#922 Diabetes Myths: Poof It's Gone
A brand new series examining the myths surrounding diabetes.
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Scott Benner 00:00 Hello friends and welcome to episode 922 of the Juicebox Podcast Welcome back everybody, this is the fourth episode of the diabetes myth series. Today Jenny Smith and I are going to tackle the myth that your diabetes might just magically get better or disappear. While you're listening. Please remember that nothing you hear the Juicebox Podcast should be considered advice, medical or otherwise, always consult a physician before making any changes to your health care plan are becoming bold with insulin. Now if you want incredibly comfortable joggers, shirts, sheets, towels scrunchies go to cozy earth.com and use the offer code juicebox at checkout to save 35% If you'd like to save 10% On your first month of therapy@betterhelp.com Just use the link betterhelp.com forward slash juicebox and if you want to get a free year supply of vitamin D and five free travel packs with your first order of ag one from athletic greens, use my link athletic greens.com forward slash juicebox. If you're looking for great community around type one type two or any kind of diabetes, you're looking for the private Facebook group Juicebox Podcast type one diabetes on Facebook this episode of The Juicebox Podcast is sponsored by the Dexcom G seven and Dexcom G six continuous glucose monitoring systems. Both are astonishingly accurate and fantastic to use. My daughter is currently wearing the g7 but she wore the G six for years. With great success. You could to Dex comm.com forward slash juicebox. If you have diabetes, you're not going to do better than wearing a Dexcom CGM. There are links in the show notes of your podcast player links at juicebox podcast.com. Links everywhere to Dexcom on the pod all the sponsors, please click on my links. It really does help the show dexcom.com forward slash juice box. Hey, Jenny, welcome back. We are going to do another diabetes myth series. Today's topic is that your diabetes will just of course, disappear, stabilize or in fact, just get better.
Jennifer Smith, CDE 02:33 When that's what's happened,
Scott Benner 02:35 Oh, it's coming. Don't worry if I had $1 for every time someone has told me that my four year old daughter diagnosed the two will grow out of being diabetic. I would in fact be rich. That's got to be the juvenile diabetes holdover. Right.
Jennifer Smith, CDE 02:51 I would expect so because actually, my my mom was told the same thing. She and my dad, I heard them having a conversation. I don't know it must have been within the year after I was diagnosed I had that I heard them having a conversation that uh, my mom was a teacher. And one of the teachers in her school said in discussion, well, you know, at least she'll grow out of it. Yeah. And my mom was like, so upset and talk to my dad. She's like, people just don't get it. She was just, like, completely overwhelmed with the fact that people aren't that dumb. Right. And I at when I was diagnosed, it was definitely still called juvenile diabetes. Right. I mean, it was type one too, but I think that is a holdover. Absolutely.
Scott Benner 03:36 Yeah. I mean, and now look, your story is 35 years old. And this is from somebody whose kids had diabetes for two years. I think, to me, the the real kind of desire I have for the myth series, is for you to maybe people to realize that this has got a lot less to do with diabetes and just a lot more to do with, you know, misinformation and correct
Jennifer Smith, CDE 03:59 misinformation. That is, as you just said, it's ages old. Why is it with all the new information? All the new technology and everything we have? Why is it still so misunderstood? Why are we still looking at diabetes management like it was in the 1970s or the 1980s? Even Yeah,
Scott Benner 04:19 because it's very human to jump to conclusions. That's why I had a person ask when my son's type one was going to be over. Oh, no, like like the flu right?
Jennifer Smith, CDE 04:33 The Oh, right. Like I've got a cold now, waiting for it to be over.
Scott Benner 04:37 When's it gonna kick this? Have you tried matzah ball Sue? Can you imagine? Well, it same thing right? My Type One did not magically disappear when I grew up. This is an adult said oh, somebody told me it was going to and it didn't. That's the part I find. Concerning like you You had to hear your parents have a conversation, where your mom was like, there are people who think that Jennifer's diabetes is gonna go away. And you probably heard that as a little kid, you were like, god damn right. It's gonna go away. Like, yeah, like, Yeah, let's go. And then the conversation keeps going, and your mom's like, it's not going to. And now you're like, oh, like, picked up and dropped and picked up and dropped. That sucks. Yeah, I was told my diabetes would get better, our son would just grow out of it. The quote is, you'll soon get sick of doing this whole insulin thing. We watched it a few months. Oh, wow. Let me start at the beginning and read it straight through. This is a quote, you'll soon get sick of doing the whole insulin thing in a few months, and you won't even bother with it anymore. Where's that? So that, so let's dig into the psyche of the person that said that.
