In the last several weeks at work I've gotten two "Is that your phone?" comments about Dex, one "Is that your pager?" comment about Toohey and one "I think we just violated HIPPA" comment. Oh, and two very long, in-depth conversations about diabetes, pumps and continuous glucose monitors. It's interesting how much of this information had become visceral to me... I found myself explaining things I hadn't thought I would need to but realized that basic diabetes knowledge is not so common.
Actually, I take that back. Some people know enough about diabetes to be dangerous, but what they have no clue about is pumps and CGM. Which is fine. In fact, today I told a co-worker after a lengthy conversation about how the pump and the CGM work that I don’t mind talking about it. I clarified by saying as long as I wasn’t being judged and people who were asking questions were willing to accept that I am the expert.
It hasn’t always been that way. There was a time when I was ready to stop wearing Toohey on my pants pocket and hide when checking my blood sugar just so I didn’t have to endure possible questions from people who only made me feel incredibly small.
The two discussions I’ve had recently with co-workers (one of them my boss) have actually been very fulfilling to me because the types of questions being asked were more than just “So how are you feeling” (although I did get one of those right after someone connected the dots between “It’s an insulin pump” and she’s got diabetes).
These discussions made me realize how much information I’ve learned and absorbed in the last four years (holy crap it’s been four years this week and I just realized it). With every question I felt like there was no easy answer, no simple answer. I felt like I wanted to write a book about the things they were asking.
I left those discussions feeling like we hadn’t even begun to really talk diabetes. But I did feel like my co-workers had a little better understanding of the devices I’m wearing and what they’re for. At least, if I’m acting funny maybe they’ll be the ones to connect the dots between she’s acting funny and maybe it’s her blood sugar. Maybe.
(Part two of my diagnosis story here, part three here, and part four here.)
