Phillip’s diabetes story: “My whole life changed.”

After months of feeling sick and dealing with high anxiety and stomach problems, Phillip Homburg finally went to the emergency department. He assumed he had a severe case of the stomach flu. 

“Due to my age and how long my symptoms had been happening, the doctor tested my blood sugar and A1C, which were both high,” said Phillip. “He was fairly confident I was diabetic.”

To say the news came as a shock is a bit of an understatement.

“I wasn’t expecting, at 40, to be diagnosed as a type 1 diabetic,” he said. “It changed my whole life.”

More than 18,000 Islanders live with type 1 and 2 diabetes. Support is available through the Provincial Diabetes Program so people like Phillip can live life to its fullest, while managing

their diabetes.

“The Provincial Diabetes Program works as a partner in the collaborative health care team,” said Amanda Clinton, clinical lead with the Provincial Diabetes Program. “The program supports patients and helps them with self-management and education around diabetes, to increase their independence in managing their chronic illness.”

“The support at the diabetes clinic has been excellent. The general stigma around being diabetic has also improved, I think. My friends and family have been so great. There’s a lot of hope on the horizon.”

     – Phillip Homburg

The Provincial Diabetes Program is delivered by certified diabetes educators. These individuals are either registered nurses or registered dietitians who have undergone additional training and examination with Diabetes Canada. 

These programs are designed to equip people with the tools to live the best they can, knowing their bodies might not work the way they might want them to,” said Tayte Willows, manager for Chronic Disease Prevention & Management. Our educators are so fantastic at helping people figure out what their best life looks like. It’s a personal and unique journey for everyone.”