Westie Lee: Living a Full Life with Type 2 Diabetes

This week on Sweet As! we’re joined by Dr Stephanie Cox for a deep dive into diabetes and pregnancy. Dr Stephanie Cox is a physician specialising in endocrinology, obstetric and general medicine, and is the Clinical Lead for Diabetes in Pregnancy at a large city hospital. Her work focuses on caring for people with diabetes and other medical conditions before, during and after pregnancy. In this episode, Dr Cox explains how type 1, type 2 and gestational diabetes can affect pregnancy, why blood glucose targets change, and what treatment can look like as pregnancy progresses. We also talk about glucose testing, insulin and medication, how diabetes can affect your baby, what happens during labour and birth, and why planning ahead for pregnancy is so important when you have diabetes. . Importantly, Dr Cox also tackles some of the fear and guilt that can come with diabetes in pregnancy. A gestational diabetes diagnosis doesn’t mean you’ve done something wrong, increasing insulin requirements are normal for every pregnant person whether you have diabetes or not. Dr Cox explains the goals of managing diabetes in pregnancy in a simple and often funny way that makes it easy to understand why we care so much about having healthy glucose levels in pregnancy. Whether you are pregnant with diabetes, have had diabetes in pregnancy or are planning to grow your whānau while managing diabetes, this episode is packed with clear information to help you understand what lies ahead and feel more prepared. Enjoying Sweet As!? If you’ve found value in our kōrero, we’d love your vote in the NZ Podcast Awards Listener's Choice Award. Vote via the link in our bio by 26 November. Thanks for your support! https://www.nzpodcastawards.com/nominate Please help support the podcast here: ⁠Buy Me A Coffee⁠ Hosted by Solita & Anika Moa and brought to you by ⁠⁠Aotearoa Diabetes Collective⁠. Podcast filmed & produced by ⁠⁠⁠Fanaticals⁠⁠⁠.

This week on Sweet As! we’re joined by Gemma Bradley, who shares the incredibly powerful story of her daughter Tiara being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at just eight months old. Gemma is a mum of three, business owner and content creator who has been incredibly open about the reality of caring for a baby with diabetes. What began as what seemed like a normal childhood illness quickly became a medical emergency, with Tiara developing severe DKA and being rushed to paediatric intensive care. In this episode, Gemma takes us through the moment she knew something wasn’t right, trusting her instincts after initially being sent home, and the terrifying reality of learning just how sick Tiara had become. She also shares what came next: learning an entirely new language of insulin, pumps, hypos and ketones, the mental load of managing diabetes 24/7, and the impact the diagnosis had on her work, her whānau and her own mental health. It’s an emotional conversation, but also one filled with love, resilience and hope. Gemma talks about becoming more confident as Tiara’s advocate, the importance of having people around you who genuinely want to understand, and the promise she wants Tiara to grow up knowing: we’ll always have your back. Please help support the podcast here: ⁠Buy Me A Coffee⁠ Hosted by Solita & Anika Moa and brought to you by ⁠⁠Aotearoa Diabetes Collective⁠. Podcast filmed & produced by ⁠⁠⁠Fanaticals⁠⁠⁠.

This week on Sweet As! we’re joined again by journalist Megan Whelan, this time alongside her personal trainer Carl Hammington, for a conversation about exercise, strength training and type 2 diabetes. Megan came to strength training later in life and now describes movement as one of the most important parts of managing her diabetes. What began with simply wanting to feel better in her body has grown into a love of lifting weights, powerlifting & discovering just how capable her body can be. In this episode, Megan and Carl unpack how movement and building muscle can support blood glucose management, why exercise doesn’t need to be centred around weight loss, and how starting small can make movement feel far more achievable. They also talk about finding movement you genuinely enjoy, building strength over time and why everyday activity absolutely counts. Whether you’re already active or wondering where to begin, this conversation is a reminder that movement can look different for everyone, and becoming stronger can change far more than what happens in the gym. Please help support the podcast here: ⁠Buy Me A Coffee⁠ Hosted by Solita & Anika Moa and brought to you by ⁠⁠Aotearoa Diabetes Collective⁠. Podcast filmed & produced by ⁠⁠⁠Fanaticals⁠⁠⁠.

This week on Sweet As! we’re back with Dr Tamatea for Part 2 of our conversation about diabetes. Dr Tamatea is a diabetes specialist (diabetologist & endocrinologist), researcher, and leader in Māori health. In our first conversation, she helped break down what diabetes actually is and explain the different types. This time, we’re looking at one of the parts of diabetes that can carry the most fear: complications and what the future might look like. In this episode, Dr Tamatea explains the risks associated with diabetes, what can be done to help prevent complications, and why someone else’s experience of diabetes does not determine your own. We also talk about the impact of intergenerational trauma, the language we use around diabetes, and why blood glucose levels and other health markers should be treated as information rather than something “good” or “bad.” Most importantly, this is a conversation about living well. Diabetes can be challenging, but the future does not have to look the way people fear. Please help support the podcast here: ⁠Buy Me A Coffee⁠ Hosted by Solita & Anika Moa and brought to you by ⁠⁠Aotearoa Diabetes Collective⁠. Podcast filmed & produced by ⁠⁠⁠Fanaticals⁠⁠⁠.

This week on Sweet As! we're joined by dietitian Rachael Wilson and diabetes specialist Dr Ryan Paul to unpack Ozempic, Wegovy and GLP-1 weight loss medicines, and their role in diabetes care. Rachael has more than 20 years of experience working in diabetes and now specialises in supporting people with nutrition, eating challenges and their relationship with food and their bodies. Dr Paul is an endocrinologist and diabetes specialist who regularly uses GLP-1 medicines in the treatment of type 2 diabetes. In this episode, they explain how GLP-1 medicines work, including semaglutide, widely known through the brand Ozempic and currently available in New Zealand as Wegovy, while Ozempic itself is not available here. They also discuss the benefits beyond weight loss, who can access GLP-1 medicines in Aotearoa, side effects, eating enough while taking them, protecting muscle mass, food noise and what people should realistically expect. With so much attention on these medicines as weight-loss drugs, this conversation brings the focus back to diabetes and why GLP-1s can offer wider benefits for blood glucose, heart and kidney health. Please help support the podcast here: ⁠Buy Me A Coffee⁠ Hosted by Solita & Anika Moa and brought to you by ⁠⁠Aotearoa Diabetes Collective⁠. Podcast filmed & produced by ⁠⁠⁠Fanaticals⁠⁠⁠.