LIVING WITH DIABETES
IS THIS WOMEN DIABETIC? Photos By Marybeth Simpson Leeds, Kippax
OR, IS THIS MAN DIABETIC?
The answer is, both of these people are diabetic, however one is a Type 1 diabetic, and the other is a Type 2. From these portraits detecting whether or not these people are diabetic is something that can not be seen, as these two people both look absolutely healthy. You also can not identify which Type they are, something of which is crucial with this illness as both are diagnosed and treated differtenly in terms of control.
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eing a Type 1 diabetic involves much more attention than Type 2, even though both can involve the use of insulin intake. Morris Simpson is a 59 year old diabetic who has been Type 1 since he was in his twenties. It has been found that at least 345,000 people are living with this type of diabetes in the UK alone, and accounts for around 10 per cent of all adults. For people with this Type injecting/pumping the insulin into their bodies is vital for their survial. This is due to their bodies autoimmune system attacking their insulin producing cells that live in the pancreas; the insulin of which is supposed to move the glucose(carbohydrates/sugar that we eat) in our bodies into our cells. These cells need glucose to survive. Morris speaks about how he has had to watch his blood sugar levels for almost 40 years, describing incidents where they have been both dangerously low and extremley high. These situations can both be life threatening meaning watching what he eats is crucial aswell as always testing his blood sugar so he knows exacly what condition his glucose/sugar levels are in.
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I had times at work when I hadn’t been diagnosed that long, where the lads had to force milk and sugar down my throat because I hadnt realised my blood sugar was low. I didnt understand how it all worked in the beginning, and there was occasions where I found myself in hospital a few times
Morris tests his blood sugar on a morning, afternoon and evening before he eats, aswell as anytime he feels it could be low or high. This is the maching he uses to do so.
Living with diabetes is difficult but does not however if controlled and handled correctly have to put your life on hold. It can take a while to understand and work your life around, and as Morris said before in the beginning people find it hard to understand. With diabetes involving the process of injecting insulin and taking medication, precautions also have to be made especially with the use of needles in a family home.
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I have these yellow hazardous waste boxes on prescription that I have to take to the doctors when they get full. I have to use them for my used needles and empty insulin cartridges
Aswell as safety being a factor to get used to, sometimes people find certain methods work better for them personally over time. Some diabetics chose to inject insulin, some use a pump to fire it inside, or some just take medication. This can also be said for ways of helping ‘Hypos’ which is what happens to diabetics when their blood sugar is low. Symptoms ca range from shaking, sweating, confusion and resisitence. Morris talks about how he finds the best way he or his family treat him in this condition is to force him to drink ‘Lucozades’ which is an energy drink of which is fast acting in terms of rising his sugar levels to a more stable condition.
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anet Simpson is a 59 year old Type 2 diabetic who was diagnosed almost 18 months ago. This form of diabetes is mainly caused by lifestyle and is mostly common to appear in adults over 40 years of age. This differs from Type 1 as, it means the body is not producing enough insulin, meaning the cells are only partcially working to take glucose from the blood. Janet speaks about visting a dietician after being diagnosed as she was adviced to watch her diet and suger intake to prevent becoming a Type 1 diabetic, as this is a high risk for Type 2 diabetics if they do not take action. Medication is something of which both types of diabetics must take and they can all have different causes for consumption. The Antorvastatin (Statin) tablet is a medication prescribed to diabetics to help keep their colesterol low. This is due to diabetics having to watch their diets, meaning they should eat food that is low in sugar, however manys foods like this are found to be high in fat, which then as a result can affect their colestrol. Both Janet and Morris have to take these tablets.
Morris takes his Nov case and cartridge ou help inject his insulin a
When it comes to taking insulin, aswell as the fast acting option their is also the slow acting, named Lantus Solostar which is one that Morris uses himself for over night. This helps to slowly circulate the insulin through his system while he sleeps, however this is not the only way this insulin can be taken, as stated before many diabetics have different methods and processes.
