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‘Friends look out for me'
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| Submitted photo Vonnie Adams, left, celebrates her 50-year partnership with diabetes at her personally-planned party Saturday. Shown here with friends Sheri Strohm and Mary Ann White, right, she holds up one of her favorite gifts - a framed photo of Dr. Ken Gold, her doctor of 25 years, in his younger years. Although Gold couldn’t attend the party, Adams’ friends wanted him to be there in spirit. He would have been the most important guest at the party, Adams said. |
By Julie Becker
Daily News staff writer
Beloit woman ‘celebrates' 50 years living with diabetes
Vonnie Adams remembers clearly the day she was diagnosed with Type I diabetes. It was Valentine's Day, 1957. She was 22 years old, a senior in college at Colorado Springs.
She had been having symptoms like constant thirst, weight loss and extreme fatigue - she thought maybe she had the flu. When she finally made the trip to the doctor she was barely conscious, and she doesn't remember much except the doctor asking to smell her breath. It had the strong odor of acetone - like nail polish remover. The doctor told her she was very ill.
When she left the hospital three weeks later to return to school, she remembers having one distinct thought - one clear-cut commitment to herself.
“I made up my mind right away that my lifestyle would be greatly altered,” Adams said. “Things I did, eating, exercise. I knew right at the get-go that I wasn't going to let it control my life. I was going to control the diabetes, the diabetes wasn't going to control me.”
Fifty years later, the vivacious 72-year-old diabetic - she jokes often, laughs easily and moves quickly and efficiently - has held fast to that commitment, and she's still thriving. In fact, she even had a party, which she planned and coordinated herself, to celebrate.
The gathering - about 140 family members and close friends - was held at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Country Club of Beloit. Not all of the guests knew beforehand what it was for; on the invitation, Adams asked only that friends join her in celebrating her th Anniversary,” not explaining the nature of the anniversary. The guests quickly found out it wasn't just about having a good time, but also an opportunity for Adams to recognize her partnership with diabetes and the assistance she's received from others throughout the years.
“The reason I had this party was not necessarily to celebrate 50 years with diabetes, but to acknowledge my partnership with diabetes for 50 years and to pay tribute to all of my friends and the people in this community that have accepted my challenges, understood them, assisted me and tolerated those challenges,” she explained. “I've had a lot of help from a lot of people, and I think other people have played a bigger part in my health than myself.”
Two organizations Adams especially wanted to acknowledge are the paramedics of the Beloit Fire Department and the Beloit Memorial Hospital, where she has volunteered for 32 years, mostly in the emergency room.
“The paramedics have come to my aid over the years when my diabetes was a real serious issue,” Adams said. “And the Beloit Memorial Hospital has been wonderful to me, both professionally in their care of me and how they've let me stay on (volunteering) for so long. Both will always be close to my heart.”
Volunteering isn't the only connection Adams has to Beloit Memorial Hospital. Her doctor of 25 years, Dr. Ken Gold, practices internal medicine in the Beloit Clinic. Adams said she couldn't have stayed as healthy as she is without his assistance.
“If he had been able to attend my party, Dr. Gold would have been the most important guest there,” she said. “It's his care of me, his confidence in me, his advice and his medical expertise that have gotten me through this and helped me stay in the shape I'm in. He's not only my doctor - he's one of my best friends.”
Considering the steps Adams has to take on a daily basis, though, Gold said she deserves most of the credit. Her diagnosis with Type I diabetes means her pancreas doesn't produce any insulin at all - it all has to be taken through either insulin injections or medication, Gold said.
A typical day for Adams involves checking her blood sugar four times and administering two types of insulin in appropriate amounts, at appropriate times. She has to watch her diet closely, eating healthy and on time, and remain physically active.
She's also had to become more organized, she said, and realize that she can't get up and go at any time without thinking about certain things.
“Having diabetes is being vigilant - not every day, but every hour of every day,” Gold said. “Vonnie has taken extraordinary care of herself. She's lived longer with fewer complications than almost any other patient with Type I diabetes.”
Some complications diabetics can face include kidney failure, heart disease, loss of sensation in the feet, called diabetic neuropathy, and diabetic retinopathy, or blindness.
For almost 25 years, Adams has faced the slow degeneration of her eyesight. Now she is legally blind and almost completely blind in her right eye. She hasn't been able to drive a car since 1986 and she has trouble reading, once a favorite pastime. Although she finds it frustrating, she doesn't dwell on the negative.
“My audio books have been great, and I use this machine (an Optelec ClearView 500, which helps her zoom in on printed documents and change settings for the clearest image) all the time. It's just saved my life,” she said.
