#283 After Dark: Weed Edition

Type 1 diabetes and the Sticky Icky.…

ADULT TOPIC WARNING. Frank discussions about weed with Alex, a type 1 diabetic who smokes daily.

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DISCLAIMER: This text is the output of AI based transcribing from an audio recording. Although the transcription is largely accurate, in some cases it is incomplete or inaccurate due to inaudible passages or transcription errors and should not be treated as an authoritative record. Nothing that you read here constitutes advice medical or otherwise. Always consult with a healthcare professional before making changes to a healthcare plan.

Scott Benner 0:00
Hello, and welcome to Episode 283 of the Juicebox Podcast. Today's episode is sponsored by Dexcom on the pod and dancing for diabetes, you can find all the sponsors on Facebook or Instagram. But if you want to go right to the source, you got to go to dexcom.com forward slash juicebox or my omnipod.com forward slash juice box. Now that's going to be to find out more about the Dexcom g six continuous glucose monitor. And of course, the tubeless insulin pump and that Arden has been using forever the Omni pod. And if you want to know more about dancing for diabetes, well that's dancing the number four diabetes.com.

In Episode 274, the podcast Mike came on and talked about drinking with Type One Diabetes. And today Alex is here to talk about smoking with type one. Now I hope you understand I'm not talking about cigarettes, right? I'm talking about the doobie. Houdini reefer a spliff. You get what I'm saying here grass but asparagus, your Aunt Mary ganja marijuana pot. Some of you might notice chronic dank, I prefer weed. Anyway, Alex is gonna come on and talk all about his life. He happens to be a frequent

Unknown Speaker 1:24
smoker.

Scott Benner 1:26
This one went way different than I thought it was going to. And honestly maybe one of my favorite episodes.

Please remember that nothing you hear on the Juicebox Podcast should be considered advice, medical or otherwise. And always consult a physician before making any changes to your healthcare plan. Becoming bold with insulin are sparking up that sticky icky

Alex 2:03
Hello, Alex.

Scott Benner 2:05
Hey, before you even get comfortable, I'm going to test you Okay, I'm going to say three words. You tell me what comes after it. Noise noise noise go.

Alex 2:14
No, each noise noise? I don't know what no Jay and

Scott Benner 2:18
Silent Bob. All right. Okay. You're out ox. Not just kidding. You're just young Alex. That's what you are. I am

Alex 2:25
26

Scott Benner 2:27
No, seriously, how are you doing?

Alex 2:29
I'm doing good. I actually am high right now. I'm not wheat high. But um, blood sugar high. There's gonna be a lot of that. Like, which high am I talking about? But, uh, yeah, I was just I ate something and I always get I after even if I dose to carb ratio thing, but I also um, I have I'm type one diabetic, but I have Addison's disease as well. Okay, which means I don't produce adrenaline. I don't produce cortisol. And I don't produce aldosterone. And I took my pills before I ate. And normally I don't eat this early, though, is kind of messed up, but it's not a big deal. Um, it'll come down eventually.

Scott Benner 3:11
What pill did you take?

Alex 3:13
I took hydrocortisone.

Scott Benner 3:15
And that's what's that help with that's supposed to help with.

Alex 3:18
It's like cortisol replacement. Okay, I have like a baseline of them. And I just take them replace that. I there was a portion of my life or life with Addison's that I. I made my doctor upset. And I told him because he told me that my hydrocortisone ever affected my diabetes. And I disagreed with him because I had researched it before that. And I had another doctor when I first got diagnosed tell me that it does. And this other doctor tried to tell me it didn't. So I challenged him. And he gave me a cease and desist letter. And I'm going to go find another doctor. For my endocrinology. The reason why I chose that doctor in the first place is because he said he would take care of my diabetes in the Addison's together. And unfortunately, he couldn't do that. I found a doctor since then that can't, there was like two years of my life that I didn't have any doctor for either. Because he couldn't handle me revolting. And my doctor now embraces my honesty, and my directness and she, if I have an idea, or if I have a different, you know what I mean, different ideas that she has, yeah, you won't challenge me. She'll just let go go home, look him up. And then on the next meeting, or she'll call me on the next time, and we'll have a conversation about it then rather than immediately saying, No, I don't know that kicking me out or not wanting to have the conversation. Let me ask you,

Scott Benner 4:47
when you talk when you said, revolting, did you mean like, Did you like sail a boat up to his harbor and drop tea in it and stuff like that? Or? Ellen skora. Did you punch him in the head or you just you mean you resisted what he said and yeah, I don't Yeah, gotcha.

Alex 5:01
I yeah, I was just very I'm very direct when I don't agree with something being that this is like my life my choice like the doctor, it's kind of a hard thing being younger, like I got diabetes when I was three years old. And have had it ever since then Addison's when I was 15. So I kind of had to grow up at a young age. And I've got my voice, my, my strength. From that, you know what I mean? Because going into these doctor's offices all the time, doctors kind of want to tell you what they know, rather than I want to hear what I know about it and work together on it. They're more it's more of a one sided type thing. And I don't, I don't rock that way. I want to know what's going on what's going on my body? And do I have to have that. And since like, this time, back in the day, because there was a time for my HPA when C was at 15. And I wasn't taking care of my diabetes. And I've always had this until end of position on my no diseases, that I'm not going to be like, let them get in the way of my life. I'm going to do what I want when I want. And without a sense, particularly when I was diagnosed, I was on when I was 15. It was my 15th birthday that I got out of the hospital. And it was on a Sunday. And that's all I wanted for my birthday that year was to get out of the hospital. Because on that Tuesday, I was supposed to go snowboarding. And I did like, the thing with Addison's is that it's like a life threatening disease. Like if you break your arm or have any serious trauma to your body, got to get a shot and don't potentially die. But the doctor was like, Oh, you shouldn't do that you're new to this disease, you could have an issue and, you know, it could be the end of you. Um, but I was like, Nah, I'm going I'm going to snowboarding and not you know, he's not gonna hold me back. And I got to do what I got to do. Like, I'm still young, I'm still free. There's, these are. When you look at me, you don't see these diseases. I look like everyone else, right? So I'm not going to, like, make it look like I'm, you know, short, or like, less than when I go do what I do. And if it doesn't work out, then at least I'm living.

Scott Benner 7:07
Nice. Hey, so let's ask a couple like baseline questions and get going. You said it a second thought? No, no, you're good. You're diagnosed with Type One Diabetes. How old?

Alex 7:15
Three years old?

Scott Benner 7:16
Three years old? That's 23 years ago, right?

Alex 7:19
Yep. Okay. 23.

Scott Benner 7:21
Was there any existence of type one in your family or other endocrine issues?

Alex 7:26
No, not at all.

Scott Benner 7:28
Okay, not on both sides. Three years old. 23 years ago.

Alex 7:34
It was very different times back then. So you say how did you start? So basically, when I got diagnosed, I was in San Diego. I was in a camping trip with my mom. And I had just been at my grandma's house in LA. And she was cleaning up and like the toilet seat. I was obviously three years old, so I didn't, didn't have perfect aim at the time. And the rim of the toilet seat was like sparkling like dancing like diamonds. My grandma, she's a very clean woman. So he noticed it right away. And when she was cleaning, and it kind of stood out to her she had read a diabetes forecast magazine, her my grandpa and I knew something was up I told my mom and she was like are when we get back from our camping trip, I'll look into it. And on the camping trip I there was a bathroom across the street from our campsite, like across a little road or whatever. And she kept having to walk across the street which it was very noticeable how many times I was going to the bathroom. And we only had so much water at the campsite. So I was consuming all the water and pissing it all out. Wasn't was you know, a red flag for her and long story short, we went to the hospital and they wanted to diagnose me there but being there my mom was a single mom. He couldn't spend her time in San Diego like it wasn't we were only there for like a trip. Yeah. So basically, he denied the doctor's health request or like denied service, whatever. bogie back to Orange County which is like an hour away from San Diego and then did it there and got me diagnosed in orange or in Mission Viejo. And you know, lived with it ever since. But back when I started insulin injections you I mean, long term short term and the whole nine yards. And my doctor was actually in LA too. So we would it was always like a baffling time to handle my diabetes.

Scott Benner 9:21
Let me ask you this, just for a second to clear up to finish up the thought. sparkling sparkling toilet seat was sugar appearing in your urine.

Alex 9:29
Yes, sir. My blood sugar when I was diagnosed was my mom said like 1300 to 1400 Jesus. Yeah, was pretty bad. That's why I was very, like, prominent.

Scott Benner 9:40
No kidding. Yeah. Oh my gosh, that's insane. Yeah, that's the biggest number anyone's ever said on here. Just so you know, you've won the prize.

Alex 9:49
Well, I didn't even now like my blood. Thank you for that. I really appreciate that. Or something. Uh, my blood sugar gets high. Like, even with the Insulin, I'm on a pump. You know what I mean? I just get high really quick. Like, I ate a BLT two pieces of bread before, like, I was like at 7am this morning, and my blood sugar shot, like I had pre dosed, you know, 20 minutes before. And it just immediately shoots up. It's like super quick, but I probably already had diabetes for a good while, obviously, since it was so high, right? And I don't really complain on I mean, you just, I've always been wanting to just take heat

Scott Benner 10:28
Aleksander, this isn't while you're on but let me ask you a couple of questions, your print your your Pre-Bolus, in 20 minutes outside of a sandwich, which is crazy. How high are you getting after that?

Alex 10:37
Uh, my blood sugar was 250. On my Dexcom are like, actually 192 right now, but it was 250 on my like, blood sugar, my contour test kit. Um, but there, I've noticed what the Dexcom that they when you're shooting up fast, like when you're flying up. It can't capture the cap, it can't capture, like the top end of where you're about to get at. Before you get there. So you get

Scott Benner 11:04
Yeah, of course. Hey, so let me ask you a question. After you get high like that. Do you come back down on your own? Or do you have to correct with more insulin to get back down?

Alex 11:14
definitely have to correct I definitely have to correct okay. It's been, it's been tough. What my goal, my focus right now, in these three months from the last time I saw my endocrinologist is I have a problem with emotional dosing. Like I'm high, and I'm like, you know, I'm staying high. And I'm trying to step down, try to step down, and it's not coming down. quick enough for me, you know, so I just keep, here's another two units. Here's another unit and just try to like, you know, bring it down. Yeah. And it it eventually ever. No. I mean, if I see it starting to come down, I'll stop. But I just hate being high. Like, No, I'm not. Yeah, but like, thing that I've had it for so long. If I had to choose high or low, I would choose low any day. I've had some, like,

Scott Benner 12:01
how's it go for hours and hours? Yeah, more work than fixing a tough flow. Right.

