There was a family I knew growing up. Three boys until they finally had the girl they wanted. They were a regular family, like any other regular family; whatever that may mean.
I’m constantly amazed at people who, after their child is diagnosed with diabetes (or with anything for that matter), think the world has ended. Do not misunderstand me; at diagnosis it is absolutely the most devastating news and all of us have gone through that feeling. And if you are going through that now, allow yourself the time to go through the entire process. Give yourself time to adjust.
But there MUST come a time when you decide at a crossroad, “I will either control diabetes (and I do not mean just blood glucose) or this disease will most assuredly control me.” Look at the world around you and the kids that do so much. Look at the world around you and look at those who let diabetes stop them………from nothing. THAT crossroad comes at a time to all of us, and sometimes more than once.
Now the family I mentioned above has no diabetes in their family. None. And yet fate is about as cruel to them as I have ever seen. This week, this family will bury their third son. All three for different reasons, which do not matter. None from a chronic disease, self-inflicted, nor by any means other than fate. All three at different times. Imagine thinking this cannot happen again, and it does, and it does again? Imagine.
I remember when Rob was diagnosed. The second child diagnosed. But I also remember that when Kaitlyn was diagnosed sixteen years earlier that we were going to move forward. Nothing was going to stop what we would and could learn, and continue to learn, in both the management and cure-focused research world. And nothing has and nothing ever will stop us. When needed again, we went back to the road chosen a long time before, and we chose it again.
It was a decision we made and it has never wavered. Even in times that seemed the darkest we knew there would be light because we know where our energy truly lies, and we know our feet are planted on solid ground. Even if we had to reaffirm when faced with another child diagnosed, or whatever else life may hurl at us; we stay the course
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It sounds like such rhetoric to say, “….someone else has it worse…..” but stop and ask yourself how much you control diabetes in your life and how much diabetes is controlling you. Today, start to push back and get your life back. I know so many who are angry at the world because they never came to grips with diabetes in their life. Diabetes is winning. They blame the world for everything and their spirit has become so deflated. You can hear it in their words and you can see it in their actions.
And yet, others are solidly planted and understand what they need to do every day on this un-asked for journey. How did they get to that point? They seek knowledge, not merely from hearsay or just reading from someone else; they root themselves in real knowledge by asking a million questions and fully understanding what is truth and what is merely talk. They are razor-focused in what they do. It is not a lazy road, it is a road of work, it is a road of constantly seeking, and it is a road that is best travelled to fully understand diabetes and how it impacts your family.
For anyone, and we have all been at that crossroad; it starts with one day; it starts with one step; it starts with one decision. For you; make it start today.
I am a diabetes dad
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