The top 5 things I wish I'd known at T1D diagnosis
I’ve been meaning to write this post for a fair while now, but I kept getting stuck on where to begin, how much to include, whether this is valuable. Anyway, I put that self-doubt away and decided that even if these points make a difference to only ONE newly diagnosed person with type 1 diabetes, then that’s a good thing.
Plus, for the people around here who’ve lived with type 1 for a while now (the old hands, as I like to say!) this provides a chance to reflect on your own diagnosis and what you would have liked to know.
Let me know if the comments if you agree with me, or what pieces of advice you’d add to my list.
There will be a grieving process.
Even though people with type 1 diabetes can go on to live their best healthy lives (no really, you can) there's no getting away from the fact that the body has malfunctioned in some way. That's a loss and it's OK to feel sad about it.
There's more than 1 way to manage your condition.
Maybe you'll use an insulin pump, or injections. Perhaps you eat in a certain way, maybe you'll be private about your condition. It's diverse and it's all good.
It's (usually) a family affair.
T1D mostly (but not always) is diagnosed in childhood/adolescence/young adulthood. That means most people with type 1 are living at home. In my case, I was 9 and even though I did my own injections from day 1, my parents had to navigate meal times, my food intake and making sure I was safe overnight. My brother had to get used to taking a backseat as my health became more important for a moment (thank you, David 🧡).
You'll be so preoccupied with the physical stuff in the beginning, the emotional side of the condition won't hit you until later.
T1D doesn't always play by the rules (fickle, beast) and it takes a lot of resilience to dust yourself off after a bad day and do it all over again. You'll surprise yourself that you can do this (& I'm proud of you that you do).
You might not believe it right now, but your T1D can give you many good things.
It gives you a lifetime pass to the wonderful #DOC where you'll be able to connect with other T1Ds and find your tribe. I never expected I'd make my illness my business, but I'm so glad that I did.