Last month I was diagnosed with T1 diabetes and ever since EVERYONE (my family, friends, teachers, classmates) have been treating me differently. They treat me like a charity case and i hateeee it! Everyone gets really quiet when i enter a room, when i go to a friend's house, they insist on making different food, just for me, everyone says they feel guilty eating candy and junk food around me, and its all everyone ever talks about anymore. How can i help them understand that this is just a PART of me, and not WHO i am?!?!
Hi,
I am sorry you are going through this, I went through the same exact thing! I think the best way to deal with it is spending time with family, and take time to just sit quietly by yourself and accept who you are relize how special you are! You are still the same person as you where before diabetes, and never underestimate yourself. After a couple months things will be totally normal again I promise. Just relax and take one step at a time.
I hope this will help!
Diabetes won't ruin your life but it definitely makes it different. Your family and friends have had to face that you have a major health issue that can kill you, so it's causing them to be overprotective. A lot of times when people deal with something so emotional they aren't sure how to act or what to say, so they can be a little weird. Eventually they'll become more normal. Forgive them any weirdness in the meantime.
People have a lot of misconceptions about diabetes and most of us end up being unofficial diabetes educators and trying to set them strait. I've had D for 35 years and people still sometimes try to correct me on what I can or cannot eat. Try to learn about your diabetes and what works for you. Then just live your life. It's going to be okay.
I agree with Jenna, you need to set them straight on the facts! Just be yourself, and let them know that you don't need special meals or food (unless, you do). My daughter is 12, and she does eat healthy, but she eats what the rest of us eat. She eats cake (on occasion), ice cream (regularly), bread, crackers, pizza, mexican food, and everything else a 12 year old likes to eat. Yes, it's a little more complicated now, but it's worth it.
Just let people know that YOU haven't changed. Yes, your body quit making a stupid hormone that it needs, but that doesn't change who YOU are at all.
You are still who you are, however it is possible that you are still coming to terms with the fact you are now diabetic. It is quite a big life change and your own behaviour may change as you try to deal with it (and people are noticeably responding to it from the sounds of things). Them responding in this way from being told verbally isn't helpful either but helping them understand what it means can help everyone feel more at ease.
You may or may not be fully aware of your own response to diagnosis - you getting easily irritated shows that you are going through the phases of grief that often come with diagnosis. The fact your loved ones are interested in what's best for you shows that they care, but don't be afraid to speak up for yourself - you do not have dietary restrictions due to being Type 1 (well, unless you have some other allergies that I don't know about) and some people will just fail to know this and say stupid things like "they feel guilty". It's your call if you want to bother educating them or not.
Make sure you're patient with yourself during this time, and forgive your mistakes if you make them by learning from them. If you know of a diabetic education course (especially if it involves carb counting), go on it as soon as you can because it will help you heal faster than without. Talk to your family, tell them how you feel and see if that helps your family understand how their behaviour is affecting you - they might be genuinely surprised and maybe even not aware of their own behaviour. When I was diagnosed 22 years ago, I found my parents over protective behaviour more harmful than not, so speak up if you can. It will help you a lot I think.
I wish you well and don't you worry, it does get easier. :) Take care!