The Unintentional Experiment That Led Me Back to Higher Performance

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I wish I could tell you this was all an experiment like Morgan Spurlock’s Super Size Me, but the truth is, I fell into a dark place last winter. I wrestled with demons that had been cajoling me from the edges of life. Mostly, I learned how to live with them, but last winter I took the bait.

I was surprised when the cashier at the local store didn’t look at me cockeyed when I bought bags of Oreos night after night. I was half hoping she’d reach across the counter and ask, “Are you okay, honey?” She never did. Demons demand Oreos.

A regular checkup revealed my A1C had spiked to 5.7. “That’s pre-diabetes,” my doc said, with a look of concern in her eye. I’ve been on the receiving end of terminal diagnoses and life-threatening situations more than my fair share in this life, but pre-diabetes? Ouch.

My father was Type I diabetic; I’m genetically predisposed to Type II, according to my gene sequence; and in 53 years, I’ve never even flirted with diabetes.

Then, my dog got sick with meningitis, and I was brought face to face with a principle I have taught clients for years: We cannot truly serve others when we ourselves are out of alignment. The only way to counter chaos is to be the opposite of chaos. Oreos do not lend themselves to a stable internal world.