This is part of our Diabetes Stories series, where people living with diabetes share their personal journeys, challenges, and insights.
Hello! Who are you? And tell us a little bit more about your diabetes.
Hey everyone! My name is Ali Abdalkareem. I’m 27 years old, and currently living in San Diego, CA. I’ve been living with Type 1 diabetes for 9 years.I am a full-time entrepreneur and a part-time health/fitness enthusiast. I am also the creator of The Diabetes Daily Hustle and other shows/podcasts related to life with Diabetes.
I was diagnosed in my senior year of high school after my 18th birthday. I did not hide my diabetes, but I also wasn’t a large advocate at the time. In the beginning, there was a lot of messiness from having no education on foods, insulin, and how the body responds to that combination. I had help from my endocrinologist, diabetic educators, and my uncle, who lives with LADA diabetes. In the beginning, I didn’t have a lot of motivation to learn what I could do to better my blood sugar control, and I was more focused on wanting to enjoy food and exercise like I was before diabetes. In other words, I wanted a resolution but didn’t try for a solution or even know if there was one to better my life with diabetes.
It was hard for my family emotionally. It left a heavy heart for my mom that her youngest was living with an autoimmune disease that, at the time, felt unfair or undeserving. Acceptance was probably the hardest part for me and my family. It didn’t take too long for my family to accept my life with diabetes, and feelings of empowerment showed up as I began to control my diabetes and had a new determination to thrive in my new life.
“Educate yourself as much as you can.”
Your treatment
How do you treat your diabetes, did a lot change over the past years and are you able to manage it well?
I support myself as far as my day-to-day operations with diabetes management. My mom has my blood sugar readings on my CGM data and gives me a call whenever I’m low in the middle of the night. In the earlier years, closer to my diagnosis, I had emotional support from my sister, brother, and friends through some of my difficulties.
To treat my diabetes, I take multiple daily injections of Tresiba, Novolog, and sometimes Novolin Regular insulin. I also use a Dexcom G7 to monitor my blood sugar. I used to use Lantus when I was first diagnosed, for a few years on and off before Tresiba. I also spent some time using the Omnipod insulin pump on and off. 
My world did shift after my diagnosis. At first, it seemed negative, but in the long haul, it’s shaped me into the health-conscious and thoughtful person I am today. My outlook on life has more gratitude and perspective for others who go through daily obstacles, and my knowledge of health/fitness has become a love and a superpower. A boring life is a life with no struggle, or obstacles, my life became full of both after my diagnosis, and it shaped me to not stop at the first roadblock when advancing my life.
I would say I am in stable control for the most part; some days are better than others, and some days are not the best by my standards.
Can you recognize the symptoms of a low/high blood sugar? Do you test often and can you tell a bit more about your experiences with low blood sugar?
Yes, I can recognize them. When I am running higher, I tend to feel my skin irritated. When I’m low, I feel weakened throughout my body. I would say I go low sometimes once a day, sometimes five times a week, and sometimes three times in a single day.
Since I use a CGM (continuous glucose monitor), I check my blood sugar levels throughout the day every couple of hours or even minutes.
To treat a hypo, I sometimes use smarties or a piece of fruit.
I experienced two seizures in my life from low blood sugar in the middle of the night. I would say it was an eye-opening experience for me. It was stressful, but it led me to set new rules to live by as far as nighttime lows.
Food and diet
How does your diabetes affect your eating and do you find being on a diet restrictive?
Usually, I fast in the mornings and eat my first meal around 12 p.m., which is mainly breakfast foods like eggs, oatmeal, and Greek yogurt. Dinner usually includes some fish with rice or bread and vegetables.
I enjoy my snacks most days. I snack on protein bars and fruits, and I’ll have a dessert most days, such as frozen yogurt, ice cream, or a pastry. My favorite food is burritos or some fish with rice.
My insulin doses will always vary depending on my food choices and activity levels. I will increase my insulin intake if a particular food has more fat and carbs, especially if I am not moving much after that meal.
I aim to drink 50 to 70 fl oz (ca. 2 l)of water daily. I drink water first thing in the morning, during workouts, and regularly throughout my days.
