Fear of modern medicines in people with Diabetes in South Asian communities

Daniel talks about his journey with Type 1 Diabetes. He developed Diabetes as a post graduate university student. He shares how his first symptoms weren't picked up but eventually become quite unwell and was then diagnosed this point. When he was diagnosed he was started on tablets but glucose control was not good. He describes some fear around being started on Insulin but the Insulin pens helped. Daniel was grateful to the amount of detail he was given to do with his Diabetes. Particularly, he engaged very strongly with detail over the long term benefits of good blood glucose control.

Sister Parminder Rihal, Diabetes Specialist Nurse talks about looking after your Diabetes around having a surgical procedure. She talks about general issues with having good glucose control with diet and exercise. She explains that good glucose control makes healing much more predictable and using the word intensify for glucose control.

Steve talks about how Type 1 Diabetes affects his life. Very interesting Diabetes may not be the one thing he would change about his life given the opportunity. He talks about working within boundaries in the short term which will keep long term goals on track. Steve's main message is to treat Diabetes as part of a routine and a lifestyle - using this approach he doesn't feel he needs to dwell too long about long term outcomes.

Chris talk candidly about his first experiences of being diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. His parents tell him that he has lost weight and was passing a lot of urine. He talks about starting insulin and having urine tests for sugar levels. His first blood sugar testing machine used to be the size of a brick! A key theme he talks about is balance - balance between diet and exercise. He tells about having a regular 'clockwork' lifestyle to be able to use insulin predictably. A major change for him was doing a DAFNE course which allowed him to vary his diet and vary his insulin dose accordingly. Chris describes the Expert Patient programme as a major step in acknowledging his learning over his life. Finally he talks about more flexibility being possible in this day and age.

Steve shares insights he gained from his experiences with being diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. He talks about 'Fear is not a good motivator'! His system to live with Diabetes is very much aligned with living healthily for everyone and echos other peoples voices on Health-Shared.com.

Steve talks about how he feels about Type 1 Diabetes. He explains that if he was asked to change one thing about his life then it would not necessarily be his Diabetes. He also talks about how his perspective changed as he's progressed through life. His strategy is to take each day as it comes and plan to work towards his long term goals - which is to keep his blood sugars in range and avoid long term problems with Diabetes. He also talks about how there are days when he doest meet his blood sugar targets and hasn't figured out why - but that's part of life and should not take away from your long term path.