Gifts for Diabetics

Note: Beta Cell is an audio podcast and includes emotion that is not reflected in text. Transcripts are generated by human transcribers and may contain errors. Please check the corresponding audio before quoting.

A few weeks before Christmas, a friend sent me an article from DiaTribe titled, “18 Thoughtful Gifts for People with Diabetes.” This is how the article starts.

“Finding the right gift for someone with diabetes can feel like a challenge. We want our loved ones to know how grateful we are for them, but many of us worry about choosing the wrong items. After all, everyone with diabetes is unique. Some follow a strict diet, others use insulin pumps, and some just want to enjoy life without thinking about their condition 24/7. Despite these individual preferences, there’s one thing we all have in common: We love a thoughtful gift.

“With the help of this simple guide on gifts for diabetes, you won't be struggling with ideas this holiday season.”

Here's some of the items on the list. The Vivo Diabetes Program from $159, which is a mix of education and group lessons. An insulin pump belt. Winter socks. The Sugar Smart Snack Box for $29 a month. A diabetes awareness shirt from Etsy. A digital kitchen scale. Or ORCA Care’s diabetes management supplies, like a glucose meter, test strips, and lancets.

There's a few things that bothers me about this list. The first is, obviously, these are terrible gifts. Do not, under any circumstances, give someone with diabetes lancets for Christmas. These are all things that people with diabetes use, of course, and many may even find useful. But you don't give your celiac friends a loaf of gluten-free bread for Christmas. Or hand lotion to a friend with eczema. If your grandmother uses a walker, Are you going to give her a container of tennis balls so she can slide her walker around a little easier?

You don't really give people gifts around their medical condition. So why is there an expectation that we should do that with diabetes? What makes diabetes so different that we need to specifically buy gifts for this disease?

And that leads me to the second and core issue I have with this list. This list assumes that people with diabetes are only that, a diabetic. That once you're diagnosed, everything in your life revolves around this disease. Your hobbies, gone. Your passions, caput. You are defined only and completely by your diabetes.

This article really exemplifies this problem I see with the diafication of our lives. And yes, I am trademarking that word. And what that means is how every organization or person who makes money off diabetes, like influencers, want your whole life to revolve around diabetes. So that you keep your attention on their content, so they make money. They don't want you to wake up in the morning and check the news. They want you to check the diabetes news. They don't want you to try a new recipe. They want you to try a diabetes friendly recipe. Are you looking for a new book? It better be about diabetes!

And this idea really scares me. To think that everything in our lives needs to revolve around diabetes, even the fun things like Christmas gifts. The simple fact is that the only thing that changes when you get diabetes that you need to control your blood sugar with medications, like insulin, diet and exercise. That's it. When you need to eat food, you take insulin. When your blood sugar is too high, you go for a walk. Sure it can be complicated. But that's the only difference. Your pancreas has changed. Not you. You can still enjoy the same music, going to the beach, traveling to new countries. You don't need to go to special diabetic only restaurants or diabetic only movie theaters. Or shop at diabetic friendly clothing stores.

This article is right in saying that everyone with diabetes is unique, but it fails to recognize that you are unique despite your diabetes, not because of it. Don't let organizations try to devolve you into just your auto-immune disease.

And if you're trying to buy a present for someone with diabetes and all you know about this person is that they have diabetes, maybe you should try to get to know them a little bit better. And if you're still having trouble, everyone loves a gift card.