Diabetics Doing Type One Type Happy

[00:00:07] Rob Howe: Welcome to the Diabetics Doing Things podcast. We've been telling the amazing stories of type 1 diabetics all across the world since 2015, and we have over a thousand years of living with T1D on the podcast. The interviews range from incredible feats to everyday victories, and we celebrate them all just the same. Thanks for listening, and if you want to get involved even further, just send me an email at rob at diabeticsdoingthings.com. This episode is sponsored by Health IQ. What's Health IQ? Health IQ is a life insurance agency. But with a very modern and cool twist, Health IQ is making life insurance fair by unlocking the value of health consciousness for the 50 million Americans who take responsibility for their health. This is especially relevant for me because as a type 1 diabetic, I've been denied life insurance coverage by other providers. Even though my A1Cs are in range, I eat Whole30 and can still kill guys 10 years younger than me on the basketball court, which is super frustrating. Health IQ can give people exclusive rates through their Health IQ quiz, and they even take into account data points from things like Fitbits and other trackers. You can learn more about Health IQ and get a free quote at healthiq.com slash DDT. That's D-D-T, short for diabetics doing things. And if you're like, Rob, I am not really in a place where I'm thinking about life insurance, I'll tell you this. When it comes to retirement and planning for when you're not around, there's no time like the present to at least learn what you qualify for. So give it a shot. Go to healthiq.com slash DDT and get a free quote today. Hey guys, just one last thing before we get to the interview with Gretchen Otte, aka Type 1 Type Happy. I just want to plug JDRF Dallas' Type 1 Nation event, which Gretchen is actually going to be at, along with Kira Richards from Myabetic, Lauren Bongiorno, Libby Russell, Laura Pablakovich, and Mike Hoskins from DiabetesMine. We're going to be on various panels throughout the day, but we would love if you came and joined us. if you're in the area. I know some people have reached out from other parts of Texas and they're driving in, but we'd love to see you. So please reach out on social media, say what's up and come find us on the day of. Please don't be shy. Let's make this happen and take some really good selfies for the diabetes Instagram community. All right, let's get back to the interview with Gretchen Otte. Hello and welcome back to another episode of Diabetics Doing Things. We are telling the amazing stories of type 1 diabetics from all across the world. And I'm very excited for my guest today because I have a feeling that a lot of you know her already and I've been reaching out to her for really since the beginning to get her on the show and I'm really excited that we've finally been able to make this happen. Gretchen Otte, Type 1 Type Happy, is here on the podcast. Welcome. Hi, I'm so excited to be talking with you. Yeah, likewise. You were one of the first accounts that I came across when I started this journey like two years ago. And especially lately, you've been up to a lot of really cool things, and I'm excited to talk about all of them.

[00:03:28] Gretchen Otte: Yeah, so excited. I know. I get to do this.

[00:03:32] Rob Howe: Well, I'm glad that we found the time, and let's just dive right in. Gretchen, you were diagnosed a few years ago. Why don't you walk us through that story? But I also know that you have other type 1s in your family. So I have a feeling that your diagnosis story is not the same as everybody else's. I imagine that there was some hints dropped to your family at some point.

