Getting Older With Type 1 Diabetes

Turning 21 

Graduating college 

Moving away (again) 

Getting a job 

Living independently

As all of these big milestones approach and I get older, it's got me thinking about long diabetes has been a part of my life. It's been with me through everything - my first day of school, my first night in the dorms away from my parents, my first trip abroad alone. Diabetes is a constant in my life that (unfortunately) doesn't seem to go away. While there may be new technology and changes in the future that can potentially cure and/or help reduce the burden of this disease - at least up until now - I don't really know what life is like living without it. 

Sometimes that thought scares me. If I think about it for too long. Forever? With me? Diabetes in itself is really not that bad. I just have to bolus, change sites, test my blood sugar, etc. etc. But when I think about doing this forever.... that's when I get kinda spooked. 

As I get older, I am learning more about how things come and go. People come and go. Places. Memories. That's the harsh reality of life I'm still coming to accept. But something us type 1 diabetics may have to live with is the fact that diabetes may not come and go - it might be with us forever. 

Which is a scary thought to have. 

But with the right support system, a community to help, and good friends who make the day better, it's easy to forget about the permanence of diabetes.