Posts tagged diabetes
Posts tagged diabetes
You know it deserves a good ass-kicking.
Pinkabrinka’s Tour de Cure page
Several years ago, I was diagnosed with diabetes. Last year was my first Tour de Cure. I rode sixteen miles, which was the longest ride I’d ever done. It was slow going. The good thing about riding at the Speedway is that there are no hills to climb; the bad thing about riding at the Speedway is that there are no hills to coast down. Every foot you move forward, you do so because you pedaled there.
Not long after last year’s Tour, I had a stroke. I spent a week in the neurology intensive care ward, and weeks of struggling to get back to what I knew as normal. And with no answer as to why it happened, there was no way to predict if it would happen again. Though I didn’t have any serious lasting physical effects from the stroke, it affected how I perceived movement, and at only 38, how I perceived myself.
It took a few months before I dared to get on a bike again. I questioned my ability to balance. I got tired easily. I got dizzy if I stood up too fast. I was severely depressed. I wanted to ride, but I didn’t know if how it was going to turn out. On my first ride, I told myself that I needed to ride one mile. I decided I could do two. I ended up riding eight miles that night. I couldn’t turn quickly, but I didn’t fall off. I kept riding. I biked to work. I biked to Carmel and back. I bought cold weather gear several sizes smaller than the year before. It snowed. I kept riding. On June 9th, I will ride in the 2012 Tour de Cure, with a goal of riding 40 miles.
I’ve learned a lot since last year. I’ve learned that I’m stronger than I realized. I’ve learned that I’m not bulletproof (metaphorically speaking—thankfully I didn’t learn that literally!). I’ve learned that hospitals don’t always know how to manage diabetes, and that advocating for yourself is as necessary as it is scary. I’ve learned that education about diabetes is crucial, and that part of that education is simply being visible, or refusing to be invisible.
A lot has changed in my life since the last Tour. What hasn’t changed, though, is that diabetes is still a major health problem around the world. In America alone, over 25 million people are living with diabetes. We need education. We need advocacy. We need a cure. You can help. The link below will take you to my Tour page. If you can, please take a moment and make a donation. Donations are 100% tax deductible, and fund education, advocacy, and research to find a cure for this disease. Donations over $25 will receive a special thank you gift from me. (Drop me a note at my pinkabrinka gmail and let me know your shipping address.)
Getting back on my bike saved me. Help me use it to save others. I appreciate your support and encouragement.