Jennifer Smith, CDE 05:56 So is this. This is as if I got it, the person was told this or this is as if
Scott Benner 06:03 they were told this by an acquaintance by adequate. Yeah, so I got this one, though. I got this one. You can eat in a way with type two diabetes, where your blood sugars will be higher, and it will hurt your long term health. But it's not going to hurt you today, but meaning you're not going to fall over and die. So sure you could diet and exercise but just don't, you'll get tired of doing that. And then your life will be what it'll be sort of that. That very accepting, oh, he's got the sugars feeling like there's nothing, it's just the way that it is the way it is. You can't do anything about it. So then that gets translated to a person with type one. And they think that the effort, meaning instead of diet and exercise, the effort is insulin, but if you don't, you don't need to put in that effort. I mean, what are you trying to live forever? I think that's what I'm hearing. That's what I think I hear that. That's the thing to say to somebody. Oh, absolutely.
Jennifer Smith, CDE 07:02 Yeah. Either that or the person was just like, you're just getting get fed up with taking insulin, just stop taking it in that, that it'll just be what it is. I mean, that can be taken a lot of different ways.
Scott Benner 07:17 Oh, yeah. If I wasn't trying to be charitable towards what I think they were thinking, then you could easily take that and probably would, in fact, if you were just blindsided by it, as you'll probably just give up and die. Or let them talking about their kid. Yeah. Right. Yeah, I don't know where you're gonna go with that.
Jennifer Smith, CDE 07:33 I mean, again, please think before you say something to somebody, I can't reiterate. I like I can't say that enough. Just please think
Scott Benner 07:44 what if getting it, I don't want to be. I don't want to be like, I
Jennifer Smith, CDE 07:49 wish people without diabetes, were listening to this, like, I wish we could just blast this out, like right in the middle of a city and be like, listen, here.
Unknown Speaker 08:00 If you don't know anything about diabetes, please just dip your lips.
Scott Benner 08:04 Oh, I think just think is, is that because what I was gonna say is I don't want to be critical. But what if this is them thinking? You know, it's different rabbit hole, I don't want to go down. But everybody you bump into is not, you know, Einstein's birthday. So maybe they just don't understand. Again, with the juvenile diabetes thing. It's a great time to talk about how a lovely thing that was done, I think in the 70s ended up having such an unintended impact on things, just by calling it the Juvenile diabetes Research Foundation. You let people who didn't understand believe that you turn 18. And this goes away and probably bolstered by people's understanding of like gestational diabetes to
Jennifer Smith, CDE 08:53 could be it could also be that up until a certain point, and I don't know how many years ago, I would say that it has possibly gotten better. But you know, in the 60s 70s, maybe even the 80s. It was looked at as juvenile because that was the the time period of life that you could get type one, right? And after you reached adulthood, you could no longer get type one, you may still have diabetes, as a person diagnosed as a child, and now you're an adult with juvenile diabetes because that's when it was diagnosed. But I think people were misdiagnosed even eons ago as an adult with type two and they really had type one diabetes. And so at some point, you know, the JDRF I mean, it's still called the juveniles diabetes, right? But it is type one diabetes. There isn't a foundation like Got that I know is called type two.
Scott Benner 10:02 Yeah. Also, they try pretty hard not to use the word juvenile anymore to you really just the JDRF. It's yeah, for I think it's there for historical purposes. But, you know, it's funny, like, these next couple, you'll grow out of it, it'll end and then this word starts popping up. Don't worry, it just hasn't stabilized yet. That's another one. Like, like this person said, My I was in the hospital was told that when I got out of the hospital, they were in the hospital with DKA with a lot of diagnosis. And they were like, flat out told when it gets leveled out. It's fine. Don't worry, it just has to stabilize, even I don't even know like, and that's, it's a static void.
