A Life of Control: Stories of Living with Diabetes

by Alan L. Graber, Anne W. Brown, Kathleen Wolff 

 

 

 

 

Reviewed by Coleen Hart, PharmD Candidate

Graber, Brown, and Wolff’s “A Life of Control: Stories of Living with Diabetes” provides the reader with unbiased, truthful, and endearing visions of how many aspects of life can be affected when living with diabetes.

Through several brief tales and excerpts, the reader is exposed to various emotions and sentiments, obstacles and achievements, trials and tribulations.  Expressions of individual experiences are conveyed with stark emotion.  Written by two certified diabetic nurse practitioners and an endocrinologist who himself has diabetes, this book supplies the reader with education, inspiration, and heart-felt emotion by way of true-tale accounts of those who are affected by this potentially debilitating disease.

The authors creatively divide the stories into four general categories: Control of diabetes through the action(s) of the individual; the roles and various perspectives of family members; the social context and outcomes of diabetes, and the many complexities of the patient-clinician relationship. Each personal account is brief yet descriptive, allowing the reader to clearly identify with each character remaining engaged and anticipating the stories to come.

Various methods of controlling diabetes (or lack thereof), coping mechanisms, and lifestyle practices are all covered. Educational information is presented indirectly through the experiences of each character. The reader will encounter diabetes patients that are very motivated to control their disease and remain healthy, as well as others who lack enthusiasm and concern for diabetes related complications. Healthcare providers will be exposed to numerous perceptions, attitudes, and emotions of diabetic patients, as well as communication techniques and methods used to improve patient care.

A Life of Control: Stories of Living with Diabetes presents a realistic representation of the actual diabetic population. It demonstrates the complexity and multifaceted nature of this lifelong disease that is often not successfully controlled. The authors demonstrate knowledge and experience in dealing with diabetes, as well as compassion for each individual that they encounter.  Each tale holds the potential to provide those affected by diabetes with feelings of support and understanding through descriptive accounts of actual experiences. This book is suitable and appealing to a general audience — including both the diabetic and non-diabetic individual, as well as healthcare practitioners.

If you would like to order this book, please follow the link below to Amazon.com:

A Life of Control: Stories of Living with Diabetes