My name is Ivana. I am from the beautiful country of Croatia, I am 23 years old and I work as a nurse. I am currently completing the fourth year of my graduate nursing studies. I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in February of this year.
As someone who is fairly well educated about chronic diseases, including diabetes, I did not believe that, as a healthcare professional, I could ignore or take lightly the signals my own body was sending me. The symptoms began in the autumn of last year and became more pronounced month by month.
One area of nursing practice includes counseling services for people with chronic conditions, where individuals are educated about chronic diseases and have the opportunity to measure blood glucose and blood pressure. As the symptoms kept accumulating, I decided to measure my fasting blood glucose. The readings were very high, such as 26.2 mmol/L. I spoke with colleagues and family members who work in the healthcare system, and they urged me to measure a full blood glucose profile and to go to University Hospital Osijek.
During hospitalization, only thoughts like these run through your head: “It’s impossible that I have type 1 diabetes; and if I do, why me?”
In the case of a healthcare professional with a chronic illness, it must be admitted—it is a bit easier because you have prior knowledge. But your body has no prior knowledge. You are new to this, getting to know yourself more intensely and listening closely to your needs.
My life habits and priorities have changed, and for that I am grateful to my sweet friend. At the moment, it is much easier for me to educate others about diabetes because I myself had to learn and train even more about it.
Administering therapy, applying sensors, and the new habit of always carrying a chocolate bar or a candy when leaving the house become part of your life. It is very important to accept the new situation, because diabetes does not wait for you to decide whether you will accept it or not—it moves forward, from bad to worse, and you have to be a little faster than it.
My sweet friend occasionally reminds me of its presence with a hypoglycemic episode or two. But friends are there to remind each other, aren’t they?
Author: Ivana Špionjak
