Editor’s note: The following review contains content that may be unsuitable for our younger readers.

Is “The Secrets of Living and Loving With Diabetes” (Surrey Books, 2004) really filled with “secrets” and advice that can help you live more happily with diabetes?

You bet it is!

The new book by Janis Roszler, RD, CDE, LD/N, William H. Polonsky, PhD, CDE, and Steven V. Edelman, MD, offers realistic advice on topics that are important but often considered taboo.

Sensitive Issues Made Easy

The expert trio of Roszler, Polonsky, and Edelman combines their broad knowledge and years of experience working with people with diabetes in this must-have resource.

“The Secrets of Living and Loving With Diabetes” makes use of interactive activities and quizzes, discussion topics and personal accounts to help readers find answers to sensitive topics.

The chapters are filled with a wealth of information and practical, caring advice. Each chapter ends with two helpful lists: What a Person With Diabetes May Want His or Her Friends to Know and What a Loved One May Want the Person With Diabetes to Know.

Best of all, “The Secrets of Living and Loving With Diabetes” offers a thorough chapter on sexual challenges affecting both men and women with diabetes. Here’s an example:
Susan and Tom were both frustrated. Lately, intercourse had become so uncomfortable for Susan, who has had type 2 diabetes for about three years, that she dreaded each time Tom came close. They discussed the problem, but all Tom could suggest were different sexual positions that he found in a book. Susan recalled reading about lubrication problems in a women’s magazine but couldn’t remember the suggested causes or remedies. Neither Susan nor Tom had any idea that Susan’s diabetes was the major factor keeping her from enjoying their intimate moments to the fullest.

Pass It Along

You can order “The Secrets of Living and Loving With Diabetes” from Surrey Books by calling (800) 326-4430; or, go to www.surreybooks.com. It is also available from Amazon.com and other major booksellers.

Some of the topics addressed by the authors in “The Secrets of Living and Loving With Diabetes” are:

• How to keep diabetes from dominating your personal relationships
• How to prevent diabetes from interfering with your sex life
• What to do about relatives who nag about your diabetes
• How to motivate loved ones who ignore their diabetes
• How to do selfcare in public without causing a scene
• What to do in an emergency