Learning to Be Content Without the Latest Diabetes Technology

Choice is aplenty for people with diabetes at the moment and I’m so excited that we have so many options to consider what works best for us. After catching up with a friend of mine recently about life, we talked about my new pump and CGM/Libre. Our conversation reminded me of a value that I sometimes tend to forget about – being OK and happy with being content with what we have and the choices we make. 

Being in the know of all these technologies, people tend to expect that I would jump onto the newest and latest thing as soon as it’s out. I mean, I certainly jumped on the Libre and YpsoPump as soon as I had an opportunity to try them. I’ve been lucky to try various devices as it allows me to make that informed decision if this product would be something for me.

I wish that every person with diabetes has this opportunity so I write about my experiences with various technology to give others potentially a different perspective of what I like/dislike about it. Some people see this as flaunting my privilege of being connected with the right people or being in the “clique” of the diabetes online community.

I certainly consider myself lucky to have the opportunities presented to me. But I have also worked really hard for some of them. Often, people don’t see the background work that is involved with the finished product or the decision that has been made. And sometimes people are nasty about it because they don’t understand this.

Not every new technology appeals to me and my presence on social media platforms change. At times they’re deliberate choices, and others simply because I haven’t got the brain space or energy for it. I made a conscious decision recently to focus on activities that make me happy and that I have enough energy for and not worry about what others think or how it will be perceived by them.

We don’t need to always have the latest and greatest or always be at the forefront of every trend. We live in such a fast-paced world where being seen with an older model of something is faux-pax. As long as what you’ve got going works for you, you shouldn’t need to justify it to anyone. We certainly shouldn’t need to put on a persona for the sake of diabetes advocacy and I’m tired of trying to figure out people’s ulterior motives. Just be honest and just be you.

Chatting to my friend was a certainly a timely reminder for me to be OK with my own choices and back myself, to be comfortable in my own skin and to do things in diabetes advocacy that I’m happy doing.