Less than 100 miles from New York City, where I practice medicine, is a place so different, you would think it was closer to 1,000 miles away. Long Pond, Pennsylvania, is a small town nestled in the Pocono Mountains, an area covered by lush green trees this time of year and home to the Pocono Raceway. Each week, NASCAR drivers step into cars advertising a variety of products, but Ryan Reed steps into a car that has a great deal of personal significance to him, the No. 16 Lilly Diabetes/American Diabetes Association Ford Mustang.
At age 17, Ryan was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes and told he would never be able to race again.
At age 21, he drove into Victory Lane at Daytona.
Earlier this month, I had the opportunity to meet Ryan and learn more about his story.
I discovered that Ryan had dreams of becoming a professional race car driver from childhood — but these dreams were stifled in a doctor’s office as he was told that the physical demands of operating a car for several hours in heats often exceeding 100 degrees Fahrenheit were incompatible with someone requiring medications for glucose control. In the midst of the sadness of being told his dream was over, Ryan embarked on a mission to see if his aspirations were declared dead prematurely. His story yields important lessons for the approximately 10 percent of Americans living with diabetes and 47 percent living with at least one chronic illness.
Dissecting elements of Ryan’s success story can provide an outline of how others can be successful in their journeys to achieve good health and life goals.
Use Your Social Support System
Investing in relationships is important, especially in the midst of a serious health diagnosis. “Fortunately, I am blessed with my mom, my dad, a large extended family and a number of friends who were able to support me when I got the diagnosis,” Ryan says. “They were scared but still gave me a shoulder to lean on when I needed it.”
A study published in the Journal Health Education and Behavior showed that, based on a review of 29 research articles, healthy social networks enhance an individual’s ability to manage their disease. A 2006 study in the Journal of Behavioral Medicine actually proposed a biological mechanism for why this improvement takes place. The researchers said that in people with chronic illness, levels of inflammation were lower when people had stronger social support systems.
Whether you trust what sounds like good advice on the surface or choose to rely on biomarkers, investing in relationships now can pay real health dividends in the future.
[See: Got Diabetes? Why You Must Protect Your Feet.]
Education
Upon receiving his diagnosis, Ryan immediately set out to learn as much as he could about diabetes.
“The doctor told me I would never race again, and I didn’t know anything about diabetes,” he recalls. “When a doctor tells you something, you believe it, but I wanted to research the condition myself.” In his education, he learned about medical advances that were allowing people with diabetes to live fuller and healthier lives than imaginable just a generation ago. Ryan was determined to get back on track, both literally and figuratively.
A meta-analysis in the Journal of the American Medical Association showed that education improves the health of patients and also makes chronic disease less of a financial burden. All accredited U.S. hospitals have a responsibility to educate patients through nurses or doctors and provide avenues for patients to educate themselves about their condition.
We often avoid learning about scary subjects like illnesses. Breaking through this fear will likely lead to better outcomes and decreased anxiety. Don’t be silent; discuss the obstacles you’re experiencing. Educating yourself may replace doom and despair with hope and optimism.
[See: Do’s and Don’ts of Home Medical Devices.]
Get a Second Opinion
When Ryan is asked how he continued to pursue his career aspirations after his diabetes diagnosis, he says: “One of the most important people has been my doctor, Anne Peters. She told me, ‘We’ll get you back into the seat of a race car.'”
A second opinion can have a profound effect. When a patient seeks a second opinion, management recommendations for a condition will change more than a third of the time. Further, physicians rendering opinions on diagnosis disagree with the initial diagnosis 15 percent of the time.
Second opinions can have a powerful impact even when there is no change in diagnoses, prognosis or treatment. Finding physicians who you feel understand you will facilitate better communication and likely better adherence. You deserve the best partner in helping you manage your chronic conditions, and finding the right one may mean meeting many candidates to be your physician.
Being diagnosed with a chronic illness like diabetes is life-altering, but there are many steps people can take to prevent a diagnosis from becoming life-destructive. Fortunately, there are remarkable advances in medicine that have made previously untreatable conditions manageable. The success of management relies on great effort and dedication from the patient. Even if you’ve never watched Ryan race and win against many of the greatest drivers in the world, knowing of his accomplishments will hopefully pave the way for many with chronic illnesses to achieve better health.
[See: The Best Diets to Prevent — and Manage — Diabetes.]
More from U.S. News
Got Diabetes? Why You Must Protect Your Feet
6 Tips to Keep Diabetics Out of the Hospital
The Best Diets to Prevent — and Manage — Diabetes
Nascar Driver Ryan Reed: a Diabetes Diagnosis Didn’t Stop My Dreams originally appeared on usnews.com
