Jerry Mathers
April 28th, 2008
Having diabetes came as a big shock to me. When I finished “Leave it to Beaver”, I went to a regular high school. I did a little acting…Lassie, My Three Sons…but I pretty much withdrew from the acting profession. I came back to it later in life, and appeared on a new show called “The New Leave it to Beaver” which I did for 10 years…102 episodes…and those were long hours. I had a fairly young family at the time, two daughters and a son. And, I’d be away from the house for 12-14 hours a day. So when I finished that show I said…”You know, I’m gonna retire now, this is the good life.” I started eating way too much, and not doing a lot of exercise. I put on about 45 or 50 pounds. When I was getting ready to turn 50, a good friend who is a doctor cajoled me into get checked. I finally went in, and she asked me if I wanted to see my kids get married and hold my grandbabies. I said…of course! That’s when she told me that if I didn’t do something about my high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes, I’d be dead in three to five years.
(more…)
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Joey Pantoliano
April 4th, 2008
I was making my latest movie, Canvas, where I play the husband of a woman with schizophrenia. My research, and the experience of making the film, got me thinking about myself.
Several days before we started shooting, I talked to a friend of mine, Charlie, who actually married my wife and me. He told me a few jokes, we planned on Thanksgiving, and then two days later my wife called to say he’d committed suicide. There was no indication that it was coming.
Charlie was the guy you went to with your problems, he was the guy that always cheered you up. I got scared when Charlie killed himself because I had complete apathy about what he had done. I didn’t realize that subconsciously, I wanted to check out. I kept thinking about the peace and comfort that would come to me if I didn’t exist anymore. Why should I exist? I wasn’t a help to anybody. I’d already gotten everything I ever wanted. All I ever wanted to do was be an actor, all I ever wanted to do was be successful. (more…)
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Raymond Strother
April 14th, 2008
“I really, really hate to tell you this,” is how it all began. Prostate cancer! Virulent prostate cancer! A bastard of a disease looking for other organs to attack.
My father died an agonizing death because he refused to be treated. My doctor, a wise and thoughtful man in Washington, D.C., told me that the same cancer that killed my father was likely to be in my future. We stepped up the schedule of my PSA tests. Every ninety days I drained a few centimeters of blood into a tiny glass vial as an investment in a future…ten minutes of my life for a painless and simple test my father refused. Cancer! My doctor was right but I was ready. I had already made my decision. I had too many books to write, too many grand children to teach fly fishing and tall story telling. I would fight. (more…)
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Linda Allison
April 22nd, 2008
Ten years ago, my blood pressure skyrocketed, and I was diagnosed with Raynaud’s Syndrome. Although I wasn’t working at the time, the symptoms of Raynaud’s Disease are devastating - even for a relatively sedentary lifestyle. There are lots of chest pains (angina), throbbing in my extremities, and my hands and toes turned purple and black when I was under stress or out in the cold. This is caused by a decrease in the blood that is circulated because of clogged arteries. The throbbing can be excruciating at different times. In addition, depression was dominant for me because I felt so ill. (more…)
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Mark Miller
April 14th, 2008
I am in my 40th year of teaching World History and coaching varsity football and softball at Linden High School in Linden, Ca. I suffered a heart attack after softball practice in January of 2003. I was taken by ambulance to St Joseph’s Medical Center in Stockton, Ca where a stent was put in my heart. I was then put in the ICU where a nurse weighed me at 390 lbs. Two mornings later I had a major heart attack. The responding nurses saved my life.
I was told to change my lifestyle or die. Over the next 8 months, I had 3 more stents, failed four cardiolite stress tests, and through diet and exercise, lost 190 lbs. In August I was told I needed open heart surgery. I told the doctor that we were a week into football and that the timing was not convenient. He laughed and said “Coach, actually the timing is perfect, without surgery, you are out of time.” (more…)
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Richard Benolken
April 14th, 2008
I am 63 years old and I realize my health won’t be like it was when I was in my 20s. But even for my age I was feeling abnormally, I thought, tired. I couldn’t seem to find any of the energy I once had. I thought my symptoms would only get worse, I thought they were aging signs that were inevitable. I didn’t know that most men over 50 have low testosterone and that low testosterone causes these symptoms. My symptoms included being very lethargic, almost no vitality, low muscle mass, depression and I was having trouble thinking clearly. I would take two to three daily naps and my wife noticed that I my temperament was going south as I was cranky, nitpicked at small things, and generally I was not a pleasant person to live with. (more…)
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Jerry Mathers
April 28th, 2008
Having diabetes came as a big shock to me. When I finished “Leave it to Beaver”, I went to a regular high school. I did a little acting…Lassie, My Three Sons…but I pretty much withdrew from the acting profession. I came back to it later in life, and appeared on a new show called “The New Leave it to Beaver” which I did for 10 years…102 episodes…and those were long hours. I had a fairly young family at the time, two daughters and a son. And, I’d be away from the house for 12-14 hours a day. So when I finished that show I said…”You know, I’m gonna retire now, this is the good life.” I started eating way too much, and not doing a lot of exercise. I put on about 45 or 50 pounds. When I was getting ready to turn 50, a good friend who is a doctor cajoled me into get checked. I finally went in, and she asked me if I wanted to see my kids get married and hold my grandbabies. I said…of course! That’s when she told me that if I didn’t do something about my high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes, I’d be dead in three to five years.
Most people would have had some symptoms, but I absolutely didn’t. I knew I was overweight and tired, but I looked around and saw a lot of people like that, and said it can’t be that bad…but it was!
I like to use my celebrity to go out and tell other people about the danger of diabetes. I was so lucky that my doctor cared about me. I care about my fans that much. People that have diabetes have to take care of it. There are so many people that have been diagnosed with diabetes, who say “it’s not bothering me”. We just have to get to those people and tell them to start treating it because by the time it becomes a problem for you, it could be too late.
If you find out that you have diabetes, you have to treat it aggressively. You’ll have a much better quality of life the earlier you treat it. And it can be a long and productive life. You have to take control of the diabetes. You can’t let it take control of you!
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