diabetes awareness month -- why I write about my health

November is diabetes awareness month... so I'm taking part in the national health blog post month. 30 posts in 30 days.... lets see how i do

I've only been blogging a couple of months, but i have wanted to blog for about a year now. i don't know what stopped me, but in the end i started so i guess that's all that matters :)

So why do I blog?

for me it is all about raising awareness of what i go through on a daily basis. a way of communicating to others just how tough it can be. As i don't have a typical type of diabetes (I'm not type 1 or type 2) i go through some different challenges to other diabetics. I've had more fights with my diabetes team about how i should manage my diabetes, I've had problems with carb counting and correction doses due to me producing some insulin and my biggest challenge of all has been getting people to believe me.

that's what gets me on here and other diabetes support sites. i want to find others like myself.... and i have, I've found another person who faces a lot of the same challenges as i do which helps a great deal knowing I'm not alone and i have found others who, although may not have the same challenges, understand what I'm going through daily and are a huge support when things go wrong.

I also wanted to show people that they aren't alone in the struggles that they have. they aren't the only ones that have rubbish diabetes teams or have to fight for what they need. they aren't the only ones who don't fit into the type 1 or type 2 categories. if I'd had that when i was diagnosed i think that things could have been a lot easier for me to deal with.

so... i know that blogging maybe isn't the only way i could reach out to other diabetics. i could (and do) use twitter or facebook. but my problem with those is that it doesn't reach a large enough audience unless you connect with the right people and they are just too personal. blogging allows me to be honest about how I'm feeling and what I'm going through without worrying about whether people will judge me or not. its almost like a public diary, others can read it, but its detached from me. its not linked to me and my daily life directly. this blog is focused on my diabetes whereas my facebook and twitter accounts aren't... i may talk about diabetes from time to time but that's it.... they are for me mainly, not diabetes.

so that's why i blog about my health. I'm here to raise awareness and show others they aren't alone :)