“It’s simply a component of your identity,” my endocrinologist clarified years ago. “Just a consideration, not a limitation.”

Those words have guided my life. When I travel, I always pack extra snacks, set insulin dosage reminders, and carry glucose tablets in every purse.

Although I am not defined by my disability, it does need vigilance, especially when I am travelling.

Thankfully, the majority of individuals in my life can relate.

Regular breaks are incorporated into meetings by my supervisor. If I pause for a snack, my friends don’t mind.

When I tell flight attendants why I need ginger ale now rather than in 20 minutes when they get to my row, they usually understand.

But not everyone understands it

Not everyone is aware that something that seems like a light snack to me may be necessary for my health.

similar to what occurred during my travel last month from Chicago to Seattle.

I had just arrived at my boarding group after racing through O’Hare’s backed-up security queue after waking up at 4:30 a.m. for an early meeting.

I had already felt the typical dizziness that signified my blood sugar was dropping by the time I sat down in my aisle seat.

A family of three sat next to me. Across the aisle from me sat a mother, possibly in her forties, and her husband.

Their youngster, who was nine years old, sat between them. He had a brand-new iPad Pro, wireless headphones that were probably more expensive than my monthly shopping budget, and a glum demeanour that suggested he felt the whole flying thing was beneath him.