Published on Sep 14, 2012

Ethan tells us what its like to grow up with Type 1 diabetes from a very young age. Great and powerful insights for people living with diabetes, their families and health care professionals. This film has been used as curriculum for the University Of Toronto medical program. Funded by The York University Nursing Academy. Directed by Robert Hawke.

Michelle Sorensen | December 18, 2012

I don’t remember the first time I had to inject myself with a needle. I don’t remember being taught how to test my blood sugar. But I have many memories of being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. In retrospect, the day of my diagnosis was the beginning of a long process of grieving my diabetes. At the time, however, I had no idea that being diagnosed with a chronic illness would involve a grieving process.

Elisabeth Kübler-Ross famously outlined the stages of grief in her 1969 book called On Death and Dying. She described five stages (denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance) that describe a process by which people deal with grief and tragedy. Many people think of the stages of grief as just relating to loss of a loved one. These stages, however, apply to many types of loss, including divorce, job loss, dealing with terminal illness, or the diagnosis of a life-changing and life-threatening disease like diabetes. The stages are not in a consistent order and people may go back and forth between different stages. Also, not everyone experiences all the stages. The way each person experiences grief is unique.

On the day I was [...] continue the story

Michelle Sorensen | November 13, 2012

When I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 1999, I was both overwhelmed with information and desperate to find more information. It was easy to find depressing facts about the immediate dangers I would face, as well as the future complications I might suffer one day. When I looked for more, however, something about support or about real people living with type 1, there was nothing more than information about fundraising and camps for kids with diabetes.

I was in the middle of graduate school at the time of my diagnosis, training to be a psychologist. In the years since, while learning to manage my diabetes, I have furthered my knowledge about how to help others with diabetes make changes and feel better. I learned quickly that the psychological aspect of diabetes care is mostly absent in the diabetes field. Patients had access to information, but they didn’t have support.

Eventually, I began to counsel people with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Using cognitive behavioral therapy, I have tried to help my clients learn how to change the way they think, so that they can change the way they feel and behave. In recent [...] continue the story

In late 2010, I began thinking about how I could allow my 15 years living with type-one diabetes to speak in a non-abstract, relatable, and original way. “Balance” (oil on canvas, 2010) 9 x 12” This was my first attempt to paint anything from a pure, conceptual approach. After photographing dozens of pictures of my daily companions, (low blood sugar treatments: skittles and smarties as well as my insulin bottle/syringes, which I use to fight high glucose levels) I realized that this still life literally was my life. Even with tight management of my disease, low and high levels are frequent. “Balancing Act” (charcoal on paper, 2012) 22×30″ In one perspective, diabetes can be compared to as a job I didn’t apply for, a job I received, and a job I can never take a day off from, but it has also given me strength, patience, and optimism. That’s what I hope the painting displays; a juxtaposition of brightly colored candies and the sudden sharp, alarming glisten of an exposed syringe. I used to be afraid of labeling myself, but now I proudly say, “I am a diabetic.” With the completion of this work, (Balance) I believe I found my voice. Bittersweet (charcoal, pastel, gel medium, oil [...] continue the story

Photography: David Campion

The establishment of a renal dialysis unit within a half hour journey of the four First Nations communities clustered on Island Lake in north eastern Manitoba has made a substantial improvement in their quality of life. People dependent on dialysis no longer have to uproot their families and move to Winnipeg. They are reunited with their friends, support networks and the culture of their communities. Many are even able to return to work and move on with their lives. And as the Renal Health Unit proceeds with the education and prevention work it has planned with the communities, there is hope that future generations will enjoy better health.

To learn more:

Website:

http://www.umanitoba.ca/faculties/medicine/units/northern_medical_unit

Address: University of Manitoba Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2

Phone: 204-474-8880 1-800-432-1960 (within North America)

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