As you can imagine, they had a LOT of questions for me. As I was talking about my pump and showing them my insertion site, the mother caught me off-guard and said, “Megan, would you please tell my mother something?” Now I did not want to get in the middle of a mother and grandmother, especially when I did not know them, but I agreed and asked her to explain. She proceeded to tell me about how the teenager’s grandmother did not understand that as long as he counted carbohydrates, he was allowed to eat whatever he wanted. She always questioned his control when she saw him eating dessert or other “non-diabetic foods.” I immediately understood, as this is something I deal with quite frequently.  My grandmother, and others of her generation, grew up in a different era of diabetes care, and most are unaware of the advancements made in blood sugar testing and insulin administration. When my grandmother was growing up, her mother had type 2 diabetes and would check her blood sugar by analysis urine. She was overweight and was put on a very restrictive diet in efforts to better manage her diabetes. As time has progressed, diabetes management has become more flexible, and people with diabetes can leave behind the strict meal plans of years past, and adapt their treatment to their individual lifestyles. However, such deeply-rooted ideas and notions are hard to change, especially when it comes to somebody you love and care for. To this day, six years after my diagnosis, I will go to my grandmother’s house, and being a true Southern, home-cooking grandmother, you can not visit without being offered some kind of food or drink, no matter the time of day. Last time I was there she said, “Meg, Do I have anything that you can eat? I have some fruit in the fridge, can you eat that.” And I grin and bear it, explaining for the umpteenth time that I have no eating restrictions, and then proceed to ask for a slice of the homemade chocolate cake on the counter. So I knew how that mother felt, and I was happy to explain to the grandmother that yes, it’s true, people with type 1 diabetes can eat (and do) anything!