"New Year, New you"

I just want to take a moment to tell you all about my most recent discovery....

Since last semester, I've made some major changes in my diet and exercise program. Yes, I took a PE class that forced me to do that to begin with. After I realized the benefits of the lifestyle change, though, I have been implementing it.

Part of what made me realize the difference was my most recent A1C. I went from a consistent 7.1-7.9 to a 6.9. I guess it doesn't seem like that big of a difference, but it definitely is! Some other things I noticed was an absence of depression, more energy, more drive and a clearer mind. I can process things much better and much faster now than I could before I changed my diet and exercise program.

Honestly, it isn't that difficult to follow my diet plan because of how I've changed it. It isn't expensive, like people say it is. It doesn't taste bad, like people say it does. It isn't boring food, like people say it is. It's easy when you get used to following a simple rule: cover you food groups. That's the only way to actually have a decent diet. Make sure that every meal is balanced (i.e., you have fruits, veggies, protein, dairy and some kind of grain). If you aren't able to make the meal balanced (I have a hard time eating a veggie with breakfast most days) then cover that food group with a snack a few hours later. The more difficult details about my change in diet are the calorie counting and the portion sizes. I have to make sure that I am eating around 1800 calories a day, which is difficult because I'm usually low on that. I also have to make sure that I am eating the proper amount of each food group every day, but I usually don't pay close enough attention to that. I just make sure that I have balanced meals. I cut out soda and most sweet stuff on the week days, too. I don't eat any processed foods if I can help it. I have to allow myself some way to escape it if I want, because otherwise I won't follow it. :) I know me. That is too true. The weekends are my way of allowing myself to splurge.

The exercise plan is harder to follow because of an ever changing schedule. Work, school, diabetes, life in general doesn't like to play along. I like to make sure that I get at least 1 hour of exercise in at least 5 days a week. That can be yoga, riding my bike, going for a walk or whatever I want to do that day. Preferably, 2 or 3 of those days will be a more vigorous exercise, but like I said life doesn't play along. I try to stretch for 30 minutes or so before bed because it helps me to sleep better, but I am not always able to do that. I don't follow a beach body program or any of the other trending exercise routines. I just do what works with and for me, and that helps me to better control diabetes and my body.

(Random Fun Fact: Until about September, I didn't think I could exercise regularly or vigorously. I always assumed that I would just die because of diabetes. I never imagined this kind of lifestyle to be possibly for me...)

I'm not doing any of this to lose weight or anything like that. I just want to be healthy, and I've come to the realization that this is the only way to do that. This year, my goal is to keep my A1C below 7. Please pray for me as I continue working to control My Little Monster (diabetes)....

Dear Diabetes....

Dear Diabetes,

We need to talk.

When we got started, you were very attentive. You were with me in the ups and downs and you helped me make some healthier lifestyle choices. But things have changed. You made some false promises and I have to call you out on that.

Rather than paying attention to me, you require a lot of attention. If I don't give you what you want, you punish me. If I don't check on you every few hours or sooner, you make me pay. You demand for me to think about you every second of every day, and you demand that I consider you with every decision I make. I can't make any "plans" spontaneously, because you do not approve of those. Every detail has to be run by you to make sure that it is okay. You are very controlling!

You are very abusive. Physically, psychologically, emotionally, spiritually, in every way possible. You make me feel like I can't do anything without help. You make me feel depressed when I have no reason to be. You make me feel weak and sick all the time. You hurt me physically, too. I have scars all over my body from the drugs you make me take. My skin is thick and ugly because of the scars and scar tissue. My arms, my legs, my back and my belly are all hurt from your abuse. Modesty isn't an issue for me, because of the visible evidence you leave on my skin in those places. It wouldn't matter if I left you today, that will never leave me. I will live with that for the rest of my life. Because of you, it also takes me longer to heal. You have destroyed my body's ability to heal itself quickly and you make me breakable. Consequently, I feel weak.

You make people afraid to have anything to do with me. They don't understand our relationship, and they don't understand you. Because of that, my entire life I've dealt with rejection or neglect from the people around me. The only people that will put up with you is family and my closest friends. Others don't stick around for long, because you run them off.

You are expensive. I never have any money because I have to afford your needs. I feel like I'll never be able to support myself because I have to take care of you first. You eat my paychecks, regardless of how much money I make. When I feel like I'm finally getting ahead, you find a way to take that away from me. You don't have "cheap" needs, but everything with you is expensive. I can't afford to live with you, but living without you is not an option at this time.

