Thank you for checking back on my blog series :). Today I am continuing my interviews with Type 1 diabetics who are adults. As I hit on in yesterdays blog post 85% of Type 1 diabetics are adults. Type 1 diabetes has no cure, there is insulin and great technologies that help manage the disease but there is no cure. So once you are diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at no point in your life will you be diabetes free, you could be 2 or 100 and you will still be a Type 1 insulin dependent diabetic.
My interview today is with Jeff Neitzel. Jeff is a type 1 diabetic who was diagnosed at the age of 13, here is his interview
Q: Your first name:
A: Jeffrey ( or Jeff for short )
Q: How old are you and when were you diagnosed?
A: I'm currently 41. I was diagnosed in
1984 when I was 13.
Q: For the management of your Type 1 Diabetes are you on an
insulin pump (If on pump which one) or multiple daily injections?
A: I do the MDI ( multiple daily
injection ) thing.
Q: What made you choose this method for management?
A: This method is and has been my only
"real" choice since day one. It effectively boils down to an access,
money, and simplicity thing at its core.
A: Well, I'm comfortable enough with
managing my D ( diabetes ) today. It's mostly a game of keeping up with the perpetually
changing D-Winds I suppose. The big thing is knowing I can do it. The story of
how and why still unfolds for me here, as it hopefully does for us all.
Q: What has changed the most in regards to diabetes management since you were diagnosed?
A: The D-Tech ( diabetes technology )
landscape has changed a lot since I was diagnosed. I've seen a mix of both good
and bad over the years. Hopefully, it's all panned out for the better though.
That said, there is an unfortunate
problem in that most of the fancy D-Tech is inaccessible to me for cost
reasons. The cost problem exists even for lowest common denominator D-Tech
though.
Q: What does a typical day look like in your household in regards to diabetes management?
A: Just a bit of BG checking, food
eating, and insulin injecting is all. Of course, that doesn't describe the
perpetual mind magic that it takes to keep it all in balance.
Q: What does a typical day’s diet look like?
A: Cheerios, Cheerios, and more
Cheerios :)
I love all types of Cheerios and
have since before D teamed up with the chicken pox to eat my pancreas. I do eat
other things ( including ): cheese, granola ( and granola bars ), milk, nuts,
and yogurt. Each day is normally some combo of the previously listed staples
for me. I choose not to eat meat, except on rare occasions.
Q: While searching for a cure what other 1 thing
would you like to see researchers working towards and why?
A: The most important 1
"other" thing in my mind is the affordability of D-Tech. I don't
spend much ( if any ) time thinking about a cure. Granted, I admit that a cure
( or a temporary D-Vacation now and again ) might be nice.
It is much more important for me to
know that I and everyone else who needs access to D-Tech ( e.g., BG test
strips, insulin, syringes, etc... ) to survive and thrive has such access
without extra hoop jumping. A requirement for me here is that insurance should
not be a prerequisite. I should be able to go to the pharmacy and get this
stuff without shelling out extra money for a doctor to get an RX for fancy
stuff instead of basic stuff.
Affordability ( or lack
thereof ) is a pervasive problem that needs a lot of attention in my
estimation. I could go on, but I'll stop there for now.
Q: What tips or advice would you give to a newly diagnosed Type
1 Diabetic children/teen/adult?
A: Don't let diabetes get in the way of
your dreams. If you can dream it, you can do it despite diabetes.
Q: What would you like to see more of out of the Diabetes Online Community?
A: The DOC works for me as it is. I
wouldn't be averse to improvements that work for other D-Folk though.
Q: What is your favorite thing about the Diabetes Online Community and why?
A: My favorite thing about the DOC is
that it exists. Knowing that I'm not alone in the D-Game is powerful stuff
indeed. My D-Team in the DOC helps me to keep on fighting and standing and
winning when I might otherwise choose to give up. Here's to the DOC.
A: This is not applicable for me here.
A: I don't know.
I want to thank Jeff for taking the time to give us all his perspective on being an adult with type 1 diabetes. I hope you all enjoyed it and I hope to "see" you all again soon. More interviews to come :)
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