Last year Brenda at Garden of Learning hosted a "Gratitude Challenge" for the month of November. It's a way to focus on those things we're thankful for as we lead up to Thanksgiving.
Today - on this first day of November - I'm thankful for my health. That sometimes sounds odd as I am a Type 1 diabetic. I live with an autoimmune disorder on a daily basis. I wear an insulin pump (another thing I'm thankful for). However, diabetes doesn't define who I am. It's only a part of me.
I've talked a lot about it before so I won't go in to details, but this year marks ten years of living with this disease. Yes, I was an adult when I was diagnosed and yes, I do have Type 1 (insulin-dependent) diabetes. No, diet and exercise won't reverse it. My body has essentially turned on itself and killed off the cells that make insulin.
However, other than Type 1 diabetes, I am essentially healthy. I have no complications from the disease as of yet - even after living with it for the last ten years. I have great feeling in my feet. In fact, at my appointment yesterday the nurse practitioner exclaimed over how good the pulses in my feet were. My eyes - other than a bit of nearsightedness that I have had since I was ten years old - are great. All my other organs are working well also. The scary fact is that not many people die from diabetes. They die from complications of diabetes. Thankfully I have no complications at this point.
So I am very thankful for my health - even as I continue to work hard at improving it.
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Oh thank goodness! I'm not here all alone. Thanks for leaving me a comment. It helps that I'm not always talking to myself. Right? Hello?