Diabetes Blog – Happy-Medium.net

Like I mentioned before, last week was a very busy week. Part of that week meant being busy in a very pleasant place. Mixing work with pleasure? Okay, I’ll do that.

I spent last Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday working at the DPAC booth at the annual Children With Diabetes Friends for Life event. This is the mother of all diabetes gatherings, with thousands of People With Diabetes and their families descending upon Orlando for nearly an entire week. This was my first experience being there for more than just a day, and admittedly, my experience was not the typical conference-goer experience, but here are some things I experienced and noticed during my time there.
 
 
I arrived on Wednesday morning, about an hour or so after MasterLab began. MasterLab is a one day advocacy workshop presented by Diabetes Hands Foundation. There were a number of presentations, and I hope all of the attendees got a lot out of them, or at least were able to grab a nugget or two that they can use in their advocacy efforts in the future.

What I experienced: I saw many advocates from many countries who were very much into the focus of the day, which was to advocate for everyone living with diabetes. It’s sad to know that diabetes advocacy is needed elsewhere in the world, but good to know that there are stellar advocates living in Columbia, Mexico, Puerto Rico, the UK, and other countries.

What I noticed: Much of the talk was USA-specific, which risks alienating those attending from other countries, but I’m hoping this is a temporary “we’re learning how to do this” kind of thing.
 
 
Diabetes Patient Advocacy Coalition is a remarkable resource for people living with and affected by diabetes. We were able to garner many signatures for the Dexcom G5 labeling petition to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which will be holding a hearing on July 21 to discuss the issue. Our goal was to get 5,000 signatures on the petition. As of right now, we’re nearing 6,000. Yay Diabetes Community! The diabetes community was able to rally to this so quickly thanks to the fact that DPAC makes it so easy for someone to add their name and voice to the issues that mean the most to us. I urge you… take a hand in your own diabetes advocacy by going to diabetespac.org and signing a petition or sending an e-mail. We do best when we speak for ourselves. Tell your story. Tell it from the heart.

What I experienced: Despite being “on stage” (to use a Disney term) most of my time there, the exhibit hall was punctuated by bursts of activity before and in between conference sessions, then amazingly slow lulls once the sessions were, um, in session. I’m not sure how I did for DPAC, but I hope I did well, and I was happy and honored to do what I could.

What I noticed: There is still an overwhelming desire for knowledge among the diabetes community, especially its newest members. During my time manning the booth, I met a pair of first-time attendees, grandparents of a young person diagnosed not too long ago. As we discussed our diabetes lives (like you do), and they expressed some of their concerns, they must have seen the “everyone’s been through this phase” look on my face. One of them looked at me and said, “You’ve been living with this for 25 years… we want to know… tell us!“, as only a grandparent can express it. These two wanted to know everything about insulin, devices, burnout, you name it. They were in the right place that week to learn about all those things. And that’s not the only conversation I had like that while I was there. This is one of the many reasons why we need DPAC.
 
 
Finally… the one-on-one, human interactions with people are what make these gatherings special. I’ve said that many times after events like this, but it is an undeniable fact. The Diabetes Online Community has been vital in bringing together people from everywhere who have felt alone living with diabetes. Especially people like me. But the internet can only do so much. While my social media connections helped me crawl out of a depressive shell many years ago, the interpersonal connections have helped me stand tall, and build constructive and meaningful relationships that will hopefully last a lifetime. It’s that much more.

What I experienced: The feeling that no matter how big my diabetes circle of friends is, there’s always room for more. It was great seeing existing friends like Karen and Bea and Scott and Mike, but it was also wonderful to finally meet Cara, and meet Tina, and meet Nia (who lives in my city!), and meet Becky, and Trip too. And almost instantly I want to hang out with these people, and advocate for them, and protect them. That feeling comes from actually meeting people and getting to know them at a level that few are capable of, because the one thing you have in common is the one thing that bonds you tightest to each other.

What I noticed: I was not the only one who noticed the absence of Medtronic at FFL. Every other pump manufacturer was there. Dexcom was there too. There are probably reasons for this which I’m not privy to, but many people noticed, and their speculation of why Medtronic was absent covered a broad spectrum of opinions. I’m not sure it matters why Med-T didn’t make it, and maybe it was okay that they weren’t there this year. But to use the word again, the absence of Medtronic allowed others to form their own opinions about products and corporate behavior, whether those opinions were accurate or not.
 
 
Because I spent most of my time working in the exhibit hall, I can’t say that I had a typical conference attendee experience. But because of these moments and others, I did have a typical, wonderful personal experience during my three-plus days in Orlando. Thanks to DHF for my invitation to MasterLab, and a special thank you to Diabetes Patient Advocacy Coalition, Christel Marchand Aprigliano and Bennet Dunlap, for the opportunity to put my mouth where my motivation is. Or something like that.

All of this reinforces the notion that it’s not about the disease, it’s about the people living with the disease. The idea that if you fall into a hole, someone will jump in to help you. Because they’ve been there before, and they know the way out. Our lives don’t get easier with our diabetes diagnosis. But knowing that others are walking the same stretch of road, right alongside us, makes us closer.