Some of you may have heard of the DAFNE program. (it always reminds me of that song ‘Oh Mandy’ by Barry Manilow…. oh dear). It stands for ‘Dose Adjusted For Normal Eating’ and it’s a five day course to teach diabetics how to adjust their insulin doses for eating and exercising…. so press releases and media articles tell me.

I’ve read snippets about this before and never really found out all that much more. I recently saw this article and was really interested in Alfrey Bloom’s story, so hunted down her email address and got in touch with her. Here’s what she had to say:

I’m so glad to hear that so many people are reading the article and feeling inspired by it. I can tell you one thing for sure, and that is that I had most definitely given up in regards to my diabetes control before DAFNE…

DAFNE truly is a life saver. Now not only has my HbA1c now dropped to 6.6, but I’ve joined the gym and am well on my way to safely shedding some unwanted kilos! I’m in there doing BODY COMBAT classes with the rest of the fit and healthy people!!!!

My attitude has changed too. My best friend keeps telling me how proud of me she is, she’s the one who knew how hard I had hit rock bottom. I used to come home from my diabetes appointments in tears every time, it would take every ounce of strength I had to just show up to them in the first place…Now it’s like I’m a celebrity when I walk in there!

Anyway please feel free to ask any questions you have. My hope is that I can help other people learn that they can control their illness in a way that still lets them be themselves. We aren’t just ‘diabetics’, we are people with personalities and goals and hopes like everyone else. The only difference between us and the rest of the world should be that we are brave enough to poke ourselves with a needle a couple of times a day

So now I’m really intrigued. I’m catching up with Alfrey for a coffee in a couple of days’ time and plan to ask her a heap of questions on your behalf. I’ll fill you in after that.