A lukewarm rant: You know they have machines to measure your blood sugar?

I'm really not upset because I'm used to it. It's just irritating.

I was out to lunch with a group of people today. The topics of pets came up. I mentioned that I had a cat who passed after 19 years. (Loved her).

Anyway, now that I zig-zag in and out of hypo unawareness and have actually passed out before, I signed up to get a service dog. There is a wait list, so it will be awhile.

The person I was talking to was like "well, they have devices to measure your sugar, you know."

Duh? I pointed out to him that I'd taken my glucose before the meal and gave myself a dose of insulin all while I was sitting at the table. (I've had type 1 for so long that it's pretty unnoticeable unless someone is watching me.)

I then explained hypo unawareness. However, I was just like, "WTF?" I always feel like people who don't have diabetes and don't know much about it have stuff to say.

(Honestly, I think it's worse if someone's related to someone with type 2 because they start talking about oral medication and other stuff that simply doesn't apply to me.)

Okay, lukewarm rant over, but the longer I have diabetes (it's been over 20 years now) the more I want to punch people who try to be smart about it around me. I didn't though. ;)

haha, I love that. People are even nicer when they think you don't take care of yourself because you're on insulin. Good luck getting your service dog!

"Well, it came down to buying a meter or a dog... so I went with the dog"

Lol. Hey, I've gotten the "you use insulin? in a little MACHINE?? You must have diabet-us BAD!! I would never let myself get that bad. My (insert family member) lost both legs and was blind and grew a horn out of their forehead and.. and.. and.. died!" more than once..

Its almost too much work to correct them..

And why is it that people think we want to hear stories of their family members dealing with compilations and dying???

Thanks! I'm officially on the list as of a few weeks ago, so it will depend on how quickly they can get to me! Yeah!

I love that first reply!

Yeah, the folks with a dear aunt or uncle that lost all their limbs and went blind before dying a horrible death are the stories I really don't want to hear, so I'm just rude and cut them off. I then go on to explain the different types of diabetes.

In fact, today I posted this cute video in a forum where someone said something thoughtless like "well, I don't have to take insulin yet!".

...sigh... We do not have the same type of diabetes lady.

This is adorable and sad at the same time.

My own husband looked at me the other day after a diabetes commercial (don't remember what they were advertising...) and said, "Type 1's take pills, right?". I just looked at him in total disbelief! "Um....I'm a Type 1", I replied....he just looked away after saying, "oh, that's right".
I have such an understanding husband! (NOT!)
(I've been diabetic for 12 years, by the way, so this is not new)
Oh, and about hypo-unawareness....I tested my sugar last night and it was 39! Didn't feel a thing, I just "felt" like I needed to test my sugar (hard to explain)....does the hypo-unawareness fade in and out, by any chance?

I'm sorry about your cat, Regina, I know how hard that is. And I'm so excited for you getting a service dog! Very very cool! I assume that they go through training at the organization. Will you get to be with her to get trained or do they give them to people already trained?

ERRRRRRRRRRRRRRR ppl like that make me want to say "SHUT UP I KNOW!!!" not so nicely at that.

People who don't live with our disease have no idea what it's like and they won't unless they get to have our disease. No matter how long you live with this disease you will always feel that way unless you adopt another attitude. I've lived much longer with D and early on I adopted the attitude that people have to be educated and that's how I handle it.

Regina -- I hope that you can get a hypo alert service dog. I have one and it has improved my life immeasurably. My dog is not 100% accurate but neither is the latest medical technology. He is right a high percentage of the time and several times each month he alerts me to a low than I didn't sense. And that's saying something as I am usually very aware of my blood glucose status. I fingerstick test 10-15 times per day and also wear a CGMS.

I've read that diabetics are twice as likely to suffer from depression as the general population. The companionship and emotional support that my dog gives me greatly contributes to my sense of well being. I never had a dog before this and I now appreciate why pets are considered part of the family.

The general public is terminally confused about T1 diabetes. I guess it's just human nature to be ignorant about that which doesn't directly affect you. It's our job to gently remind them of the facts when appropriate. I know it's hard sometimes to remain patient but that is the nature of our situation. Good luck to you.