[00:03:56] Gretchen Otte: Yeah, my diagnosis was a bit of a doozy. Yeah, I was diagnosed three years ago. I was 23 years old. So I just graduated college. um healthy um I you know I was a lifeguard um I ran marathons um just totally healthy totally fine I just graduated college and then I was working um locally um just you know making money whatever and it just hit me that like all of a sudden I wanted to quit my job and um leave the United States and just go travel and find my passion and find like who I am as a person. So I quit my job and I decided that first I go to New York, visit a friend in New York for like weeks. And then from there, I'll jump the pond. I'll start up in Spain and then travel all throughout. So I get to New York and throughout the three weeks that I was there, um that's when i started to realize that my body was being kind of there um i started you know obviously losing weight um but i thought you know through all the walking you know you walk miles in new york so i was like oh i'm just getting scared like i'm doing this active work like you know that's fine so i was drinking lots of water because you know i'm walking a bunch lunch um and then I mean I specifically there I was like waiting in line um a movie theater and um I had to go to the bathroom so bad and I couldn't find the bathroom and I literally right then and there just peed in my pants in front of people like I it was like yeah like I started crying after I was like god what is going wrong like what is wrong with me so I still kind of ignored it and um so I get to the airport and um I'm just kind of thinking about things and I get on my computer and just kind of like type in my um symptoms that I'm having and it popped up on google like it had actually type IVs like but like way down below but um the first popped up was like a bladder infection I was like really I was so convinced I had a bladder infection um but they're in the airport and then my mom meets me in the airport then because she's going to travel with me to Spain um so we get to Spain we travel around there for about a week and that week in Spain was really when I started to get just really sick um I my mom you know is like 50 years old she's walking around I could barely keep up with her I was so tired super skinny. And so my mom was like, this does not look good. Like, something is wrong, we need to go check, you know, the doctor. And so the next day, we actually had a scheduled, we're gonna be on a cruise, a Mediterranean cruise for about a month, traveling to all these different countries. So the next day, we're like, we get on the cruise ship, and I'm like chugging all of this water and orange juice and I'm like I'm on but it's like it just feels so good to learn orange juice so we get on our cruise ship we're on there for about a day and then the next day we're like okay we're checking into the little nurse section in the cruise ship to see like what's going on and that night we my mom and I had a conversation um like could this possibly be um type 1 disease because my father he has type 1 diabetes and he diagnosed late in his life too he was diagnosed when he was 33 um but my we were like so slightly thinking it could be it but we were like no like it can't be it um we were just uh convinced that that might not be the case. So that next morning, I woke up and straight down to the little nurse center in the belly of this cruise ship. And I tell them my symptoms of what's going on. And they're all foreign too. They're not, you know, from the States. So they, so trying to explain to them what's going on. And they actually, I was surprised, like the nurse, immediately just pricked my finger right then and there so it was nice because I hear of other stories people like doctors don't know what it is so it's kind of nice actually that they kind of already knew like that's what they do and so it was nice that they had a leader um they're on a cruise ship so we checked it and clearly I was you know in the hundreds I think it was like 500 or something um oh gosh like you you can't leave like you have to stay and I'm like what like I thought I was just gonna get Tyson or like if I did have diabetes like I would just get you know the insulin and be like done with it um but they're like you have type 1 diabetes um you need to stay here you're on DKA I'm like oh my god out um so in this little cruise ship there's literally just two beds it's like called their little icu um no one was in that second bed so it was just me obviously that has like the traumatic mental condition um so i had to be stuck in this belly of a cruise ship like no windows i didn't know what was happening um and i'm just bawling because i've been looking forward to traveling the world like forever and um i was just so upset i was missing out on things and that this has happened. Um, so, um, I stayed in this ICU for about three days. Um, and so every hour the nurse was coming in and checking my finger and just trying to get out of DKA. Um, so I finally got out of DKA after three days and it was very traumatic. Of course, um, I was crying. My mom was crying. Um, my mom stayed, stayed with me in the ICU, but then to go back up to our like cruise ship room take pictures of the ocean or like we were we we failed by France so she took a picture of France for me oh no this is so bad um but yeah so but I got released the third day and the doctor um quote-unquote doctor he's not a diabetes doctor no one was the diabetes doctor and so they taught me you know how to take shots and what to do and that insulin need to be on ice and it was just very overwhelming. And even though my dad has it, it's very different from being on the outside of it, like dealing with it. I think it also opened my mom's eyes to it as well because she's, you know, been living with my dad for, you know, years and he takes care of himself and, but she doesn't understand the internal struggle and trying to figure out, especially in the first few days of having time, what that was like. So it was hard for me to like, wow, this is what my dad does and deals with. Like, I had no idea. It was a very kind of aligning moment, I guess, for me to him to be like, wow, this is amazing that you've done this and you do this. Well, and I want to go back a little bit because

[00:11:45] Rob Howe: yeah this is there's so much to unpack like what like first of all I love that story and it sort of exceeded every expectation that I had for a for a diagnosis story so you do the first big thing right like you work up enough courage to quit your job and go travel you go do that you get over there you know you're having some interesting you you pee your pants in New York which I want to talk about your New York marathon experience a little bit later but But being back in the city where you peed your pants, I'm sure, is a fun way to just laugh that off. But then you still go and you're in Spain. You finally get on this cruise ship and then you get stuck in the belly of a cruise ship for three days. And that's where you're diagnosed. And I have a lot of – I'm giving these doctors on this cruise ship a lot of slack because I guess you never know what will happen on a cruise ship. So when they released you from the ICU, what did they give you insulin? And were like, hey, this is kind of how it works. Good luck.

