Diabetes, Blogging, And Health Advocacy
As a kid, I wasn’t an advocate for type 1 diabetes. I was a kid. I went to diabetes camp (CBC 4 LIFE) but that was the extent of my involvement with any kind of diabetes community. It wasn’t until I was out of college and feeling like I existed on a diabetes island that I began to crave interaction with and understanding from other people with diabetes. So, at Chris’ suggestion, I started a blaaaaaagh and everything just got all sorts of exciting. Namely, I had finally connected with other people living with diabetes. And it felt gooooood.
Now that there is an established online community for people with diabetes (PWDs, caregivers, and loved ones alike), there are a lot of opportunities for engagement and advocacy. The DOC isn’t limited to adults living with diabetes; there are blogs written by parents of CWD, spouses and significant others of PWD, and even doctors who care for PWD. And it’s not even limited to people who are interacting online – the diabetes community is offline, and on. And after meeting with the new CEO of the JDRF, Jeffrey Brewer, last week in DC, I realized once again that we’re all in this together. This guy gets it. His kid has diabetes, making me realize that Jeffrey is just like my mother in that he wants what is best for his child. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Six Until Me.*
