Congrats!! And thanks for sharing!!
I was diagnosed with type 1 right before my 19th birthday!
This is a milestone worth celebrating for, say, the next year! Congratulations.
What an amazing accomplishment! You have inspired me 
Thanks and keep up the great work!
-A
Congratulations, thatās terrific!
CONGRATULATION! I hope i make it to 50 years. im at 22 years. ive got 28 more to go 
Good for you! Diabetes certainly has changed in the past 50 years!
I am totally overwhelmed by everyoneās response to my post, I didnāt think it was such a big deal.
To those who asked the 1 infection I had was not bad, my thigh just got red & sore, in those days I did all my shots in my thighs, so now I canāt use them as there is a big dip in the muscles. Iāve only landed up in the ER once, in the mid-60s, with high blood sugars & as I also had pneumonia there was a mitigating factor, ! missed shot because I felt so ill & the infection did it. Iāve never landed up in hospital with low blood sugar, though I nearly killed myself once, I got up as usual, did my once a day shot, got a cup of tea & went back to bed, when I woke mid-afternoon, I had soaked the bed & I was screaming, luckily I realised what was wrong & dragged myself to the kitchen to eat sugar, I was alone at the time as my boyfriend was away. But enough of the horror stories.
I also have coeliac disease, diagnosed about 10 years after the diabetes, controlling the diabetes did seem to get easier after I went on the gluten free diet,
Annabella! you are in a special club and make sure to contact Joslin Diabetes Center to be part of their 50 year medal club! Basically they are doing research and as long as you are healthy enough to travel Joslin will get you to Boston to meet with others in the club, have a reception and then ask you for your blood and ask a bunch of questions in return! Itās a pretty special club so I always recommend it!.. assuming you are from the USā¦ if you are from the UK I donāt know if they would fly you to Boston, MA!!
in any case, kudos to you for 1/2 century with type 1!!
Annabella,
Congratulations!
I am hoping that with vigilence that my T1 son will reach his 50th anniversary of T1 in equal good health.
Cheryl
I am pleased to find this announcement today Annabella. I know how you feel, it is definitely a feeling of accomplishment.
Are you aware of the Joslin Medalist Program? The Joslin Diabetes Center in Boston, USA. awards medals to type 1 diabetics who have lived with their diabetes for 50 and 75 years. These medals are awarded to diabetics all over the world. People from many countries have received the medal. If you are interested, please let me know, and I will give you the necessary links. It is not difficult to apply. The medal is very attractive.
The medalists who participate in the Study are required to be US citizens, but diabetics from all over the world are able to receive the medals.
I am mailing my Joslin application tomorrow, thanks Richard I got the forms, & I am a US citizen since 1999, I came to live here in 1982.
I wrote to the hospital in the UK where I was admitted but their records donāt go back that far. My mother passed away in 2001 but I remembered I shared a hospital room with my cousin who remembers it clearly, she was having her appendix removed, her father was a top consultant at the hospital which is why we were there. So I hope 2 letters from cousins who remember my diagnosis which was a shock to the whole family will be enough.
Yes Annabella, those letters will work very well. My sister and a cousin wrote letters for me when I applied.
There is going to be a meet-up of Joslin Medalists on June 3 and 4 this year. If you receive your medal in the meantime, you could go to Boston for that event. It would be so nice to meet you there. I can give you more information about the meet-up if you are interested.
WAY TO GO, Annabella! This is a huge accomplishment and you should be celebrating. I hate to wish my life away but know that when I hit my 50th anniversary next year, I too will be celebrating. And to think, in the 60s you tested urine for glucose levels and no one even thought of meters. WOW, how things have changed!
Wonderful. I love to hear stories that involve many years and healthy folks. Congrats on the 50th.
Congrats, Annabella! Iām not only impressed with fifty years living with diabetes, but with people who deal with it during the busy changes times of life. I definitely feel I got off easy not being diagnosed till middle age! Be well for many more!
Congratulations on your 50th Year Milestone! I hope you continue to be well!
Congrats Annabella! You just gave me a moment to reflect. As of 3/15, about a week ago, I just got my 52nd anniversary with āDā. I have been very fortunate also.
At this point, the eye doctor says that after 20 years (with this one doc) he can see an insignificant amount of retinopathy in my right eye and the endo says I have and insignificant amount of nerve damage in my right footā¦now if I can get by with that much more in the next 52 years, that will be rocking!
Congratulations to all of of you other old-timers/long survivors!
Big hugs all around. 
Happy Birthday and abrazos to you as well, Ron.
I still donāt know how we all did it. A blood test every 6 months at the diabetic clinic & no instant results the doc got the result days later. Urine tests just said BG was high several hours ago, no way to detect lows except by feeling them. I was so brittle, the docs said I should aim for 1/4% not 0% on my urine test, ha! Yet I still worked full time, sometimes all night testing software & had lots of fun. Maybe it is harder now trying to keep tight control.
I am really in awe of someone like Richard157 & the other real old timers.