Category Archives: Social Media

Disappointed.

June 9, 2017 – 9:18 am

That moment when someone who’s inspired you turns out to be a jerK? I experienced that this week.

There’s a doctor in Las Vegas, who goes by the moniker ZDoggMD online. He’s gotten a lot of notoriety over the years, been on cable television news, recorded videos, and basically, developed a significant social media following. I’m not going to go into too much detail… in my opinion, he doesn’t deserve any more help than he already has.

So why am I writing about him then? I think I need to get this off of my chest.

I saw Dr. Zubin Damania deliver the keynote address at the initial HealtheVoices Conference two years ago. I was inspired by how he seemed to take a different approach to health care, and how to deliver the important messages that patients needed to hear.

I’m a big fan of Turntable Health, the health care initiative he got off the ground in downtown Las Vegas with the help of Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh. After seeing Dr. Damania speak in 2015, I made an appointment to tour Turntable Health when I was in Vegas the following March. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get the story I wrote about my tour published; I couldn’t get my facts double checked by the staff there, and I didn’t feel it was right to publish something that might not be entirely accurate. But I was very impressed by Turntable Health, and by Dr. Z, as the staff there refers to him.

Fast forward to this week. Using his ZDogg online persona on Twitter and Instagram, he posted a photo designed to shame and guilt People With Diabetes. It was remarkably horrible. It was junior high school level crass.

Cue the immediate backlash from the diabetes community. Many advocates stepped forward to voice their disapproval. Reaction was swift, and at times, it was pretty intense. Which elicited responses from Dr. Z himself.

Later, he took to Facebook Live, along with a couple of friends (or employees or accolytes or something), and he tried to explain the posting. He went to great lengths to explain that he was only reposting an existing meme. Yeah, that makes it aaalll better.

He complained a lot about Type 1s and how they were overly sensitive, and how this post had nothing to do with them, and how it was really directed at Type 2s. At the end of the video, he deleted the post, and then mocked deleting the post, both at the end of the video and afterward in comments on the video.

It’s easy to get angry about behavior like this. It attempted to shame People With Diabetes… ALL People With Diabetes. It allowed people to laugh at those living with a chronic condition they will have to live with the rest of their lives. It gave voice to countless medical professionals who believe the message in his post is the proper way to treat People With Diabetes.

In addition to violating the sensitivities of everyone who believes in treating others with common decency, Dr. Damania violated two of the most important tenets of internet communication:

1. Consider carefully all the implications of what you’re posting, before you post.
It’s like salt in your stew: you can always add more, but it’s really hard to take any away.

2. You can almost never recover your reputation by complaining about the people you’ve already offended.
It’s the social media equivalent of kicking someone when they’re down. It confirms your status as the bully.

I’ve posted things I’ve had to take back. At one point or another, just about everyone does. In fact, two of the most difficult things for me are to apologize for posting something that bothered someone else; and to be happy for people who get to experience things I’ve always wanted to experience.

Those things are hard for me to do, but the difficulty I have with them is no excuse not to do them. In my case, I must express these things exactly when they will mean the most. Even when I’m not sure how sorry I am that I bothered someone, or I’m not sure how happy I am for someone else.

It’s not important how I feel about those things. It’s important how they feel about those things.

There are gray areas in reacting to social media backlash too. But what I’ve seen through this episode… from the original post, to the hurtful comments from others who chose to Do No Harm by becoming healthcare professionals, to leaving the post up and letting animosity boil until deleting the post toward the end of a less than sincere video rant… shows me that for Dr. Z, there is no gray area. He didn’t leave himself any.

If you know me, you know I’m the kind of person who tries to consider all sides of an issue before saying anything about it. I admit it… I was inspired by Dr. Z previously, and I wanted to believe he would act with compassion, if not empathy in this matter. I not only wanted to believe he would, I wanted him to act with compassion so I could believe in him again.

Which leads me to my final piece of social media wisdom: It’s okay to be unhappy. Bitterness? You own your bitterness yourself.

You have to live with your bitterness. You have to live with the cause of it. You can’t escape it without contrition.

Will I have more to say about this? Probably, in another form, in another venue. Truly, I am disappointed. I want to laud Dr. Damania, and I want to celebrate his successes. After this week, however, I find myself fearing for his patients, and fearing for the patients and acquaintances of those he has influenced.

By StephenS | Tagged , , | Comments (4)

Join us for #WDDChat16!

