A poem for Diabetes Awareness Month: What others don’t see

Editor’s note: This poem was written in the last few months during a particularly rough patch of diabetes management that I was experiencing. Diabetes can become unruly and difficult to control when anything else in life comes up – stress, an infection, etc. As we celebrate November’s Diabetes Awareness Month, I chose this poem to share because I think it is important we look at the many ways living with a challenging condition like diabetes can make us feel and be honest about the emotions we sometimes experience. If you are a friend or family member, you can rest well knowing I do not struggle like this daily. And if you know someone that has diabetes, show your support by checking in with that person once in a while. Let them know you care. Thank you.

c@rljones / Foter / CC BY-NC

What others don’t see

You don’t see how much I struggle

How scared I really am

How much this condition affects me

And how I’m really looking for people to understand

Why is it so hard

To have a little empathy for me?

Have you ever stopped to consider

What it’s really like?

10-15 needle pokes a day

Up to 100 a week

Blood sugars that make me tired, irritable and weak

I do the best I can

But it can be really rough

I just wish you’d sometimes notice

How very hard I’m working

To balance my sugars and stay healthy

just to stay alive!

Next time you see me

Will you do me a favor and ask

How I’m really doing

Don’t just ignore and brush my feelings past

Patrick Hoesly / Foter / CC BY

Here are links to a few other poems I have written. To see more poems, scroll to bottom of page and look under category, “Poems.”

Goodnight diabetes (A poem for Tuesday)

I am listening.. (A poem for Tuesday)

Just for you diabetes… (A poem for Tuesday)

Cheek to Cheek (A poem for Tuesday)

Blessings, light and love,

Cynthia

I welcome you to join our positive online community at Diabetes Light on Facebook! You can also find us on Twitter @diabeteslight. I look forward to seeing you there!