Category Archives: Like these links

Like these links.

June 29, 2016 – 9:08 am

Even though I’ve really wanted to, I’ve been way too busy lately to write my own stuff. Instead, I’m going to direct you to some really great blog posts from writers I am proud to say are part of my tribe. Check them out…
 
 
Laddie Lindahl at Test Guess and Go has a superb write-up of why she often uses her Dexcom G5 CGM to make dosing decisions, and why, with knowledge and experience, she thinks you can too:
Subtracting the Adjunct from Dexcom G5

Katy Killilea of Bigfoot Child Have Diabetes talks about that sad moment when you have to say goodbye for the last time to your favorite endocrinologist. I thought the people in that photo looked familiar!
Goodbye, Dr. Pepper

Scully, AKA Canadian D-gal, and her husband Ryan are amazing athletes. Recently, they were amazing athletes who set off on a three day camping trip… on their bikes. Read all about it, including how they traveled around with everything on two bikes, as only Scully can tell it:
Bike touring/camping. Not for the faint-hearted.

Finally, Liz over at Get Ready, Get Set… Oh no! I’m Low has one of those stories (actually, two of those stories) about meeting others living with diabetes, just out in our everyday lives. I’m including it here because she tells it well, and because I just thought these two encounters might make you smile:
One of Us
 
 
Well, I have my own stories to tell, but I need to find some time to sit and write them down. Hopefully, that will be soon. What have you been reading about lately?
 

By StephenS | Tagged , , , , , | Comments (1)

Follow Friday: Dig these super links.

March 25, 2016 – 11:28 am

If you know me, you know that I believe in a strong, varied, inclusive Diabetes Online Community. No one of us has a monopoly on all the good ideas or good stories. And while I have benefitted from many in the community who have been strong, varied, and inclusive to me, I want to be the same in return.

My quick post today begins with two examples of people who have been just wonderful to me. It then finishes with two gleaming examples of people who bravely tell their stories and should be recognized for the contributions they also bring to the DOC.

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I’ve actually been asked a couple of times about Kerri Morrone Sparling… what’s she really like, they’ll ask me. The answer is she’s exactly like she seems online, only even nicer. She’s an awesome writer, and I’m grateful she remains an important part of our online community. Today, she’s allowed me to guest post on her blog, Six Until Me. I talk about making a new friend in my doctor’s office who was recently diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes. It’s a story similar to ones that I’ve read from others over the years, but this was the first time I had the same experience and tried to help someone not feel so alone in those early days with diabetes. I probably couldn’t have handled it without reading those previous examples. I hope my new friend is doing well. Read the story here.
Kerri, it was an honor and a privelege guest posting.

Daniele Hargenrader is known in our community as the Diabetes Dominator. She is very active, both literally and figuratively. She’s a workout machine, and her personal story is well worth a read. Like Kerri, she’s written a book, and coming soon to the Diabetes By The Numbers podcast, I hope to talk to her about it. Back in February, I was lucky enough to be interviewed by Daniele, and it was a wonderful conversation. You can catch it right here.
Thanks Daniele… I’m looking forward to our upcoming podcast interview.

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Okay… now, because it shouldn’t be all about me (though that would make a cool T-shirt), here are two blog posts that are well worth reading:

See Jen Dance is a fun read, because Jen has a number of interests, and she writes about them and her diabetes on her terrific blog. She’s a really good ballroom dancer (and a Champion Athletes With Diabetes medal winner). A few days ago, while dancing socially, her BGs tanked and she was down to 54 mg/dL. She writes here about the nuances of when to stop and treat that low, and how frustrating it all is when it hits you in the middle of a dance. Check it out.

Naomi Kingery Ruperto writes at the blog The Diabetic Diva. She attended her first Diabetes UnConference in Las Vegas just two weeks ago, and her description of it here nearly brought me to tears. She writes: “…in this atmosphere, having so many people that are willing to come and hug you and say ‘I get it’ is incomparable.”. Go and read her super recap now.
 
 
Enjoy your weekend… talk to you next week!
 

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Like these links.

February 10, 2016 – 9:03 am

“They” like to say that all news is local, and in this case, the diabetes news is mostly local. Or at least local to where I am. Let me explain…

There is still time to register for the Diabetes UnConference, March 10-13, in Las Vegas. But even if you’re not attending, if you’re local, you can still attend the free Friday pre-UnCon sessions.

Want to explore sugar surfing with Dr. Stephen Ponder? Take a little time to go to advocacy boot camp? Want to check out the iLet? These sessions and more are open to the public on Friday, March 10. They are free of charge, but seating is limited. To secure your spot in one of the informative pre-UnCon Friday sessions, CLICK HERE.

Disclosure: I am part of the team of facilitators at the Diabetes UnConference in Las Vegas.
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If you’re living in the Mid-Atlantic, don’t forget about the JDRF Type One Nation DC Summit, happening March 5 in Bethesda, Maryland. This is another free event where you can get the latest on research, advocacy, and more. JDRF President and CEO Derek Rapp will give the keynote address this year. Gary Scheiner will be back, this time to talk about managing those pesky post-meal glucose spikes (guilty as charged). Tidepool’s Howard Look will be there, and if you haven’t yet heard him speak, you should. Cynthia Rice will cover advocacy for you, and the amazing Joe Solowiejczyk will be there to cover Diabetes and the Family: Making it Work for Everyone. All of it will be moderated by the fantastic Stefany Shaheen.

It promises to be another full day of information sharing and bonding with others touched by Type 1 Diabetes. For all of the information on the JDRF Type One Nation DC Summit, CLICK HERE.

