BBC NEWS | Health | 'I wrote the book I wanted to read'

In the video linked above 13 year old author Fibi Ward discusses her diagnosis with three of her girlfriends.

On a personal level, when I watched this video for the first time I began to cry. Having two children with type 1 diabetes, I often think about their upcoming adolescent years and all the changes they'll deal with, including their diabetes. Adolescence is a time kids seek greater independence and explore. When I think of my children growing older and taking care of their diabetes, I care less about what role in the school play they try out for and more about making choices that help them stay healthy and alive, literally.

About the Book

No Sugar Added growing up with Type 1 Diabetes: Soon after being diagnosed in January 2008, Fibi decided to write her own book. She wanted to read something written by someone her own age. Fibi wanted to understand how to deal with her fears and worries after being diagnosed. After searching for such a book and not finding one she decided to write her own.

She wanted to reassure others that one can live a relatively normal life with type 1 diabetes. She learned to plan ahead and discusses how it helped her. Her perspective as a young teenage girl newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes focuses on the emotional, social and practical aspects of living with it, from initial embarrassment to daily routines of a schoolgirl.

In her book she writes, " My book is about my experiences of coming to terms with diabetes, the feelings I have been through after being diagnosed and the practical advice that I can offer from my own experience".

Fibi Ward is now 14 years old. She lives with her parents and brother near Birmingham, UK.

I enjoyed reading No Sugar Added. As I read the book I tried thinking back to when I was a teenager and the fears I would have if diagnosed with diabetes. Fibi does a wonderful job addressing many of the questions a teenager would think and feel in the days and weeks after the diagnosis.