I just found out that today is World Diabetes Day. Diseases and causes generally mean something to people if they or somebody they love is affected. As it happens, my mom is diabetic, and since her diagnosis in 1989, diabetes has been a word that has made my ears prick up when heard, and made my stomach churn and my eyes water.

Any time a news report comes up on the topic of diabetes, they will invariably mention its complications (blindness, kidney failure, loss of limbs, usually legs) and I always want to shield my mom from hearing it because I wonder how you can hear that and just shrug, without thinking that it may happen to you. I always cry after such newscasts and now I don’t bother watching them, even the ones that are focused on innovations in treating the disease because even those newscasts have to tell you what they’ll be potentially preventing. (Ok, sometimes I watch the latter because if there’s a cure coming out, I want to know!)

When I was in university, I took a full year course on mammalian physiology and one of the “units” that we studied was on diabetes. I actually had to leave one class because I was crying and didn’t want anyone to see me. I can’t help being emotional about the thought that my mom has to inject herself with insulin every day (and it’s painful, though not every time). I can barely watch because I hate seeing my loved ones in pain, no matter how slight, and often try to leave before she does it. It frightens me regularly that despite eating well and trying to exercise, her life may be cut short. Worry doesn’t help any of this one bit but I can’t seem to stop the worrying.

Despite dealing with this and other medical problems, my mom is one of the most cheerful and positive people I know, and I think that’s why it hurts so much that she has to deal with this. Surely she’s reached her quota of health woes?

But I can do something positive with my worry though! Instead of simply worrying, I can participate in the Canadian Diabetes Association’s Team Diabetes Canada. By signing up you commit to running a marathon, half marathon, 10K, 5K or 2K. Next May 25 I will be running (hopefully completely) the 5K race and raising money for my run. Please click here to support me.

This is a very impulsive decision on my part: I’ve always wanted to raise money for the CDA, and I just started running/walking, so what better way to combine the two initiatives? This gives me a solid six months to train and get used to the idea that I have told the internet that I’m going to run a 5K! I even put that I’ll run it in 30 minutes on my registration form (but I don’t think they hold you to that). Each runner must raise at least $250 and I’m going to up the ante and try to raise $500. If you’re willing, you can support me here.

I’m officially scared.

Filed under: Family, Goals, NaBloPoMo, Operation 5K by jummy