Jennifer Smith, CDE 10:44 It is because that's a that's a statement as if there is nothing the person has to do themselves in order for that stabilization to happen, right? You're just diagnosed this person sounds like was with Lada, right. And then they go home thinking, Well, I just have to wait for this magical like hour. Yeah, right. It's magical hour, when the insulin that they told me to take, it's just gonna start working the right way. It's almost like the magic wand idea, right? Like, at some point, this is just gonna work all the way that it's supposed to work, I'm gonna count my carbs, I'm gonna take my insulin the way they told me to take it, I'm gonna check my blood sugar. And it's just gonna even out and those of us with diabetes know that that's not me, there's a lot of work that we have to do to get to that stabilization point. And even once you get there, at some point, you're going to have to rethink to get to another stable point,
Scott Benner 11:48 well consider this. We're mostly talking about this from the perspective of somebody who has type one and is, you know, impacted by these statements. But but there are people who believe that who end up getting type one. And that's a completely different problem. And I have spoken to those people throughout my time, where they're just like, oh, you know, it's okay. It's not that bad. I don't have to, you know, I tested a couple times today, they, but they, you can hear them. They're not apathetic, they really don't understand. Right? Yeah. And they have it, where their, their kid has it, I there's a person the other day that came into the Facebook group, whose kid, the kids, like, they had a kid with type one. And the graph was just all over the place. But what struck me was the person said, I'm an adult who has type one diabetes. And I don't know what's happening. I thought, I don't understand, like, how do you not, I don't understand, like, like you. But there, it was, like, it just gets you to the idea that even the success they're having, they don't even know why they're having it. Like they couldn't make like simple meaning
Jennifer Smith, CDE 12:59 it's not translatable into helping the child because they don't know how the success they're having is actually being achieved. They
Scott Benner 13:06 really don't understand it yet. It's just weights working for them. So they don't think about it, then somebody else comes along, who obviously has different impacts and different variables affecting them. Smaller body size, and is a different state of life. Yeah, right. Well, that's, that's this here, you know, this person that says, multiple occasions, I've been told that my daughter will outgrow the condition a family friend, and an educator tried to explain to me that as she gets older, her body will just start to level out, and it won't be so crazy. So, you know,
Jennifer Smith, CDE 13:39 I Yeah. And to some degree, I think that the childhood years and the teen years and even college years, probably where there's still a lot of change, and growing and development and whatnot. I think that they are they're the least stable potential times for most people, because they're the growing years. That's the case. But as you grow into being an adult, there are I think, many more variables. And that could lead to a loss of stability to
Scott Benner 14:13 Yeah, no, I mean this, but you take it from the mother's perspective. She's sitting there thinking, I'm waiting for puberty, because I think this is going to mess everything up. And you're telling me don't worry if they get it. Now listen, I would tell you, if you asked me about a very little kid, I would say Well listen, as their body gets bigger. It gets a little easier to measure insulin. Yeah, that's got nothing to do with their, their age or things like magically like, I don't do people not understand science at all. Like Like, like the it'll stabilize, it's gonna balance like, what does that mean? It's gonna balance.
Jennifer Smith, CDE 14:50 We're, I think we're thinking about it too, from a perspective of long term understanding. Right? We We just know enough to be able to say that statement is Just so incorrect, like, balance really? Like?
Scott Benner 15:07 I've had several friends asked me if it will settle down. Don't worry, it should clear up after puberty somebody else was told houses diabetes, have the numbers leveled out yet? Oh, is her diabetes under control it just like these these go on and on and on? Oh, you should by the way, then the judgment comes you should have had this under control by now.
Jennifer Smith, CDE 15:26 Or what also comes in with this is people have heard or seen technology. Right? Don't you have this under control? Now? You got those fancy devices? Yeah. You put? Sure do.
Scott Benner 15:41 Yeah, I put the machine on and it all got fixed straight up, don't you worry. Push the button. And that was it. I saw. It's all better woman today is like, in the group. She's like, I don't understand. I'm on my fifth on the pod five, look how bad my blood sugars are. But not doing any of the things that you need to do. She just thought the magic machine was going to take care of what was
Jennifer Smith, CDE 16:02 going to take. And that's unfortunately, I think what a lot of people with or without diabetes who haven't had enough, enough information given to them about what the product that they're getting, will and will not do. And the fact that there is still interaction, you still have to know what you're telling it. Because this device is not a learning device. None of them are.
Scott Benner 16:29 Well, that's just Well, yeah, I don't know, there's a lot of misconceptions on both sides. This one here, I just this lovely this person says. I've just learned I just learned she said to say when somebody says how she doing has as she gotten her diabetes under control yet. She says I respond. Yep. Thank you so much for asking. Yeah, that's it, just like I don't like. What does it matter is I think that it's still like infuriating. And I mean, some of the terminology again, like settled down, you imagine,
Jennifer Smith, CDE 17:02 right, right. And I think to some degree, too, you have to look at the person who's asking. They wouldn't be asking if there wasn't some sense of care, no coming from their side, right? They really do want to know, they're just asking it in an absurd way. They're just like, not understanding.
Scott Benner 17:23 Yeah. And this person's response here gives you a lot of context for being on the other side of it. Like, she's like, I am making mental calculations forever. Like, sure. I've got my kids a one seat, like, amazing. Like, this lady really does this. She's saying the kids a one sees 4.9 She's got less than 2% lows. But that's a person who's putting a massive amount of effort into it. Right? And, and then just to have someone come along and say like, has it stabilized? You'd be like, oh, yeah, sure. It's stabilized. I sleep four hours a night. Thanks for asking. Oh, my gosh. Let's see. Not how it works, but blah. I hate this question. Does she have her diabetes under control? Yeah, it's just it's because you know what, it's funny. Jenny asked me if my daughter's diabetes is under control. You can make better decisions in the moment with the most accurate CGM on the market the Dexcom G seven dexcom.com. Forward slash juicebox. My daughter just moved to the g7 from the G six and she already loves the new smaller size and ease of use. You can learn more and get started today@dexcom.com forward slash juice box. Due to recent Medicare changes. Millions more people are now covered for the Dexcom CGM. The g7 is the smallest most accurate CGM system covered by Medicare. And it is easy to use and to get started with no other CGM system is more affordable than the Dexcom g7. For Medicare patients. The g7 is a simple to use system that delivers real time glucose numbers to your smartphone or your smartwatch. With no finger sticks required. Effortlessly see your glucose levels and where they're headed. So you can make smarter decisions about food and activity in the moment. This amazing tool is going to help you to take better control of your diabetes dexcom.com forward slash juice box whether you're looking for a brand new system, changing from another company, or looking to upgrade that G six dexcom.com forward slash juice box. The new G seven comes with a refreshed app that is just a delight to use. My daughter is 19 years old. She's been using index comm for well over a decade. It is at the core of how we make decisions about in Ceylan food activity. All of the variables that impact diabetes, check it out@dexcom.com forward slash juice box. There are links in the show notes of your podcast player and links at juicebox podcast.com to Dexcom. At all the sponsors when you click the links, you're supporting the podcast
Jennifer Smith, CDE 20:30 Yeah, what is your daughter's diabetes under control?
