I’m baaaaack!  and I must admit, it was nice to have a break….after all, we ALL need to take a step back once in a while!  Today (Sept. 7^th) is a special day for me!  It is my 7-Year Wedding Anniversary!  I am very appreciative of my husband—both of his acceptance of me as a woman and his recognition that diabetes is only a small part of the complex person I am!  I can honestly say that he has never once, in the 13 years since I met him, made me feel like my diabetes had any effect on his feelings for me.  We met when we were both in college.  Back then, I was open about my diabetes, yet also fearful of men’s response when they found out that I had diabetes.  I often wore my insulin pump clipped to my waist, so I got lots of questions.  These questions provided lots of opportunities to educate my peers (especially men) about diabetes.  It always amazed me how even the most educated people understood very little about the disease I was required to think about 24 hours a day.  But then, when I think back, I realize that before my diagnosis, I knew VERY little about diabetes.  Therefore, I can't get too upset with the average person over their ignorance about my disease.  If I didn't have diabetes, how much would I really understand the "ins" and "outs" of the disease?

For example, one male PhD student who was a friend of mine once commented, “Oh, you have diabetes….that means you have to eat all the time, right?  I mean, you have to eat stuff like Big Macs all the time?”  At first, I thought he had to be joking.  But, when I realized he wasn’t, it served as a great opportunity to correct his misconceptions about diabetes and educate him about the realities of living with diabetes.   Then, there were the harsh boyfriend’s mothers.   One particularly harsh mother was constantly negative about the fact that I had diabetes and made me feel as if I was not good enough for her son because I was “damaged goods” in her mind.  She took lots of opportunities (when her son was not around) to say things like, “You know insert name loves children, right?...Are you sure you will be able to give that to him?  I know he won't be happy if you can't.”  I knew she was referring to the fact that I had diabetes!  Again, this was an opportunity to change the stereotypes ingrained in many people’s minds by movies like Steel Magnolias about the inability of women with diabetes to have children.  I quickly replied, “Yes, if and when we choose to have children, there is nothing that would stop me from having a healthy child.  My blood sugar is under control and I know what is required for me to have a healthy pregnancy.”   How ironic that she was diagnosed with diabetes within five years!