It would be interesting to see what we all knew about diabetes before our diagnosis. I'll be brave enough to share my own ignorant state (and it's not like I was a kid at the time!).

I knew my grandmother had it and used insulin but wouldn't have a clue which type - she was old for the time I knew her, dying when I was 11. I'd heard it skipped a generation. (?).When I was diagnosed I don't remember if they actually said Type 2 or if they assumed, like I did, that is what it was as I was 58. I vaguely knew there was a kind that "you got diagnosed with as a kid". I "had heard" that "diabetics" could go for 20 years or more before needing insulin so I wasn't terribly bothered by the diagnosis. When the educator brought up diet, I said "I eat very healthy, I don't eat fast food, haven't eaten sugar in 13 years and am a vegetarian". (What's amazing is she accepted this statement, not thinking to ask whether as a vegetarian I ate a lot of rice and pasta!). I was given a meter and told to test, I believe 3-4 times a day, and given a prescription for several medications. That's it, the sum total of what I knew before diagnosis.

I think it's just adorable. I don't feel sorry for her or for myself. If it's not diabetes it's something else, in most cases. I have a friend, a former roommate, who has been a type 1 diabetic since she was a child. Her life seems to be going 10x better than a lot of people I know that don't have diabetes. ;)

Oh, thanks. My dear Ms. Kitty died after accompanying me on my adventure through the end of undegrad, law school, while I was abroad, and when I moved back. Her old feline body gave out though a few weeks after I moved to NYC. I miss her a lot, but it was a wonderful 19 years. She was a great companion.

As for the dog, it is a lot of training. Right now, I'm on a list and I'm pretty sure the wait is awhile. There is screening and training, but I don't know the details of the program and what happens when you're matched with a dog yet.

Wow. I have to admit, I'd be a wee bit upset. You're handling it better than I am, but there is probably a VERY good reason that I'm not married. ;)

My hypo unawareness definitely fades in and out. I'm not an expert, but have heard if you have a lot then your awareness fades over time. It's yet another good reason to maintain good control.

Yep. Instead, I probably just gave him an "are you stupid?" look.

I don't have a poker face at all. Then I explained that 1) I had just checked my blood sugar and given myself insulin at the start of the meal and 2) over time you can become hypo unaware.

Before I was diagnosed I knew the difference between type 1 and 2. However, I knew nothing about the differences in treatment. I didn’t know about carbs. When I was diagnosed I was actually excited because I just thought ‘now I don’t have to feel so crappy all the time!’. I thought type 1 diabetes meant having a shot once a day and not eating sugar. I stocked up on sugar free candy and cookies before anyone even told me about counting carbs. Now I can’t believe it when people say dumb things like ‘how many shots a day?!?!’. And when people tell me how weird it is that ‘my diabetes just got so bad so fast!’. It makes me want to SCREAM.

Very true and I don't disagree. In fact, I did inform him about hypo unawareness which he had no idea about.

It's not so much that he was unaware or ignorant about diabetes, but that he was insensitive and, frankly, rude. I can forgive someone for not knowing. I've had people in the past ask me "oh, what's this?", ask about how I manage daily, or even get excited to see me checking my blood sugar. I remember I even had a guy ask me if I'd check his. I explained that his blood glucose would be fine, so it was sort of a waste. Also, that I didn't switch out my lancets as much as I should (reminds me to switch mine today). I ultimately said no because I was paying out of pocket for those test strips. What he learned that evening? Test strips aren't cheap. ;)

People like that, who are truly curious, I have no issues with. It's people who are insensitive and rude who rub me the wrong way, and that's distinct from simply not knowing. People can be both, but I've run into a few that aren't. When I have to deal with the others, I'm just not as patient. Maybe that will come with time, but maybe it won't.

Regina, this video is adorable!! I wish I could carry it around with me and show people as needed. :)

Thanks Terry.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I'll make my way up that list pretty fast! I hope so! :)

I do miss having a pet too. I've done some reading on diabetics who have service dogs, and I'm looking forward to being able to bond again with an animal too. Having the added security of it being trained to alert me when my blood sugar is going haywire is great too.

Since I travel from time to time, my biggest concern was being able to travel with a full-sized dog on a plane. However, I can, so I'm ecstatic.