Scott Benner 20:34 Yeah, it is. Yeah. How about yours? Yes, yeah. So it also matters where you are. It isn't to say that Arden doesn't have a high blood sugar sometimes or a low blood sugar. Sometimes there have days where she's like, my periods coming and I can't, I can't see. Blah, blah, blah, and all that other stuff. But overall Arden's Okay, she is stable. And yeah, under control, like, but then you, you know, people I know, you know, people who the words under control or management, those words piss them off to no end. You know, yeah, it's because of the other things that these people are sharing that it's hard, and you're not seeing all the work that goes into making it under control, you know, quote, unquote, right? Yeah. I mean, if you really asked me to be specific with words, I would not use the words Ardens diabetes is under control. I would
Jennifer Smith, CDE 21:32 control control means you have the ultimate manage, you have the ultimate reins, right. It is entirely absolutely contained. There is no further issue. I also don't love the word control at all in terms of diabetes discussion. It's, it's a management strategy. Yeah.
Scott Benner 21:53 Yeah, but the real control the real answer to is Arden's blood sugar under control, the real answer is 15 minutes long. Get it? I mean, it's a it's a very complex answer that ends with so most of the time, things are very manageable. Manageable. Yes. And, and manageable is not a word. If I said to you, Jenny, how's your life going? And you said, it's manageable? That's not an exciting statement. That's not I was at the What's that a ball in where they all dress up? The Met Gala, you know? Oh, it's not it's not I was just at the Met Gala. It's, it's manageable is not is not an exciting way to describe your life. You know what I mean? And no, I
Jennifer Smith, CDE 22:41 it almost has a hint of it could be a lot better. Just making it. I'm just getting through. It's manageable.
Scott Benner 22:52 We haven't closed the garage door and listen to music yet. Yeah, we're trying. Oh, God, hey, when your kids teacher tells you don't worry, they're gonna grow out of it. That's fun. My 19 month old went into DKA. After dental surgery. The Secretary, the secretary called us while he was in the PICU, to see how he was doing and said, Don't worry, at least they'll grow out of it. Oh, yeah. 19 month old kid in the PICU. You're probably thinking, Oh, my baby's gonna die. And you got to hear from from the from. I got from the receptionist at the dental office who was probably told, please call all those people check on and make sure they know we care. You know what I mean? Yeah. And though, I wonder if you go back there for your dental work after that. chatty, do you know, Jenny says no shake. Oh, this is interesting. There. And we talked about this in the previous episode, this person was told, Well, if you have a normal a one, see you're cured.
Jennifer Smith, CDE 24:01 Oh, my goodness, I'll cure Oh, silver. Wow. Then I would I would expect that a fair number of your listeners are completely cured. I'm completely here. The people are all cured. It's all good. I mean, I can stop paying for products I can talk to the pharmacy. Yay.
Scott Benner 24:26 The next statement is from a person who was told well, if you're a one C is under control, that means you're in remission.
Jennifer Smith, CDE 24:33 Oh, where are these here? I don't understand. Hopefully, these are not medical practitioners telling these things.
Scott Benner 24:40 Keep in mind that these responses just came from me making a Facebook post that said, can you tell me some of the myths? misnomers have chairs that you've heard about diabetes and on? I didn't break it down by topics. No, I didn't say tell me this topic and this topic and this topic, the topics that we'll talk about Add an indication of what people mostly here posted. Yeah. And in. Also this post wasn't up for a month and a half. Like I had somebody mine these answers after about 18 hours late, like I was like, that's enough grab them, we can definitely use those in the episode. Yeah, yeah. It didn't end there
Jennifer Smith, CDE 25:17 were what was it? 52 pages of evidence, right.
