Diabetes Support Review of the Year 2009, part 3

Diabetes is a serious condition, but we’re not always gloomy and doom-laden! One of the most popular threads over the past year has been Diabetes Support’s own virtual pub, the Glucophage and Glargine. Here all are welcome to order whatever carb-heavy meal they desire, and drink their fill on any tipple that takes their fancy with no effect on their blood glucose levels. Currently standing at over 35,000 views and 4,500 posts it supercedes the earlier ‘one-liner’ threads that proved so popular. Resident DJ Brightontez provides us with an eclectic mix of tunes from dusk till dawn from his (actual) jukebox! The pub will be refurbished when it reaches 10,000 posts…

A fine selection of jokes, from members Einstein and Diabetic Dave in particular, have swelled the Jokes section, formed when the number of jokes began to take over the ‘Off the Subject’ section. Some risqué, some silly, and the occasional one which didn’t quite hit the mark, but humour can often be a very personal thing.

Katie’s ‘Post your pictures’ thread generated a lot of interest – so many people curious to find out what the faces behind the nicknames are really like! Currently running at nearly 4,000 views maybe it’s time to revive it! The London and Southampton forum meets also included pictures which many people have seen and commented on. However, the forum Gallery section hasn’t been as popular as might be expected – I think this may be due to some of the restrictions on adding pictures that many have found, making it difficult to use, and something that perhaps needs to be revised in 2010.

Diabotics Polly Urea and Gluco Jon pose as Jedward for World Diabetes Day

X-factor has been hotly-debated, with many people appalled at Simon’s decision to keep Jedward in, and disappointment from many that Olly Murs did not win (mostly from the lady members). A poor quality bunch all around this year, not up to the standards of Alexandra Burke and Leona (who’s now so famous she only needs one name!).

Aymes led a concerted campaign to elect her little brother Barnaby as the ‘Face of Kinder’. He didn’t win, but did make it into the top 100 out of 4,500 contestants!

Diabotics, creatures formed from the detritus of diabetes care – test strips, tubs, pill bottles, needle cases, insulin cartridges etc. have proved a hit and another welcome distraction from the downsides of diabetes. First introduced to us by Becca, they’ve provided many an hour of misspent time for some of us making them, and produced some very positive comments for our efforts. It’s particularly nice when children have taken part and created their own – see Kei’s daughter F’s creation Diane Botic below!

We’ve had a few weddings (not yet between members!), new babies (notably Kati Admin’s little boy Zachary!), and some pregnancies, with lots of advice and support flying around on these subjects too. Some members have stayed and posted for a while, and then moved on. Some people pop in now and then to see what’s going on, or to ask something new that’s cropped up in their lives. We have posters who are very prolific, notably Steff – currently topping the list at around 8,500. I’m guessing she would have made 10,000 in the year if she’d joined in January! Some people have joined and never posted, or even come back after the first day, to our knowledge. Some join and read regularly – there’s a real mix and hopefully however active or long or short a visit, we hope it is helpful. We’ve had a few researchers and students pop in and the occasional professional, but they don’t seem to stay too long. And the odd spammer!

For some reason, there has also been a lot of discussion about the wonderful Kate Bush, lovely women with short haircuts, and a smattering of diabetes-related poetry…!
I’ve learned an awful lot in the past year and I believe I have made many new friends. Hopefully 2010 will continue the success of 2009!

Diabetes Support Review of the Year 2009, part 2

One topic that attracted a lot of interest was whether people viewed diabetes as a disability. Opinions varied, some preferring the term ‘condition’ they do not feel they are disabled, but can do pretty much everything that a non-diabetic can do. There is also a feeling that a ‘good’ diabetic who follows a healthy lifestyle and diet is actually fitter and healthier than the general, non-diabetic population as a whole! There is, however, the legal implication of being included in the Disability Act, whereby employers must make reasonable provision for diabetics, allowing them to test, take breaks if necessary to treat hypos, and not discriminate against them.

From another perspective, the issue was raised in a number of threads of the special considerations for children with diabetes, such as should they be allowed to the front of queues at theme parks and what schools should provide for their care. The increased flexibility of treatment regimes and the attempt to gain tighter blood glucose control mean that there may be more testing, injections or the complexity of pumps for schools to monitor. We have some very forthright and active parents on the forum who fight hard to ensure that children get the care and support they need, whilst living as close as possible a normal childhood. These parents have been of great support over the year to those with newly diagnosed children, who are often frightened, confused and overwhelmed by the diagnosis and all it implies.

Another popular theme was my participation in the Great South Run to raise money for JDRF – popular perhaps because of my persistence in attempting to gain sponsorship! The good news is that we raised over £750 for the charity thanks in no small part to the generosity of our members. The other good news is that I finished with all limbs intact!

Several threads have revealed the great diversity of our membership and the circumstances surrounding their diagnosis. In ‘How long diabetic?’ we discovered that we have many members with over 30, 40 and even 50 years of diabetes, with everyone from a few months to a few years in between. This huge breadth of experience means that our members have encountered many changes and different treatment regimes and there is always someone who can offer advice and support. Those recently diagnosed are a great help too, as they bring to light current care practices that some of the longer-diagnosed members may not be aware of, leading to renewed efforts to get up to date and on track.

Other features of the year have been discussions of glucose meters, statins, neuropathy, medical ID, changing needles and lancets, depression, swine flu, appropriate testing for Type 2s, incompetent doctors and pharmacies, metformin, retinopathy exams, podiatrist visits – topics which have often cropped up many times as new people join with new questions. Our adage remains that there are no silly or stupid questions, even the one I asked about nostrils! And of course, something that only people with diabetes can fully understand, the announcements of improvements in HbA1c scores!

Tomorrow, the lighter side of Diabetes Support in 2009!

Diabetes - the Biography - Robert Tattersall

I thought I would include a review of a book I read recently about the history of diabetes. There appears to be very little written on the subject, despite its importance and the development over the years, particularly the last century.

This is an absorbing and comprehensive account of the history of diabetes encompassing earliest theories, the discovery of insulin and changes in treatment regimes including the very latest advances. It provides a very useful complement to Michael Bliss’ ‘The Discovery of Insulin’, expanding on the progression of treatment since the earliest days of insulin therapy to include chapters on diabetic complications, methods of testing and control, application of drug therapies and the emergence of the patient as primary carer in the management of their diabetes – thus moving the emphasis from physician-led instruction to self-monitoring and flexibility by the individual.

Dr Tattersall builds an easily digested ( and non-spiking!) timeline of the changes in diabetes and its care, beginning with its first recorded descriptions 3,500 years ago through the advances of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, culminating in current methodologies and advances of the twenty first century. It is an encouraging story of how diabetes has changed from being an almost assured death sentence accompanied by severe and distressing complications to a manageable condition with increasingly sophisticated treatment options, thus promising a much brighter future for those who are being diagnosed in ever-increasing numbers today. A very welcome addition to my library!