PLAID - People Living with And Inspired by Diabetes

How we think and talk about diabetes is critical to how successful we are with the disease. Content in this issue covers topics that include new ways to share diabetes research, the importance of thinking about diabetes beyond the numbers, how socioeconomics impacts diabetes care, T1D support programs for young adults, parenting with T1D, and the management of depression in adolescents with T2D. This issue’s Moving Forward offers helpful tips on advocating for yourself and working with your healthcare team and insurance provider to get what you need to live well with diabetes.

The Liberty of Open Access

Letter from Editor Martin Wood, MSLIS, AHIP

Through taking a chance on The PLAID Journal, researchers, physicians, and healthcare professionals working in the field of diabetes have broken through the traditional publishing cost barriers to share their work directly with people living with diabetes. In this issue of The PLAID Journal, we continue to show the world that people living with diabetes and people working with diabetes can benefit greatly by reading the same information.

Socioeconomic Status and the Domestic Allocation of Type 1 Diabetes Care

Ashby F. Walker, PhD, Desmond A. Schatz, MD, Cathryn Johnson, PhD, Henry J. Rohrs, MD, Kelsey R. Salazar, MPH

Few studies explore how socioeconomic status (SES) influences the allocation of type 1 diabetes (T1D) care within households. This study used survey research to better understand the perspectives and experiences of maternal caregivers who have adolescents with T1D.

Identifying Factors Associated with Participation in T1D Support Program for Young Adults

Taylor L. Neher, MPH, Samuel D. Towne Jr., PhD, MPH, CPH, Sarah E. Toevs, PhD

Type 1 diabetes (T1D) has been shown to have a significant and stressful impact on an individual’s transition into young adulthood. This study assesses awareness, utilization, and emotional needs of T1D support programs tailored to young adults.

Parenting with Type 1 Diabetes: The Relationship between Parenting Support and Stress

Samantha A. Barry, PhD, Stephanie T. Melton, PhD, MA, MPH, L. Nicole Johnson, DrPH, MPH, MA

This study examines the relationship between parenting self-efficacy, social support in parenting tasks, and parenting-related stress for parents with and without type 1 diabetes. The results highlight the need for additional support for parents living with T1D, especially parents diagnosed with T1D as adults who may face the need to adapt to diabetes management and parenting roles in tandem.

Survival Tools and Adapting to Diabetes

Michelle Golladay

As a parent with a newly diagnosed child with type 1 diabetes, I decided to accept the variables within my control to the best of my ability, and commit to finding tools to mitigate the stress of meal times. For managing my son’s everyday needs, my favorite survival tool (aside from his life saving insulin of course!) is my food scale.

More Than A Number

Erin M Akers

We need to change our diabetes education, from diagnosis and beyond, to encourage us to think and talk about diabetes control and measurement with a focus on more than just the numbers. We need to actively and aggressively consider quality of life, our personal goals, and the collection of intangibles that makes us a person with diabetes, rather than just diabetes itself.

Day-to-Day Diabetes

Renza Scibilia

Living with a condition like diabetes can be all-encompassing. Too easily, we can get lost in the day-to-day practicalities of our diabetes tasks. It took me a while to understand how to manage this, but time out from diabetes is essential.

Learning to Trust Diabetes Technology

Jeremy Sparks

My CGM allows me to not have to always wonder if my blood sugar has gone too high or too low. I sometimes joke about being a cyborg because of how much I associate my “robot parts” with my everyday existence, but in some ways it is true, because I am able to trust these machines to help me stay alive, healthy, and capable of doing more than I feel like I could without them.

Management of Depression in Adolescents with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Kristin Cynthia Magrini, Nancy Wright, MD

The association of type 2 diabetes and depression has only recently been acknowledged. This article provides a review of current literature examining the incidence of depression and type 2 diabetes in adolescents, and suggests approaches to identify and care for these patients.

Advocating For Your Diabetes Needs

Melissa Lee, Martin Wood, MSLIS, AHIP

The costs of diabetes-related therapies, drugs, and accoutrements keep many people from taking care of themselves as well as they could. In this article, we provide some experience-driven tips to guide people living with diabetes on how they can advocate for themselves before and after visiting with their healthcare provider.