It’s National Diabetes Week here in Australia. It’s an important week for diabetes awareness, and any time diabetes is front and centre in the media’s mind, I’m happy. The campaign this year is calling for the federal government to fund a national type 2 diabetes prevention campaign. This is incredibly important – in around 60 per cent of cases, type 2 diabetes CAN be prevented and targeted campaigns which address those at high risk will make a difference.
And yet, I do struggle with this week. As a person who is living with diabetes, the ship has sailed for me – as it has for the 1 million plus people registered on the NDSS. And for people with type 1 diabetes, there is no chance of prevention. There is nothing that we could have done to stop our pancreases taking a very, very long smoko and basically walking off the job for good.
The frustration felt by people with type 1 diabetes is clear – and I am actually quite proud to be part of the movement that is so loud and proud about not only our condition but also, why we have it. We will and do snap at people who say the wrong things about type 1 diabetes and we strive to make sure that our condition is correctly and accurately reported.
There should be no shame or guilt associated with diabetes. Full stop. It doesn’t matter what type of diabetes we have, the most important thing to remember is that we are living with a chronic health condition that impacts on our lives. Sometimes more significantly than at other times. And if it can be prevented – as is often the case with type 2 diabetes, we should be doing all we can to support initiatives to do just that. The ‘diabetes wars’ of ‘mine is worse than yours’ helps no one. The finger pointing from within the broader diabetes community doesn’t do anyone any good.
So, this week I do call on you to participate in the type 2 prevention campaign. Go to the website and ‘vote’. Have a read of the materials and understand what it is that it’s trying to do.
And at the same time, make sure that people remember those of us who are already living with this condition. Remind them that we too need support and education. We need funding for research and we need programs that help us live well with diabetes.
Follow #NDW12 on Twitter to keep up to date with what’s going on during National Diabetes Week.
8 comments
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July 9, 2012 at 2:52 pm
Catherine Forbes (@CoastCath)
A fabulous post Renza. I have happily voted on the Type 2 Prevention Campaign and I will continue to support Type 2 programs for those that I know who have the condition.
As a staunch advocate for Type 1 though, I will continue to beg and plead for organisations such as DAQ, DAVic and the ADC to just use those two words – “Type 1” and “Type 2”. Its really not that hard to specify – and they ARE such different diseases. Those two words make the WORLD of difference.
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July 9, 2012 at 3:44 pm
Diabetes Australia – Vic
Reblogged this on Diabetes Australia – Vic's Blog.
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July 9, 2012 at 3:56 pm
Belinda Moore
Great article Renza. If we all support each other – no matter whether we are Type 1, Type 2, Gestational or Pre-Diabetes – then together we can make more of a difference. I just love your positive approach.
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July 9, 2012 at 4:04 pm
nicediabetes
Great article and you have my full support. Forming alliances and working together for a common goal is what we should all be about
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July 9, 2012 at 9:31 pm
Mike Hoskins (@MHoskins2179)
Great post, Renza! Thanks for spreading the word about the advocacy happening in Australia. I agree – that we are all connected and it’s important to speak up in any way we can. Looking forward to seeing how National D-Week plays out!
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July 10, 2012 at 12:26 am
fingerpricker
Another great post Renza! Thank you for advocacy!
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July 10, 2012 at 12:26 am
fingerpricker
Reblogged this on fingerpricker.
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July 17, 2012 at 10:01 pm
One Australian Diabetes Advocate is Making Waves : DiabetesMine: the all things diabetes blog
[…] on the heels of Simon’s visit to the U.S. and FFL, he went back just in time for National Diabetes Week in Australia July 9-13. This year, there was a focus on type 2 diabetes prevention, so Renza points out that […]
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