Alex 12:08
Yeah. And the I've tried the 679. I mean, the closed loop system and all that. Right. And I've I have the tandem now with the basal IQ. And I got the dex calm. And I've you know, I've been with all the new like, tech and whatnot. And the 670 I thought it was gonna be the game changer, you know? And it just

Scott Benner 12:29
didn't help

Alex 12:30
you know, it did not at all and actually sent me to the hospital multiple, multiple times, Hey,

Scott Benner 12:34
you guys can put that in an ad Medtronic. Congratulations. So another Yeah, of course, man. Let me ask you another question. Okay. It's been like, find a time in your mind. It's been a few hours since you ate and a few hours since you've had insulin. Where does your blood sugar sit stable when it sits stable without insult food?

Alex 12:55
It's perfect. 100 you know what I mean? 100. Like, one 100. And it'll vary up to like 110 and then come back down to 100. It's perfect. And that's when I first got to my doctor. Now. That was her first goal. Yeah, let's get a baseline. Don't eat what I mean. And if you do eat, let's see like this. But her thing was don't eat breakfast, don't eat lunch, eat dinner. And then once we figure out dinner, and then we can start with breakfast, don't eat lunch, dinner, only breakfast and see what it does. Yeah, and just have me not eat. And I was totally game for it. Because like I said, there was a time where I didn't care about my diabetes, and I was

Scott Benner 13:31
just living and you're trying to care now.

Alex 13:33
Yeah, I'm really trying to care. Now, like I said, my highest was at 15. And now it's at like, six, five, know what I mean? And it still has room to improve. But that's all me, like, once I took it over from my mom. But I'm almost like my main caretaker for a while. And I was like, I'm gonna take this over. And recently, I've actually paid for everything myself now to is there's that that's a portion of diabetes that is left on or like not really talked about is how expensive it is. for younger kids. I mean, I know. You don't have diabetes, but your daughter does. And I'm sure that right now. She's trying to get a job. She's trying to do her thing, like trying to get her education so that she can afford it one day. But she's being that we have parents, we get it at a young age, that have that hustle and drive to be able to get the money, be able to afford these things. And there's a time where we got to do that too. And I think as these companies progress and technology gets better, and that should be something that I don't I mean, receivable like for everyone, there's this guy that I met playing basketball, and he had a baby and he was probably like 30 or something. And he had a baby and he had a pump. He had a note sensor and all that living his best life. And when the baby came, he couldn't afford the baby and his pump and sensor. Like he couldn't afford both at the same time. Okay, so he, he gave up his pump to be able to afford his kid. Yeah, and I was just like, totally really blew me away cuz I was like I've never even once had to think about giving up my technology, or like someone else's like for money. Let me give you

Scott Benner 15:10
an honest statement from a person who has two children and is probably more than two thirds way done with his life. Don't make a baby till you can afford it. Yeah, exactly. I'll be right there with you. Yes, you can help it don't do that. Yeah. So listen, going back to your Bolus, though, for a second if you're, if you're doing a nice little Pre-Bolus. And you're going to 250 and you have to correct to come back down. In my mind, your insulin to carb ratio for that meal is not right. And so a good place to begin would be to make that sandwich again the next day. Take the bullets that you used and add a good deal of your correction to the initial bolus. And that should stop the spike without making you low. Mm hmm. So it's more sometimes it's more about the impact of the food like Do you ever have a time where you do a Pre-Bolus? Count the carbs, right, and you don't get high? Like do different foods affect you differently?

Alex 16:03
So my BLT is like my, I guess, my glory food at this point. Typically, all I eat is Chipotle, a a chocolate label, and I get the exact same thing in it every time. Okay, because what you're just saying, and my other thing that I eat is blaze pizza, I get to build your own. I actually just switched over to cauliflower crust, um, but I do those meals, if I'm going to eat out those are the two meals that I eat, right? And then I eat salads and stuff at home basically like protein carb ratios. I just got into, like you were saying, like trying to figure out what works and what doesn't. Yeah. Um, but yeah, no, I definitely agree. I just, I'm a sandwich person. I really enjoy sandwiches and sushi. I used to love sushi. But

I've had to kick the bucket. Well,

Scott Benner 16:53
I don't think you can't have a sandwich. I just think you have to figure out how that sandwich is impacting your blood sugar and get the Yeah, the insulin moved. You know, so they kind of the impact of the insulin covers the action of the carbs, or, you know, the actually the insulin covers the impact of the carbs. I mean, yeah, well, they're peaking at the same time and

Alex 17:11
bright the thing today, the thing today was I had just taken my pills, and I went to get a sandwich. So I was doubling up. The hydrocortisone naturally makes me high. And I normally take that around like 10 Yeah, like 10am or whatever. So I was a little bit early on that. So basically, at 10 I'm going to get my I increased bazel with my pills, but I since I already took my pills out, so I'm gonna probably crash down at like 10am. So it's kind of like I was just hungry.

Scott Benner 17:41
I just ate. Do you think the scheduling threw you off more than anything else?

Alex 17:43
Yeah, yeah, it wasn't it like, I, I wake up early, but sometimes I don't eat early. I was just watching the sunrise and going because I can see the ocean from my apartment. Nice. So I was just kind of I normally don't get up this early. So let's just pick a song. Right? Yeah. Good for you. Yeah,

Scott Benner 18:00
I hear you. All right. So Alex, let's tell everybody while you're on the podcast. Yeah. So did you How long have you been listening to the show?

Alex 18:08
Honestly, I had listened to another diabetes podcast, and I'm, when I'm at like, when I work, I listen to podcasts because I'm trying to expand my mind while I'm at the office. Right? Um, but not that long. Not that long. Probably like, three episodes before I heard the after dark one. And I was like, Oh, this is me. Okay, so

Scott Benner 18:25
so you're a pretty new listener, and you hear the episode? Yeah, we're talking about drinking with Type One Diabetes. And I say at some point in there, I need like somebody who legitimately smokes weed a lot. Come on and talk about that. So it's very nice of you to put yourself out like that. Let me let me now the same preamble that I made during the drinking one, I've never smoked weed. Really? Yeah, man. And and so I don't know what I'm talking about. But that's why it's perfect that you're here because you can you can help me understand it and, and we can we can get some kind of context. So let me ask my first question. How old were you the first time you did it? The Dexcom g six continuous glucose monitor will make knowledge your superpower it is FDA permitted to allow for zero finger sticks has customizable alarms and alerts smart device compatible Android and Apple. I see iOS, you know, you can share your data with up to 10 followers 10 count them with me 123456789 that's a lot 10 their Siri integration and it's indicated for use in children two years and up. Do you hear Siri? Shut up Siri. Hey Siri, stop. I love it when you tell Siri to cancel and it says there's nothing to cancel but it just asked you something. Cancel me and stop talking to me. It's enough. Being hocked in China by my phone. That's bad pronunciation. By the way, in case you're wondering, back to Dexcom, Dexcom, g six continuous glucose monitor, find out which way your blood sugar is moving right the direction and the speed and doesn't have to just be you like the person with diabetes. It could be a loved one a child, a friend, a sister, a long lost. I don't know milkman like say you're like from the 1920s and used to have a guy that brings your milk and somehow he's still alive, even though he's probably an adult back then. He's 143 now, but he has type one diabetes, and you're still worried about him. That guy's got a dexcom g six. Your milkman from the 1920s and you have like an iPhone or an Android, you could help him know what his blood sugar is, like crazy. That's like time travel right there. You need a dexcom continuous glucose monitor. Please take it from me. Go to dexcom.com Ford slash juice box to get started today. psych another ad. This one's around the pod the Omni pod tubeless insulin pump. Mm hmm. To make me happy thinking about it. My Omni pod.com forward slash juice box. Here's something about the Omni pod I've never considered before I saw it online just today. Someone said Do you remember trying to run with your insulin pump and it would pop off your belt. And then it would just be like some swinging sickle of death whipping around from the tubing in the air while you're furiously reaching for it hoping it doesn't pull out your infusion set. I thought I can picture that. But I don't have any experience with it. Because my daughter's always used a tubeless insulin pump the AMI pod. Another reason why Omni pod is terrific is because they'll let you try the system out, they'll send you a free no obligation demo in the mail. You can try it on and see what you think you don't have to just take my word for it. To get that free demo, go to my Omni pod.com forward slash juice box, you fill out a tiny bit of information about yourself on the pod, we'll send you the demo pod right to your house. And don't worry, it's non functioning right. So it's not like it's gonna, you know, can't give you insulin or anything like that. It just gives you the experience of wearing it. You could even shower with it or, you know, do whatever you're going to do with it, to see how it fits into your life. Miami pod.com forward slash juicebox. There's also links in your show notes at Juicebox podcast.com. And after you do that, head over to dancing for diabetes. Find out more about that organization dancing the number four diabetes.com all the sponsors information is available at Juicebox podcast.com. And they're always links in the show notes of your podcast player. dexcom.com Ford slash juice box Miami pod.com. forward slash juice box dancing the number four diabetes.com. All right, no more ads. Lots of show left. Let's get back to Alex. He's gonna tell you by the end. I'm just like this kid. Love him. What do you say?

Alex 22:54
So I knew you're gonna ask this. And it's always the question. Um,

Scott Benner 22:58
let's wait. First, your mom's a lovely person that she loves you. She's a really good parent. How old? Were you last time you got high?

Alex 23:03
Well, I had smoked with my stepbrother when I was in third grade.

Scott Benner 23:07
Okay. Does that make you eight or nine?

Alex 23:10
Something like that? Yeah, I don't know. I just know I was in third grade because I went back to school on Monday. And I was like, No,

Scott Benner 23:18
I demand

Alex 23:20
for basically like my parents were having a party and my stepbrother isn't the best influence. You know what I mean? I took that what you just said, yeah. He, he was like about to leave like the party. And normally like he would stay for him because he likes to party. But he was leaving. And I'm like, David, let me come with you. And as followed him out of the house and walked across the street. We lived right across the street from the school that I went to. My mom always wanted to be close. In case I needed something at the school. She would always be like literally a walking distance map like the school to the house, okay. He walked across the street to the school, went to the lunch yard and he was smoking. just handed it to me. And I smoked I hadn't. I was just one time one puff or whatever. And didn't smoke again till like freshman year. And ever since freshman year, just every day if I can. Do you

Scott Benner 24:06
have a recollection of it when you were nine? That one puff?

Alex 24:10
Uh, I remember everything up to it. But after it wasn't, too. I know nothing really after to clear Yeah,

Scott Benner 24:18
yeah. So and then back to your freshman year that makes you about 14

Alex 24:22
right? Yeah. 1415 Yeah.

Scott Benner 24:25
So my first question, I guess is what do we call it? Like, am I good? was saying smoking weed or do I sound ridiculous?

Alex 24:34
No smoking weed smoking pot. I mean, that works. I call it pot. Yeah, weed. I mean, okay.

