Hospitals, Patient Engagement

Diabetes Blog Week: What and who to follow to understand living with diabetes

Diabetes Blog Week can help solve the disconnect between people living with diabetes and people trying to make life easier for that group.

It’s Diabetes Blog Week, which means it’s time to share stories, blogs, recipes, jokes and everything else with those who know diabetes all too well. So many startups and health systems are focused on diabetes – whether the goal is to prevent Type 2 from developing or help people living with Type 1 manage their daily lives. Often there is a disconnect in these programs. People who don’t actually have diabetes sometimes don’t understand what people living with the condition actually need or want in terms of information and support.

Diabetes Blog Week can help solve this problem. Read some blog posts, start following a few new people on Twitter, and check out Pinterest boards to expand your understanding of diabetes. Here are a few recommendations to get your education started.

Blogger Karen Graffeo began Diabetes Blog Week 5 years ago and says:

The main idea for Diabetes Blog Week  is that bloggers sign up to post about a set topic each day for a week.  This way, readers can jump around the DBlog Community and get a plethora of different perspectives on a single topic.  The hope is that new DOC connections are made, and that our voices are raised to spread a little more diabetes awareness.

Within the time DBlog Week has been around, Twitter and other social media outlets have found multiple ways to connect those with diabetes.

Those on Twitter are creating blog posts pertaining to the daily topics of Diabetes Blog week and sharing them with their followers (the list of topics can be found on the website). From sharing creative poems to helpful hints for those living with diabetes, citizens of Twitter are using “#DBlogWeek” to get their stories out. User @ninjabetic1 is not only a co-founder of the Diabetes Online Community chat company, Our Diabetes, but she also lives with Type 1 diabetes while helping raise awareness for the rest of the diabetic community through her blogs.

Another worthy Twitter follow is dietitian and diabetes nurse Donna Ryan (twitter handle: @dietrybe). Donna tweets and retweets new diabetes technology as well as posts upbeat and inspirational tweets for the diabetic community.

Along with avid twitter members sharing their posts about diabetes, the blogosphere is booming with new and old blogs pertaining to those surrounded by diabetes. Kim Vlasnik, writer of the blog “Texting My Pancreas,” has been living with Type 1 diabetes for the past 28 years. Her blog offers her insight on DBlog Week and inspiration to those also living with diabetes.

Inspiration, DBlog Week posts and amazing recipes for diabetics can also be found on Jessica Apple and Michael Aviad’s blog called “A Sweet Life.” The married couple post delicious recipes, news, other blogs, tips and even books for all those living with diabetes.

Rich The Diabetic
has an amazing Pinterest board about diabetes. His collection of images ranges from infographics to tattoos to Etsy listings. These are our favorites, but click through to check out (and follow) the entire board.

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