"Is that drugs?" I heard someone say as my insulin pen rolled across the floor of a crowded bar. I'd dropped my bag as I was trying to make my way back to the dance floor, sending needles, blood testing strips and my insulin pen flying in all directions. I gathered everything up, quickly stuffed it in my bag and walked away, red with embarrassment.
Being a diabetic and trying to live a normal life at university isn't always easy. Despite being a pretty common long-term illness, there is still a lack of awareness about what it is and the effect it has.
At first I struggled to tell people. It's difficult to open up to new people about something as personal as your health. Freshers' week friendships are often formed over jagerbombs, dance moves and a pizza on the way home. It's not the time for deep conversations. Before I knew it, I was a few months into university and no one knew about my condition.
There's a common misconception that diabetes is caused by diet, but for me it's something I've had my whole life. I have to check my blood sugars and inject insulin four times a day. If I stick to my routine it's usually well-controlled, but I eventually decided that it was important people knew in case I was ill.
Low blood sugar levels can often come at inconvenient moments. I once turned up over an hour late for an assessed presentation because my blood sugars just wouldn't come back up after a bad hypo (when your blood sugar levels drop dangerously low). On another occasion, my blood sugars were low after a night out. I was unsteady on my feet and didn't making a lot of sense - luckily my friend found me and brought me a sugary drink, but it was a scary moment.
Lily, a first year English student at Canterbury Christ Church University, also suffers from diabetes. She says: "The only time it has affected my studies is when I suddenly went very low in one of my lectures and my friend had to take me out to get some more orange juice – that was more embarrassing than anything else."
When you're a busy student trying to run between classes it can be difficult to try and manage your health.
But I have always found my university to be supportive. I occasionally came across a member of staff who would tell me off for missing class but once I explained, they were usually understanding. One tutor even revealed her insulin pump (another way that medication is administered) and we spent about 25 minutes discussing what living with diabetes is like.
This week, as part of Diabetes Awareness Week, Diabetes UK have been encouraging people to tweet using #Ican to show how diabetes doesn't have to hold anyone back, and to raise awareness of what it is like to live with diabetes.
Despite the difficulties it causes, I know I am many more things than a diabetic – and I can still enjoy my time as a student.