Scott Benner 24:38
Yeah. All right. And you're in California. Yes, yes. And is it Have you traveled much? Is there a lot of truth to the idea that the the pot in marijuana in the apartment with a pot in California is at a different level? Power wise.

Alex 24:57
Yes, without a doubt. I got some weed when I was in Indiana, I've got some weed in New York, I got some weed in Georgia. I'm in Tennessee, I got some. Yeah, none of it. None of it was really hitting like that. I mean, if basically, you want some good weed in any of those other locations, you just got to pay more. I mean, like, they'll have a, like, exports, California. I mean, like on the black market, I guess you could say like sending it out to wherever you need it, they'll get it to you. It's just how much you're willing to pay and how much risk you're willing to pay for that. For it to get. Um, but yeah, I, we definitely have an easier and it's easier to get it out here. Like I can have weed in the time that this podcast takes. I can have wheat delivered to me like I don't even have to leave the house and I can literally sit open up another tab and order it. And then you're doing this like I don't have to try to get it you know what I mean? Like Uber smokes something Exactly. We have things called weed maps. And you there's businesses on there that you can just call or they have online menus and stuff. It's super easy to

Scott Benner 26:06
see cell phones are important. Okay, so tell me this because I really don't understand. I have no, I have no context at all. Do you smoke for pleasure? for medical reasons for both for one the other like, what's your main like, when you think about? Like, I'm going to smoke now? It's to do what are you trying to like? What are you trying to accomplish? I guess.

Alex 26:32
Same thing people do when they drink. I mean, I'm not a drinker. For me, I've never been the one to drink. And I enjoy it to like calm down or enjoy myself. But I'll tell you, I'm like a medical standpoint. When I'm high like my blood sugars are and I smoke a blood sugar being high is less. I mean, it's not as demanding on me. Like, for me the when I'm high my blood, or my body just doesn't feel good. You know? I mean, it's tight, right? Just like you're treading water. Um, but we just kind of I can focus on something else, I can do something else. I mean, I'm not having to only focus on my high blood sugar. And there was a time where I was recreational, like, recreationally doing it and enjoying it, abusing it, you could say like, they're like, when I was younger in high school and past that. I used to smoke blunts, like, one after another 1520 in a sitting up box my car like five, six months and open the door and just billowing smoke and it was a good time. You know, like I really enjoyed it. I never thought anything of it. Until like the abuse portion came into play when I was probably like, two or three years ago. I was smoking blunts, you know, consistently just killing them. It was backwoods particularly. I had smoke switchers before that but backwoods were the thing that I was really into, and they like they're good. But I kept throwing up. And I didn't understand why it wasn't necessarily after the blunt. It was more in the morning, like consistently every morning throwing up. And I didn't understand it didn't understand it. My doctor was like, Oh, you have hyperemesis and I'm like, I don't think so yada, yada And long story short, it wasn't the weed. It was the bunch. It was the tobacco usage. It was making me just not have a good morning. And

Scott Benner 28:30
we cut back what you're doing there. If I'm understanding right as you're buying basically going to inexpensive cigar that might be sold at like a convenience store. You're splitting it packing it with wheat and smoking it right.

Alex 28:41
Yes, yeah. Well, the backwoods you don't split them. I'm going to roll them but yeah.

Scott Benner 28:46
And so but you're getting that tobacco from what I'm gonna call like a cheaper car that's probably not meant to be inhaled to begin with. It's probably all right. So you're and how old were you doing that?

Alex 29:02
I mean, any like, freshman year till like a year or two ago, Alex, you have the Constitution

Scott Benner 29:06
of a horse. That's a I can't even imagine me smoking just one of those cigars as a small child and not just turning green and falling over. That's that's something else. Okay. So okay, so

Alex 29:19
I was like,

yeah, the environment that I was in and like it was it was what what you know what I mean, this is what's gonna happen yeah, like I didn't, I wasn't going to drink so like when we're at parties or something like kicking it like out in high school. I'm not a drinker. I was always this like, quote unquote, sober one that was going to drive home so I feel like with when I smoke a blunt at the party, whatever, kick it like, you know what I mean? People rolling up for me, and, you know, we're hanging out and then it's time to go, I'm not going to be the one that's crazy. I'm going to be more level headed and being that I have diabetes as well. Alcohol, like the A woman said on the after dark one of the alcohol, you got to kind of prepare for that an hour, two hours, like From now on, I mean, like, how is that gonna affect me in the future with the weed? It's, you know, I'm going to be the same. Like it's not going to change my alter my mind to the point where I'm in capacity. I mean, yeah, I've had I have drank alcohol, like four times five times on a, like five times where it affected me negatively. And I just wasn't into it. You know what I mean? Like that's,

Scott Benner 30:31
you're not a drinker.

Alex 30:33
Yeah, just not a drinker. And I'm not trying to like, save this is this one's better than that one. But what's the

Scott Benner 30:39
difference? In your tea? In your perspective? What's the difference between the high you get from drinking and the how you get from smoking?

Unknown Speaker 30:46
Um,

Alex 30:48
the first two drinks aren't bad. No, I mean, the first few drinks you're killing like, I remember I was in Vegas one time with like, friends. And I had three Bud Light. platinums. And I was chilling. I mean, like, it was good. I was having a good time. Everyone's smiling. We're all you know, turning up. And the homie came up to me with another Bud Light platinum, those already opened. And it was like a glass bottle. So you had it as soon as it opened. You can't like reseal it. Yeah. So I was like, Yeah, sure. I'll take one and then four turned into two more. So I was six in. And I was just on I mean obliterated. And most people that drink like they build a tolerance and six beers really isn't much. But they are someone that doesn't have a tolerance. It really messed me up. And I didn't take care of my diabetes. And my friends. It was like the morning time and they came into my room and we're like, yo, let's go, let's go get some food. And I wasn't there. And like my friend came in to like him up close on me, was trying to get me to wake up like shaking me and stuff wasn't reacting. And he like, pops open my eyes, like grabs my eyelids and tries to look at them. And he said they're just black, like, black like my pupils weren't overly sized. And so he knew something was wrong. So basically, he was looking for my keys, found them bugging me to the hospital. And it was out of song at Addison's crisis in the low blood sugar. It was just, I mean, a whole situation. Yeah. And

Scott Benner 32:16
that masked by the drinking so you couldn't tell it was happening. Right?

Alex 32:20
Exactly, exactly. And I was already like, quote, unquote, drunk, but I was I passed out. I didn't, I wasn't thinking about that. You know what I mean? Like, and I was too incoherent to push through it and solve the issues with my, my weed No matter how much I smoke, like 1516 blunts, and I'm still able to look at my pump and be coherent and be like, Oh, I'm high, or whoa, I'm low. Like, let's do something about this. And Eve. But even then, with that being said, like, there's been parties that I've been at, like, I remember this one time, I'd got off work. And I've been working since I was 15. And got off work. I've always had money. So I had a car. So I'm going over to that party up over in Coto, which is like maybe 1520 minutes from the house. And I remember pulling into the driveway, going into the house. And that's it. But I guess what I did was I went into the house, I changed and got back in my car drove over to Coto pulled up on the homies, I was like yo Mimi outside and pulling up. And when I when the homies came outside, I guess I was ready to fight them. Like I was trying to fight them, like being real aggressive. And I'm, I'm naturally not an aggressive person. So they're like, what's going on here. And I was like, I was not properly like, my wording was all slurred. It was really terrible. And they knew something was up, I've my, like, I've known for a good, good while at the time, they basically shoved me back in the car in the passenger seat. They drove to the hospital. And, you know, he got me what I needed. But I have no recollection of that. Like at all. They ran red lights, they were really like on their way to the hospital, in a standard car. And I've always told them like, if I'm in like a weird, weird mindset or whatever, run the red light, like enough, a cop pulls you over. Don't pull over, just keep going to the hospital and handle it when you get there. And I'll help you out when I get my mindset back or whatever. Because it's my life is important. And I'm sure the cop will understand. I hope

Scott Benner 34:27
when you're high no anger, no feeling like you want to fight people, you're able to take care of your blood sugar. I mean, you just said earlier, but you're a person who just recently decided like I'm going to take I'm going to take really good care of my diabetes. You have a six and a half a one C which is an amazing, obviously improvement over what you had. You have you have no trouble taking care of it when you're smoking.

Alex 34:48
Oh, and Nope, not at all. I mean, I I smoke much less now. Like I smoke a bomb. And it's you know, I mean maybe point 1.5 and a bowl. It's a big bowl piece but uh yeah No nothing at all and like the only time where it could be an issue is like the time after you smoke like the munchies that you know people talk about. For me, I try to like all smoke, smoke, smoke smoke throughout the night or whatever. And then I'll allocate like, Okay, this is time to eat around like dinner time or whatever time I feel but I don't try to just eat munching on I mean just consistently munching try to find I. Yeah, like I'll allocate it for I've smoked this much. It's time to eat now. Or like if I am trying to snack while smoking or whatever. Let us know what I mean. like celery stuff that isn't carby as well, but I think that I'm trying like a new I'm trying to be healthier diabetic. I didn't know that carrots had sugar in them or like carbs in them. And

Scott Benner 35:48
by eating carrots and yeah, Alyssa Yeah.

Alex 35:51
Yeah. And it was Arab while I was like carrots Really? Like I was trying to be a good person. I didn't know that character could get you like that

Scott Benner 35:57
character. Good. Free. Just need a little insulin for him. But see, figure it out. You do it next time. It'll be Yeah, be less insulin than something. Yeah, that's really heavy with carbs.

Alex 36:08
Yeah, no, it's but I being like, I never used to care about diabetes when I say that, like I never used to care. And I've mean, I would care but it was I wanted sushi. I was going to eat sushi. Like I got my first pump when I was in fifth grade. And it felt like the gates were open. Or I mean, like it felt like freedom is with the insulin needles and the multiple, multiple daily injections and you're kind of like a tethered to you, he's always got to kind of go back to the home base. With the pump. I had three days where I could do whatever I wanted. I still never slept over. I was never into sleeping over because I enjoy the safety of my house or I enjoyed the safety of my mom's house. Um, but the Yeah, freedoms were endless. And I again, I was abusing it. Like I was just going doing whatever, and not really focusing on what the negative impacts could be. And when I got Addison's, it was kind of the same thing like that. I'm just gonna live like, I don't, I don't need to let it hold me back. But there's a fine line with that. I mean, was there a D live

Scott Benner 37:18
thought back then that you weren't going to live as long so you were going to live? Like happily? Or was it not even that well thought out? Was it just,

Alex 37:27
it really was I always I used to always say, like, I have a shorter life expectancy than others. You know what I mean, especially with these two diseases, like I could be, I could be gone tomorrow. But, um, if you like the law of attraction, I've recently like, read the book and like, been more positive about that. Is that a day it's gonna happen? It'll probably happen. So I, I have to live as long as I can. I mean, do whatever I can to live the best life and what they there's like this saying that, find what makes you happy and figure out how to make money doing it. Mm hmm. And I've recently I've been car washing forever, but I love carwash, I love cleaning. And some people may not find that to be enjoyable, but I really love cleaning. Like it makes me feel good. Okay. And specifically, car washing is really enjoyable. For me. Everyone has a car. I mean, most people have a car. And

Scott Benner 38:23
in California, they all seem to have one.

