To have my medical situation authorized as specified in section (3), Dr. Adams told me I would need to get a recording blood sugar meter and record my levels several times a day, I would need a report from an ophthalmologist with the results of a dilated fundus examination and a report from a diabetic specialist outlining my symptoms. I bought a blood sugar meter capable of storing 3000 readings and downloading those readings to a computer to generate a report.

Dr. Adams was quite encouraging and suggested that Transport Canada was typically good with Metformin and that I shouldn’t have much problem getting my medical back.

My next appointment with my family doctor was the following Monday at which time we went through a lot of things and helped me with referrals to the required specialists. As part of his normal treatment of diabetes patients, he referred me to a diabetic specialist and an ophthalmologist. The only problem turned out to be the long lead times to see these busy professionals. The diabetic specialist appointment was set November 3rd, and the ophthalmologist was set for December 6th! That accounted for three months of waiting to fly!

In addition, I found out that my cholesterol levels, which had always been good, were now unacceptable. It’s not that they changed, but with addition of diabetes, the new acceptable level was now half of what it was. I was now prescribed Lipitor to help control this. Fortunately, I was otherwise quite healthy!

At this point, I was feeling quite depressed. I was going to have to start a new diet and change my lifestyle to lose some serious weight. Three years prior, I had left my office job with a Calgary oil and gas company to go back to school and study to be an AME. At that time, I was just under 300 lbs! During those three years, I dropped to 265 lbs simply by going from spending 8 hours a day behind a desk to doing physical work on planes… not to mention two summers building a cabin! Now I needed to get busy with a daily workout regimen and by cutting out all sweets from my diet.

At first, the results were not stellar. I soon discovered through some research that bread products and white potatoes were responsible for my continued high blood glucose readings. By cutting these out and switching to rye and pumpernickel breads, the readings finally started to drop. The daily walks up Nose Hill Park quickly lengthened from 3kms to 8kms with the occasional 10kms hikes. I started outwalking our 11-year-old dogs, but they could only do about 3 to 4kms before tripping over their respective tongues! At one point, I went three weeks without missing a single walk.

Through this time, I also busied myself with work on the cabin and on the Wittman, Buttercup going together in the garage. I also took the time to do some maintenance and upgrades on the Christavia MK 1 I normally fly. With my blood sugars getting under control, I found that I was no longer lethargic, especially in the evenings. I made a lot of progress on both fronts. However, despair about my condition did lead me to list the Buttercup engine for sale at one point as I started to think I’d never fly again. Fortunately, it didn’t sell, and I feel much better about my prospects of flying the plane someday.

At first, I tried to keep my condition a secret, but this soon proved to be impractical, and I began to let some close friends know. I finally decided to go “public” with it at our COPA for Kids Day in October. I had originally committed to fly but, of course, had to decline. However, I did attend as the official photographer. When they learned of my predicament, it was not surprising how much encouragement and sympathy I received from my flying friends! I was also given a number of suggestions to help me get back in the air including some generous offers of the right seat.

One suggestion was that I might still qualify for a class 4, self-declared medical. Unfortunately, this also failed as it specifically excludes diabetics on medication. Well, it was worth a look…

By the time the appointment with the diabetic specialist came up, I was down 17 lbs and my blood sugar levels were back in the normal range. In fact, the haemoglobin A1C levels (a measurement that indicates an average blood sugar level) had dramatically dropped. At the end of the appointment I understood a lot more about diabetes and was feeling quite happy with how things were going.

Dr. Adams suggested that we do the full aviation medical shortly after the appointment with the diabetic specialist. The thought was that Transport Canada may not require the ophthalmologist report. This was done on November 8th. At this point, my medical status was “deferred” until it could be reviewed and approved by Transport Canada. I was surprised at just how fast I received a response back from Edmonton… a mere nine days! Unfortunately, it wasn’t a medical renewal, but a list of requirements needed to get my medical back.

I had already met three requirements: a standard electrocardiogram, the blood sugar monitoring log and a blood test showing haemoglobin A1C and fasting blood sugars. As expected, they also wanted the dilated fundus examination report and the diabetic specialist report (which still hadn’t been sent). The only surprise was the need for an exercise electrocardiogram (stress test). This meant another visit to my family doctor to get yet another referral. The earliest I could get scheduled for this was December 13th.

Out of all the examinations I’ve undergone, this was the worst. It wasn’t that the stress test was particularly stressful, it was just that the clinic was really disorganized and unprofessional. At one point I was told that I had a weird blip, which was later proved to be quite normal. Of course, this left me worried that I was going to be denied by Transport Canada due to heart issues.

By December 16th Dr. Adams had all the necessary reports and had forwarded them onto Transport Canada. Again, they were extremely prompt and on December 24th (yup, Christmas Eve!) we had another letter from Transport Canada. My wife, Renée and I were both off work that day. I had popped out to get us some breakfast from Tim Horton’s when the mailman gave the letter to Renée. She was quite torn about what to do. If it was good news, then she knew it would make my Christmas! If it was not good news, I’d be pretty glum through the holidays. I later suggested that she should have opened it and either stick the medical renewal in my stocking or keep the bad news until after the New Year. Not being that devious, she was waiting for me when I walked in, unopened envelope in hand.

As you probably guessed, it was good news, and a freshly minted Class 3 medical renewal awaited inside. Unfortunately, Renée vetoed my idea of flying on Christmas Eve. She did OK me for flight after Christmas gifts were opened on Christmas Day, but timing just didn’t work out. However, much like the shoppers waiting in line for the malls to open, I was waiting in the plane for it to get light enough to fly… which occurs surprisingly late just five days after the winter solstice! It was tremendous to get back in the air again.

For my next medical, I have a much better idea of what Transport Canada expects. Although I’m under 45 years old, my Class 3 medical needs to be renewed every year. I’ll need to have all the same examinations done again, but it will be much easier next time as I now have regular appointments with the diabetic specialist including blood tests that can easily be scheduled to fall just before my medical is due. And, next time, I’ll use an optometrist rather than an ophthalmologist reducing the wait time from three months, to about two weeks. Finally, the stress test is only required every five years until the age of 50, and then every two years.

As you can tell, none of this really bothers me. I’m licensed to fly and can easily maintain that status with continued dietary diligence and regular exercise. I still have a way to go to get to my goal of 200 lbs, but I’m halfway there! Although there have been many highs and lows over the past four months, I have to reiterate just how great the support of family and friends has been. I was quite embarrassed to have been diagnosed with diabetes, believing I had brought it all on myself. However, at no time was I ever made to feel this and as I learned more about the condition, I realized that there was a lot more involved.

If you happen to find yourself in the same situation, you should be encouraged to know that getting back in the air is quite possible to do with just a little effort.