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Myabetic Kamen Diabetes Case Review

I’ve written before about what I carry all of my diabetes supplies in. It is a Philadelphia Eagles fabric pencils case that I found about 10 years ago. I’ve been using that thing for so long and it’s always been with me every where I go. But, recently, I felt like it was time to move on. I still love that case and I will not get rid of it, but I needed something that I could pull out at a business meeting and not be afraid that dried blood from one of the tens of thousands of tests that I’ve while using that bag would end up somewhere. So, here is my Myabetic Review.

So, full disclosure like always, I reached out to Myabetic and they agreed to send me a bag and I said that I would write a review about said bag.

Deciding Which Case

It was a tough choice because there was a few different options that I was thinking about choosing from and I wasn’t sure which one that I wanted.

I ended up going with the Kamen Diabetes Case.

Here are some pictures of the bag before I started using it.

I wasn’t exactly sure how I was going organize everything in the bag. The strips that I use have a differently shaped vial than most strips. So, I tested out a few different ways and I found the perfect set up for myself.

The thing that I love the most about the bag is the zipped, detachable bag for used test strips. I used to just put my used strips in the Eagles bag along with the meter, vial of strips, lancing device, pen, etc. This was extremely unsanitary and I know that.

My Final Set Up

See the pictures below to see how I finally decided to organize all of my diabetes stuff.

Insulated and Extra Space

I decided to put my meter and strips in the Velcro section and put the lancing device in the middle strap. I also put extra pen needles in the mesh zipper section. Where are my insulin pens do you ask?

Well, those are in the insulated section with a different zipper!

I LOVE this part. With my old Eagles bag, my insulin pens never had a temperature control. It was left in the car in the heat and cold multiple times and I’ve had to throw insulin out in the past.

So, this insulated section is just amazing.

There is also a small front section of the bag that I’ve been using for extra stuff. Instead of putting my keys in my pockets, I’ve been putting them in there. I work from Starbucks a lot, so I put have put my headphones in that section and other random things that I may need while I’m out.

My Initial Thoughts

So far, the bag has been great. I love it.

I had a business meeting the other day that I actually had to get dressed up for. So, this was the perfect opportunity to take my new leather diabetes bag with me and not the ole Eagles bag. It looked very professional and sat nicely on the table during the meeting.

The only issue that I do have is that the Myabetic bag that I have is a lot bulkier than my old Eagles bag. My old bag used to easily fit in my back pocket, so I could easily put it away and not have to carry it around.

This is not a huge issue because when I’m out I usually am also carrying a backpack with all the kid’s stuff, so I’ve just been putting my diabetes bag in there.

I highly recommend the Myabetic bags. Even though the ad below has a women’s bag / case, they do sell them for men as well, obviously.


Myabetic wanted to give a discount to all of you all. So, if you use coupon code: STOCKER10 you will receive 10% off your entire order!

Myabetic has a great back story that you can check out on their site. Their founder was diagnosed with diabetes when she was 24 years old. I highly recommend reading more of their story.

 

real good foods review

Real Good Foods Review

You may have read on here lately that I have been trying to lose weight for a long time. It is such a battle for me because I lose weight and then I just get tired of eating the same boring food over and over and over and then I get these urges and I just go balls to the wall and overeat and put all the weight back on.

I’ve been searching for low carb foods and recipes that aren’t just cauliflower this and cauliflower that. I’m fine with cauliflower recipes, but some times I just need something different.

I happened to come across Real Good Foods and I saw a bunch of people on Instagram posting about it. So, I thought, what the heck, let’s give them a try.

So far, I have tried the verde pork enchiladas and the pepperoni pizzas, both the snack size and regular size.

My quick, summarized review of them…

I AM IN LOVE!

Let me go into a little more detail here.

First up, the pizza.

real good foods pizza nutritional label

As I scanned the nutritional label, I realized that there was just 4 grams of carbs. Well, for me, that’s not even enough carbs to give myself a shot of insulin. It would be 1 unit, so I just skipped the insulin because I had gone for a walk a little before trying for the first time.

With it being only 4 grams of carbs, I went to the ingredients. The very first thing I noticed, and loved, was that the crust was made of chicken.

