#HAWMC – Day 2 – Word of the Day

Oh, goodness gracious, it looks like I will be posting every day in April. You see, theWEGO Health Team came up with 30 blogging prompts and then named the whole idea “Health Activist Writer’s Month Challenge” (with Twitter hashtag #HAWMC). So here goes…

Saturday April 2 – Word of the Day – Go to dictionary.com and write a post inspired by their word of the day, linking it to your condition.

Unctuous - Insincerely or excessively suave or ingratiating in manner or speech; marked by a false or smug earnestness or agreeableness.

Sometimes it is easy to get caught up in telling people that as long as they eat right, exercise, and take their oral medication and/or insulin, type 2 diabetes is not that big of a deal. That it doesn’t take much for me to achieve an A1C in the normal range (6.0% or less), so they can do it, too.

The thing is, selling that unctuous mindset is dangerous. Not only to the person on the other end of my suave and condescending speech who may struggle just to get down to the A1C level set by the American Diabetes Association (7.0%), but to me as well.

I set these standards that seem easy to manage but when my own life throws a curveball or two, it seems like a mountain to climb to stay on top of the diabetes. Stress eating may follow, feeling depressed leads to inactivity, and sometimes I find it easy to forget to take medication. Making a living to afford diabetes care sometimes takes priority over optimum diabetes care, if that is the only energy you have to spare.

Type 2 diabetes is not easy, no matter where you are in the A1C game. It is awfully hard work to keep eating right, exercise, and stay on top of medications. Unconditional support IS out there, there is no need to settle for the unctuous speeches of how easy it can be to manage, if those leave you feeling inadequate in your care regimen.