[00:12:50] Gretchen Otte: Yeah, kind of. So they released me and they taught me how to do my own shots because they were doing my shots for me while I was there. But they taught me how to do my own shots. And like this is what insulin looks like. They gave me like a pile of prescription scripts because we docked in Italy. So they're like, okay, go out, you know, get off the boat, go to the pharmacy and have these scripts filled. So then you can have your needles. You can get your first glucose meter. You can go get your insulin and be set like that. So it's kind of just thrown on to Italy. And me and my mom were looking at a map trying to figure out where the next, where the closest pharmacy would be. And we get to the pharmacist and they thankfully fulfill my prescriptions and I get my glucose meter. and I'm like, okay, how do I do this? So, like, I open up the box and everything is intact, absolutely everything. And I was like, I don't know how to use this. Like, I've never done it before. And so then we run to an internet cafe and I Google a YouTube video of how to use a glucose meter. So I figured out how to use a glucose meter through YouTube and just kind of figured out then. And so I would, whenever I'd get back on the boat, I would check in with the doctor. And so he had a vague understanding of, like, he knew what type 1 diabetes was, but he didn't understand, like, the ratios and car counting and all of this stuff. So I would basically just kind of, like, tell him my number. I'd be like, okay, I'm 132. And he'd be like, okay, take 10 units of insulin. and um so the the ratios were very off for me because i would tell he i would take what he would tell me to do and i would instantly like plummet so i definitely was had to take what he told me and just kind of learn for myself and then experiment with how much insulin to take like what does this certain food do to me um so it was a lot of experiment um and uh just kind of But as the trip went on, we left the cruise ship, and then I traveled for another month in Europe. And I just, without seeing a doctor, really, I just kind of figured everything out, and I felt comfortable with it. And I was like, I'm going to do this. Like, we made these resolutions to see these amazing places. I'm never going to be out here anytime soon, so let's do it. So I just really wanted to see those places. So I think it was motivating me to figure it out the best I could.

[00:15:36] Rob Howe: Wow. The term comfort zone doesn't necessarily apply to you, I don't think. That's awesome. I think your average person might just say, hey, you know what, we'll do this again later. But I love that you just kept stuck with it. Yeah. And also adopted a mindset that I think is very important for people with diabetes because you talked about sort of just testing and experimenting and coming from a place of, well, I don't really know what's going to happen, but I'm going to learn from it and adjust as I go. You're also maybe, you know, in this sort of modern age of living with diabetes, like you can get on YouTube and figure out how to do things. And there's like all these great resources, um, you know, with real people who are living with disease that, you know, 10 years ago didn't exist.

[00:16:27] Gretchen Otte: Yeah. And that actually, you know, played a big part in my diagnosis too, because, um, I'm not going to say like, I got out of the ICU and I was like, okay, I'm going to do, I'm going to do this. I'm going to travel like this. Everything's going to be okay. No, like I got out of there and I was, I was legit depressed. um I was like my body is falling apart on me um I just don't feel like I can go on like maybe I'm not supposed to like be living right now like I went to those dark places and like it's a real thing you know to have you know a depression afterwards to mourn you know your old body and um it's just you know and a lot is going on all at once um so I was definitely just I mean I'm scared to eat anything anymore. Like I was scared. I was scared to even walk around. I was scared to run. I was scared to do anything because I thought something bad was going to happen. Um, and so, you know, I, I definitely didn't get out there. I was like, rah, rah diabetes. Like I, I definitely struggled. And so just going to these internet cafes and Googling, you know, I went on and Googled, you know, people with diabetes and I up these amazing people running marathons, and doctors and all this cool stuff. And I was like, man, if they can do it, like, I can do this. Like I can step by step, you know, I can figure this out. And I can make it to these places, I can follow my dreams and just kind of like, do what I want to do.

