Just like in the movie, today we’re doing a swap. If you could switch chronic diseases, which one would you choose to deal with instead of diabetes? And while we’re considering other chronic conditions, do you think your participation in the DOC has affected how you treat friends and acquaintances with other medical conditions? (Thanks to Jane of Jane K. Dickinson, RN, PhD, CDE and Bob of T Minus Two for this topic suggestion.)
**************************************************
There are many chronic diseases out there.
As a pharmacist I have seen the struggles and devastation that they inflict.
Would I change chronic diseases if I could?
The answer is simple.
No.
Each of these conditions have their own set of problems, their own set of struggles, and their own management techniques. It’s not even the fact that we have learned how to manage diabetes, that I wouldn’t trade it. I just feel that one is no better, or worse, than the other. They are all conditions that we would rather not have to deal with.
We would rather our children, or ourselves, be healthy.
My participation in the DOC has benefited me. I’ve found a group of people who share a similar way of life and who can truly understand our day to day struggles. However, I don’t feel that it has affected how I treat people with other medical conditions.
I’ve learned compassion and acceptance from my parents and through life experience. Although, I would say that our experience with diabetes has allowed me to look at life situations differently.
The next time you are in the grocery line and a child is crying uncontrollably, don’t think its from misbehavior, maybe the child is autistic, has a sensory disorder, has low blood sugar, or is tired from the seizure they had last night.
The next time you see an elderly person fumbling with their purse or looking disheveled or lost, see if they need help. They’re not just old and feeble. Maybe the have arthritis, poor vision, alzheimer’s or dementia.
The next time you see an overweight person, don’t think they are unmotivated and lazy. They may have hypothyroidism, heart problems, depression or type 2 diabetes.
The next time you start to judge someone.
Stop and think.
Good advice. I certainly do what I can to give people the benefit of the doubt. I try to extend that to my own children when my patience runs thin. We're all entitled to have bad days and still be loved… maybe we even deserve the love more on the bad days.
ReplyDeleteI had great difficulties in blogging about this subject - so took a wild card option - but you worded your blog EXACTLY as to how I felt about this topic for the day. Thank you for blogging about how I feel about this topic with perfection.
ReplyDelete