Category Archives: Advocacy

The world is a pretty big place.

April 3, 2015 – 8:09 am

I’m up early for a day off.

I’ve showered, had breakfast, and in a few minutes, I’ll be heading to my local American Red Cross location to donate blood.

This is partly due to my responsibility as a person, I believe. It’s also about helping where I can. I can do this, it will help people, why not?

I suppose there’s an element of faith in there too. I’m giving blood on a day that symbolizes the day that Jesus shed his blood on the cross. The irony is not lost on me.

As a white christian male in the USA, I’m not persecuted for anything at all. Oh, I may occasionally run across someone who doesn’t like me for who I am, but that’s pretty rare. For the record, I don’t really need a “religious freedom” law to be able to practice what I believe in. With, and for, whomever I want to share it with. No exceptions. I don’t go to church often anymore, but I know that Jesus would not turn anyone away. No exceptions.

That’s faith, and living in the belief that I’m not perfect, but I’m not helpless either. So if you’re asking me, I say take your stinkin’ “religious freedom” hate legislation and trash it. It is wrong, and it’s not hard to see why.

I hope your Passover or Easter is lovely, warm, and full of inclusion.

I support you… no conditions.
 
 
 

By StephenS | Tagged , , | Comments (0)

More Diabetes UnConference News, and FDA doings too.

March 27, 2015 – 9:38 am

I know I’ve written a lot about The Diabetes UnConference, but I need to share this bit of exciting news:

First: There will be another Diabetes UnConference in Las Vegas next year!
Details are still being worked out, but it will be in Las Vegas, and it will be in March 2016. For me, this is very encouraging. There were many people from the western part of the USA who attended this year, and I know at least a couple would not have made the trip had it not been so close. So I’m glad that adults living with diabetes in Nevada, Arizona, California, Utah, and other western states will have something relatively close to go to. But that’s not all….

Second: There will be an East Coast version of the Diabetes UnConference in the Fall of 2016!
Again, it’s still in the planning stages, and there isn’t much to tell yet, but for all of you who can’t quite make the trip to Vegas next year, know that there will be an East Coast UnConference in the fall. More to come on that development. But wait… that’s not all…

Third: Both editions of the 2016 Diabetes UnConference will include separate “Adult T3/People without Diabetes” sessions! Some parts of the UnConference will offer opportunities for both People With Diabetes and People Without Diabetes to interact, but there will also be a separate space and special sessions so People Without Diabetes can experience the UnConference too, sharing among their tribe, peer-to-peer (still adults only).

Hard to imagine next year already, but it already looks like it will be great.

——————————————————————————————–

Advocacy Opportunities:

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is holding a couple of public meetings in April.

The first, on April 14, is a meeting of the Endocrinologic and Metabolic Advisory Committee, which will go over outcomes of research on patients using the Type 2 medications Saxagliptin and Alogliptin. The public is welcome to attend, but you must register. To do that, and to get all of the information on this Advisory Committee meeting, CLICK HERE.

Also, one week later on April 21, there will be a public workshop titled “An Interactive Discussion on the Clinical Considerations of Risk in the Postmarket Environment”. This workshop is really a forum to discuss possible risks (or not risks) of devices after they’ve been approved by the FDA. This is not specifically diabetes related, but hey, we wear devices, right? There is also an opportunity for patients (that’s me) to submit comments, and even speak at this public workshop. Looks very interesting to me. Want to attend? CLICK HERE.
 
 
There you have it. Exciting doings in the diabetes world, both in the near future, and next year. Enjoy your weekend!
 
 
 

By StephenS | Also posted in Events | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

You can’t always see NED coming, but you are not alone.

February 26, 2015 – 11:05 am

So many of us are familiar with NED. We know him by his first name.

Like the obnoxious uncle who swings by for an afternoon then stays for the weekend, NED can be hard to get rid of. He may only be around for a short while, but NED is always lingering in the back of our minds.  NED’s effects are often devastating and long-lasting.  Often, the guilt and shame that comes with a visit from NED gets swept under the rug, adding pressure to the lives of people who already have more pressure on them than they need or deserve.

We need to put NED in his place.

It’s National Eating Disorders Awareness Week.

Why am I using space in a diabetes blog to talk about eating disorders?  If you live with diabetes, or if you even know someone living with diabetes, you are familiar with eating disorders.  Our wacked-out endocrine system that causes strange blood glucose numbers can also cause wacked-out eating habits. If you live with diabetes, you know that. It’s sucky, but it’s natural.