That’s right, chicken!

Now, that might weird you out at first, but you have to absolutely try it.

To me, it tasted like I was eating chicken Parm because it had pizza sauce and cheese on the crust, and since the crust is chicken, it’s chicken Parm in my eyes.

Please check out the ingredients and the nutritional info.

My recommendations for the pizza are once you cook it in the oven for the 20 or 25 minutes like it says, put it on top of a skillet and grill the crust (made with chicken) for a few minutes as well. It doesn’t say to do this and you don’t have to, but I tried it and I liked it even better this way.

They are smaller size pizzas since they are individual, but they help me with my portion control. So far, I’ve had the pizzas for lunch by itself, for dinner with a side salad and as a late night snack during a late college football night.

real good foods 4 free boxes

The other Real Good Foods product that I tried was the verde pork enchiladas. It was taco night and I always just eat lettuce wraps every Tuesday, which I love, but I wanted to switch it up a bit and have something different.

The enchiladas are baked in the oven for about 20-25 minutes like the pizza and then I let them sit for a couple of minutes to let the cheese and everything settle. Plain, as is, they were awesome!

I added a scoop of sour cream and sprinkled a little more cheese on top and add a few dabs of hot sauce and they were perfect!

These also had 4 grams of carbs and the tortillas were made out of chicken.

I am just obsessed with Real Good Foods at this point.

I want to help you try these foods because I know you will become obsessed to, so here’s how you can save 10% off your first online order.

Just go to https://thelifeofadiabetic.com/realgoodfoods and enter coupon code CSTOCKER at checkout and you will get your 10% off. Also, for a limited time Real Good Foods is offering 4 FREE Mini Snack Pizzas with every online order.

Not interested in having chicken pizza crust? Well, they also have cauliflower crust pizza.

Here’s a list of what they offer:

Pizza Bite Snacks

 

Click Here to Order Snacks

Enchiladas

Click Here to Order Enchiladas

2X Serving Pizzas

Personal Pizzas

Click Here to Order 2X Serving Pizzas

Cauliflower Pizza Crusts

Click Here to Order Cauliflower Pizzas

 

*Images of products above are courtesy of Real Good Foods.

mysugr bundle unboxing thumbnail

mySugr Bundle Unboxing and FREE mySugr Giveaway

I have recently made the decision to start using mySugr. They were nice enough to send me a free mySugr Bundle. Below is my unboxing of the Bundle, as well as a FREE Giveaway announcement at the end!

To be eligible for the mySugr Bundle giveaway, simply enter below. You can enter up to 6 different ways and have a total of 9 entries into the contest. The TWO winners will be announced on Tuesday August 21  Tuesday August 28.

Entries are open until Monday, August 27 11:59 PM EST

 

MySugr Bundle FREE Giveaway

Upcoming Giveaways

The time to be subscribed to my newsletter is definitely right now. I will be doing multiple giveaways over the next month. Here’s a list of current giveaways already scheduled:

  • Real Good Foods
  • MySugr
  • Frio
  • ClimateCase
  • 5 Different Books
  • And More!!

There will also be special coupons that are sent out via the newsletter first.

So sign up below to make sure that you are in the know of when new giveaways are happening.

Better Sleep Equals Better Health – Nectar Sleep Review

One thing that I have never had is good sleep. I’ve always been one to go to bed at 1-2 in the morning and wake up at 7 am and get the bare minimum sleep just because I needed to sleep. The more that I realized this was horrible for my health and that my morning blood sugar spikes could be related to poor sleep.

I am still guilty of going to bed late at night, but I am getting much better sleep now, a lot better!

And that is all due to the fact that I decided to trial the Nectar Sleep memory foam mattress and it is absolutely amazing!

I have the Queen sized mattress from Nectar.

Queen Memory Foam Mattress

I’ve never slept on a good mattress before. Discount sales for mattresses have always been the way to go. This is one of the first memory foam mattresses that I’ve owned, and it came with 2 memory foam pillows and wow, I am in love.

