Type 1 on 1 | Diabetes Stories Jen Grieves

'You going into the hospital ill, and you think you’ll come out fine.'

Sales executive Andy Hartnell is today's guest. Andy was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in his first year of university, and he was so unwell that his mum didn't recognise him - and yet he was turned away by a doctor who believed he had a fever. He was admitted to intensive care the following day with a blood glucose reading of 96mmol/l.

Unsurprisingly it took Andy a while to process his diagnosis, and he didn't open up about his condition for many years, often leaving for work without his glucose meter - unaware of the need to really do anything differently. The switched flipped and he describes 'going the other way', testing 'obsessively' 12-15 times a day.

It's a story that isn't uncommon and Andy's humility is one I believe will strike a chord with a lot of you. We also discuss handling nights out with type 1, how he subsequently found a balance, his 'life-changing' CGM and being brave enough to take an 18 month career break when his workload began to affect his mental health, relationship and social life. Having spent time delivering prescriptions to the elderly, travelling, running marathons and generally taking care of himself, he's now in a new job with a different perspective on what success looks like. I applaud Andy for his courage, and his willingness to share his story on the podcast. He's also just a bloody lovely guy!

FIND ANDY:
Say hi to Andy on Instagram.
Follow Andy on Strava.

SPONSOR MESSAGE:
Thanks to my episode sponsors Insulet, the founders of Pod Therapy - only found with Omnipod.

Pod therapy uses a tubeless, wearable and waterproof Pod that continuously delivers insulin for up to three days. Controlled wirelessly by its handheld companion, the personal diabetes manager, it allows you to personalise your insulin doses according to your own daily needs - no multiple daily injections and no tubes.

Head to https://www.omnipod.com/ to find out more.

Today's guest is David Crosse, a retired jumps jockey who changed the face of the sport for people with type 1 diabetes.

Born in Tipperary in Ireland, he moved to the UK aged 16 for riding and over the course of an impressive 20 year career, secured 207 winners from more than 3,500 rides in Britain and Ireland.

At the age of 22 David was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes - just as his professional career was taking off. He hid his condition from officials in the sport for 13 years, fearing it would be 'career suicide', until he was exposed quite dramatically by an anonymous tip off sent to the Racing Post.
This episode is an almighty gallop (if you will) through David's life and career, and it's a lot of fun thanks to his exceptional storytelling. Enjoy!

FIND DAVID:
Check out David’s website.
Follow David on Twitter
Say hi to David on Instagram
Thanks to Diabetes UK for helping make this episode happen.

SPONSOR MESSAGE: Thanks to my episode sponsors Insulet, the founders of Pod Therapy - only found with Omnipod.

Pod therapy uses a tubeless, wearable and waterproof Pod that continuously delivers insulin for up to three days. Controlled wirelessly by its handheld companion, the personal diabetes manager, it allows you to personalise your insulin doses according to your own daily needs - no multiple daily injections and no tubes.

Head to https://www.omnipod.com/ to find out more.

Author Victoria Bennett is today’s guest. Her memoir, ‘All My Wild Mothers’ is a story of motherhood, loss and what can happen when you steadily sow the seeds of new life, as Victoria and her son did on barren wasteland next to the council estate they moved to when her son was five years old.

Victoria was weeks away from giving birth when her world was turned upside down after her sister died suddenly in a canoeing accident. Two years later her son was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, in diabetic ketoacidosis after her concerns about his health were dismissed by doctors. This plunged Victoria into a terrifying world of being a carer for a baby with a chronic condition, all while still processing her own grief.

Victoria’s writing is strikingly transportive, and the severity of what it means to raise a child with diabetes really comes through as you move through her world within the book. The evocative retelling of her experiences as a parent will stick with me for a long time, and not only will this book help parents going through similar challenges, but it will do so much to raise awareness of the realities of dealing with type 1 to those who are unaffected by the condition. This is undoubtedly a story of resilience, but also one of great hope.

FIND VICTORIA!
Buy ‘All My Wild Mothers’ anywhere and everywhere!
Visit Victoria’s website: http://victoriabennett.me/
Say hi to Victoria on Instagram.
Follow her on Twitter.

SPONSOR MESSAGE:
Thanks to my episode sponsors Insulet, the founders of Pod Therapy - only found with Omnipod.
Pod therapy uses a tubeless, wearable and waterproof Pod that continuously delivers insulin for up to three days. Controlled wirelessly by its handheld companion, the personal diabetes manager, it allows you to personalise your insulin doses according to your own daily needs - no multiple daily injections and no tubes.

