The Insulin Express: One Backpack, Five Continents, and the Diabetes Diagnosis That Changed Everything

Description

A travel memoir through thirty countries, a thousand insulin injections, and one man's journey from despair to confidence. With tips and information from the American Diabetes Association. In the middle of a yearlong backpacking trip around the world with his wife, Oren Liebermann is teaching English to young Buddhist monks in Pokhara, Nepal, when his body begins to fail him. He is constantly thirsty and exhausted, and by the time he steps on a scale, he has lost forty-five pounds. At a local clinic, a doctor gives him a diagnosis that will change his life forever: "I'm sorry to tell you, my friend, that you are a diabetic." Devastated, Liebermann is trapped in a freezing hospital room, trying to recover enough to fly home. His friends and family urge him to call off the rest of his trip. He had quit his job as a TV news reporter for this dream-come-true journey, but the nightmare diagnosis has thrown his world into disarray. However, Liebermann and his wife, Cassie, make a decision. They have an adventure to finish, and he has the rest of his life to live. Bold, raw, and poignantly candid, The Insulin Express tells the story of what happens when the best-made travel plans are subject to the ever-present chaos of life, and how a major setback can turn into the opportunity of a lifetime. Despite struggling with a chronic disease that almost kills him in the Himalayas, Liebermann hikes along the Great Wall of China, conquers the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, and sips cobra whiskey in Laos. What begins as a travel chronicle across thirty countries transforms into a single journey of resilience and self-discovery-going from hopelessly lost and then wonderfully found.

Oren Liebermann has spent a decade in TV news and is currently a CNN International Correspondent based in Jerusalem. He is the recipient of two Emmy awards and three Associated Press awards. Diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes on Valentine's Day, 2014, in a local Nepalese clinic, he now works with organizations like the American Diabetes Association (ADA) to promote safe traveling for others with the disease. He founded the world travel blog 42nd Class with his wife, Cassie. They live in Jeursalem with their baby daughter, Noa. Dr. Sanjay Gupta is the multiple Emmy award winning chief medical correspondent for CNN. Gupta, a practicing neurosurgeon, plays an integral role in CNN's reporting on health and medical news for all of CNN's shows domestically and internationally, and contributes to CNN.com.

"This unusual combination of medical and travel memoir offers candid testimony to human resilience. It also manages to be funny, relatable, and inspiring at the same time. Readers will be motivated to update their passports or, at the very least, try something new. Liebermann hits the mark with his engrossing literary debut." -Booklist "The Insulin Express is a very special, exciting book . . . Oren Liebermann becomes a friend as he takes his readers on a remarkable journey." -Eleanor Bobrow, Host, Take Charge of Your Life (WDIY/NPR) "A must-read for anyone who loves travel, cares about their health, or just likes to have coffee with a good friend. That's the way The Insulin Express feels-like a long overdue chat with a buddy who's had some pretty amazing adventures . . . teaches us all a lot about life and love." -Elizabeth Cohen, CNN Senior Medical Correspondent "The Insulin Express is part Casablanca-like travelogue and part suspenseful thriller. Oren and Cassie's adventure will inspire you, not only with his rich, detailed descriptions of places most of us will never visit, but also with his determination to continue on after being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. It's a tale of inspiration, in the truest sense of the word. . . . I cannot wait for the sequel." -Jeff Hitchcock, founder and president of Children with Diabetes "A spirited tale of a trip around the world that is only slightly interrupted by a new diagnosis of Type 1 diabetes. Liebermann is the rare travel writer who mixes well the wide-eyed wonder of travel with the comedic mistakes of the traveler. He doesn't let much faze him, including being suddenly thrust into life with a serious chronic condition, and his positive attitude is infectious." -Craig Idlebrook, managing editor of Insulin Nation "I often say, 'I live my life and diabetes just comes along for the ride.' In Liebermann's yearlong journey around the world, that's never been more true. At 31, Liebermann's body breaks down while hiking the Himalayas with undiagnosed type 1 diabetes. A horrendous hospital stay in Nepal sends him home to the US to recover. Weeks later he's back in Southeast Asia with his wife, and his diabetes, determined to finish the trip. Upbeat, Liebermann pulls you into the sights and smells of five continents and finding your way through a life-changing illness." -Riva Greenberg, founder of Diabetes Stories "This unusual combination of medical and travel memoir offers candid testimony to human resilience. It also manages to be funny, relatable, and inspiring at the same time. Readers will be motivated to update their passports or, at the very least, try something new. Liebermann hits the mark with his engrossing literary debut." -Booklist "The Insulin Express is a very special, exciting book . . . Oren Liebermann becomes a friend as he takes his readers on a remarkable journey." -Eleanor Bobrow, Host, Take Charge of Your Life (WDIY/NPR) "A must-read for anyone who loves travel, cares about their health, or just likes to have coffee with a good friend. That's the way The Insulin Express feels-like a long overdue chat with a buddy who's had some pretty amazing adventures . . . teaches us all a lot about life and love." -Elizabeth Cohen, CNN Senior Medical Correspondent "The Insulin Express is part Casablanca-like travelogue and part suspenseful thriller. Oren and Cassie's adventure will inspire you, not only with his rich, detailed descriptions of places most of us will never visit, but also with his determination to continue on after being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. It's a tale of inspiration, in the truest sense of the word. . . . I cannot wait for the sequel." -Jeff Hitchcock, founder and president of Children with Diabetes "A spirited tale of a trip around the world that is only slightly interrupted by a new diagnosis of Type 1 diabetes. Liebermann is the rare travel writer who mixes well the wide-eyed wonder of travel with the comedic mistakes of the traveler. He doesn't let much faze him, including being suddenly thrust into life with a serious chronic condition, and his positive attitude is infectious." -Craig Idlebrook, managing editor of Insulin Nation "I often say, 'I live my life and diabetes just comes along for the ride.' In Liebermann's yearlong journey around the world, that's never been more true. At 31, Liebermann's body breaks down while hiking the Himalayas with undiagnosed type 1 diabetes. A horrendous hospital stay in Nepal sends him home to the US to recover. Weeks later he's back in Southeast Asia with his wife, and his diabetes, determined to finish the trip. Upbeat, Liebermann pulls you into the sights and smells of five continents and finding your way through a life-changing illness." -Riva Greenberg, founder of Diabetes Stories