Where am I? I am in the shower and out of the blue a serendipitous thought invades my mind. I HAVE BECOME A REAL LIFE CINDERELLA. Now the best I remember, the storybook Cinderella had a fairy godmother that granted Cinderella's wish to go to the ball at the palace. The fairy godmother waved her magic and adorned Cinderella in a beautiful gown and stunning glass slippers. She even provided Cinderella with transportation to and from the ball. But, there was a catch. Cinderella had to be home from the ball by midnight, or else her dress would again become here customary rags, etc. Well' there's no need for me to elaborate. I’m sure you remember the rest. However, you are probably wondering by now why I feel like Cinderella. It’s because I well understand what it is like to participate in a life bound by a time limit. As an insulin dependent diabetic, my whole life revolves around time parameters. I don’t really have the luxury of being completely spontaneous when it comes to food or experiences. Actually if the aforementioned chronic disease followed precise rules, there would be no feelings of boundaries, but Type 1 diabetes is a very personalized entity. There is no one size fits all course of treatment. So, many variables affect it's path, making it impossible to predict what path it will actually take. As arduous as this sounds, it is possible to have a wonderful quality of life. All one has to do is test, test, test. God bless the inventor of glucose monitors. Constant testing is the key to enjoying life to its fullest. Why do I call Type 1 diabetes a very personalized disease? It is because of a host of variables that are unique to each individual. To name a few - diet, exercise, illness, stress, emotions, fear, anxiety, timing – the list goes on. Now, enough about all that. On to what is good. Living with Type 1 diabetes definitely has its positive sides. When first diagnosed, I felt so deprived in terms of food, but after taking a 3 day nutrition class at Duke, I learned how all people should eat in relation to fats, carbohydrates, proteins, fruits, vegetables, and dairy products, not to mention proper portion sizes. As a result, my energy levels soared. I also really began to understand the benefits of regular exercise. My immune system is phenomenal. Yes, sometimes I fall off the wagon so to speak. I may inflate an insulin injection and eat some sinfully indulgent dessert. I don’t do it often, but when I do, I treat it as a celebration of all that I have learned and achieved. Okay, back to Cinderella. The fairy tale ended happily ever after, and I truly believe that my life has been enriched and lengthened as a result of my diagnosis. I am so grateful for all the positive developments I have seen since being diagnosed 17 years ago, and above all, I maintain hope that there will one day be a cure. For me, even if I were miraculously cured tomorrow, I wouldn't change a thing about the way diabetes has taught me to eat and exercise. I would continue those habits. For me, the freedom would come in the release of the effects high and low blood glucose levels render on my brain. Until that time comes, I am indebted to my real life fairy godmothers---Dr. Ann Brown and P.A. Kathy Peralta for all that they have taught me and monitored in terms of my health. Cinderella is fiction, but I am real, and so is diabetes; however it is not the nightmare so many people seem to think it is. I bestow my sincere thanks to all of the medical personnel that have, and continue to, transform living with diabetes from being a once upon a time true nightmare into a happily ever after reality.
Linda J. Puckett
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