Type 1 Diabetes: Kenneth Lewis' Story Video

Diabetes is a disease that affects millions of people. Learn about Diabetes and what it is like to live with the condition in this video.

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Exercise
Maintain diet
Listen to your doctor
Monitor sugar

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Kenneth Lewis was diagnosed with Diabetes in 1977.

My name is Kenneth Lewis. I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes back in 1977. And later in the mid-80's I was diagnosed with diabetic retinopathy in the eyes. In the early part of 1977, I started losing weight. I averaged about five pounds a day. I was drinking water constantly, almost a whole pitcher at a time. It kept getting worse, worse that I drop all the way down to 140 pounds. At that time, I went to the doctor and he just took one look at me and he says, "You have diabetes." When he said diabetes and all of a sudden I just, like, hit a wall, you know, and just--it's something you just didn't want to hear, you know? So it just caught me off guard. And I didn't know nothing at the time about diabetes. I knew you're required shots for diabetes, but that's basically all I knew at the time. When they gave me an IV--they started me on IVs, a fluid to replace a fluid that my body was short of at the time, and started me on insulin, and my energy started coming back and I started feeling better. My weight started coming back. Then at first, when they released me from the hospital, I was just managing on diet, exercise and just one shot a day. About three years ago, I had to start on dialysis. First, they started me on hemodialysis, which is where they would have me come in three times a week to the dialysis center where they drew my blood and run it through a machine and purified it and send it back in. Now, they got me on what they call peritoneal dialysis, which I do at home three times a day. Some of the support I get is, of course, the doctors, hospitals, but some of the good support I get is through friends and through Wasatch Dialysis, where I have to go once a month to have tests and also once a month during the summer. They have a group get-together at different locations, and you get to meet and sit down and talk to a bunch of other people that are going through dialysis, too. Do whatever it takes. Lose the weight, exercise, diet, whatever the doctor instructs you to do to prevent diabetes. Because once you have it, it takes control of your life. If you already have diabetes, you know, it's not that difficult to control. You have to just monitor your sugar, monitor your diets, make sure you get plenty of exercise. It's okay if you have diabetes, you know? You should live your life the best that you can and not let it put you down and do as much as you can. Even though you're dieting, exercising and taking your medication, which you have to, and monitor your sugar, you should not let it slow you down or let anybody make you think that you're less of a person.

Type 1 Diabetes: Kenneth Lewis' Story Video

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