Alex 38:25
Yeah, exactly. But the like getting a little piece of everyone's car being able to wash it. And I specifically love really dirty cars. And, you know, it's just, I love it. And if I can do that once a day, nothing's that serious and finding that able to enjoy that and working in the diabetes around that my Addison's disease around that, because even car washing is really challenging with the diabetes or Addison's like it's really fatiguing on the body. And I used to only be able to do one car, like one car and I was just looked after. Yeah. Now I can do like this. Last weekend, I did four cars. I did three cars on a Saturday and I started a clay bar on a Friday night. And then after the three cars on Saturday, I went back down to San Diego and buffed and polished this one car spent 16 hours on it looks beautiful. And in the course of 24 hours I did four cars you attribute that your blood sugar being lower now that you're able to do more work. Yep, being more like on it. Like when I was down there, the homie that I was doing the work for. He bought me pizza and I love pizza. But I ate my like two pieces or whatever when I first started like those four everything was groovy we're working hard and not blood sugar starts to go back down. So I one more piece of like kick differ a little bit see how it was like reacting to me. And then you know what I mean? Like, more patience with it rather than just binge eating and boring with the aftermath. You know what I mean? Why do you

Scott Benner 39:54
like baby steps, man, it's exciting. It really is

Alex 39:58
just trying to do whatever I can And I think that I do smoke weed, people tend to have this negative connotation around marijuana usage like people are lazy people or bombs or whatever. And realistically, it's your choice. I mean, same with the diabetes, like you can not be a responsible diabetic or whatever, quote unquote. But as long as you're doing your baseline stuff, you can always throw in a little bit more, throwing a little bit more energy, whatever. Do

Scott Benner 40:23
you think you could take the the concept that I'm high, so I'm lazy and will yourself to be lazy a little bit because I'm thinking about these are famous people who have jobs, washing cars, but some of the really productive people in Hollywood are out about their smoking. Kevin Smith, yeah. Joe Rogan. Seth Rogen, maybe? Maybe is everybody named Rogan. Hmm. And you know, like, like, seriously, like those guys are, they're prolific. Like really like Joe Rogan is putting out what is probably the most popular podcast in the world. And not down he does it every day. And if you go listen to it, these are, you know, they're cogent conversations. You might disagree with some of his perspective, but he's not mumbling through a two hour podcast going, Hey, man, you know, they mean like, he's, he's listening to people talk. He's involved in every conversation. He's going, I mean, I don't smoke, but I don't think I have a qualm about it. Do you know what I mean? Like, I don't listen to you and think, oh, Alec, shouldn't do this. Like you just described to me a life that you seem pretty happy and where you're taking care of your health, you're gonna take getting yourself some money, you're doing something you enjoy. I don't know how to, I don't know how to make a problem with what you just said.

Alex 41:39
Right? You know what I mean? And I definitely agree. And I've thought, by default, like, get other people to, like, believe that and understand that. And you're right, like these thing that it's more public. Now. It's legal people can talk about it. I think that that's the first step. But like, even with this, like I have, I do my car wash. And that's my personal thing. But I have a nine to five like Monday through Friday, like an office job. And we just got actually bought out by another company that's based out of Florida, and Florida. It's not as legal as it is in California. And they they follow the federal guidelines, whatever, go to them. There. You're not supposed to be high at work, or you're not like the average is 50 nanograms, and I asked the HR person I was like, how do I measure how much 50 nanograms is, is for alcohol? It's point 08. Like if you come in to work with the alcohol level of above point 082 and Saturday at home yeah. But I can't measure 50 nanograms four nanometers or whatever it is

Scott Benner 42:39
never heard of it. But I would know

Alex 42:42
Yeah, well, I'm there. They've been trying to get better with it and like actually have specifications on what your limit is. But from what I understand about 50 nanograms, whatever it is that I smoke, what like if I smoke once, and I haven't smoked at all in the 365 days, if I smoke once, in this month, it'll be 30 days before my we love number. Yeah, is below 50 nanograms nanometers, whatever. It's, uh, you know what I mean, it's kind of hard to judge it or to have like, a limit on it and like the business world, and, like, be on the same level as everyone else. Right. And that's the part that I think is kind of a bummer. But as far as medically on I mean, like, it's making big strides, like huge strides. And I'm not trying to be like a weed for everyone advocate or whatever, but it's nice to be able to relax and ponder your mind. I think some people are like afraid of it. I mean, afraid to like see what's in there. What what could come up, they don't get high or whatever. But for me, like being that I've had to deal with diabetes, Addison's for literally like my whole life, and it Addison's at 15. Like That was my freshman year in high school. This was back a big time in your life. Right. And I was focusing on a disease. Yeah, the the weed kind of, you're allowed to venture in your head and, like, sit down and just be you for a little while. And like, I I kind of enjoy being in my head. Not not. Sometimes it can get a little dangerous, but I enjoy kind of puttering around in there, especially like, I read this book by David Goggins. And it. Yeah, he's like a beast. Like this guy. David Goggins is nothing to play around with. And he, it was super inspirational, like, everything is, like, gotta go, like, there's nothing that's going to hold you back. Nothing like the 60% rule or 40% rule, whatever. Yes. Like, when you think you're done, like, you're gonna quit, you're tired of it. You still have like 40% left and or like 60% left in the tank that you haven't even tried to use. Like you there's still more that you can do. And when I feel like I'm weak, I'm tired. I'm not like when I'm high or I'm low, and I'm just like, given up You got you can do more. Yeah. And that's why I do my nine to five work. And then I do my carwash and after, like, go hard, like, this isn't no disease is gonna hold me back like I got a, I got to get my money and I'm gonna be successful in something. And these diseases are very challenging. Don't get me wrong. Yeah, like they they can be very, very difficult. But as long as you have the right mindset, I think mindset is a big thing right now, like mental health is a big thing. taking that time to focus on yourself. And these last two years of my life have really been about that, like, I don't hang out with anyone if I don't need to know what I mean, I'm really about me. And I not letting anything get in the way of it. How is

Scott Benner 45:46
it dating? When you smoke? Do you have to meet somebody who also does? Or is does that make you incompatible? If you don't?

Alex 45:54
Um, I wouldn't. I wouldn't have to have anyone that you know, I mean, I don't. I for for me, I like people that are that can talk to me and they can really have a good conversation. I don't need weed to do that. I just enjoy weed. But I don't like no, it's not a requirement for me at all. I'll just have a conversation if I can have a conversation with anyone have a good one and feel good about it. That's a winner to me. What about

Scott Benner 46:24
my trout? Is this the is the is the pot to you? Is it because of anxiety and pressure and stress in your life? Like there's a like the only like, there's something makes you that like that. Like you're not getting to that place like being in your own head without the without the pot which is I don't like a problem. But so you can you not get to that place without it.

Alex 46:50
Um, if I don't smoke, it's like a frantic, like my I am very analytical. My brain is running all the time. So it allows me to kind of slow down and grab things and be more focused on like, hyper focus on those things. Right. But I don't need the wheat for that. But I think that it does help me and it's also a coping mechanism. Like I said, like when people drink? Yeah, I smoke like it's just the same you wind down at the end of the night or whatever. And you enjoy time. And I'm like watching TV is easier. After like a bowl or like a blonde or something. Because you're

able to just move everything that's in your head.

Scott Benner 47:31
Just make it go away. And then you can Yeah, exist for a little while.

Alex 47:35
And I don't when I say like get it out. I'm not saying like completely ignore it. Like right now I'm about to buy a truck for my car washing. And I need all the like the stuff to go on the back of it to make it like carwash and worthy. When I'm not high, like I can do those things. I'm gonna buy this truck today hot, like not high. But when I it's easily like overwhelmed. Like it's a lot to have to deal with that I got overhead now. But when I smoke I can. Okay, Phil, Let's relax. Let's look at this from a mean, armour standpoint. Yeah, I'm able to make a list of all the things that I need, you know, get it more. It not not as the bigger picture, just focus. All right, this is the stuff I need, right a price for everything and get a goal set, get the truck start hustling out of it, and start knocking off these things on the list. So it's less like when I'm like when I wake up in the morning, and I don't smoke whatever I get my day started I still have the mentality of which I'm high if that makes sense. Like I'm still like, Okay, calm call the start the day chilled.

Scott Benner 48:38
When you Yeah, yeah, smoking gun. But you know, who I imagined in my mind is nodding along with you right now wondering where they can get weed, or the people who get in bed at the end of the night and have to do something to make their brain stop running. And some people just can't do that. Like, you know, it's it's difficult for some people.

Alex 48:57
Yeah, and that's a big thing with like diabetes is that we're always having to focus on something. You know what I mean? There's never really a time when we're just chillin.

Scott Benner 49:05
Yeah. And if you're a person who can't let go, then that's, that's constant. That's a constant pressure on your system to I'll tell you a story that maybe you don't know. So the the film director, Kevin Smith, he had a heart attack maybe two years ago.

Alex 49:19
Yeah, I heard on the podcast, right.

Scott Benner 49:20
And he had what they considered to be like a Widowmaker. Like, they get kills, like something like 98% of people got complete blockage. But he described that while he was going through the heart attack, he was so baked, that he couldn't get upset. And so he didn't freak out. He didn't panic. He said, actually, when he thought about it, he started going through his life and he thought I've had a pretty good life. This seems fair if I die now. So he was that relaxed, and they got him to the hospital, performed a surgery, you know, he's fine. But the doctor later told him, you probably made it through the heart attack because of how high you are. Which is such a crazy thing to say to a person but he was just like, you didn't appear to have any ability to be upset and make it worse. So you could kind of live at this baseline block with this base this blockage until we could get it out for you. It's very, it's crazy. I mean, it's a very unscientific answer, obviously. But that's, that's, I mean, probably a testament to it. Do you? Do you take wheat in any other way? Do you do edibles or vapor? Or do you prefer to smoke? And do you worry about smoking?

