On Our Own Tracks

What Diabetes and the month of March means to me…

It is fair enough to say that 2018 is moving along nicely, as we head into March and the start of Autumn tomorrow. In amongst all of this cheering and grabbing onto the warm weather as much as possible, as we go into the colder months and say goodbye to Summer, there’s a little part of our society excitingly gearing up for a cherished event that is going to last a month. March is ‘Jump To Cure Diabetes’ month, an annual event that raises money and awareness, and aims to find a cure for Diabetes. Most importantly, it shows support for those who live with the condition.

This week, I am highlighting this event to bring awareness to what Diabetes is and to introduce an amazing woman I know, who sees her illness in the best light possible. I first met Kym about fourteen years ago when we started high school together, and we have been friends ever since.  I still remember all of the times we had laughing together for hours and hours. It was during these times that we got a chance to share with each other, stories about each of our conditions and I got a chance to learn a little about Diabetes.

In Kym’s case, she has had Type One Diabetes for twenty years, since she was five. As Kym describes it, Type One Diabetes is a condition where certain “cells in her body fail to produce insulin” so she has to monitor her intake and inject the missing insulin into her body on a daily basis. As you can imagine, this can be very daunting for a person at any age, especially when there are daily worries that include wondering whether you are injecting the right amount of insulin so you don’t have a high or a low which can heavily impact on your health or even cause you to have a black out. As Kym explains, she has had hard days, usually when she was younger, and her sugar levels were too low or too high. Fortunately, it was  during that time, when she also saw herself as “being different to everyone else”, that she was lucky enough to go to Diabetes camps. At these camps, she had the opportunity to learn how to manage her Diabetes and most importantly, meet others with her condition which made her feel like she wasn’t alone and that there were  others going through the same journey as she was. This is why Kym has stated that when she heard about ‘Jump to Cure Diabetes’ month “it put a smile on her face” because it meant that there were people out there fighting to cure Diabetes, which she knows will help so many people.

As Kym explains, it is with this attitude and the fact that she now sees her diabetes as a part of her life, that she is finally (now) feeling comfortable with her condition. Furthermore she is willing to give young teens with the same condition exactly that advice, “To own your Diabetes as a part of you and don’t ignore it. Also, remember that there are always others out there with the same condition.” It’s also not surprising that Kym currently works as a disability Support Worker with Norwest Disability.

So in the month of March, why don’t you explore what you can do for ‘Jump To Cure Diabetes’ Month and if you happen to have Diabetes why not connect with others with your condition? You never know what you may just have waiting for you.