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Recovery Goals: Healthy & Happy

By Happiness & Joy, Health, ThinkingNo Comments

I’ve been thinking a lot about recovery from an addiction to alcohol or other substances. I’m a Specialist Addictions Nurse and author of The Alcohol Therapy Workbook.

For someone with an addiction professionals often ask them about their goals in relation to recovery. It’s an important question: What are your goals in relation to your drinking and/or substance use?

Afterall, everybody’s definition of addiction recovery is as unique as they are. Asking clients this question and developing a care plan that works towards these goals is at the heart of every treatment system.

But what I’ve been pondering lately is what about the professional’s goals? Are we open and upfront about our goals for the client with the client and their relatives?

We know that professional’s goals maybe influenced by many things including: the ethos of the organisation they work for, their individual values, their feelings about what would be in the best interests of the client, etc.

It got me thinking about my recovery goals for the clients that I work with. I have two goals when working with clients: To make them healthy and happy. These goals are no mean feat.

On first impression these goals don’t seem SMART. But when you explore what both health and happiness mean to the client and how they would like to live their life, they do break down into measurable SMART goals.

If you’ve got an addiction to alcohol or other substances, contact your GP or local community Drug and Alcohol Treatment Service for support.

My Best Wishes,

Antony

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Friday 18 April 2025

Health Update: 1 Year

By HealthNo Comments
Me with my latest book.

It’s nearly been 1 year.

One year since I developed a hole in the roof of my mouth. So I thought I’d give you a health update.

The hole remains the same size that it’s been for a while now. It is affecting my speaking, eating and overall mental wellbeing. I’ve seen a Surgeon who says he can fix the hole, but wants my HbA1C to be 40mmol/mol prior to surgery. It is currently 54mmol/mol. This has been achieved thanks to my insulin pump.

My diabetes team and GP both feel the surgeon’s goal is unrealistic and unachievable for a Type 1 diabetic like myself. My diabetes consultant and GP have both written to the surgeon.

I have written to the surgeon, asking about flexibility around this target and timescales for surgery. I’ve had a CT and MRI scan and am due to see the surgeon again in June.

I am hoping the summer will bring some good news on the surgery front.

My Best Wishes,

Antony

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Friday 4 April 2025

6 Months In: Medtronic Pump Failure

By Health, Technology, ThinkingNo Comments

I’m still in shock.

After 6 months of using the Medtronic insulin pump and it having a massive positive impact on my health via its SmartGuard feature, it has broken. The pistol/motor stopped working.

I want to start this post by saying thank you to Medtronic who have been amazing at organising an immediate replacement. They answered my call in the early hours of Sunday morning and got a new pump out to me within 48 hours.

The Medtronic MiniMed insulin pump flashed an Error 37 and at one point an Error 38. Both of these according to Google are motor errors.

I had to switch back to multiple daily injections, but my blood sugars were instantly less well controlled. Giving me several incidents of hyperglycemia in the 48 hours and a lot less time in range. I didn’t realise how reliant I had become on the pump at keeping my blood sugars in normal range. I can only hope that this short period doesn’t affect my Hba1C test results going forward as this could impact on my ability to have surgery to fix the hole in the roof of my mouth.

It has made me super thankful for my pump and the alarms when things go wrong or might be going wrong. I’m hoping this pump doesn’t do the same thing in six months. I will keep you updated.

Do you have a Medtronic MiniMed pump? Ever had any problems with it? Where did you go for help and support around it? Let me know in the comments below.

Write soon,

Antony

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Tuesday 25 February 2025

Health & Future Plans Update: A Dramatic Reduction in HbA1c thanks to Medtronic Insulin Pump

By Books & Authors, Creativity, Gigs & Shows, Happiness & Joy, HealthNo Comments

Health Update

There has been a dramatic reduction in my HbA1c thanks to my Medtronic Insulin Pump. I’ve gone from a HbA1c of 99 to 58. This means I’ve gone from being in the red to the green. It’s all thanks to the insulin pump’s SmartGuard, an algorithm that helps manage my blood sugars and insulin through use of a sensor and pump that work together via Bluetooth.

I’m feeling the benefits of a better controlled blood sugar – less tired, more energy, less susceptible to infections and next to no symptoms of a high blood sugar. There are benefits to my mental health as well, I don’t feel like I’m constantly failing to manage my diabetes anymore and like it is a constant battle every minute of the day.

The hole in the roof of my mouth is still there and still causing me problems with talking, eating and drinking. The surgeon wants an MRI and CT scans before proceeding, but there is a two to three month wait for these on the NHS. I often find myself apologising when I can’t be understood by others and it inevitably impacts on all areas of my life. But it will get fixed and that’s the main thing. This is temporary.

Future Plans Update

A friend and I are planning to go to some of Lancaster Literature Festival. This is in part to get ideas for Wigan Literature Festival. A festival I am hoping will be held later this year.

A friend and I are going to see Comedian Larry Dean in Salford.

Mum and I are going to meet some Alpacas and to watch The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

Finally, I get to go away to Wales with my unofficial adoptive family.

In October, my next book Z-Virus Monsters is released. You can pre-order a signed paperback copy here. Fanatic Members will get the ebook free on release.

I’ve also had another idea for either another article or book, depending on its length and have started the research for it.

I’ve got a lot to look forward too.

Write soon,

Antony

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Friday 21 February 2025