over-indulgent in the junk-food area, and gained weight. When I realized I had put extra weight on, I decided to do some self-adjusting of my eating habits, and consequently started snacking on carrots at work. I also brought lunch at least 2 days a week (baby steps!). Finally, I hadn’t been much a breakfast eater in recent years, but decided to start drinking a meal-replacement drink for breakfast so I wouldn’t feel as hungry earlier in the day. It all seemed to be working a bit – I did drop some (very little) weight. Then I had my physical.

I let my doctor know about my dietary changes since late December, and he agreed it was a good start, but that I should make a stronger effort. He did say it was good that I had started, since he typically had to talk his patients into making lifestyle changes, and I was obviously doing it already on my own.

He told me that typically someone with my bloodsugar should start on some medications, but I told him that I would not do that immediately. I wanted to give my new dietary habits a chance to take root and see if they could improve my numbers. He actually agreed to this saying that he often does this with his patients, giving them 3 or 6 (for the really beligerent ones) months to make lifestyle changes that will improve their body chemistry. I did tell him that if I didn’t see improvement in 3 months I would begin the medication.

I will have to make some stronger life decisions in the days ahead about how I am going to face this.