Are you new at diabetes? Well I am. I was diagnosed with it about 3 weeks ago and since then had 4 hypos. They weren't too bad. The annoying thing about it was that my Doctor wasn't the one the person who found out I was diabetic, it was my mum!

I was off school for about a week and a half before finding out. I didn't think much of it though, a few sore heads and leg cramps. My mum thought I was growing because of the leg cramps, which wasn't the worst thing in the world, but it wasn't. I was drinking constantly! I was told not to drink milk because it makes you even thirstier and drinking water didn't help.

I went back to school for two periods but found it extremely hard to concentrate. I could hardly read a paragraph! I ended up falling asleep in class, luckily my teacher was half decent and knew I hadn't been that well and left me to sleep. After that class I went straight home back to my bed.

My mum took me to our doctor. He didn't take my bloods and just told me it was just a virus. (He won't do that again) My mum and I saw him after I was diagnosed and he was so apologetic. After that I went home and the next day was taken to hospital. They took my bloods and sent me up to another hospital, where I stayed for four nights.

In the hospital I was given lectures about diabetes. Even my mum was exhausted after listening to it all. I started to understand it more when I read all the notes and leaflets about it. My dad didn't know much about it and when he came to visit me in the hospital, he brought me two bottles of lucozade and a magazine called 'Sugar'. He didn't think lucozade had sugar! At least he tried.

When I got out hospital, I had a massive craving for chocolate but instead, I had some toast. I check my blood sugar level before meals, two hours after meals and before bed. I take my insulin four times a day. The first couple days back at school were quite frustrating because I didn't no where to go to do my bloods and insulin. I lucky to have all my friends and family who have kept me going with it and supporting me.

My diet hasn't changed much except from not having sweets and snacking all the time. I just have to watch my carbohydrate intake which isn't to hard. Everything has being going well so far.

I started to read some books to find out more about diabetes and how it starts. I learned that it was when some people's pancreas doesn't give out enough or any insulin anymore. Insulin is used to help glucose move from the bloodstream into parts of your body which needs it to make energy. There is also no way of preventing type 1 diabetes.

My vision also changed. I wear contacts but after I was diagnosed with diabetes I could see clearly for the first time in five years without contacts. I went to get it checked it out and they told me it was nothing to be worried about and that my vision would just go back to normal. They were right. My visions went back to normal after three weeks.

Apart from all that diabetes has been ok and I am sure it is going to make me do more in life instead of being depressed about it. I have already started to go swimming more and walking my dog more which is a great start.