There are a lot of myths surrounding T1d, and trust me I’ve heard a lot of them. So I picked a few of my favorite things people have decided that I need to know about my Type One. This is gonna be fun!
Table of Contents
T1d Myth 1 – Too much sugar
“YoU mUsT HaVe EaTeN A LoT Of SuGaR whEn YoU WErE YoUnGeR…” No, Karen, I didn’t. Type One is an autoimmune disease where my islet {it’s pronounced like “eye lit.” It really confused me my first time seeing it.} cells in my pancreas looked a lot like a virus and my body sent my immune system to attack and take out the threat. Unfortunately, the possible threat was not an actual threat, it was an organ I really needed. The result? I becoming a Type One diabetic!
T1d Myth 2 -Did you try cinnamon?
As wonderful as it would be for cinnamon to be a cure, it won’t work for T1d. Cinnamon is an amazing fix for a lot of problems! Got a cold? Cinnamon. Need a flavor for cookies? Cinnamon. And I have been told it works for Type 2 diabetes, but I can’t personally say anything… ’cause I don’t have Type 2.
I don’t know about you, but I love a good sarcastic sticker. This is my favorite: Stuff me with cinnamon and call me cured.
T1d Myth 3 – It’s all the same…
LIES!! It’s really not. Just like everyone has different personalities, everyone’s experience with T1d is going to be different. That’s not a bad thing – it is just a thing! I remember when I went for pump training, the nurse who helped me told me that the only thing she couldn’t eat was rice and that she LOVED sushi! Then she explained that because rice messed up her blood sugar it just made it a “sometimes” food for her. I thought that was weird cause I could eat rice completely fine, but mac and cheese soon became my sometimes food.
T1d Myth 4 – You must be a bad diabetic if…
Let’s get one thing straight! There is no such thing as a bad diabetic. Some days (or weeks) are just worse than others. That is not your fault. Diabetes is a beast! I have met people who have had Type One for their whole lives that still have rough blood sugar days. It’s just the cycle of life with T1d.
T1d Myth 5 – That has sugar, so you can’t eat that.
No, I can, and most likely I will. We can still eat whatever we want, but we need to dose for it. If you have ice cream cake TOAY, you bet I’m eating it, and nobody can stop me. On another day I might not want! Or I might choose not to eat it because of my blood sugars and the way I want my day to go. No food is off limits because of T1d. If you’re a kid and your parents don’t want you to have it, that’s totally fine, too! It’s a just a different decision.
T1d Myth 6- Get a pump and it’ll be the same as before
A week after my diagnosis, my family and I went to a cafe for lunch. There we saw an an old family friend. I don’t know what went through her mind that made her feel it was appropriate to just tell me that once I get a pump I would be “fine.” That hurt. A lot. My life was flipped, and it wasn’t “hey your gonna be okay!” or even I am so sorry this happened. It was “ehh get this really expensive thing that you can’t afford at the moment and life will be rainbows and sunshine.”
An insulin pump is NOT the same as a pancreas. It still takes a lot to manage. Sure, shots are no longer a big problem, but you’re still in charge of an artificial organ. I mean when you think about it there are a million other decisions that we still have to make that affect our blood sugar. What, when, where, why to eat, exercise, sleep, move…most people don’t have to worry about blood sugar when doing any of those things. We still do.
Have y’all heard any of these before? If you have lemme know what it was in the comments!
Check out some of our other posts!
- Halloween Diabetic Treats to Avoid Blood Sugar Tricks
- Make-Ahead Healthy Chili Recipe
- Easy Pumpkin Muffins
- Crazy Good Low Carb Cheesecake
- Busting Six Absurd T1d Myths
Hasta la Vista, baby! – MIlly
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