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Feb. 4 Monday in Motion Recap: Who has been your biggest support?

This week’s question: This month we’re asking questions about relationships. So, February’s first Monday in Motion question… Who has been your biggest support, while living with T1?

Responses: It was great to see the support that people have in living with type 1! There were a few fellow type 1’s mentioned, but for the most part people gave shout outs to the important 5.5ers (non-diabetic) people in their lives.

Lizzie gave a shout out to a tonne of awesome 5.5ers and a few other people with type 1 diabetes in her life. She mentioned those, like Kim, that cared for her- giving shots and labelling lunches; while, also mentioning friends that helped her break into a hot dog vendor’s cart (!) for a can of pop, and those that sang the “where’s my insulin” song and left snacks during drives and after rowing practice. Evelyn noted that it was hard to see just one person as the biggest support in living life with diabetes. She mentioned both her partner Craig, who is there every day, and her mother have been her greatest supports, adding “my mom is really my coach ‘you can drink that potassium’ (at diagnosis.)” Sam commented that her boyfriend of almost two years, Ty, has been by her side since diagnosis. She further wrote, “He helped me transition into my diabetic lifestyle, and has learned every detail along the way. He knows what do do if I’m high or low. He knows my target range, and helps me figure out my insulin ratio when eating. He’s helped me raise money, and jumped on stage at the JDRF walk. I dont know what I’d do without him! He’s practically saved my life from time to time. I’m so happy to have such a caring boyfriend, especially living with diabetes.” While, similarly, Courtney (@CourtMcGuffin)responded to the question: “my husband. He’s was with me on “D” day. So he’s had diabetes as long as I have. GREAT support. Learned along with me.”

Virtue’s Take: Reading everyone else’s responses made me really think about who I consider to be my biggest supports in my life with diabetes. At first I just considered who in my current life I think of as my biggest supports on a day-to-day basis. I feel really lucky to have a really good network of people with diabetes. They get some things about living with this condition that can be hard to explain to those without. But, then I noticed that quite a few people talked about the people that were there during diagnosis and helped them through that abrupt shift in to insulin, injections, tests, and carb counting. And, then, on Wednesday I read a post on the Candy Hearts blog called “She Tried” that really made me stop and consider. The blog is written by a D-Mom and in this post she talks about a young woman she cared for as a nurse in the ER, and then in the post-anesthesia care room (PACU, aka ‘the recovery room’.) At first she could not understand how this young woman had not taken care of her diabetes and would up with various complications. Eventually, she came to learn that the woman did not have anyone to help her learn and deal with her diabetes when she was growing up; she did the best she could with what she had.

After reading this I reconsidered: maybe your biggest supports aren’t just the ones in your current everyday surroundings. There are other people that have gotten you to where you are today. Are they not still among your greatest supports? I certainly remember my dad being there every day and night, before and after work, when I was in the hospital for a week at diagnosis. I also remember my endocrinologist being very open and forthcoming with information when I asked her questions; I still appreciate that she didn’t shy away from the difficult questions just because I was a kid. I really can’t imagine how different my life would be without the support and guidance she has given me over the past 19 years and counting. In reality then, and in retrospect, I see that these people also fit in as part of a long line of an ever evolving network.

It’s not really something I think about on a regular basis, but I think maybe it should be something I think about more often. It seems important to take stock of those things that keep you going and help you out. It means you can recognize them and say thanks, and also allows you to keep up with who you can depend on during difficult times and maybe cause you to consider who you might reach out to for new support another time.

So, who do you consider your greatest supports, past and present? Please feel free to give them a shout out in the comments below!