Living as a diabetic

Dr. Shachindra Joshi has been living with Type 1 diabetes since the age of 11. Being a diabetic at such a young age has transformed his life completely. Type 1 diabetes involves taking insulin injections multiple times daily, testing blood glucose 3-4 times a day & adhering to a strict diet control.

With his extreme desire for good health he has shifted to an insulin pump for the past 10 yrs. This helps him get his desired blood glucose control and the flexibility to manage his day to day life.

Over the years he has learnt to live & enjoy his life to the fullest. He has befriended diabetes in his journey towards his goals. He truly believes that this attitude has brought him even more than what he aspired for.

He volunteers as a diabetes educator at Juvenile Diabetes Foundation (Maharastra Chapter), Mumbai.

My Story

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Make a friend

My outlook towards life:

Life, I believe, is full of surprises and unless you have faced them successfully, you haven’t really lived!

Confronted with diabetes, the only way I saw to move on in life was to make friends with it. As time went, by I realised that life with diabetes comes with needles & pricks. This was not going to leave me & will follow me as a shadow. I had the choice to grumble and fight with it like an enemy or to befriend it, work with it & move positively in life. I chose the latter.

Yes I definitely fought but not against diabetes. I fought against short comings, health complications and failures.

How did I do that?

There are 2 ways of looking at a glass which is half filled. It can be half full or half empty.

The choice is ours, which way do we look at it.

I saw the glass half full & that was a fundamental change in my outlook. Being a diabetic I realised that diabetes is going to be with me in every aspect of my life. Taking insulin injection, testing blood, adhering to a balanced diet was essential. This change was not easy , my life revolved around managing diabetes. More than the actual action of taking injections, the idea of taking injections was very painful. So instead of resisting the fact that I have diabetes I started looking at injections as not a pain-giving enemies but life and health giving friends. My focus from pain and agony shifted to better control over my sugars and my physical growth and development .the discipline diabetes taught me helped me in my study as a young boy ,in my behaviour and control as an adolescent and is still helping me in my work and success as an adult.

The change in focus enabled me to take charge of my life & instilled within me the confidence that life can be managed successfully in all circumstances.

Areas that I meticulously worked upon:

1. Systematic life style: Made a routine/ rhythm in my daily routine. This helped me plan my day and my diet
2. Food: At time we wonder if we live to eat or eat to live. I opted for the later. Having regular balanced meals was my mantra. No matter where I was
   • I relished every bite , every meal
   • Took efforts in ensuring that every meal is nutritious & fresh
   • Balance between protein, carbohydrates & fat in my everyday meals.
3. Learnt to say ‘No’: Though it was hard, I learnt to stop myself from over eating & binging.
4. Always eat something healthy before going to a party: This ensured that I ate less unhealthy food.
5. Indulge in physical activity: I enjoy swimming & try to swim as often as I can. On days when I dont  swim, I walk. I avoid using elevators whenever possible.

Lifestyle:

Dr. Bhawisha, my wife and partner at work, has played a crucial role in this journey. Over the years both of us have developed and maintained a discipline and a balance in our day to day life. We travel, party hard and work hard. But we always maintain a balance between exertion and rest, junk and healthy foods, eating out and eating at home .

Winner with diabetes

I strongly feel that if an individual can be responsible for his health and take care of the same at such an early age, they have the capacity to be disciplined and successful in life too. We can use diabetes as a stepping stool towards success.

Workshops:

Their passion for healthy living has inspired them to share their experience with the world at large at various forums. Drs. Joshis’ regularly conduct workshops on ‘Healthy living’ and

Diabetes & You.

You can organise a workshop with Dr. Shachindra Joshi & Dr. Bhawisha Joshi.

For details contact the clinic 

Consultation:

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“Change your lifestyle…..transform yourself …. Be a winner”

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