Let me tell you:  We all need to be part of a solution that uplifts and inspires success for everyone working their way through difficult health issues. And eating disorders are a very difficult health issue.

If you’re living with diabetes and dealing with eating disorders, you are not alone.

Visit nedawareness.org and get started on the road toward a happier, better, healthier life right now.

If you’re living with Type 1 diabetes, you can also visit wearediabetes.org and reach out to people who provide support and advocate for others who are going through what you’re going through.

As always, please remember:
You are not alone. I support you… no conditions.
 
 
 

By StephenS | Tagged , , | Comments (0)

Still time to #SpareARose.

February 13, 2015 – 9:54 am

Click here to save children – Donate to Spare A Rose, Save a Child

SAR2015
 
As we approach Valentine’s Day, let me remind you that this is the perfect time to help save the life of a child living with diabetes in a developing country.

I’m so lucky… I got to make a trip to Europe, and never once had to worry about my insulin needs. Others, children in fact, do not have this luxury.

Insulin should not be a luxury.

Make a donation now to the International Diabetes Federation’s Life for a Child program, and help ensure that children live. Just five dollars buys a month of insulin for a child in the third world.

There’s also an option that allows you to have a donation made on your behalf on a monthly basis throughout the year. In “Save the Children” terms, that’s just 17 cents per day to help give a child a chance at the life they deserve.

We never know how children will grow up. How many Ghandis or Mandelas are out there waiting to be discovered? With your help, they can get their chance to shine.

For People With Diabetes, insulin should not be a privilege; it should be a right. Help maintain the right to insulin for Children With Diabetes by making your donation to the Spare A Rose, Save a Child campaign today.
 
 
 

By StephenS | Tagged , , | Comments (2)

Show the love, save a life.

January 30, 2015 – 1:12 pm

SAR2015
 
 
I’m headed out of the country for the next ten days, so depending on how my work and play schedule goes, you may or may not read more in this space over the next week and a half.

But before I depart, I want to remind you that it is always the season of…

Paying it forward.

Hope.

Life.

The Spare A Rose, Save A Child campaign begins February 1.

If you’re reading this, you’re probably one of the lucky people who have access to the life-giving insulin that keeps our blood glucose from skyrocketing, causing sickness and complications, and even death to People With Diabetes. You may pay a lot for it, but you have access to it. In fact, you may have a ready supply in your refrigerator at home right now. This morning, I counted 8 vials of this life-sustaining medicine in my fridge.

But you know, there are a lot of kids who do not have access to insulin, let alone a refrigerator, and for them, a diabetes diagnosis could be a death sentence. That’s where you and I come in.

Partnering for Diabetes Change and the International Diabetes Federation have teamed up once again to help raise money for the IDF’s Life for a Child program through Spare A Rose, Save A Child.

Really, what they’re doing is helping to save the lives of Children With Diabetes in 49 countries around the world who would be facing an extremely bleak future if you or I didn’t act, now. The idea is simple:

Have a special one in your life? Would you send roses to that person this Valentine’s Day? Going on the premise that one rose would cost about five dollars (US)… If, instead, you donated that five dollars, that cost of one rose, to the IDF’s Life for a Child program, you could help them purchase insulin for a child in a developing country for an entire month.

It’s that easy to see how your donation can make a difference. Five dollars saves the life of one child, for one month. But why stop there? By that math, the cost of one dozen roses could help a child live for an entire year! Last year, donations totaled enough to provide a year’s worth of insulin for 454 children while raising over $27,000. Can we do even better this year? With your help and my help, I think we can.

Click here or on the banner at the top of the page to be a lifesaver today.

This year, there’s even a way you can set up an automatic monthly donation via your bank card. Imagine looking at your bank statement each month and saying to yourself “Power bill, auto loan, Oh, look at that… there’s where I saved the life of a child (or two, or five, or ten) this month”. How freakin’ powerful is that?

And hey, can you do one more thing? Can you let the world know about it? I mean, why should you and I be the only ones out there saving lives? Let’s help others get in on the action too. Be sure to share the Spare A Rose campaign everywhere you have a social media footprint, and at work and school too. Share the giving link and the #SpareARose hashtag liberally. For more ideas on how you can help spread the message, go to SpareARose.org.

Five bucks, one child, one month of life. That’s a very measurable way to put a value to how you can make the difference– a life-sustaining difference– right now, today.
 
 
 

By StephenS | Tagged , , | Comments (4)