Nearly 26 million people in the United States have been diagnosed with either type one or type two diabetes. Another 79 million are at high risk of developing type two diabetes within the course of their lives. On top of these statistics, diabetes kills more people each year than AIDS and breast cancer combined.
November is National Diabetes Awareness Month, a time to bring awareness and to spread knowledge about the disease. Diabetes is taking not only a physical but a financial toll on our country, however most Americans do not take diabetes into strong consideration. More often than not, the disease is viewed as someone else’s problem, causing the public to find no reason in becoming active in bringing awareness to the disease.
Pierce College student Allegra Baulch feels differently.
“There needs to be more awareness. I think if there were more awareness then there would be more attempts in trying to cure it,” Baulch said.
Baulch was diagnosed with type one diabetes at the age of 17, only three short years after her father passed away from diabetes-related complications.
“I never thought I would have it,” Baulch recalled. “I thought that nothing would happen to me. Then, all of a sudden, [when I went to get diagnosed] they said ‘your sugars are four times as high as they’re supposed to be.’ I just fell to my knees,” Baulch said.
Type one diabetes, formerly known as juvenile diabetes, is an occurrence where the body does not produce insulin (the hormone in the body that is needed to convert sugar, starches, and the like into energy while using glucose). Type two diabetes (the most common type of the disease) is when the body either does not produce enough insulin or the cells in the body ignore it. Insulin’s job is to take the sugars from the blood and transport them into the cells. When the glucose builds up in the blood due to the lack of insulin, diabetes complications arise.
“I test my sugar at least ten times a day. The best way [to test it] is to take control. Test it, test it, test it!” Baulch said.
It is often critical, in cases of type one diabetes, for a patient to obtain what is known as an insulin pump. The insulin pump is attached to the patient at all times, through a needle, and delivers rapid-acting insulin throughout the day. The pump is most convenient for the patient as it keeps them from having to inject insulin into their body themselves.
“It’s like a little electronic pancreas,” Baulch said. “You just have to change it and keep it clean and take care of it. And watch your sugars, of course.”
In the cases of type two diabetes, it is common for the patient to be prescribed syringes of insulin to inject into their body. They also must carefully monitor what they eat throughout the day, and possibly inject themselves with the proper amount of insulin based on what they have eaten or if they are beginning to experience a crash in their blood glucose levels.
Diabetics must stay away from foods with high sugar content, such as carbohydrates, processed foods, and a high intake of fruit. Increasing the intake of vegetables and protein are strong steps in diabetes prevention.
Aside from the basic complications that come with type one diabetes, Baulch has been faced with several other difficulties in her life after being diagnosed.
“I’ve had a lot of problems with diabetes [such as] having seizures. The only time I have them is at night because I can’t test my sugar or feel it coming on,” Baulch said.
“It was really hard getting diagnosed. I was just thinking ‘I’m not gonna live to thirty so why even try at life? What’s the point? You’re not gonna live that long, anyway,’” Baulch added.
Baulch has even experienced a loss of friendships due to those around her not being able to handle the complications that she was experiencing from the diabetes.
“It’s been really hard for people who are my friends to deal with diabetes, because a lot of times [the sugars are] not under control. People love their best friend, but to see them go through a seizure, with blood coming out of their mouth, it is too much. My friends were saying ‘I love you, but I can’t deal with this in my life’.”
While Baulch seemed to be at the end of her rope, feeling alienated and at a loss for hope, she found endurance and a brighter outlook towards life in her husband. Baulch and her husband met six years ago in Texas and have been married for a little over a year.
“He’s so good. He’s my best friend,” Baulch said. “He’s everything to me, he really is.”
Baulch added that her husband not only watches over her sugar level at night, but he has also gotten her into being physically active in outdoor activities. This is an important gesture, as regular exercise is critical in both preventing diabetes and in bettering it.
“He’s very active. He’s gotten me into kayaking and hiking. Anything we can find to do,” Baulch said.
Although Baulch has had the strong love and support of her husband and mother around her, she reminisces to a time where she thought all hope was lost for her. During this time she not only felt overwhelmed, but she also felt an embarrassment in her illness.
“It was kind of embarrassing. I couldn’t eat pizza with everyone else and then I would pull out syringes, which would freak people out,” Baulch said. “However, it’s a thing that people shouldn’t be ashamed of. If there’s something you don’t like about yourself that you can change, work on it. But don’t be ashamed of who you are. It’s great to be humble and have confidence.”
With her newly found confidence and positive outlook, Baulch is pursuing a degree in nursing. Her dream is to travel the world (especially to Australia) and to help people who are in the most need of it. Along the way, she hopes to spread diabetes awareness.
“I think knowing a bunch about diabetes is good. What I’ve been surprised about in the past couple of years is most people don’t even know what insulin does,” Baulch said. “It’s always good to know. Especially if and when diabetics experience blood sugar crashes.”
Baulch was both pleased and alarmed to discover that there was such a thing as National Diabetes Awareness Month. After having the disease for so long and only just hearing that there was a month dedicated to the awareness of this disease, she felt a passion to spread more knowledge about diabetes and the patients who have to battle through it.
“People need to know that they are not alone, especially people at a young age,” Baulch said. “It would be great to have a support group on campus.”
Despite the fact that awareness surrounding diabetes is scarce, Baulch remains hopeful for the future of the disease, particularly for the research being done for the possibility of a cure. Her concerns lie in the people around the world to remain ignorant of the disease and of its outcomes. As the percentages of patients with diabetes and the morbidity and mortality rates constantly rise, Baulch solidifies her determination to help bring awareness to more people.
“I want everybody to know,” Baulch said. “I want everybody to always have faith.”