Ethan Speaks Out

My name is Ethan.  I am like most boys my age.  I love to play sports, ride my bike, play video games, and Irish dance.  The difference between me and all of my friends is that I have juvenile diabetes. 

I have a really good memory and can remember things most people forget. I can remember when I was three like it was yesterday.  I sometimes wish that I could forget certain times in my life, like the day that I was diagnosed with diabetes.  I was really afraid of the shots and the way that everyone acted.  My mom couldn't stop crying and my dad looked really worried.  I remember running behind the couch to hide from my mom and dad when they had to check my blood sugar level and give me my insulin. Those days were the hardest.  One night when I was four, I told my dad that by the time I was sixteen, there would be a cure for diabetes.  Well, that only leaves three years for a cure to be found. 

The reality of diabetes really hit home for me two years ago when my younger brother Aiden was also diagnosed with diabetes.  I felt really bad because I thought it was my fault.  I cried the whole time he was in the hospital.  I just couldn't imagine him having to go through all the finger sticks and shots, too.  He was only 10 months old and it wasn't fair.  Although I worry about myself, I worry more about my little brother because he is so little and so many things can go wrong. 

The dream I have for me, my brother, all the kids in this room and around the world who have diabetes is simple.  At night, I dream of a world where we don't have to count our carbohydrates; where we don't have to prick our fingers and give ourselves insulin shots; where we don't have to worry every day about all of the complications of diabetes.  A world where we can all just be kids, free of diabetes. 

Research foundations like the JDRF are working to make that dream a reality with support from Congress.  If we all work together to find a cure, it will happen. Together, we will be known as the people who cured diabetes.