Diabetes Blog – Happy-Medium.net

Over the weekend, I was able to attend another gathering where People With Diabetes were able to learn, share, and enjoy the company of one another.

From the team that brings you the Friends for Life conference in Orlando each July, the Falls Church, Virginia version was a welcome weekend spent with a different group than I’m used to hanging out with.

But that’s good, because I like families, I like kids, and I definitely like meeting new people. Over the course of two and a half days, I was also able to get back up to speed on the latest in Artificial Pancreas research from two groups, get firsthand accounts of the amazing development of the Nightscout system, and I was able to take in (and speak with attendees) about advocacy issues including Medicare CGM coverage, our relationship with FDA, #SuspendBidding, and more.

This event was pretty well attended, and the location couldn’t be better. From a purely personal perspective (and this has nothing to do with the content of the conference), the buffet meals were really good. Lots of options, including gluten free, and carb counts on everything.

The content of the sessions, as you might expect, varied depending on whether they were for adults, kids, or parents. The adult sessions included Dr. Korey Hood from Stanford covering diabetes burnout; a guide to applying the glycemic index to what you eat by Gary Scheiner; nearly a full day on diabetes advocacy from the super team of Christel Marchand Aprigliano and Bennet Dunlap; and finding support through social media with Kerri Sparling.

There was also an exhibit space that featured every U.S. pump maker except Medtronic, Roche (and their latest Accu-Chek meter—I’m interested), the Diabetes Patient Advocacy Coalition (with laptops people could use to e-mail their elected officials in Congress and the Senate!), and both the American Diabetes Association and JDRF.

A couple of tidbits from the weekend: we were told that this was the first Children With Diabetes conference that featured more adult attendees with diabetes than kids or families. And, it looks like Jeff Hitchcock and Laura Billetdeaux are looking at options to come back to the Capitol area for another conference very soon. Which I think would be fantastic. It was three years between events in the D.C. area, and that’s too long to wait.

The Great Spousal Unit likes to say that after a diabetes event, I come home more energized, and walking on air for a considerable time afterward. Since she made the trip with me this time, I think she now knows why. I hope she does. Because no matter how often I gather with people who walk the same path I do, it still means a great deal to me to be together with them in the same space.

Thanks to all of the staff and volunteers at Friends for Life Falls Church for being so welcoming, helpful, and informative. And in case you were wondering, I was not given anything to say that. It comes straight from the heart.