I cannot tell you what it is. I do know that it varies from person to person. What do you consider the most important thing in diabetes?
- Prevention?
- Accurate information on the street (in media)?
- Access?
- Insulin for all?
- Better medication?
- Better technology?
- Artificial pancreas?
- A cure?
- Something else?
I acknowledge that language may not stack up against those other things for many, if not most people. For me, however, language is pretty high up. In fact, aside from curing diabetes, I think the way we talk about it and the people living with it is mighty important.
I have met enough people who have felt the impact of negative language to see what it’s doing. It is not helping anything and in many cases it’s contributing to poor self-esteem, decreased engagement, lack of trust in providers, and diminished self-care. I also know that many, many people out there are affected by negative diabetes language and don’t even know it, let alone feel comfortable saying or doing something about it. So I’ve made it my mission to talk about it and work toward changing it.
I don’t blame you if changing the language of diabetes isn’t your mission. There are plenty of other critical issues for people to advocate for and support. I do hope, though, that you’ll consider adding language to your list of important things to at least think about.