Category Archives: Milestones

Another year, another…

February 3, 2015 – 6:42 am

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SAR2015
 
 
Somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean, I realized that I had completed another year living with Type 1 Diabetes.

Often, when the day comes around, I think about how great it is that I’ve lived with this chronic condition for so long, without any significant issues. Sometimes I even celebrate a little.

But this year, I was so obsessed with getting ready for this business trip, I completely forgot about the diaversary.

That’s the way it goes sometimes. After 24 years with diabetes, I can’t expect every year to be the same.

What was your last diaversary like?
 
 
 

By StephenS | Tagged , , | Comments (3)

Resolutions, Schmesolutions.

January 2, 2015 – 9:30 am

2015
Happy New Year! Congratulations on making it through 2014.

Like the title of this post suggests, I am NOT a big resolution person. For evidence, check out last year’s edition (there wasn’t one). That doesn’t mean I don’t have goals and dreams. It just means that I try to focus on them as they come up, rather than just at the beginning of the year.

There were certainly things I wanted to accomplish last year. And I did accomplish them. Well, some of them anyway. To be honest, I feel really awful about the things I did not achieve. Worse, in fact, than I feel good about the things I did cross off of my list. I don’t know if that’s healthy or not, but I know it keeps me trying, wanting to do more.

I suppose I shouldn’t forget that some of the things I experienced in the past year were special, and inspiring, and totally unexpected. Guess what? We have now given away 25 medals to Champion Athletes With Diabetes! I’ve gone through my initial order of twenty-five, and it’s time to order more. That’s a good thing, right?

I was also able to travel to Orlando in July for MasterLab, where I learned a lot and expanded my diabetes advocacy brain beyond its previously imagined limits. I was interviewed by one of my local TV stations and by one of Politico’s eHealth Newsletter reporters. I got to speak at a public workshop on interoperability of diabetes devices hosted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. I never saw any of that coming at the beginning of last year.

Still, as I mentioned above, there are things I set out to do that I didn’t accomplish in 2014. That doesn’t mean I’ll never accomplish them. Or that I’ll ever accomplish them. That’s all unknown, until I either do or don’t complete them. But in a way, I like the idea that there is a lot still unknown… about diabetes, about my life, about this blog, about all of you. I love the idea of opening up and exploring the possibilities as we begin the new year.
 
 
In the end, I want to ask myself the same questions I ask a lot of bloggers:

– Are you happy?

– Do you like writing? How does it make you feel? Do you want to keep writing?

– If you could do anything, or write about anything, what would it be?

I also want to remember what I tell many bloggers too:

– Remember the impact you have on others. There is no possible way you can overstate that. Don’t ever sell yourself short.

– What you are doing is not nothing (I know, double negative). Even if it’s just for yourself.
 
 
I hope your 2015 is full of joy and excitement, and most of all, happiness. Last year, my mantra was:

I support you… no conditions.

I hope I’ve lived up to that. I’d like to hang onto that for a while longer, if that’s okay with you. And if I have to come up with something to add to that this year, let it be this:

Everyone is important, and that includes you!

You’re still part of everyone, right? I thought so. Here’s to a spectacular, record-breaking 2015!
 
 
 

By StephenS | Tagged , , | Comments (7)

Where have the past 9 months gone?

September 29, 2014 – 10:07 am

Since 2014 is nearly 3/4 over, and the days are getting shorter here in North America, I suddenly found myself considering the things I had wanted to accomplish this year. How have I done? Have I crossed enough off of my list? Am I a better person than I was on January 1?

This year started like a lot of others for me. I’m not a resolution-maker, but whenever I reach a milestone like the beginning of a new year, I try to think of some things I would like to do, or be a part of.

There have been many successes, and a few failures, but overall, it’s been great. Probably the first thing I could say is: I’ve learned a lot this year. I’ve learned how to be a better advocate. I’ve learned how to speak to people about my diabetes, and diabetes in general. I’ve learned a lot about the regulatory process, I’ve learned even more about how artificial pancreas technology works, and I’ve picked up valuable knowledge from the rest of the Diabetes Online Community. Lots of support and encouragement too.