Alex 50:27
Um, I have done the edibles. I've baked them myself. I bought them. And I've vape I've dabbed I, I'm not worried about the smoke per se. Although any smoke in your lungs is not good smoke. You don't I mean, anything you're putting in there. Like what even if people say it's clean, we can't kill you or whatever. It's still smoking. Your lungs are not I mean, that's still going to cause damage in some way or another. But I'm not too worried about it. I've been at it for a while now. And the bat The worst thing for you? I would say like because blunts, like amongst the weed community, weed, society, whatever it is. They're really popular. I mean, people are smoking backwards, left and right. And amongst my friends, like all of them smoke backwards, and I I'll poke around with them. But if I can choose not to, or if I can, I mean, just hit a bowl or something. I'm going to do that. I would love to do that. But in a social environment, you got five or six people all trying to smoke. The blunt is just, oh, it's a lot easier. It's more convenient. And you didn't you're not trying to pass a ball around. That's how bongs get broken. But, uh, I'm not really scared of smoke now. Although, although, the popcorn lung with the vaping and stuff. That's a little bit scary. Yeah, a little bit scary. And I have, I just actually replaced my battery on my cartridges. And I was smoking it kind of steady there for a couple days. And my chest was hurting. I was like, man, I don't know if I

Scott Benner 52:01
shouldn't do this. Yeah.

Alex 52:03
Yeah. But the thing with the vaping, like, the little handheld, the cartridge is, it's so much more convenient. If you think about a bomb, you got to break the wheat up. Got to put it in the bomb. And you got this big ol foot long, bigger bottom. That is now in front of you know what I mean? And as far as evidence goes, like, if you're in a car or something, Obama is not the way to go. You know, and like the vape the handheld you can just tuck it and you don't really have it or and like a public place like Vegas or like a public arena, more concealed or like a restaurant and sealed. So it's kind of like for the situation. But uh,

Scott Benner 52:42
yeah, listen, what I've learned from this is blunt save bongs. And I think that would make an amazing t shirt. Well.

Alex 52:49
I mean,

yeah, I guess it's, it's more like the personal preference. Like some people just can't smoke blunts. Like, I've heard stories where someone had a blonde, and their whole mind got messed up. And they're never try to smoke weed again, like off of one blind because they just their chest couldn't take it. And I think it's you got to build a got to build like a tolerance to it or not a tolerance but like a and get used to it. You know what I mean? Because it's sometimes a little tough, but they have joints, they have the papers and stuff. That's probably like the more natural way to smoke it, but the lighter being filled with butane, that butane you're inhaling some of that. So it's kind of like a given a take, but I don't think I'm afraid of it. Because if I was I probably wouldn't be smoking. Hmm.

Scott Benner 53:30
What about other drugs? do you have? Do you use any other drugs? Or is this we'd kind of where you live.

Alex 53:41
weed is the only one that I do. You know, when I was a kid, in high school, I was again, like really a lot of like mental stuff like I was, I have a lot going on in my head. And the school actually told me to take Xanax and Adderall. Like, they really recommended that they had a meeting with my mom and all that. And I took them for 30 days. And I was like, okay, like, I'll do what you say like I've, I tend to be receptive. But if I don't like it, I will stand up and say no, but at the 30 day script, I filled the script. And I didn't take the second round, because it just wasn't, I didn't enjoy it. Like I'd already smoked. And I felt like the Adderall and the Xanax were cool. But if I'm going to be in like a box in my head, I might as well be smoking weed on me because it was like an artificial box that they created. And I just really didn't like it. So I sold the other 60 pills or whatever, the six the 30 Xanax and the 30 Adderall and just never touch them again. And that was right before. Like, I don't know if you're aware of these drugs, but Adderall and Xanax are pretty popular. You know, I mean, like, people use those things. And I just, I couldn't I couldn't do it. Know what I mean? Like I'd rather be a self created box. I don't I mean, like, if I'm going to smoke weed. I can stop at any time. Like there's nothing that's and some people are Really addicted to these annexes and all these street drugs. And I've seen it like cocaine or I mean, I've seen all those things in that like, well, amongst my peers, and it's just not, not cool. Not I mean, like,

Scott Benner 55:12
you made me wonder you made me wonder how many people are walking around with a Xanax prescription who would say that, you know, people shouldn't smoke weed,

Alex 55:20
you know, and the thing like, that's what I was kind of, I was getting going, I hope to talk about with the pumps and stuff like not just because I don't like the Medtronic, 70 or whatever, doesn't mean that someone else can't love it. Don't I mean for spend some time, if that pill works for you, great. But at the end of the day, if you're dependent on something like that's gonna tether you back, like you're not able to see the world. If you're on a 30 day script. You know what I mean? Like, and that's one of the bummers about these pumps and like stuff like that is you're, you're tethered. Know what I mean? Like you had a conversation with someone on on your podcast that, like a world traveler, she was going everywhere. I think it was, like Everest lady, I know that Everest lady had to, like prepare for it. But a woman in India, maybe Yeah, but like, all these people have to like, if they're in a different country, they have to now figure out their supply chain to get those drugs. Not I mean, like not drugs, but just prescriptions like all these, all these things require, like a postal address. And if you're always moving to get those things, and you got to stack up, you got to really prepare for that trip. And I think that when you're addicted to something, whether that's alcohol or pills, because that's really the thing is most of these drugs aren't supposed to be like long term use, other than like insulin or something like that. But then x is supposed to help you for the time being, and you're supposed to wean yourself off of it. And I think that that's the toughest thing for people is to get themselves off of it. But I also grew up. Like I said, my brother smoked with me when I was in third grade. And it's a he had a problem. I mean, like, he's an alcoholic, still has a problem with it. And both of my parents are, quote, unquote, like, alcoholics are both functioning, you know, I mean, they both work. Yeah, they both love it. But as soon as five o'clock hits, and they're both not working, they're quick to open a beer quick to crack a bottle of wine, no judgement here. But it's like, I can't do that for myself. And when I see other people doing it, I don't want to be around them. And that's with the bills too. When you when you don't have

Scott Benner 57:25
pot in your system. Does it bother you? Or are you in charge of the next time you smoke?

Alex 57:32
Um, I'm not like it doesn't bother me now. Like I can. Like I went down, I went on a cruise and the Caribbean or whatever, it was, like seven days. And I didn't smoke the entire seven days. Although I got weed on one of the islands. I didn't even smoke it. You know what I mean? Like, alright, I got it. Or my butchers eating because it's hot. But I got the weed. And I was in the van. And I was just like, do I want to smoke this? I mean, like, it's been probably like, goes by probably like five days at that point, right. I was like, I'm not gonna smoke some dirt weed from an island that they probably imported this weed here. Like, I'm just gonna wait till I get home and get some real weed because this was all like brown. And it wasn't really like the best looking tree. I mean, the guy did me a solid and got it for me. But it wasn't really what you were looking for.

Scott Benner 58:20
Yeah, I mean, because it wasn't quality. You just didn't bother doing it. It's not like you You didn't like your Jones and you have to I The reason I asked is I just was on a plane the other day. And my seatmate got on the plane, sat down, was felt nervous to me, got up, ran to the bathroom, came back was nervous happened, his feet happened his feet. Then he kind of interlocked his hands and started rubbing his wrists with his fingers. And he just I'm like, whatever this guy needs. I hope somebody gets it for him soon, you know. And then the cart came down and he bought a can of tomato juice and two bottles of vodka. He knocked it back real quick. His legs stopped tapping. He wasn't grabbing it himself anymore. And he was okay. He, he was in trouble looking for out. Yeah, you know. And so I think that people, you know, and I don't know why, listen, let me tell you the truth. I have a son who's a sophomore in college, I have a daughter who's a sophomore in high school. I do not want them to smoke. I really directed them throughout their lives not to do it. And if I found out they did it, I think I'd be upset. And I don't know why.

Alex 59:27
So let me say that go ahead. And like, I don't have any kids. I'm 26 and I'm not looking to have any kids anytime soon. I mean, I would love to like don't get me wrong, but I'm trying to get I'm trying to get some life experience of ours. But uh, I think like when I when I first smoked with my brother, he smoked. And he said to me, do you know what you smoked? And I was like, No, I just smoked it because he's

Scott Benner 59:52
gonna say I said, No, I'm nine.

Alex 59:55
Yeah. But he said don't ever smoke something that you don't know. Like, Ask the person or look at it yourself determine what is in that that you're smoking. And he went on, I think he told me a story or something. But I remember that little chunk. That's the only thing that I took from that situation could be a lesson. Yeah. And I think that the, even if you don't smoke your whole life, whatever, smoking once you don't I mean, like, knock on wood probably isn't gonna kill, you know, I mean, try it, see how you like it. But I'm not saying go take a line of coke or, you know, I mean, but I think people should venture out and try new things if they don't like it great. But like, or

Scott Benner 1:00:33
I have no objection to it whatsoever. None. Like I don't even as you say that I you know, I don't think I think I said on the drinking episode that I saw Snoop Dogg and Joe Rogan on the Howard Stern Show. And they were like an advertisement for smoking. I was like, these guys make this seem like a great idea. And, and they looked, listen, they seemed fine to me. Now, having said that, I can't imagine a day where I was always doing something like that. I have to be honest with you. I have a hard time remembering your drink water throughout the day. I don't know that I could remember to smoke. And like even that, I think it's similar reason. I mean, I'm not a cigarette smoker. But even the idea of giving the way the time to it seems odd to me. But then as my pointed out in the drinking episode, I'm not a person who has a trouble relaxing. So I'm not I'm not looking for, like that thing you describe about getting in your own head. I can do that whenever I need to. Oh, really? Right. So I don't have that barrier. If I had that barrier, I cannot understand I can hundred percent think that this would make a lot of sense for me if I was that person.

Alex 1:01:39
But yeah, I can stop and shoot things away. I don't have trouble going to sleep. I'm not stressed out or nervous. Like those kinds of things like some, some fairly bad stuff has happened to me in my life. And maybe I've just trained myself not to freak out. Or maybe I just got lucky. I don't know. But did you? They talk about compartmentalization. Like nothing. It's so low to where you never, it never comes up in your daily life. Nothing triggers it. But when you start to, like, if you smoke, or do some mushrooms, I haven't. I've my bugs that I've ever taken. I've, I've done the Xanax. I've done the Adderall, smoke some weed. I've done two lines of coke. And that's like, that's my, what I've done with that. When you do those things, like I can always start like you dig into yourself, you figure out what's there, what's not. And I think that some people have this like defense mechanism where they just compartmentalize it, like my mom is very much that way. She doesn't even like talk about stuff, or and if she does, it's more stuff that she'll he's willing to talk about. And if it goes too far, she just cuts it off. But being open to those things, I think makes people better. And they're not, like scared about it or scared about their past like, yeah. But the, I think Joe Rogan has talked about like the smoking before, like a certain age, because you're more developed on me smoking before I think 26 is not good for you, being that you're not fully developed, and it starts altering your development stages or whatever. Yes, um, and I, I wish I had heard that when I was super young, so that I did like, I was smarter than my brother, and didn't let him influence me. And then also when I was a freshman in high school, like not to do those things, focus on school more, because in school, I, I wasn't the best student. And I was a good student, like I did my work and stuff. But when it was a time to raise my hand or ask a question, I did it every single time, like I wanted to talk. And I want it to be the center of attention. Now looking back on it. Maybe that wasn't the best thing to do.

