Something I Have Never Ever Forgotten.

A few years back there was an incident that I was at the center of, involving diabetes, that I have never ever forgotten, and I don't think ever will, and this, further to the post I made yesterday, is something which makes me think even more that people need educating about diabetes more.


When I was younger, this is a while back now, we were in ASDA and my mum was waiting to pay and I was behind her in the queue. I'd started to feel my blood sugars go low, and tried to tell her, and she asked if I could wait a second and then she was going to grab me something to eat on the way out. I said yes that was fine and tried to continue, but I noticed myself losing my grip of things.


This is the point where, for me, my memory is hazy. I remember my eyes not seeming to stay still in their sockets and the whole of ASDA being one huge blur, like your vision on the waltzers or something. I was shaking violently. I remember trying in panic to alert my mum, I dont remember what I said or if it was coherent, but she noticed something was wrong and tried giving me money to walk off a few steps and grab some lucozade. I still recognized her at this point. 


I remember taking about 2 steps, and then going almost blind and losing all feeling in my legs. I remember not knowing where I was, but I knew I was going to fall. This next bit, I remember pretty vividly, because it upset me a lot when I came round again:


TO TRY AND STOP MYSELF FALLING, I ATTEMPTED TO HOLD ON TO THE TROLLEY OF A LADY STANDING CLOSE TO ME, SHE YANKED THE TROLLEY AWAY, CALLED ME A FREAK, AND WALKED AWAY.


Apparently, after this I began screaming (I dont remember this) and also, when my mum came to me, I didn't recognize her. Luckily, the lady who was serving us knew someone else who was diabetic and she was in action fast. She grabbed the nearest thing to her, a mars bar, and they attempted to feed me that mars bar while she called someone to get a bottle of lucozade (we didnt end up paying for either item). I felt better after the mars bar, and totally fine after the lucozade, and I was quite giggly later on, but I think I scared my mother half to death. 


The point of this post though, was the woman, and what on earth was she thinking? I didn't expect her to know I was diabetic, but I would have expected her to have a tad more compassion. Freak was sort of tattooed onto me after that. I know it's ridiculous, those who know don't see me in that light, but when someone sees us going too high or too low, if the first thing they manage to think is "freak", then what sort of world are we living in? 


I would ask you this one question, and to avoid bias I am going to not relate it to diabetes, if someone was having a heart attack in the street, or you came across someone with dementia who was lost and didn't know where they were or where they were going to, what would you do? Would you be like her, and say that they are freaks and ignore them, because you want out, or would you do the compassionate and human thing, and do your best to help them in any way you can, even if it seems like they're drunk, or incomprehensible, wouldn't you even try to help them?


If ever I am in the position where I can't physically speak to tell someone that I have diabetes and need either sugar or an injection, I have my ice band with the fact that I am diabetic and my name. I can show someone this and make them understand, but the only way I can do that is if someone is compassionate enough to help me if I look like I'm confused, or delirious, or can't talk to you properly. If you cross the street when you see me, I can't show you the thing that is going to save me, if you come and try to help me, I can at least attempt to show you the band so you'd know what to do.


Like I say, we need far more education.


Keep smiling :-)
Love, Tutti-Frutti
xxx 

People Need Educating.

Right, here's the deal. I'll put this as plainly and simply as possible. People need educating on diabetes, the different types and how they differ, how diabetes affects people, the reasons why I might seem like I am drunk sometimes if you see me in the street, the medications/treatments. People need educating on it all.


In psychology today, and this should never happen by the way guys, I was annoyed at it a little, but luckily for him on the whole I was okay with it, my psychology teacher turned without warning and announced to the class that I am a diabetic. When, quite shocked as I was, my eyes shot up from what I was doing to glare at him, he asked me if I minded the class being told I was diabetic, I told him it was a little late now since he'd already said, he told me evidently there was issues in eithics, yes there were, issues which he didn't consider. Now luckily for him, I didn't mind the entire class knowing, because it isn't something I can change, its not something I'm bothered about people knowing, but if I were anyone different he'd have to be careful. 


The reason I mentioned this, is because there followed comments about weren't diabetics fat? Wasn't diabetes due to overeating? And though this was never said, it was almost as if they were thinking, was she overfed as a child? Is it her parents fault she ended up diabetic?


What annoyed me, was that no-one asked me. They all muttered to themselves, but no-one turned to me and asked me, not at least until my psychology teacher started again. I explained they thought it was due to an auto-immune deficiency, at which point I received a roomful of blank stares and had to explain that means that my immune system was trying to attack itself. My psychology teacher went on to explain that the difference in types means a different in treatment, my pancreas doesn't work, that is not the same as all type 2 diabetics, and if you gave me metformin, no matter how many doses you give me, it wasn't going to work because I need different things. 


He explained that sometimes I act like I am drunk and that usually this is when my blood sugar is too low. Acting like I am drunk is a rather simplistic view I have to say, but it works I guess as a way of understanding something. Obviously for me, there is so much more happening, my eye sight may be getting affected, I might not be able to walk right, I tend to lose the feeling in my legs and my hands feel funny, I get dizzy and it feels like the world is turning on its axis too fast. 


But it scares me to think, everyone knew type two, they knew very little about type one. More education is needed, and needed fast. With understanding comes acceptance.


Keep Smiling :)
Love, Tutti-Frutti
xxx