When I actually lay down to go to sleep, I am out. I am not tossing and turning like I used to in the past, but just go right to sleep. When I wake up in the morning, the days of having a stiff neck or sore back are also gone. When I do turn in the middle night, my wife doesn’t feel it at all.

The memory foam pillows are spot on as well. I would have never thought to use a memory foam pillow, but now that I have one from Nectar Sleep, I will never go back.

So, Nectar Sleep offers a 365 night trial. Yes, you heard me right, a 365 night trial. You can sign up here to start your 365 night trial for free.

It will arrive in a blue Nectar Sleep tubular bag. Caution, it is a bit heavy, so you may require two people to carry it.

Once you open the bag, it is very easy to set up. Be sure to place the mattress where you want it to be. You don’t have to put it on a bed frame at all if you don’t want to. In fact, I would recommend letting the mattress unfold and breathe directly on the floor.

 

It is incredible how this amazingly comfortable mattress came in such a small package.

I was always hesitant about these beds until I actually own one.

We decided to put our mattress on a small metal bed frame because we needed the storage room underneath the bed.

Click here and get $125 Off + 2 Free Memory Foam Pillows – Use Coupon Code SHOP125

So how has the mattress helped with my health?

For one, the extra sleep has provided me with more energy when I wake up in the morning, which ultimately means less caffeine is needed.

My blood sugars still see a spike in the morning time (always have), but on nights when I get a great night’s sleep, they don’t seem to spike as much in the morning time. So, I’m not a doctor or a scientists, but I can put 2 and 2 together, better sleep = better BG activity in the morning.

Links above may include affiliate links which result in me earning a commission on any purchase made at Nectar. These commissions help to keep this blog running and allowing me to share useful information with you.
hint Water

I Gave Up Soda and Juices for hint Water – Sponsored Post

A few months ago I was sitting at the dinner table pouring the remaining diet soda from a 2 liter bottle. I realized that I just opened this 2 liter at lunch time. I thought about how much water I had to drink that day and the answer was easy…. none.

I had a few cups of coffee and a bunch of soda throughout the day, but no water.

It’s no wonder why I felt sluggish all the time. The amount of water I was drinking was extremely low.

My wife would come home with the 12-packs of diet soda, 3 for $10 and they would be gone by the time the next shopping trip came the following week.

I’ve always forced water down just because I knew I needed it. Whether it’s because I am going to the gym and want to be hydrated or I am dealing with a high blood sugar and I need to hydrate and flush my system, I’ve just always had to force the water down.

I can’t remember the last time I thought to myself, “I could really go for a nice ice cold glass of water”.

Just last night I thought to myself, “I could really go for a bowl of ice cream”, but that’s a totally different story!

hint logoThe story of how I came across hint water goes like this. Every Monday I receive the Gary Vaynerchuk Hustler’s Digest and for a while, he was allowing brands to do a giveaway or discount at the bottom of his newsletters. I just so happened to be sitting at the computer at that exact time on a Monday when hint was giving away a free case of water.

I was one of the first 200 or so people to sign up for the free case of water.

I actually won something from a newsletter, sort of.

I’ve tried plenty of different flavored water options. Flavored, soda water, powder mixes, liquid squeezers, everything. And nothing tasted right. So, at first, I was not sure if I was going to even like the hint water, but I figured I’d give a try.

My thoughts on flavored water changed when I tried hint for the first time.

Yes, this is a sponsored post, and yes, I really do drink hint and think that it’s amazing.

I love hint because it tastes natural and real. Because it is.

hint Water Variety PackI’ve been drinking hint for a while now and drinking water is no longer something that I force. I love the taste of the watermelon infused water. It’s not overwhelming to the point that it tastes fake and artificially sweetened.

It actually tastes like water with a hint of strawberry.

Now, I must say that I haven’t fully substituted hint out for all water consumption in general. I still drink a glass of regular water in the morning, before and after the gym (when I actually go) and one at dinner. But, I have replaced soda, juices, and other sparkling water drinks with hint.

When I first tried hint after winning the GaryVee giveaway, I tried their original fruit infused water. I was then able to try their hintfizz water as well. The hintfizz is their version of sparkling water and has some carbonation to it. I like to drink this at dinner time because the carbonation gives it that feeling of drinking a diet soda, but without all the bad that comes along with it.

