Hey, my name is Iman. I am 19 years old. I was diagnosed with a life altering condition called type one diabetes in January 2019. I’ve battled severe anxiety and depression since my diagnosis. I recently finished college and I am trying my hardest to get into medical school. I love movie nights and cooking. It’s like therapy for me. Pretty inexpensive therapy I’d say. Since the past three and a half years, my life has changed, purely and completely.
I am known as the “strong one” within my family and friends but there are times when diabetes pulls me down. This is the harsh reality of an invisible chronic condition. What goes behind closed doors is traumatizing and torturous, yet I handle everything with all my mighty will. We all discuss our fears and problems related to type 1 diabetes everyday but as people say, there’s a silver lining in everything. My silver lining was the discipline type 1 diabetes taught me which not only helped me with my health but with my educational journey as well. I was able to finish college with exceptional grades only because of this self-learnt discipline. I convinced myself that if I could survive living with this condition, I could do anything, and this helped me in the long run.
Diabetes isn’t all rainbows and butterflies for me. I’ve had my fair share of traumatic experiences. From hearing “itna meetha kyun khaya, ab Dekho Kya hogaya” to being mistreated by my own teachers due to my condition.
Despite all the obstacles diabetes threw my way, I managed to carve a new journey for me. I continued with my premedical after taking a gap year and taught everyone, who doubted me, with a lesson. My biggest inspiration was my grandma, whom I used to call Nanna. She had diabetes, hypertension, multiple paralysis strokes along with a number of other medical conditions. She never gave up on life. She was the one who instilled the passion to work for humanity.
I firmly believe that we’re just like other people, just a tad bit sweeter. We’re capable enough to achieve anything in life as long as we put all our faith, discipline and energy into it. Life might not be perfect for us, but it sure is worth fighting for every day.
https://meethizindagi.org/2023/03/04/a-journey-from-idealism-to-reality/
