I have been a Hall parent for 7 years, with three boys currently at the school. Earlier this year, mere weeks before lockdown, life threw us a curveball.

When we presented to A&E, I couldn’t say the word ‘diabetes’. They had to say it to me. Denial is a powerful thing, and the impact of hearing it confirmed, in absolute, non-negotiable terms, was not lessened by already knowing. My child, through no fault of his or ours, now had a life-long and incurable condition, an illness, a disability. What followed were 4 days of slow-motion trauma as I watched the brutality of my needle-phobic son battle his way into submission and acceptance. When we left hospital he was bravely enduring 5 injections a day and countless ‘finger prick’ blood glucose checks. All of this beyond his and our control. Were it not for the advance of technology, this would be his forever.

Diabetes has changed everything and nothing. We have to be (much) more organised about food: carb counting, anticipating appetite, weighing portions, timing injections before meals. We live a life with needles, sharps bins, alarms, interrupted nights, hospital appointments, multidisciplinary teams, a fridge full of insulin, a bag full of sugary snacks for the lows, anxiety, uncertainty. It’s a family affair. Jamie’s three siblings are also now well versed in all things diabetes. 

On the day Jamie was diagnosed, in our profoundly shocked and disorientated state, we were handed a JDRF pack. It contained information for us, but also children’s stories about diabetes, which we would read and re-read, diabetes activity books, and, most importantly, Rufus- a teddy with diabetes. The day Jamie started to practice injecting Rufus with insulin was the day I knew he’d be ok. And in those early days when it was my job to explain all of this to Jamie and help him to understand that this new normal was not going away, I was able to tell him that I honestly believed that one day, in his lifetime, it would be easier. And maybe there would even be a cure. 

JDRF fund the research that gives me, and all the other type 1 diabetics and parents of type 1 diabetics, hope. This hope, that it may one day be better, is worth everything. Please do generously support the JDRF in their mission to conquer Type 1 diabetes, and also the Hall Triathlon Team in their incredible athletic endeavours!