#*sobs in 1:3 insulin-carb ratio*

[bearsizedant]

okay here's my diabetes ideas for dragon age

good evening all! hello! hi! i have maybe 2.5 functioning brain cells atm so bear with me here!!

these are all pretty general and based on my own personal experience and my limited research into early treatment methods for type 1 diabetes. if you have any headcanons for any other types, or want to elaborate on anything here, feel free! <3

Insulin! where do they get it?? animals! because I highly doubt a society that still believes in the 4 humors will have discovered how to produce it synthetically. the most common animals to extract insulin from are nugs, halla, and druffalo, but it is possible to get insulin from bogfishers, rams, and even deepstalkers under specific conditions. different types of insulin will affect different people in different ways; for instance: insulin extracted from a nug tends to give any non-dwarf an allergic reaction; humans especially. deepstalker-extracted insulin will almost always produce a severe allergic reaction when given to elves or qunari. halla and druffalo insulin are generally considered "universal," as they are least likely to give allergic reactions. all insulins have about a 30-minute delay before any effects are felt. insulins can also be mixed in different ratios to create short-acting (bolus) and long-acting (basal) insulins!!

so how do they administer it? there are different methods all across thedas:

•Orzammarian Dwarves: by pump or by individual injections. Orzammar has developed completely mechanized insulin pumps that can deliver quantities of insulin at specific intervals. however, given limited resources and the sheer effort it takes to build one of these machines, they're like. really hard to get a hold of. unless you're important enough to get first pick, it's likely you're taking individual injections with syringes.

•Dalish Elves: okay so I don't actually have that many ideas for this one because I loved @rozzwil's dalish pump hc so much that my brain has adopted it. (i would move mountains for u rozz istg) I can imagine there's probably little differences that pop up from clan-to-clan, but the basic concept is still the same.

•City Elves: generally depends on the city. certain cities have pumps inspired by those used by the dalish, and in cities where there are limited resources, individual injections are generally the way to go.

•Humans: (this also probably applies to the majority of surface dwarves and many of the Tal-Vashoth) given how humans just seem to generally dislike making anything better or easier for anyone, they have the least-developed treatment methods for diabetes. you've got insulin vials and a syringe. its likely that the insulin itself is in a powdered form that you have to mix yourself, as it cannot be taken orally.

•Circle of Magi: varies from circle to circle, but overall just as underdeveloped technically as many humans. most diabetic circle mages will self-treat or have others treat them with healing magic. before the fall of the circles, it was rumored that the tranquil craftsmen of cumberland's circle were on the edge of a breakthrough in developing a mechanized insulin pump inspired by those of the dwarves...

•Grey Wardens: i feel like the taint would actually sort of.... cure you? archdemon blood comes with some wacky side effects.

I don't have any solid ideas for Tevinter, Avaar, Chasind, or Qunari treatment methods yet... :'(

How do they determine blood sugar? blood magic will give you the most accurate readings, but not many outside of Tevinter will go that route. any mage with any knowledge of healing can give you a reading that's fairly accurate. spirit healers are the most accurate you'll get without blood magic.

for those who do not possess magical abilities or do not have access to a mage who can give them a sugar check, there are powders made of specific plants that will react and change color when they come into contact with blood, and can give you a good estimate.

Orzammarian dwarves have also developed enchanted blades that can give you a reading when they come into contact with your blood. these are roughly as accurate as a spirit healer reading, but are very recent and haven't really become widespread yet.