The Place To Be Diabetic

It all started one normal day when my mom took me to the hospital. I was showing symptoms of diabetes, always thirsty and urinating. I even lost twenty pounds in that period of time. Diabetes is a chronic disease where your levels of blood glucose are too high. I have type one diabetes which is when your pancreas doesn't produce enough or any insulin needed to control your blood glucose. At the hospital, I was diagnosed with diabetes at the age of eight. I grew older and learned how to manage my diabetes. But i had restrictions from trick or treat candy to sleepovers and birthday cakes.

My school nurse introduced my mom to a summer camp for diabetes. The camp is called Camp Nejeda which serves diabetic youths and their families in the summer. Its located in 910 Saddleback Road, Stillwater, NJ, 07875. I have attended Camp Nejeda for 5 years now, but nothing was like my last year as a camper in 2010. I knew my last time as a camper had to treasured because If i wasn't hired the up coming year as a counselor I wouldn't be engaged in Camp Nejeda again.The most attracting things about camp life is I could go to trips camp offered like white-water rafting, hiking, sleep outs around a fire, and water parks. Also i could have a vacation from diabetes because the nurses helped me with everything. Therefore all my family and i got to learn new techniques of how to manage my diabetes like carbohydrate counting and insulin pump sets. Lastly and most important i wasn't alone i had tons of friends with diabetes that shared the same problems that i had and could help me. Hence when i think about camp, i will always remember Camp Nejeda is the place to have diabetes. What was there to dislike? Nothing.

To be honest i don't know what changed me that year. It could have been the salamander i saw hiking, the amazing counselors i had, crazy friends that i had wrote a song with, the burning of the "N", the songs sang in the dinning hall, or maybe just my view towards Camp Nejeda. But what ever it was i did not want to leave this amazing place i grew to love so i applied to become a counselor and was accepted. Camp Nejeda was a great turning point in my life.