A New Adventure

At #dsma on Wednesday, we were asked a simple question: "What's missing? What isn't working? What doesn't need to be changed? What would you like to see?" I thought about it for a moment and then tweeted this:

Q1: I think the need for a POSITIVE community online and offline for teens hasn't been met. It's discouraging for me as a teen. #dsma

— Sarah (@meow_its_sarah) June 11, 2015

I was honestly surprised that more people hadn't noticed this gaping hole in the #DOC, but then I remembered that the #DOC is mostly filled with (amazing) adults. While there are places for college-aged diabetics, there aren't many places for diabetic teens that want a positive community of people to talk to. Project Blue November has a panel of teens that answer submitted questions about a given topic each month, but there isn't really room for discussion there. Tumblr is also a place where most teens go to talk diabetes, but it is often a negative place for a teen to go. Many people on tumblr go to escape, so there is a lot of negativity (I'm not bashing this awesome project, just giving everyone an example of how tumblr seems to be for teens) surrounding diabetes there.

I've been hoping that someone else would realize this and get on it, but after seeing this tweet, I've come to accept that I'm going to have to do something about this. So here I am telling you that I will start a tweet chat for type 1 diabetic teens. I don't have a hashtag, (though I'm thinking about #t1tchat. It hasn't been used and is short and sweet.) I have no website, haven't talked to many people about it, but it will happen. I'm hoping that I can start it by the beginning of August, but I need your help to get it done.

How can you help? Simple. Find blogs, tudiabetes accounts, twitter accounts, facebook pages, google + accounts, tumblrs, and anyplace else on the web there is a teen with type 1 diabetes and send their links my way. You can email them to me, (inulinpensink@gmail.com) tweet/ direct message me, (@sarahspillerr on twitter), use any other social media link on the sidebar, or just comment on my blog to let me know.

I'm on the hunt for people too and I'm definitely going to create a home for this chat on the internet soon. If you have any suggestions or think you could help, I'd love if you could comment below or email me!

Moral of the Story: I'm ready for a new adventure.

In Defense of Twitter (and Other Forms of Social Media)

I've been inspired to write at a kind of late hour, again. (It's 11ish right now, so at least it's dark.) This time I wanted to tackle a little issue that I have to talk to a plethora of people about, and that is the good side of social media.

Oh Twitter, everyone loves to hate you. (Seriously. I have to defend you to people that say social media just makes us too narcissistic and is a useless tool. A lot.) So many people tweet that they are deleting their twitter accounts because they, "ruin their priorities" and they need to "focus on the real, important things." And then these people think they are wonderful people. After all, they have rid from their lives a man-made evil. Right? I don't think so.

Twitter and other forms of social media are not a collective form of Satan. (I think that's 4chan, but let's not talk about that.) Twitter allows people to connect and know that they aren't alone in their struggles. #DSMA (aka DIZMA) let's people chat every Wednesday with other PWDs (Type 1, 1.5, 2 & Awesome) about living with diabetes and just normal life as well. On every other day of the week you can still find people supporting others on twitter using that exact same hashtag! Seriously, how could a tool that helps people get support (of the emotional and sometimes technical variety) be that evil?

So which roller coaster does it look like I'm riding today?

Social media also gives people a sense of anonymity that cannot be achieved elsewhere. I know so many teens that use Twitter and Tumblr to express their feelings of hatred towards diabetes. And while it may make you sad to see things like this (it definitely doesn't make me feel like a ray of sunshine), it allows people to release their angry feelings towards having to constantly deal with a chronic illness. Social media gives people ways to have an outlet for their feelings without being destructive or terrible to themselves or others. There is no harm in that.

And speaking of not harming, remember that social media is a great place to continue and start advocacy efforts. Who remembers the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge? (I think that would be anyone that ever went on the internet last summer.) That challenge that took the internet by storm raised $115 million dollars to go towards research for improving the lives and finding a cure for people with ALS. Imagine if a challenge like that happened for diabetes. (Seriously, someone needs to get on that. ASAP.) No harm at all. I think that counts as all help.

