Hi Laura,
I started another post
https://forum.tudiabetes.org/topics/what-is-diabetes-a-response-to.
because of your question here, and this is what I wrote.
Good luck.
What is Diabetes? A Response to a POST BY LAURA
When my mother got T2 Diabetes 25 years ago, she asked me
What is Diabetes?
I’m sure 95 % of you can write a 25 page summary quite easily.
But let me ask you again,
What is Diabetes?
I had just finished my university pathology studies when she was diagnosed.
What I saw in my studies, was that many diseases and conditions just develop in time/over time, as people age: heart, kidney, eye, blood vessel and circulation problems etc
And in the case of diabetes (both Type 1 and Type 2; i.e. both have high blood sugar in common!),
many of these things which would have developed anyway in time, just come sooner
(or possibly not at all if one is lucky, based on genetic, environmental or lifestyle influences),
.
So, when my mother got T2 Diabetes 25 years ago and asked me
What is Diabetes?
I basically answered :
“Well all the diseases you could get as you age and get older, they just come sooner !”
25 Years later, I still stand by that answer: of course, if one’s blood glucose is out of whack for a long time, many other things can easily be brought on too!
What I tried to do was lessen her ‘fear’ of of what diabetes really is.
Again I believe with Diabetes,
“Well all the diseases you could get as you age and get older, just come sooner !”
After 25 years, my mother is more or less complication free now.
The the first 10 years she was on oral meds, and the following 15 years on shots.
She understood that she needed to keep her blood sugars down, otherwise:
“Well all the diseases you could get as you age and get older, just come sooner !”
So many people may have a fear of diabetes, and what an extended ‘list’ of ‘mysterious’ complications it may bring.
So, as I said above, many of these complcations are just those that would have developed in time anyway (or possibly not at all if one is lucky, based on genetic, environmental or lifestyle influences or decisions); and ofcourse, that if one’s blood glucose is out of whack for a long time, many other things can easily be brought on too!
So, my conclusion, diabetes should not be feared, but CONTROLLED,
It needs to be controlled, otherwise
“… all the diseases you could get as you age and get older, will just come come sooner !”
Of course, the experience in the modern age is that if Diabetes is fairly well controlled, the complications can certainly be delayed by many many years or even avoided all together.
This threads was posted after I read the post below by Laura.
Diabetes patients should not suffer anxiety that comes with such concerns as hers,
but they should put their energty to better CONTROLLING their diabetes.
I wrote this post up to 'PUNCH THE DIABETES MONSTER ON THE NOSE !! ".
Thats what Diabetes patients should be doing by better CONTROLLING their diabetes -
PUNCH THE DIABETES MONSTER ON THE NOSE !.
So again,
“What is Diabetes?”
Understand this, and one should really be on their way to a better life with D.