I fell in Love

i was at my appointment at my Diabetes Education Centre today.  i love going there.  Cecelia never, ever, makes me feel bad about my numbers, or my blood pressure or anything else for that matter.  i thought for sure my A1c was going to be up.  my last one was 7.2 and i figured this one would be somewhere around 8 or so.  not so.  7.3.  not bad! i have only been pumping since May, and she said that it is not unusual for people's A1c to go up a bit when starting the pump because they are afraid to make changes that were so easy to make before.  we made a few changes to my basals, and also lowered my target from 8 to 7. 

while sitting in the office i noticed a poster on the wall.  i fell in love with it immediately!  let me share it with you.   8-)


Diabetes Etiquette ~ for people who DON'T have Diabetes


1)  DON'T offer unsolicited advice about my eating or other aspects of diabetes
                  

you may mean well, but giving advice about someone’s personal habits, especially when it is not requested, isn’t very nice. besides, many of the popularly held beliefs about diabetes (“you should just stop eating sugar”) are out of date or just plain wrong.

2) DO realize and appreciate that diabetes is hard work

diabetes management is a full-time job that I didn’t apply for, didn’t want and can’t quit.  it involves thinking about what, when, and how much i eat, while also factoring in exercise, medication, stress, blood sugar monitoring, and so much more – each and every day.

3) DON'T tell me horror stories about your grandmother or other people with diabetes you have heard about.

diabetes is scary enough, and stories like these are not reassuring! besides we now know that with good management, odds are good that you can live a long, healthy and happy life with diabetes.

4)  DO offer to join me in making healthy lifestyle changes.

not having to be alone with efforts to change, like starting an exercise program, is one of the most powerful ways you can be helpful.   after all, healthy lifestyle changes can benifit everyone!

5)  DON'T look so horrified when i check my blood sugars, or give myself an injection.

it is not alot of fun for me either.  checking blood sugars and taking medications are things i must do to manage diabetes well.  if i have to hide while i do so, it makes it much harder for me.

6)  DO ask how you might be helpful.

if you want to be supportive, there may be lots of little things i would appreciate your help with. However, what i really need, may be very different than what you think i need, so please ask first.

7)  DON'T offer thoughtless reassurances.

when you first learn about my diabetes, you may want to reassure me by saying things like, "hey it could be worse; you could have Cancer".  this won't make me feel better, and the implicit message seems to be  that diabetes is no big deal.  however, diabetes (like Cancer) IS a big deal.

8)  DO be supportive of my efforts for self-care.

help me set up an environment for success by supporting healthy food choices.  please honour my decision to decline a particular food, even when you really want me to try it.  you are most helpful when you are not being a source of unnecessary temptation.

9)  DON'T peek at, or comment on my  blood glucose numbers without asking me first.

these numbers are private, unless i choose to share them.  it is normal to have numbers that are sometimes too low or too high.  your unsolicited comments about these numbers can add to the disappointment, frustration and anger i already feel.

10)  DO offer you love and encouragement.

as i work hard to manage diabetes successfully,  sometimes just knowing that you care can be very helpful and motivating.


 i think my favourites are #'s 3,5,7 & 9. 

the original poster can be found here, at the Behavioral Diabetes Institute.  there is lots of very interesting information to be found.  things for both Type 1's and Type 2's, parents of diabetic teens, and stuff about the "real-life" aspects of living with this disease, to name a few.

,