ukJeff and spoodgel have made very important points. We must not get complacent about our diabetes, and 'let things slide' as the consequences can be very, very bad.
I remember when I broke my leg and was seeing the physiotherapist, he asked me what I was hoping for from the sessions. I said that I would like to get back running again and be as much like my old self as possible (at the time I could barely walk unaided). He then explained to me that some people reach a certain level and then are happy with that because it allows them to do what they want, more or less e.g. walking to the shops/pub etc. but they aren't prepared to put in the extra work (which may be considerable and time-consuming) to go beyond that.
With legs it is far less important than with something like diabetes, which can affect so many different things -sight, kidneys, feet, heart etc., so we really can't afford to be complacent and 'settle' on a level that is comfortable for us. In the past, diabetes care was such that often people would be llowed to run higher levels because it was so much less effort - back then it was thought that complications were inevitable and so people were allowed to live out their lives until eventually the complications came. We don't have to do that - with work and perseverance we can give ourselves the very best chances of living out full and 'normal' lives, and for those who have already felt the effects of complications, perhaps through misdiagnosis or late diagnosis, they can mitigate te extent and effect of those complications.
It's impossible to sy, I think, what lifespan the average poorly-controlled diabetic can expect, but you can guarantee it will be much shorter than a non-diabetic, so we must strive to keep the best control we can, each and every day!
