I've had type 1 diabetes for 55 years and it was my gp who said I should get the medal and they would apply for me. Still waiting!! Now this thread has reminded me I'll ask the hospital team instead. Like other people I can remember the old syringes and needles etc. Still cringe when I think of them, and my poor parents having to use them on a 2 year old.
50 Years as Type 1 Diabetic
- Thread starter Causie
- Start Date
....Yes, glass syringes (steamed each morning over the kettle), needles as long as a match (probably not really), multiple use of same needle. I was 18 months at diagnosis. Mum couldn't face injecting so dad kept me alive (thanks dad). Coerced into self injecting with the promise of an Action Man if I injected continuously for a whole month (might explain why I'm partial to bribes....???) ........
It seems a world away from today's approach and all the bits and bobs now used e.g. insulin pens.
On the DAFNE course I had to complete, before getting Libra sensors prescribed, they taught "you can eat anything you want....as long as you carb count correctly". I was utterly aghast. How could this be? This is terrible advice, we don't eat sugary things, ever. Since then I actually had Death By Chocolate dessert at a restaurant, counted/estimated carbs and ended up with BG of 4.8 an hour after a big meal. I couldn't believe it. Death By Chocolate and I didn't die!!!!!
Congratulations on reaching 50 years as a T1. I passed 72 years as a T1 a few months ago and as for medals, I think they should go to those who have made such an event possible: in my case my family members, the health professionals at the Royal Free Hospital who have looked after me since March 1950 and the British Diabetic Association (now diabetes.co.uk) that my father joined me as a member in December 1950. Those are the people who have made life with such an insidious disease possible for so many years and to whom recognition should granted. Without those barely a year of life would have been possible.
Fantastic. Very impressive. I agree about recognizing the people who help make living with Type 1 possible. On my 50th, I had a trophy made for my long-time endocrinologist who deserves a whole lot of credit. I haven’t gotten a medal or anything like that (I would feel a bit strange having to ask for a medal) but doctors have expressed that being in relatively good health after such a long time is a notable achievement.
Good job not dying from that dessert. At least you understand well enough not to go too far off the deep end on the “eat anything you want” advice. Newer Type 1s might very well take this literally. It may be a great way to sell CGMs and pumps but I don’t think they are ideal words to live by.
