D is not just for Diabetes………

Today I bought a book.

No big deal, right?

Well, no.

The thing is, I have not read a book since I left school in 1985.

I do own books. Gardening books, books on DIY, and of course, the obligatory books on diabetes.

I have started reading them but never finished a single one.

Why?

I’m not very good at reading.

It takes me a long time to get through a single page, let alone a whole book.

Words tend to move about on the page and my brain often sees words that aren’t there which totally changes the meaning of what I’m reading, or it makes no sense. So, I have to go back and read it all again.

At school I did everything to avoid reading out loud in class.

Reading ahead is a challenge because my brain takes a while to process the words.

That makes me slow, and stumble over what I’m reading out loud and there is no flow.

I used to think it made me sound stupid, when I’m not.

 

Dyslexia was never mentioned at school and it was never diagnosed.

Back then I think there was a level of stigma attached.

Oh, now that sounds familiar.

 

As an adult I did not bother to have it diagnosed and to this day it still hasn’t been.

Why not?

I don’t see the point now.

I have gotten to where I am today (wherever the hell that actually is) by finding workarounds and methods to deal with it.

Also, I am stubborn.

I do things alone.

I see accepting help as a personal failure.

Yes. D is also for Dickhead……….

 

Why am I telling you this?

D is also for Determination.

I’m not one to give up.

Time to tackle my other D

Time to defeat this one in order to carry on dealing with the other.

 

I have Diabetes.

It’s a condition I have to self-manage.

I need to be educated about it in order to manage it as effectively as I can.

I need to be able to get the best out of the technology that I am privileged to have.

Everything I need to know is out there, but it is all stuff I need to be able to read and understand, without it taking me too long or losing interest.

 

With my 25^thDiaversary skipping its way towards me, and ongoing diabetes-related foot complications a fact of life (more in my next post), I owe it to myself to read and learn more.

The other reason is that I currently have way too much time on my hands.

Time to think.

A thinking Grumps is a very dangerous thing.

 

So, I am going to try and read a whole book.

Get into the habit.

Train my brain to find and to hone those workarounds and methods.

Find a way to focus and keep that focus.

 

The book I bought has a real interest to me since I have always loved Billy’s work and his observations on life. So lets see if I get to the end of it………………..

Grumps.