Welcome to Diabetes Stories

Family Members

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Interview (random selection)

Greg
Born in 1954.
Overview: Greg was brought up in Chelsea, attended art college and got a job at the British Museum, where he met Harriet, who`d had diabetes since she was twelve. They married in 1978 and had two children, Dan and Grace. Harriet managed her diabetes well and Greg was not greatly involved, except during her pregnancies. He felt a greater weight of responsibility when Grace was diagnosed - first with diabetes, aged nine in 1999, then with epilepsy, aged ten. He says that he sleeps on a knife-edge: `You listen for every sound that`s happening in the night`.

There is also an interview with Greg`s wife, Harriet.

Click [Here] to view

Family Members

Here you can listen to 25 family members of people with diabetes, including parents, children, siblings and spouses. They range from those who have had an official full-time role, with a Carerï¿½s Allowance, to those who feel that their involvement with diabetes has been marginal.

The idea of interviewing family members came from people with diabetes recorded for this website who said they ï¿½could not have survivedï¿½ without the help of a relative. In some cases, they were referring to rescue from unconsciousness and in others to moral support with diet or exercise. In all these cases, they felt that the role of the family should form an important part of the history of diabetes care.

We have used the term ï¿½family memberï¿½ rather than ï¿½carerï¿½, partly because a few of the interviewees have not been much involved in practical care and partly because some of those who have been greatly involved did not wish to be regarded as the ï¿½carerï¿½ of someone they loved.

In addition to 22 interviews that are mainly about the experience of being a family member, we have included in this section 1 interview with a healthcare professional and 2 with people with diabetes who have also been involved in looking after members of their family.

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