LiveFree with T1D

You are the chief executive officer (CEO) of your life with T1D. As the CEO, you get to define your mission and vision and decide on what short- and long-term strategies you want to use to get there. Being the CEO of your life with T1D is a lot of responsibility, but it also comes with some benefits. You get to call all the shots. In this episode of The Diabetes Psychologist Podcast, I talk about...

The decisions involved in managing T1D are complicated, and they go beyond the logistics of healthy eating and taking insulin. The choices you make about T1D do not live in a silo. Sometimes they involve making trade-offs between your blood sugars and living life the way you want to live it. How do you make these decisions?  Without a system in place to make these decisions, it is easy to fee...

Your questions about T1D and mental health keep pouring in! These questions are fantastic, and I want to make sure I can share the answers with all of you. That is why I am doing another episode answering YOUR questions. Consider this your T1D & mental health audio advice column! I hope you find it helpful! On this episode of The Diabetes Psychologist podcast, I answer your questions about: Ho...

In Episode #44, I gave an overview of the three pillars of emotional health with T1D. You can listen to Episode #44 HERE . In Episode #45, I did a deep dive into pillar #1: Diabetes Eduction. You can listen to Episode #45 HERE . In Episode #46, I did a deep dive into pillar #2: Mindset.                You can listen to Episode #46 HERE . In this episode, I d...

In Episode #44, I gave an overview of the three pillars of emotional health with T1D. You can listen to that episode HERE . In this episode, I do a deep dive into pillar #2: Mindset. Your mindset matters with T1D. You may not be able to change anything about diabetes, but you can change how you approach, think about, and respond to whatever T1D throws your way. Changing your T1D mindset allows you...

On Episode #44, I gave an overview of the three pillars of emotional health with T1D. You can listen to that episode HERE . On this episode, I do a deep dive into pillar #1: Diabetes Education. Diabetes education can have an enormous impact on your psychological well-being. If you don't understand T1D and how to manage it, you will feel lost and overwhelmed. Once you get steady on your feet with y...

Most people think about emotional health with T1D in the wrong way. Emotional health does not mean never feeling overwhelmed, stressed, and burnt out with T1D. It means being able to handle these feelings and not let them get in your way. If you have challenging T1D-related emotions, but they don't get in your way, my guess is they won't bother you too much. What do you have to do to become emotio...

Living with type 1 diabetes on your own is difficult enough. But what happens when you have T1D, and you also have a child with type 1 diabetes? My guest on this episode of The Diabetes Psychologist Podcast is Chelsea Lugone. Chelsea was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when she was 23 years old, and she is a nurse practitioner caring for people with T1D. She has three children, two of whom have T1D...

Restful sleep with T1D can be hard to come by. You wake up when your blood sugar is high. You wake up when your blood sugar is low. You may have trouble falling asleep because you are worried about high or low blood sugar in the middle of the night. And let's not even talk about the alerts and alarms that wake you up! You can sleep well with T1D, and you'll learn how on this episode of the podcast...

Do you have someone with type 1 diabetes who you look up to and admire? Someone who has done incredible things without letting T1D get in the way. We all need role models in our life. These are people who show you what is possible. People you can learn from and who you can use as models as you push beyond your limits with T1D. Your T1D role model may be someone you know, or it may be someone who y...

Let's be honest. Living with T1D is not easy. As much as you don't want to admit it, life with T1D can be downright challenging sometimes. But honesty works both ways. While T1D is not easy, most of the time, it is doable. If you make the challenges more complicated than they need to be, you aren't doing yourself any favors. On this episode of The Diabetes Psychologist podcast, I talk about why be...

Did you have a coach in high school who inspired you and encouraged you to do your best? Someone who held you accountable, pushed you out of your comfort zone, and gave you the tools you needed to succeed? When we talk about high school sports, having a coach is normal. But what about a coach to help you manage diabetes? My guest on this episode of the podcast is Lauren Bongiorno. Lauren is a T1D...

