#NHBPM – Pressing rewind.

A little over a year ago, I felt wracked with guilt over having type 2 diabetes and the way people perceive the condition. I also hold an autoimmune condition and I know I did nothing to “deserve” that. Yet the guilt remains over type 2 (but I’m working on that).

I did not do this to myself.  I could repeat this a hundred, a thousand, a million times.  Would I believe it?  Would you believe it?

The media as well as the general public’s perception would have you believe that brought type 2 diabetes upon myself.  And some of the most scathing opinions on the subject come from people with type 1 diabetes and their caregivers.

“You could have done something to prevent type 2 diabetes – I (or my child) could not prevent type 1 diabetes”.

The thing is, a combination of an errant thyroid and genetics led to my diagnosis of type 2 diabetes.  Fatigue, joint and muscle pain, inability to lose weight – this is what happens when your thyroid slows down or stops working.  None of these are conducive to avoiding type 2 diabetes if you are already at genetic risk.  None of these make it easy to stay active.  (Other symptoms included irregular menstruation in women, cold intolerance, heightened anxiety and depression, and hair loss.  Just so you know.)

Most cases of hypothyroidism are autoimmune.  Just like type 1 diabetes.  And we all know that autoimmune diseases are not preventable.

That makes it so much easier to accept that I did not bring hypothyroidism upon myself than it is to believe the same regarding type 2 diabetes.

Even if I didn’t have an autoimmune disease, though, I may still have been served the short end of the genetic stick regarding type 2 diabetes.   I will never know for sure.

I did not do this to myself.  Nobody does this to themselves.  Who would do diabetes to themselves if given the choice?

This was reposted as part of  NHBPM – 30 health posts in 30 days.

P.S.  How to cross the great divide? Wil explores that in this month’s dLife column.