Declaring Independence from T1D
Not a clickbait title, I swear.
Declaring independence from something that isn’t going anywhere, like type 1 diabetes, might seem like an oxymoron, but I mean this sincerely. First, I don’t mean declaring independence from needing insulin or anything like that (because everyone needs insulin!) But what I often hear is that in order to live well with diabetes,, people need to simply resign themselves to dependence on restriction and routine.
And that’s just not true.
So on this 4th of July, I have a few tips for how you can live more independently from the control that diabetes often exerts over your life.
Establish consistency with high-priority behaviors. Routine doesn’t meant doing the same thing every day in the exact same way. What it means is having a solid base of consistency so you never find yourself too far off course, i.e. taking some insulin before eating, following up after. We don’t always have to get the exact perfect result if we are at least being with our behaviors. This has been really important for me, especially as I write this while on vacation in Oregon and having gone to a wedding in Seattle over the weekend. New locations, changes in activity levels (from hours to sitting to hours of walking), to eating at restaurants more than normal. I ground myself in my essentials: pausing to consider (food, activity), making the best decision I can with insulin, following up regularly (about every 30-60min, consistently but not obsessively), and reminding myself that I have the tools to respond to any blood sugar I have.
Identify your biggest priorities and what makes them challenging. Do you love being active? Having happy hour after work? Brunch with the girls? Stay mindful on what specifically makes it difficult as you’re doing it. This helps us strategize around the specific aspect of your favorite thing, rather than just the end result of a high or low blood sugar. With a busy family, I don’t always know what we have going on each day until we are deciding. Sometimes we decide we are going on a hike only an hour before we head out! For me, knowing how to evaluating my blood sugars and implementing changes to best support what’s going means that I don’t have to say no just because I’m trending up or down. I know what I can do to move myself into position so that my life - and my family’s life - isn’t going to be completely disrupted by diabetes.
Believe in your ability to do what you love. It can feel like diabetes has trapped us in a life of servitude to managing it, but we really can pursue what we love to do. Yes, it usually requires a little bit more planning but that doesn’t mean we are prohibited from things like traveling the world, trying any new food, or having fun with friends and family. People with T1D have a history of doing some pretty incredible things despite diabetes - biking across the Sahara Desert (Sebastian Sasseville), climbed Mt. Everest (Will Cross), and the amazing Katie Bone, who at 16 just competed on America Ninja Warrior! This may feel out of your league, but this just to show what our limits are — and there really aren’t any!
Speaking of amazing things, I want to highlight a cool new organization, Type 1 Way Ticket, an adventure travel company for teens and young adults, started by T1D Savannah Johnson. I met Savannah in 2019 at Connected in Motion’s Colorado Slipstream (another great example of being able to do whatever you want!). I think her new organization is so cool, especially as someone who loves to travel.
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Like what you see? Want to feel more independent with your diabetes? Not sure your toolkit is as complete as it could be? Struggle high-priority behaviors? I currently have a few more coaching spots open for a July start. If you need some help getting to your Diabetes Life 2.0, just send me an application for coaching and lets see if we’ll be a good fit!