My wife and I have even started giving our daughter hint water. Her favorite is the watermelon. Which makes total sense hint fizz Water Variety Packsince her favorite fruit to eat is watermelon. She now always asks “daddy, can I have some watermelon water please?”

Of course it’s impossible to say no when she says please…. right?

As I mentioned above and I will repeat it again here, this is a sponsored post, but these are my true feelings about hint. I wouldn’t promote something and share with you if I didn’t use it myself, and also love it myself.

That’s the main reason why I decided to do this sponsored post.

I’ve heard a lot of people with diabetes talk about not drinking enough water because they hate water. Well, this is a perfect reason to not hate water anymore and to increase your intake of water. Most diets that exist today would allow hint to be included in it. For example, hint was just recently accepted into the Whole30 diet.

I still enjoy a diet soda, or two….. Ok 3… when I’m eating out, but when I’m home, it’s all natural infused water.

Just a few facts about hint:

  • Zero diet sweeteners
  • Zero calories
  • Zero preservatives
  • Vegan
  • Gluten-free
  • Non-GMO
  • All Natural

Some of their flavors include:

  • Raspberry
  • Peach
  • Watermelon
  • Honeydew
  • Blackberry
  • Blood Orange
  • Crisp Apple
  • Pineapple
  • Peppermint
  • Strawberry Kiwi
  • Grapefruit
  • And more

You can check out all of their flavors and products at DrinkHint.com

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Diabetes Patient Advocacy Coalition (DPAC) Releases New Advocacy App – Review

If you haven’t heard of the Diabetes Patient Advocacy Coalition (DPAC) yet, then you can check them out with the link and you can read everything that I’ve written about them over the last couple of years by clicking on this custom search.

I have been a huge fan of DPAC from the day I found out about them. They have done so much for diabetes advocacy that it’s unreal. They have truly made it so easy and simple to advocate. You can go to their website and just click on your reps names and send them tweets and emails. Seriously, how much easier can it get?

Well, they actually did just make it that much more easier. Like many others, I live on my phone or iPad. I’m connected to it at all times. I love apps. I particularly love apps that do good. And this one does.

Now, you can simply download the DPAC App and advocate right from your phone.

 

Well, here’s my initial review of the app.

Diabetes Patient Advocacy Coalition (DPAC) App Review Click To Tweet

Once I downloaded the app, it was super easy to set up. You can link to your Facebook or Twitter account or email if you would like. This creates your profile for others to see. I love the idea of building a community around advocacy. It helps me knowing that others are participating in some of the same efforts that I am.

The profile set up part was super easy.

Diabetes Patient Advocacy Coalition - DPAC App 1

 

By inputting your address, the app is able to figure out exactly who your reps and Senators are and makes it super easy to then contact them.

The next part was to simply take action, already. For me, the easiest, quickest thing to do was going to be to Tweet my Representative. So, that’s what I clicked on. Once you click on Tweet your Representative, a second option pops up for which one you want to tweet to. Click on the button and it will automatically draft your tweet for you. You can add more to the tweet if more characters are available. If you don’t want to edit, then just simply send the tweet.

Finally, you will get confirmation of your tweet and you can go back and start taking more actions.

Earning Points

People are driven by success. Success can be measured in any way that you want to. I am super competitive, in anything. I compete against my diabetes to beat it. I compete against fellow advocates, because I don’t want to be out-advocated. It drives the advocacy efforts.

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Doing more to collect points is a way to keep people engaged and keep people doing more. If you’re last on the leaderboard and you feel like you’ve done enough, chances are, you haven’t, so you will want to do more.

Do More.

It’s a quote I have everywhere around my life. Simply, Do More.

Simply Do, Then Do More. Click To Tweet

So, there’s my review. The app is super easy to navigate. It really does make advocating so easy. You can do this while waiting in your doctor’s office, while you’re waiting for the water to boil for dinner, in the bathroom, waiting for your coffee to brew, anywhere!

Download the app here (iOS Link)

Dario Meter Review

I was sent a Dario All in One meter to review last month, so I figured it was time to get my review up.

