New Albany resident Don Barger has been a type I brittle diabetic for 40 years, and he hasn’t let it stop him yet.
Brittle diabetes is a severe kind of type I diabetes that’s especially difficult to manage due to the extreme swings in blood sugar the patient experiences, leading to frequent episodes of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) and hyperglycemia (high blood sugar).
Barger, 80, had a 35-year business career as the chief financial officer for five different public companies. A studious fitness buff, Barger gets most of his exercise these days by walking, though he’s competed in at least five marathons and finished three half Iron Man races.
Barger and his wife, Linda, have three children and six grandchildren.
His interview with HNA Magazine has been edited for length and clarity.
Healthy New Albany Magazine: When did your journey with diabetes begin?
Don Barger: I became an insulin-dependent brittle diabetic at age 40, in 1983. The consensus view of the doctors who treated me over time was that I had a virus, which is unusual, but it probably may have been related to (the fact that) I was a sickly child.
Linda Barger: It’s the pneumonia vaccine. He had pneumonia some ridiculous amount of times, and they think that it weakened his pancreas to the point where, one day, he was fine, and the next day, he was set off.
DB: Even then, I was addicted to exercise. I was in the hospital for 10 days, but as soon as I got out of the hospital, I went for a run. And I have this memory of Linda standing outside the house watching me finish the run, and I don’t think she was really happy with me. There’s nothing remarkable about getting diabetes. It happened and you move on.
LB: Don is a very unusual diabetic. He is headstrong and persistent, and if he wants to achieve
something, it doesn’t matter what’s happening. And his diabetes is really very dangerous. It is extremely erratic, right from day one when they had to put him in the hospital because his blood sugar was sky high and they couldn’t control it, which shouldn’t be that big of a deal if you become a diabetic initially. … He has accomplished races under all kinds of weird circumstances. From day one, he set his mind to accomplishing things. And it didn’t matter he was a diabetic and shouldn’t do it; he did it anyway.
HNA: What does daily life with managing diabetes look like?
DB: I really relied on the people I worked with to help me. I was very fortunate that my (work) teammates would always be saying, “Do you need any orange juice?” … I think I had to recognize that I had to rely on other people to help me. Every company that I worked with, they were very good. They often made comments like, “You look to me like you’re a little bit low, check your blood and have some orange juice.”
Shortly after I started working for Worthington (Industries), I had an early morning meeting with my controller. We were talking and I recognized that I was going low. So I made some comment about, “I need some orange juice or some carbs because I’m going low.” He said, “Well, what happens?” And I said, “Well, I could die.” We had a very good relationship and he understood humor. But I think the point is I recognized that I couldn’t do it by myself.
When I wake up, I check my glucose level. Depending on the level, I will have some carbs or some juice or my breakfast. Breakfast, I have yogurt and fruit and a protein shake. If I’m going to exercise in the morning with my friends, then I will give myself 50 units of carbs.
I have an insulin pump and I have a continuous glucose monitor. That’s what I use to determine my breakfast, and then I will also bring shot blocks. GU is what I use while I’m exercising. I have the objective of working out seven hours a week.
HNA: What is your support system like? How does having support make a difference?
DB: I think that every diabetic patient who is a type I brittle is going to have unique support requirements. The reason that the type I brittle diabetic needs help is just because of the volatility of the sugar levels. I can go from 300 to 50 in the course of an hour if exercise intensely.
The thing that’s interesting is that I think a lot of diabetics don’t realize how much support they get. And I just tried to list and I came up with nine different organizations. Some of them are related, but they have specific needs, and the one that’s most important is my immediate family. All 12 of them are involved in some aspects of my diabetes management. And the most important thing they do is call me when my blood sugar is high or low. My family are very proactive in monitoring me. Our children have monitored me when they were in the States and I was in London.
HNA: How have technology and other advances in science changed how you manage each day?
DB: As with most things in the medical community, research and development drives big steps in innovation. These folks are checking how to inject insulin, what kind of protocol to use, how often I need to check my blood. However, my sense is cumulative little things can also have a
significant impact. Examples are your diet, reading, socializing with friends.
There’s this powder, like talcum powder. This is an advancement, it’s certainly not cheap … but it certainly is worth it. And Linda, by spraying it up my nose, it calms me down almost immediately. She has one in her purse. Editor’s note: Glucagon nasal spray is the first nasal spray for hypoglycemia on the market.
HNA: What do you want others to know about you as a person and what it’s like living with diabetes?
DB: I appreciate my life, my children and my grandchildren. Living with diabetes is tougher on my family than is it is on me. It is not tough living with diabetes as long as you are reasonable, you have a support group and you exercise.
HNA: Speaking to others living with diabetes, what advice would you like to give them?
DB: Really, it’s simple: Enjoy your family, your friends and get addicted to exercise. Exercise benefits you with the first step, and if you keep it up, it benefits most aspects of your life. I believe it is the single most important thing you can do. Finally, join the New Albany Walking Club and compete!
Claire Miller is an editor at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at cmiller@cityscenemediagroup.com.
