Inspiring Stories

Lesson learned

In 1978 two weeks after my 15th Birthday I was put in the hospital for diabetes. I didn't really know what that meant at the time until I was told that I had to take shots for the rest of my life.
For the first three or four months I did really well until my doctor said that I could have something sweet once in awhile and I took it the wrong way cause I was eating candy every chance I got.
My blood sugars would be high but I thought that if I got really active I could make it go down and I was wrong, so I took better care of my self until I was 19.
I ran into this man who told me that if I put my trust and faith in this God of his I will no longer have to take my insulin.
Well needless to say I did what he said and I ended up with a blood sugars of 1500 and almost died.

Today I am still paying the price of it but I take better care of my self by eating right and taking my insulin.
Although I still deal with the things that comes with having diabetes but it is more manageable by listening to what my doctor says.
Being 50 years old now makes me wonder why I didn't listen to what I was told not to do and take better care of my self when I was younger.

Anonymous
Quincy, IL

15 years later

I was diagnosed at 11 years old with type 1. I was home alone and could not stop drinking iced tea with sugar. I was just pouring the sugar because I could not re-hydrate myself. My mom came home from work one night because my older sister called her and said that I looked deathly. My moms boss was a RN at our local hospital and told her to take me down immediately. The doctors could not figure out what was wrong with me until my father told one of the nurses that he was borderline diabetic. As they were pumping glucose into me, and getting ready to do a spinal tap, one of the nurses ran my blood and my glucose level was 1367. The highest they ever saw. I was immediately taken off the glucose and straight fluids. I was airlifted to the nearest children's hospital and spent 2 weeks there. Most of the time in a diabetic coma. The doctors and nurses were not sure if I would be "normal" or have brain function. When I came out of the coma, I was myself, just with Diabetes. I was told that I may never be able to have children. However, 3 years ago, I gave birth to my beautiful, healthy daughter. I am here because of taking control of my own life, even at a young age. I was not going to let diabetes define me. It will be 16 years ago on January 28th, that I was diagnosed... but I still do everything that anyone without diabetes does. Don't let diabetes define you. Take control and live life to the fullest like I did.

Julia
Key West, FL

The Sweet Life of Diabetes

1251 days have passed since my daughter was diagnosed. I no longer know what it is like to go to bed, knowing for certain that my daughter will wake up in the morning. I DO know what it’s like to force feed sugar to her in the middle of the night, knowing that I am sacrificing her teeth to save her life.

Lily started wetting her bed on July 16th, 2010, a Friday. We took her to her pediatrician and told him what was wrong and he agreed that we should check a urine sample. He started asking us if she had been drinking an unusual amount of water lately, we said yes, but it was hard to tell, because it was the middle of summer, so EVERYONE was drinking more water at the time. Heck, we encouraged it so the kids didn’t overheat. She might have diabetes. Dr. Moore came in with a glucometer to do an AccuCheck, but the meter said “HI” instead of giving a number reading. He told me to hang on for a minute while he made a phone call.

Dr. Moore came back in and told me that he had been on the phone with the pediatrician in the Mott Children Hospital Emergency Room in Ann Arbor, to go right there and they would be expecting me. I remember saying “Oh, I’m going there now?”

“Yes. Mike, you don’t go home, you don’t go run errands or drop the boys off. You leave here. You go there. Now.”

That’s when it hit us that something very serious was going on.

We checked in at the ER desk and they got us back to redo an accucheck. It was 764, still the highest she has ever been. We didn’t know how scary a number like that could be, or how lucky we were. We were fast tracked for an admit, where she stayed for 4 days until we could get her blood sugars under control and the staff could educate us on how to take care of a diabetic child.

Michael Melnick
Jackson, MI

Not always true

I have changed my diet - exercise - lost weight - all of the things that should make a difference - and still have problems - it is NOT always a lifestyle issue. I have TYPE 2 and was diagnosed at age 31. I was a heavy drinker and did not watch my diet but was in very good shape. I was in the military and was in places that have now been found to have been exposed to chemicals that cause diabetes. I cannot prove my existence in those areas so I don't get any pensions for it. It was my job and I had volunteered to do these things and not report them. No problem, just explaining. I have no proof that this may be the issue. I have family with diabetes so genetics could also play in. I hate it when everyone reaches for diet and exercise as that is not always the answer. It hurts the ones of us that does not work for. I would appreciate it if you folks that have these issues would keep it to yourselves as it it damaging to the ones with REAL issues. You have issues with your lifestyle - I have issues with my body. I need help - you don't Researchers are not looking for cures because of you. They are writing off Type 2 as a lifestyle disease and not studying issues like mine. It is sick as you people cannot control your lives. I have worked 35+ years and have tried everything and still cannot get things under control please stop the blame game and the lifestyle stuff - if does not help people with genetic and other real issues. Let us get help and stop the "I cured my own diabetes by losing weight" It does not always work and it hurts the ones that it does not work for.

