A Broken Pancreas

The pancreas produces two hormones your body needs: insulin and glucagon. These are produced in a cluster of cells called the islets of Langerhans. Glucagon is produced by the alpha cells in the islets of Langerhans and Insulin is produced by the beta cells. In my case, the beta cells no longer produce insulin.

Among other things, insulin is used for regulating the level of glucose in your blood. It does this by stimulating your body cells to use the glucose in your blood. Glucose is essentially the gasoline which fuels your body. Insulin is the key to unlocking the gas tank. Here is a diagram:
The process should work something like this:

1. you eat something,
2. the carbohydrates in the food are changed into glucose molecules
3. the glucose molecules go into your bloodstream to be transported throughout the body (which raises your blood sugar level)
4. when the glucose gets to a cell that needs energy, insulin allows the cell to take the glucose (which lowers your blood sugar level)
5. your body gets the energy it needs

Problems arise at step #4.

This is where my body's pancreas makes insulin but for some reason the cells are resistant to it (much as rust in a key hole can make opening a door difficult), your body can't use the glucose. I am a type 2 diabetic or an insulin-resistant diabetic.

My body will continue to pump out insulin to try and get the glucose it needs. Enough of the insulin will usually "work" so that the body won't shut down.   But because glucose is not getting into my cells - - - -I live in a state of hyperglycemia (too much sugar).

This does a number of things, primarily slowing or stopping circulation in the smaller blood vessels of the body. This is why diabetes is the primary cause of blindness, amputations, strokes, etc.

On the bright side, type 2 diabetics don't have to worry about their body eating itself. This is because another function of insulin is to store fat. So all that extra insulin that was being made is put to good use by storing the glucose in the fat cells of the body. They get bigger, the person gets fatter. If left uncontrolled, the person will eventually die of heart failure or a stroke--morbidly obese, likely lacking a leg or two and probably blind.