Since the age of four, I've heard everything possible when it comes to other people's knowledge about type one diabetics. I've lived with type one diabetes for 16 years, and in that short amount of time, I've heard it all. As someone who has always enjoyed educating people about diabetes, I love the questions and comments. It shows that the people around me are interested and just want to know more, no matter how hilarious their question or statement was!
1. Did that hurt?
People who live with diabetes get this question all the time! Someone usually asks this question because they've just watched you prick your finger to test your blood sugar or inject insulin into your body. For them, it looks painful, but for those who live with diabetes, it's an everyday occurrence that doesn't bother us one bit.
2. Can you eat that?
Those who do have some knowledge about diabetics know that we can't always eat the same foods as others. Foods such as candy, sugary soda, and pop tarts, are to be avoided to help prevent high blood sugars. Of course, that doesn't mean I haven't had foods like that before, but I'm not supposed to consume them regularly (if you have ever asked if I'm allowed to eat something or not, you're probably right and I'm not supposed to be eating it).
3. Did you get diabetes from eating too much sugar?
This is always a question I got when I was younger. Children in my class never knew much about it and I remember sitting in the lunch line in 6th grade and having someone ask me if I ate too much sugar one day and developed diabetes. To clarify, no you can't develop diabetes, specifically type one from consuming too much Halloween candy in one sitting.
4. Is that a cell phone?
Thanks to great technology, those with diabetes can now have insulin pumps that help us regulate our insulin levels. The funny thing is just about every teacher I've had that has heard it go off, has mistaken it for a cell phone. In high school, this was always a problem for me because teachers didn't always remember that I had the device on me or that it even made noise. There have been one or two incidents where I've had to excuse myself from a test to take care of the problem, while also explaining to a teacher that I'm not looking up the answer for "who is the poet laureate of Scotland?".
5. What's this cord? (proceeds to pull on it)
People with diabetes that do have insulin pumps have a "cord" or tube that connects the pump to our bodies. When I first got my insulin pump I never thought about tucking the tube into my pocket so people couldn't see it, so in 5th grade, a friend of mine tugged on it and then proceeded to ask what was in there. Of course, he couldn't see the insulin being slowly pumped into my body but he stared at it for awhile to see if he could.
Those are just a few questions I can remember being asked as a child. I didn't think much of those questions then, but now I can appreciate them in their context because it showed how much my classmates cared. I'll never forget sitting at my desk in first grade and being surrounded by curious 6-year-olds as I checked my blood sugar.
