Taking interest is sweet; taking action is even sweeter

The following speech (content varies slightly at time of presentaton) achieved first place in both the City Centre Toastmasters Club and the Toastmasters International Area 42 contest at the Mississauga Civic Centre. It achieved second place on March 24, 2010 at the Toastmasters International Division C contest held at South Common Community Centre.

Don’t Call Me Sugar Baby! (DCMSB)

Don't Call Me Sugar Baby is the title of a book by Dorothy Joan Harris chronicling the journey of a 12-year old girl after being diagnosed with diabetes.

Is there anyone in this room who has never heard of diabetes before?

Well, then as we can probably recite together, diabetes is a condition in which the pancreas does not produce enough insulin or none at all.

There are two types of diabetes: Type I – insulin dependent (once referred to as juvenile diabetes as it tends to affect younger people) and type II – adult onset (controlled by diet and exercise and sometimes oral medication).

Which brings to why I'm here today. I am here to share with each and every one of you, a cause that is very dear to my heart, my mind, my very self - diabetes. My aim is to persuade you to become interested in this life-threatening condition and act in hope – join the challenge in finding a cure.

Let's go back to where it all began. The year was 1995 and the song “One Sweet Day” by Mariah Carey and Boys 2 Men dominated the airwaves. It was one fateful day in 1995 when my life was dramatically and abruptly altered when after months of extreme fatigue, incessant thirst and unexplained rapid weight loss, I was delivered a heavy diagnosis which rocked my carefree, 20-year old existence to its core. It seemed my not-so-sweet day had come. Feelings of anger, anguish, and confusion overpowered me. "Why me?" I cried out. "I don't want to die!" The brutal truth is that diabetes, if left untreated, can wreak havoc on your body and create complications which result in death. Complications such cardiovascular disease, nerve, kidney, eye and foot damage.

I knew then as I know now that feeling sorry for myself was not the answer. Logistically, I learned to manage the condition and inject those needles *ouch*. You do what you have to do especially when it comes to saving your life just as you would to save the life of someone you love.

I've talked about the medical complicatons. But what about the economic impact? There is a big one. The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation indicates that diabetes and its complications cost the Canadian economy more than $15billion dollars per year. The World Health Organization states that 5 to 10 per cent of a nation’s health budget is spent on diabetes.

Should we just cross our arms, shrug our shoulders and sing “que sera, sera.”

We could do that – that is one response.

I propose a more effective response. I challenge us collectively to link arms, join together and act. Let’s beat this sugary sucker.

Which begs the question – how? If you enjoy the smell of fresh air and the joyous effects of endorphins released from physical activity, then you could join a fundraising walk or bicycle ride campaign to cure diabetes.

And here’s a question for you…as Toastmasters, what are we always encouraged to do? Use our voices! Well, guess what? Those confident, influential voices are needed to support diabetes research and funding. Call your local MP, write him/her a letter. You can even use a template such as the one on the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation website. The sugar busting letters are www.jdrf.ca.

Sign up for an advocacy group – just click on a link on the JDRF website or send an email to the Canadian Diabetes Association – their sugar fighting powers can be found at www.diabetes.ca. Such simple actions can have a profound life-altering effect for the 2.4 million Canadians living with diabetes.

A 2008 article published in an Ottawa newspaper states that medical researchers predict that number is only going to get higher so let's stop this thing.

Earlier I mentioned that Mariah Carey’s “One Sweet Day” was all the rage in my diagnosis year. Another very well known artist, Michael Jackson, also released a hit song in 1995 “You Are Not Alone.” Let’s take an exceprt from those lyrics, “You are not alone for I am here with you... Though we’re far apart, you’re always in my heart” and send an enthusiastic, hopeful message to diabetics everywhere. Tell them that they are not alone; our support is here to stay. While we may be far away from a cure, let them know we’re not just interested in diabetes but we will not rest until a cure is found.

After all, taking interest is sweet but taking action is even sweeter.