It seems like there's an official day for everything now. There's a Pig Day for pigs, there's a Bicycle Day for something entirely unrelated to bicycles, there's even a Towel Day in May. It'd be a hell of a party if you celebrated every one of them, however some of these days aren't really meant for celebrating. One such day is World Diabetes Day.
As far as "awareness days" go, World Diabetes Day isn't really unique. There are dozens of official days devoted to commemorating or bringing awareness to illnesses and ethical causes of importance, but you definitely won't find any of them marked on my calendar. For instance, until this week I didn't know there was a Diabetes Day, and I'm a Type 1 diabetic. Not the most inspiring message.
And while it seems to me as though Diabetes Day exists in part due to the fact that it would be odd NOT to have a Diabetes Day (see first paragraph), it means there's no better time than now to share some lessons I've learned over the past few months.
I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in April of 2015. I could recount my symptoms and my experience leading up to my diagnosis, and it might be of interest or some help, but there are a lot of resources on the internet or at your local hospital that would do a much better job of informing you about the disease than I could. Also, it's getting late and I want to ski tomorrow, so I don't have the time. So, without further ado, here are some of the lessons that diabetes has taught me:
In the end, I guess that this entry really is in keeping with the true spirit of World Diabetes Day. I hope that you're a little more aware of the disease, so that you can be better prepared should yourself or someone you know start peeing hummingbird nectar every hour. Mostly I'm glad I had the excuse to put some of my appreciation down in words. Thanks, everyone.
-Stu
As far as "awareness days" go, World Diabetes Day isn't really unique. There are dozens of official days devoted to commemorating or bringing awareness to illnesses and ethical causes of importance, but you definitely won't find any of them marked on my calendar. For instance, until this week I didn't know there was a Diabetes Day, and I'm a Type 1 diabetic. Not the most inspiring message.
And while it seems to me as though Diabetes Day exists in part due to the fact that it would be odd NOT to have a Diabetes Day (see first paragraph), it means there's no better time than now to share some lessons I've learned over the past few months.
I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in April of 2015. I could recount my symptoms and my experience leading up to my diagnosis, and it might be of interest or some help, but there are a lot of resources on the internet or at your local hospital that would do a much better job of informing you about the disease than I could. Also, it's getting late and I want to ski tomorrow, so I don't have the time. So, without further ado, here are some of the lessons that diabetes has taught me:
- Take Care of Yourself
- You Are Loved
- We're very lucky
In the end, I guess that this entry really is in keeping with the true spirit of World Diabetes Day. I hope that you're a little more aware of the disease, so that you can be better prepared should yourself or someone you know start peeing hummingbird nectar every hour. Mostly I'm glad I had the excuse to put some of my appreciation down in words. Thanks, everyone.
-Stu