Friday Meme!

Apparently this week is Invisible Illness Week. I found this meme over on Karen's blog and thought I'd "steal" it. :) I hope you enjoy.

30 Things About My Invisible Illness You May Not Know



1. The illness I live with is: Type 1 Diabetes

2. I was diagnosed with it in the year: 1986.

3. But I had symptoms since: at least a few months before my diagnosis.

4. The biggest adjustment I’ve had to make is: realizing that I'm not alone in this (the D-OC helped a BUNCH!!)

5. Most people assume: I can’t eat anything with sugar in it.

6. The hardest part about mornings are: dealing with my crazy after breakfast blood sugar spikes.

7. My favorite medical TV show is: I don't know that I have one. I like House okay I guess...

8. A gadget I couldn’t live without is: my insulin

9. The hardest part about nights are: the (sometimes) constant alarms on my CGMS.

10. Each day I take __ pills & vitamins. currently none. I should be taking some vitamins....but I'm lazy

11. Regarding alternative treatments I: think they are a load of __________.

12. If I had to choose between an invisible illness or visible I would choose: I like the fac that people can know me before they make a judgement based on my diabetes.

13. Regarding working and career: I do what I can in order to keep decent health insurance. What I want to do is impossible because I can't afford/get health care on my own.

14. People would be surprised to know: that I worry about the future more than I verbalize to anyone.

15. The hardest thing to accept about my new reality has been: It's always been around (since I was 4), so it's not really a "new" reality.

16. Something I never thought I could do with my illness that I did was: I was never given any restrictions, per se, so there's nothing I've done (yet) that I think would be a problem with my diabetes.

17. The commercials about my illness: make everyone seem old and/or fat or a child. What about the "normal" people?

18. Something I really miss doing since I was diagnosed is: I don't remember much pre-diabetes....but I would say that I would love to be able to have a meal without calculating carbs.

19. It was really hard to have to give up: I've had it so long that I don't really remember giving anything up.

20. A new hobby I have taken up since my diagnosis is: blogging? That's probably the only diabetes related thing I've started... once again, I've had diabetes so long I've kind of done everything since then.

21. If I could have one day of feeling normal again I would: Normal? What's that? But if I was d-free, I'd probably eat whatever I wanted and not worry. :)

22. My illness has taught me: that people need each other. I can't do this on my own.

23. Want to know a secret? One thing people say that gets under my skin is: Are you sure you can eat that?

Um, yes, I am. I've been at this for 24 1/2 years. I think I'll live.

24. But I love it when people: ask me question...and actually LISTEN. :)

25. My favorite motto, scripture, quote that gets me through tough times is: John 10:10 The thief comes but to kill, steal, and destroy, but I have come to give Life and give it more abundantly. (that's not word for word, but it's darn close!)

26. When someone is diagnosed I’d like to tell them: I know it seems like the end of the world right now, but it's not. You can do this. And you can beat it (as much as it can be beaten, without a cure) if you want to badly enough.

27. Something that has surprised me about living with an illness is: the number of people who live this life with me. (I LOVE you D-OC!)

28. The nicest thing someone did for me when I wasn’t feeling well was: take me to the hospital and sit with me while I was hooked up to an I.V. (that's another story for another time...) even when we had barely seen each other in months.

29. I’m involved with Invisible Illness Week because: I think it's a great thing to be involved in.

30. The fact that you read this list makes me feel: a little bit closer to you....I'll feel even more close if you do it too! :)