Scott Benner 1:03:48
You know what I mean? But if you think you were too mellow to focus on school, like don't think some things in life need a little anxiety? Like the the idea of like, I gotta get this done, or something's gonna go wrong for me.

Alex 1:04:01
Yeah, I mean, I was never to stress about school itself. Like, I didn't care. Like I cared about school. But I was more of like, a, like, if I like I don't I had a limit of questions in classes, like I was, I was allowed to ask three questions in a classroom, because I'd asked like 50 in a class and the teacher started getting upset and didn't, didn't want me to ask questions anymore. Like, I was very involved. Like I had overly participation points to the point where she was like, somebody

Scott Benner 1:04:30
else answer. Yeah,

Alex 1:04:31
yeah. And it wasn't like, I would wait, like if anyone else was going to answer no one did so I was like, Alright, boom, I'll answer. Like, I was very focused on the class, but that was looked at as a negative but also, like, I was also that person in the school. Like there was one time we had a an hour and a half classroom like a classroom session. We had a break right after about to go into another hour and we did block periods. Mm hmm. Um, I went out I got my my food at the right food. sensory thing, whatever. And I went down to sit at the tables, and the janitor guy was spraying off the tables and Lino, and I'm like, you couldn't have done this an hour and a half ago, like we had a whole time where no one was out here. You choose to wash down the tables right now. And he didn't like, like, yeah, spraying them down. So I sat at the end of the tables that he was spraying, I was eating. I'm like, spray me, like, go ahead, if you have $10,000 in your pocket to pay for a new pump does when pumps weren't waterproof yet. Like, and I held my shirt up with my pump in my hand, I was like, spray me, go for it, please. And it created a crowd of people around me. And I got in trouble for that, because he wanted to spray down the tables, and was had no problem spraying me. He did it me what. And you know what I mean? Like I've not type of person to where I think something's wrong. I don't have any problems standing up for it. And I did that in the classrooms as well. And teachers didn't really like that, because I would read ahead. And if the teacher made a mistake, I would challenge her on her mistake and see how she responded. It was always like a test for the teachers. And I know, it is what it is. But looking back on it. I wish I would have just stayed below the radar. You know what I mean? Because being that I was like, really upfront, they didn't really like that. But I had an incident like it was before cell phones. I actually had cell phones in high school, but I was dosing on my pump or like looking at something on my pump. And the teacher walked by, it's going to be real slick, and grab the pump out of my hands and like walk like she grabbed it and kept walking. And I was like, obviously, I'm attached to the pump. So I kept following her. Because I didn't want her to rip it out of me. And like Why are you following? Like, why are you following me? And I was like, Look, it's attached to me, like, Oh, I'm sorry. And I still got in trouble for that. Like, it was just ridiculous. And I was at a brand new school. We're the only class at that school. We're we're the first freshman year, the first sophomore year, like and so on. We had classes below us, but we never had one above us. And we were kind of the guinea pigs for that school. And they just, and I was very direct like with that incident when the teacher pulled the pump out of my hands. He she got an earful. No, I mean, like, I'm gonna defend myself and all costs. But once I once I got older, it was I'm not ruling like I just got a car washing ticket for car washing in the street. Took the dude's hand told him Thank you know what I mean? Like an older man. Hey, listen, you're maturing. Yeah. Yeah. And that's, that's a big thing. But I also think, though, like, with the schools, the the 504 plans and things like that, like, yeah, those are really important. Because Because people understand

Scott Benner 1:07:37
because that woman would have known she couldn't have grabbed your insulin pump.

Alex 1:07:40
Yeah. And like education is very important and not to discriminate for a kid because even when I was 1516, like in high school, they they shouldn't. Like they I got out of the teacher yelled at or whatever. The first thing shouldn't be like, okay, you're suspended. You're this go to the principal's office. It should be what's your blood sugar up? I don't I mean, like, what's your blood sugar at? You have anything? Like? Did you take your pills as well, like real questions that aren't just immediately like, you're in trouble? Like, it shouldn't? Never immediately be like that, like, let's figure out some baseline stuff where you at? And then determine was this a normal Alex type situation? Or was it just your high or you were low, you were frustrated about this like, because I think that the school system being that it's kind of like under budgeted or whatever. The teachers think that they just kind of breezed past certain situations. And I felt like that really affected my education. When I was younger, that I was always out of class. I was basically the last two years of high school senior year, I think junior year is that the last two years, they I went to fresh start, I taught myself in school, because at the end of sophomore year, they asked me like, they told me you're either going to get expelled, or you can go to fresh start come to school, like one day at one class that day. And it's an elective, so you don't have like any, because the English and math and all those stuff. I was too serious of a class like don't like they weren't, like oppressing me and telling me what to do and stuff and I never liked that. But I'd freshman year, or like the fresh start really gave me a freedom. And that allowed me to get a job, like work and really be a functioning member of society. But the school system, they didn't they don't allow freedom. Yeah, they don't allow creativity. They don't allow you to be you. And I think that especially as a diabetic, like I'm not looking for special ed or anything like that. But there should like there should be someone in your court

Scott Benner 1:09:45
understands and yeah, could advocate for you. Maybe in a moment. Yeah, couldn't help yourself.

Alex 1:09:50
And I will say amongst my years in school, like my elementary school, I had a woman named Heidi in the health office and he had my back but she also was a very strong woman. She would call me out like, yo, that was your bad. Like, I can't defend you on that you messed up. It's good. And like in middle schools, a woman named Romeo. He, like really loves Keith Urban. I'll never forget that. But she, she had my back. She always had my back whenever she saw me in the office or whatever it was like, Hey, how you doing? Whatever. It was super cool. And when I high school, I had a woman. Like, when I got Addison's disease, they had to switch all the nurses and the district because I needed a registered nurse to be able to give me my like, emergency injection, okay. And she had my back like, She's like, I have medical alert bracelets. And she's the one that ordered the medical alert bracelets. I didn't order them. She ordered them and told me to give her the money or whatever. And I'm like, that's like, how do you? How can somebody try to ask that? Like, that's like, the best thing you can do over an event? They're doing more

Scott Benner 1:10:53
than eight. Yeah, yeah.

Alex 1:10:55
And she was a cool, like, person. Like, I remember one time, I had to do a drug test at school. And I was like, yo, like, I don't think I'm gonna pass. He's like, okay, just kick it. hang out here for a little while. And do whatever you got to do. Like, she wasn't stressing on it. She was. Just let me do my thing. And it was like, the coolest thing like, I don't know, I just some people really stand out to you. Yeah, type of situation first.

Scott Benner 1:11:18
So I also Oh, I'm sorry.

Alex 1:11:20
The last place, most recent situation that really stood out to me for medical stuff was on my last like hypoglycemic episode, I had the EMTs paramedics like it at my house, whatever, they're rolling me out. And when you're coming off of a low, you're kind of like in and out of it, like, rebuilding your consciousness, whatever. And are, like I was getting pushed through my living room. And the god like, I kept throwing up, like, that's what I do when I'm low. Like, I just throw up. But this guy was like, you've been through this before. Why aren't you being like, like, that was like screaming, my head hurts so bad. And I was throwing up, like, stop, stop doing this. Like, just stop, like, take, like, buckle your shit up right now. So that we can roll you into the bus. So you're not like throwing up on the stairs as we're taking you downstairs. He was like really aggressive towards me. And mind you like I was only my eyes were and yours. Were only awake for that little bit of second. And I heard that and I like pass right back out. And it really, I woke up I still remembered it. So I was like, Oh, this is important. And that's what kind of got me on this healthiness was like, that dude was really mad. Like, he was upset that I was like, yo, like they had come in. In a matter of like, four months, the paramedics had come like four or five times it was when I was on my 670. But uh, I've,

Scott Benner 1:12:41
I've heard of someone I know, as a paramedic in a place there where heroin is a big problem. And they go save people with Narcan all night long, like, it's their whole job. And, and when he talks about it, he, you should just feel how sad he is. When he when he talks about it. It's, it's terrible.

Alex 1:13:03
It really is tough. Like, just on my end, when I wake up and I see all these people's faces. They all have this, like, sour look on their face, when they're watching someone potentially die. Like they don't know if I'm gonna live or not like once they give me the dextrose they can kind of assume that I'll be fine. But, you know, it is tough like and coming out of the like, I've had multiple multiple hypoglycemic episodes, where I'm completely blacked out I have no recollection of, and I when I first look sorry, these people's faces, and they're all just intensely focused on you. And I'm like, What happened?

Scott Benner 1:13:36
Even though it's their job? It's still impacted. Yeah, it's hard for them and but you're you're saying that since How long ago? Was that, that you had that experience that made you think like, I'm gonna do better?

Alex 1:13:46
That one wasn't exactly a year ago.

Scott Benner 1:13:48
And since then, you're on a completely different path with your diabetes.

Alex 1:13:52
Yes, sir. I completely different like, like I said, I used to love sushi. I could eat $100 a sushi by myself. And I would dose like for like for, like 40 units of insulin to eat my, my sushi. And it was I love it. But there's no like what I've dumbed it down to and diabetes. Is it as diabetic, have a carb allergy who are allergic to carbohydrates? Like if you don't have your, your mouth, you know? Yeah, if you don't have your insulin and stuff, you're going to get messed up. So reduce your carb intake. Eat more protein on I mean, eat stuff that isn't going to affect your blood sugar. Right. I see how that works. No, I mean, well, and I

Scott Benner 1:14:35
can I tell you, I think you should try the pro tip series that's inside the podcast. They started Episode 210 That goes for it goes for about 10 or 11 episodes. And it's it's management ideas broken down in real, like easy to understand conversations and I think you would after listening to you, I think you would take a lot out of it. I think you I really think you'd be real would really benefit from it. Can I ask you a couple other questions about this past year before I let you go cuz I've got you longer than I told you, I would.

Alex 1:15:07
Oh, you're good, man. I'm just chilling. Thanks. Thanks.

Scott Benner 1:15:10
So in this last year, and you've got a one see the way you do like, I'm looking for best practices around smoking with diabetes. Like is there anything he said, You don't really have to plan for anything. But you do think about like, when you get munchie later, but is there anything else that that is really helping you keep your blood sugar intact while you're smoking?