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I take my slow acting insulin for over night so that the insulin is slowly working its way in my body while I sleep. My friend Alan at work takes his differently to me though, he takes his slow acting in two doses through the day.
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ith Type 1 diabetes and the constant need for insulin, being out and about is something of which needs to be taken into consideration. Morris speaks about having to make sure he always has his insulin on him at hand just incase he eats out, as it is something that needs to be taken just before food consumption. Novorapid is the name given to the insulin that he takes out and also uses through the day at home.
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I use my Novarapid insulin for fast acting, for when I need the insulin to get into my system quicker, which is why I take it before I eat and for when I go out.
Morris talks about how when he does go out especially for meals, that taking his insulin can always be uncomfortable to undertake, as he will usually be in a public place when he needs to inject it. This shows how diabetes can affect its sufferers in social situations and can be difficult to to live with sometimes, as it is not something that is kept in the privacy of their own homes. However, Morris speaks about how he usually uses the bathroom to take his insulin for the very reason of being uncomfortable in doing it under the public eye.
vorapid insulin ut for meals to at a faster pace.
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I don’t really like taking it out in the open, because it means I have to inject into my stomach, and personally I prefer to do it in my bum. Its why I normally go to the bathroom, you have more privacy aswell, away from prying eyes.
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ven though Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes can both be quite similar and quite different at the same time, both do have to stick to dieting, watching what they eat, aswell as excercising more and being more physical. However Type 1 diabetics have to be more wary with this and with how much activity they participate in, as this can be a factor in low blood sugar. Janet, being a Type 2 diabetic on the other hand must always at least excercise in some form, aswell as cutting down on their sugar intake and eat healthier. Janet speaks about improving her physical activity by going on more longer walks, as she isnt able to do any intense excercising due to having two knee operations. She also has cut down on eating sugary and savoury foods and has taken up a diet of healthier food. For a Type 2 diabetic this is crucial for them to not only stabilise their diabetes but in also preventing any risk of becoing Type 2 as this is extemely possible if they do not follow doctors and dietcians advice.
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I bought myself a fit bit once i knew i was Type 2 and I’ve really gotten into it. I can’t do much physically but i go on more walk and i track my steps everyday, I’ve also changed my eating habits loads and I’ve lost weight since. Because of how i have it under control, I don’t need to take insulin.
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REFLECTION-APPRAISAL
What I loved most about this photo story was the chance to explore a topic that is personally close to me and my family, as both my parents suffer with diabetes, but not only that so do a few more of my family members including one of my Aunts and one of Uncles. I enjoyed investigating more into diabetes as a whole as well as the information and experiences my dad has had from being a Type 1 diabetic for so long. I wanted to take an approach to this project where I used research to explain the basics of diabetes for my audience, but also include the personal experiences of both Types of diabetics, using quotations to make it a more personal appraoch at the same time. When it came to actually photographing diabetes, at first i found myself quite stumped in how I would capture this illness, as it is esentially something that is not visable in its sufferers. It wasnt untill I started question my dad about what he has gone through and the things he has to do to make sure he is stable, healthy and in control of his diabetes, that I began to realise it was all in the details. This is when I started exploring the requirements of his illness in our house and saw that these were the thing I needed to capture, as they are crucial for my dad to survive as well as any other diabetic. I wanted to take these images both in ways that would highlight what it is I am actually capturing in a informational way , aswell as a more personal way by showing how they are used, which is why I chose to in some shots have my dad using or taking the necessities for his diabetes. When it came to taking my mums point of view for her diabetes, with having so much to take from my dads point of view and a Type 1 diabetic, I stuck to keeping it simple and straight to the point. Overall I am over the moon with this project as I have taken the time to really undersand everything needed to make this a successful and informative documentary, I am also pleased with how my images have turned out and how I feel they have done their job in focusing and informing my audience on diabetes as a whole.