Wednesday, January 9, 2013

It will be O.K

As you can imagine being diagnosed at age eighteen I had lived a childhood much like the average child. I was able to indulge, attend sleepovers with less worry of my parents and had much less worries of myself.  After being diagnosed I was given a much different path in life than I had ever expected - what I knew about the world suddenly changed and the fragility of the world seemed much more apparent.  I was given an eye opening, everlasting experience.

My first thoughts on being diagnosed were not sad ones. I had linked my diabetes to my grandparents which I soon found out was not at all what I had in store for myself. I smiled on the edge of the hospital bed because I had no idea what life was going to be like, so to stay calm and positive was my first instinct.  When I realized how much hard work and time I was going to put into diabetes that was when I knew that life from this point on was going to be different.

Beyond diabetes terms and the technicalities of diabetes - diabetes taught me valuable lesson. The lessons of compassion.  I became compassionate for people suffering around me or people I heard about. I knew that what I was experiencing with diabetes was hard work, but out there in the world someone needed someone with an open heart to understand them.  I felt empathic for people that were living with disease, more specifically children that were diagnosed with diabetes.

Compassion truly comes from learning from your own experiences and applying it to others and truly understanding.  Once I realized how easy it was for my life to change and how difficult it can be, I began to look at others dilemmas and hurdles with the same kind of focus.   Similarly, when I was first given negative criticism about the blog. Once you receive negative criticism, you soon realize those nasty posts you see on Youtube accounts or Facebook pages are effecting someone - someone who may be very passionate about what they do, or very happy the way they are.

When I realized what this blog had become, I refocused my goals and knew that the power I have is to give hope to those living with diabetes and to show that I am compassionate about others living with the disease.  We all take on diabetes differently. We have bad days for all kinds of different reasons, but in the end we can all come together at the end of that day and regroup and share our stories to learn from one another.

Just remember that everyone has their own battles, everyone has different things that make them tick, laugh and cry.  We are all different, yet we can all become compassionate caring people because we've all faced many hurdles and obstacles in our life time to know that life is difficult, but everything will be O.K.

Kayla





5 comments:

  1. I think it's much easier when someone is diagnosed with juvenile onset at an early age because we then grow up with the disease. We don't really look at having a disease, it's just a part of who we are. I think it's harder on tweens and young adults like you were, because you have to really change how you've been living. If you're still young, your parents have to learn a new way of life too and that can cause more stress. I was the only juvenile onset in my town from the age of 5 until I was 15. I was allowed to do pretty much what I wanted. I wasn't treated like I was different. I think that's the main reason I don't think diabetes is a difficult disease. Of course, not having any complications is a plus :)

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  2. What a great post! Thank you so much for sharing this. I like the positive tone and lesson of compassion you've learned. Maybe it is "easier" in a sense being diagnosed younger (I was five dx'd in 84) and growing up with it, because we really don't know anything much different and it's just the way it always has been. But still, it's never easy living with D.

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  3. I was diagnosed when I was 17, going on 11 years with Diabetes. I still struggle with eating things I'm not supposed to eat, in fact, I know I am not the only one. I'm still trying to adjust and readjust. I've struggled a lot. I went through a 3 year denial period and then reality hit me when I almost died from ketoacidosis. Talk about a slap of reality. Now I have an 8 month son that I want to be a better man for. I am raising money for JDRF to find a cure and am doing the 100 mile bike ride in August. I'm getting back in control of my life. Your blog is a great reminder of who I am with the cards I've been dealt. Thanks for sharing! I think I'll become a regular reader!

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  4. That's awesome good for you Ian!

    And thank you so much!

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