Unknown Speaker 1:15:31
Um,

Alex 1:15:33
well, I removing the tobacco, I don't think that tobacco is good. If you don't have a tobacco like if you smoke cigarettes, go for it. But cooking clean, preparing for it like allocating some time. If you if it's like your first time, maybe smoke a little bit earlier in the day, or I mean, and don't as soon as you get that hunger fix. Don't, don't dig into it. You're I mean, wait until you're actually done smoking, you've smoked all the weed, and then give yourself some time to eat. And don't, don't eat the first thing that you see. Know what I mean? Like the first thing that comes to mind, don't eat that. Give a little bit more thought to it. You're not like some people, like allow themselves to get so high that they're just like, spacey or whatever. You know, he you can still be like, coherent enough to be like, Oh, I shouldn't eat that. I mean, there's no amount of weed that's gonna like, destroy you to where you can't know what you're going to eat. Like same stuff that as if you were sober every day, you know? I mean, it's I don't Yeah, I don't really prepare for it. I just what I do. Best practices are getting some good weed. Don't get some poop weed. You know what I mean? Getting get some solid weed. It's not like a poo pie. And, you know, yeah, I don't really because we we didn't have any sugar in it. But you could smoke endless amounts of weed and weed. The weed directly isn't ever going to increase your blood sugar. In fact, you said I feel like it helps it be a little lower. Sometimes probably bone. I wouldn't say lower it just man when I'm high. It's not the does your blood

Scott Benner 1:17:05
sugar is high. You don't feel that? Yeah. feminism. Yeah. Because it's,

Alex 1:17:08
it's taking it away in some way. But I'll tell you the CBD stuff. Yeah, like I've done drop the little droplets or whatever. Does I've never I doesn't really I don't really have a feel for it. You know what I mean? It doesn't doesn't change how I feel or anything. But at the topicals CBD topicals I really enjoy those after a car wash on my legs and my like feet and stuff. I really enjoy that because the CBD stuff. If you get a good milligram it kicks.

Scott Benner 1:17:34
Yeah. Well, so what about the idea of being more relaxed? lowering your anxiety and that might lower your, your blood sugar your your Yeah, needs to? If I could,

Alex 1:17:46
yeah, okay, that could be I had a

maybe like three, three ish years ago, three and a half years ago. I I was like, in a really sour place. You know, I mean, I was just really overwhelmed with life and everything. And I don't want to get too graphic, but I was just done. You know what I mean? Like, I've had this stuff forever. And I was I was just done. So I gave my I did hit the max bullets on my pump twice. Like, I think it was like 50 units, I took an Ambien and I was just ready to go to sleep, and not wake up. And I enjoy weed. So I was like, I'm gonna hit a bowl and then pass out edible. And I was like, it totally changed my mindset immediately. I was like, Man is maybe not the best thing to be doing right now. Like, it totally like, again, like I said, totally changed my mindset on everything. And I start eating, you know, I mean to over 50 units units. I just called me back down. It brought me back to like, a centered place to where I was able to, like live life again. Right?

Scott Benner 1:18:51
That's a fascinating, okay. All right, Alex, I'm gonna ask you to do two things, right? Yeah, I'm going to ask you at the end here to talk me into trying weed and, and then talk me out of wanting to try weed. So start by talking me into it. Like, why would I? Why should I try?

Unknown Speaker 1:19:09
Um,

Alex 1:19:12
well, I've never taught anyone in Dubai. Like,

Scott Benner 1:19:14
everybody here was like, yo, here it is. Let's go.

Unknown Speaker 1:19:17
Yeah.

Scott Benner 1:19:18
But you're talking to a person who has no desire to do it, but doesn't see any problem with it either.

Alex 1:19:23
So the best thing I could say, if you want to, like you drink No, not at all. Oh, wow. Um, I guess it would be like the best like coping mechanism. Like if you've had a long day or whatever, maybe not consistently, but for like a celebration or going to try something new, like on your next vacation or something and you want to have a little bit of a different feel, and maybe try some wheat. Um,

Scott Benner 1:19:48
what about my back hurts with it with that make that go away?

Alex 1:19:52
Yeah, I mean, it's gonna temporarily like while you're high, you're not going to not going to be the main focus, but when you're not high, it's going to come back on I mean, I, it's your personal choice. I wouldn't, I wouldn't tell you to try it. But if you were trying to try it and come smoke, no, I mean that you can come up to the crib and I'll smoke with you. I think that's one of the things like if you're going to be a

Scott Benner 1:20:16
be with somebody I trust, maybe they can help

Alex 1:20:18
me with the wit underscore, like you're gonna need like a shaman like not to need someone to kind of like, hold you back. Because if it climbs, like, there's been times where I haven't like when I haven't smoked for a little while, and I smoked again and you smoke and you're like, Okay, it hasn't hit me yet. I'm going to smoke again. But it's like getting in there where they

Scott Benner 1:20:37
bet it's like stacking until you can stack Yeah, you're telling me?

Alex 1:20:40
Yeah, exactly. Okay. If you're like, you have no tolerance, whatever, but if you have a tolerance, you can. Yeah, yeah. But um, I don't I, I feel weird trying to convince you to smoke. No,

Scott Benner 1:20:53
I mean, I didn't think you were going to I just want to see what Yeah, say

Alex 1:20:56
that I, I will say that I can provide a safe place for you to smoke. And, you know, I mean, real calm, got a lovely view. And that's what I mean, the best thing I can do, but I think it's, you can't abuse it. That's the biggest thing. And this is I kind of going into me talking you out of it. If you do want to smoke, great, do your thing. But when you find yourself at 35 years old, and you've been smoking since you were, you know, 15 or whatever, and you haven't done shit with your life. That's the time where it's time to sober up. Not I mean, that's the time where it's, you got to make the choice like, what what is it for me? That I'm not doing my best? You know what I mean? Like, you're looking into yourself and saying, Is this really the best for me? Can I be better without this? You know what I mean? Or is our blunts not good for me? Maybe I do. What do I got to try the bomb? Nothing. So set in your ways to where everything is? For sure. Do you? I mean, like that's, do you see a time when you don't smoke anymore? Ah, you know, I've always said that. I will always like smoke in some form or another. But recently, you know, like, I've smoked less than less. Just because I haven't had time to or I get home and I'm so tired. I just hit one bowl, and I'm just like, out go to bed. But um, I'm sure there's a time where I was like, kind of slow down. Or I might get like, when I'm 50 or something. I get super into it. You know? I mean, like, it's

Scott Benner 1:22:19
like just starting over again. Yeah,

Alex 1:22:21
yeah, you know what I mean? Like I, I would love to be able to smoke forever. And I don't necessarily get lazy. Like when I was down in San Diego polishing and buffing this car. I was smoking the entire time. You know what I mean? It doesn't make me less than it just sometimes it's kind of a deterrent, like you're talking about with like relationships and stuff. Yeah, maybe that girl doesn't want me to smoke. So I'll give it up for I don't care. You know what I mean? Yeah. And I've been in a relationship where the girl wasn't like she was down like we were smoked together and stuff, but it wasn't best for me. So she's like, yo, maybe you should quit for your doctor like so you can figure out what's going on. Right. And sometimes that's like, someone that you can confide in and you trust and they think that they have the best. What is it best interest for you? Yeah. Yeah, like that's, we know what it may be the biggest thing, what I wonder

Scott Benner 1:23:13
when you're talking is is just the act of getting high and taking away your inhibitions. Just let you go in the direction that you mean to go in any way. Like if you're going to be a person who lays around doesn't do anything. Maybe this takes the guilt away, that you have about sitting around. And so you're just able, and if you're a productive person who wants to get going, maybe it clears the way in your head to get going.

Alex 1:23:34
Yeah, I would say it clears the barriers. Because with my like, even this truck that I'm about to buy, I'm so scared about this truck. Like it's 5900 bucks. It's a POS. But,

Scott Benner 1:23:46
you know, for you it's a big investment. I

Alex 1:23:49
mean, 59 really isn't that much like I can pay that off relatively quickly. It's just it's now pressure to carwash. No, I mean, before I was doing it off the trunk or in the driveway. It was just fun, you know, but now if I get this truck, now I have to pay that 59 back. I have to get the stuff for the bed. But when I smoke, it's like, okay, I don't have to do anything. I get the truck, and I'm gonna watch cars. Normally, it brings me back down to like, this what what needs to happen? What I mean? Like, yeah, for me,

Scott Benner 1:24:19
that pressure keeps me focused. Like, one of the things I love the most about having ads on the podcast is it keeps you know, like, it's a lot of time. And so I'm able to look at my wife and say, Look, there's some money here. Like, it's not like, I'm not like I'm just upstairs being like, I'm gonna help people, which would be nice, but it takes up a lot of time. So it's an income that makes the podcast reasonable to do. But the second thing that I'm really pleased about because I want to do the podcast is that I owe ads to people. And so the other day, uh, two days ago, I had a terrible day, like everything in my life went wrong from every angle, and I still had to get the podcast out.

Alex 1:25:00
So those are some of the best days.

Scott Benner 1:25:01
Yeah, I got a lot done. But But moreover, if I didn't have to if I didn't have those ads, I probably would have just thought, well, I'll just put it out Wednesday. And who knows if that isn't the beginning of the end for like, maybe I'll do it next week. And and I like I like that I have, I think that truck might be that for you. Like, it's, it's gonna make you, you know, get up and go wash some cars to make some payments on your truck. And maybe you'll start seeing a building, maybe, you know, maybe you talk five years from now. And you'll have a fleet of vans running around California, right, you know, cleaning people's cars.

Alex 1:25:33
Yeah. Well, and being that you brought up the ads, what I'll say is, I think it also helps the companies like Dexcom and Omni pod. They're benefiting because, one, they have a paid interest into the podcast. But not only that, they'll probably listen to it, they probably have someone that's dedicated to listen to it, like we paid this money. What are we getting out of it? And it brings them data don't I mean, it brings them real diabetic stories that they can maybe apply to their products, you know what I mean, apply to their marketing plans, see how they can reach the people better? You know what I mean, from there in

Scott Benner 1:26:06
as humbly as I can. I will say that I think this podcast is doing multiple different things for multiple different people.

Alex 1:26:12
Yeah, and I will say that, like the like, being that I got this back in 1995, where literally, the dose, like carb ratios and stuff, I had a sliding scale, like I took a picture of it on my Instagram. But it's a like, it's come a long way. And I like there's some times where I'm really upset. I just want it to be cured already. But there's some times where I'm I'm just super appreciative because it's like coming from a 670 G, where it does it's auto mode, it's branded as auto mode. And then does it do auto mode? is kind of a bummer. Yeah, I mean, like, it doesn't do it very well. But like, I'm I my first pump was a paradigm pump in fifth grade. My second pump was a 530. And the one after that was a 670. I love the paradigm, I love the 530. But they just dropped the ball in the next one. And I was so set, like I was loyal, like Medtronic, and I didn't want to change. I was super happy with them. But I was kind of forced to change. And I'm going into the tandem and the dexcom combo is just killer. You know what I mean? It's not perfect. Don't get me wrong, it's not perfect. The sensor could be a little bit better. And I've there's a

Scott Benner 1:27:27
I don't think anything's perfect, Alex and I do think it gets better. I think Dexcom of all of the companies Yeah, they are. They're moving like breakneck speed making, making improvements. And I'm just I'm super excited next year for, you know, all these closed loop systems that come out, you know, on the horizon and whatever tandems going to do and like by and hopefully Medtronic will fix their deal. You know what I mean? Like, give people I just think, I just think, being that I've got the short end of the stick with the Medtronic device. And like their response, like after I've gone to the hospital, you know, a couple times. They're like, Oh, just trust it. This trust it. And I was like,

Alex 1:28:06
okay, like, I don't understand how I can trust something that I literally, like, now I still have a problem going to sleep at night. Because I'm afraid I'm not going to wake up because of their device. You know what I mean? Like, that's a tough thing to like,

Scott Benner 1:28:20
lost that edge that trust. It's hard to get that back. Yeah, yeah, you just make that leap.

