My journey with a life-changing diagnosis
Dated : 26 Aug 2020
My journey with a life-changing diagnosis
16th July 2003 – My blood sugar was 595 mg/dl, I
had lost 15kgs in the past 3 months and vomited almost every day. With severe
symptoms telling me the obvious, I was oblivious till my doctor diagnosed me with
Type-1 Diabetes and prescribed insulin injections. This shock had me in depression
for almost 4 months. The unanswered question taunting me – WHY ME?
At 23, my diagnosis required a complete shift in lifestyle.
Along the highs and lows and the challenges of keeping my sugar levels in
control was the most crucial and torturous part – food. I was no longer allowed
to eat or drink the same things as everybody else. Food and drinks I loved.
Resisting food was very hard and I went through a difficult time when I felt
like a failure every time I let my sugar levels rise.
I led my life for quite sometime in this bubble of distress,
worry and dislike of the disease. In 2015, I put on weight, so much that my
feet started paining. I lost strength and came to the realization that I was losing
myself in this bubble of a disease. I decided that I do not want to live my
life like this. Living with type-1 should not stop me in fulfilling my
ambitions.
In 2016, I broke this bubble and started my journey in
fitness. I started with running and gyming and today I am a proud recipient of
two certificates in fitness, ran more than 60 half marathons and 6 full
marathons. Now, I exercise for almost an hour everyday.
Living with Type-1 Diabetes has most definitely changed my
life. But the change isn’t all too bad. Mindset in diabetes is a huge influence
in how a person treats themselves. It is indeed a full time job but getting
back up and fighting is what counts.
-Gagan