What to eat when the right food isn't available (Hurricane Irma)?

@retiredteacher Sorry to hear you were effected by the hurricane. For some reason, knowing that you live out of town in a rural area, I had envisioned you living in the west, like Idaho, Montana, Colorado or whatever!
You mention not being able to eat numerous things "peanut butter, canned meat, chips, crackers, cheese, and those types of things that are not on the list of the Diabetes Diet are all that is edible". No one ever told me that! I eat peanut butter often, cheese, and canned tuna occasionally. There are very low salt brands of tuna now. I sometimes do add mayo to tuna but I also just put chunks of it on top of a salad.
Someone mentioned the nutritional beverages made for diabetics and I do keep those on hand. They make a good, quick breakfast. I will generally throw a can of it into my blender type of machine and often add some strawberries or blueberries to it. It's not bad, I find the vanilla easier to drink in the morning. I love chocolate but not crazy about it in this type of beverage and as far as the other flavors go, I think most of them have a very artificial taste.
JK

It's funny the way we picture people we know only by a forum or blog name. I was born and raised in the deep South. As we say, "American by birth and Southern by the grace of God." That's the way I feel and at my age, I am a Steel Magnolia to the bone. I do live in a rural area because I do not like people crammed in by other people. I enjoy nature, forests, rivers and such. There are drawbacks, as you mentioned: not having massive numbers of specialists and medical facilities to choose from, but that's a small price to pay. I avoid doctors and hospitals because I've never been sickly, so I never thought it would be important. And, at my age, I'm not interested in anyone running tests that may or may not be necessary or prescribing meds to fatten their purses and Big Pharmas. I researched foods for emergencies and that's where peanut butter, crackers, and non perishables that I mentioned came from. The problem is the salt and of course, carbs and anything used to preserve. I don't eat fish: just a personal aversion of mine. We have electricity now, so a trip to the grocery is necessary, although since there is only one and it's small. But, it's okay. I'm probably odd too that I do not drink smoothies or blender drinks. I am not a coffee fan either. I was raised on sweet tea and diet Coke. Now, both of those are on the no-no list. So I drink water. Diabetes is hard for me. Getting a menu for a week is impossible, so I try to do two days at a time. Since I'm not a cook, I sometimes give up, drive, and get meals from a restaurant. There is just no easy way to deal with diabetes; it's all consuming, and I don't like to spend my time that way. At my senior age, I am somewhat stubborn.

Thanks for the suggestions.

retiredteacher

Thanks for checking. We have had a problem since Erma came through. For some reason our water (which is public even though we live in the county) developed a muddy, gritty smell. Our whole county is affected. We have called everyone we know who is supposed to be in charge, and they say it's algae from the river that filters through the treatment plant or whatever has to happen. They don't know what kind of algae, and they claim it's harmless. Now, I don't trust that! If they don't know what it is, how do they know it's harmless? So we have been using bottled water and believe me that is a hassle. I cannot imagine what all of the people are going through who have lost everything from Harvey, Irma, Maria and doing without even the small comforts of living.
We are fine, but my morning blood is still high and my afternoon drops, as usual. It is not consistent, so I am not sure what causes it, and I know there is no one else who does. I have an appointment with my endo. in three weeks. I've asked before about it, but the answer is to see the dietician, and she is clueless. So I adjust it myself and see. I have almost become a vegetarian because I seem to do better with veggies than with meat. From what I've read, as a person gets older, the efficiency of the body slows and sometimes that causes a higher blood read. So, at my age that is probably part of the problem, since I am definitely not a spring chicken! There has been personal stress which is common in my life, and stress contributes also. So many factors that it's just too much to check everything. I continue to do the best I can and have good days and bad days, as most people.
As people say, "Just keep on keeping on." I hope everyone here is doing well. I look forward to cooler temperatures and Fall. I have decorated, even though it's still 90 degrees outside.
Better health to all.

