About this website.

Welcome to the Diabetesx2 website!

My name is Shirley-Anne.  I have had Type 1 diabetes since 1986 which makes it 25 years and counting!  I was diagnosed during my 2nd year of college, at the age of 20. Back then, it was still considered uncommon for a adult to be diagnosed with "juvenile diabetes" as it was mostly young children that developed this form of the disease.  I was started on insulin shots immediately and got a crash course in managing my diabetes.  I was shown how to test my blood glucose level, how to eat properly, was told about the severe complications and dangers of high and low blood sugars, and was given follow-up appointments with a specialist.  There was very little in the way of resources or support so I was pretty much on my own.  But I survived and survived successfully!  I have travelled the world, had a exciting career in the film/entertainment industry, became a Taekwondo Black Belt, and got married and had 2 children!  Diabetes didn't stop me from doing any of these things.  I was managing my diabetes well, and had not developed any complications (knock on wood). However, my world did come crashing down when my 3 year old son was also diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes.  Diabetes was no longer just my problem.  It now affected my son, and therefore, our whole family.  I can't explain in words how hurtful it was that my child now had to deal with this lifelong disease.  I will never get over that hurt and my husband describes it (the day of diagnosis) as "the worst day of his life".  I know that any other parent who deals with this situation or a similar situation can relate.  But it changed our lives completely.  It was one of the reasons I became involved with JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) as a advocate, mentor, fundraiser, and support group leader.  It is also the reason I am starting this website and blog, so I can share my experiences with family, friends, and the diabetes community.  I hope you will find it educational, inspiring, enlightening, and entertaining as I blog about living with and parenting a child with Type 1 diabetes.


An after-thought about positive thinking!

 After the shock of Nicholas' diagnosis wore off, something else kicked in .... the power of positive thinking.  As much as I hated the diagnosis, I knew that I survived, so my son would survive too.  It sucks, but it could always be worse.  There are many, many children who never even get the chance to survive their diagnosis.  We have the opportunity to learn how to do it, use the technology available to us (which has improved 500% since I was diagnosed), and keep thinking positively that there will be a 'cure' someday.  In Nicholas' lifetime.  Maybe mine.  Either way you have to make the most of your life, whatever your circumstances, that's your privilege, your responsibility, and your journey.

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