Breaking the Cycle
of Diabetes
Lisa Hollis
My name is Lisa Hollis, I am 46 years old. I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes in 1996. Diabetes runs in my family. My mother had Type 2 Diabetes and my niece was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes when she was 6 years old. When I was diagnosed my mother had just passed away the same year from a heart attack due to complications from Diabetes. Heart problems and high cholesterol also run in my family. I thought, “wow, I am just like my mom I only have 15 -20 more years to live and I will die at a young age just like she did”. I have just been going through life taking about 10-15 different prescriptions per day along with testing my blood 4 or 5 times daily. Eating whatever I wanted to and taking higher dose of insulin to compensate my high blood sugars just like my mom did.
Then in January of 2010 my husband, at the end of his rope enrolled me in Healthy Edge. I had my doubts. I thought how is this program going to work with no other program I have tried has worked in the past. Well, now I am a believer. I am eating better and healthier than I have ever eaten in my whole life. Thanks to Healthy Edge, I have been able to succeed at this program.
Before Healthy Edge I was drinking a case of Pepsi a week. I thought there is no way I can give this up. I haven’t had a Pepsi since January 28, 2010 when I was enrolled in this program. I was eating 2 to 3 bags of chips per week the same goes for them and any other junk food that I was putting into my body. Is it hard to do? It isn’t easy but with Healthy Edge it is a lot easier. They teach you the right foods to eat to stay healthy and they even teach you how to read food labels. I had no idea the damage the junk we put into our bodies causes. I knew it wasn’t good for me what I didn’t know is some of the additives and preservatives in foods that are unnecessary can cause health problems I never even dreamed about.
Today I have cut back 12 units per day on my long lasting insulin and I have cut back on my fast acting insulin from taking 3-10 units 4 times per day to taking 3 units once per day. I have also lost 10 inches in 7 weeks. I know when I go for my check up my doctor is going to be blown away. She has been trying for years to get me to do something like this. My goal is too get completely off the insulin and the oral medication I take for my diabetes and just control it with my diet. I also would like to get off my medication for high cholesterol. After this program I know I can reach these goals eventually. I know it won’t happen overnight but I wasn’t put on these medications overnight either they were a last resort when I wasn’t willing to control my diabetes and high cholesterol with diet.
Where exercise is concerned I never did it before Healthy Edge now I am walking an hour or more a day. I try to get at least 10,000 steps in per day and if I don’t then I workout at home or at the gym for about 30 minutes per day. Now, that it is getting nice out I do gardening at least 60 – 90 minutes per day. I feel great. Prior to Healthy Edge I rarely left the house. I am on an anti-depressant and I never wanted to go anywhere. Now, I go places with my family all the time. My whole family did the Healthy Edge program for me because they want me to be around for a long time and now thanks to this program I will be. I realized during this program that I don’t have to be my mother I can have a long happy and healthy life if I am strong and stick to good eating habits, drinking 80 ozs. of water per day and get plenty of exercise.
I strongly recommend doing Healthy Edge. Thank you Healthy Edge!
