Team Bernardet

BERNARDET Cash was diagnosed with diabetes 14 months ago, which shook the 48-year-old from West Philly to the core.

"I was scared," she says. "I was so much into denial - and depressed for a little while - but then I said, 'This is part of life and you have to deal with it.'

"I'm a strong woman," Cash says. "You cry it out a little bit, then you get over it."

She had plenty of help. The American Diabetes Association advises patients that because of the disease's many intricacies, they'll need a team of health-care specialists to back them up. Cash has a village:

Her family physician in Darby

Dr. Gartland gave Cash a blood test to screen for diabetes as part of her annual exam last fall.

"I've never been sickly," she says. "I was shocked. "I get a physical every year, and I'm glad I went. It's good to check on yourself."

Her endocrinologist (diabetes specialist), seen with her top right

Besides overseeing her medical treatment, which includes insulin and pills, Dr. Schutta examines Cash's feet during routine visits every three months - a valuable precaution against diabetic complications.

Schutta, who is medical director of the Penn Rodebaugh Diabetes Center, also downloads information from her blood-sugar monitor to see how well she's managing her numbers. "I always check my sugar two hours after I eat to make sure it's level," Cash says. "It's normally good."

She considers Schutta her corner man. He's always ready to explain medical details to her and cheer her on.

"When I didn't know anything, he was just so patient," she says. "Now we don't have to spend a lot of time together. He checks my feet and tells me 'You're doing fine. See you in three months.' "

Olson and Frances Love

Love led Cash's diabetes-education classes - a 10-hour crash course about diabetes and how to manage it.

She also taught Cash how to administer insulin, which unnerved her so much that she almost didn't go through with it.

"I took it home and put it in the refrigerator, and it must have sat there for two weeks," Cash says. "I said, 'I can't do this. I can't stick myself.' "

Olson came to the rescue by reading Cash the riot act - gently: "She said, 'Listen, you have to do it,' " Cash says. "And I did." Mellon is her telephone "lifeline" for answers to questions that arise between visits.

"She's special," Cash says. "She's very understanding."

Having tried for a lifetime to lose weight and keep it off, Cash has successfully dropped 40 pounds since being diagnosed. With Sartor's help, she's down to 170 from 210.

"It's all about what you put in your mouth," Cash says. "I'll eat a piece of candy now and then, but I won't eat the whole bag."

Cash has to count carbohydrates carefully because for every 10 carbs she eats, she needs to inject a unit of insulin.

Sartor taught her how to read food labels and gave her a pocket-sized carb-counting booklet for help with restaurant meals.

"She said this isn't easy to stick to - it's hard," Cash recalls. "But I did it. I'm really proud of myself.

"I feel so much better. Can you imagine carrying around 210 pounds? I felt like I had two butts."

Like Schutta and the three nurses, Sartor works at the Penn Rodebaugh Diabetes Center. The one-stop-shop approach to diabetes treatment is a patient-friendly trend that's starting to catch on in hospitals here and around the U.S.

Cash goes to Penn's vision center every six months to have her eyes screened for signs of a problem like glaucoma or damage to her retina that might arise from her diabetes.

"So far, everything is fine," Cash says. "She dilates my eyes and puts me on this little machine to check the pressure."

Because Cash has no complications with her feet, she's doesn't see Urbas regularly. But she knows to see the podiatrist when her nails need clipping because even a nick on the foot from a sharp object could lead to serious complications.

"If I get a pedicure, I tell them: 'I'm diabetic. Do not clip my nails.' "

Cash also sees a dentist twice a year, which isn't anything new for her. "I just go for regular checkups," she said. They're especially important for diabetics, who can be prone to gum infections, according to the American Diabetes Association.

Cash works out on a treadmill at least three times a week at the condo complex's gym. "It's hard," she acknowledges. "But I know it's good for my health, so I go."

She also lifts dumbbells for toning. "One day I do arms. Then the next time I go, I do legs.

"Sometimes there's a couple of us who all work out together," she says. "You meet other people when you go to the gym."

The peanut gallery

"My daughter's always looking out for me - always," Cash says. She bought Cash a pill box to keep her medicines handy. "A little pill box!" Cash says, laughing. "Oh, my Lord, I'm getting old!"

"She has a really good husband," Cash adds, "and I just love them to death."

Cash's mother called like clockwork to check up on her when she was diagnosed. "She stayed on me a lot. She called to ask: 'Are you taking your insulin? Are you taking your pills?'

"She always wants to take care of us," Cash says. "If it wasn't for my mother, I don't know what I would do. I'm 48 and my mommy still calls me: 'How's your sugar going? What's your numbers?' "

Her two "sweet grandsons" are Cash's No. 1 motivation to stay healthy. "All these people are so special in my life."