When a child is diagnosed with diabetes, the parents often become occupied with concerns about the child’s future. Will their child be able to lead a normal life? Or will the diabetes blot out all future hopes and dreams? The Diabetes-Parents-Journal (DPJ) invites young people with diabetes to discuss how they live, fulfill their dreams, and integrate diabetes into their lives.  

Britta Apelt (31) is a qualified engineer in landscaping and leisure space planning, and lives in Hannover with her husband Peter. She is the youngest of three sisters. Nearly 20 years ago, she was diagnosed with diabetes. Britta Apelt spent her youth and sportingly active life in region of South Hesse. Directly after her matriculation, she moved out of home to complete a Voluntary Ecology Year. As she knows what it means to live with a chronic disease, she decided to spend that year working in the nursery of a home for the mentally disabled. After this, she commenced her studies in Hannover, and subsequently worked in Berlin and Münster.
Diabetes-Parents-Journal editorial member, Dr Karin Lange, knows Britta from her studies at the medical institute, when the young lady gave a talk on her daily experiences as a diabetic.  

Even before being diagnosed with diabetes, Britta Apelt was familiar with diabetes, as her older sister, Monika (42), was diagnosed with it as a child. Parents and siblings were used to dealing with diabetes, so Britta had no qualms about actively carrying out her desire to travel and take on adventures.

DPJ: How did you contend with diabetes during sport and carrying out your hobbies?

BA: Different to what I expected after the initial shock of diagnosis. Diabetes didn’t really bother me much at school or in my free time. My parents and I fully informed my teachers and coaches of my condition, and I received much encouragement. My classroom teacher remarked with a comforting smile, “My pet dog also has diabetes. I think we’ll manage somehow!” 
Sure, I had to follow some rules, but I was able to participate in free lessons and school trips very well without my parents. Even today I still enjoy backpacking. Later, as a member of the protestant church, I supervised children on several trips and pre-confirmation tours.

DPJ: Did your apprenticeship also pose so few problems?

BA: Actually, yes. Okay, it is not as if I ever wanted to be a deep-sea scuba diver. During my year as a volunteer, I was doing a lot of physically hard work and was on the tractor a lot of the time. My boss’s daughter at that time had diabetes, so I didn’t have to do much explaining. Before starting my studies, I decided to go on ICT, as my lifestyle demanded such flexibility, what with my many excursions and the occasional ‘night shift’ before handing up essays or spent squatting before exams.  

DPJ: Was diabetes a problem in the tough period of puberty? 

BA: It is especially in puberty that one does not want to stand out, or if so, not because of always having to eat a special diabetic diet. This was sometimes very inconvenient and somehow ‘uncool’, having to go without the ice-cream when with friends at the ice-cream bar. My friends were curious and very understanding with me, so I managed to keep my self-confidence.  

DPJ: As a young diabetic, did you have any problems finding boyfriends?

BA: I would say, yes. I had both negative and positive experiences. The parents of my first ‘high school’ love did not accept their son’s choice of girlfriend, because I could contaminate their family with an inherited disease. That was a bit of a shock. In subsequent, more serious relationships, I had positive experiences like, for example, the home-made diet Easter lamb that was given to me as a surprise at a family dinner, and the casual and open way people dealt with my having diabetes. My husband, Peter, simply regards the bad moods that accompany my hypoglycaemia as a part of me. No more and no less.  

DPJ: Is family planning an issue for you?

BA: At my age, one naturally needs to consider this question more often. In the first few years after diagnosis, I always heard that diabetes and pregnancy is not a good mix, so I didn’t think much about having children. In the meantime, it is accepted that with good blood sugar control, there is nothing to be said against it. Basically, it is an issue for my husband and I. He is aware that a pregnancy with me would probably present more complications than with the other couples in our circle. 

DPJ: Did your family’s experience with diabetes play a role for you?

BA: Not necessarily, even though the daily routine with diabetes was easier. More important for me was the fact that my parents never treated me or my sister with cottonwool gloves. They expected the same of us as healthy children, and they taught us to go through life with diabetes independently and confidently. And that’s exactly what we do!