I’ve continued to hand out medals to People With Diabetes who bravely train and achieve athletic goals that sometimes seemed unreachable. Every time I get a new request, I get so excited I want to do cartwheels and handsprings (but I don’t, because that would be a huge athletic fail). I get even more excited when I get to write about it and show off someone’s picture wearing the medal. As much as I get out of it, what I really hope is that someone sees a story and goes off on an athletic quest of their own. That is awesome and inspiring. There are not enough great adjectives to describe the feeling it gives me deep in my heart.

Still, I have my own athletic endeavor on the books. I’m still going to try to get in a short triathlon of some sort before the end of the year. October is a great month for it, but I’m not making any promises yet because frankly, I’m in horrible shape right now. But as people are fond of saying, it’s not always how fast you go… finishing and doing your best is a victory in itself. I really hope I can still get there.

What else have I left undone? I still want to organize a regular in-person diabetes meetup in my area. I think I got too busy to concentrate on it for a while, but I also can’t discount the worry that it will be a big bust and no one will show up. Oh well… screw it. I’m doing it anyway, because maybe people will show up, and if it turns out they won’t, at least I’ll know I tried.

I also can’t deny the feeling that I’m searching for the next thing I can do. Something… I don’t know what. I know that sounds incredibly vague, but I don’t have an idea what that is yet. I just know that when I’ve felt this way in the past, something has always popped up to grab my attention for a while. I just need to leave myself open to whatever is going to show itself over the next few months, because I really feel like something will. I’ll let you know if it finally hits me.

I’ve read about people going through amazing experiences this year, and I’ve read about people working through tough times, taking care of themselves the best they can for a while. Each of those scenarios involves victories, even though on the surface they don’t appear to be equal at all. So what about you? Are you feeling good about 2014 so far?
 
 
 

By StephenS | Tagged , , | Comments (1)

Another year has come and gone.

April 9, 2014 – 8:14 am

DSC01470

So here we are. Or here I am, staring at another birthday (52) and another blog anniversary. By the way, my great niece, also born at this time two years ago, is doing great and laughs a lot and looooves Elmo.

I really like writing in this space. I don’t see myself giving this up for a while yet, though the thought enters my mind briefly now and then. If I didn’t write about my diabetes, I’d definitely probably find something else to write about anyway. Baseball, perhaps. Of course, my Cincinnati Reds are off to another lousy start (the games do count in April, fellas), with two wins against six losses. My other favorite team, the Baltimore Orioles, have a record of 3-5. Honestly, I’m worried less about the O’s at this point than I am about the Reds, who didn’t improve their roster one iota in the offseason, yet expect better results than last year. Good luck with that, Cincinnati. But I digress…

Two years ago today I published my first post at Happy-Medium.net. Since then, there have been 360 additional offerings. Holey Moley, that’s nearly one every other day! If you asked me if I could write like that two years ago, I’d say yes… I can write about anything. But I wouldn’t have guessed that the subjects here would be so varied.

At the two year mark, there’s one thing that worries me more than anything else. I must get two or three e-mails per week nowadays from individuals or organizations that are looking to spread their message. Whether they’re promoting upcoming events, pitching a product, or have a cause near and dear to their heart, they ask me to say something about it. I almost always say yes to the individuals, and sometimes say yes to the organizations.

But here’s the thing: I worry that telling someone else’s story so much leaves little time for telling my own. I want to remain a strong supporter. I’m good at that. But part of my mission for this blog is to leave a written record of what it’s really like to live in my shoes on an ongoing basis. Selfish? You bet. It’s my blog. There are times when two or more competing interests come together in this space, and that’s wonderful, but there are times when they don’t. When I go back and read three weeks of posts and realize I barely touched on how diabetes affects me personally, I realize I’m losing Stephen in the process. Stephen doesn’t need all of the attention, but he deserves a mention now and then (how’s that for third person?).

Returning to telling my story a little more often is a goal I’ll carry forward.

Looking back at the last twelve months, I can see lots of themes… some recurring, others standing on their own. Among them, just in the past year:

– Clinical trial participation

– A book review

– D-Blog Check-in Day

– Here’s to You, Grandpa

– Wounded, but tougher

– The people we look up to

– Athlete with diabetes? You deserve an award (we’ve awarded nine medals since November!)

