My pump.. My pump, my pump, my pump, my lovely little pump, in the back and in the front..check it out..🍑📟
As far back as I could remember, I’ve always had confidence — I attribute this to my Mom 100%. After being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at age 10, I started on the pump and I always wore it on my belt. Of course sometimes you have to get creative with HOW you wear the pump, like when you’re wearing a dress or a bathing suit or something (but that’s another topic in itself..).
I’ve never felt self-conscious about my pump. I never felt really different in my appearance with my pump. I KNOW this is not the case for everyone and I get it. But I have to say, it’s always just felt like a part of me. Maybe I was lucky to be surrounded by family and friends who didn’t think anything of it either.
I don’t even know if my Mom knows how much she instilled this confidence in me. She would always say things like, “This is you, baby,” “Just another thing that makes you unique,” “this is a part of you.” She always praised me for being “unique,” whether it be through my art, my style, my diabetes, my personality. She always told me that I’m beautiful, smart, and able to do whatever I put my mind to (and she still does). She led by example my whole life (and she still does). ❤️
Remember, I was diagnosed at age 10, like many of you, that adolescent age of so many changes and emotions, the last thing a kid wants is to be different than their peers. To me, being unique meant being myself and learning what that was. Visually, I was still a “normal” kid, I just had some extra accessories I got to wear, but A LOT more responsibilities.
I 👏can’t 👏stress👏 it 👏enough — C O N F I D E N C E — It is the most important thing you could have to feel happy, stress free and beautiful. Having confidence is the beauty hack of your life — better than any clothes you can wear or any makeup technique you do on your face.
If you have confidence then you captivate an entire room with ease, people feel your energy, people want to be around you, people look at you differently. They sure as hell aren’t going to be looking at your cute little pump, and if they are it really doesn’t matter to you.
OF COURSE I get people in public who ask “what is that?” or the “is that a beeper?” question (which I think is hilarious that people still know what beepers are..) or asking about the sensor on my arm, etc. I understand that people SEE my devices, but I don’t mind if they ask and I don’t mind if they notice them. I am so much more than my trusty little pump.
Now as an adult, I wear my pump with pride. I AM confident, I’m a boss, I’m a badass, I’m strong, I’m beautiful, I’m smart, I’m on another level. The important point I’m trying to make here is that if you learn to feel confident in yourself and in your own skin then a little pump on your hip, or a sensor taped to your arm, or a pen/needle in public won’t mean a thing in the grand scheme of you. It’s all okay and I hope that you have this confidence or start to gain this confidence in yourself. So this is for you: “THIS IS YOU, BABY.. Just another thing that makes you unique, it’s all a part of YOU…” ❤️❤️❤️
