Yash Bhale-3

“Diabetes is not a disease, it is a condition”.

A person with diabetes is no different than a non-diabetic person, except that the former has to manually inject insulin while the latter has an autonomous mechanism. Yash’s positive demeanor towards diabetes is something he worked on for over years to the point where he could counsel others. “I once approached a fellow diabetic student on campus, he wasn’t comfortable sharing his story”. He went out of his way to approach this student on campus to extend help in all sorts of ways, knowing how difficult it is for people to be vocal about it. He says celebrities like Nick Jonas and Sonam Kapoor are good examples of people leading their best lives alongside having diabetes.

The importance of awareness is a running theme in this conversation, at all levels including doctors, people diagnosed and the general public. He emphasizes the role of doctors to make the patient fully aware of the entailing challenges. “I once connected with a friend online in Texas, who had ten times more information than me”. Having gone through the struggles of social stigma, he made it his goal to make a difference around him.

“An insulin stock for a month can cost up to Rs. 4000, which puts an extra burden of expense for a middle-class family”. The foundation “Diabesties'' of which he’s a member now, extends monetary help to T1-D members of financially humble families alongside providing a safe space to talk about anything. He jokingly passes a very grave statement, “I feel very comfortable while talking to the members of Diabesties as literally everyone there is talking about insulin”. “It entirely erases all the fears of any sort of judgment”, he adds.

He suggests that institutions must provide assistance like refrigeration inside hostels to store medicines, good medical consultancy etc. He also mentions storage pouches that can store insulin for about 40-45 hrs at 18-25oC. It’s common for hypoglycemia symptoms to not show up immediately, making it even more crucial to regularly monitor the glucose levels as negligence might have long-term effects. Remembering World Diabetes Day on Nov 14th as a rallying point, he signs off.