Honestly, I get it. For most people social media is just a way to keep track with friends and family and a way to gauge popularity. For others, social media is an place for an outlet, a lace for advocacy, a place to get support, a place that reminds them that they are not alone. So before you make a huge deal about the pure evil that is social media, remember that it's not just a place for popularity and pettiness for everyone.

Moral of the Story: Shockingly, Twitter is not Satan!

Thank You

Today, my blog post about camp was featured on Diabetes Mine's June DOC Roundup! This is so amazing because I can remember back in the beginnings of me blogging (AKA the first edition of my blog that apparently still exists...) reading 3 blogs: Six Until Me, The Butter Compartment, and Diabetes Mine. (Also on the list of people's blog I've been reading since middle school: Kim, Kelly, and Karen. I see a trend going on here with K names...) I've talked to Kerri, Kim, Kelly, and Karen before via #dsma and comments on my blog and I've also talked to Lee Ann in the comments of my blog, so now being featured on one of the blogs I've read since 2011 is absolutely amazing! (I've already called my dad, tweeted about it, and am about to email my Grandad and Aunt Susan about it.)

I wanted to give a huge thank you to everyone who reads my blog, comments on it, shows it to someone else they know, and even the people that stumble upon this page on accident and read it for a little. You guys make blogging a bazillion times more amazing than I ever imagined it could be and I can't wait to write more and more stuff on this amazing blog of mine. I also want to thank everyone that talks to me on twitter during #dsma, endo visits, or just whenever weird diabetes-related things are happening! You rock for being there in real time to lift my spirits when I'm feeling down. And I also want to thank everyone that simply likes or comments on my photos on instagram for letting me share little tidbits of my life with you guys in pictorial form. All of you rock so I just had to give you a big thank you for being the best!

You guys are the best.

Moral of the Story: Apparently people find the thoughts of a crazy teenage girl entertaining. Who knew?

DIZMA

Yesterday at #dsma, Meri introduced us all to a new pronunciation of DSMA. Let it go down in history that I linked #dsma (one of the best things ever) to the Emperor's New Groove (one of the best movies ever.)

And in my mind, dizma rhymes with Yzma, like from the Emperor's New Groove #dsma
— Sarah (@meow_its_sarah) June 19, 2014

And now I leave you with this:

What happens when I think #dsma is on a Tuesday.

Cringing with a Side of Amazingness

This will totally be one of those randomy posts where I just talk about whatever. Because I can do that since this is my blog.

First, let's talk about the fact that I found my old blog today while scouring the internet to figure out why Bigfoot Child Have Diabetes commented on my super angry late night blog post (the best kind of blog post, really,) to say congrats. I was confused. I was pretty sure I hadn't posted anything exciting that has happened to me on here or on twitter. What could I have done? While looking through the vastness know as the internet, I googled my blog's name to see if there had been some other blog post mentioning my blog, or something else of that nature. Guess what I found. I had found my really old and started in seventh grade diabetes blog. I looked at it and cringed. I cringed even more than when I look at my first post on this blog. And that's saying something.

I read through the whole entire thing and laughed at seventh grade moi. I had  my name as nautilus. (I didn't even have a capitalized 'N.' It was cool to type in all lowercase in 2010.) Did I mention that my obsession at the time of that blog's creation was the nautilus? My twitter username used to be 'nautilusofdoom.' (Wait, why did I just share that with the whole world?) I used those text emoticon thingies in almost all of my posts. I made a whole photo album on Photobucket about getting my Contour USB. I don't remember making any of these posts, but I obviously did. Seeing my old blog made me laugh and cringe* and it was a total #tbt in the most entertaining way possible. (I laughed even more when I found my other old blog from seventh grade. I was pretending to be super girly and care a lot about make up and fashion. You can ask any of my friends and I promise they'll tell you that I'm pretty much the opposite of that. I've since given up on trying. I also got a kick out of my attempt to sound vague, but also cool with my tumblr's name. 'Insecure Light,' Sarah? Really?)