You are a thief. You not only take my money, but you take years of my life and experiences from me. I don't get to do things that most people enjoy doing because of you. You destroy me inside a little more everyday and rob years from me. You stole a lot of things, including choosing what I eat and what I can do for a career. You took my ability to play sports and ride roller-coasters and drive for long periods of time. Living with you will kill me eventually, but I can't leave you. You won't let me do that. But every time you misbehave or hurt me, it destroys me inside and brings me one step closer to my demise. You have robbed my freedom to live.

You make me a burden. I know I can't afford you by myself, so for the rest of my life, whomever I am with will have to afford both of us. My parents, my sister, my future roommates or spouse will have to accept that I am expensive because I come with you. Within reason, no matter how much I work I will never be able to keep up with your cost. I will be a burden on my family, or I will feel like a burden on my family. Regardless of what they say or do, I will know that you are not easy to deal with--especially because of your cost.

I can never take a break from you. It doesn't matter if I am sick, or I am spending a lot of time at work, or I am on vacation, or whatever. I have to take you with me everywhere. There is no babysitter for you. You are my constant companion and you don't let me forget you are there. I never get a day to myself because you demand to be put first. But I put up with you, because I know you'll kill me if I don't. Slowly and painfully.

I wish that I could leave you. There probably isn't a single day that goes by that I don't wish I could just walk away and leave you far behind. I know that isn't an option, so I have to deal with your consequences. Honestly, I would rather you be with me than with my family and friends. I will take your daily beatings and other consequences so that they don't have to. They help me argue with you, but I feel better knowing that they aren't dealing with you directly.

I know that I cannot leave you yet, but I know that there will come a day wen I can. Believe me when I say that I will leave you as soon as possible.

Sincerely,
Taylor Renee Ryerse

Prepared For War, And Then....

I went to bed a few nights back. After dealing with a lot of overnight lows previously, I grabbed two juice boxes and several fruit snacks. I proceeded to show my ammunition to my mom and my Tay-dar and tell them "I am prepared for war."

Well.

Diabetes laughed.

I definitely did not need any of the ammunition I had prepared. My blood sugar was high all night, and I didn't realize why until 6:30 the next morning. Autumn (my Tay-Dar) woke me up and we smelled insulin. My blood sugar was in the 300s until that time because my site had fallen out in my sleep. Diabetes was also prepared for war. A little better than I was, apparently.

Naturally, that meant that my day started at 6:30 am. I'm actually not going to complain about that, because my days are usually better when they start then.

I guess I'm just posting this to remind myself and my readers how unpredictable diabetes is. I thought I knew what was going to happen, but diabetes proved me wrong. It's also a little scary when I know that I was only 184 by the time 6:30 came around--all of the insulin I was trying to give myself all night was on my bed, it was not in my body. Somehow, it dropped from 300+ on its own. That's very scary to me... It is predictably unpredictable, anyway. I've been good overnight so far since then, but I'm still waking up so I can make sure it stays that way.

When Insulin Doesn't Work

I was following my Tay-dar into school Monday. I was wearing flip-flops and she was wearing her boots. Well, I walked into the back of her boots while she was taking a step forward. My left toenail caught her shoe and it split down the middle (but only about half way).

Autumn had some band-aids on her, so I wrapped up my toe because it was bleeding like crazy. I took some ibuprofen too. She was testing and we were waiting on her, so it was about 4 hours later that we actually went home.

Usually that kind of thing will send my blood sugar sky high and leave it there until my body heals. I was very blessed on Monday, because the highest I went was about 220. I was able to keep my sugar mostly under control. The ibuprofen must have helped quite a bit.

That's one of the unknown truths about diabetes. Any kind of physical pain can cause my diabetes to go crazy. The small injury on my toe usually leads to at least a few days of high blood sugars that don't respond to insulin. I have to take care of the injury before insulin will help me. If I am sick, I have to remember to take medicine to keep my sugar down. Otherwise insulin is useless. The same applies to emotions. If I am frustrated or stressed out, diabetes responds to my situation. Unless I can calm myself down, insulin will not help. Yes, insulin is amazing and it is a complete game changer in this war with my little monster. But the game changes eternally more when my body doesn't respond to it. That's something that people don't often think about. Insulin is not a cure by any means. Sometimes, depending on the situation, it doesn't even work the way it is supposed to.

