I've had Type 1 Diabetes for 27 glorious years! I'll bet that this sounds a bit shocking ....but its true and for many reasons. Its 2011...information to help us care for our diabetes is right at our fingertips...yes the pun was intended. And if you take a few moments to check the web for Blood Glucose meters, you will find that there have never been more on the market that do so much in just a few seconds. Plus insulin delivery has never been easier. One can select from insulin delivery pens to pumps or to plain old syringes with teeny tiny needles.
But this blog is going to be more about how I have dealt with this illness for 27 years and how I still have no complications. Over the course of time I will also write about how I gave birth to two healthy incredible kids and I will talk about my changing emotions throughout these 27 years.
As my dear Mother always says..."Every day is a gift." She's 90, so she speaks with experience! I like to say that "Every day with diabetes is a gift." My perspective comes from the following analogy. Car enthusiasts often say that a car with a manual transmission handles better than its counterpart with an automatic transmission. Well in my opinion its the same with diabetes. By putting one's self in "manual transmission", it is possible to achieve better health with diabetes than without the illness.
I would like to hear from you. Please comment on what I have written and tell me your thoughts and feelings on having Type 1 Diabetes.
I would love to hear about Your emotional ups and downs. I have a sister with diabetes.
ReplyDeleteHi ....thanks for your comment. Having diabetes can definitely cause emotional ups and downs and you are a good sib for asking about it.
ReplyDeleteLet me start off by saying that without knowing anything about your sister and not being a medical professional I can only answer generally and from my own experiences.
I am assuming that your sister takes/uses medications that lower her blood sugars. When blood sugars drop below normal levels moodiness can be evident. But if your sister's blood sugars are chronically high, even blood sugars at a "normal" level can cause moodiness...until her body gets used to being at normal levels.
Other emotional ups and downs can be caused by the simple idea that living with a non curable, chronic illness causes stress in and of itself. I will address this issue in a future blog.
Please let me know if this sheds some light on your sister's moods.
Hello Lissy, I saw your post on Diabetes Daily. You have a wonderful attitude, and you write so well. I enjoy reading your blogs. I was diagnosed in 1945, when I was 6. Not much was known about diabetes back then. I used beef and pork insulin and tested my urine for 40 years before meters for testing my blood became available. From the day of my diagnosis I was instructed to avoid sugar. There was no other rule to follow. I ate tons of carbs, not knowing they should be restricted. I have managed to escape the complications that would have been expected. Now I am using a pump, have lived 65 years with type 1, and I am very healthy.
ReplyDeleteRichard
Hi Richard,
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your comment!I loved reading it and am so happy that you have avoided complications for 65 years! You too have an excellent attitude!
I also used pork insulin back in the day and am now on a pump. Which one do you use??
I am currently using the Minimed 522 pump. I will be getting a new one in June, 2012. I will probably be using the Minimed Revel then. What pump are you using?
ReplyDeleteI recently upgraded to the Minimed Revel. There are things I like about it and some things that annoy me. They've made pump change outs a bit more child friendly but more cumbersome for adults who were used to the 522. As you do a change out it asks you numerous questions along each step and you must answer them before going on to the next step of the change out.
ReplyDeleteBut the Revel is much easier to use with the CGMS. Do you use one? I have it but only use it sometimes. The Revel also delivers insulin in much smaller units. I'm still not sure how useful the tiny fractional units are. But overall, I'm happy with it.
So tell me what is your secret to staying complication free after 27 years of T1? Is it luck, genes or really a matter of good control?
ReplyDeleteThe "not so secret" secret is blood sugar testing ...testing and more testing. I'm going to write my next blog on this very subject. Thanks for inspiring me.
ReplyDeleteThanks I am a new type 1 and hearing people who have lived for years with it and no complications is inspiring.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment, Anonymous. I'd love to hear more about you and how you are handling your new diagnosis. I was so scared and overwhelmed when I was first diagnosed. I quite literally cried for 3 days straight.
ReplyDeletePlease share as much or as little as you would like.
--Lissy
You are doing a great mission.
ReplyDeleteI admire you.
Mira.
Hi Mira...thanks so much for your comment and your compliment!
ReplyDelete--Lissy