#dblogcheck

After the #dblogcheck Dust Settles

/ Christopher / Leave a comment

I’d like to thank everyone who participated in #dblogcheck on Tuesday. Seeing all the comments on every blog I visited put a huge smile on my face.

I noticed a few comments about “missing” the day or not being able to get as many posts as intended. That’s okay, folks. The idea behind the day is to rekindle the community building fire and remind everyone out there that you are not alone. We’ve never needed a day for commenting, but rallying people behind a cause (even one as silly as this) makes the whole concept a bit easier to understand and execute.

Of course, taking the time to comment on every single diabetes blog post every single day is not a sustainable effort. There’s too many of us. That’s okay. My hope is that coming out of a self-imposed comment on everything day establishes some sort of routine that results in commenting a little more often than you did the day before.

So often we go through our lives focusing on the negative or simply not recognizing the positive. How often do you make a priority of leaving a positive review of something on Amazon or Yelp? How much more likely are you to leave a review if it’s going to be negative? How much more likely are you to tell Twitter or Facebook about a bad experience you had instead of a good one? I believe that commenting on these blog posts makes everyone feel better. Raising the collective spirit of the diabetes community is a goal all of us should have, regardless of how we achieve it. Considering how easily diabetes can break each of us down as individuals, walking away with any amount of positivity is going to take a group effort.

So thank you to all of you who participated. If you didn’t get to everything on Tuesday, that’s okay. Maybe set a goal to get to all of the posts by the end of the week? Maybe set a new goal to comment on at least one diabetes blog each week day? Maybe it only has to be one comment a week? I’m saying this in part to give each of you an idea as to how you might lift the spirit of the diabetes community, and also because I need to be better about commenting in general, too. I’m not immune to any of the observations I’ve made here. If we all do a little better, great things are possible.

Here’s a cat picture to balance you out.

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Puzzling. #catlife

A post shared by Christopher Snider (@iam_spartacus) on

A Closer Look at My Chronic Disease Secret

/ Christopher / 15 Comments

It’s been a couple of weeks since I published My Chronic Disease Secret and offered a place for anyone impacted by a chronic disease a platform to anonymously share whatever secrets, fears, or thoughts they had. At the time I had questioned the lack of a “My Cancer Secret” equivalent to “My Diabetes Secret”, and eventually embarked upon building something not just for people touched by cancer, but the entire chronic disease community. While it’s too early to call this venture a failure or success, I’ve noticed one immediate trend that sets My Chronic Disease Secret apart from My Diabetes Secret: activity.

The amount of initial interest in MCDS (I need a better abbreviation) simply doesn’t compare to the initial impact My Diabetes Secret made. Maybe I didn’t do a sufficient job explaining the reasons behind its existence. Maybe it takes time for each community to discover a new digital outlet. Maybe a platform for all chronic diseases isn’t needed. Maybe I overestimated the potential for something like this. Maybe people surviving cancer aren’t using Tumblr to connect with their peers. Or, maybe I’m overreacting and two weeks is not indicative of what this effort will yield.

Despite all of those maybe’s, I think there is a bigger takeaway that furthers the assertion that diabetes community is a bit of an online outlier. We’re more connected and more active than most chronic disease communities. I’ve lost count at the number of times I’ve heard that the diabetes online community is the benchmark for patient engagement and interaction. That isn’t to say that strides haven’t been made through breast cancer or rheumatoid arthritis communities, but perhaps there are only a select few that can command the online audience and interactions as diabetes, breast cancer, and arthritis. Maybe?

To be fair, I haven’t spent days on end searching for patient blogs from the entire chronic disease spectrum. Then again, maybe I should. That would give me a better understanding of what is and isn’t out there, right? All of these assumptions, maybes, and perhaps’ are based on anecdotal conversations I’ve had over the past few years.

All this being said, I’d rather have a place for all and see it not get used than a place for some leaving those left behind to think they are alone. I’m sure My Chronic Disease Secret will find its place one day – it’s just a matter of time.

