My Story:  Laddie Lindahl from Minnesota

Just so you don’t need to ask, “Laddie” is a family nickname for generations of women in my family named “Adelaide”.  I grew up in South Carolina and have lived in Minnesota since the mid-1970’s.

I’ve had Type 1 Diabetes since November, 1976.  No one knows exactly what initiates the autoimmune attack on the pancreas, but it is thought that stress can be one of the factors that causes the pancreas to go from dying to totally kaput.  In the six months before my diagnosis, I completed graduate school, got married, moved 1,000 miles from home, and started a new job.  So maybe there was some stress there.

I don’t spend much time worrying about the why’s of diabetes.  I just live it.  I have always worked hard to keep myself healthy, but I have never been a perfect patient.  I just do my best today, tomorrow, and the next day.

Like many people with diabetes, I lived a solitary life with my diabetes for many years and never really thought of talking to others about it.  I discovered the online world of diabetes before purchasing my first insulin pump in 2005.  Since then I have participated in multiple forums, read many blogs, and become active on Twitter.  Slowly but surely, I  have opened up to others on the web.  I have made many online friends and have been lucky to meet several of them in person.  My forum posts have always been on the long side so it’s a wonder that I didn’t consider blogging until now.

I live with my husband of 45 years and have two married sons and a wonderful bunch of grandchildren.  Fortunately none of my offspring have shown signs of diabetes and I pray it stays that way.  Golf and hiking are two of my favorite activities along with dog walking, reading, babysitting, and way too much time on the Internet.

In addition to my writings, this blog will highlight the stories and opinions of several women whom I’ve grown to like and respect through our interactions in the diabetes online community.  We’re the strong and occasionally bossy ones who write really long posts and comments.  We could be considered the antithesis of Twitter.

I hope that you enjoy my blog and come back often for some good conversation along with some laughs, education, and inspiration.

Para leer la versión en español, pulse aquí.