Scott Benner 25:22 Yeah. And this is Isabel paring it down or ripping out like, like, she told me like, I took out all the duplicate answers, because that's the other thing is that she's like, you can start reading one person's answer and another person's answer. And she's like, they're just exactly the same. You know, these people have had the exact same experience with, in most cases, a loved one or a close personal friend or something like that.
Jennifer Smith, CDE 25:47 Yeah, I'd be curious. And I know that it wasn't, you can't filter it that way. But I would be really curious. How many people in the past? Let's call it two years, versus how many people who have had diabetes for a lengthy period of time? 10 plus years, right? What's the difference in the myths that people have heard more recently, versus those that they're pulling from memory? Like my memory of my parents talking about that is eons ago, right? versus how many people these are, these are still circulating types of,
Scott Benner 26:26 well, the cabinet, the pump ones got to be more like, hey, you've got the machine, right like that. That has to be to be more recent. Yeah, yeah. I wish that. Like, I don't have diabetes. But telling me hey, you have a CGM. So it must be so much easier. You have a pump, so it must be so much easier, is like saying, I don't know. Like, I'm, I don't know, like I'm being beaten by a gang in the street. But they played music in the background while it was happening. You like so wasn't it better that they were playing Marvin Gaye while they were kicking your ass? Like, I mean, I guess so. Like, but
Jennifer Smith, CDE 27:03 not yes, my ears were pleased. But
Scott Benner 27:05 I take your point, it was better than them not playing Marvin Gaye and kicking my ass little history. But I don't know why that is the thing you would say to somebody that that part is still like, I don't think I'm gonna get through this series and understand that part. And I tried. I talked to I talked to Erica, she talked to me like a really mentally stable, healthy person. And I was still like, I don't know those people. So I'm starting to think this is the last one, Jenny. Okay. She's not surprised, she says, but she thinks it's silly and frustrating to have to correct after being diagnosed as an adult. I was explaining to an old school friend, and she could not for the life of her understand that taking insulin wouldn't just cure me. She kept asking when I'd be able to stop, and when the insulin would make me better. And it took me ages to get her to understand. So that's that one, I think is simple, though. Like I think most people who haven't had a real, like a serious illness, right? Or something that's habitual in their life. Everything else that they get? You take the medicine and the medicine and
Jennifer Smith, CDE 28:20 it's all better. You feel great. Yeah.
Scott Benner 28:23 That one I almost just understand. Like, yeah,
Jennifer Smith, CDE 28:28 yeah. Although I think is simple. What I think is simple explanation should have been Is that Well, imagine if I took your pancreas out of your body or your I shouldn't say pancreas, I should say beta cells, right? What if I took your beta cells out of your body? Now your body no longer has the cells to make the insulin? Right? So what are you going to do about it? Well, I don't know. Right? You're gonna take insulin, which means that my body which now has destroyed beta cells, I have to keep taking insulin, because I keep eating. Right? I mean, doesn't that just make sense? To me, I
Scott Benner 29:10 add a more shocking example. Like if I said, If I said you, your lungs just stopped working. But we put a tube down your throat, and you were breathing again. You're not fixed. We've patched we've patched patch the issue? Exactly. We've given you enough of a crutch that you can go on. But let's not ignore the fact that there's a tube down your throat breathing for you, etc. Like, like, crack. Yeah, that's the I guess that is the harshness of it. I mean, for you, as someone with type one, like we've done three of these episodes now. Like what's the overall feeling you get when you hear this stuff? Is it sadness? Anger, like where does it strike you?
Jennifer Smith, CDE 30:00 I think that I am most, most sad, I guess, because there is such a lack of understanding. And that because diabetes, whether it's type one or type two, it's very invisible, right? It's invisible outside of the products and the technology and everything else that we wear on our bodies. So it could look to the outsider who has no understanding of life with diabetes, it could look to them as if we just have to do XY and Z. Or you just have to take this technology and put it on and use it. And then it's gonna be all all better for you. Right? Like there's a magic band aid for it. So it's sad to me that in this day and age, with the amount of information that circulates on the internet, that people still have these thoughts that are so old. And so lacking understanding,
Scott Benner 31:06 is that upsetting because you have to deal with it, or because you realize it's never going to end. Because it's not gonna end?
Jennifer Smith, CDE 31:14 I don't think so either. Yeah, at all. I mean, you can have you can have famous people on the Superbowl wearing their CGM. Right. And either people weren't watching, or they just think, Oh, great. That's new technology. And again, oh, the technology is doing it. Yeah. Fabulous. Right.
Scott Benner 31:32 Well, yeah, yeah. If we, and in fairness, media, social media in general, seeing someone in their best moment in five years, it's not a good way to judge them whether they have diabetes or not. But yeah, I mean, you see Nick Jonas, and he's handsome. And he's standing there gone. I have type one and your life on he's looking at him. I wish I was Nick Jonas. Must be okay. Must be fine. Yeah. Must be fine. I think the only
Jennifer Smith, CDE 32:00 mass and or it must take nothing to be an itch, baby. I mean, what I get from that? Watch the Super Bowl door. Did I ever? I don't even think Eagles
Scott Benner 32:09 won the Super Bowl last year, and you should have been watching. But go ahead. Yeah.