#tbt to my first CGM picture on twitter

Well, now let's get back to the whole congrats-on-my-blog-post mystery. After laughing at myself for a while, I finally went on my main blogger page so I could start typing a post about my laugh worthy find. I clicked onto my main blog page and saw that one of the main sources of traffic to my blog was from Meri's blog. I clicked over to her blog and read through her Best of the Betes Blogs post and oh my gosh, my blog was on there! I was in total shock and I was in even more shock once I realized that I had one the art section of the post with my flow chart! (I also feel like this was pretty ironic, considering I'm the least artistic person in my family.) I feel so incredibly honored to have won in one of the categories. I always look at those posts and hope and hope and hope that maybe I will have won in a category, and for that to actually happen is pretty amazing. Thank you so much to the wonderful person that nominated my blog post. You rock.

Moral of the Story: Today has been pretty unexpectedly awesome.

*The most cringe-worthy thing I read on the old blog was this: "I will just post about my life as a diabetic and topics that align with the purpose of this blog." That sounds like a portion of a legal disclaimer or something. Why on Earth would I have thought to say something like that?

When was the last time that you accidentally found something cringe-worthy from your past?

HWAMC Days Four and Five: Sharing Resources and Aspirations

Okay, I have to put these both into one blog post, or I will keep forgetting to post.

First, I will be giving everyone some resources, so they can successfully advocate for themselves.

Here's the prompt:

Create a “care page” – a list of your best resources that someone who is newly diagnosed could go to when starting to advocate for themselves or a loved one. Remember to include sites that lead to successful self advocacy!

Online-
If you are going to participate in online advocacy, here some great places to go to get started!

• Diabetes Social Media Advocacy- This is the place to go to connect with other diabetics on the web. There is the DSMA tweetchat, held every Wednesday at 9 PM EST, the monthly blog carnival, and  so many other ways you can get involved.
• Check out WEGO Health, they run HWAMC twice a year and have many tools for bloggers!
• Okay, I'm really not that fantastic at coming up with ideas for this, so I'll just say that you should look at your fellow bloggers for examples of great online advocacy. You can ask them questions; I'm sure that they would love to help you out!

Real Life- *DUN DUN DUN*

• The ADA's advocacy page has tons of resources -for advocating at school, at work, and even talking to your representatives.
• The JDRF also has an advocacy mini-site with tons of ways you can advocate for your diabetes.
• The IDF's website is also a great place for advocacy ideas.

Now, to Part Two of the post!

The prompt:

“If I could do anything as a Health Activist…” Think big today! Money/ time/ physical limitations are no longer an issue. What is your biggest goal that is now possible?

 If I could do anything as a Health Activist, I would create a set of commercials with diabetes bloggers in them, sharing misconceptions about diabetes and why they are wrong.

Examples:
Diabetics can't eat sugar.
Wrong.
We can eat sugar, we just have to eat it in moderation, like everyone should.

Eating too much sugar causes diabetes.
Wrong.
Diabetes can be caused by gene mutations and sometimes an overall unhealthy lifestyle. We didn't get diabetes from eating too much Halloween candy.

(ETC.)

I would have these commercials air on channels that almost everyone watches, and would eventually want them to be filmed in other languages for other countries, as well. That would be awesome.

Let's announce it to the world!

This month's DSMA Blog Carnival Topic is:

Does your employer/school/friends know you have diabetes? Why or why not?

 So, to answer that question, yes the people at my school know I am diabetic. People ask me all of the time, "What is that thing?" (As they point to my pump.) I give them the whole diabetes spiel and continue on with my day. The nurse, administrators, teachers, and office staff know I am diabetic because they will see me in the nurse office, or the office staff fills in for the nurse while she eats lunch.

In elementary school, everyone in the school knew I was diabetic because I talked on the morning announcements about raising money for the JDRF, and I also explained diabetes in 5th grader terms.

I feel like a lot of diabetics don't like to tell the world that they are diabetic because then they don't "fit in" with the rest of the human population, but I think it is very important. After all, what happens when you have low blood sugar and no one knows what that is, the symptoms, or what to do about it? Plus, everyone will eventually find out one way or another.

There are a lot of horrible situations that are results of diabetes, but 100s more are added when you don't even tell the people you are around every day. 

Just remember, as Kerri says,

"Diabetes doesn't define me, but it helps explain me."

Required Sentences:
This post is my March entry in the DSMA Blog Carnival.  If you’d like to participate too, you can get all of the information at http://diabetessocmed.com/2012/march-dsma-blog-carnival-2/.