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Grace Morales: Hello, and welcome to Employee Podcasts, where Costco employees share their stories of how their benefits helped them with their personal health challenges. Today, we’re joined by Brandon Reeder. Hey, Brandon. Welcome.

Brandon Reeder: Hello, guys. How’s everybody?

Grace Morales: I think we’re doing great. We’re excited to get to it. So, Brandon, tell me, how long have you worked at Costco? What’s your position? And which location do you work at?

Brandon Reeder: So I started working at Costco back in April, May of 2024. I’ve been with them ever since. I started at a Royal Palm Beach location, 00623 to be exact. I was hired as a pharmacy technician, and I transferred to the new Stewart location, 1717, and I’m still a pharmacy technician.

Grace Morales: So, Brandon, tell me, what’s the story you’d like to share with other Costco employees today?

Brandon Reeder: I want to share the story about how I finally used the benefits to benefit my life. It had started with a biometric health screening. It was very simple. It was three tests.

They tested my blood pressure. They tested my A1C, and they also tested my blood oxygenation. And from those results, I was able to figure out exactly what was wrong with me. It’s a funny story because when I was walking in that day, I had no idea what was going on.

And when I finally went to the break room to put all my stuff down to get ready for my shift, I was, like, hey, you know what? I should do it. And as I was getting up, looking at the time, I chickened out. I was, like, nobody needs that. I’m fine. Move on.

But it had resonated with me for the two hours that I was on shift before my first break. And I finally made the decision that I was sick and tired of being sick and tired. So I went, and I talked to them. I consulted them, and I was able to be the last person that they screened that day. And with that being said, I figured out my diagnosis.

Grace Morales: What was your diagnosis?

Brandon Reeder: I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. They’re able to get blood sugar and, most importantly, test A1C. At that point, I sat there for 15 minutes for the A1C because it does take a little bit for the A1C test to go through.

So I sat there for a little bit, and we were just talking. They’re very, very personable people, very easy to talk to. And my results finally came up. And the lady that was screening me looked at me and was, like, do you have a PCP? And I was, like, no, I don’t have a primary care provider.

She’s, like, you definitely want to look into one. What we found on your A1Cs is not normal by any stretch of the imagination, and you really need to go get this checked. And so at that point, I was, like, OK, this makes sense why I’m not feeling good. Let’s get some answers.

Grace Morales: Wow. I’m really glad your warehouse scheduled biometric screenings. It’s a great way for employees to find out what’s going on with their health for free. For any employees listening that are interested in these screenings, they are scheduled by a location’s leadership.

For more information, leaders can contact the Benefits Department. And on another note, many people don’t realize that adults can develop Type 1 diabetes. Would you feel comfortable sharing some symptoms you experienced in case they resonate with other employees?

Brandon Reeder: Absolutely, and you completely hit the nail on the head with that statement. Type 1 diabetes usually does show very early. But at the end of the day, it is still an autoimmune.

But some of the symptoms that I was dealing with on a day-to-day basis, I was having severe, severe fatigue. I was drinking gallons of water a day. When I tell you I walk into work with four or five cups in my arms, just full of water and various different hydrating drinks, that was me.

And the most important one is the only way for sugar to get out of your bloodstream, out of your system, is to use the restroom. So I was using the restroom every 20 minutes. Another one was weight loss. I was a big guy.

Before my diagnosis and everything, I was about 300 to 336 pounds. At the lowest point of my time before I got diagnosed, I dropped to 165 pounds. I was literally skin and bones.

Grace Morales: Wow. Well, thank you for sharing that. As I’m sure you understand, people often don’t get their screenings or annual checkups because they’re afraid of what they’ll find out. Or maybe they assume they’re fine. What’s one thing that you want employees, especially those who may feel this way, to take away from this podcast, if nothing else?

Brandon Reeder: I’ll be the first one to say I do not like doctors by any stretch of the imagination. I never had. I never will. But at the end of the day, you’ve got to find that help. And, for me, just going back to that term of being sick and tired of being sick and tired, I was at my lowest. It’s exhausting.

So in order to get those answers, in order to get that help, you have to sit there and make that decision, saying, hey, do I want to live a healthier, better life? Or do I want to continue down this road and potentially get worse? And very, very luckily, through the Aetna benefits app, I was able to find really, really good doctors that really are on my side.

They are part of my team. They make sure that I can live every single day to my fullest. And that’s something that I’ve never experienced before.

Grace Morales: And did that mean you got a PCP?

Brandon Reeder: Oh, absolutely. And this all happened way, way fast. So the week after my screening, I was already in a PCP’s office, getting answers to what was going on. I had my first blood work that day. I had never done blood work in my entire life.

And within three days of that, I had answers in front of me. I was at the endocrinologist the next week. At that point, they had sat me down. They put a sensor in my arm. They gave me insulin, and my care was starting to come into effect.

A month after that, I was already on a pump. I had everything going. And I was starting to feel better every single day through this journey.

Grace Morales: Well, that was definitely a speed run towards the journey of better health. And now I know that flu season is well underway. Do you have a shout-out to make on behalf of the pharmacy department?

Brandon Reeder: Absolutely. Health is very important. You want to make sure you’re healthy. You want to make sure you keep the people around you healthy. So go get your flu shots.

They’re completely free for every employee that walks through. You literally walk up to us, say, hey, I want a flu shot. You’re in and out the door in five minutes.

Grace Morales: And, Brandon, what is your favorite Costco product?

Brandon Reeder: Right now, I’m really crushing on the sparkling protein water. It’s a blue raspberry lemonade. Protein water that has 30 grams of protein, has 0 sugar, absolutely great, especially in my case. And it really just allows me to make sure I have that protein.

Grace Morales: Man, science has come so far when they can put protein in sparkling water.

Brandon Reeder: Absolutely.

Grace Morales: Well, thank you, Brandon, for sharing your story, and thanks for those who listened in. Until next time, remember, we’re in this together.

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