Episode 41: Roundtrip to Free State, S. Africa

Take a journey with me to have a conversation with Palesa. Palesa was diagnosed with Type One Diabetes at the age of 16, only two years ago. Palesa yields from Free State, a province of South Africa formerly known as the Orange Free State. Although she is still new in her journey with T1D, she truly enjoys advocating for diabetes. She says being diagnosed added on more to her plate than a regular teenager. Palesa believes that accommodating diabetes is a complex thing and that she does not expect others to accommodate her. She has to accommodate herself when it comes to complex situations such as even in her house with food, she shouldn't depend on others to accommodate her. Palesa does admit that she didn't understand what diabetes was until her diagnoses. Thinking that she'd be getting amputated in her 20's and not understanding why people needed insulin. When diagnosed she was bombarded with info on top of info, and she recalls her grandmom struggling to adapt to her diagnosis. Palesa felt so sorry for her and didn't know how to guide her grandmother because of her age. Palesa states how she thought diabetes was fake because of her being diagnosed at 16 and was hoping the medical team would come and say that she was misdiagnosed. She doubted things such as test strips, wondering how could they tell her she was diabetic or test her blood sugar. She hoped that it would all go away! Going back to school she felt embarrassed and the only persons to know her diagnosis was her teachers. It was something she truly couldn't explain. Today although still in her younger years living with T1D Palesa is ready to be out on the frontline in aiding in building communities and promoting care for people with diabetes. She believes insulin should be made free for all but also knows that if it's over the counter it can be dangerous. No one should be refused insulin even if one can't afford it. Follow Palesa on instagram ⁠https://www.instagram.com/m.a.s.e.g.o._c_go/⁠