Ladies and gentlemen this is a live blog update from the Virgin trains service to London Euston
(wireless internet on trains, nice move Virgin).
I was sitting here quietly trying and failing to do something clever with Excel when my ears pricked up, the man opposite me uttered the D word.
As ear wigging on trains is pretty much compulsory, I listened carefully. Whilst simultaneously stirring 3 sugars into his coffee and eating a bacon sandwich the larger, older gentleman opposite me explained to his friend that his doctor was very worried about “the diabetes” and as the tablets didn’t seem to be working he might have to start taking “the jabs”. There was apparently nothing else he could do about it.
Now, I hate it if people comment on what I eat – I know the impact of food on my diabetes and make my choices accordingly. I know certain foods will raise my blood sugar and I make the decision whether that particular cake is worth the extra insulin or not.
So what dear readers do we learn from such an encounter on a high speed train? For me it reinforces my belief that education and a sense of personal responsibility are the key things when it comes to living successfully with diabetes. My diabetes is my problem and I need to take responsibility for it, rather than see it as an issue for the Dr to deal with. On top of that I need sufficient quality education to understand the consequences of putting 3 sugars in my coffee. At that point I can then decide whether its worth it.
“So what happened next?” I hear you cry. I wrestled with whether I should have a chat with the man, sharing diabetes knowledge etc but by that time his friend had got off at Nuneaton and the man promptly put his iPod on and fell asleep. I’ll get back to my spreadsheet then.