I had a friend ask me yesterday, as we stood in front of a bakery counter, if I could really eat the food in front of me. As I had invited her to this café for lunch, the question would perhaps have seemed strange. However, it was one I have been asked countless times before so I knew why she was asking—she understood “diabetes” to mean “stay away from sugar”.
A lot of people do.
It’s why I wish I had a dollar for every time someone asked me if I should be eating whatever I am eating, or if I can eat it as I put it in my mouth.
Yes. I can eat sugar. No, I did not get diabetes because I ate a lot of candy.
Come to think of it, isn’t it kind of rude for someone to ask me?
It absolutely is rude, but knowing that doesn’t really make me feel any better. Sure; I can feel like someone is incredibly impolite when they shout across the store “do you have your garage door opener on your belt?!” and I can be offended when someone insensitively says “I could never take a shot!” or makes one of the myriad of comments I am sure many of us have had to endure.
The thing is, I don’t want to be offended. I don’t want to feel like I should hide from my disease or not acknowledge what I live with or what is attached to me or what it takes to literally keep me alive every day. I see no need for an emotional response; I have enough of those in my life as it is.
So, depending on the time I have and my willingness at the time, I will respond to each of the comments and each of the questions. Sometimes with a simple “yes” or “it’s my insulin pump” or sometimes I will outline the basic differences for the questioner between type 1 and type 2 diabetes. I generally keep at least a small smile on my face.
I always want to say “you’d be amazed how easy it is to give yourself a shot if your other option is death”—but that’s just me being snarky with that particular comment I heard so often on my return to fifth grade after my diagnosis hospital stay.
I’ve replaced “blood sugar” with “blood glucose” in an effort to separate the word “sugar” from any reference to my diabetes. I know this is a losing battle, but it makes me feel better to avoid contributing to my own frustration, so I keep it up.
But still, a dollar would be nice.