“Sure I'm frustrated that I can't see better, but that's part of my life - that is my life. When you don't have an option, you live with it. I have a lot of wonderful friends who look out for me, and I love to be around people and have a good time - I have no complaints. My life is good,” she added, with a satisfied smile.
Vonnie Adams remembers clearly the day she was diagnosed with Type I diabetes. It was Valentine's Day, 1957. She was 22 years old, a senior in college at Colorado Springs.
She had been having symptoms like constant thirst, weight loss and extreme fatigue - she thought maybe she had the flu. When she finally made the trip to the doctor she was barely conscious, and she doesn't remember much except the doctor asking to smell her breath. It had the strong odor of acetone - like nail polish remover. The doctor told her she was very ill.
When she left the hospital three weeks later to return to school, she remembers having one distinct thought - one clear-cut commitment to herself.
“I made up my mind right away that my lifestyle would be greatly altered,” Adams said. “Things I did, eating, exercise. I knew right at the get-go that I wasn't going to let it control my life. I was going to control the diabetes, the diabetes wasn't going to control me.”
Fifty years later, the vivacious 72-year-old diabetic - she jokes often, laughs easily and moves quickly and efficiently - has held fast to that commitment, and she's still thriving. In fact, she even had a party, which she planned and coordinated herself, to celebrate.
The gathering - about 140 family members and close friends - was held at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Country Club of Beloit. Not all of the guests knew beforehand what it was for; on the invitation, Adams asked only that friends join her in celebrating her th Anniversary,” not explaining the nature of the anniversary. The guests quickly found out it wasn't just about having a good time, but also an opportunity for Adams to recognize her partnership with diabetes and the assistance she's received from others throughout the years.
“The reason I had this party was not necessarily to celebrate 50 years with diabetes, but to acknowledge my partnership with diabetes for 50 years and to pay tribute to all of my friends and the people in this community that have accepted my challenges, understood them, assisted me and tolerated those challenges,” she explained. “I've had a lot of help from a lot of people, and I think other people have played a bigger part in my health than myself.”
Two organizations Adams especially wanted to acknowledge are the paramedics of the Beloit Fire Department and the Beloit Memorial Hospital, where she has volunteered for 32 years, mostly in the emergency room.
“The paramedics have come to my aid over the years when my diabetes was a real serious issue,” Adams said. “And the Beloit Memorial Hospital has been wonderful to me, both professionally in their care of me and how they've let me stay on (volunteering) for so long. Both will always be close to my heart.”
Volunteering isn't the only connection Adams has to Beloit Memorial Hospital. Her doctor of 25 years, Dr. Ken Gold, practices internal medicine in the Beloit Clinic. Adams said she couldn't have stayed as healthy as she is without his assistance.
“If he had been able to attend my party, Dr. Gold would have been the most important guest there,” she said. “It's his care of me, his confidence in me, his advice and his medical expertise that have gotten me through this and helped me stay in the shape I'm in. He's not only my doctor - he's one of my best friends.”
Considering the steps Adams has to take on a daily basis, though, Gold said she deserves most of the credit. Her diagnosis with Type I diabetes means her pancreas doesn't produce any insulin at all - it all has to be taken through either insulin injections or medication, Gold said.
A typical day for Adams involves checking her blood sugar four times and administering two types of insulin in appropriate amounts, at appropriate times. She has to watch her diet closely, eating healthy and on time, and remain physically active.
She's also had to become more organized, she said, and realize that she can't get up and go at any time without thinking about certain things.
“Having diabetes is being vigilant - not every day, but every hour of every day,” Gold said. “Vonnie has taken extraordinary care of herself. She's lived longer with fewer complications than almost any other patient with Type I diabetes.”
Some complications diabetics can face include kidney failure, heart disease, loss of sensation in the feet, called diabetic neuropathy, and diabetic retinopathy, or blindness.
For almost 25 years, Adams has faced the slow degeneration of her eyesight. Now she is legally blind and almost completely blind in her right eye. She hasn't been able to drive a car since 1986 and she has trouble reading, once a favorite pastime. Although she finds it frustrating, she doesn't dwell on the negative.
“My audio books have been great, and I use this machine (an Optelec ClearView 500, which helps her zoom in on printed documents and change settings for the clearest image) all the time. It's just saved my life,” she said.
“Sure I'm frustrated that I can't see better, but that's part of my life - that is my life. When you don't have an option, you live with it. I have a lot of wonderful friends who look out for me, and I love to be around people and have a good time - I have no complaints. My life is good,” she added, with a satisfied smile.
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