Alex 1:28:25
With the tandem? Yeah, I, I, I don't use the basal IQ system, I use the auto suspend. So I don't get low, like I get low, but even on their auto suspend, tandem pumps, the brakes, they, they suspend you for a little bit, pull off the suspend, see how you do suspend you for a little bit, pull it off and see what you do. You're never suspended for more than like, five or 10 minutes or 15 minutes at a time. But if they need to, they still have the two hour like they'll suspend you for the two hours to shut it off. But Medtronic is like if they suspend. They don't unsuspend until you're in a different like zone and then but the problem is if you're suspended, and then you calibrate, like like basically if I'm asleep, and it's Ben's auto suspends. It's a two hour max. And then it needs to calibrate. I'm now back in full bazel. And I don't have CGM breeding, so it can't resuspend and I'm sleeping. You know what I mean? Like, that's a recipe for disaster and it has led to disaster multiple times. And how, like, food, what was the test market? I thought that was okay. Know what I mean that like what diabetics were you talking to? That thought that was okay, I say

Scott Benner 1:29:38
this. And I don't find myself defending Medtronic very often. And if they were trying to get it through the FDA, and they were trying to be the first ones, they had to err pretty far on the side of caution to get the FDA to say okay, well, and

Alex 1:29:49
you know, my thing is like now all these other companies are trying to get into the market. But the first thing that should always be the first and every one of these companies minds, is the end user know what I mean? The End diabetic that has to live with this product. Are they going to like, you know what I mean? And I'm not talking about the the two year diabetic that just got diabetes, they're still fresh in that honeymoon period or whatever. I'm talking about the 20 year diabetic that has seen those ups and downs, it knows how that stuff's going to react and can see like, okay, maybe what if we tried this or this, like, the variables, we've seen more variables being that we've had it so much longer, right? You're able to like, troubleshoot them quicker, like, yeah, maybe make

Scott Benner 1:30:28
it a little bit better on your side. Yeah, I completely agree. There's got to be a ton of user definable concepts in the algorithms or then you're just going to be with this one size fits all thing. It's just not going to work for most people. And, and you just like you said, you get somebody who maybe it's just been diagnosed for a little bit there a one sees like eight or 910. And they're like, oh, now it's now it's seven consistently. And they think this thing's amazing. Because that, but you're a person who now I mean, now you're, you're, you're feeling it now. Looks like you're sniffing sixes, you're probably thinking about fives. And you know, to me, like you're starting to think like, I think I could do better here for myself. And I'm gonna keep trying.

Alex 1:31:06
Well, I'll tell you, I wasn't. My doctor is chillin on sixes. She's happy about that. I bet. But when I heard you, and you're like, not you, but like, you talk about your daughter being at like, fives or something. I was like, Huh, can I get two fives? You know what I mean? Like, and I, when I was a kid, I wanted to go to this diabetic camp or whatever, like dumb, get together thing. And my mom was like, you want to go to fat camp? And I was like, No, nevermind, come on.

Scott Benner 1:31:35
I've never put you off.

Alex 1:31:37
Yeah, and I've never been into the diabetes community at all.

Like, you're here. Now again.

Well, that's the thing is I've, I've opened up and I've put it on my Instagram, like I've openly saying, I'm a diabetic, and I'm not I mean, I'm reaching out to people. I got actual, like, friends on Instagram that are diabetics that I can like, yo, how would you think about this or like, and that changes the whole aspect of diabetes for me. And it's a bummer that I'm not like my mom's not diabetic, that I was allowed. I allow allowed someone to get in my head. That's not a diabetic to, you know, put on like, she wasn't trying to make fun of me. She was making a joke about it. But I took it serious, like, what is that fat camp? Like? Is that what I think it is, you know, and I let something like I let her opinion be my opinion, until I was old enough to be like, that's not my opinion, I am going to try that. And I think that that's sometimes being that as a young kid, like people like jdrf, juvenile diabetes, like you get it at a young age, and you're surrounded by your parents that are going like they have diabetes to pretty much at that point. And it's like, if you aren't able to reduce your thoughts or like, reassess some thoughts that you've had, you may not find the treatment, that's best for you know, what I mean, to be able to get into the fives or the sixes, like, that's a the community is huge. I mean, like, it really is. It's just nice to talk to someone. I've actually said that to Dexcom, and tandem and Medtronic that some of the best treatment isn't just like, a key change your basal rates can change your carb ratios, do this or do that. And sometimes it's just talking, I mean, just having an open a line of another diabetic or someone that knows enough about the disease to be able to respond in

Scott Benner 1:33:26
a way that can help you. Yeah, yeah, I was, I think you threw your hat into the ring. I think this is gonna do that for somebody else now. So I sure hope so. I think I really do.

Alex 1:33:36
I don't want to be defined as like a weed, smoking diabetic, but I do smoke weed, don't get me wrong. But I think that for anyone else, like it's not just weed, you could be a yoga, diabetic or whatever, like people are super into yoga right now. And it's like, that could be your thing. That could be what helps you through diabetes, or your Addison's or whatever disease you might have, or whatever, like it's, it's really, whatever works for you. You rock with it. You know what I mean? Like, and for me, I enjoy car washing, but I do the nine to five, you know, I mean, I'm, I do a lot of different things. But when I find like a new like, I love doing random stuff, like I just placed my mom's rubber boots seal on her washer, right? Totally, totally a challenge. But I wanted to challenge myself and it was like kind of a meditation because the whole time I was being challenged, but I had to finish it because I had to do laundry. Like that's, that's pretty serious. But going out of your realm trying something new maybe you want to skydive, you don't I mean, and you haven't really done it yet and you're inching around about it. To take the next step. Like if someone asks you to go jet skiing or something and you didn't think about doing that that day. Maybe that's what could be dirt like what what could be more fun or whatever you got going on.

Scott Benner 1:34:53
Fox I'll tell you what I have to go because I have real I have work to do. But I really love talking to you and I want to say this When I had you on it, when you reached out, we corresponded a little bit back and forth. My my hope was just, absolutely, it just came true. Because I think that people who are not involved in you know, the culture of weed and smoking pot are going to think one thing about you when they start listening. And I think that by the time they get to the end, they're going to realize, like you just said, you're not, you're not just a person who smokes pot, you're not a diabetic, like who smokes pot, you're really a fully realized person who has all kinds of things going on in their lives, is overcoming problems is growing and maturing, and you're a full person. And I really appreciate you taking the time to explain your life like this. So that people who have preconceived ideas, maybe won't have them anymore. This was really helpful in a lot of different ways. Thank

Alex 1:35:53
you very much. I appreciate that. And I appreciate the platform, be able to even do this. I was low key scared to like, come on here. I didn't know what it was gonna be like. But I definitely appreciate it. I would love to do it again, or continue this or if anyone wants to talk or whatever. I'm totally willing to talk about anything. What's your outcome couple. I'm like, ooh, donator. What is the donator is like my main Instagram that I use all the time. fo b, n o h, and then later na D er, majors like my nickname, people. My name is Alexander. But when I got my license when I was 16, the DMV switch the A and the en andere to Nadir was Alex Nadir, all my friends call me that. You can call me that too.

Scott Benner 1:36:37
Later. I appreciate it. If I ever decide to get high, I'm gonna find you.

Alex 1:36:41
Awesome. Sweet. Yeah, and I really enjoyed this. Thank you for having me on here. This was a super cool experience. I think you're really killing it. And I look forward to more of them really more of these after dark, some more of any of your pod.

Here, you have a really great voice

Scott Benner 1:36:54
for it. I have to say, Oh, thank you. Well, Here's what's coming up on afterdark. A sex from a male perspective. I've set up I've got a set up for sex from a female perspective. And I have a now clean addict who's going to talk about living with diabetes, while they were while they weren't clean, while they got clean. And how it almost impacted them to not be cleaning how their diabetes almost impacted them not to be cleaned again.

Alex 1:37:28
Oh, wow. Yeah, those are gonna be attention. Yeah.

Scott Benner 1:37:30
So they're gonna, they're, they're really great. I'm very happy for people who are willing to talk about this. This is stuff this is a real thing. You're not the one guy in the world who has diabetes and smokes. Right, right. There's I mean, it's a lot of them.

Alex 1:37:42
We do, like diabetics are still like real people, or I mean, like, we still do real stuff. And I think this, this kind of phase that you have going on with your podcast is going to be huge, like for that that. Like, they're not alone. Like you were just saying, like there's other people that do that, too. And they have questions. And this might be the platform to answer those questions. I mean, for anyone?

Scott Benner 1:38:01
Yeah, I think you just have to let people talk and tell their truth. And yeah, and let them be honest, so that other people can hear because a lot of people are going to hear their thoughts in yours. And it's going to make them feel better. So I could keep talking to you forever. So let's say goodbye. Thank you very much.

Alex 1:38:17
Thank you. Thank you as well.

Scott Benner 1:38:18
Yeah, take care. Have a great day later.

Alex 1:38:20
Good to see you later. Bye.

Scott Benner 1:38:24
Thank you, Nader for coming on the show and sharing all this. I just felt when I was done talking to Alex. I don't know, I felt I felt like my mind was open. I don't know if I'm getting high anytime soon. But I understood his life better. And I think that's amazing. In that vein, I think it's amazing that Dexcom on the pod and dancing for diabetes sponsor the Juicebox Podcast the way they do, I think I can announce that they will be back for 2020 as sponsors of the show. Thank you very much guys. But moreover, I appreciate that they've never once even hinted they'd like to control the content of the show Dexcom on the pod dancing for diabetes, they've never come to me and said, Please don't talk about this subject or you know, somebody says this, don't put it in. No one's ever said that. And that's just one of the reasons why I can put on great content like today with Alex and it's sponsored, keeps the podcast free to thanks so much to Alex for showing the human side of his life on the pod Dexcom and dancing for diabetes for their steadfast support of the Juicebox Podcast.

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