An important video

Today I saw an amazing mini documentary put up by the New York Times. It’s 12 minutes long but well worth that time. Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/26/opinion/midnight-three-six.html?_r=0

It follows a mother and daughter living with the daughter’s type 1 diabetes and gives a real view into the life of a t1 and their family. I should stress that- this is just ONE case, your diabetes may vary- I know mine does.
It got me thinking about my own life, and my parents.

The video seems to show the mother as still very much in control of her daughter’s diabetes, which is understandable as she was diagnosed at a young age and demonstrates some severe symptoms.
I do everything in this clip myself, except the middle of the night checks where my dad comes in and wakes me up.

But that doesn’t mean that my parents don’t have the same amount of concern. They had to let me be mostly independent from the time I was diagnosed for a few reasons.
- I was a young teenager when I was diagnosed and wouldn’t want to be hovered over
- I needed to be able to look after myself because I was only a few years off being an adult
- I wanted to handle this myself

Seeing the mother in this documentary was hard, because she has all the fears that my parents do. However, my parents have to keep that under wraps, so that I can manage this on my own.

I know my mum would love to monitor every little bit of it so she could ensure I’m safe.
I know my dad would love to swoop in and “fix” everything so that I don’t have to worry.

They had to let go of that and let me handle it, but that doesn’t mean they’ve let go of the worry.

So I highly recommend you watch that clip, and take a look into the life of a type 1 (one who is having a hard time managing it at the moment). Meanwhile, I’m going to go and give my parents a hug.

Update: I saw a number of comments from type 1s about this film. Yes, it is showing the negative side- but we NEVER talk about this side. You will see from my blog that this isn't all there is to it, that I lead a normal life. But it's time we stop sweeping the struggles under the carpet. There is no exaggeration and this film doesn't make us look "ill" and "weak". It shows what can happen and a girl who is going through a very hard to manage point in her diabetes. I've been lucky enough to only experience this level of instability occasionally.

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