It is humbling to look in the butter compartment of my fridge and see insulin. It’s necessary. And I’m grateful. The out of pocket cost is upwards of $380 per bottle without insurance, and making sure our family has insurance coverage is our biggest worry in regular rotation. When job situations look dicey, my first concern is insurance. When there’s talk of storms…
I can’t remember how I stumbled onto Just a Little Suga’, but after reading Ariel Lawrence’s take on Black Panther, I was taken by her message, her writing style, and her honesty. Ariel stopped by to chat here on SixUntilMe today, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to share her story. Kerri: Thanks for taking the time to chat! Could…
Yesterday, I was at a meeting where the audience was decidedly not a diabetes one. And in explaining my experiences with diabetes, I had to give an overview of what type 1 diabetes is and how long I’ve been living with it. “I was diagnosed at the age of seven. It will be 32 years this September …” After the…
Seven Versions of One Low Blood Sugar
Diabetes Advocacy, Diabetes and Emotions, Diabetes Community, Diabetes Online Community, Psychosocial Support, Real Life Diabetes, RelationshipsSCENARIO: A blood sugar of 53 mg/dL caused me to wake up at 2 am, drink a juice box, and stay awake until 2.30 am waiting for my blood sugar to rise. DESCRIBING TO MY FRIEND: “Yeah, sometimes diabetes is a thing at night. I had a low last night that woke me up around 2 am, but that’s why…
Designing for Diabetes: An Interview with Natalie Balmain
Diabetes Advocacy, Diabetes Community, Diabetes Online Community, Diabetes Products, Psychosocial Support, Pumping Insulin, Real Life DiabetesNatalie Balmain is a fashion designer from England, and the creative force behind Type 1 Clothing. She was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at the age of 20, and this was ultimately her inspiration behind her debut line, designed to help people manage their multiple daily injections more easily and wear insulin pumps more comfortably. Natalie has raised money for…
What’s in the baaaaaaag? C’mon … what’s in the bag? Yep. This little bag is with me at all times. All. Times. My daughter picked it out years ago and I’ve been dragging it around the world with me since, housing essentials for my diabetes management. Meter, test strips, lancets, lancing device, an insulin pen in case of pump failure,…
People like me are not accounted for .I have no insurance , no dr .Who counts me and the others like us ? — AnaHelena (@karmasense) June 10, 2017 We must account for ALL people. For too long We have focused on T1D kids forgetting adults who are insulin dependent *every* *single* *day*😳 — Jake Kushner (@JakeKushnerMD) June 11, 2017…
Despite being up to my eyeballs in parenting stuff [insert baby who doesn’t sleep at all at night plus a big sister who had her first ear infection over the weekend here], I have been online. And I’ve totally seen the Beyond Type 1 black-and-white photo’d community posts scrolling by, asking for donations and awareness for the Revlon LOVE IS…
“Excuse me … your, um, arm? What’s that on your arm?” Ninety-five percent of the time, I don’t care if people ask about my insulin pump or CGM. More power to them for being bold enough to embrace the awkwardness and actually ask, instead of assuming. (And even in the 5% moments of “argh – stop looking, don’t ask,” it usually…
This morning, Bennet Dunlap is taking over SUM because he has something to say. Changing health policy has become a project of Bennet’s for personal reasons, and with the help of the diabetes community, he and others are aiming to make a difference. Today he’s writing about the Diabetes Patient Advocacy Coalition and how it’s aiming to be the “easy…
Spare a Rose 2016: Final Totals.
Diabetes Advocacy, Diabetes Community, Diabetes Online Community, Insulin, Real Life DiabetesIn 2016 the diabetes community, both online and off, made a huge difference for children with type 1 diabetes in developing countries. This year’s Spare a Rose campaign raised $25,331 from 537 donations, saving 422 children. Read that again, please? Four hundred and twenty-two children. Through the endless generosity of people in this community, donating their time to share the…
You Don’t Look Like You Should Have Diabetes.
Blood Sugars, Diabetes Advocacy, Diabetes Online Community, Psychosocial Support, Real Life Diabetes“And this, too, please,” I said, sliding the opened and half-consumed bag of gummy candies across the counter, my hands shaking. This low was bad. The symptoms were very visible, with unsteady hands and knees that were buckling out and sweat beading up on my forehead despite the 40 degree weather outside. I knew I was the color of a…
It’s nice to talk with other people who have diabetes. It’s even better to laugh with other people who have diabetes, finding some levity in the diabetes moments that seem like they’re shuttling towards chaos. And a few weeks ago, I had the chance to both talk and laugh (hard) with the Diabetes Dominator herself, Daniele Hargenrader. We talked about…
Panel: Challenges in Healthcare Leadership.
Diabetes Advocacy, Diabetes Community, Diabetes Online Community, Psychosocial Support, Real Life Diabetes, SUM in Other PlacesYesterday, I took part in a panel discussion at the Executive Master of Healthcare Leadership Class of 2017 Convocation at Brown University (say that three times fast … I sure as hell can’t) and part of our discussion was about leadership in the healthcare space. My fellow panelists were folks who were employed in the healthcare arena (Michael Hudson, EVP…
Flick of the Wrist.
Diabetes Advocacy, Diabetes Community, Diabetes Online Community, Psychosocial Support, Real Life Diabetes, Traveling, UncategorizedIn the interests of getting through TSA in Orlando as quickly as possible and making my way over to my gate so I could find some iced coffee and a banana, I disconnected my insulin pump and put it through the x-ray machine, caring very little if it melted in the transaction because I was melting in the transaction. The…
A discussion from Masterlab at Friends for Life: Social Media Prompt: What are you advocating for?? #MasterLab — Diabetes Hands Fndn (@diabeteshf) July 7, 2015 Some answers: My spiel: We need to stop blaming. Help everyone get the tools they need to be healthy. Access to tools for all! #diabetes #masterlab — Diabetes Ramblings (@RFamsRamblings) July 7, 2015 Our mission:…