Jennifer Smith, CDE 32:13 Sorry about that. But I look at it, you know, there's this very famous person. And there are many famous people who have diabetes. But there's this famous person in Gosh, he's living a good life. He's just got this fancy technology. And he puts it out and look at he's still enjoying, he's doing his thing. He's living life. But they don't also see, they don't see the Nick Jonas at two o'clock in the morning, who's got a low blood sugar, right? Yeah, they don't see it, because the commercial highlights only the beautiful piece of his life. And it's funny
Scott Benner 32:49 too, because I see both sides of that, like, it can make people who don't understand diabetes, think exactly what you just said. But it could also take a bunch of people who have diabetes, get them to try that product. And what they would learn in my opinion is, wow, this is a lot better. Like, correct, yeah. And so you're marketing to them trying to get Listen, I am a person who might my life is very odd, like, I make this podcast to try to inform and help people, right. But I can't make it unless it pays my bills. And so like I have to a business thing on the other side of it. It is hard to get people to do things, even things that are really good for them. And I mean, the truth is, if you asked me if if I could get I don't know a 32nd commercial, Nick Jonas telling you to listen to the Juicebox Podcast, if I would take it, I absolutely would. I'd be like, Yeah, you got people over here so they can learn how to Pre-Bolus and etc, and so on. And so it's a weird, it's a weird split. Because I take both sides of that point, like very well, like it does leave people who don't understand what the feeling like, Oh, it must not be that bad. And then it leads to people saying things like, we've been going over? Well, they
Jennifer Smith, CDE 34:05 think there is, you know, many of them. There's so many of them now on television. I mean, we don't really even watch television, but when I do catch it, there's so much pharmacy based commercial. Yeah, on television these days that I can definitely say, from seeing other medications advertised. I don't. Because it's not affecting me and my life. I don't even pay attention to what they're talking about, right? I do a channel serve, or I go up, get up and go to the bathroom or something. I don't pay attention. So I see what you're saying in terms of marketing. When something like the commercial for Dexcom comes out. They are marketing to a hopeful group of people that will have will think that they need the product. Yeah, this isn't meant for the general public to see and be like, Well, gosh, I should probably Dexcom things right? They probably walked away and went and got more chips and salsa. I will
Scott Benner 35:09 make your point for you. I'm using weego V for weight loss right now we go via is just those Empik. Okay, yes rebranded for weight loss. I could sing the ozempic song for two years. And I didn't really know what it was, or care, but I was like, Oh, it was and I know this one. Like, you know.
Jennifer Smith, CDE 35:33 I don't even know that.
Scott Benner 35:35 I never I never looked up and thought, I wonder what ozempic is. And then people listening might be like, that's crazy. Scott, you have a diabetes podcast. But until I started seeing people talk about it in the space, I was like, oh, that's for diabetes. I didn't know Yes. And that's just true. Like, that's 100% True. I did not know what that was. And I could sing the song about it. So, you know, when a famous person stands up and goes, diabetes is hard, but and then the rest of it is a sales pitch. You forget the diabetes is hard part. So you're an outsider, you're not going to leave that going diabetes as hard. You're going to leave that going. Apparently, diabetes, isn't that bad? Because that kid's handsome.
Jennifer Smith, CDE 36:15 He's got right.
Scott Benner 36:17 Have you seen his ads? diabetes, Basal for you?
Unknown Speaker 36:20 Everybody knows him. So gosh, we're
Scott Benner 36:23 gonna remake this myths thing in five years. Somebody's gonna be like, I think diabetes gives you abs.
Jennifer Smith, CDE 36:30 That's all they're gonna take out.
Scott Benner 36:32 B, they're taken away from seeing Nick Jonas on TV. They'll be like, I think diabetes gives you abs. And then one day somebody will say it anyway. All right, Jenny, I appreciate you fighting through not feeling well. And doing this.
Jennifer Smith, CDE 36:44 Can I also say something? You have time for two seconds?
Scott Benner 36:48 Are we recording it? Yes. Okay, then. Yeah, come on. Like not for not recorded?
Jennifer Smith, CDE 36:55 Oh, no, no, no, we're recording this. It's just a simple thank you, honestly, to all of your listeners. Because of the really just wonderful, wonderful number of comments that I got for my diabetes anniversary. I'm just really, it was really kind of you to post something. And it was just, it was nice to hear all of the comments and, and everything. It just it kind of made my day. So I just wanted to thank everybody.
Scott Benner 37:21 That's wonderful. I'm sure they, they, they're all excited to hear that because they do love you. And I mean, it's Jenny's 35th anniversary today, you know, wish her well, if you want. It didn't stop for like two days. Did you go back to it? It kept going on?
