Walking for Hope

This sunday is the Diabetes Hope Foundation's 2nd annual Walk for Hope.
Over 500 people are expected to come out to raise money for the foundation's incredible programs.
The money raised will go towards providing scholarships for young adults with Type 1 heading away to post-secondary education as well as to their medical assistance program which helps families struggling under the financial burden of having a child with Type 1.
you can read more about this awesome organization at www.diabeteshopefoundation.com

I am excited to be a part of the event and for the opportunity to hopefully Connect in Motion with some incredible people.

I'll have the Pump on whole wheat...insulin on the side

I learned something the other night, completely by accident.
It all started after I ate this homemade veggie burger topped with homemade salsa, yogurt and sprouts on a whole wheat bun with wild rice salad on the side.
It all started when I flat lined.

Generally speaking in the medical world, 'flat lining' is never a good thing.

But when it comes to diabetes and charting blood sugars, a 'flat line' is the ultimate success.

Now I don't mean to brag, but check this out...

Okay, I did mean to brag. This is my REAL-Time (contant glucose monitor) graph from the 3-hour span over dinner time the other night. Not bad, eh?

Basically what this means is that a gazillion factors came together at just the right moment- prior blood sugar value, my day's activities, stress and hormones levels, timing and dosage of insulin delivery, type of food consumed, etc. A gosh-darn miracle right there in my dining room.

Most of the time, when you eat, there is a rise in blood sugar level. This is normal, predictable and often followed by a downturn, as insulin works to return blood glucose to it's original value in approximately 4 hours...in a perfect world that is. Here is my graph from the past 24-hours - see the spikes?

So the flat line was truely remarkable...which got me to thinking...
What the heck did I do?
I attribute a sizable part of the phenomenon to the meal that I ate. In retrospect, that meal was almost solely composed of medium to low GI foods. GI stands for Glycemic Index. Some smart people have rated foods by the way they impact blood sugar levels. High GI meaning they cause spikes in blood sugar, low GI meaning they produce a more controlled and slower rise and fall. The veggie burger made from quinoa and mushrooms, on the whole wheat bun, with wild rice, black bean and corn salad was a killer low GI combo - helping to keep my blood glucose stable over the three hour period during and after the meal.

With the sensor technology, I can watch my blood glucose change - as it happens. The data that I collect provides me with an opportunity to think critically about things that I do, the decisions that I make and the foods that I eat in terms of their impact on my blood sugar and ultimately my control of my diabetes.

Isn't diabetes education delicious?

Queen's Camp School

For one week of every year, Rob and I go back to Queen's- back into the PEC, the JDUC, the Ghetto- back to our old program and back to being "Physeddies". Since graduating, we have been leading annual 'Camp School' trips for the Phys Ed program. Camp school, or PHED 338 as it is officially known, is arguably the best course at Queen's.

One week of canoe tripping and outdoor experiential learning yeilds a half-credit and some of the most memorable events of most 'physeddies' university experience. Not to mention the aquisition of numerous life skills, promotion of physical activity, development of environmental awareness, introduction of new career paths and opportunity to push physical and emotional barriers. Throughout the course students are encouraged to step outside of their comfort zones, communicate, cooperate and coordinate with new people, work as a team, accomplish tasks necessary to provide food and shelter for the group and in doing so, really, truly learn something about themselves. They develop skills that can be immediately applied to their lives, which is more than can be said for many university courses.
This may sound slightly biased coming from someone who went through the program, took the course and now helps to teach the program...but really, it's true!
Seeing the impact that a week like that has on students just verifies the importance of outdoor education and experiential learning for me.

Northern Summer

Another lengthy blogging hiatus!
Summer is drawing to a close and with it, a string of guiding and paddling adventures.
This August found me paddling the Wind River in the northern Yukon. The beauty of the Peel River watershed was beyond my expectations.

While in Whitehorse prior to the trip, I was looking at a painting done by a local artist of the Ogilvie Mountains. The colours were vivid, too bright to be realistic and I thought it was a bit too surreal. The next day, as we began our drive up to Mayo (where we would fly into the river), I was caught offguard- the colours in the landscape really were there. It was as if the landscape had been painted by a giant watercolour brush - large swaths of yellows, oranges, purples, greens, browns and reds topped with stark grey mountains.
We hadn't even made it to the river...

The Wind River is a crystal clear vein of impossible turquoise blue water that flows through an expansive valley which is home to incredible wildlife and great hiking opportunities.

I suppose I was giving off such a vibe of love and respect for the river that I was given a few extra days to appreciate it's beauty. The float plane that was set to pick us up at the end of our trip couldn't make it in for two and a half days due to snow storms and blizzards in the mountains so we hunkered down on a gravel bar, started inventing new meals from foods in the bottom of the barrels, sat around the fire, ate lots of GORP and waited. Despite the beatuy of the scenery, the sounds of the planes engine was sweet music to our ears and people were happy to be 'rescued'. Luckily, I had heaps of extra insulin, pump supplies and Fruit Source bars to get me through!