November 11, 2016 – 9:08 am

So, it’s November and all. You know what that means:

24 hour #WDDChat16 Twitter Chat November 14!
wddchat16
Let me be the first to remind you that Monday marks another World Diabetes Day, and among all the other happenings around the world, much of the world will be checking in to the diabetes talk on Twitter. Some people, like me, multiple times.

If you’re a seasoned veteran of the #DSMA chats, terrific. Consider this your friendly reminder. Just remember to use the #WDDChat16 hashtag for this special event. We’ll see you Monday.

If you’re not familiar with the Twitter discussion, or if it’s been a while and you don’t remember, here’s the deal: each hour of the chat will have a different topic, and will be moderated by a different host. I will be your moderator from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. (EST in the USA). The topic: My Diabetes House. My Twitter handle: @StephenSType1

Each hour’s chat will include several questions asked by the moderator, and participants are encouraged to reply. And chat with other participants while they’re at it. For a list of the WDD hosts and topics, CLICK HERE.

If you’re new, don’t be discouraged. The #WDDChat16 chat will be a fun atmosphere that welcomes everyone living with and affected by diabetes, regardless of your type of diabetes, regardless of how long diabetes has been a part of your life. It really is the fastest hour of the week when the chat happens at its regular time on Wednesday nights from 9:00-10:00 (EST). On World Diabetes Day, the lively conversation will continue for 24 straight hours.

The moderators on Monday include some of my favorite People With Diabetes. If you don’t already, I encourage you to get to know them too. People like Christel Marchand Aprigliano, Anna Norton, Chelcie Rice, Kerri Morrone Sparling, Kelly Kunik, Chris Clement, and others. Over the years, I’ve seen participants from every continent except Antarctica.

Don’t have a Twitter account? No problem. Go to twitter.com and create yours in about 15 seconds.

To join the chats, follow the #WDDChat16 hashtag on Twitter, or use one of the several hashtag feed web sites that will link with your Twitter account. That way, everything in the chat just keeps flowing, and you also have a space on the same page to Tweet away yourself. I like to use this one: http://tchat.io/rooms/WDDChat16

Then just jump in and enjoy the conversation!

If you’re still not sure how this all works, CLICK HERE and send me an e-mail. I will help you get going or answer your questions.

This is truly one of my favorite things about November each year, and like other years (this is my 5th!), I hope you will join me during the 24 hour (including 8:00-9:00 a.m.) World Diabetes Day Twitter Chat sponsored by Diabetes Community Advocacy Foundation.

Special thanks to Cherise Shockley for coordinating the chat every year, and for her tireless efforts to bring our community together, one conversation at a time.

By StephenS | Also posted in World Diabetes Day | Tagged , , , , , | Comments (3)

Talking about Cousin Spammy on DSMA tonight.

February 24, 2016 – 9:08 am

I’m not sure I can define diabetes spam exactly… but like Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart once proclaimed regarding pornography, I know it when I see it.

We’re going to be talking diabetes spam on the DSMA Twitter Chat tonight. What does it look like to you? How does it make you feel? How do you handle it? And many more aspects of what spam does to our already overworked eyeballs.
SpamLunchbox
From ridiculous snake oil cures to workout ads that promise to “reduce diabetes” (ummmm… it’s still DIABETES), we’ll be riffing on what really bugs you regarding quack dietary supplements and what your co-worker heard on the TV last night. We’ll talk about what everyone is doing about the stupid e-mails they’re getting, and maybe a little about what we’d like to do about all these snake oil remedies and the people who tout them.

Diabetes spam is kind of like the stoner cousin at the family get-together. Eating all the non-carby good stuff you brought while leaving your aunt Ginny’s undercooked brussels sprouts for you on the buffet. Eyeing your significant other with a little too much gusto. Borrowing a fiver while promising to get it back to you next week, and finishing up with “We gotta hang out more often, cuz!”. Yeah, right. I’m not a kid anymore, cuuuzzz.

So catch up with me on Twitter tonight (all the details are below) and we’ll compare notes, laugh a little, and generally dis’ about cousin Spammy. He’s got it coming… let’s serve it up beginning at 9:00 eastern time in the USA.
 
 
Living with diabetes? Living with someone living with diabetes? Join us for talk, support, encouragement, empowerment, and more during the DSMA Twitter Chat every Wednesday night at 9:00 Eastern time (USA). Follow the @DiabetesSocMed Twitter handle and/or the #DSMA hashtag and join the conversation!
I also find this link via tChat helpful.

The DSMA Twitter Chat is sponsored by the Diabetes Community Advocacy Foundation, Cherise Shockley, Founder and CEO.
 

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All about podcasts (not mine).