Insulin isn't completely helpful when....

• I'm sick, as I mentioned above.
• I'm emotionally distraught, as I've mentioned above.
• there is some kind of physical injury on my body, no matter how small. 
• the insulin is weak, warm, or out of date. 
• there are air bubbles in my tubing (the insulin could be working fine, but I'm only getting air). 
• my site is getting old.
• my cannula has kinked (once again, the insulin could be fine, I'm just not getting any). 
• it has been through several temperature shifts (i.e., the pharmacist didn't put it in the fridge, but we did when we got home. Yes, that has actually happened before).

Please don't assume that I am fine, just because I have insulin. It saves my life everyday, but it isn't a cure and it shouldn't be treated like one. There are still some things I have to work around when it comes to diabetes. 

Invisible Pain

I haven't written in a while, but there is a good reason for that. There is no simple, easy way to say exactly what has been going on. So I am just going to tell the truth: diabetically speaking.

Alright, so usually diabetes can come with a plethora of other autoimmune or endocrine diseases. I am blessed with hypothyroidism and hoshimoto's disease in addition to T1D (although neither are because of T1D).  Lots of people don't know what those are, so I'll explain them. (I also have potassium and iron deficiencies, but a lot of people know what that entails. If you don't, feel free to search it or send me an email and I will tell you all about the side effects of those!)

The thyroid gland controls hormones. When it is "broken," there are an overabundance of things that are also broken inside your body/mind. It is not as much of a physical disease as it is an emotional disease. Hypo-thyroidism happens when the thyroid gland does not work enough. Google defines it as "abnormally low activity of the thyroid gland, resulting in retardation of growth and mental development in children and adults." Hyper-thyroidism is the opposite, where the thyroid gland works too much. Hoshimoto's thyroiditis is defined as "a disorder in which the immune system turns against the body's own tissues. In people with Hashimoto's, the immune system attacks the thyroid." Each comes with a different set of side effects. In my case, I'll suffer from depression, anxiety, "brain fog," extreme fatigue, lack of sleep (not associated with the extreme fatigue. I will have one without the other), brittle hair and nails, an extreme lack of motivation and many other side effects. The longer the problem persists, the more of an issue it becomes. I was a very poor patient, so I was suffering from the majority of these side effects before I even realized that I had been forgetting to take my pill. It had been more than a month since I had taken a pill, so my disease was destroying me. Of course, because of everything that hoshimoto and hypothyroidism messes with, it was destroying my diabetes as well. My broken thyroid and broken pancreas made me feel incredibly "broken" spiritually, physically, and mentally. That's the fastest way to describe it. 

At the start of all of this, I was working two jobs and going to school full-time. That meant 40 hours a week of non-stop work, and an additional at least 20 hours of school work. That left very little time for me to tend to my disease. As you can imagine, diabetes DOES NOT like to be neglected. My sugar started a small, semi-controllable roller coaster. That wasn't too bad until I neglected my thyroid too. About two weeks into forgetting my medication, literally all of my free time was spent lying on my bed staring at the ceiling. I had no motivation or desire to do anything else. I didn't even want to check facebook or do some other mindless activity. I just wanted to be left alone. Then my school work started slipping until I was two weeks behind in most of my classes, and I had to quit one of my jobs. After I did that, I realized that I was behind on medication. I started taking my pills again, but it's difficult for me to find a good time to take those. They have to be taken on an empty stomach and at least an hour before eating. My problem with that is I like food. I can't take it in the morning, because I have to eat breakfast to start my day properly (and I might wake up with a low blood sugar). But I can't take it at night, because it gives you a burst of energy that makes it impossible to sleep. Actually, at this point it shouldn't matter because I haven't slept more than three hours per night in about two weeks. I set a clock for 3am (ish) or I ask my parents to wake me up if they are still awake then. If I take my pill then, I don't have a problem going back to sleep. That works well.

