Fear Factor

One thing I've discovered since my diagnosis relates to "mystery food". It used to be that whenever friends or relatives would show up at some event with their latest offering, out of politeness I would try it. Same thing goes for people at work. Especially around holiday time. And I know it'll happen again this year.

But it won't be the same for me. It's already begun. Someone brought zucchini bread to work. Ordinarily, I love zucchini bread (depending on the recipe). My wife bakes it in miniature loaves. Golden brown. When sliced, it's just right for a bite-sized snack. Give me a slice topped with butter, and I'm in absolute heaven.

Now I'm wondering about this year. With home-made recipes there's no label to check the sugar content. My wife will probably try to alter hers somewhat, substituting Splenda, and making other slight changes, like whole-grain flour instead of white. But that's not gonna happen with everyone else.

So, the question is, "Should I risk it?" My first instinct (if I'm thinking straight and not drooling too bad) would be "Probably not". After all, there's no way to know how much sugar is in all the holiday treats that people love to make. (We go through this weekly at the grocery store, searching for "sugar-free" pies or those made "without added sugar".)

Don't get me wrong. My wife loves to cook and bake. She's made some wonderful pies this way and we've enjoyed them immensely. But I can't expect others to do the same. And it could easily get out of hand if I start throwing caution to the wind simply because I "don't wish to offend".

Hopefully, others will not take notice. (Gone are the days when every Aunt and Grandmother would stand by with a watchful eye to make sure you try their latest creation.) And I don't want to put a damper on things by reminding everyone of my "condition".

So now, I hesitate, weighing it out in my mind. With people you hardly know, it should be easy. And so I ask myself, "What would my wife say?" because she's got better willpower. I trust her completely. (Nine times out of ten, when she says, "It's not a good idea," you can bet she's probably right.)

I don't want to be careless or precipitate any kind of health crisis. I'm still a newbie at this whole "Diabetic thing" and this'll be my first round through the holidays. (Usually what we do is bring something "safe", that we've made at home with our own hands, to any family gathering -- to make sure we have something to eat. I guess that'll extend to sweets as well.)

I'm still trying to figure out why my blood sugar spikes some days more than others. I can't really afford the time for regular work outs, so it's kind of hit or miss. Weight is still holding. (Most of my clothes are loose-fitting.)

So I'm proceeding with caution. We've already decided to skip the whole "handing out candy" for Halloween routine. No sense in stocking the house with tons of sweets that neither one of us should be eating. (She's trying to lose weight.) We don't need that kind of temptation. It makes me feel bad in a way. As a kid, Halloween was always one of my favorites. I could never understand why people refused to participate. I remember one poor old woman on our street (this was in the 60's). She never had candy, but she'd stand at the door, dropping a penny into each of our bags. (I guess we'll turn out the lights and hide until it's over.)

Thanksgiving we'll have here, with our son. That'll be no problem. He's already discovered the snacks we keep around taste pretty much the same. And he loves his mom's cooking.

Christmas I'm a little worried about. More visiting. More relatives. More food than you can shake a stick at. (One year I came down with the flu real bad this time of year between Christmas and New Years. Couldn't keep down anything. Not even so much as a cracker. We made the rounds. I tried to smile. It was a miserable time.)

So, I'll try to be careful -- and polite. I'll try NOT to let the "Fear Factor" spoil what many consider to be their favorite time of year. I know it won't be easy.

But then, maybe that's part of being a Diabetic. It's not for wimps.