Life With Diabetes: Update and Honesty
Hey everyone, Happy Winter! I hope everyone is staying warm.
Back in November, I was Interviewed by Barney Smith from Comic Story. I had fun talking shop and chatting about my art process. He asked a lot of interesting questions, which you will end up seeing on his website and YouTube Channel in January. I’ll link the episode when it’s up. But, one of his questions I would like to touch up on. He saw my Life With Diabetes Comic and asked if I would make a sequel. I had planned to make one back when I finished it back in 2022. In fact, I wanted to make a whole series. One book would be about blood sugar, another would be on the many types of diabetes, and later the history. But a lot has changed.
To start with, I was a student when I made this comic. It was a homework assessment, so I had guid lines and a deadline. I created every aspect of it with homework in mind. To make this fact even more so, I wasn’t gonna make that comic about Diabetes. Originally, I planned to make it about Strawberry Shortcake. The character, not the food. I did research on her world, history, divers cast and adventures they go on for a whole week.
However, all that research went down the toilet after one classmate made a short comic about how sugar causes diabetes. This peeved me to my core, so I scrapped everything and read every article, Study, and talked with my doctor to make Life With Diabetes. But I also took my life experiences to try and share other parts of diabetic life that not many people know about or share. As a result, this comic was my most taxing from my collage experience.
I wasn’t trying to mask my thoughts or experiences with fantasy, but I laid them bare for all too see. Yet, I softened my tone, and berried a chunk of what I wanted to say. I guess I also sugar coated it too. Harsher words came to mind, yet I smoothed out the edges so people would listen. Yet, I didn’t feel authentic. My heart and mind were at war the entire time. But I put my best face forward in stead of my angry face, my sadden face, and my wounded face. I couldn’t share my scars to it’s fullest, nor my isolation. Not only was the comic short, it was non-fiction. I felt that I couldn’t be myself, show all sides of my life without scaring people off or getting all defensive. I felt so alienated from my experience while making this comic. I was fiction by the end of it.
Despite my feelings, this comic has done so much good. It’s one of my best sellers, and friends and family members still ask for copies. I’ve helped many with this book alone, so I can’t deny it’s power with connecting with others. But I can’t be the face of diabetes. That is a heavy bag to carry, and my diabetes bag is already pretty heavy.
With how the world is right now, my feelings on health, disinformation, and food have only grown more stern. If I make a sequel, I can’t promise that I’ll keep my cool. My life is constantly on the line from having blood sugar spikes, and healthcare is inching away the older I get. I had a diabetic scare last week, which I’m still reeling from, and lately I can’t bring up diabetes without tears. Maybe one day I’ll make a sequel, but for now, I don’t have it in me. But I can assure you all that the comic isn’t going anywhere.
Sorry for the ultra serious post, I wanted to get this off my chest. I hope everyone has a happy December!
-Bellapinkpen