[00:17:58] Rob Howe: Yeah. And I think, you know, we all in the sort of modern age, I would say, you know, the age of the internet, we all, as we're diagnosed at different ages have that moment, right where we get on the internet and we search for people with diabetes or people who with diabetes who do what we love and you mentioned running marathons uh for me it was basketball uh and they were like i found two people um and it's like you know adam morrison was one at gonzaga and he was a guy that i like knew anyway outside of outside of the diabetes world i was like wow like if he can do this at a high level uh maybe i can too and i think that that moment now is so important because years ago, not even really that long ago, if you were not in a place where there was somebody with diabetes at all, much less somebody who was, you know, really trying to do inspiring things or just like living a normal life, you didn't have, you weren't exposed to those types of stories. And so that depression could last a little bit longer and you could totally feel isolated. I know some people still feel that, but now I'm just, I'm glad that, you know with social media and with you know youtube and just google you're able to find those stories relatively easily if you're looking for it did that uh i i assume that that played a part in you starting type 1 type happy when when did that sort of take hold for you yeah um it

[00:19:23] Gretchen Otte: definitely played a big part because when i was looking up all these things i was like man there has to be so many other people like me trying to go or find someone that's doing that's doing stuff or live just you know simply living with diabetes and so that definitely paid big parts that you know i wanted to start you know on instagram or in a blog um just to like share my stories and as a helping hand to anyone out there that you know is feeling lost or alone or confused or anything like that or just needs a friend like um I just kind of wanted to be out there in the internet world or wherever and just be available and so that started um once I came back from my trip uh I think like three three months or I think it started a month later around um and I was just kind of like playing with the idea and then finally I just like started it and And I just, you know, just sharing my stories, I guess, on it. And and then just kind of blast from there.

[00:20:25] Rob Howe: Yeah. And, you know, it's amazing how you start doing that. And then, you know, before you know it, you know, that becomes like a huge part of your life. Yeah. You mentioned like I want to talk a little bit about your dad before we go kind of further into, you know, what you're what you're all the awesome things you're doing now. um when you got back from your trip um i i've heard other other people with type ones in their family um what did that do to your relationship with your dad like having this now in common um what what was it like to have that person sort of there hey i i do understand what you go through now and you know i have it too what's what was that like yeah it was that it was i mean not that

[00:21:08] Gretchen Otte: that I'd be just cool, but it was pretty, it's pretty cool and pretty special just to share that bond with someone. Um, and like, yeah, I had this moment where I saw, I was like, you straight up are amazing, like inside and out, like everything you do, like it's, it's amazing. Like, uh, so I was like, I don't know how you've been for years, but, um, you know, it's really just, um, maybe in awe of him and then um our relationship now like it's it's awesome because his whole life of having diabetes he's been um very kind of quiet about it um he you know didn't necessarily talk about it because no one would really understand if he did talk about it with us um and you know he would just do his thing it was very to himself and um so now that I have it um I'm pretty like vocal with him I'm like oh man like I'm 200 right now like what like what are you gonna do and then um you know so my dad can easily talk with this stuff and it's actually kind of like healing a little bit to be able to talk about it more um and if we're having a bad day or just say like I'm low and not even have to explain anything you know we're right there for each other with snacks so um and I can tell him about new like technology like I just started the new uh the Dexcom pretty recently and so I was telling my dad about it and so he's like all interested in it too so it's cool like share share these things with each other that is cool I think uh I was very similar to

[00:22:43] Rob Howe: your dad I I didn't it was sort of my thing that I carried and didn't really bother anybody else with or I I felt like I didn't want to talk about it because I I had it under control and it was all good. And I think that's maybe a more common male response. I don't know. I, um, I wrote a thing for beyond type 1 earlier this year about, uh, you know, being a man with diabetes and like being open about it because what you said about that healing property, like just sharing it and being open and being okay with, yeah, like I'm in the two hundreds. What are you going to do? You know, like you said, it it's, it's okay now. Like I, I was for so long tried to not make any excuses about it. But, um, I think when you're just open to the idea that, Hey, like this is a burden that I carry and that there are other people that are going through it as well. And we can share it together. Uh, I a hundred percent would agree that I would, if there's one thing I would do different in my time with diabetes, uh, I would have gotten involved much earlier. Uh, I shared my story because, you know, my relationship with diabetes now is so different than, you know, even two years ago when when I started doing this but really 10 years ago when I was uh you know just two or three years in and kind of struggling and didn't didn't know who to trust about or who to talk to about it it would have been a huge so um yeah yeah the community is so so so important

[00:24:05] Gretchen Otte: it really is and I mean even just three and a half years ago when I when I started my blog on Instagram and stuff I mean there wasn't um there was a few you know people on Instagram but like there was there were no pages about it like beyond it hasn't started yet um all the stuff we're not really out there yet and it was really cool just within the three years of me having it in the community just seeing everything kind of boom up a little bit like i feel like people are um you know it's more accessible to people and um it's just really cool to see the community

[00:24:39] Rob Howe: come together even more yeah i i kind of i joke halfway joke i call it the t1d renaissance it's like this very tangible, very real, very open subculture of like social media that, you know, if you're not in that community, you wouldn't have noticed. But yeah, like even two years ago, there weren't that many diabetes pages or people, just a few. And then now, you know, you look at there's so many resources, so many pages, so many campaigns. It's really exciting.

