Dear type 1, I can make a difference in the lives of others
Dear type 1,
It’s been seven years since you’ve entered my life. To say that you’ve changed it is an understatement. I don’t remember all the details about when I was diagnosed, except that I wasn’t the only one affected. Type 1 diabetes is as much as family disease as it is a personal one.
After I was diagnosed at seven, you made life very difficult for me and my parents. First, they had to overcome the shock of this life-altering situation.
Arielle Findlater
Then, they had the enormous burden of keeping me healthy and protecting me from the dangerous realities of this disease. That translated into endless nerve-wracking days of triple-checking my insulin dosages and just as many sleepless nights worrying I was safe.
What I also learned after being diagnosed, is that things would never be the same. Until there is a cure, you shadow me every day of my life. At school, this set me apart. Certified Education Assistants had to monitor to my blood sugar levels, and when it came to field trips there were always special arrangements to be made. As for activities, like sleepovers at a friends’ houses, I could only do that with friends also living with T1D.
More than anything, as a result of T1D, I felt alone. Why did I have to stick myself with needles? Why was this happening to me? Would I ever feel free to do all the things I wanted? The good news for me is that the answer is yes. What my family learned, is that we are not alone. The support we’ve received from the T1D community has been its own blessing in disguise, and I’ve made many close friends though this experience. T1D has also united my family in this fight for a cure.
Every year, our family team “Arielle’s Argonauts,” participates in the Sun Life Walk to Cure Diabetes for JDRF. It’s not just an opportunity to raise funds and awareness, it’s a chance to connect with other T1D families and celebrate the progress that has been made.
The annual JDRF fundraising Gala in Kelowna is also a family affair. My mother is the event’s art director and I work to care for the many children who attend.
Perhaps one of the most inspiring activities that I’ve participated in has been JDRF’s Kids for a Cure Lobby Day. When I was 12, my dad and I traveled to Ottawa where I was given the opportunity to speak directly to Senators and Members of Parliament. We lobbied for improved treatments, more funding and continued disability tax credit. I also encouraged them to do all they could to make treatments more accessible for all Canadians.
Arielle and MP Dan Albas
Back home in British Columbia, I’ve also spoken with politicians to encourage them to support the T1D community as a whole. Being able to use my voice this way has been empowering. Knowing I can make a difference in the lives of others living with this disease is what inspires me.
In a few years, I’ll be graduating from high school. I haven’t yet decided what I want to do with my life, but I know that being a leader for the T1D community is definitely part of the plan. I’d like to work as a camp counselor for kids living with T1D.
I’d like to help raise more funds and continue to lobby for better treatments and cures.
Yes, T1D, you’ve greatly affected my life. But you’ve also taught me resiliency and given me the confidence to know that I can handle any challenge that comes my way. And for that, I am grateful.