November is national diabetes awareness month and the campaign means a lot to local (Warman) athlete Griffin Heaney, who has been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes since he was nine years old.
The 17-year-old wants people to understand it’s not easy to live with diabetes.
“I definitely think there needs to be more awareness. I think people don’t realize how severe diabetes actually is,” Griffin said.
When it comes to dealing with Type 1 diabetes, Griffin said he has it under control but there are other people out there who have a hard time dealing with the condition.
He also believes that it’s possible for people living with diabetes to accomplish any goal or dreams they have, even though they have to overcome different type of obstacles.
Heaney currently plays U18 AA hockey with the Warman Wildcats organization and playing the sport while diabetic has it challenges.
He is not alone though, as teammate Nicholas Fiolleau of Cudworth is also diabetic.
“I have never actually played on a team with another diabetic. So this year has been cool because if one of us goes low or something, you can always ask the other guy if he has juice or something and he’ll go grab it for you,” Griffin said.
“It’s just also nice to have someone else that knows what you’re going through and they can tell if you’re low or something. Whereas, somebody who doesn’t have it, they might just think you’re not focused or not paying attention.”
Griffin’s dream is to play hockey in the Untied States. Just recently, multiple junior division II teams from the states reached out to him.
“I had the opportunity to go play in a couple places this year (2020-21 season), but I decided to stay home and graduate here in Warman. But next year I think I’m looking at going to the states to play hockey,” he said.
If he were to play hockey in the states, it would be at the junior level, which is still pretty competitive hockey.
“It would be cool to play in the states,” Griffin said. “It’s always been my dream to travel and play hockey somewhere else. The opportunity to go play in the states is unreal.”
The main challenge when playing hockey or any sport with diabetes, is that the blood levels could spike or go down at any time.
It’s a balance he has to juggle and that definitely presents a challenge when trying to be better than the opponent because if he pushes himself too hard his body could start to break down.
“Your legs would start to feel a little weak or might feel rubbery, and you won’t have as much strength,” Griffin’s dad Vance said. “So in order for him to play his best, trying to make sure his sugars are level is always so important. We can often tell from the stands by how he is playing that his sugars must be getting higher because it looks like he is maybe not quite as strong as he normally would be.”
If Griffin’s blood sugar level is ever low during a game he usually drinks some juice or take Dex4 glucose tablets which are basically made of sugar.
For the past four years, he has been on an insulin pump and that has really helped him manage his diabetes on and off the ice.
“The main reason I went to the pump is for hockey and it’s so much easier to regulate (Type 1 diabetes). Especially because I don’t have to stop and take a needle during the game,” Griffin said. It’s just on me and I can click a couple buttons and be good to go.”
After someone with diabetes plays sport or really exerts themselves, it’s very important to monitor the blood sugar levels.
“You play an intense high level game and maybe his levels are really high and he starts to crash,” Vance said. “It’s not even when the game ends, with Type 1 (diabetes) a lot of the time the issue is during the night or the next morning making sure the blood sugar levels don’t go low.”
Griffin has also played AA hockey in the U13 and U15 divisions. That is quite the feat because not only does a player with Type 1 diabetes have to worry about the hockey side but also managing their diabetes and doing what they need to do, to compete at a high level.
Since Griffin wants to keep pursuing the sport after he graduates, not only does he have to deal with the normal challenges that everyone else has to, there is another layer added because of his diabetes.
When it comes to finding a place to play hockey and live, there are other factors that arise, such as finding a team that is willing to be supportive of Griffin and help him manage his diabetes.
“Knowing you have a player with Type 1 diabetes there’s more work and there’s more responsibility. So we have to make sure that the coach and manager are the ones that are willing to put in the extra work because it is extra work,” Vance said.
It’s a big step in life for every young adult to move away from home but for someone living with diabetes it makes it that much harder because they have to take certain precautions and be more responsible.
“It’ll be hard for my parents to let me go, especially with diabetes it’s harder to let your kid go because they have a lot more to think about,” Griffin said. “I just have to make sure I’m always on top of things”
Since Griffin has aspirations of playing hockey outside of Canada there are other issues he has to consider such as what medicare is available to him.
“So it’s not just as easy as going down there and playing hockey,” Vance said. “You have to make sure the medical coverage and insurance is there because it’s a different system in the states than ours (in Canada). It’s not that’s easy for a type 1 diabetic to just go to the states and play any sport.”
When Griffin was first diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes, his atom (U11) tier 1 coach at the time, Carey Pillar, gave him the jersey #16 and told him about Bobby Clarke. Clarke had a successful NHL career while playing with Type 1 Diabetes, and he wore the #16.
Every year since then, Griffin has tried to get that jersey number, as it means a lot to him.