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If you’re living in the Mid-Atlantic and you’ve somehow missed the notices about the Children With Diabetes weekend in Falls Church, Virginia April 8-10, consider this your fair warning. Think of this as a scaled down version of the Friends for Life conference that Children With Diabetes puts together in Orlando each July. And yes, there is plenty for adults as well as kids during this event. It’s for only one weekend, but there will be a number of topics presented by so many people who really know their stuff.

Gary Scheiner will be at this gathering too… Bennet Dunlap and Christel Marchand Aprigliano will lead three advocacy sessions, the last of which will include a panel discussion on artificial pancreas technology that includes Dr. Ed Damiano and Molly McElwee Malloy… and the Nightscout team will be there to tell you more about CGM in the Cloud, and even help you set it up for yourself. And that’s just a little of the incredible weekend that is to be in Northern Virginia April 8, 9, and 10.

To get more information, and to register for the FFL Falls Church weekend, CLICK HERE.

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Finally: Remember that HealtheVoices conference I went to last April? It’s coming back, April 15-17 in Chicago. Plenty of advocates living with numerous chronic conditions will gather and share and talk about how they get their advocacy on in their patient communities. This gathering helped me get the ideas to get my podcast off the ground last year, and I’m looking forward to what this year’s event will bring.

The best part? YOU have a chance to go too! Janssen Pharmaceuticals, which hosts the event, is taking applications from patient advocates who want to attend the conference right now. But they will only be accepting applications until February 22… so get there and get your application in today. To learn about HealtheVoices16 and apply for a scholarship to attend, CLICK HERE.

Disclosure: Janssen paid for my travel and accomodations to attend the 2015 HealtheVoices conference. All opinions are my own.

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As usual, March and April will be very busy months in the diabetes world. I hope you can make one or more of these important gatherings. Have any questions about any of them? Let me know.
 

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

Like these Diabetes Awareness Month links.

November 10, 2015 – 11:00 am

It’s Diabetes Awareness Month! Saturday marks another World Diabetes Day.

Guess what? There are still very easy ways to advocate and show your solidarity with your friends who are also living with or affected by this disease. Here are just a few:

Big Blue Test: In case you didn’t know, Big Blue Test is the yearly effort from Diabetes Hands Foundation that encourages us to check our BGs, get up and get moving, then check again and log the results at BigBlueTest.org. Don’t have diabetes? No problem! Just leave out the BG test results. Or, if you really want to, go ahead and prick your finger before and after your exercise anyway. Whatever makes you happy.

The best part is that each test logged helps to raise much needed cash for worthy diabetes organizations like SucreBlue and CarbDM. They’re about 6500 tests short of their goal of 110,000 entries by Saturday night. So do not forget to log those Big Blue Tests, either at the website or via the handy-dandy app.
 
 
CGM coverage for Medicare patients: If you live in the USA, Diabetes Patient Advocacy Coalition makes it super easy to e-mail your congressperson and senators. In fact, I’ll bet you can do it in under one minute. Start the clock! CLICK HERE and get the necessary text, including references to the existing bills before the House and Senate. Enter your information, click submit, and your piece of advocacy is on its way. Really, it doesn’t get any easier than that.
 
 
World Diabetes Day Twitter Chat! Diabetes Community Advocacy Foundation is once again sponsoring hour upon hour of Twitter chats on World Diabetes Day, hosted each hour by a different person, all designed to raise awareness, support one another, and have a few laughs. Check in throughout the day and meet new people from around the world, engage in the conversation, and tell us how your day is going.

This year we’re doing 14 hours of continuous Twitter chat using the hashtag #WDDChat15. Each hour will have a different theme. I’ll be leading off beginning at 7:00 a.m. Eastern time here in the USA, followed at 8:00 by Kelly Kunik. Remember… follow the #WDDChat15 hashtag to join the conversation.
 
 
However your week shapes up, I hope it’s filled with raising awareness and celebrating our fellow friends living with and affected by diabetes. So get going, write those letters, and I’ll talk to you on Saturday morning!
 

By StephenS | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

Like These Links.

August 14, 2015 – 8:43 am

Welcome to Friday! Don’t forget to wear blue today to support and encourage everyone living with and affected by #diabetes. I’ve got one more day of software training in New Jersey, then it’s back home tonight. In the meantime, check out this #diabetes click bait.
 
 
Does wearing an insulin pump help you have a healthier heart too? Some researchers in the UK think so. I think there are other reasons why this might be true, but there seems to be a link there anyway. Check out this link for the full report:
Insulin Pump Reduces Mortality from Cardiovascular Disease By Almost 50%
 
 
Lauren Stanford has a nice recap of the five things that have helped her deal with diabetes burnout and further transition into adulthood:
5 Things That Helped Me Cure Diabetes Burnout
 
 
Lauren and her mom Moira are joining the JDRF riders gathering this weekend in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. It’s a little old, but if you haven’t seen it yet, this is worth a read. Moira has this to say about her recovery from a broken ankle and foot, and why her ride is especially important this year:
I’m BACK ON MY BIKE!!! (The One Where I Realize a Harsh Reality)

And thank you both for riding for all of us with Type 1.
 
 
Kristin is one of my favorite writers. Last week, she had a less than fun day. This is why we need better, more accurate, more affordable tools to help us manage diabetes:
Diabetes Pulled A Punk-Ass Move
 
 
Finally… Hope Warshaw has a wonderful feature on her blog where she interviews DOC champions. Her latest is a nice interview with Kelly Kunik. She talks about starting her blog, finding the Diabetes Online Community, what it means to her, and #IWishPeopleKnewThatDiabetes. Check it out:
Dialoging About Diabetes: PWDs Offer Ways to Improve Communication and Care #11 Kelly Kunik
 
 
Enjoy the reads, and enjoy your weekend. Thanks for reading! Have you read anything interesting lately?
 

By StephenS | Tagged , , , , | Comments (5)