Glenis Nelson
Knoxville, TN

Diabetes is not the end of the story

I was 38 when I was diagnosed. I was sitting in a First Aid couse and the facilitator was listing the symptoms for diabetes. It had only been a couple of weeks but I had noticed the thirst, the tiredness and going to the loo. I went to a pharmacy and they did a BGL test. My first ever reading was 22.9. The poor girl who did the test thought she had made a mistake and redid it. She was very upset and went and got the pharmacist who did it again. He told me to see my Dr immediately. Initially my Dr wasn't sure if I was a T1 or a T2 but a blood test soon confirmed T1 and my life changed forever. In the first few months I made a really good job of looking after myself. I did everything I was suppose to and my Dr was pleased with my results. Then I got angry and thought it all very unfair. I would see obese people in town and think you'lll probably end up with diabetes but if you lose weight you can prevent it. I have very little sympathy for overweight people with bad diets. For a while I ate badly, drank too much alcohol and missed shots. I started feeling really unwell and would get the most awful leg cramps at night. I then got diagnosed with thyroiditis (changed later to Graves Disease). Time to be selfish and put myself first. I had 1 DKA after a bout of food poisoning which also caused a heart scare. Once I recovered from the DKA I had to have all these tests done ending with an angiogram. The cardiologist finally concluded that my heart was fine and the heart thing was a reaction to my body being under so much stress. I now lead a normal life. I work fulltime. My husband and I eat healthily and execise regularly. I have 5+ shots a day. I am seldom sick. The irony is that although I have a chronic health disorders I am probably healthier than most.

Sharon Donald
Gununa, Australia

i took my first shot at 8yrs old

I have been on shots since i was 8 . They said i wouldnt make it I almost died 26 times. They said i would never have babies, I have a beautiful girl and a boy. They said after my daughter was born I wouldnt make it she is 8 now and ill be 36 dec 22 . I have diabites and im a suvivor even though they said I wouldnt make it. You can I can and will beat this 4shots a day pain in the butt issue. I am without insurance and thank goodness for great training and being carefull . Hoping for a cure is always on my mind. When i get a cold or flu i fear the worst because im a brittle diabetic and have no insurance. No one in my family has it I got a bad case of the mumps n it killed my pancrease completly. But so far iv beat deth 26 times haf two beautiful children and married 15 yrs to a wondetful man who takes care of me when im sick. My blood sugars can go from good to bad in second as in normal one day to a rollet coast of highs 600 to lows 28 in a matter of an hr.....so please everu one please hope and fight for a cure . Im shooting for a transplant hopfully oneday...I too will continue to fight . Many dont understand the severity and different typs and issues there are relating to juveniel diabites which it my type. If thete is any free help for me out there please let me know my insulin reg is starting not to work well i neef help i dint want to miss out on my beautiful miricals from Gods lives.

Sarah M Vargas
zebulon, NC

Erin's Early Teens Experience with Type 1 Diabetes (Coping w/ and adapting to diabetic life).

