 Hi everyone, I'm Dr. Ahmed Ergen. Today I've got 10 tips to make diabetes fun. No wait, sorry, manageable. Let's face it, diabetes is no fun at all. It's a bummer. Finding out that you have diabetes is like finding out that your sister-in-law is coming to visit you and then live with you permanently. It doesn't mean you cannot live a mostly normal life but you're gonna have to do a few things differently. I don't understand why I cannot keep my shirt off in my own house Linda. Here are 10 tips that will help you control your sister-in-law, I mean diabetes. Number one, know your numbers. Your blood sugar numbers are some of the most important numbers that you need to know in your life. On par with your social security number and your online banking pin. Seriously, you're gonna just keep resetting that. You're gonna have to write it down somewhere eventually. Continuous glucose monitoring systems like DEXCOM or Libre can be a big help when it comes to keeping tabs on your blood sugar. By the way, that's not sponsored at all. Knowing when it's too high or too low gives you the power to correct your blood sugar quickly. That's kind of how you watch your kids in this tour to prevent this from happening. Glucose monitoring can also help you see patterns of how your blood sugars are changing over time. The data can give you or help you determine whether you might need to make some changes in your lifestyle and we will talk about that after a few minutes. Number two, time your tests right. What do I mean by that? If you're using a CGM, which is continuous glucose monitoring system, you should be testing your blood sugar with finger sticks at least one to three times a day depending on your medications. The best time to test is after a meal, although I highly recommend knowing your fasting blood sugars because your blood sugars will change drastically in between meals, before meals, after meals, etc. As an added benefit, the dread of blinding pain in your fingertip can help you prevent from eating, which is a great weight loss strategy. Just kidding. Just do your finger sticks right and you'll be okay. Number three, keep a good record. Testing alone is not enough. You have to keep your numbers somewhere too. Somewhere besides the back of your hand. Miss school is over, bro. As I mentioned earlier, you want to be able to see the larger patterns that tell a story about your glucose levels. For instance, you might eventually see the evidence that you need to stop going to that half price margarita night. Although the video of you doing turbo karaoke should have already told you that. Don't be a clown. Write your numbers down, or you can throw out your pencil, stop living in the 90s, and download my Sugar MDs app, the link below. In addition to logging your blood sugar data, the app lets you record your diet, your workouts, even your mood. Number four, don't overlook your blood pressure and your cholesterol. Patients with diabetes are also at high risk for heart attacks and strokes. You know that. You have to find ways to keep your blood pressure and cholesterol under control. The magic number for blood pressure is 120 over 70. If you can stay close to that, that's great. That's cool. But ending about 140 of over 90 means you are kind of in hypertension. 160 over 100 puts you in the dangerous Yosemite Sem territory. As far as your cholesterol goes, you want to avoid letting your LDL rise about 100. Women should keep their HDL above 60, while men should keep their HDL above 50. HDL does not mean honey-do list. It refers to your cholesterol. Number five, make better food choices. Healthy eating and your habits can be difficult to change. But if you do, it can help your diabetes management a lot easier. This doesn't mean you have to go all out and stop eating everything. Just start with some simple changes you can stick to, like eating more vegetables and stealing fever-ease cups from your kid's Halloween candy stash. Another great option for diabetics is Mediterranean eating. It's delicious and can even help you reduce the risk of other chronic diseases. Now, if you're into that, click in the link below to learn more about the Mediterranean eating from this handsome devil. Number six, exercise regularly. Keep up, get up and move. No, not right now. Just finish watching the video first and then get up and move. Or, hey, do some leg lifts right now on your chair while you're watching me. I'm not going to make fun of you. I promise. Exercise offers you benefits beyond weight loss alone. It can help you lower your cholesterol, your blood pressure, while also helping you relax a little bit more easily. Even if you eke out just 30 minutes of exercise in a 30-day, you will find that you have more energy. That could be the just boost you need to finally stop doing this. Number seven, get better at managing stress. Okay, okay. It's easier said that done. I know that. But there are a ton of great stress management techniques out there and learning how to use them effectively can be a great news for you. And that will help your diabetes as well as your fingernails. For instance, you can avoid those long one hour, two hour arguments with strangers on the Facebook. What are you getting out of that anyway? You're never going to totally avoid stress. But the key is finding healthy outlets for it. Open up to family and friends or a support group about how you're feeling. It's important to be vulnerable sometimes with the people you trust. So they can make fun of you in a healthy way. Exercise is another great stress management technique. As I mentioned earlier, it prompts your brain to release chemicals that will actually make you feel better. You heard me right. Your brain can get you high all by itself. And it's legal in all 50 states. Importance of positive attitude shouldn't go unmentioned either. Focus on what's good in your life more often. And you might find that a lot of your stress will melt away. Be kind to yourself. Number eight, stick to your meds. I get it. Everyone hates swallowing pills or doing injections. Don't even get me started on the suppositories. But your doctor prescribes your medications for a reason. It's not a prank, not even the laxatives. Your diabetes meds in particular are crucial. They can help reduce the risk of a heart attack or stroke or kidney disease by helping you keep all your numbers under control. Think of them as the 60s elementary school teacher that smacks your sugar with a ruler that gets out of line. This is especially important as you get older. Diabetes is a progressive disease, meaning the longer you have it, the more treatment you will probably need to manage it, much like marriage. Take your prescribed medications consistently for the best results. That brings us to number nine, schedule your regular checkups. When I see a no-show patient, it upsets me because you're responsible about scheduling your regular medical checkups. More importantly, you have to actually go to that appointment for it to count. So your doctor isn't just some sort of Tinder or internet date. You can just blow it off by saying your cat is sick. Look, I get it. Life moves fast and you're busy. You're a busy person, just like me. When it comes to your health, you have to make time. You only get one body. You cannot just avoid taking care of your body and then just go get another one. That won't happen. When it breaks down, you cannot just replace it like your first car or your first relationship. As a diabetic, you'll want to see your doctor at least every three months at a minimum for things like A1C checks and kidney function tests and so forth. Regular screenings and the lab work will give you a better understanding of how the current state of your health and it can help you manage your diabetes and maybe even reduce your number of medications. So wouldn't it be great just to have at least one thing under control in life? Number 10, get a care plan. Work with endocrinologists to identify problems and find solutions. Now your body, your diabetes are going to change over time. It's cold getting older and it's happening to literally everyone in the world except Roblo. Aging brings new problems along with it and it means you will have to constantly find new ways to manage your diabetes. Your endocrinologist is the best person to help you with it. You cannot explain this generation's music to you but you will have to make peace with that on yourself, on your own. Your care plan should include number one, daily blood sugar targets, number two, your medications and number three, why you're taking them, the reasons you're taking them. Number four, your sick day plan, number five, your goals of managing your diabetes and of course your health care appointments including your ophthalmologist, podiatrist and so on. These things will all differ from person to person. Again that's basically between you and your physician and that will probably change during your physician visits in time. So there you have it, 10 ways to make living with diabetes just a little bit less. Seriously though, living with diabetes doesn't have to be as big of a burden as some people may think. If you find yourself a great endocrinologist and follow these tips, diabetes won't impact your life any more than a slightly annoying co-worker. You know what I'm talking about. Thanks for watching everyone. Thank you. If you like what you just saw, make sure to hit the subscribe button for more great content or just don't. I will never know either ways. Bye.