So I asked my kid this question, and she had two answers.
1) You don't have to be fat to have diabetes.
2) No, diabetes isn't "fun" and I don't feel "lucky".
Apparently these are two things that other kids have said to her on multiple occasions. In the first example, she told me that more than one time, with a couple of different kids, when she shared that she has diabetes, they responded, "But you're not fat!" I can't blame these kids, because before L was diagnosed, I was just as misinformed. But it's still annoying.
As for the second example, sometimes when she's playing sports with kids who haven't been around long enough to see her checking BGs and injecting insulin, if they see her eating some Skittles in the middle of a game they'll say "OMG YOU'RE SO LUCKY! I WISH I HAD DIABETES, THEN I COULD EAT CANDY WHENEVER I WANTED".
Whenever these comments are made, I know L does her best not to roll her eyes and tries to explain things without looking like she's in a rage comic, but I can only imagine how frustrating it is to hear these comments not just once, but multiple times. Here's a graphic she recently made.
Coping through memes. She's well on her way to being a full-fledged member of the DOC.
you said it! amen. how lucky do our kids feel when they're woken up from a sweet dream and forced to drink lemonade at 3AM? huh? huh? huh?
ReplyDeletei also thought diabetes was only for fat people--a year before we got diagnosed, a chubby little girl we know got the dx. i remember her mom was sure to say "type 1 diabetes" whenever she mentioned it, because i'm sure *she* thought everyone *else* thought it was due to the chubbiness. i know i did. i'm glad my person is quite slim. i'd be defensive out the wazooo about this.
our endo, upon meeting B, said something like "yup, another one o'these. skinny 8 year old boy."
oh, how ugly! i'm defensive about it even though he's not fat!
Oh my gosh - the kid is so right about the "lucky" thing. It really is one of the stupidest things people can say. Caleb is "famous" at school. His picture is posted everywhere. All the teachers know him. Heck, all the kids know him. Several kids AND adults have commented how he's sooo lucky.
ReplyDeleteYep, Joe too... when I am mother-birding him (yes, I realize I need to stop doing that...he is 9 years old for the love of GOD) on the playground after school. His friends chime in about his "luck".
ReplyDeleteAwesome way to capture it - LOVE the faces :) :) and amazing how one of the the two things she would say is how she's not lucky. Kids do say the darndest things and they all sure do love candy. My son has a number of friends but *one* non-diabetic friend that "gets it" and I love that but even that doesn't come close. Everyone else will at least as some point ask him if he's allowed to eat what he's eating, or run screaming from his needle he's injecting with in the lunch room (he's not shy). At least he finds THAT hilarious!! :) Our kids have really built some great character - that must be why all the people with type 1 I've met I just love.
ReplyDeleteA d-related meme is the true sign of a DOC member. She's in!
ReplyDeletewhere's day 6 at?
ReplyDelete