Head to https://www.omnipod.com/ to find out more.

Imagine this: you’re a junior doctor, getting to grips with life on the ward in the early stages of your medical career, working long shifts under a stretched system. You’ve got a chronic illness to manage while you care for patients, and you’ve been training for this your whole life. Then, a few months in… a global virus strikes and you find yourself on the front line of the NHS as a pandemic shuts down the entire world.

That is the experience of this week’s guest, Dr Temi Olonisakin.

Diagnosed with type 1 diabetes on the floor of a train station in 2012 at the age of 17, Temi’s sights had been set on medical school since she was a child. And while her diagnosis didn’t stop her getting there (although others advised her to reconsider), she found herself struggling to accept her diagnosis for a long time.

Despite dealing with daily darkness at work while she tirelessly cared for COVID patients, it was the pandemic that gave Temi the space at home to finally extend that same compassion to herself when it came to her type 1 diabetes. She turned the anger she’d been carrying into a sense of power, leading her to create her Instagram account, @temidiabeticdoctor.

We discuss all of this, plus the aspects of diabetes that Temi believes have made her a better doctor, going from a huge fear of needles to a massive advocate of diabetes technology, representation in the diabetes space, and her advice for fighting for your needs as a patient to get the tools to improve your quality of life.

“It’s not because I’m a doctor, it’s because I decided not to give up.”

Say hi to Temi on Instagram.

SPONSOR MESSAGE: Thanks to my episode sponsors Insulet, the founders of Pod Therapy - only found with Omnipod.

Pod therapy uses a tubeless, wearable and waterproof Pod that continuously delivers insulin for up to three days. Controlled wirelessly by its handheld companion, the personal diabetes manager, it allows you to personalise your insulin doses according to your own daily needs - no multiple daily injections and no tubes.

Head to https://www.omnipod.com/ to find out more.

'Be intentional with every moment of your life.’

Ohhh we’re playing in the big leagues today! Rob Howe - entrepreneur, former professional basketball player and founder of the Diabetics Doing Things Platform is today’s podcast guest.

A seasoned podcast pro with over 1 million downloads to his name, we talk about everything from school rumours that he’d died (!) after being diagnosed at the age of 16, to being vulnerable in order to bring people together, to maintaining discipline and intention in all aspects of your life - including of course, with type 1 diabetes.

I particularly loved Rob’s thoughts on how our perspectives can shift over time - you don’t have to feel the same about your diabetes forever, or even from one day to the next.

This is a solid hour of wise words from a man with a really big heart and a whole lot of focus. Warm and calm and thoughtful, Rob is exactly the type of person I’d want around in a crisis - diabetes-related or otherwise! But make no mistake, Rob is an achiever - as a business owner, athlete and someone who spends a lot of his life in service helping others living with type 1 diabetes feel better about what we’re dealing with. I love his ethos of community, creating change and making sure no one is left behind.

PS… get your sleep!

Find Rob at the Diabetics Doing Things website and podcast
Follow Rob on Instagram

SPONSOR MESSAGE:
Thanks to my episode sponsors Insulet, the founders of Pod Therapy - only found with Omnipod.

Pod therapy uses a tubeless, wearable and waterproof Pod that continuously delivers insulin for up to three days. Controlled wirelessly by its handheld companion, the personal diabetes manager, it allows you to personalise your insulin doses according to your own daily needs - no multiple daily injections and no tubes.

Head to https://www.omnipod.com/ to find out more.

Hold onto your insulin... Type 1 on 1 is back!

I'm so excited to return for another season, and it was only right that we get the MVP of this podcast on for a little episode 1 check in, you know?
That's right, The Diaries co-host Ami is coming through with the REAL talk, and she spills the tea on the all important insulin pump update now that she's been wired up to her gadget for three whole months. Hint: It's going really, REALLY well and having seen what Ami's taken on since her diagnosis, I can say with a bit of a bursting heart that I am one proud friend.
We get in the mood with the usual sexy chat - missing toenails, blisters, and spots that simply won't heal because type 1 diabetes has KO'd our immune systems. It is Valentine's Day after all...

It's good to be back! Thanks so much for joining me.

SPONSOR MESSAGE:
Thanks to my episode sponsors Insulet, the founders of Pod Therapy - only found with Omnipod.

Pod therapy uses a tubeless, wearable and waterproof Pod that continuously delivers insulin for up to three days. Controlled wirelessly by its handheld companion, the personal diabetes manager, it allows you to personalise your insulin doses according to your own daily needs - no multiple daily injections and no tubes.

Head to https://www.omnipod.com/ to find out more.