More Research Is Needed

Did you know that a potential long-term side effect from Covid is Diabetes?

Yeah, neither did we. 

While I have bounced back and and almost 100% again, Glenn was not so lucky. 

We thought he was making progress and had begun to eat again but his thirst was off the charts, he was still losing weight at an alarming rate and his fatigue was terrible. 

He went to the doctor who sent him for a chest x-ray because she was concerned about covid pneumonia.

Turns out he does have a mild case of pneumonia, so mild in fact, that if that had been his only complaint the doctor would have given him steroids and sent him home. 

It was the additional symptons that had her concerned so she wanted Glenn to head to the ER. 

Before we could leave I had to organize after school care, transportation to gymnastics, pick ups and dinner. It was a crazy amount of phone calls and texts but thanks to my assistant Jace, the parents of their friend and our wonderful friend Cory, everything worked out well. 

We got to the ER at approximately 4:30. I wasn't allowed in and had to wait in the car. Fortunately, this is the same hospital where my surgery was so I am familiar with the layout and was able to find a lounge where I could hang out, plug in my Kindle and cell phone and wait until they took him back. 

Unfortunately, I didn't last that long. Glenn needed a charging cord for the phone and informed me at 8:30pm that it was going to be at least three more hours until they were going to give him a bed so I gave him my cord and headed home so that Cory could head out. 

Glenn wasn't given a bed until 11:30 last night! 

Turns out that the pneumonia was the least of his problems. 

His blood sugar was over 500! 

Blood sugar, or glucose, is the main sugar found in your blood. It comes from the food we eat and is the body's main source of energy. The blood carries the glucose to all the body's cells to use for energy. 

Normal blood sugar ranges from 70-100. 

What is Diabetes? The American Diabetes Association has a great article that explains it. 

So how does Covid cause diabetes? 

No one is 100% sure but it seems that they are getting closer to understanding what is happening. Recent research has discovered that the beta cells in the pancreas are particularly subject to attack by the Covid virus. Beta cells are responsible for the production of insulin and insulin is what is used to deliver glucose to the cells in the body. This article from abcNews does a nice job of explaining what happens, why diabetics are at higher risk and what happens to the pancreas to cause diabetes to develop in a patient. 

I learned today that viruses in general have long been suspected of causing or exacerbating diabetes. More research is needed but to have identified the attack on beta cells is huge and could lead to greater diabetes break throughs over time. 

Statistics are showing that the danger is worse for children under the age of 18 but, as we have learned, it can still happen to adults. Unfortunately, they don't have enough data to truly understand why some will get it and some won't. There is no way of knowing if the patient was predisposed to it or if they were prediabetic prior to contracting Covid. 

Again, more research is needed. 

Much like the symptons of Covid the side effects are numerous. As a result of Glenn's diagnosis we are now aware of the potential for diabetes but are also learning that other serious side effects include blood clots, strokes, heart issues and Guillain-Barre Syndrome which causes paralysis. 

Unfortunately, Covid is here to stay. I firmly believe that eventually everyone will get it. Some will suffer worse than others and some will just sail through. There is no way to predict how each person will be effected...yet. 

Hopefully, as time passes, the medicines will get better and less people will get it. 

In the meantime, keep an eye on your loved ones, especially the children. If they have had Covid and are suddenly thirsty, fatigued and losing weight they need to be tested for diabetes. 

I did my best to explain to the kids today what was going on. I think they understood. Lucky for us they have a friend who is a Type 1 diabetic so they understand that dad will need insulin and shots. They seemed relieved that he is feeling better already. 

He'll be in the hospital for a few days but his prognosis is good. 

If you are inclined, we'd appreciate if you could send a few prayers up.

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If you have kids under 15 you are most likely familiar with YouTubers.

Specifically, gamers.  

The boys are obsessed with watching other people play video games. These gamers may be most annoying people on the face of the earth. Their over the top drama used to hype up Minecraft is the stuff that creates migraines. 

But...While on YouTube they discovered Mark Rober. 

THE Mark Rober of glitterbomb fame. 

According to the profile on Wikipedia, "Mark B. Rober is an American YouTuber, engineer, and inventor. He is known for his YouTube videos on popular science and do-it-yourself gadgets. Before YouTube, Rober was an engineer with NASA for 9 years where he spent seven of those years working on the Curiosity rover at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory."

Rober only makes one video a month but the boys had not watched him before so we binge watched everything that he had created to date. 

If you have kids who says they hate science, you need to have them watch this guy. He is amazing! 

Warning: Be prepared to do some serious experiments once they are inspired! 

One of the videos he created was  Glitterbomb Trap Catches Phone Scammer (who gets arrested)

Scamming is a numbers game. They send out thousands of emails or phone calls and get a handful of responses that can earn them hundreds or thousands of dollars. We've all received the irritating phone calls and emails. Most of us ignore them but, once in a while the scammers get someone on the phone and get them talking. They convince them that they will be sending a refund and then walk them through a number of steps that ultimately gives the scammer access to the person's personal information. 

Scamming is a $20 billion industry. Scammers are warehoused in packed call centers who use scare tactics and threats to extract thousands of dollars from unsuspecting people. 

They are smart, unscrupulous and corrupt. 

They don't care if they are taking a person's last dollar. They care about making money. 

We all think that "people should know better" and we should but they are crafty. 

One of the people who assisted Mark Rober was YouTuber Scammer Payback. While I was recovering from my mastectomy I spent lots of time watching his videos. 

I'll never have the mental capacity for programming but I am very grateful for guys like this who can expose these scammers and send the authorities to their door! 

Today I received an email stating that my annual subscription to Norton Antivirus was being automatically renewed through Amazon. The email stated that if I had questions or concerns I could call the number provided in the email. 

I don't have Norton. In fact, I haven't had Norton in years. And even when I did have Norton, I purchased it through Norton not Amazon.

But just to be sure I hadn't accidentally purchased it in the past, I double checked my order history. 

Nope. No Norton. 

Because I had watched the videos I knew it was the Amazon scam described in the videos but I called anyway. 

They said all the things that Rober and Scammer Payback said they would. 

When I said that I didn't want the renewal they said they could do a refund as long as I had a computer. 

I replied with, "Is this the part where you get access to my computer and get me to sign into my bank?"

He replied, "Oh no. We send you a form to complete." 

I said, "No, no you won't. I don't know how you can sleep at night knowing that you are ripping people off!"

They don't actually take the money, nor do they actually provide a refund but they make it look like they do. Then they get the victim to send them gift cards, money orders and even cash packed with coffee grounds or wrapped in foil! 

They gift cards and cash can't be traced and coffee grounds and foil keep it from being detected by security dogs. 

The lengths they go to is amazing and they are astoundingly successful! 

Scamming is a $20 billion industry. It most likely will not stop any time soon. 

Educating yourself about how they work is the best way to keep them from working on you or your loved ones. 

Huge thanks to Mark Rober and Scammer Payback AKA Pierogi for your work. You saved me lots of money! 

Make sure to click the links and watch the videos!