Monday, February 28, 2011

Diabetes Challenges - The Grown Up Edition

Growing up with diabetes was a challenge - just ask my mother, who mothered three children and a husband with type 1 diabetes.
Ask "Kelly In The Past," who had her share of trying to fit in and be normal - It wasn't always easy.
Ask my oldest friends, who saw the good, bad, and diabetesalicious of it all.

I think one of the reasons I became such a loyal friend is because of diabetes. I know the value of having friends who are there regardless of a faulty pancreas.

And now that I'm all grown up, diabetes is still a challenge - and new challenges have popped up.

There are fleeting moments that I forget about diabetes. OK, not forget, but some things, like testing my blood sugar, and immediately counting carbs when ever food enters my mind or is presented on my plate, have become so automatic that they've become second nature to me, like breathing and hating liver.

The longer I live with diabetes, the more I worry about "The Diabetes What If's." And I know that a little worry can be productive, but too much can be down right paralyzing.
I still struggle with the worry, but I'm handling much better than I have in the past - And that's directly related to being part of the Diabetes on-line community.

Then there's the challenge of people (mostly perfect strangers) asking me if I can have kids because, you know, I have (said in a concerned tone) diabetes. Or ,they switch it up a bit and ask me if the reason I don't have kids is because of my diabetes. For the record, diabetes is NOT the reason I have yet to be called "Mommy", but honestly, it's none of their business!
I don't ask (OK, most of the time I don't ask) those nosey nellies the last time they took a crap or had sex, so why is it OK to ask me about my reproductive long term plans, decisions, etc?

Diabetes and dating was never a problem before. I was always honest and upfront regarding my diabetes, but I was the one who decided when it was time to bring up my diabetes. When I did decide to share my diabetes, it was usually on the 4th or 5th date, when I knew that things were going well - And it was never a deal breaker in any of my long term relationships.
But now that I blog about diabetes on a daily basis, and the name of my blog is on my business card - And we live in the age where Google has become a pre-dating pre-requisite, the decision of when to share my diabetes with a potential significant other is no longer mine.

And I'll admit, not having control in that area bothers me.

With that being said, I would never go back to my life pre Diabetesaliciousness.
Diabetes blogging has given me a voice; a passion, a community, a career, and an irreplaceable support system that I need, want, and could not live without in my life.

Life will always present us with challenges, faulty pancreas or not. That doesn't mean we stop being or doing.
In fact, it's just the opposite, we learn new ways to continue doing, becoming and evolving.

And that my Diabetesalicious friends, is what living is all about!

6 comments:

Unknown said...

It is such a gift that you have in sharing your experiences and thoughts and tips with the DOC and your readers Kelly. Thank you...and yes...I loved the "taking a crap and sex" part of the post. As always, you are "real" girl.

Cara said...

I don't have my last name on my blog. When you goggle search my you get my very private face book page and that's it. Weird, I know, but I'm slightly paranoid about the whole deal.

Donna said...

I once had someone (an older lady) mention to me that when my daughter is older I will have to start pushing early for grandkids since I only had one child that would give me grand kids. First of all - I am only 30 and I have 4 yr old twins (at the time they were just turning 3) so GRANDKIDS were the LAST thing on my mind. Secondly... I have TWINS. TWO kids. So why the hell would she say that I would only be getting grandbabies from my daughter??? Because my son has diabetes. And she had just automatically assumed that my 3 yr old little boy would grow up and NOT have children because of it. It was my first experience of that type. And so far, my most appalling experience. I gave her what-for (I am just that kind of mom) and told her that in no way would diabetes limit him from having children one day if he wanted them. It was also then that I decided it was time to advocate and help people to learn about this disease.

I admire you and what you do so much. THANK YOU for paving the way. It means a lot.

Misty said...

Kelly I love reading your blog, so I am happy to hear you say that it is something you couldn't live without!

Heidi =) said...

I love your blog Kelly! It has been a gift to me, as we are not quite a year into our D-life. You inspire me and help me to look at the lighter side of diabetes. I hope my daughter has the same healthy approach to her faulty pancreas as you do when she gets older. I encourage her as much as I can and try to keep things positive. Thank you for what you do!

Jules said...

Amen to evolving !