Every year on June 1, I go to the same restaurant I went to the day I was diagnosed to eat pizza and commemorate my diaversary. My diaversary is an opportunity to reflect on my experience living with T1D and look for ways I can improve. My diaversary tradition helps me stay on track with my mental health with T1D. On this episode of the podcast, I tell you why I have pizza at the same restaurant e...

My listeners send me so many questions about T1D and mental health, and I want to make sure I answer as many of them as possible. So, I decided to do a whole podcast episode answering listener questions. On this episode of The Diabetes Psychologist podcast, I answer your questions about: ✔︎ How to be more patient with T1D ✔︎ How to feel less conscious about diabetes tech ✔︎ The impact of COVID on...

It's so easy to fall into the trap of only seeing what T1D has taken away from you. And there is no doubt that T1D has brought on some challenges. What if you could also think about what T1D has brought into your life? This way of thinking may be new for you, but it can also be valuable. My guest on this episode of the podcast is Mandi Franklin. Mandi is a pediatric nurse practitioner who found he...

This is the second episode in a 2-part series about boundaries and T1D. I know you've been there. I know you've had that friend or family member - even a doctor - who tries to be helpful but crosses the line with you and your diabetes. Maybe your friend asks you if you should be eating that dessert. Or your mom texts you as soon as she gets a CGM alert on her phone. Your doctor may even yell at yo...

This is the first episode in a 2-part series about boundaries and T1D. On this episode of The Diabetes Psychologist podcast, we talk about your boundaries with T1D and with yourself. Do you let T1D take up too much energy, or do you not focus on it enough? What boundaries do you set for yourself around things like what and how much you eat? You don't want your boundaries with T1D and yourself to b...

Describe what low blood sugar feels like. Describe it in detail. Describe it in a way that someone who has next had a low will understand. It's not easy, is it? Words are powerful. And when you find words to describe what you are experiencing with T1D, it grounds you. This is especially true for low blood sugars. You know low blood sugars don't feel good, but you almost always fall back on vague d...

The only way to get unstuck with T1D is to move forward. There are so many things that get in your way and keep you stuck with T1D. The big one is you put your emotions in charge of your behavior. You tell yourself you will start doing things differently when you feel a certain way.  You'll start managing T1D when you don't feel so burnt out. You'll start being open about T1D when you are not...

Whether you know it or not, you have a relationship with your diabetes. You may hate T1D and want nothing to do with it. That is a relationship. You may do your best to ignore it. That’s a relationship too. And your relationship with T1D may be keeping you stuck. On this episode of The Diabetes Psychologist Podcast, I talk about what it means to have a relationship with T1D. We’ll look at how your...

Diabetes burnout. It’s a term we throw around all the time. But what does diabetes burnout really mean? And maybe even more importantly, what does diabetes NOT mean. There are many myths about burnout and T1D, and these myths are not doing us any favors. On this episode of The Diabetes Psychologist podcast, I talk about five of the most common myths about diabetes burnout. I give you some backgrou...

There's no way around it. T1D is stressful All the work, the erratic blood sugars, the inconsiderate comments from people in your life are less than fun. You can use this stress to your advantage! On this episode of The Diabetes Psychologist podcast, we look at T1D-related stress from a whole new angle. First, we'll take a closer look at what stress is and what it is about T1D that causes stress....

People with T1D feel stuck. T1D gets in the way and makes it difficult for you to do the things that are important to you. You feel like T1D holds you back, which only makes life with T1D even more stressful. In this episode of The Diabetes Psychologist podcast, I talk about what it means to feel stuck because of T1D and why feeling stuck is such a big challenge. Then I outline the four reasons wh...

We know mental health support  should be an integral part of treatment for T1D. But what does this really mean? If we only think about mental health support and treatment as sitting in a therapist's office once a week, we are doing everyone with T1D a great disservice. We have to get creative and think outside the box when addressing the mental health needs of people with T1D. On this episode...

Have you ever thought that taking a medication for depression anxiety might help you, but then you thought again because you were worried about how these drugs might impact your blood sugars? Or maybe you don't like the thought of taking another medication, even if it could help you. On this episode of The Diabetes Psychologist podcast, I talk to an expert about psych meds and T1D. My guest is Dr....