Because hypothyroidism is even less known than diabetes, I want to be completely honest with how this is making me feel. People don't understand what it does to you. I didn't understand what it could do to me. So, knowing that, I want to share briefly what has been going on inside my head for the past month or so. Depression was a big problem, but that isn't really a great word for it. It's not like I had thoughts of suicide or anything like that. I just felt unnecessary, unwanted and like a waste of space. I felt no drive or ambition for anything. Getting out of bed felt completely impossible most days, and some days I would lay in bed until forced to move. I wasn't sleeping, I was just not wanting to be. Diabetes was all over the place because everything affects diabetes. That made me feel very sick a lot. My balance was completely gone and I had very little ability to judge distances. Not long distances, but like steps. Stairs are scary when you are having a hard time judging how far to lift your foot and your balance is off. I cried a lot. Not for any particular reason... I just couldn't figure out what was wrong with me. It was a slow decent into madness. Everything hurt, too. My legs, my sides, my arms and shoulders and head. By the time I got home from work, I would go straight back to bed because I was out of energy from faking happy. (Something I have learned, DO NOT EVER fake happy--at least not with loved ones.) Mom and my sister would get mad at me, or something, because they felt like they were getting leftovers of my time and my presence. In all honesty, everyone was getting leftovers. Even I was getting leftovers.

Actually, I can describe it all in one word.

Pain. 

Emotionally draining. Cognitively draining. Physically draining.

The physical pain did not bother me. I can deal with physical pain. It was the emotional misunderstanding that was so stressful. I don't like to not be in control of things, and I felt like I was completely out of control. 

I kind of had to learn that I'm never really in control I guess. God is. He uses diabetes and other things to remind me of that occasionally, and it was just time for another lesson. Everything became a lot clearer after I surrendered control to Him and stopped trying so hard. 

I'm getting back to "normal" now, so I have more desire and more ability. I don't have to fake happy anymore, so that's good. Some things I didn't even realize were wrong with me are starting to get better--like the distance I had begun to create between me and humanity. Sometimes you just can't even tell what's wrong either because it's a slow decent, or because there's so much wrong at one time. Whatever. I'm glad it is finally going away. 

I wanted to write about it for several reasons. First, because I wanted my readers to understand why I had been absent. Second, because no one really sees this kind of pain in people. Physical problems are easy for others to see, but it is the invisible pain that is usually underestimated or unseen. Adding to the problem, a lot of people do not know very much about diabetes or many other autoimmune diseases, such as hypothyroidism and hoshimoto's disease. If people don't know much about it, it is impossible for them to understand everything that the disease entails. 

***DISCLAIMER*** 

I don't want to write this for a pity party--PLEASE DO NOT PITY ME. Everyone has their own battles that they are fighting, so respect that. I just wanted to raise awareness as to what all these diseases can affect. 

Some (Free) Ways You Can Show Your Support This Month!

So, as a college student I can understand that money is sometimes tight. I wouldn't want you to donate money you don't have, even if it is for a good cause.

Instead, let me share with you some easy, (mostly) free ways you can show support and raise awareness this month!

First, you could follow Project Blue November on facebook or other social media sites and share their awareness posts. This is totally free and it doesn't take very long to do. A lot of people are just misinformed or uninformed about the disease, so sharing some facts could benefit everyone. Use #projectbluenovember if you decide to share these posts. If you would, use #fightlikeataylor (my own hashtag) as well! I would greatly appreciate that!

Second, and a variation of the first, you could join us in doing the blue streak challenge. This is so much fun, especially if you enjoy being a little bit crazy! Either get a blue hair extension to wear for a little while or dye a bit of your hear blue. When people ask you why you have an opportunity to share with them! It might cost a little bit of money, but it is a lot of fun! If you decide to follow the link above and look at the photo album for the blue streak challenge, I am in the album twice! (I thought that was pretty cool!!)

Third, wear blue on Fridays. If you own a lot of blue this is really easy. If you don't, just experiment a little and play with your options. There is a movement going on currently that is claiming Fridays in November as blue Fridays. Project Blue November has t-shirts for sale if you feel like purchasing one. In addition to this, you could wear a blue ribbon on pretty much anything. If you know me personally, ask me for one! I am always giving some out in November!

If you are a diabetic, JDRF is doing something very cool. T1D Looks Like Me is quick and easy to operate. You can upload a picture and it will cover it with a bluish haze and add the slogan (see picture below). It's free and you can share it anywhere you want to.

 
I am giving a few speeches at my school this week to share my story. This definitely spreads awareness. If you are comfortable giving a speech or two, pursue that option as well! I'm here to encourage you!

November 14th is an especially important day to me this month, as it is WORLD DIABETES DAY. If you cannot do anything any other day this month, but still want to show some support, mark this day on your calendar! This would be a great opportunity to spread awareness everywhere! Go crazy! Do whatever you can to show your support on this day! Let me know, so I can join you! 

