So we returned to college today and i showed up, sat in tutor for half an hour and went home. Productive morning I know.
On facebook I'm part of a group called Type one teens which is basically a place for people to have a moan and ask for advice. One of the most common rants is people making jokes about diabetes such as this one:
I won't lie I'm as bad as the next person and have seen the funny side of these but on this facebook group people get upset by these jokes. They get upset, which I completely understand, because we as diabetics are the butt of these jokes. But the trouble is diabetes refers to both types and these jokes don't differentiate between the two. Therefore people who know that you have diabetes but maybe no more than that tend to assume all the negative stigma attached to diabetes, both types, is also applicable to you.
People hear all the vague information that goes with most illnesses and so any time they meet that they don't understand. Things like being fat means you have diabetes, I am yet to see (not that they don't exist) a fat type one diabetic. I also have met plenty of skinny type twos. The generalisations that I'm sure apply to other illnesses to prevent people from being educated in the differences.
It often happens that adults and teenagers will see my pump, give me an odd look and move on. Children on the other hand will instantly ask me what it is and I will tell them. I've never been one for hiding my diabetes and I know parents are worried that I might not want to talk about it and so they don't want they're children to ask. But things like this will cause the ignorance to spread. So parents allow you're children to ask questions and ask them yourselves, it should become obvious if the person doesn't want to talk about it.
Also don't make jokes about any illnesses not only is it insensitive but you don't know what people have been through and so jokes are not gonna help in any way. However to completely ignore that point some people will want to make jokes about it but let them start because they'll be able to set the boundaries.
There's you're advice for today also any diabetic teens on facebook check out type one teens it's an amazing group with some lovely people.
Rhona
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