Picking Up Our Lola

So, I know I have announced this on my Instagram and not on here but myself and my other half are picking up our puppy this week!

We are picking up a beautiful female Cocker Spaniel called Lola! We pick her up on the 8^th June 2022 and I couldn’t be more excited to bring her home! Not only will there be another 4-legged family member in the house at the minute, but she will be the first member of Jake’s and my family! We are due to move into our home any day now which is so exciting.

The breeder is Jake’s uncle, so we have been so lucky to see her several times, my favourite thing so far is that on our last visit Lola recognised us and trotted up to us wagging her tail – it was such a precious moment. Kinda gutted that I didn’t have time to record it but its going to be one of those core memories that we hold of our Lola!

But I wanted to share positives about getting or having a dog whilst trying to manage your diabetes!

You have to walk your doggy!
Walking is brilliant for helping to maintain or reduce blood sugars in a natural way. This being said you still need insulin; you may just need less insulin! Walking helps to increase metabolism which helps to increase the effectiveness of the insulin.

At the minute, I wake up and don’t have the urge to get up and go for a walk but when Lola is old enough to do so, I cannot wait to get up every morning! Personally, for me, walking is the best exercise to reduce my blood sugars so I am hoping she will have many added benefits apart from being the perfect pup!
Will help connect yourself with the outdoors and nature!

I know we will be training Lola outside, with recall and the common commands (before puppy training) and that makes me feel more relaxed (another reason why I love my job as I spend majority of time outside!), I find I am less stressed when I am outside instead of sitting inside, and because of this my blood sugars are much better!
Majority of people who know me or followed me for a long time, know I have suffered with several mental health difficulties over the years. And let me tell you, especially going through university, every time I went home, I’d see my dogs and it just filled me with so much joy and serotonin. When Jake and I finally move into our home, I cannot wait for the same joy every single morning or every time I get home. To be honest, I just cannot wait to have cuddles with 3 dogs!
Encouraging you to be outside more.
I know this one if kinda linked to points 1 and 2 but being more active and on the feet more will be so beneficial to both my mental health and blood sugars. One thing I have found that you can read about here, is that my mental health is in a much better place when I have stable blood sugars, and I am so excited for this.

Essentially, I just cannot wait to bring her home, we have her training plan all sorted and I suppose all I have to say is please enjoy these pictures of her!