Hello! My Name is Erin. I'm currently 27years old. I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when I was 14years old. My parents and I noticed that I was urinating and drinking a lot more and had (over time) developed more and more of a loss of appetite. I had an appointment with our family Pediatrician, who - given the signs and family history of diabetes - believed I may be a diabetic, and he referred us to a specialist. After seeing the specialist, my Pediatrician's suspicions were confirmed, and I was hospitalized for a period of 4days while doctors ran tests and did their thing to get my blood sugars in balance. At the time I was diagnosed, I weighed 78lbs! My blood sugars were sky high (520's range), and the whole experience certainly affected me as a teenager. After all, sugar is an important part of every teenager's life, isn't is? It was scary for me because I suddenly had to learn a whole new lifestyle, where so many things changed, and healthy living became more of a necessity than a personal choice. Smaller portions and multiple meals per day, as well as regular exercise, suddenly became my worst best friends. Looking back, I believe I handled the transition well, and have developed a good nutritional and aesthetical approach to controlling my diabetes. It's important to take care of your feet (never get a pedicure if you're a diabetic!), and to notice the sign of relatable ailments, as it affects much of the body - such as the liver, kidneys, eyes, nervous system, and heart, etc. The muscle structure and other disorders that are commonly associated with diabetes (like thyroid and seizures disorders). I have both thyroid and seizure disorders as a result of my diabetes. I've learned that it's important to know your limitations when it comes to exercise, and to become knowledgeable about calories and sugars intake. My advice is to relax and simply focus on taking care of yourself if you share the shoes I walk in daily, and to love life to the fullest!

Erin
Youngstown, OH

Life Changing Diagnosis

When I was 15 years old, I started showing the usual symptoms of diabetes. I started to notice I was losing a bunch of weight, but thought nothing of it. After a month I ended up losing 40+ pounds. It all hit me at once after that, i was constantly drinking something and using the restroom more frequently than normal. On November 7, 2006 I woke up and started throwing up and felt really sick, so my mom scheduled me an appointment to see my doctor at 3pm that day, but I had to wait for my sister to get home from school to take me.

My sister finally dropped me off at the doctors. As i was waiting in the doctors office I really had to use the restroom, so i asked them if they wanted me to just give them an urine sample, so I did. After the doctor finally came in and did the normal check up, he didn't really know what was wrong with me. I told him about the sample I gave, just in case he didn't know about it. Sure enough he didn't, after he checked it he came back and said I had ketones in it and that I had Type 1 Diabetes. I didn't know anything about the disease except that my friend also had it. My mom worked at the hospital, so once I got there she met me in the ICU. When I first arrived my blood sugar was 1000+, they told me one more day I would either have been in a coma or possibly dead.

7 years later, I am still learning how to manage the disease, but I've also learned not to take life for granted. Each day is a struggle and a learning experience. I am now in college and i'll admit that it's not the easiest thing to manage while at school. But I take it one day at a time. Being diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes was definitely the biggest life changing moment of my life, but it has made me a stronger person.

Jeremy Samuels
Big Rapids, MI

Living with type 2 diabetes

Waking up everyday with a headache, constantly going to the bathroom and drinking what seemed to be gallons and gallons of water? At the age of 15 that is what was happening to me. I went in for a random checkup at my local doctors office. When the doctor walked in with pamphlets and brochures on type 2 diabetes I was (as any kid would be) freaking out. The doctor told me I had type 2 diabetes. I wasn't sure what that meant or even what I was supposed to do.. The doctor explained to me that my blood sugar was sky high, and it was a miracle that I was even alive. (blood sugar was 760) they gave me my medicine and asked me to come back in a week. I was good about taking my medicine and working out for the first couple of months, but later on in my life I just gave up. I was tired of working out and not being able to eat what everyone else was eating. It wasn't fair! So I stopped taking my medicine and stopped going to the doctor. Until one day I was taking a bath and I felt really dizzy, I went under the water to wash my hair and I lost consciousness. My boyfriend came into the bathroom and found me under water. He rushed me to the hospital. After 8 hours of being stuck and poked and messed with, I finally got released. My blood sugar was 801. I went back to taking my medicine and doing good.. for another year or so. Just recently I had a miscarriage and went to the doctor to find out why. My sugar was 735 at the time. They hooked IV's up to me and yet again put me on medicine. Now I'm taking oral medicine and insulin 3-5 times a day. It isn't by any means easy, and sometimes I just feel like giving up. But I am only 22 years old, I still have the rest of my life ahead of me.

Robbie J
Blountstown, FL

My life with Type One Diabetes!

My name is Kayla Provenzano, I am a Type One Diabetic. I was diagnosed at 17 Months Old. I currently am 17 Years old! I have been in the hospital with DKA five times and was diagnosed with Pancreatitis in March a few days after my 17th birthday! Living life with Type One diabetes as a juvenile is hard but once you get use to living with it, its actually not that bad! Some people ask if taking insulin injections hurt, I just tell them it only hurts if you think about it, I was only 6 years old when I did my very first insulin shot. It hurt at first, but now its an everyday thing!

Kayla Provenzano
Leander, TX