My name is Katarina, I am 18 and I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in June 2001. From this day on, my life was completely different. Although I was still a child, I had to grow up to a responsible and reasonable person. Every single day I am challenged by my diabetes and every single day I win. The solution is to accept my diabetes, not to fight against it.
All in all, diabetes is more an inspiration for me than a handicap. Moderating the Diabetes-Teens.Net website, going on tour with children with diabetes and making my first own scientific study about young diabetic’s quality of life is self-realisation for me.
Being treated with insulin makes my diabetes management very easy, but more important than any technical innovation is to inform the people about diabetes. Campaigns like “changing diabetes” are of utmost importance for us people with diabetes. The “changing diabetes” team tries to solve one of the core problems: Nearly no-one seems to know what diabetes truly is and the most people become scared if they just hear one word that has something to do with an illness. Just 5 minutes at the Changing Diabetes Bus would let them see that people with diabetes are normal persons like everyone else. We do know that very well, but the most people don’t. That is why I decided to spend my free time at the Changing Diabetes Bus in Berlin.
When I wanted the people to get information about the changing diabetes campaign, they often asked me: “Am I looking like a diabetic?” – So do I? Everyone seems to think that people with diabetes are overweight and sick-looking persons. But we aren’t.
Another important aspect of the changing diabetes campaign is to show people with diabetes that they are not alone. There are people with diabetes all over the world – in South Africa, Ghana, Brazil, Japan, etc.
All people with diabetes I’ve seen at the Changing Diabetes Bus have a common ground with me: We do not make a sad face because of our diabetes. Instead of this we want to make change happen – we are supporting the changing diabetes campaign.
“Changing starts from within” – one of the guidelines of “changing diabetes” that I have to confirm.
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