What It's Like to Live with Type 1 Diabetes

If you have a moment, please read...

Okay so this isn't what I normally post, but I feel this is extremely important to me and other diabetics out there or even anyone going through problems that are not visible.

So I've been a type 1 diabetic since the age of 21, so I have been diabetic for 2 years now, and in those two years, I have visited different doctors at different hospitals for different tests, eye tests, hearing tests, nerve tests. Diabetes can have a knock on effect on all parts on the body, not just the broken pancreas!

I have been through different levels of insulin and different types of insulin, there was a time recently when it was discovered that I was actually allergic to one lot of insulin and my body was rejecting it. The insulin was not doing what it was supposed to be doing, my blood sugar readings were so high I started developing ketones (ketones are what leads to acid in the blood), I would miss several days of University and even work because I was so drained!

I am now a music teacher, I still get to live a normal life, but some days are worse than others and sometimes I cannot remain positive. I am currently waiting to go onto an insulin pump to regulate my blood sugars as they are still quite high, which could potentially cause me life altering changes.

Since being diagnosed, I have not received the proper and correct care I should have and deserve. I've been told the wrong things about my insulin and how to alter dosages accordingly which put me in life threatening situations, my body was rejecting my insulin, to which I was told I would be fine and there was no need to change what I am doing! Having the proper care and support is key when you have a life long illness, I am lucky I have had my mum supporting me the whole time, or else who knows what situation I would be in now? To tell you the truth I probably would not be here if it was not for her!

So the point of telling you all this was just to give you a fraction of an idea what an average person with diabetes goes through in order to survive. You think I'm over exaggerating, I'm really not. We don't have a choice.

As a diabetic it's so damn hard to keep positive about having to go through this every minute of every hour of every day of every week of every month of every year, doing the same thing over and over again.

You'd also think with doing it so much it'll get easier to control. Wrong. It's a rollercoaster of a ride to keep in control, there are some days where I just feel like not talking. Not because I'm tired or upset but because I am just exhausted of fighting the battle every day. There won't be a day I stop fighting.

It is so hard to admit I'm embarrassed to take an injection in public due to people seeing me as a druggy, the pumps on our arms are not birth control or smoker patches. If people could just be more aware of these hidden life problems and helped rather than stand there and stare or judge without asking, life would be so much simpler.

People don't realise what people go through every single day. So this post is just a suggestion to not judge people before you've walked a mile in their shoes.

On a personal level, I've recently been struggling a lot due to changing insulin, and insulin doses, even starting a my new job has has effects on my blood sugars!

But then I go back and think of how far I've come.

Here is something for you to think about.......

• 7 blood tests a day
• 49 blood tests a week
• 196 blood tests a month
• 2352 blood tests a year

That's almost 30,000 hits I've taken to the fingertips. The tips of my fingers get tougher the more I take a sample. I sometimes have to retake a shot about 3x to draw some blood. So it's a hell of a lot but all this proves to me is how much I've done, all those readings I've been able to adjust and manage to make it through day after day after day all adds up and makes me realise how strong I can be. That alone motivates me.

It just comes to show how much a diabetic has to go through just to be healthy and happy. There are so many hidden illnesses people don't see. My wish is for people to just understand that everyone is fighting a battle of their own. Whether it's a physical illness, mental illness, problems with families, problems at home, anything! Everyone is fighting something.

This is my fight. And I'm happy to share it. ❤