I remember the look on my moms face as the doctor said those eight words clear as a hot summers day
“ You have been diagnosed with type one diabetes.” I still see that moment in time like it was yesterday. The cold bland doctors office, the doctor speaking with a Russian accent her perfume overwhelming my sensors, The counter top had needles and devices of torturous sorts on one side while on the right, fun pooh- bear bandages and cotton swabs, a confused boy sitting looking out the window watching the forests blankly, trying to comprehend what was happening and how just asking for another drink of water could of caused this to happen, the day my life changed. As a kid you have no worries, always thinking big and dreaming bigger, I never once thought about getting a disease that would change my life, but it happened. I can remember every minute of those three days I spent in the hospital from laying in bed hearing the moans of the patient next to me, learning how to give myself shots, and always looking at the red windsock outside the window. My life was altered that day I had to learn how to recognize when my blood sugars were low or high and learn how to manage them, but I was only five, I barely knew how to tie my own shoes. I thought my life was over, that I would never be able to be normal or act like the other kids, because of having to be cautious of my blood sugar, through observations though I learned that everyone was different some kids have, asthma, others allergies, I just didn’t produce insulin that's all. It was tough as a kid growing up I wasn't able to eat birthday treats that kids brought in, I could never buy something from the Ala cart, or get ice cream from the neighborhood truck, society always telling me no. I remember asking my parents always
“can I eat this”, or “why do I have to wait.” The times I would cry because of the searing pain the shots gave me. But I'm not writing this for people to feel sorry for me, because as I matured and learned to better manage my diabetes, I see how gifted I really am. I don't see getting diabetes as a bad thing I see it as a challenge, a challenge to get up everyday and keep my blood sugar in check, another day to conquer the monster of which the experts call “diabetes.” To function as a normal teen. I also get upset when society labels people “weirdos.” It seems like society is always trying to teach people how to act or look , and if you don't fit that profile you’re labeled “weird” or “different.” Some people say “people with diseases like type one diabetes are different.” But the truth is, I'm just a normal kid I learn, play sports, and drive just like everyone else. I just occasionally have to give myself a shot, I hope one day society won't label people by what problems or diseases they have, but by the way they conduct themselves.