In case you didn't already know... You can always share my blog posts. If you find something interesting, feel free to show anyone you want to! I definitely wouldn't mind!

Momma

There are two people that I give credit to the fact that I am still alive. My mother and my little sister. Both of them have saved my life more times than I can count, and God gave me both of them to help me fight diabetes. This post will talk a little about my mother, but in tomorrow's post I will talk about my sister.

My mother probably didn't sign up for all of the different things that come with Type 1 Diabetes in infancy. The pre-dawn-phenomena, the infinite amount of needles and blood, the many sleepless nights because of a roller-coaster of blood sugars. I don't blame her. I wouldn't have signed up for it either! But she still took care of me. Even though it wasn't fun, she still loved me enough to persevere and take care of me when I couldn't take care of myself. I don't think I'll ever be able to thank her enough for that.

Growing up she pretty much did everything for me. She logged my blood sugars, she stayed up until midnight to check my sugar so that I could sleep, she changed my pump sites and everything else. The only thing I did until I was about seventeen was check my own blood sugar when I was awake. Because she wanted me to be able to enjoy my childhood (and be like any other kid), she did the rest herself. After I turned seventeen I started logging my own blood sugars and changing my own pump sites to take some of the responsibility from her. I didn't realize just how hard it all was until them, but I'm so amazed at her strength and willingness now. At this point in my journey I'm doing most everything. Sometimes I need help inserting a pump site, but I try to give my mother as much freedom as possible because she let me experience that while growing. 

The photo below I had posted on my facebook page (Fight Like A Taylor) with this caption:

"And He knew that I would need a mother that was okay with all nighters, pre-dawn-phenomenon, mood swings, homeschooling madness and everything else we have gone through because of diabetes. He knew that I would need a very amazing role model, and He knew that He'd better give me to her because she is part of the reason I'm still alive today. He blessed me with a wonderful Momma and I couldn't be happier to be her daughter."

I strongly believe that that is the case. God gave me a mother that He knew was going to be strong enough to take care of me. I'm forever grateful to both Him and her for that gift. Without her, I probably would not be alive today.

My Story

I feel like it is necessary to share my story with T1D this month. It helps my readers understand why it is so important to me to show support and raise awareness.

I was diagnosed with this disease when I was 10 months old. I've had it for 18 years. It has shaped the way I live my life and it has an impact on almost every decision I make.

Obviously I don't remember everything I went through at the beginning. I was way too young to know what was happening, which I consider a blessing in disguise. I feel that way because that means that I never had a significant life-change. I hadn't had time to get used to life without the disease before it took over. That means that I don't really miss my old life, and for that I am grateful.

I don't remember this either, but my parents tell me that when I was little I used to say that "God told me before I was ever on this earth that He would give me diabetes. He also told me that I would have a mommy and a daddy who would take care of me so I didn't have to worry about it. It's going to be okay." Even though I do not remember saying that, I do remember feeling a sense of peace about the disease. That had disappeared for awhile when I got older.

Growing up was not always fun, but I think that's the case for even "normal" people. I didn't get to eat cake at birthday parties or go swimming with other kids because of my disease. I didn't mind though, to be honest. It actually bugged me more that kids thought it was contagious. Diabetes is a part of me. It's not contagious. It's not weird. It is just there. It doesn't define me.

My mother pulled me out of public school and started homeschooling me in second grade. I didn't want to do it to begin with, but that decision has made me a far better person in the long run. It helped me to find myself without the peer pressure and to actually enjoy learning. Through the homeschool I was able to better control the disease and it kept me healthier.

Throughout adolescence, I have managed to control the diabetes fairly well. It scared me, though. That was something I never experienced in my childhood. The more research I did on the complications that could happen and the dangers of the disease, the worse I felt. I started letting it control me, rather than trying to control it. I've discovered that that never helps. The moment that you let this disease control you through fear, it consumes you and you become overwhelmed. At least that is what happened with me.

Thankfully that phase didn't last very long and I regained my confidence with handling this disease. I'm sure that was a gift from God, because I still don't know how I regained my strength. I guess I had to realize that it was never about my strength, but it was about His.

Because of my doubt at that phase, I never actually saw myself making it to where I am now. By that, I mean 19. I never saw myself reaching this age, especially not with my health as good as it is. I was definitely wrong in that. For now, I'm just taking every single day and giving it to God. I want to give what is left of my life to Him and let it be used for His purposes. I realize that everyday is a gift so I am going to treat it like so.

