Being a Type 1 Diabetic
Most people think that having diabetes just means you can't eat sugar. I wish it were that easy! Type 1 diabetes is an auto-immune disease that is also probably genetic. A lot of people get it when they are just kids, but many people are diagnosed with it as adults, like me. Type 1 diabetics have a pancreas that has "attacked itself" and destroyed the cells that are used to break down sugars in their digestive systems (putting it simply: my pancreas don't work no more!). And when I say 'sugars' I don't just mean the plain white stuff you sprinkle on your cereal. Naturally occurring sugars are in almost all the food we eat, like breads, starches and fruits-carbohydrates. A Type 1 diabetic has to take insulin, usually that means by taking a shot in their bellies, every day, sometimes at every meal; we also have to be very careful about what we eat. Some Type 1s like my mom have a thing called "a pump", which is a little device that delivers insulin to your body. Type 1 diabetes can lead to heart disease, blindness and a bunch of other complications that are too gross to mention.
My great aunt Sara, who's 95, likes to ask the question: Do we eat to live or do we live to eat? Usually she asks that when she's eating something that's her favorite but she knows is bad for her, like ice cream. Being a diabetic means that I have to eat to live. But sometimes that takes the fun out of food. It would be nice to just eat a sandwich and fries again without wondering how much medicine I have to take and how it will affect my health.
If you're a teen who has diabetes, I'd like to hear from you. I've talked to some kids who have a really hard time in high school because they can't eat when they need to, or the cafeteria food doesn't offer them the best choices. I'm interested in how you manage day-to-day as a diabetic and what you do to stay healthy. Or even what you know you should do to stay healthy, but don't! Go to my Contact Page to reach me.