Somewhat related, today has been designated as a Check In Day for the diabetes community. I’m encouraging everyone to leave a comment on every diabetes blog they read today. Even if it’s a simple “Check!”, say something. Use this opportunity to show how connected the diabetes online community truly is.

Let’s Bring Back #dblogcheck

/ Christopher / 14 Comments

After recent comments about the ever-changing community, and last night’s #dsma chat about communication, the idea of bringing back #dblogcheck popped up.

For those of you just joining us, #dblogcheck was an idea I had a couple of years ago that, for a single day, encouraged everyone to leave a comment on every diabetes blog post you read. The motivation behind this was not for pageviews or notoriety, but community. So often it feels like we’re standing on our little social media platforms shouting into the void, wondering if anyone is paying attention.

Of course the reality is that the Internet is made up of a diverse range of interactions. From the hyper connected curators, to the on-the-nose news sharers, to the social butterflies that say hi to everyone, to the lurkers who are paying attention but choose not to say much. #dblogcheck is an opportunity for all of us to come up, look around, and embrace the diabetes community.

Image (linked) from giphy.com

So, I’m nominating Tuesday, March 10 as our next #dblogcheck.

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A Final Thought on #dblgocheck

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This? Right here? Is what all of the fuss was about.

Thanks again for participating.

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Mental Jui-Jitsu

/ Christopher / 27 Comments

As my endocrinologist appointment approaches later this summer and I prepare to start wearing an insulin pump for the first time, I’ve noticed a new range of thoughts and emotions around the upcoming change to my diabetes management. I’ll try to lay it out, but I must warn you: my mind works in mysterious ways.

It goes something like this:

  • Wearing an insulin pump is an open display of my diabetes
  • This isn’t exactly new to me as I’ve been wearing my Dexcom sensor on my arms for years now
  • But this will be different in that it will not be as easy to contain the visibility of the pump, the tubing, or other components I’m forgetting
  • On one hand, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing – see #showmeyourpump
  • But this will still be new to me
  • I don’t care
  • But I do
  • To be more specific, I don’t care what people will say or think if they see my insulin pump
  • But I have to actively not care about caring what people will say or think if they see my insulin pump

I’m not anticipating ridicule or persecution or anything like that, but I think I’m going to need some emotional training to go along with my technical training when I start using this thing. Thus, the mental jui-jitsu referenced in the title…this could get tricky.

I remember when I used to go to the bathroom to take my insulin injections when I was first diagnosed. I remember injecting insulin under the dinner table so no one had to see my insulin pens. I remember going out of my way to make my diabetes comfortable for everyone else to be around instead of putting my health above all. Yes, things will be easier with a pump now that insulin will be a few button presses away, but I’m still anticipating/dreading…dreanticipating? all of the new adjustments I’m going to need to make to my life to get along with this new device.

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#dblogcheck is Tomorrow

/ Christopher / 20 Comments

I’m encouraging everyone who reads a diabetes blog to leave a comment on that post tomorrow. Make it thoughtful, make it silly, or simply make it a “Check!”, but leave a comment.

A lot of the stories you hear among members of the diabetes community follow the template of “I thought I was alone”, and tomorrow’s check-in day is another way to remind each other that we aren’t alone in any of this.

To help find each other, I’m also recommending you share your blog posts on whatever platform(s) you desire with the tag #dblogcheck. Particularly for people using TweetDeck or Hootsuite, this will be especially helpful.

To show my appreciation in advance for your helping grow the diabetes online community, here are some animated gifs to represent the anticipation for tomorrow.

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#dblogcheck Update: The Tribe Has Spoken

/ Christopher / 3 Comments

Next Tuesday (July 22) I’m encouraging everyone to comment on every single blog post they read. Even if it’s just a “Check!”, leave a comment on everything. It may seem like a tough task, but it’s worth it.

For those of you catching up to this whole #dblogcheck thing, here are some posts to provide background on what’s going on.

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