retiredteacher

Thanks for checking. We have had a problem since Erma came through. For some reason our water (which is public even though we live in the county) developed a muddy, gritty smell. Our whole county is affected. We have called everyone we know who is supposed to be in charge, and they say it's algae from the river that filters through the treatment plant or whatever has to happen. They don't know what kind of algae, and they claim it's harmless. Now, I don't trust that! If they don't know what it is, how do they know it's harmless? So we have been using bottled water and believe me that is a hassle. I cannot imagine what all of the people are going through who have lost everything from Harvey, Irma, Maria and doing without even the small comforts of living.
We are fine, but my morning blood is still high and my afternoon drops, as usual. It is not consistent, so I am not sure what causes it, and I know there is no one else who does. I have an appointment with my endo. in three weeks. I've asked before about it, but the answer is to see the dietician, and she is clueless. So I adjust it myself and see. I have almost become a vegetarian because I seem to do better with veggies than with meat. From what I've read, as a person gets older, the efficiency of the body slows and sometimes that causes a higher blood read. So, at my age that is probably part of the problem, since I am definitely not a spring chicken! There has been personal stress which is common in my life, and stress contributes also. So many factors that it's just too much to check everything. I continue to do the best I can and have good days and bad days, as most people.
As people say, "Just keep on keeping on." I hope everyone here is doing well. I look forward to cooler temperatures and Fall. I have decorated, even though it's still 90 degrees outside.
Better health to all.

retiredteacher

Thanks for checking. We have had a problem since Erma came through. For some reason our water (which is public even though we live in the county) developed a muddy, gritty smell. Our whole county is affected. We have called everyone we know who is supposed to be in charge, and they say it's algae from the river that filters through the treatment plant or whatever has to happen. They don't know what kind of algae, and they claim it's harmless. Now, I don't trust that! If they don't know what it is, how do they know it's harmless? So we have been using bottled water and believe me that is a hassle. I cannot imagine what all of the people are going through who have lost everything from Harvey, Irma, Maria and doing without even the small comforts of living.
We are fine, but my morning blood is still high and my afternoon drops, as usual. It is not consistent, so I am not sure what causes it, and I know there is no one else who does. I have an appointment with my endo. in three weeks. I've asked before about it, but the answer is to see the dietician, and she is clueless. So I adjust it myself and see. I have almost become a vegetarian because I seem to do better with veggies than with meat. From what I've read, as a person gets older, the efficiency of the body slows and sometimes that causes a higher blood read. So, at my age that is probably part of the problem, since I am definitely not a spring chicken! There has been personal stress which is common in my life, and stress contributes also. So many factors that it's just too much to check everything. I continue to do the best I can and have good days and bad days, as most people.
As people say, "Just keep on keeping on." I hope everyone here is doing well. I look forward to cooler temperatures and Fall. I have decorated, even though it's still 90 degrees outside.
Better health to all.

retiredteacher

I am not really qualified to address the role stress plays in diabetes for everyone, but it does have a negative effect on me. I have talked to several friends I am in touch with, and they agree that stress does seem to elevate the blood numbers. My stress is pretty much a constant. I do not sleep well at night. I feel as if I'm wasting time if I'm asleep, and that makes me stressed. I know I need to be calm and relaxed, but that isn't always possible. When I am stressed, my blood pressure also increases and so does my blood. I am trying to research to see the correlation. My endo. also told me that I was too stressed, and that made my body have to work harder to absorb the stress. I don't know if that is true or not. I do know that when personal problems change my routine, my blood sugar is higher. For now my husband is having heart problems. He has been a cardio patient with heart disease for seven years. This includes a heart attack, numerous heart caths, blood pressure at stroke level. All of that keeps me totally on edge. I get upset when my blood is high, and that causes more stress. I do not know if other people react this way, but this is the way I am. Even at my age, I cannot change. I am going to be stressed out and in control of what's going on. That's one reason I have a problem with most people in the medical profession. I read and research before appointments so that they cannot talk med-speak to me, and I ask questions that make them know that I am informed. Each person has to know his/her body and be aware of what's happening. Being stressed is difficult. If people can learn to calm themselves, that can be effective. Rather than cry and yell about diabetes, I do my best to control it with what I know. Diabetes is a disease that I will always have, but I must be on top of the disease and do what I can to keep it from taking me down. This old lady still has a lot of fight left in her.

retiredteacher