Taha did not remember the exact date but was sure that it was 2010. He was in Saudi Arabia back then, the results of the board exams were about to be announced, and he was awaiting his 9th board result. There were symptoms of strange behavior, aggressive thirst, frequent urination, weight loss, etc. His family noticed his strange behavior the most.
His father (having Type-2 diabetes) thought that Taha was under pre result stress. Soon, when the result came, he achieved around 92% in his board exams, and on the very next morning, his father immediately took him to the hospital. The doctor checked his BP, Sugar, etc. The Sugar was around 400+, the doctor immediately wrote detailed tests and referred him to the specialist. C peptide, HBA1C, and various other tests were done, he spent the whole day in the hospital while he went through the tests.
They took a blood sample after every hour and gave me some fluid to drink, and it pissed me off. When the results came, it showed a diabetic curve and I was declared to have type 1 diabetes just like that.
That day on his way back home his father told him the dua from the last two verses of Surah Baqarah, the meaning is as follows
“Oh, Lord! Put not on us a burden greater than we have the strength to bear. Pardon us and grant us Forgiveness. Have mercy on us.”
Taha regained peace after his father explained the dua and the ayats preceding and succeeding it. After arriving home when he told his mother she said
Allah! Tumhri jagah mjhe ho jati sugar “(May I have had got diabetes instead of you)
He was left bewildered after hearing those words from his mother, that day he realized that what a blessing parents are. He learned and grew a lot on that day, little did he know that he won’t be able to eat chocolates anymore
That day I took out a chocolate from the fridge and ate it with tears thinking it’s the last time I am ever going to eat chocolate.
Things got along and Taha came back to Pakistan, everyone was sympathizing with him and prescribed many Desi Totkas but none seem to work miraculously. In his 10th Grade and college he didn’t use to eat lunch because he had to inject insulin, he was not afraid but the people’s questions made him uncomfortable. He was still on fixed insulin units and strict diet regulations which were hard because he loved the food so he sometimes used to eat secretly which resulted in occasional Hypers. His doctors changed his insulin from basal bolus 70/30 mixed insulin as his HBA1C was at 9. The HBA1C did not improve so Drs shifted him back to the same therapy. Soon he started going to university, the first year went like college, eating no lunch and having no friends, he sat in the University Masjid during the free time. However, in the second year things changed, he had a road accident in his early college days which resulted in a right knee fracture and damaged ACL, at that point his family did not opt for the surgery as they believed due to his diabetes he would have a hard time in recovering, so at the beginning of his second year his ACL got completely ruptured so he had no option but to undergo surgery. Post-surgery his family was very afraid of proper recovery and his physiotherapist said
“Your recovery will be very slow due to diabetes”.
Taha still never lost hope and gave it his best and after 2 weeks his physiotherapist was astonished by his recovery rate and told him that he encouraged the other people with diabetes by giving his example and how he is recovering despite having diabetes. As he underwent surgery his teachers and family told him to freeze his ongoing semester but he insisted and went to university on elbow crutches and got the semester cleared.
A few months later Taha joined the Meethi Zindagi’s Fb group which was a game changer for him.
And boy! I was happy to learn about carb counting I started learning it and implemented it slowly learning and improvising had a few hypos along the way and my diabetic journey after joining MZ and learning carb counting was never the same, as it was before. I was amazed and it was hard to believe.
He then completed his BSc Mechatronics and Control Engineering from UET Lahore in 2018, and after graduating his family wanted him to get married, but he was afraid and didn’t want to marry!
“I used to say why to punish someone by getting her married to me, but my family kept on pressurizing me. Initially, few proposals rejected me due to my diabetes, but my family never gave up, and then I got into the relationship with my (Mamoo) maternal uncle’s daughter. Soon, I called my cousin (my wife’s brother) and asked if he is okay with this decision and he said yes whole heartedly which made me realize that it was no big deal.
Taha got married in mid-2019 and initially little disputes and differences did occur!
It was hard for my wife to understand the flexibility of carb counting, she used to be over careful about my diet and it was overwhelming for me that made me short tempered, but things settled and she got the hang of it. My BG levels also improved amazingly (obviously she kept an eye on me), we went through many Hypo and Hypers but she loves me the way I love her and she never made me realize that something is wrong with me.
After 2 years, Taha feels accomplished as his family can fully understand carb counting and he can enjoy meals with them using carb counting. His wife gave him a lot of confidence and she never complained about his mood swings during Hyper. Recently, he got blessed with a baby boy.
Baby is healthy ALHAMDULILLAH! Yes, he changed me overall. Family support always plays a vital role in our life.
Taha had to manage his diabetes at work because being an engineer he had to work at industrial sites and it is quite challenging for him, but he didn’t hide the fact that he had diabetes. Whenever he went into Hypo he pauses the work and treat his hypo first instead of pushing himself. He prefers fiber-rich food like whole-wheat biscuit before going to industrial sites which helps him to prevent his Hypos often. Taha told us that many more amazing things happened to him, Let us keep those stories for another time.