I recently learned a co-worker of mine was Type 2 and insulin dependent. I was so excited about our new common bond that I couldn't wait to tell him I had Type 1! What caught me off guard was that he instantly said to me, "Don't tell anyone, ok?" Later he quietly asked me, "Do people make fun of you?" The idea both caught me off guard and broke my heart for him.
Would someone actually make fun of another person because of an illness? Especially at this age? (I'm guessing he is mid to late 20s.)
I can remember only one time being made fun of because of my disease. It was back in junior high school. We were sitting in the lunchroom. I remember like it was yesterday who said it, but I don't remember what he said. What I also remember is later finding out that some of my (boy) friends followed him into the bathroom and made sure he never teased me again.
While I don't get teased, I constantly, constantly am told horror stories of death and amputation from diabetes. I never know what to say to these people... and I crumble inside every time someone offers a story of their loved one dying from the disease. I'd like to shout, "WOULD YOU TELL A CANCER PATIENT ABOUT THE PEOPLE YOU KNOW WHO DIED OF CANCER?!" Of course you wouldn't! What is wrong with people?! I don't yell at them or tell them how sad their stories make me feel, instead I smile, fight back my tears and walk away speechless, in disbelief at the audacity.
When I was young, I came across these Bible verses. I have held onto them as a means to view my life with diabetes:
Philippians 1:19-20
For I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance. I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always, Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.
Would someone actually make fun of another person because of an illness? Especially at this age? (I'm guessing he is mid to late 20s.)
I can remember only one time being made fun of because of my disease. It was back in junior high school. We were sitting in the lunchroom. I remember like it was yesterday who said it, but I don't remember what he said. What I also remember is later finding out that some of my (boy) friends followed him into the bathroom and made sure he never teased me again.
While I don't get teased, I constantly, constantly am told horror stories of death and amputation from diabetes. I never know what to say to these people... and I crumble inside every time someone offers a story of their loved one dying from the disease. I'd like to shout, "WOULD YOU TELL A CANCER PATIENT ABOUT THE PEOPLE YOU KNOW WHO DIED OF CANCER?!" Of course you wouldn't! What is wrong with people?! I don't yell at them or tell them how sad their stories make me feel, instead I smile, fight back my tears and walk away speechless, in disbelief at the audacity.
When I was young, I came across these Bible verses. I have held onto them as a means to view my life with diabetes:
Philippians 1:19-20
For I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance. I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always, Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.
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