Beating Diabetes. November, 2016
Beneath our apartment in Bethania, there is bright green little store dotted with painted pink flowers selling kids toys and clothes, along with watches, wallets, and other paraphernalia. Almost every day, you can find a 53 year old, curly-haired lady named Loti (LOW-tee) restacking items, helping customers and calling out 'may God bless you' each time I (Alaina) pass by. Loti has unofficially become my Guatemalan grandmother.
Loti has Type 2 Diabetes. What a cruel enemy it has been to her; succumbing her to comas, needle-sharp pains in her hands and feet, blurry vision... not to mention, feeling tired every day, as if she has her own personal lullaby coaxing her to sleep. Her sugar levels have been like a roller coaster for the past 19 years, and all she has received from her doctors are scoldings. No helpful advice, no education or information packets have been passed to her, to give her knowledge of how to maintain healthy sugar levels in her body. So, how can you change manners of living, if you don't even understand the problem or have resources to know exactly what to change? So, she's left to the uneducated opinions of fellow diabetics and friends; to the superstitions of what to and what not to eat and drink; to the common belief that diabetes is caused by the fear that comes from life-threatening events, and that God will heal her completely only if she has enough faith and gives to the church (I'm not joking... churches here preach this). Many times in the States, we take education and available resources for granted; whereas here, even in the capital, educational resources are non-existent for the majority of the population.
When I learned from Loti that she has not been feeling well, I felt her sadness, her lack of hope that this could ever change. And, sadly, I had heard stories such as hers a number of times before in the clinic (Corazon de Amor)... from patients, from friends, from families.
One day, when I heard a lady in clinic say her sugar was good just after seeing 325mg/dl blinking on the glucometer (that's very very high), I told myself that something needed to change. Countless people at the clinic have said they don't know really anything about diabetes, even after a number of years knowing they have the disease. So, after believing for years that I would never be a community educator (oh, the irony), my fellow nurse Amie and I dove headlong in to teaching a diabetes class. In our very first class, we saw a group of people anxious to learn and excited for the hope of change. Amie and I realized God had provided us a road to educate people, to lift them up, and to preach the true gospel to so many people who long for it.
In the last month, Amie and I have been with groups from our community in Zone 3 (the garbage dump community), in Santa Faz and in La Limonada, and have taught four separate classes to groups ranging in size from 7 people to 25. The majority of them come through association with the clinics that Dr. Layla runs in those communities. About 25% of the people are illiterate or have had only a few years in school, and one our patients is completely blind as a result of retinopathy due to diabetes. So, our teachings have needed to be unique, using a lot of visuals (who likes wordy lectures anyway, right?).
We've been teaching the basics of diabetes, what happens in the body with insulin and glucose, how our diets can change even with very limited budgets, how we can exercise (see picture), what medications do for us, and so much more.
The first series of classes in Zone 3 was outstanding! People had applied the education in their lives and their sugars had dropped exponentially! Their pain and tiredness lessened, anxiety and fear of the unknown was turned to understanding and most of all, people were taking the opportunity to change their own lives and as result, their dignity, their hope is resurfacing. We've already been asked to continue these classes next year in Limonada and even here in our own community in Bethania. Check out the first class of graduates!
As for Loti, she is doing better (just two weeks later!). She has made some changes in her life, struggling a bit with the differences, but her sugars, as well as her blood pressure, have dropped. She feels less tired and her pain has lessened. This past Friday morning, we walked around the community together for "exercise" (a bit of a slower pace than normal). But oh, what a joy it was to spend time with her, enduring the plethora of confused looks from passersby at the odd sight of us two. I'm not sure many people see very blond girls and tiny older Guatemalan women exercising together. She reminds me a bit of my own Grandma Jenny, whom I miss with all my heart. So, in a way, this enemy of a disease provided a way for me to find a friend and walking buddy, and my own Guatemalan grandma.
Loti has Type 2 Diabetes. What a cruel enemy it has been to her; succumbing her to comas, needle-sharp pains in her hands and feet, blurry vision... not to mention, feeling tired every day, as if she has her own personal lullaby coaxing her to sleep. Her sugar levels have been like a roller coaster for the past 19 years, and all she has received from her doctors are scoldings. No helpful advice, no education or information packets have been passed to her, to give her knowledge of how to maintain healthy sugar levels in her body. So, how can you change manners of living, if you don't even understand the problem or have resources to know exactly what to change? So, she's left to the uneducated opinions of fellow diabetics and friends; to the superstitions of what to and what not to eat and drink; to the common belief that diabetes is caused by the fear that comes from life-threatening events, and that God will heal her completely only if she has enough faith and gives to the church (I'm not joking... churches here preach this). Many times in the States, we take education and available resources for granted; whereas here, even in the capital, educational resources are non-existent for the majority of the population.
