When I was searching for support online, I found Diabetes UK's Learning Zone. I’ll admit that I did start out with a bit of a jaded mindset - I thought I was just going to be told to have tiny portion sizes, stop eating everything I love and feel miserable. But once I’d signed up to Learning Zone and taken the health MOT I realised —  'this is just what I need'.

When you’re diagnosed with diabetes you get a blood glucose monitor, and you’ll be given lots of information from the experts. But you don’t necessarily remember off the top of your head what your blood sugars should be before you eat, or exactly what food you need to eat to correlate with your blood sugars, in day to day life.
 

Learning Zone for me is about helping me to understand what changes in my blood sugars mean, noticing patterns, and knowing what’s going to help me manage my diabetes best.

I’ve learnt that I don’t have to stop having the things I love, there are just healthier ways of keeping them in my life! 

Organisations like Diabetes UK are very important. Sharing my experience with other people has been really helpful. I think it’s great if I can help somebody else go through what I've been through without stressing about it. 

The information that Diabetes UK shares is amazing and I found out so much from reading the information on the website. It's been really, really helpful for me to get my head clearer about what I'm going through and realise there are other people that are feeling the same way. I'm not the only one going through that experience. 
 

My dad was diagnosed with late onset type 1 diabetes when he was 34, so the age I am now. My family more generally have quite a lot of thyroid-related issues too, so diabetes is sort of all around me.

Dad sadly passed away after getting cancer about 11 years ago now, so I took on UK Wide Cycle Ride in his memory. I know he got a lot of help from Diabetes UK when he was trying to get to grips with his diabetes, so it seemed like a really good way to give back and support the charity that had helped him so much.

And more personally -  I was coming to the end of a substantial diet where I had lost about four and a half stone, so this challenge was a great way to get me into regular exercise. Completing it felt great, and I actually went a little bit further than planned as I had said that if I hit over £500 when fundraising, I would aim for 250 miles instead of 220!

I've definitely received a lot of social support from Diabetes UK in the last year. They’ve been there through the whole pandemic to make sure that we’re able to communicate with people we’re not able to see anymore. I didn’t specifically look for support, but it was nice to know that they were always there on the phone or online if I ever did need them.

I’ll always be connected to Diabetes UK now. I’d say the cherry on top is that my first review was last August and I was 2.5 stones lighter and I had sent my diabetes into remission. The nurse and GP were very pleased and asked me how I did it and I told them about the challenge. I went again last December for another check and everything was fine. So, they only need to see me once a year now. I’m so pleased that in a period of three months I was able to get myself back on track, put my diabetes into remission and maintain it.

To the people who have been recently diagnosed I’d say: “It’s not the end of the world when you’re diagnosed, you can do something about it and it’s as simple as just put one foot in front of the other and enjoy yourself in the process.”