I never minded sharing my diabetes story. Actually, I enjoyed it. I have always loved sharing it with everyone who would listen. I suppose that is why November and T1D awareness is so important to me now, 18 years later. I want to spread the message of hope. I also want to show people a few things. First, it is okay to be scared of your disease, as long as you don't get stuck in that phase. Second, it does not define you, no matter what other people say or think. Third, don't be afraid to share your story. Because you never know who you might inspire!

Inspiration

 I always kind of assumed that because I am a diabetic I won't be able to do as much as other people will. I know I can't do any kind of military service or anything like that, but at one point I had wanted to become a law enforcement officer. I was really young then--I think I was about four--and I pretty much convinced myself that diabetes would prevent me from doing anything like that with my life.

I wasn't afraid of the work. I was afraid of this sometimes uncontrollable disease and the affects that a career in that field would have on it. I never wanted to admit that, but the fear was there nonetheless. I figured being an officer would be dangerous for me because of the training required. I watched my Dad go through the Basic Law Enforcement Training program and I saw how hard it was. I just assumed that I would never be able to make it through, so I looked for a new plan.

After that, I considered going into nursing. I was quickly reminded that I have a compromised immune system, and being around sick people all the time wouldn't exactly be a good idea. If I get sick super easily, then I might always be sick. If I am always sick, how can I expect to hold a job?

Once I came to that conclusion, I decided that I would just be a Mom and a writer for the rest of my life. I had always planned on being a Mom, too. It just wasn't really a focus before that. After doing a little bit of research, I discovered that it was dangerous for female diabetic to have children. What do you think I did after that? I decided that the only way I could be a Mom was if I adopted my children. There was no way I was going to put myself in danger.

There are a few things I want to share after pointing all that out. First, I would like to say that I have reminded myself that God is in control, and His plan for me is perfect. It doesn't matter what I want for me, I have and will continue to submit to His will. It is better that way. Then, I would like to introduce you to one of my human inspirations.

When I started College I actually took an intro to Criminal Justice class, figuring that I could do what I wanted to do with my life anyway. Here is the ironic part: I really didn't like the course! After debating for so long whether or not I could go into the field, I discovered that I didn't really want to. I found Criminal Justice studies somewhat boring, and I knew for sure after that class that was not what God had planned for my life! I still have a lot of respect for law enforcement officers, of course. I will always support them. I just wasn't meant to be one.

Now I will introduce you to Kyle Cochran, one of my biggest inspirations. About a year ago, my little sister discovered the television show American Ninja Warrior. If you haven't heard of it, it consists of an incredibly difficult obstacle course that people from all around the country try to conquer. (I'll include a video of one of Kyle's runs.) I started watching the show with my sister, and we got to see Kyle Cochran attempt the course. Before they would show his attempt, they  did an introduction. We discovered that he had Type 1 Diabetes! Naturally, I payed more attention at that point.

When I watched to see what this young man could accomplish, despite his limitations, it definitely inspired me! He taught me not to treat Diabetes like it is a crutch. The hosts as well as his family make a point to say how much of an inspiration he is, but I feel that I had to share my reasons.

I know from experience that diabetes can be challenging. It made playing sports difficult. It made working in a fast-paced environment next to impossible. I cannot fathom the control that Kyle must have to be able to be an American Ninja Warrior! It makes me want to fight a little harder for the things I want to achieve. I think that "Divabetic" says it best this way:

I have made the decision not to let my disability affect my capabilities. Instead of giving up, I will Fight Like A Taylor.

Some Fun Facts About Type 1 Diabetes

Misconceptions are common, especially when people rely on sources they assume to be credible. In the age of internet, that is a dangerous thing! Not every source is reliable for everything. Sometimes people will take information from a source and hold it as a fact, when it is actually a myth.

So there are some myths about diabetes that I would like to address and correct. Let me establish my credibility by saying that I have been living with and fighting this disease for 19 years.