When I first heard about the Dario meter, my initial thoughts were:

Cool, I can use my iPhone to test my sugar.

Awesome, the strips and lancing device are all in one, so less items I have to carry.

That was all I knew about the product before I received it.

When I first received the item in the mail, I liked the white box that the meter and strips came in. It felt very Apple-ish, and one thing to know about me, I love my Apple products. The box was actually extremely difficult to open. I basically had to rip the entire thing open because I couldn’t just easily take the meter and other items out of the box.

Inside the box was was the meter, lancets, the device that goes into the audible jack and a sample vial of 25 test strips.

The instruction manual made it very simple to set the meter up. On one end of the device the test strips slip into an open compartment that has a white cover. On the other end, the lancing device is attached. On the other side is a button to push up and then the actual meter pops out and plugs into the audible jack on your iPhone.

Setting up the meter itself was pretty quick and easy and simple to do.

The next step was to install the Dario app from the Apple Store. Once the app was installed, I just opened up the app and followed the instructions.

File_002(2)

The kit also came with these bags to put your iPhone in so that there is no contamination of blood. This is a great idea, even though I only used the bags for the initial first test.

File_004(2)

The entire set up was pretty easy to get ready to test.

My first test however, was not the best, as you can see.

File_003(2)

The kit also came with an additional 25 test strips, so I used the meter 50 times. I feel after 50 tests, that is enough to determine whether or not you like something.

I loved having the app automatically logging my BG’s for me and giving me a quick snapshot of my average results. As soon as I opened the app, it provided me with what my average blood sugar was. As you can see, I had a rough couple of weeks with blood sugars. Also, this is why meter BG logging doesn’t always tell the whole story because if my CGM said 120, I don’t test, so it skews higher.

File_000

Final Thoughts

Overall, I did like the meter. I liked the ease of use and having the test strips and lancing device all in one. It was less that I had to carry. In fact, I didn’t even carry my whole meter bag that I usually do because I could just keep this in my pocket and that’s it. I like being able to test directly on my iPhone.

The biggest downside to me was that I had to have my phone on me in order to test. I like to test in the middle of the night when I wake up to use the bathroom, but pretty much every time I forgot my phone on my night stand and had to go back out from the bathroom to get my phone in order to test.

I also did not like that I had to wait to open up the app in order to test. It would be nice for the app to open automatically once the jack was plugged in. But hey, those are things that would make the perfect device. Testing on the iPhone was great, so I am not going to complain about having to open up the app first.

I would not use the Dario meter as my full time meter, however I would like to keep some test strips as a back up meter. I like it for traveling purposes because it’s easy to just put in my pocket.

I would recommend this meter to people though because overall, I like it.

What would make this meter the perfect fit?

Truly be all in one. Meaning that the test strips, lancing device and the meter itself is all in the same device, no needing to connect to the iPhone. Then, once the test is complete, it can send the results directly to my iPhone via Bluetooth without me needing to open up the app.

Have you used the meter? If so, I would love to hear your feedback.

Please leave a comment or message on Facebook.

 

Advocate Diabetes Stor-More Review

I was recently sent a Diabetes Stor-More from Advocate and decided to review the product. I currently have most of my diabetes supplies that I use frequently on my bathroom counter and my wife does not like that very much. When I heard about this product, I was actually very happy to review it because I really needed something to help with my countertop organization.

I currently have a pretty good organization method for my supplies, but my daily use items, not so much, especially syringes.

When I am on MDI, the syringes don’t always go right into the sharps container. I usually collect a bunch until they get out of hand and then throw into a sharps container. This has a nice compartment that you can either put unused or used syringes in.

There is also a great place to put your testing strips, meter, lancing device, insulin and more.

The bottom drawer pulls out and includes more storage for other items. I have currently been able to use it to store an extra infusion site, sensor, infusion site inserter and tape for my Enlite sensors.

You could possibly use it for gauze, alcohol pads, etc.

My wife is extremely happy that I now have this storage device.

I would definitely recommend it, especially if you keep supplies in your bathroom or kitchen counter or office desk, etc.

You can purchase this device directly at Advocate. You will have to call in to order.