It has been both an honor and a challenge to share my thoughts as an individual living with diabetes. Little did I realize when I was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes 16 years ago that my life experience would be altered in unexpected ways. The greatest surprise has been the opportunity to be part of the dynamic community of Diabetes Sisters. I began from a point of isolation (those who are newly diagnosed understand) and recognized pretty quickly that I needed alot more support in order to manage.

At our last Diabetes Sisters meeting on May 10th in Princeton, NJ, we played the "Common Tests and Procedures Game."  It always amazes me how complicated diabetes management can be and as we compared our knowledge about tests for A1C, blood pressure, cholesterol levels, dental, eye, foot and kidney function I observed the mood in the room.  Some of our group members looked visibly upset and it opened up a  discussion of being overwhelmed by the tasks of managing our health.

This post by Robin Wright, DiabetesSisters blogger and PODS Leader, was originally posted on Diabetes - What to Know in March 2017.

I was reading the Wall Street Journal and discovered the following report published on 2/26/17, "When Patients Share Stories, Health Insights Emerge."  What researcher's found was that "people are willing to discuss things very frankly when they are in a roomful of people who share their experiences" and " the goal is to understand the unspoken challenges that effect a patient's ability to get and stay healthy."