This is what diabetes really looks like: Teen reveals truth about condition - without a cake in sight

By Nicola Oakley

A young woman with Type 1 Diabetes has shared a powerful post warning people not to make light of the condition on social media.
Referring to the common practice of people tagging their photos of sugary food #Diabetes, 18-year-old Madeline Milzark decided to set the record straight on what Diabetes really looks like.
Sharing a photo to her Facebook page while she sits on the floor holding a cup of tea with a blood sugar level monitor nearby, she wrote:
"Diabetes isn't your piece of cake or that super sized McDonald's meal with extra fries - or anything you see coated with sugar.
"Diabetes is an 18-year-old girl sitting on her bathroom floor shaking and not able to breathe because her blood sugar dropped and praying her Grandma's phone is near her and she got the text message to bring some sugar since she's too weak to yell and the whole room is spinning.

"It's a nine-year-old boy...

...who is trying to play outside with his friends and ends up being carted away in an ambulance because he went unconscious when he didn't feel his sugar slipping.

"It's a 32-year-old girl

...who FINALLY got the news that she's pregnant and going to have the family she's always wanted, but instead of celebrating like she should be she's worried to death that her blood sugars won't stay in range with all of the hormones and that it's going to kill her baby before she gets to meet it... and maybe even her.

"It's a three-year-old...

...who doesn't understand why her mommy has to stab her with a syringe every single time she eats, but not her brother.

"It's a four-year-old girl...

...that I read about recently who lost her life because a doctor misdiagnosed her diabetes as the flu and she ended up a victim of diabetic ketoacidoses, where your blood literally turns acidic from the lack of insulin in your body and attacks your organs.

"Diabetes is your mother, your neighbor, your cousin.

"Diabetes isn't the morbidly obese man you see on TV. It isn't something people ask for or give themselves.
"It's a disease that isn't picky when it chooses who to attack, it doesn't care if you're two months old or if you're 73.
"It doesn't care if you eat Big Macs and McChickens every day of your life or if you're a strict vegan who goes to the gym daily.
"Diabetes is me. Diabetes is a whole ton of people who fight for their life every single day and go to bed not sure if they're going to wake up the next morning.
"So before you tag your huge dessert #Diabetes , think about what #Diabetes really looks like."
Madeline has now launched a Facebook page, Type One Madeline , to spread awareness of the condition.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/real-life-stories/what-diabetes-really-looks-like-8514243