Le diabète de type 1 n’est pas venu « tout à coup et sans prévenir ». Je me sentais déjà très fatiguée depuis plusieurs jours. Je me souviens que mon corps me faisait mal, et que mes parents m’ont dit que c’étaient probablement juste des douleurs de croissance, car j’étais encore une enfant. J’avais mal à la tête, alors nous nous sommes dit que j’aurais sûrement besoin de porter des lunettes comme mon père.

Nous avons consulté le pédiatre non pas une fois, mais plusieurs fois. Il m’a prescrit un traitement pour diverses infections (voies respiratoires, voies urinaires), mais ça n’allait toujours pas.

Un jour, je me suis réveillée en ayant très soif. Nous vivions dans un petit appartement et je m’asseyais souvent sur un petit fauteuil près de la porte de la salle de bain. J’avais toujours un grand verre d’eau à portée de main. J’ai bu et rebu, tant et plus. Chaque fois que j’allais aux toilettes, ma soif était si intense que je mettais littéralement ma tête sous le robinet pour prendre une gorgée.

Mes parents ont décidé de m’emmener à nouveau chez le pédiatre.

Alors, très sur de lui, il nus a informés qu’il s’agissait probablement d’une appendicite puisque je respirais déjà très fort et que j’avais des douleurs abdominales très intenses. Bouleversés et réalisant que le pédiatre, un ami de la famille en qui nous avions entièrement confiance, n’avait aucune idée de ce qui n’allait pas chez moi, mes parents ont décidé de m’emmener dans un hôpital privé loin de chez moi.

Ils m’ont mis sous perfusion et même si ça m’a fait mal à en pleurer, je n’ai même pas eu la force de dire « aïe ». Je me souviens qu’on m’a enlevé mon pyjama et mis une chemise blanche quand tout à coup... Je suis tombée dans le coma et on m’a transférée en soins intensifs. La situation n’était pas brillante, mais mon histoire s’est bien finie, ce qui n’arrive pas si souvent au Mexique. Les enfants au Mexique ne sont pas diagnostiqués à temps, de sorte que beaucoup d’entre eux meurent faute de pouvoir identifier les signes et les symptômes pour éviter leur décès, et parce que nous n’avons pas réussi à nous unir pour exiger un diagnostic rapide.

Si les décideurs et les professionnels de la santé connaissaient l’importance d’un diagnostic rapide, les choses pourraient être différentes. S’il y avait eu suffisamment d’informations dans le cabinet de mon pédiatre il y a plus de 30 ans, on aurait évité mon acidocétose diabétique. Ces mêmes informations pourraient permettre d’éviter de nombreux décès, et ainsi je ne lirais pas les nouvelles quotidiennes d’enfants, d’adolescents et d’adultes qui perdent la vie à cause de l’acidocétose diabétique.

In Mexico, according to data from the Type 1 Diabetes Index, there are about 89, 834 people with whom I share a life condition. Type 1 diabetes cannot be prevented but the complications and co-morbidities can.

Mexico currently ranks ninth in the world in the prevalence of diabetes. Those living with type 1 diabetes, in Mexico, have had problems accessing insulin at some point. Indeed, by the time diabetes and its complications are diagnosed, productive years of life are lost, with significant repercussions in terms of indirect costs.

The treatment of secondary health complications, like diabetic retinopathy, diabetic nephropathy, represents a gigantic investment posing a huge financial burden on the healthcare system. This burden is entirely avoidable if proper access to on-time treatment and diabetes education is provided.

While this will represent a cost, it will also represent savings because it will be more expensive to pay for complications than for timely treatment. The COVID‑19 pandemic was a reminder of the importance of identifying, screening, and treating underlying conditions. In some countries, these health conditions worsened the outcomes of COVID‑19 in ways we had not seen before.

In 2009 I met Beyda, a girl in the Southeast of the Mexican Republic. She was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes and was hospitalized for over a week. Upon leaving the hospital, in the care of her grandparents, she had to learn how to measure her blood glucose and inject insulin. Soon her family discovered that the health system was not able to provide syringes, glucose meters, or test strips to manage her disease. Since her diagnosis, Beyda has been a beneficiary of support provided by civil society organization one of the only non-profit organizations and it was only in this way that she has been able to have access to the tools she needs to survive. Many, like Beyda, do not have access to the basic tools and are at greater risk of developing complications. Management of type 1 diabetes is improved through factors like adequate nutrition, physical activity, mental health screening, and timely treatment, just to name a few-but are often neglected.

In Mexico, health insurance will not cover pre-existing conditions and just a few will have the financial capabilities to acquire health insurance.

We, people living with type 1 diabetes, need to row towards the same shore with organizations, prioritizing our needs to enjoy a good quality of life. After all, advocating for NCD prevention and control will help us build a bright future.

We've been told that "the action that we take now can shape our desired future". I cannot entirely agree. I believe that the action that we take now should shape everyone's desired future.

NCDs, such as heart disease, cancer, chronic respiratory disease, diabetes, and mental disorder, are the leading cause of death and disability. Aren't we all interested in preventing premature deaths? Every two seconds, a person dies prematurely from an NCD. Don't we all have more than two minutes to plan and advocate to prevent this? Isn't this a priority for everyone? 

Each of us decides the story we want to share and how we wish to tell our own. Even when each of us has different narratives we can all agree that those of us writing have been extremely privileged: we're still here and it is now our responsibility to help others change their own story. Participating in efforts that will benefit everyone must be our top priority.

WHO’s Global Diabetes Compact is working to have us meaningfully engaged to amplify the importance of acting on the things that matter the most for each and every one of us.

Sounds simple.

1. Work together:
   1. If you're someone who lives with an NCD: Let's amplify voices and use them to demand change. Health is our right no matter where we live nor the language we speak. Join groups, create learning opportunities for those who do not have the resources. Translate materials into languages that have been abandoned before. Find those who need our help the most. Become an activist not a witness.
   2. If you are a healthcare provider: advocate for us, help us find the resources we need to change other people's lives, invite us whenever you talk about us.
   3. If you're one of our government leaders: let's change lives together. Work with us to modify policies, give us a seat at your table, we can provide evidence that might guarantee a people-centered lens to NCD prevention and control. 
2. Educate your community:
   Sharing your story will help raise awareness. Spread the message in your own community: your school, your church. You might find someone that can take your message where it'll be heard.
3. Know your representatives:
   Find those who will take decisions for yourself and your community. Share your concerns, find solutions, volunteer for your cause and your community.