For some, living with diabetes during college adds an extra layer of stress to the already challenging adjustment of living alone. Students with diabetes have to be aware of their health by monitoring their blood sugar and insulin levels, watching their diets and monitoring their sleep.
To help manage this challenge, sophomores Chris Meehan and Abby Lore launched a chapter of the College Diabetes Network (CDN) this past January. The network is a non-profit that seeks to connect people with diabetes on college campuses and provide them the resources and support to live a healthy, successful life at school.
“There are at least 15 registered diabetics here on campus, with who knows how many unregistered,” Lore said.
As of right now, diabetics are able to register with the Academic Support and Access Center in order to have some accommodations made for their health, however this isn’t specifically just for people with diabetes. CDN is the first exclusively diabetic organization on campus.
Meehan has lived with Type 1 Diabetes for 18 years. Lore has been a Type 1 diabetic for 15 years.
“One of the hardest things about diabetes is explaining it to someone without the disease,” Lore said.
Diabetics can feel misunderstood or alienated from campus life, Lore said. The group’s main goal is to create a support system where diabetics and those affected by the disease can reach out to one another for help, according to Lore.
Meehan said this support is one of the best ways to manage diabetes.
“CDN is a nationally known support group, and it’s not just here at American you have that support, it’s all over the country,” he said.
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disorder where the pancreas does not create insulin which manages blood sugar, while Type 2 diabetes means the person does not create enough or use correctly the insulin he or she does create, according to Meehan.
CDN held its first meeting in Ward on Jan. 27 and 13 additional people attended. Meehan and Lore admitted to being happily surprised by the turnout on such short notice.
Six of the attendees were diabetics and nine were non-diabetics who have been personally touched by diabetes via a friend or loved one.
Samantha White, a Type 1 diabetic since 2002, said she hoped AU would have a diabetes community when she applied.
“[I] forget to introduce my diabetes to my friends, which is forgetting to introduce a large part of myself,” White said. “I was happy to find that they're eager to learn more as long as I’m willing to teach.”
White explained to the Eagle that diabetes is a big part of her life, but because she deals with it daily, she sometimes forgets to teach new people in her life about her disease. It is important for people to be educated about diabetes, even if they do not personally have the disease, White said.
Kevin Thompson, a “type-none,” or someone without diabetes, attended the meeting to show support for Meehan, his roommate. Thompson said first getting to know Meehan, his diabetic roommate, was at times both funny and an adjustment.
“I got to talk to people who don’t have diabetes but are still affected by it,” Thompson said of the meeting. “It was actually really cool,” he continued.
One thing both Lore and Meehan were surprised by in the meeting was how much type-nones were willing to share their sometimes-forgotten point of view.
AU CDN meetings will occur approximately every two weeks and will have various themes, according to Meehan and Lore. These themes include eating healthily on campus, students’ rights and accommodations for diabetes, and more.
“We have big plans for CDN at AU and we can't wait to get more people involved and grow on campus,” Lore said. Follow AUCDN on Facebook to get updates about the group and information on how to get involved.
