I read the book Sweetblood back in grade 10, at that point is where that book was my safe spot. I have had diabetes (Type 1) since I was seven years old and that book was basically how my life turned out. The theory of how vampires were diabetics that were dying because they weren't being treated is precisely how I figured how the stories began, though I wouldn't call myself undead because my life is being controlled by a medical invention I do support that theory, I even ran it past my doctor... he laughed at me and asked if I read the book. (Dick). I hated my doctors and I hate my schools cause at one point the school board wanted to kick me out of school for having to keep my medication on me at all times. I didn't really have many friends in high school and I was more of a loner, people called me goth, but I didn't feel goth... just liked to wear a lot of black and corseted tops. Anyway, Living with diabetes still gets me in the dumps... truthfully it's the hardest thing in the world to live with now that I'm out living on my own. It's so expensive to pay for meds and even finding a drug plan to cover you is impossible... mainly cause of the costs. I live with it now and I haven't had a diabetic sezure in, I believe, 8 years.
My last Diabetic sezure was actually at a diabetic camp... never went back there ever again. A diabetic sezure is where your blood glucose drops from being very high to VERY low in about 5- 10 minutes... not good, and you begin to convulse on the floor... my mother was always worried about me when I was younger... Sometimes I feel I'm the one who put her on her anti depressants... she was so upset when the doctor diagnosed me, but the upside to being a little kid with diabetes is you get to stab dolls with needles... lol.
But yeah, I wrote the author of the book after I read it in 2 hours, Pete Hauntman. He e-mailed me back saying he was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes and told me not to let it beat me.
Anyway, I never actually wrote anything about it since I was cursed with it.. it puts me to tears even now. It's still a pain in the ass to deal with and I constantly think of what it would have been like if I didn't have it, but I'll deal with it... I have had so many holes in my fingers that they are scared forever... my stomache and legs have been poked with so many needles in my life that they have had so many bruises from where I hit a blood vessel or a muscle.
Yes, this book is my life... aside from the bat thing, I love bats, but never got to touch one. It old my mother if she ever wanted to know what my life was like she should read that book and she'd find out everything.