– Diabetes University

– Show me how big your brave is, and why I have four glucose meters now

– What I learned at a conference on interoperability, and at the Manning Diabetes Symposium

– Prescription burnout

– Five recipes

This is definitely more varied and more detailed than I thought I could handle when I started this thing. What’s really weird is that I have the feeling I’m capable of handling a lot more. So if I have any detractors, I’m sorry to disappoint you. Actually, I’m not. I’m going to keep writing for a while.

I would be remiss if I didn’t say thank you to… You. Without your feedback, I could still write… but it wouldn’t be nearly as fun, and I certainly wouldn’t have learned as much as I have. I still want to jump out of my seat when I see a comment for the first time, and I thank you for helping to keep my head straight, while at the same time feeding my ego. I hope the next year brings you peace and happiness, and a cure for diabetes. In the meantime, I’ll have a slice of birthday pie (it’s a thing for me) in your honor.

Thank you so much for a great year. Here’s to an interesting, inspirational, and fun year three!
 
 
 

By StephenS | Tagged , | Comments (10)

What a year.

December 30, 2013 – 9:12 am

Holey Moley, it’s been an amazing year. 2013 went by so fast.

Back in October, I wrote about how one thing at a time, over time, can add up to a lot if you just keep at it. This is very true for me when I think about the past year.

The following list is not designed to say “Here’s what I’ve done—what about you?”. Instead, it’s a reminder for myself, to remember during times when I feel like I’m not doing anything. Also, it’s a recap of the year that’s been, a Bridget Jones-like reference of the previous twelve months.

My life in 2013 included, in no particular order:

– One noteworthy anniversary

– Participation in two clinical trials

– Not participation in two other clinical trials. That’s right… I was disqualified from another AP study. Don’t want to talk about it.

– One entire week of gluten free eating (My Week with Celiac)

– Two 55 mile bike rides

– One 5K run with The Live-In Niece

– One Book Review (Shot – Staying Alive With Diabetes by Amy Ryan)

– A chance to meet Cherise Shockley for the first time, and begin to understand her passion for connecting others and helping them live better, more meaningful lives with diabetes. I left that meeting ready to charge up the hill for DCAF.

– A Chance to meet Scott Johnson in person for the first time, and an opportunity to meet Karen, Kerri, Shannon, and Christopher too. There were several others I met in passing that weekend that go unmentioned, but not forgotten. The CWD Focus on Technology conference definitely ranks as a major highlight of the year.

– One appearance on DSMA Live with Cherise Shockley and Scott Johnson

– Attendance at the DSMA Live meetup in Philadelphia in August. That meant a chance to see Cherise and Scott again, and meet Kelly and Allison and Brea (and her Mom) and Penny and Colleen and Maria and many more wonderful people who I can’t remember right now.

– While we’re on a DSMA kick, I should mention the countless #DSMA Twitter chats that I was lucky enough to take part in this year, including a special hour that I was honored to moderate on World Diabetes Day in November. Hands down, that was the fastest hour of the year.

– Also high on the list was the Manning Diabetes Symposium in Charlottesville back in April. Lots of talk about diabetes research from a number of experts in the field. I think I was the only one there that didn’t have a bunch of letters after the name on my lanyard, but I didn’t care. I soaked it all up like a sponge. Thanks to UVA’s Center for Diabetes Technology (I’m looking at you Molly) for letting me attend.

– One more event to mention: The JDRF Research Summit in the D.C. area back in March. There’s another coming up this March. Get all of the information at http://jdrfsummit.org.

– Finally: Five Medals were handed out to real bona fide Champion Athletes With Diabetes. And we’re just getting started. I can’t wait to hand out every medal we have, then order more to give away! To find out more, click on the medals image in the upper left part of this page. Or just click here.

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Wow, did all of that really happen? It all flew by really fast. Even so, I think know I would rather have participated in all these things that seemed to have happened so quickly, rather than missing even one. I wasn’t responsible for a lot of the things I was a part of this year, but I was glad to participate or help wherever I could.

With all this said, even though I’m not a New Year’s Resolution kind of guy, I do have a few things on my list for 2014. I don’t know if I’ll get to all of them. But I know it’s shaping up to be another interesting year searching for the Happy Medium.
 
 
 

By StephenS | Tagged , , , , , | Comments (3)