Living with diabetes isn’t just about managing blood sugar levels – it’s an emotional journey that requires resilience, consistency, and a holistic approach to health. In our recent episode of Diabetes & PAD, I sat down with Mark D. Brezzell, author of “A Matter of the Heart: My Unexpected Journey with Diabetes,” to explore the psychological aspects of diabetes management that many medical resources overlook.
Mark’s journey toward authorship began unexpectedly after reconnecting with an old classmate who had experienced acute kidney failure due to undiagnosed diabetes.
“He said that when they told him he had diabetes, he was completely shocked. He didn’t know what was causing all of his problems,” Mark shared. “That’s when the light went off in my head saying, ‘I wonder what relevancy would it be for me to share my experience?’”
What struck Mark most in the diabetes literature landscape was a significant gap – most resources focused exclusively on the physiological aspects of the condition, neglecting the profound psychological impact.
“When I look at the books in the bookstore and on Amazon or online, when they talk about diabetes, they don’t really touch on the psychological component of this condition,” he explained. “They focused so much on the pathophysiology.”
The Early Warning Signs
As a cardiovascular perfusionist by training, Mark understood diabetes professionally but failed to recognize the symptoms in himself. The early warning signs were there: unquenchable thirst for sugary drinks, unexplained weight loss, fatigue, and frequent urination.
“I would drink those big two-liter bottles of Welch’s grape soda. I would just guzzle, guzzle, guzzle, guzzle. Or I’d just sip on it all day,” he recalled. “What people do with water, you know, that you’re supposed to sip on water, I did the same thing with this very sugary pop.”
Despite his medical background and his wife noticing these changes, Mark found himself in denial. The thought of having diabetes at 31 seemed impossible – until one pivotal moment that forced him to confront reality.
“I went to the bathroom, got in the car, and was halfway home and had to go to the bathroom again. Something about this isn’t right,” Mark said. “Of all the things that I was dealing with, that was the moment of reckoning.”
After diagnosis, Mark experienced what many patients face – a tumultuous emotional journey from devastation to anger to a sense of profound injustice. “I had issues with everyone, including God,” he admitted. “My mindset was, I’m in the hospital dealing with patients day after day. I see what their lifestyle is. And I’m like, I’m trying to do this thing right. I’ll try to be exercising. I’ll try to watch what I eat. I wasn’t eating french fries and milkshakes every day.”
This “why me” mentality initially hindered his healing process. It wasn’t until the birth of his first child that Mark’s perspective began to shift toward acceptance and action.
“When I saw my child was born, I said to myself, I can’t keep this roller coaster up,” he reflected. “I have now a child. I was still new in my marriage. So I began to recognize, listen, this is destructive behavior and it’s not going to be a benefit to my child.”
A Life-Changing Moment
Mark’s mindset transformation was solidified after a terrifying hypoglycemic episode. While driving to visit his hospitalized father, Mark’s blood sugar dropped dangerously low. His wife, unfamiliar with hypoglycemia symptoms, struggled to find help when Mark became incoherent and eventually passed out.
They ended up at a gas station where strangers called paramedics who found his blood sugar had dropped to a life-threatening 39. The experience fundamentally changed Mark’s perspective about his condition and his approach to managing it.
“There’s no way in the world that you could just attribute that to straight luck,” he said. “That was a recipe for disaster. But yet, I still was able to come out of this thing unscathed.”
This brush with disaster led Mark to develop a more holistic approach to managing diabetes through eight key health principles that seem simple but are profoundly effective: fresh air, water, sunshine, rest, exercise, proper diet, temperance/moderation, and trust in a higher power.
“It’s a total package as far as restorative and healing and maintaining,” Mark explained. “And the healthier you are, the more resilient you are, the faster you bounce back from challenges.”
His approach is particularly notable regarding elements often overlooked in diabetes management, like the importance of natural sunshine. “Vitamin D that you take in a supplement form is different than what you get from the sunshine,” Mark noted. “Many ailments are in part caused by or exacerbated by a vitamin D deficiency.”
What’s perhaps most remarkable about Mark’s story is his success in maintaining exceptional health despite living with Type 1 diabetes for over 25 years. His most recent A1C was 5.9 – a number that impressed even his doctors.
“My A1C was 5.9, and that is 25, almost 26 years as a Type 1 diabetic,” he shared. “It’s almost unheard of.”
His approach focuses on eating for health rather than simply “eating around insulin.” Mark emphasizes consistency, moderation, and viewing food as medicine. “I try to eat foods that will help to prevent many of the complications that diabetes can propagate,” he said. “When you understand that food is medicine, then you begin to recognize that’s a cycle that can maintain really good long-term health.”
The Diabetes-PAD Connection
This focus on maintaining healthy A1C levels isn’t just about avoiding short-term complications – it’s absolutely critical for long-term vascular health. When blood sugar remains elevated over time, those excess sugar molecules in the bloodstream begin damaging artery walls, creating the perfect environment for inflammation and plaque buildup. This process is particularly devastating in the smaller vessels below the knee, leading to a condition known as Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD).
What’s particularly troubling is how often the early warning signs of PAD are misdiagnosed. Many doctors simply attribute symptoms like numbness, tingling, or burning pain in the feet and legs to “diabetic neuropathy” without investigating further. This misdiagnosis can lead to delayed treatment and preventable amputations.
As I often explain to my audience, even one extra sugar molecule in your blood can wreak havoc on your artery walls. This damage, combined with blood that’s thicker due to high glucose levels, severely restricts circulation to your feet and toes. When your A1C remains below 6.0, as Mark has maintained, your blood can more easily reach those vital capillaries – which is crucial for maintaining healthy tissue and preventing what’s commonly known as “diabetic foot.”
Mark’s journey exemplifies what he calls “a walk of sheer resiliency” – the transformation from asking “why me?” to asking “what can I do?” This shift in perspective doesn’t happen overnight, but it’s essential for long-term management of chronic conditions like diabetes.
“Wellness is a matter of the mind, the body and the heart,” Mark summarized. “It’s about do you love you? And if you love you, are you going to do what’s best for you?”
If you’re living with diabetes or know someone who is, I strongly encourage you to pick up Mark’s book, “A Matter of the Heart,” available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble in both print and e-book formats. His insights into the psychological aspects of diabetes management fill a crucial gap in diabetes literature.
Additionally, if you have diabetes, please get tested for PAD. One in three diabetics over age 50 has PAD. Visit padhelp.org to learn more and padtest.org to find testing locations. Early detection can literally save limbs.
I’m also excited to invite you to watch our next episode, where Mark and I will interview Dr. Robert Gabay, former American Diabetes Association chief medical officer, about the future of diabetes care and innovations in the field. Subscribe to our channel at youtube.com/@thewaytomyheart to catch all episodes and participate in our live Q&A sessions.
Remember, if you experience neuropathy, numbness, tingling, burning, or leg pain with diabetes, these could be warning signs of poor circulation. Don’t wait until it’s too late – early detection and management of both diabetes and PAD can save your limbs and your life.
This article is based on Episode 2 of “Diabetes & PAD” with hosts Kym McNicholas, CEO of the Global PAD Association, and author Mark D. Brezell.
Have you read “A Matter of the Heart”? What strategies have helped you manage diabetes or PAD? Share your experiences in the comments below.
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