Zoe - Interview 34- Diabetes Type 2

Age at interview: 32

Age at diagnosis: 20

Brief Outline:

Zoe was diagnosed 12 years ago. She also has polycystic ovary syndrome. She takes insulin.

Background:

Zoe is a hairdresser who lives with her partner and has no children. Ethnic background/Nationality - White British.

For more clips from this interview click here.

She thought that the GP was rude but got on much better with a specialist diabetes nurse who, by being more respectful, was also more effective.

 So I avoided doctors for a long time. And then my partner now, said, “Look you've gotta get this sorted.” And I went in and I saw my doctor and, yes I think he did it for the right reasons because he knows… He must've realised straightaway I was stubborn - I will do things my own way - but he was also very rude and obnoxious, and I did feel like wanting to change my doctor but then I thought well maybe he's doing it because I am that kind of awkward person that, I will only go in if need be. But at the same time he was still quite rude - I suppose if somebody's not going to look after themselves then yes they've got every right to be rude - but it does make it hard going into see them.

 

And I just luckily enough my nurse, she actually looks better, looks after me a lot better, than my doctor and I go in there and we'll sit and we'll actually chat and she'll ask me how I'm feeling, what's it like when I take my insulin.. she suggests little things, you know, like just going out, going shopping in, in the daytime. And I've felt that she has made a difference to my health and wanting to get better because she's took time to understand me and my problems first. You know, to realise, you know, it's more than just giving out somebody a pill, or saying, you know… Like she'll say, “Just, you know, if you're going to smoke just cut it down.” You know, she's given me little guidelines like 'Gradually do this… Not, 'That's bad, stop it.' 'This is like this, stop doing that.'

 

And like she understands like, it's like, because of the size of me, like a lot of people automatically think you eat all the time, and it's like it's not often that case. I mean [partner], he actually eats like anything, I've never seen, you know, somebody eat so much and it's like, how can he be the size he is and what he eats and what I eat, how can I be my size?

 

But I purely know now it's exercise that's going to get my weight down. And you know, I'm not a junk eater, I like fresh food, I like vegetables, I like fruit, but when a doctor just looks at you, like my first doctor, and he says, “All I could see is.” because like I said to him, “Every week I went in with my diet plan.” And he said, “But you can't be eating that because of your size.” And I said, “Well I, why would I lie, I'm coming to you for help? I have no reason to lie I want to change, you know, you know I, I don't wanna be this size.' But obviously there's something wrong - that's why I was going to him.

 

But it took like, for him to find out more about me, to make him realise that, you know, just because I'm a big girl doesn't mean I sit and eat all day. And like I have exercise and I go out, I used to do a lot more exercise than I do now which I will get back to, but it took that, you know, because at first he was like, “Oh I just give you this pill and I'll just give you that.” And it wasn't that, I think it, it took that little bit more, for him, I think to open it up and say, you know, you can treat this by doing this and doing that, but yeah doctors are the, the scariest of things.

 

Zoe described her doctor as 'very rude and obnoxious'. She felt lucky to be able to discuss her diabetes with a nurse.

 So I avoided doctors for a long time. And then my partner now, said, “Look you've gotta get this sorted.” And I went in and I saw my doctor and, yes I think he did it for the right reasons because he knows… He must've realised straightaway I was stubborn - I will do things my own way - but he was also very rude and obnoxious, and I did feel like wanting to change my doctor but then I thought well maybe he's doing it because I am that kind of awkward person that, I will only go in if need be. But at the same time he was still quite rude - I suppose if somebody's not going to look after themselves then yes they've got every right to be rude - but it does make it hard going into see them.

 

And I just luckily enough my nurse, she actually looks better, looks after me a lot better, than my doctor and I go in there and we'll sit and we'll actually chat and she'll ask me how I'm feeling, what's it like when I take my insulin.. she suggests little things, you know, like just going out, going shopping in, in the daytime. And I've felt that she has made a difference to my health and wanting to get better because she's took time to understand me and my problems first. You know, to realise, you know, it's more than just giving out somebody a pill, or saying, you know… Like she'll say, “Just, you know, if you're going to smoke just cut it down.” You know, she's given me little guidelines like 'Gradually do this… Not, 'That's bad, stop it.' 'This is like this, stop doing that.'

 

And like she understands like, it's like, because of the size of me, like a lot of people automatically think you eat all the time, and it's like it's not often that case. I mean [partner], he actually eats like anything, I've never seen, you know, somebody eat so much and it's like, how can he be the size he is and what he eats and what I eat, how can I be my size?

 

But I purely know now it's exercise that's going to get my weight down. And you know, I'm not a junk eater, I like fresh food, I like vegetables, I like fruit, but when a doctor just looks at you, like my first doctor, and he says, “All I could see is.” because like I said to him, “Every week I went in with my diet plan.” And he said, “But you can't be eating that because of your size.” And I said, “Well I, why would I lie, I'm coming to you for help? I have no reason to lie I want to change, you know, you know I, I don't wanna be this size.' But obviously there's something wrong - that's why I was going to him.

 

But it took like, for him to find out more about me, to make him realise that, you know, just because I'm a big girl doesn't mean I sit and eat all day. And like I have exercise and I go out, I used to do a lot more exercise than I do now which I will get back to, but it took that, you know, because at first he was like, “Oh I just give you this pill and I'll just give you that.” And it wasn't that, I think it, it took that little bit more, for him, I think to open it up and say, you know, you can treat this by doing this and doing that, but yeah doctors are the, the scariest of things.