2009 - Walk to cure diabetes...

I normally don't post too many personal items, however as I mentioned in an earlier post regarding how technology should be advancing the betterment of the cause that it is working towards. We're at the time of year that the Juvenille Diabetes Research Foundation holds its Walk for a Cure at the Mall of America. As mentioned in my earlier post, my daughter Destin was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in October of 2006. We have been participating in the walk and fund-raising activites since her diagnosis. 

Type 1, or juvenile, diabetes, is a devastating, often deadly disease that affects millions of people--a large and growing percentage of them children. Many people think type 1 diabetes can be controlled by insulin. While insulin does keep people with type 1 diabetes alive, it is NOT a cure. Aside from the daily challenges of living with type 1 diabetes, there are many severe, often fatal, complications caused by the disease.

The good news, though, is that a cure for type 1 diabetes is within reach. In fact, JDRF funding and leadership is associated with most major scientific breakthroughs in type 1 diabetes research to date. And JDRF funds a major portion of all type 1 diabetes research worldwide, more than any other charity.

On a personal note, an update on Destin. We continue with our day to day challenges living with Type 1 Diabetes, but as of this past summer, life with Diabetes did change and did become quite a bit more manageable. As I previously posted Destin decided she was finally ready for the insulin pump, and we made the leap. Life has not been the same since. What amazing technology. She wears the OmniPod, which is a tubeless, wireless, remotely controlled disposable pump that she wears for 3 days at a time and changes. It's waterproof, and pretty much "kidproof", and has really freed her up to be a kid again in so many ways. Her numbers have been so much better as was her first A1C at her first quarterly checkup after starting the pump! The doctors couldn't have been happier with her progress! 

With your help, life changing technologies and cures CAN be a reality. That is why we ask all of you for your help in donations as well as participation at the walk! My wife Liana and I have made it our personal goal to do what we can to allow our daughter to have a normal life and just "be a kid".

Please visit Destin's Walk Web page if you would like to donate online or see how close we are at reaching our goal:

http://walk.jdrf.org/walker.cfm?id=87239062

Follow this link to make a donation:

http://walk.jdrf.org/support.cfm?id=87239062

Thank You Everyone

Technology - Has it bettered your life?

I typically don't write too much about what is going on in my personal life. However, I wanted to touch on something that happened this past week. For those that know me well, they know my daughter is diabetic. She was diagnosed as Type I Diabetic shortly after her 5th birthday. What this means is that she is insulin dependent and has been receiving between 6-10 shots of insulin a day since. She's an amazing person and has handled this so well I'm nothing short of amazed and proud of her.

Through the amazing power of Disney (yes, I'm still talking about medical innovation here :), our daughter learned from her Grandma that Nick Jonas from the Jonas Brothers was recently diagnosed and on a newer diabetes pump called the OmniPod, by Insulet. It is a self contained pump that is WIRELESS and TUBELESS! Having experienced the Jonas Brothers live in concert along with Hanna Montana (her first concert, 20k screaming kids, her crazy dad took her) it was clear that these were some of the first people in her life that she was in awe of. Anything the Jonas Brothers thought was cool, certainly she thought it was cool too.

After much research by myself and my wife, On Friday July 25th 2008, technology changed our daughter's life. NO MORE SHOTS!!!! She programs in her insulin dose into a wireless remote and it sends the dosage requirements to the pod and a few seconds later, her dose is done. It has already changed her life and it's only been 3 days.

This really got me thinking, how has and how does technology make our lives better every day? Isn't that its purpose? We advance technology to make our lives and the lives around us better. So when you're contemplating new technology, make sure you ask yourself "is this going to make my life better?" If the answer is no, maybe you should be buying something that will. Or better yet, ask yourself if your current technology is making your life better. If it's not, maybe it's time to find some that will.