My mom: After watching my mother’s health deteriorate over the last several years, in part because of her diabetes, I was diagnosed with diabetes.Me: I always knew my Nana had diabetes I just didn’t know what it was and how it would affect me in life. Well when I found out that my mom had diabetes then I knew that it was something big and bad.
My mom: I was diagnosed relatively early since the doctors had been checking my glucose when they ran my annual cholesterol test. I wasn’t really surprised because I have a family history of diabetes, but given my mother’s struggles it was scary . The good thing was that it made me determined to get my diabetes under control and to keep it that way.Me: Later on, in the summer of 2006 my Nana was taken by diabetes and that’s when it hit me. I needed to do something and I needed to act fast or diabetes would take someone else from me.
I checked several books out from the library and my diabetes educator gave me a list of websites that had good information. One of those websites was the American Diabetes Association. They had a lot of good information for people who are newly diagnosed. I bought a glucometer, changed my eating habits, quit drinking sodas and started walking every night after dinner.
My daughter Genevieve was 10 years old at the time and very worried for me. All she knew about diabetes at the time was that my mother had it, her health was bad and she had to take insulin and check her glucose. I was realizing that my family and I had a lot to learn.
My mom:I decided that learning more about the disease would make it less scary for her. So I did my best to help her learn about diabetes and what I was doing to control it.Me: In September 2007, I decided to do my Girl Scout Bronze Award on diabetes. My best friend Brandi was working with me and we have been helping volunteer ever since.
In order to further both of our education we made plans to attend the Diabetes Expo.
My mom: In the fall of 2007, Genevieve was in her last year as a Junior Girl Scout and decided to earn her Girl Scout Bronze award. This is the highest award that a Junior Girl Scout can earn.Me: We met with Beverly and Janette at the American Diabetes Association one day and told them about our project. They helped us with the design for signs and banners that we made. They were very encouraging and supportive the whole time.
She and Brandi decided to help educate the public about the diabetes risk factors to watch for and what you can do to minimize your risk. Because of the information that we had received earlier in the year about the American Diabetes Association’s Diabetes Expo, we decided to contact them to find out what they could do to help.
My mom: As Genevieve worked on her project and we met with the American Diabetes Association staff we discovered that we enjoyed volunteering for American Diabetes Association events like Diabetes Expo. I especially liked Diabetes Expo because there is so much information available.
Me: My Mom and I have volunteered for a little more than a year now and I don’t see me stopping any time soon because all the people that work at the ADA are so nice and always supportive.
My mom: Last year when Beverly asked me to be in charge of the Youth Zone at the Diabetes Expo, I was happy to help. I must have done something right because they asked me to help again this year.
Me: I hope that someone can find a cure for this wild disease before it is every single living person that has diabetes instead of just some.
Today as we all know is March 23rd 2010. But what some may not know is that this number is also shared with national diabetes alert day. On this day I wanted to share some facts so that hopefully you will spread the word!
Posted by Gen Ellis at 3:54 PM
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