December 16, 2015 – 11:40 am

As the headline implies, this post is about podcasts, but not my own. I was actually thrilled and honored to be part of two of them. And the other one hasn’t happened yet, but I am very excited about the idea. Here goes:

Have you heard of the Everybody Talks podcast? From TuDiabetes, the podcast delves into many of the facets of life with diabetes, with really interesting people. I was so happy to join Corinna Cornejo to introduce and recap Emily Coles’ conversation with diabetes nurse, CDE, advocate, and researcher Jane K. Dickinson. Jane has been researching the many words that affect people living with diabetes, and their effects on our psyche and the management of our diabetes. It’s a fascinating discussion, and I encourage you to take some time to listen to it. If you’re a healthcare professional of any kind, you will find this talk a treasure trove of useful information that will help you communicate with diabetes patients better than ever before.
CLICK HERE to listen.
 
 
I really feel like I hit the big time this week, when I was interviewed by Christopher Snider for his Just Talking podcast. The first half of that conversation might be a little difficult to listen to… as the interview went on, my BGs were going lower and lower until I finally had to take a break and treat a 59. I can hear myself really straining for every word there for a bit.

Anyway, it was a terrific hour spent with someone I admire and respect a great deal. We talked about this blog, how I found the Diabetes Online Community, how the idea to give away medals to athletes with diabetes came about, and also my podcast, Diabetes By The Numbers. It’s available right now via iTunes, Stitcher Radio, and at justtalkingpodcast.com.
Or CLICK HERE to listen to the full interview.
 
 
Finally, a quick note about a great idea. This is my way of trying to help spread the word about Diabetes Podcast Week, which is coming up in February! Stacey Simms of the Diabetes Connections podcast came up with the idea, and we’ll all be producing podcasts to air during the week of February 1. Even better, each podcaster will be leading the charge in encouraging everyone to join the Partnership for Diabetes Change in supporting the annual Spare A Rose, Save A Child campaign.

I am very much looking forward to participating with the rest of my fellow diabetes podcasters (am I really allowed to say that after 9 episodes?) on this worthy endeavor. Mark your calendars for February 1!
 
 
While I’m at it, let me just throw out a reminder that if you have something diabetes-related you’d like to talk about; or, if you know of a good diabetes story that should be told, send me an e-mail by clicking on the E-mail Stephen link in the upper left corner of this page. Talk to you soon!
 

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What does that mean, anyway?

September 17, 2015 – 9:05 am

After my interview with Rick Phillips for TuDiabetes Tuesday, I took some time to reflect on what we discussed. There were a lot of acronyms in there: CGM, DSMA, and a couple of others I can’t remember right now.

You can probably relate to this when I tell you: Before I found the Diabetes Online Community, I had absolutely no idea what those things meant. Or even that they existed.

Those of us that have been communicating about diabetes for some time, even people like me with just a high school education and a few years’ experience writing about diabetes, tend to shorten our words an awful lot sometimes. On one hand, that’s just the nature of communication these days. Why write out “been there, done that” on your phone when you can just tap out “BTDT”?

On the other: If you’re new, and all this is new to you, it can be a bit overwhelming at first. I wonder sometimes if we lose people with our thorough knowledge and discussion of the A1cs and BGs. I don’t think so, at least not all the time. But sometimes I worry that while I’m trying to make a point about IOB, or CDEs very quickly, I make it so quick that it’s easy to lose someone on the outside of the conversation, knowledge-wise. I don’t ever want to do that.

So if you ever see something I write, or hear something I say, and it doesn’t make sense to you, I hope you’ll ask me for an explanation. You deserve that.

And if you don’t want to ask me for an explanation, guess what? TuDiabetes is an amazing source of information. They even have this Diabetes Terminology Glossary that explains just about everything you’ll ever want to know about the acronyms that power our diabetes discussions.

I admit it: I’m a diabetes acronym-dropper. But don’t let it rattle you. And in the words of Bennet Dunlap, LYMI.
 
 
CGM: Continuous Glucose Monitor

DSMA: Diabetes Social Media Advocay (the #DSMA Twitter chat is every Wednesday at 9:00 ET)

DOC: Diabetes Online Community

A1c: According to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), “The A1C test is sometimes called the hemoglobin A1c, HbA1c, or glycohemoglobin test. The A1C test is the primary test used for diabetes management and diabetes research.”

BG: Blood Glucose

IOB: Insulin On Board (the insulin still active in the body at any given time)

CDE: Certified Diabetes Educator

LYMI: Love Ya, Mean It.
 

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