“A Healing Tide” was the name of The War and Treaty’s 2018 debut album. But that could also describe what happened in 2023 to Michael Trotter, Jr.. That year he and his wife Tanya Trotter were at the Country Music Association Awards where they as The War and Treaty were nominated as Duo/Group of the Year for the first time. Michael had been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes back in 2011 but until then “wasn’t taking it seriously,” in his words. But during the CMA awards show, he was “smitten by how beautiful my wife was. Her beauty and love had healed me.” That’s because seeing her that night helped him decide, “Let’s fight diabetes now,” which meant finally making changes to better manage his condition.
Michael Trotter, Jr. Had A Family History Of Diabetes
This star duo recently told me the details of his diabetes journey. He had a family history of diabetes and in March 2011 was watching the TV game show Family Feud and noticed that the show’s host Steve Harvey was blurry. It wasn’t as if Harvey was moving at superspeed like the Flash. So his wife, Tanya, took him to the local hospital, where he was diagnosed with diabetes.
“I had bad eating habits,” recalled Michael. “I would eat things like a whole box of oatmeal cream pies from Little Debbie and butter pecan ice cream. Right before I went to the hospital, I was experiencing blurry vision and headaches and felt something was wrong, something was off.”
After he received his type 2 diabetes diagnosis, he thought, “That was how I am going to die. No survives, no one beats it. I won’t be able to escape this.” This led to resignation. “For a time, I wasn’t taking it seriously,” he explained. “I thought, ‘What’s the point? It’s a terminal illness.’”
Seeing Tanya At The CMA Awards Changed Michael Trotter, Jr.’s Approach To Diabetes
That thinking persisted for over a decade until the 2023 CMAs. Before the awards show, Michael had been warned about the fireworks that would occur during sets by Carrie Underwood and Miranda Lambert because Michael suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder. But while sitting in the arena, he didn’t even notice the pyrotechnics because, as he described, he was smitten by the beauty of his wife.
Tanya, though, didn’t notice that she was getting that reaction from her husband. “I didn’t put two and two together,” she recalled. “I didn’t realize he was looking at me.”
That night changed everything. “When I set my mind to do something, I do it,” he said. “I wanted to live. And not just live. I wanted to live a healthy proactive life.”
Ozempic Is Not A Magic Drug But Rather A Partner For Diabetes Treatment
That year, his doctor also wanted to introduce him to Ozempic, the glucagon-like peptide-1 agnosy that you may have heard about in recent years. Yep, GLP-1 agonists have been all the rage for their weight loss effects. But Ozempic has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration specifically for diabetes. But his doctor wasn’t about to just drop off the prescription anywhere, to adapt some lyrics from The War and Treaty collab song with Josh Groban, “Hey Driver.”
“He wanted me to get on the right track first,” Michael explained. “I needed to take diabetes journey seriously. He wanted me to be in the safe zone for treatment. I got down 10 pounds and my blood sugar readings in the safe zone.” Once he demonstrated that he could make the necessary lifestyle changes, his doctor was ready to start him on Ozmepic.
“People think Ozempic is a magic drug,” said Michael. “They think that when you take it you can eat [bleep].” He provided a more realistic and grounded perspective on Ozempic: “I needed to try everything to change, changing my exercise regimen, changing to healthy eating. I just need a stronger partner and Ozempic has been that partner.” Ozempic has helped him lower his hemoglobin A1C, which as I’ve mentioned in Forbes before is the measure of what your blood sugar is over longer periods of time.
Michael Trotter, Jr.’s Life Has Changed For The Better
Ozempic has helped decrease the food chatter in his head and the cravings. But it hasn’t eliminated them. “They do come back,” he warned. “I did have a bad relationship with food previously. I am now more conscious of what I eating on the road.”
Tanya has noticed significant differences. “There is a definite decrease in food cravings,” she said. “He has more energy on stage. He out-moves me out there.” That increased energy has been helpful as The War and Treaty has just embarked on a new 40 city tour that will continue through September for their new album Plus One.
He has also partnered with Novo Nordisk, the makers of Ozempic, to help with a new national campaign called “My Ozempic Era.” The campaign launched on March 3 and features him, award-winning chef Franklin Becker and salon owner sharing their stories of “how they manage their type 2 diabetes by adjusting their diet, exercise, and taking Ozempic as prescribed by their doctor,” as described in the campaign’s press release.
In some way, you could describe the approach to type 2 diabetes as a war and treatment. You can’t just conquer type 2 diabetes in a single battle or with a single magical medication and then not think about it afterwards, Instead, you’ve got to maintain dietary and physical activity changes with potential assists from medication. But with persistence, it is a war that can be won over time. And for Michael Trotter, Jr., it looks like the tide has turned for the better.
