A diagnosis of type 1 diabetes often comes as a shock. Even if you knew the signs and caught it early, you still are surprised to see that it happened to you. It can seem overwhelming as the world that you once knew no longer exists. Here are a few things that we found helped to remember when we were newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes.
Embrace the humorous side of life with diabetes.
Laugh at the silly things like blood that squirts across the room and test strips that find their way into your coffee mug.
Check out this cute story of how my teenaged son with diabetes tried to convince me that it was a special occasion to do his site changes.
We need comic relief when dealing with type 1 diabetes. There will be times that you feel overwhelmed. This is normal.
It’s the new normal that comes from living with a brutal and unforgiving, silent disease. It will sometimes lead to depression and it is important to recognize it, accept it and get help to find a way to move forward. We all have our days when we want to be the way we perceive the rest of the world to be. We want to sleep. We want a life without injections or insulin pumps.
We don’t want to see blood or test strips but there are sunny days. There are people who understand. You will make it through another day. Find a way to laugh and begin to accept your new normal–I promise.
Having diabetes isn’t a choice but how you handle it is.
Having diabetes isn’t a choice. There is no alternative other than working each day to do your very best. You cannot stop taking insulin, checking blood glucose levels or looking after yourself. You are too valuable.
You can take back some of your power, however. Choose your attitude about life with diabetes and choose the method of insulin delivery that is best for you. If you get great control on multiple daily injections, keep injecting! If you feel that an insulin pump is for you, do all that you can to start pumping! A continuous glucose monitor may or may not be your cup of tea. That is okay. Educate yourself and provide yourself with the best possible medical care than you can.
Read about the pros and cons of insulin pumps.
Take time for your mental health
Living with diabetes is more than just finger pokes and injections. It is a 24/7 job that has no reprieve. High and low blood sugar levels can cause depression. Whether you are newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes or have been living with it for years, take your mental health seriously. It is okay to ask for help or simply take time to focus on you. Have yourself a meltdown day or check out some of our other strategies for coping when diabetes becomes too much. Just don’t give up. Let me say it again, you are too valuable a person to give up on.
Diabetes is a complex condition.
In her book, One Step up from a lab rat, Donna Marcelissen stated that “most people believe that insulin and diet are all that a diabetic needs to follow in order to live a healthy, complication-free life….however, this is a disease and how the body reacts to it is not predictable.”
If you live with Type 1 diabetes, you know that there is much more involved than simply “take an injection and call me in the morning”. It changes your life. It changes your perspective. Type 1 diabetes demands your time and your efforts constantly.
There will be downs but there will be ups and over time you will learn to live life with diabetes not for it.
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