What diabetics are saying about FA
Quotes from FA members who struggled with type 2 diabetes
This woman was told she would die of a heart attack. Her diabetes has been in remission for 15 years thanks to FA. Here is her story:
"I had type 2 diabetes. One day my doctor told me that I could easily die of a heart attack from diabetes. He said I wasn't going to go blind or lose a limb, but It scared me to my core. So when a friendly women at the grocery store told me about FA, I was desperate. I followed the program and lost 115 pounds in the first 10 months without even exercising! My diabetes is now in remission and has been for the last 15 years. And my weight has stayed off because of my new life in FA. I am forever grateful. Thank you God!"
After having a stroke, this woman found her diabetes disappeared in FA. Here is her story:
"When my doctor initially told me I had type 2 diabetes, I flipped out. At the time I weighed 256 lbs. and had already had one stroke. I needed to test my blood twice a day, every day. When I asked my daughter what I could do she said FA. In FA, my type 2 diabetes has completely disappeared. My A1-C is now 5. I am now 73 years old and have been free to enjoy my life fully without any traces of type 2 diabetes since shortly after entering the program. Yay for FA."
This African American woman never came to FA for a cure for her diabetes. She just wanted to lose weight. Here is her story:
"I found the FA program in 2009. I was 63 years old and weighted 310 pounds. I was also on more than 12 different medications and had to give myself 3 insulin shots each day. My A1-C was 12.1 and I had been living like this since 2003. Every day I took my blood sugar and my numbers were always in the 300s. In my first 3 months in the FA program, I lost 60 pounds. By the 6th month in FA, I had lost over 80 pounds and was off almost all of my medications. Still, my doctor wanted me to stay on my insulin shots. When I began to wake up at 1 am with cold sweats because my blood sugar was dropping so rapidly, I realized I needed to get off insulin shots completely. By 8 months, only 2 months later, I was totally off my insulin and all 12 medications. It has been over 12 years now. At age 76, I feel wonderful. I still work and enjoy my life. My sister, who also has type 2 diabetes, unfortunately took a different path. The FA program is for people who want it not for people who need it. She never wanted to do what I do in FA. She has had several strokes and is now on dialysis in a care facility. I know my type 2 diabetes was a direct result of the amount and types of foods I was eating, all that flour and sugar and the quantities. I never came into FA looking for a cure for my diabetes, I just wanted to lose weight. Getting rid of my diabetes was a wonderful bi-product. My doctor says I am a walking miracle, but I meet people just like me in FA every day. I’m really grateful for my FA way of life. Sometimes my friends say, “why don’t you leave that program now, you know what to do.” But people don’t understand that food addiction is a disease. My friends used to say, “just stop eating.” I could never do that. I had no off-switch. I love FA and I thank G-d every day that I found it and I’m not going anywhere. I just want to keep doing what I’m doing one day at a time."
Excerpts of stories of recovery from FA members with type 2 diabetes
She was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes -- but then she found FA. Here is her story:
...Within 3 months of starting FA, I no longer needed insulin.
Diabetes is prevalent on both sides of my family. I have a grandfather, aunts, and uncles who have suffered from diabetes and alcoholism. My grandfather and aunt each lost both their legs, and another aunt went blind from diabetes.
My blood sugars were averaging in the 200s and my vision was getting pretty fuzzy. When my diabetes started getting really bad, I was taking four pills, 40 units of insulin, and high blood pressure medicine, but I couldn’t tolerant cholesterol medicine. My doctor told me that the next step was to add insulin before meals, and he warned me that my diabetes would be really hard to manage. He told me again that I needed to lose weight and that I was really headed for serious complications.
Within three months of starting FA, my glucose levels were under control and I no longer need insulin or medication for depression. My cholesterol is down to 151. It’s a miracle! I’ve can’t remember when I have felt this good.
It took me six months to hit my goal weight of 125 pounds. I enjoy my food and no longer suffer from indigestion. I’m amazed that measuring and weighing three meals a day has given me my life back!
He was a type 2 diabetic for 8 years -- then a friend suggested a FA meeting. Here is his story:
...At 45 years old chronologically, my body felt much older than that. I weighed 277 pounds and had every possible complication of obesity. I had been a type 2 diabetic for eight years, had high blood pressure, high cholesterol, sleep apnea, arthritis in all of my joints, fluid retention in my legs, and reflux. The arches in my feet were flattening out because of the weight on them, and I was on 14 different medications to keep me as healthy as a morbidly obese person could be. I knew that I would be dead by the time I was 60.
Then a friend of mine invited me to an FA meeting, where I learned that I am a food addict. In FA, I could address the physical side of food addiction, and also the emotional and spiritual side.
After 4 months of being in FA and staying abstinent, my type-2 diabetes went into remission. I have not had to take type 2 diabetes medications since, and I have maintained a 100 lb weight loss for over the last 7 years. In addition, my blood pressure and cholesterol are also now normal. My doctor is astounded and says I am a walking miracle, but I see this all the time in other members of FA.
She had type 2 diabetes just like her mother and father. After a doctor's warning, she joined FA. Here is her story:
...I am diabetic type 2. My doctor warned me I could lose my legs or I could become blind. My mother was diabetic and died at the age of 50. My father was diabetic, refused to have treatment, and died in his 60s. Even though I taught lots of fitness classes, the weight kept going up. The more exercise I did, the more I ate.
My diabetes and cholesterol were getting worse, and my life was at stake. Then one day a friend in my fitness class took me to FA and I lost 45 pounds within a year. My diabetes improved. And the best part is that now when I sink into the water, my belly doesn't float above the surface!
She was a 57-year-old prediabetic with cholesterol over 300. FA saved her from developing diabetes. Here is her story:
...At 57 years young and 5 foot 11 inches tall, I finally crossed that “line-in-the-sand” with my weight and reached 280 pounds. I was pre-diabetic with cholesterol over 300 and arthritis in my knee, shoulder, and fingers. So I went to a FA meeting. At this meeting, I heard community, love and hope. I stayed, lost weight, and never crossed the line into full-blown diabetes. And my arthritis? It took me a couple of years before I realized that the pain and the spread of my arthritis had stopped for me.
Find out more about how FA works and learn what steps to take to get started:
Take this quiz to see if your behavior around food might be contributing to your diabetes:
Resources for Diabetics from Food Addicts in Recovery Anonymous (FA)
- What is FA?
- Am I a Food Addict?
- Find a FA Meeting
- Learn How to Get Started in FA
- Read More Stories of Recovery from Diabetes