I do feel that diets can be restrictive. I spent years eating a specific set way that felt very difficult most days. It was difficult for me during those years because the foundation of my relationship with eating and food was unhealthy. My mindset was not in a healthy space to restrict myself, which led me to take ten steps back after every few steps forward. Eating is a lifestyle that we all participate in daily, being on a diet for the purpose of a short term ideal can be wasteful, unless otherwise you are competing for something specific to physique/athletic goals.
I used to feel annoyed when people would say a certain comment when they saw certain foods I would eat. These days, I mostly have empathy for others. We as people living with this disease every day have to understand that others do not live with our condition, and so their knowledge can be very limited. It’s mostly coming from a place of care or even curiosity as to why or how we can eat certain foods. It is our job to be kind and educate what we have learned.
Do you believe that a plant based diet can improve diabetes? Did you ever experiment with this?
I believe most diets that aim to keep your calories and macronutrients in balance with your activity levels can mostly improve your control of diabetes, or at least make life easier. Diet alone, such as plant-based diets, can still make life challenging with diabetes if you do not understand how insulin and food react to your body. We, as people living with diabetes, must have the combination of a healthy eating lifestyle plus the execution of insulin management.
Do you have a hard time eating out in a restaurant? And what are you thoughts on making this easier?
These days, eating at restaurants still has its fair share of challenges because of the different foods I may eat. I am not too good at multitasking as far as being social with others while trying to calculate my pre-bolus timing, macronutrient counting, and activity level post-eating.
Usually, I tend to throw a random number while trying to stay present in my environment. What helps me make this challenge a bit easier is just being “close enough.” The calculations of insulin and food may not be spot on, but close to the point of keeping a goal of staying within a certain blood sugar range. Most foods have a general rule of thumb, so we must apply that ideal to what we choose to eat.
I enjoy going to sushi, Mexican, and Middle Eastern restaurants.
“It is a manageable disease when managed properly with applied knowledge.”
Exercise and work
Does your diabetes restrict you from exercise or your daily job?
Yes, I do exercise. I weight train about 3 to 4 times a week and do some cardio activity 2 to 3 times a week.
I work with used electronics, mainly on my phone or laptop, most days. It doesn’t really affect my diabetes.
Final
Do you have any positive or negative effects because of your diabetes?
The hardest part of having diabetes is consistently caring for blood sugar in relation to eating, exercising, and sleeping. It would feel nice to have a meal or snack and go to bed worry-free, without extra alarms to adjust blood sugars.
The best part is the constant reminder to take care of myself. The challenge also breeds growth and experience.
Since my diagnosis, I have struggled largely with my relationship with food, especially early after my diagnosis. I used to binge-eat and didn’t feel like I had control over how I chose to eat and how often. I believe diabetes brought that particular challenge to more light.
What is the best advice that you can give to non-diabetics, new diagnosed diabetics and diabetics?
It is a manageable disease when managed properly with applied knowledge, and living a normal life is achievable.
My best advice is to tell someone to cut their learning curve. The knowledge is out there, and it can save a lot of heartache to read or listen to others’ experiences of where you want to be. Most challenges in life stem from a lack of knowledge of that particular obstacle.
Learn about carbs and insulin and how the human body works from a basic understanding, exercise, and learn about proteins and fats. Everything is integrated and works together when you start to piece together the puzzle. It will eventually make sense, and you can start to have a better understanding of achieving a healthier and more controlled life with diabetes.
Educate yourself as much as you can, not only about the basics we are taught about carbs and insulin, but also about what goes beyond that.
What would you ask the other diabetics?
Do you think life after a diabetes diagnosis exposed who you are as a person or changed who you are?
Share your thoughts in the comments—I can’t wait to hear from you!
Ready to share your story with the world?
At Diabetic Me, we dive into the real-life stories of people living with diabetes, uncovering the challenges, triumphs, and everything in between. Through these powerful stories, we aim to shed light on what it truly means to live with diabetes, offering understanding, inspiration, and support.
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Oh great, as if I didn’t have enough to do, now I need to become an expert on this too. Thanks, Ely Fornoville, for the gentle reminder.
If only managing my diet was as easy as managing a fantasy football team, right? Lol, guess I gotta level up my health game instead of my gaming skills.
hey, so if its manageable, what’s the best way to start learning? kinda overwhelmed here. thx
start with trusted sites n forums, helped me a lot.
Books and local support groups are also fantastic resources. One step at a time. 🙂