Jennifer Smith, CDE 37:37 I did I went I mean, it was just all of the comments. So many different I mean, different comments to about things. And so yeah, it made me it just makes me smile. Thank you for your
Scott Benner 37:48 welcome. But you know why? Right? You understand or no?
Jennifer Smith, CDE 37:53 I, I guess I do understand. I mean, it makes me appreciate also, and I've told you this before, it just makes me appreciate the ability to connect with a community that I didn't have when I was growing up. Yeah, at all. I mean, I don't post or anything. I'm kind of a lurker. But it's it's a good connection. Even with the career that I have that's specific to diabetes. It's a really good personal connection to a community. That means a lot to me. So
Scott Benner 38:25 Well, I think that I think that one of the things that probably overwhelms people, I mean, you were celebrating your 35th year having diabetes. And you and I are sitting on a Friday afternoon doing this and you're sick, and I don't pay you for this. And you really do want to help people. And I do listen, I don't keep there's not much on my desk, but I want you to watch me, I'm just going to reach forward. All right. This is a thank you note you wrote me years ago, about the about the podcast, it's a Christmas note and just the you telling me what, what you were, what you thought of what I was doing and how it was helping people. And I just, I just keep it it's in front of me when I make the podcast like I see I see it all the time. Because yeah, no, because it would be easy to leave the space. Like you don't, you don't need this, like like, I mean, professionally, take that out for a second, you know how to take care of yourself. And yeah, and you and I know that the support is a big deal in the community is a big deal. But there's a lot of work and effort that goes into helping people. And, you know, I mean, we talked about a little earlier in this episode, right? Like it's not that easy to help people. Like you can have all the great information you want the barriers to it, getting to them to them finding you to use saying it in a way that they understand that they can actually put in a process and it's not easy. It's really difficult. And so When you get a note from someone on your birthday, or your diversionary or something like that, where they're telling you, you saved my kid's life, like, that's no small thing, like, oh, yeah, just to get to them, and then for them to actually take all this and put it into practice. And then it's huge. It's just, it's just, it's almost unlikely, you know, and that's why it's such a big deal. I had a converse, I have a lot of conversations about this podcast privately where I'm just trying to keep it going in the right direction and doing the right thing. And so I asked, I asked trusted people last night about just you and I, and like, how we get along together. And even that's completely just, it's random, Jenny, get any more like, it's completely random. Like, you know, I think that you and I equally bring something to these conversations that the other doesn't have. Yes, you know what I mean, and, and not just that, but like the simple things like we can, we can have a conversation and not talk over each other. True, there are people I talked to, I can't find, I can't find a rhythm with them. Like I try and I try and I'm like, I just can't find it. Like they can't find me. I can't find them. It just never works. It's always frustrating. And, and I mean, just think like, what did we say in that post about your diversity? The first time you were on the podcast was in 2015 15? I
Jennifer Smith, CDE 41:28 think Yeah. Yeah. That's a that's a, it was a I know, it was a long time ago. I feel like really, I looked at the date. And I was like, really? 2015 2023? Yes, I know. It was a long time ago.
Scott Benner 41:43 So it's well deserved for you, obviously. And I was happy to wish it to you in public and a place where I can tell you, you listen to everyone who has diabetes deserves to be celebrated like that. I mean, seriously, I really do agree. Yeah. But I mean, it just, it just makes a lot of sense to shout you out. That's for sure. I'm 35 years, Jennifer. That's pretty awesome. Don't you think?
Jennifer Smith, CDE 42:07 It is pretty awesome. I know. I still have I think he had my 25 I did the Joslin where they said do you like the metal, you know, and I still have it and the little letter that they send and everything. But I looked at it the other day, and I was like, I like 10 years behind. I didn't really feel kind of old. I was like, oh my god, like 10 years ago already? Yeah,
Scott Benner 42:29 it's not easy. It's not it is not easy at all. I just, I got on the scale this morning. To see how much weight I've lost. I am now down. Do you want to guess?
Jennifer Smith, CDE 42:40 Um, I have to remember the last time you told me I'm 15.
Scott Benner 42:45 I'm up to 18 pounds now. Wow. And I could not find any record of me being this low as like in the last five or so years? Because I would like Like you've heard me talk before. Like I did a baked potato diet one time. Does anybody know I did a big potato fast. One time it really worked. The tall magician. whichever one it is Penner Taylor is the tall one pen.
Jennifer Smith, CDE 43:11 It is I don't even know. I know the names, but I couldn't tell them apart.
Scott Benner 43:14 I one day was listening to him on a podcast. He's like I lost 100 pounds eating baked potatoes. I was like, Get out of here. I'll try that. And so I did it for as long as I could like muster. And I did lose weight. Like it was
Jennifer Smith, CDE 43:27 like it was just I'm curious about this. No, just potato. You couldn't put anything on it. It was just baked potato. And that's it. Yeah.
