My three week break between my summer and fall classes is quickly coming to an end. Next week I’ll start my fall classes, pharmacology and primary care of children. One more year! During my break I was quite productive. If productive means binging tv with your cats. Oh yeah, by the way I got a new cat. Her name is Luna (as in Luna Lovegood) and she is the sweetest little angel baby.
Anyways one of the movies I watched was Purple Heart on Netflix. It’s about a twenty something T1D who marries a marine for his health insurance. Of course they are complete opposites and start out hating each other, only to end up actually falling in love. Overall it was an easy and predictable watch. It felt like a lifetime move with better acting and more production value.
I was impressed with how they handled the diabetes. It was obviously a main plot point since it was the reason they got married, but it wasn’t constantly mentioned. The girl lives a relatively normal life. There was one scene where she has a “really low” blood sugar and needs help. I’m using quotes because her pump showed her BG was 68. Which would not cause most PWD to almost pass out and need help. I have been perfectly functional and alert with a BG of 53. The only give away was my pump alarming. I have witnesses. I think the big take away from that scene is how her “husband” reacted. He was scared. She makes the comment as she laying on him that his heart is beating fast and he responds back that the situation was scary. Even for a marine.
The big diabetes scene is when she goes to the pharmacy to pick up her insulin. a vial of fast acting and a vial on long acting is going to cost her $500 which she can’t afford. She goes home upset and has an argument with her mom. Her mom tells her she needs to take better care of herself which she explains she is trying to. She asks her mom how she is supposed to choose between paying rent and paying for her insulin. This whole argument made me realize how random it is I chose a major and then a career that led to stability. I am by no means rich, but I have a good job with good benefits and can afford my healthcare needs. At any point I could have made a different choice and ended up in the position of not affording insulin.
My one issue with the diabetes representation is that the pump they show the girl using is a medtronic. This is more of a pet peeve because it seems like that is the pump that is always shown. In the babysitter’s Club reboot Stacy wears the same pump. I am not a fan of medtronic. They cut a deal with United Healthcare (the most evil insurance company) to be their preferred pump. Which limits pump choice. Lastly, tandem’s closed loop system and customer service is superior to medtronic. I may be biased (only slightly) but being able to update you pump’s software for free without having to get a new pump is a big step towards accessibility. I am starting to wonder in medtronic acts as a sponsor and that is why their pumps always end up in movies and tv shows. Like other products do.
Overall the movie was enjoyable and and an easy watch. The diabetes representation was well done. I can forgive details, like a BG of 68 making her unresponsive. Hopefully it also raises awareness for how dire the cost of insulin situation is. Insulin rationing deaths are real, preventable, and happening all too often. It especially affects young adults (like me) as they age out of their parents insurance and struggle to gain financial stability (like most young adults) in the current economy.
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