At first it was a big change because I had to remember to do my injection, take the medication with me when I was going to be out/away for breakfast or tea, and not to eat all the sweet things I used to eat (this was the part I found the hardest because I like sweet things). The injections didn't bother me, which meant I was able to start doing them by myself in less than a week.

Living with diabetes is virtually the same, apart from having to watch that you don't eat or drink things with too much sugar in them. Most of the time I can eat exactly what my family eat. Even with my diabetes I still play sport every day and play rugby, cricket and badminton for local sport teams, and I'm hoping to become a PE teacher. In addition to this, I lead a very active life being a member of St John's Ambulance and Venture Scouts, as well as going out with my friends.

The only real change I've had to make is having to buy low sugar foods and drinks, such as diet brands or those with no added sugar.

I need to have two injections a day - one before breakfast and one before tea. I also monitor my blood sugar at various times of the day.

My diabetes hasn't stopped me from leading my very active and sporty lifestyle, and it shouldn't stop you from doing most things as long as you keep your blood sugar at a safe level.

The family must work together when a child is diagnosed with diabetes. If one parent deals with all the practicalities, it means one person feels the burden of all the responsibility and the other feels excluded.

The diabetic child is 'different', not 'special'. Making them feel special can lead to them becoming selfish and cause jealousy with their siblings for the attention they receive.

It's important to deal with the psychological side of things, the 'why me?' question comes up a lot.

It's easy to dismiss aggressive behaviour as 'high' or 'low' blood sugar, but sometimes it's just a stroppy child and should be dealt with accordingly!

The worst things are hypoglycaemias. It's very distressing, even for an experienced nurse, to see your child unconscious and fitting ... but glucagon is wonderful stuff!

If blood sugar is low, particularly at bedtime (when he'll soon be asleep and not feel 'low'), I set my alarm at 1.30am so I can check his blood sugar, otherwise I can't sleep because I'm constantly listening for sounds of him fitting. Maybe I'm just neurotic!

Letting go is also an issue - what happens when he goes to university? What will happen if he fits and goes unconscious in his sleep? Will he be found?

I'll finish on a good note. Daniel has been diabetic for six years. The day he was diagnosed he spent six hours at the hospital, but since then he's never seen his GP or spent a night in hospital. (He sees his consultant every four months.)