Type 1 Diabetes: A Non-Fiction Perspective/ Just a Kid: Emily’s Diabetes Story

How many people do you know with diabetes? Many Americans are living with this disease in our society today. As adults, acknowledging this prevalence seems to be an easy task. However, imagine yourself as a young elementary school child. How much do you know about diseases? What happens if a student in your classroom has a disease? What do you think of this person? For some children, these questions are an imminent reality, part of their everyday childhood life. Thinking about the answers to similar questions mentioned above, I understand the importance of a reliable, accurate, and knowledgeable source for children. After asking such questions to school aged children, I realized many of their answers were masked with prejudice, ignorance, and fear. Upon further analysis of those questions, I knew I needed to create an educational source for such children who are both asking questions about diseases and who are living with diseases that are frequently misunderstood. Just a Kid: Emily’s Diabetes Story was inspired by two personal experiences in my life with diabetes. First, I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes (insulin dependent or juvenile diabetes) two years ago while studying abroad in Europe. Almost one year to the day later, my three year old niece was also diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. My niece’s experience in pre-school further illuminated fearful and ignorant responses to questions concerning her diabetes. I knew writing a non-fiction children’s picture book on type 1 diabetes was a perfect solution for all children in the classroom. My hopes for this book is to help educate parents, guardians, teachers, and students about type 1 diabetes. In every school, there is a child living with this disease; it is imperative for all school members to understand how this child with diabetes functions from day to day. Used as an educational tool, Just a Kid: Emily’s Diabetes Story will help de-stigmatize such students living with diabetes by telling valuable and useful information about type 1 diabetes