Scott Benner 43:34 Baked potato. And then I think you called it and then you rewarm and like, if you were to put salt and pepper on it, you were like cheating, if I remember. So, and I'll tell you what it works. It fills you up. You can't eat anymore, because it's the big potato. And it's particularly tasty. So it's not like you're like, oh, you know what I want more big.
Unknown Speaker 43:57 You are big.
Scott Benner 43:59 But that made me realize that, like, how many how many years have gone by even since I've done that? Right? It's really
Jennifer Smith, CDE 44:07 I remember the cabbage soup diet. My mom did the cabbage soup diet like eons ago. And I mean, there are lovely things in the cabbage soup recipe. But that's that's like all you ate was the cabbage soup.
Scott Benner 44:21 Didn't work. Do you remember it working?
Jennifer Smith, CDE 44:23 I do remember my mom. I do remember and she stuck with it for a fair amount of time but she clearly didn't. Long term. I mean, that's one of those things that when you find something that works great, but can you really can you really do this for the next 60 years? Yeah,
Scott Benner 44:40 handful of grass water and a little salt. No, thank you. That's not gonna that's not gonna anyway. Screw all that. That's awesome. Yeah. GLP is works but my point was the time has gone by like so quickly and without you noticing and I have to be honest, like when I saw that one because I had to go do it. I'm like, Oh, let me go. Find out the first time Jenny was on the podcast because I want to say like when when we first met, I was like, wow, that's insane. You know, so but yeah, it was
Jennifer Smith, CDE 45:08 a long time ago, well, and I look at all the episodes, the things that we've done, but the wealth of what you've provided for the community is, is not necessarily the education episodes. It's, I think, bringing a community of people together to, let's say, they they find the episode by doing a search for mental health. And your episode comes up because it includes some of the ones with Erica, right. And that, that's an in for somebody, they listen, and it makes sense. And there's a hint of diabetes in it. But the other piece is that it helps them on an on another level. Because we don't just live with diabetes, we live with all these other things in our life, right? And so then they look for more. And they say, Well, gosh, there's also these education pieces. And maybe I could listen to these I like this guy, like, oh, talks, like maybe I maybe I can get around doing something extra for myself and my diabetes. So I think it's, it's a welcoming place. And it's a place where you can say, I'm gonna pick and choose. And yeah, that was interesting. I'm going to learn more, I'm going to go to this episode, because it's got a touch of this as well. And I think that that's why it makes sense to so many people.
Scott Benner 46:23 I agree. I agree that especially that's very nice to have you, thank you. But I agree very much that you can't just say to somebody, listen to these 10. And it'll be okay. Like, people's minds just don't work that way. So you have to build this world that they come into, and then get lost in and then learn things mostly by mistake. You know, I said to somebody the other day, and I don't mind repeating it over and over again, part of me thinks my job is to almost trick you into taking care of yourself. You know what I mean? Like, it's a good way to bring you in, and like, here's some crazy conversation, and you leave it with a little more knowledge about yourself than you had. And yeah, it just really works. Like there's, there are episodes of this podcast, you can listen to an episode of this podcast where a young girl was diagnosed with type one diabetes on a heroin Bender, and you will learn something about your diabetes. That episode, she jumped out of her grandfather's window to score and while she was out passed out from decay, and it's Wow, one of the it's one of my most favorite conversations I've ever had. I mean that listen to that. Yeah. Oh, it's amazing. I just, I just did a search Jenny, your name, the word Jenny appears in 30 episode titles. And that is not all the episodes you're in. So you've just done quite a quite a lovely thing for all these people. So thank you for and for me, by the way, I should say that my understanding of diabetes is deeper and richer, because of you and my understanding of how to talk to people about it. Is just, I mean, you brought a lot to my life. So thank you very much. Thank you.
Jennifer Smith, CDE 48:01 Yeah, so that was very nice. Thank you.
Scott Benner 48:03 Try to try to do it for 35 more years. I got bills to pay. Okay. I mean, we, I mean, we want to help people. We want to help people. Yes, I'm just teasing. Hopefully people can hear the sarcasm. Happy 35th anniversary Jenny Jenny works at integrated diabetes.com You can hire her there. And thank you so much to Dexcom makers, the Dexcom G six and Dexcom G seven continuous glucose monitoring systems. dexcom.com forward slash juicebox. Looking for diabetes community Juicebox Podcast type one diabetes on Facebook is a great place to find it. And if you're enjoying the podcast, please share it with someone else who you think might also enjoy it. And leave a beautiful rating and review somewhere. Or I don't know just like yell out the window. I love the Juicebox Podcast but at the very least subscribe or follow in your podcast or audio app. Thank you so much for listening. I'll be back very soon with another episode of The Juicebox Podcast.
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