When I learned from Loti that she has not been feeling well, I felt her sadness, her lack of hope that this could ever change. And, sadly, I had heard stories such as hers a number of times before in the clinic (Corazon de Amor)... from patients, from friends, from families.
One day, when I heard a lady in clinic say her sugar was good just after seeing 325mg/dl blinking on the glucometer (that's very very high), I told myself that something needed to change. Countless people at the clinic have said they don't know really anything about diabetes, even after a number of years knowing they have the disease. So, after believing for years that I would never be a community educator (oh, the irony), my fellow nurse Amie and I dove headlong in to teaching a diabetes class. In our very first class, we saw a group of people anxious to learn and excited for the hope of change. Amie and I realized God had provided us a road to educate people, to lift them up, and to preach the true gospel to so many people who long for it.
In the last month, Amie and I have been with groups from our community in Zone 3 (the garbage dump community), in Santa Faz and in La Limonada, and have taught four separate classes to groups ranging in size from 7 people to 25. The majority of them come through association with the clinics that Dr. Layla runs in those communities. About 25% of the people are illiterate or have had only a few years in school, and one our patients is completely blind as a result of retinopathy due to diabetes. So, our teachings have needed to be unique, using a lot of visuals (who likes wordy lectures anyway, right?).
We've been teaching the basics of diabetes, what happens in the body with insulin and glucose, how our diets can change even with very limited budgets, how we can exercise (see picture), what medications do for us, and so much more.
The first series of classes in Zone 3 was outstanding! People had applied the education in their lives and their sugars had dropped exponentially! Their pain and tiredness lessened, anxiety and fear of the unknown was turned to understanding and most of all, people were taking the opportunity to change their own lives and as result, their dignity, their hope is resurfacing. We've already been asked to continue these classes next year in Limonada and even here in our own community in Bethania. Check out the first class of graduates!
As for Loti, she is doing better (just two weeks later!). She has made some changes in her life, struggling a bit with the differences, but her sugars, as well as her blood pressure, have dropped. She feels less tired and her pain has lessened. This past Friday morning, we walked around the community together for "exercise" (a bit of a slower pace than normal). But oh, what a joy it was to spend time with her, enduring the plethora of confused looks from passersby at the odd sight of us two. I'm not sure many people see very blond girls and tiny older Guatemalan women exercising together. She reminds me a bit of my own Grandma Jenny, whom I miss with all my heart. So, in a way, this enemy of a disease provided a way for me to find a friend and walking buddy, and my own Guatemalan grandma.
Thanks for continuing to hope, believe, and care. We miss you! With love,
AJ and Alaina
thewestys.weebly.com (new photos up!)
guatemala.team.org
p.s. Things We're Into Lately!
1. Podcast: "Woman" by The Liturgists Podcast.
2. Food: Pumpkin Soup, Cake, Mousse, Seeds, Pie (thanks Dad!)
3. Activities: Arranging and Pintresting the homestead. (progress report below!)
4. Conversation Starters: Why is Aarón trying to grow a beard? (No shave November is not a thing here.)
5. People: Our missional community. Good folks to work on living Bible-based lives with.
6. Activities: Having phones be repaired thrice and also be stolen by a little 6 year old and be rescued by community mom. Just sayin'.
AJ and Alaina
thewestys.weebly.com (new photos up!)
guatemala.team.org
p.s. Things We're Into Lately!
1. Podcast: "Woman" by The Liturgists Podcast.
2. Food: Pumpkin Soup, Cake, Mousse, Seeds, Pie (thanks Dad!)
3. Activities: Arranging and Pintresting the homestead. (progress report below!)
4. Conversation Starters: Why is Aarón trying to grow a beard? (No shave November is not a thing here.)
5. People: Our missional community. Good folks to work on living Bible-based lives with.
6. Activities: Having phones be repaired thrice and also be stolen by a little 6 year old and be rescued by community mom. Just sayin'.