a hi! my name is sophia and i have type 1 diabetes. theres a lot of things people dont know about diabetes and im bored so thats why i made this :))
ofc i did some research but i am not a doctor so i'm really just speaking on my own experience/knowledge. take this with a grain or two of salt.

MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE
i got diagnosed with type 1 diabetes on my first birthday so i have been living with it my whole life. just something i live with.

what is diabetes?
diabetes is a disease of the pancreas, an organ which is located behind the stomach and in front of the spine. this organ creates a hormone called insulin to regulate blood sugar. people with diabetes are unable to create this hormone. your body breaks down carbohydrates that you consume when you eat food and turns them into energy. as carbohydrates move through your body, multiple organs break them down including your pancreas. since those with diabetes cant break down carbohydrates when they get to their pancreas (because they cant produce insulin), they must take artificial insulin to stay alive.

MISCONCEPTIONS
type one diabetes is a genetic disorder. there is no cure but there are ways to manage it in which diabetics will live full, long and fulfilling lives. and no, i won’t die if i eat sugar. when dosing insulin, diabetics count carbohydrates, not sugar. there are multiple types of diabetes- type 1 (sometimes called juvenile diabetes), type 2, and gestational diabetes which can occur during pregnancy. type 1 is an incurable disease which usually occurs in adolescents. type 2 can be brought on, usually later in life, by factors like being overweight, inactive, or by genetics, and it is very manageable- sometimes reversible. it usually requires a lot less maintenence than type 1.

MANAGING T1 DIABETES
luckily for me, diabetes has become way easier to manage! theres two options for insulin delivery- syringes/pens or insulin pumps. insulin pumps give you insulin into an incredibly small plastic needle (no it’s not as scary as you think) on your body based on what you input into them. with syringes or pens, you have to dose out insulin and inject it yourself (which you have to do multiple times a day). insulin pumps also give very small amounts of insulin throughout the day. this is called the basal rate, you can adjust it in your pump settings to fit what you need.
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personally, i have the omnipod, which is composed of a small pod full of insulin, controlled through a handheld device. i insert it on my abdomen and i change every three days. the pump site is changed because eventually, the pods run out of insulin and after a certain amount of time sites can get infected. i also have a dexcom. you actually might have seen commercials for them (the ones with nick jonas in them?? :>). they are what are known as CGMs, continuous glucose monitors. as opposed to pricking my finger and using a blood sugar meter as i used to, i insert a device in my arm that connects to my phone by bluetooth and updates my numbers every 5 minutes. i change this every 10 days. both my omnipod and dexcom are waterproof, so i wear them in the shower, the pool and at the beach. :) this technology is not flawless. sometimes, things go wrong- but it’s just something i’ve learned to live with. these devices make my life so much easier and most of the time i even forget abt them! they usually don’t hurt- they’re not supposed to at least.

LOW AND HIGH BLOOD SUGARS
blood sugar levels. the target range is around 100-140. if i am at a high blood sugar, it is not immediately life threatening. high blood sugar causes you to be thirsty and to urinate often. if my blood sugar is over 400-500, though, it starts to affect me. i become irritable and my legs and feet start to hurt. ive never been hospitalized for diabetes personally, but it is a possibility if high blood sugars get too out of hand.
when my blood sugar is low, though, the dexcom app on my phone will vibrate and make noise to alert me. i become dizzy, tired and weak. when it is very low, one can appear almost drunk. at this point, i need carbs. usually, i go for apple juice or rice crispy treats (this is where my absolute hatred for apple juice comes from but hell, they’re easy). my dexcom helps me be aware of my numbers, and without it i could easily get into some trouble if i didn’t know i was low. even so, i might need some assistance from others at this point.

DONE!
that’s all i think you need to hear (well, there’s also insulin and insurance prices which piss me off. pls pls do some research on that! it makes me incredibly upset and i would love if others were educated on the topic. but maybe ill add more later!)

if you’ve read this far, i really appreciate it! i want more people to be less ignorant about type 1 diabetes bc it makes my life so much easier.
<33 much love, soph.

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Pub: 26 Jan 2023 02:34 UTC
Views: 58