I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes (T1D) in January 2000, I was 12 years old.  For months before I'd been losing weight, had a thirst that couldn't be quenched and had a constant need to urinate (these are all symptoms of T1D. From the day of diagnosis I had to start injecting myself multiple times each day with insulin as my pancreas would no longer produce it for me. I was also told by health professionals I would need to do multiple daily blood tests with a finger prick so as to manage my newly acquired condition.

As you can imagine T1D isn't the easiest of conditions for a young person/teenager to manage. Even once over the psychological 'test' of sticking syringes/insulin pens in yourself daily then comes the challenge of actually 'managing the condition'. You see for someone with T1D it isn't just a case of a couple of injections and all is good with the world if I have too little insulin my glucose levels go high, I experience the symptoms I listed akin to someone un-diagnosed and in the long term I risk a whole range of enticing 'complications' nerve damage, loss of sight, kidney damage, neuropathy the list goes on!

And the above is where my problems started as a young person I didn't always make the best decisions when it came to managing my T1D it's fair to say. I wanted to avoid the pick and mix of complications and yet my teenage self didn't fully engage with testing my glucose levels (like many teenagers I didn't want the other kids to think I was different) not always carrying around fast acting glucose. This along with always been very active led to almost catastrophic consequences on countless occasions. I began to have severe episodes of hypoglycaemia (low blood sugar) for me on these occasions I'd collapse and seizure. The problem was then with T1D once having regular hypos the body begins to think of low blood sugar as normal and then begins to lose and can totally lose the warnings signs (shakiness, headaches, sweating, dizziness etc) an individual feels when going hypoglycaemic. In retrospect I can look back and say my teenage self never fully emotionally and psychologically dealt with the responsibility I had to manage my health. I went through long periods where I wouldn't even say the word diabetes and felt much resentment which I wasn't able to direct anywhere specifically.

These days I'll talk openly about T1D but my severe issues with hypoglycaemia have continued into adulthood. I've never gone a period of 12 months without having a hypo which leads to seizure. Over the years I've had to have my head glued together numerous times,  black eyes from smashing my face on the table as I've feel to the ground etc. This has through the years put great worry on first my parents and then my wife. My wife I cannot put into words how supportive she is, she has essentially been my carer as much as wife helping me keep going in periods of low mood and helping me physically to manage T1D.

At the time of writing this (October  2017) I'm feeling positive. I've had a new insulin pump for 12 months and given my hypo history I've been funded by the NHS to wear a sensor which sends glucose data to my insulin pump. Essentially this is a continous glucose monitor which also has a system called Smartguard integrated. This system means that when the sensor detects my blood glucose levels dropping rapidly it will turn off insulin delivery and send me an alert. Thus I've had less hypoglycaemia and my 'warning signs' have greatly improved, both my mental and physical health have improved hugely in the last 12 months. I feel this has given me the ability to have much better quality of life and I am very grateful to the NHS for their invaluable interventions provided to me. 

Those diagnosed with T1D are often teenagers or much younger I hope for a future when T1D can be cured. JDRF fund vital research into finding a cure for T1D. Also JDRF fund research to improve quality of life for those living with T1D such as the clinical trial I'm taking part in through January  2018 for patients with severe hypoglycaemia issues.

I've chosen for my 30th year to set myself some challenges:- 

1. Complete 12 months without a hypo where I've needed assistance from others. 

2. Complete the London - Surrey 100 mile cycle ride. I have a charity place through JDRF and the target they set is to raise £500.

If you are able to sponsor me so as I can achieve my target I would be extremely grateful and every penny will go towards a cause I feel very passionate about.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JusteGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.