Living With Diabetes
y For as long as I can remember my family has been living with type 2 diabetes. As the years have gone by, we have learned that it skips a generation in our family. One of my family members that has diabetes was my cousin Phyllis. One day she went into a coma. They didn't know she had diabetes until she was in a coma. At this time my family didn't know if she was going to wake up from her coma.She eventually woke up and they were able to stabilize her diabetes. For years she was living a normal life; going to school, going to work, finishing her degree,etc. As time went on you could start to tell diabetes was taking a toll on her body. As her health started to decline, her kidneys took the biggest hit. After she finished her degree in college, she moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico to get closer to specialist and to get a job in he career field. Within the first year of her career her kidneys failed which caused her to go through dialysis the rest of her life. After years of being on dialysis her body became weak and started having trouble fighting off infections. One of her infections lead to gangrene in her leg, which lead to getting her leg amputated. She got another infection which also lead to getting her other leg amputated. Shortly after this, she slipped into another coma and never woke up and died at the age of thirty-five.
Diabetes technology has advanced since she has passed.They know have easier ways to check blood and monitor themselves. Insulin is now in better quality and easier to use. Although they haven't found a cure, they have found better ways to cope with diabetes. They now know how to find it earlier. Don't know if this would have extended her life but it would have made her life easier. As her family it is a daily reminder of how diabetes quietly and quickly take your life. This has made our family more aware of the disease and keep up with checkups to help detect if we are developing the symptoms of diabetes. Phyllis taught us to take advantage of each day and be thankful of all that we have. Even though she had a hard life she always had a happy disposition. She was thankful what she had and always dealt with her hardships with hope and faith. Her life was short but she had huge impact on our family. Life is precious don't take it for grated.
Diabetes technology has advanced since she has passed.They know have easier ways to check blood and monitor themselves. Insulin is now in better quality and easier to use. Although they haven't found a cure, they have found better ways to cope with diabetes. They now know how to find it earlier. Don't know if this would have extended her life but it would have made her life easier. As her family it is a daily reminder of how diabetes quietly and quickly take your life. This has made our family more aware of the disease and keep up with checkups to help detect if we are developing the symptoms of diabetes. Phyllis taught us to take advantage of each day and be thankful of all that we have. Even though she had a hard life she always had a happy disposition. She was thankful what she had and always dealt with her hardships with hope and faith. Her life was short but she had huge impact on our family. Life is precious don't take it for grated.
