I don't need you judging my diabetes

It's really easy for people who don't have diabetes to judge others who do have it.

Should you be eating that?

Why did you let your blood sugar get so high?

Your blood sugar is low...again?

You forgot your insulin? How can you forget?

Someone who has diabetes doesn't say these things to another person with diabetes. Only people who have regular-functioning organs say things like this because they haven't been in the position where they have to take responsibility for what their body just does for them normally.

Let me tell ya something. It's not always easy to "control" diabetes. And it's very easy to forget to give yourself insulin before eating a meal, no matter how long you've been injecting or pumping. It's like forgetting anything else...your keys, your phone, that appointment you had. Sure, it's more serious than those things, but I am human, which means I make mistakes. I forget to do things. I can't be perfect.

So, before you judge a person with diabetes or tell them what they should be doing, remember that they probably already considered whatever it is you're about to tell them. They've already felt bad about that high blood sugar. And judged themselves for forgetting their insulin. You telling them that "if they just follow a healthy diet and take their medications, then everything will be fine" is not actually going to be helpful.

Now, if you're in a position where you're helping to care for someone with diabetes because they're not taking care of themselves, then it's a different ball game. I've never been in that position and I can't speak to that. I can only speak about what I know.

And what I know is this. This morning, my blood sugar was 74. I remembered thinking I could give myself less insulin or just give myself a dosage after I eat. Well, by the time I was done making my breakfast and eating it, I completely forgot about this conversation I had with myself. It wasn't until a couple hours later that I remembered I hadn't given myself any insulin. I had one egg, three pieces of turkey bacon, coffee, and one piece of wheat toast with a bit of jelly. My reading was 224. Instead of getting upset with myself, I gave myself insulin, and went about my day. Because sometimes that's all we can do. And sometimes, it's all we should do.