What Diabetes Awareness Month Feels Like to a PWD.

Also answers to "American Diabetes Month", "National Diabetes Month", "National Diabetes Awareness Month", and "November".

This Is Why I'm High.

#MentalHealthAwareness

(btw, if you were wondering... the highest BG ever recorded was 2,656 mg/dL)

Starch Madness.

Let's dance!

Amendment: Bennet of Your Diabetes May Vary has taken things up a notch by creating a survey based on this bracket. Go vote and we can start trash talking about our favorite carbs and see who shall be named champion!

Diabetes Art Day: I Have To Think It's Funny.

My inspiration on this Diabetes Art Day comes from this beautiful song by Amanda Palmer. (Video here - probably NSFW.)

Find more diabetes art on the Diabetes Art Day website. (And thanks go, again, to Lee Ann Thill who organizes this event each year. I love seeing what our community chooses to create and share!)

In Your Pancreas.

I feel so lost, sometimes

Days pass, and this insulin fills my cart

When I want to exercise

I end up eating carbs

Every time I test, I go

"There must be a better way to know"

My low symptoms; will they return?

New devices I'll have to learn

They make a noise I try to hide

I struggle with how it feels on the inside

But I'm fine

Beta cells might 

Have all died

(But who's complete?)

I'll be fine

I see a closed loop, and a thousand researchers

(Cure in five?)

The resolution in these badass advocates

Okay, not fine

But I see the light and the heat

In these guys

No math, please, while we eat

We want to have the chance

To be complete in our eyes

I don't like to feel so much pain

Test strips, wasted - and this error 4 keeps beeping at me

I get so tired, working so hard for my survival

I wish for a time where I can just be alive

To my eyes

I can't believe

Over twenty five

Years with this... sheet

I see a better answer to Google searches

No disguise!

We share ourselves; all the low-carb lunches

(Or french fries)

We tweet it all, and we see

We're not alone; on the same team

It helps us feel more complete

The same team; the same team

The burden is no longer all mine

Not all mine, not all mine

Not all mine, not all mine

Steampunk: Diabetes Style.

Someone (@momentsfade) on Twitter tore apart a dead Dexcom transmitter and tweeted photos of each stage of the deconstruction, which lead to the comment:

@momentsfade @SweeterCherise @txtngmypancreas @joltdude It's not steampunk enough for me ;-)
— Kelly / Diabetes (@KellyRawlings) January 14, 2014

One tweet, and my mind goes off the rails:

Pregnancy And Type 1 Diabetes.

One of the most excerrifying (that's being excited and terrified at the same time, if you're unfamiliar) times of my life was being pregnant with my daughter. As a woman who has lived with type 1 diabetes since the dawn of time she was six years old, I'm familiar with the notion that pregnancies with pre-existing diabetes are complicated. Even when you're managing your diabetes perfectly well thankyouverymuch, pregnancy puts us in the "high risk" category and everyone freaks the heck out.

While it's true that balancing pregnancy and pre-existing T1D is a major challenge, what I wish someone would have told me way back when is that not only is it possible for someone like me to create a brand new human being who is totally healthy - there are perks to being pregnant and diabetic!

In that spirit, I'd like to balance out all of the "aaaaaah everything will go wrong!" with a little of what will go right.

HWDs.

For those who aren't familiar with the tem "hipster", here you go.

And if you thinking having an insulin pump with a rotary dial is actually kind of awesome... you might be one. (Spoiler: I'm raising my hand.)

Grocery Store Lows.

Spirit Animal.

For Martin:

And in case your low blood sugar spirit animal is the same as Martin's, I made you a shirt.

Please Explain: Colors.

Please Explain: My Pump.

Please Explain.

Things I Imagine My Pancreas Might Be Doing With All Of Its Free Time.

Thinking up really bad jokes that are funny to no one but him.

Drinking Mai Tais while laughing at the organs actually doing their jobs.

Catching up on all of those books it has been meaning to read.

Blue Heels: The Diabetes Advocate's Weapon.

I drew a little something for my friends over at the Blue Heel Society and it went live today, so go take a look!

And here's a little bit about the organization, in their words:

This organization is dedicated to all people living with, caring for, or interested in diabetes. The Blue Heel Society was formed on November 13th, the eve of World Diabetes Day, 2011 by a dedicated trio of spirited advocates who committed themselves to promoting awareness, pursuing the continued fight for a cure, highlighting obstacles people diagnosed with diabetes are faced with, and promoting advocacy for the diabetes community as a whole.

The Blue Heel Society accomplishes this NOT by raising funds, but by fueling our crusade with the strength, dedication, and passion of our partners.

Rock on!

One Hundy.

What it looks like on my meter:

What it looks like in my head:

(If you're down with celebrating the little victories like I am, check out www.onehundredbg.com. Go on, celebrate it!)

(And yes, I really do see the confetti/streamers/balloons/chorus line in my head every time I hit that century mark.)