First: diabetes is caused by obesity. This one drives me crazy. This is a very common myth that most people believe to be true. Diabetes can be caused by obesity--if it is Type 2. The difference between Type 1 and Type 2 can be described fairly easily. Type 1 diabetes occurs when the body's immune system destroys the pancreas, causing the patient to be insulin dependent. This isn't typically caused by eating too many calories or carbohydrates, despite popular opinion. My diagnosis came after an allergic reaction to my immunizations when I was 10 months old. How can a 10-month-old be obese to the point of diabetes diagnosis? For another example, one of my best friends was diagnosed at 3-years-old after her body fought off the chicken-pox virus. Both of us were completely healthy prior to our diagnosis. Type 2 diabetes occurs when the body isn't able to use insulin correctly, or when the body is insulin resistant. Only 5-10% of diabetics have Type 1 diabetes. (For more information, you can look at the WebMD website here: http://www.webmd.com/diabetes/tc/diabetes-differences-between-type-1-and-2-topic-overview) 

Second: Diabetics can't eat sugar. There is sugar in pretty much everything, so the belief that diabetics cannot eat sugar is definitely incorrect. We don't even count sugars! We actually count carbohydrates, because that is what directly affects the blood sugar. Yes, it does sound dumb, but trust me that's how it works. Once again, it differs between Type 1 and Type 2 with how we treat it. Personally, as a Type1 diabetic, I just have to get insulin before eating something with too many carbs in it. I will add that if my sugar is too high (which I would say is 250+) then I won't eat anything with too many carbs in it. It can be too difficult to bring the blood sugar down at that point. I'd rather maintain my health than eat a cookie whenever  I feel like it. Type 2 diabetics can control it through diet and exorcise, which brings us to our next myth.

Third: ALL diabetics can control it through diet and exorcise. Additionally, insulin is only taken when the patient's disease is extremely out of control. (Some people don't add the last part, but that is pretty much what it means.) I suppose this can be true to an extent. I know for a fact that if I exorcise when I am high, then my sugar will come down. Of course, eating any kind of carbs will bring it up. But it doesn't always work that way. Sometimes I might be stressed out, and if that is the case, no amount of exorcise I can do will bring my sugar down. Insulin helps at that point, but it is not because my disease is extremely out of control. You have to consider the difference between a Type 1 Diabetic and a Type 2 Diabetic at this point. Recall that a Type 1's pancreas has been destroyed and therefore the person is insulin dependent. It doesn't matter how much exorcise a Type 1 does, the body will not produce insulin because it is not capable of doing this.

Fourth: Diabetes has a singular treatment option. This one might not sound so familiar, but the majority of people do believe this. It basically means that, assuming a person knows the difference between Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes, the person believes that all you need is insulin and that will fix your problems. I can assure you, there is much more that affects this disease than insulin and/or food. This is an individual disease, and it does not affect everyone the same way. It doesn't even affect me the same way every single day. For example, if I eat the same food for breakfast everyday this week my blood sugar will not do the same thing afterwords. Sunday I might go too high because of the inactivity during church, while Monday I might drop too low because of my morning run. My emotions also play a huge part in what my diabetes will do. If I am stressed out over a school project, my blood sugar might stay high no matter what amount of insulin I get. The only way to fix that high is to relieve the stress. Alternatively, my blood sugar could decide to drop below 60 and remain there until I relieve the stress. (This is very dangerous!) I have done this before, especially lately. It gets to the point that I will literally take my insulin pump off and eat every two hours. Once again, this might not work the way I want it to. I could still remain low until after I have relieved the stress. Additionally, it doesn't affect every diabetic the same way. One of my diabetic friends might be stressed over a school project but be medically fine. But when she gets her heart broken, her disease a complete disaster to try and control.

Fifth: Diabetes is curable. This myth is quite hurtful. Some people assume that I can cure my disease through diet and exorcise, as I have addressed. But some people are persistent that this particular diet, or that exact food will cure my diabetes for good. The only way to cure this disease is to make the pancreas function "normally." It is hurtful because of the infinite amount of people that come up to me and treat me like I am stupid because I don't know how to cure it. I've even had some of my customers at work try to magically cure my disease with certain diet plans! Even when I know that most people are trying to help, it still makes me feel bad when they try to "cure" me. Partially because it reminds me that I am stuck with this disease forever. But partially because I take it to mean that they assume there is something wrong with me or with how I am dealing with diabetes. I can't express the fact that it is an individual disease enough. I am doing the best that I can, and I have plenty of help from my family, my doctors, and my God. I appreciate the care, but it is hurtful at the same time.

I didn't create this blog post as a rant, but it might look like that. I created it because I genuinely wanted to resolve these myths as best I could. There are a ton of things that I still didn't touch on, because it would take up too much time. I will probably write about those later. I want the world to be informed about the disease, rather than to just trust what the internet or their friends say about it. Thank you for taking the time to read.