[00:25:10] Gretchen Otte: Yeah, so true. It's pretty cool.

[00:25:12] Rob Howe: um okay so let's talk a little bit about um you mentioned you ran marathons before you were diagnosed um yeah so you're you're a runner um you recently ran with beyond type 1 and on the beyond type run team in the new york city marathon uh and i if i'm not mistaken i believe that was your first marathon with diabetes right yeah so first of all talk a little bit about what that was like to be back in New York? Hopefully you didn't pee your pants this time. I got my fingers crossed for you. But what was that like to be kind of back there with the team, with Beyond Type 1 and Robin Arzon and everybody? And then also people always ask on the podcast about training and how you help manage your blood sugars during that time and different things that you use. So

[00:26:00] Gretchen Otte: what was it like? Give us the full story. Yeah. So yeah, coming back to New York, um it was I mean the whole thing was a very like emotional experience for me um just you know spending five hours running by yourself you have a lot to think about and a lot to go through and it's just I've done so much to get to that one point that it was just really cool to just see it come all together and to finish and cross that finish line um so yeah it was it was awesome um You know, first we had a little team branch with 22 other type 1 diabetics running that same marathon. So it was so cool just to be along with that team and everyone else just doing the same thing. We're kind of sharing our stories and how like some days like we would, you know, have a plan to like go run like 18 miles right here today. And then, you know, it comes to that time and like we're too low to run or like too high to run. and it just, you can't do it today. You gotta wait till the next day. So it was just cool to be able to share stories. And then Robin Arzon was so cool. She was very inspiring. It was just very cool just to have her talk about her experiences with marathons and then just how awesome of a person she is and her outlook on diabetes. And it's just very inspiring. So my race though for the marathon, it was amazing we ran all along the New York and so got to see some pretty sights but I was definitely pretty emotional throughout my run I would just kind of run or I would start running and then I would just start bawling just for no kind of no reason but like then I would just be so happy that I'm there I'm doing it and then I'd be crying because like oh my gosh like I can't believe I'm back in New York. I have diabetes. I don't know. It was a lot. I'm in pain. It sucks. Running on those same streets, I was thinking about, wow, three years ago, I was walking on those same streets. I was sick as a dog. I peed in my pants. I was drinking tons of water. I didn't know what was wrong with me. Here I am three years later, and I'm running the New York Marathon and feeling healthy feeling strong, feeling good, and keeping myself together. And, yeah, it was a really, really cool experience. Definitely will never forget it.

[00:28:38] Rob Howe: Yeah, and, you know, obviously just so much. First of all, I don't think I realized, you know, without being – because I follow you and Mary Lucas and others that were on the team. Shout out Chewy because Chewy tagged me in every single running post he made. for like six months. So big shout out to Chewy. But, um, like seeing all you guys, like, I don't think I realized how big of an event the New York city marathon is in general. Um, and just like the logistics of like getting to the starting line even. Um, so how did you prepare yourself? And you mentioned, you know, some of the run, the, some of the preparation and training, like, you know, being too high or too low to run. How did you, how did you like manage? Cause like stress and adrenaline and things leading up to the race like what was what was your approach like how did you how did you manage that and you know what was your what was your race experience like

[00:29:35] Gretchen Otte: diabetes wise um so yeah we woke up at five in the morning um to go bus to um the start line um we had to wake up that early because they shut down all the streets so you can't even get there like, or a race doesn't even start till like 11 in the morning, but, um, they shut down the streets and so you can't get there. So you have to get there before the street closes. Um, so, um, yeah, we were just like waiting around the start line, kind of all together, huddled up because it was really cold too. I'm from, you know, California. And so just waiting out there in like 43 weather in the morning, like it was tough on me. We're all just like huddling together and just trying to like count hour by hour until we can go run. Um, but, uh, yeah, so we're just kind of sitting at the start line and, um, I woke up with my blood sugars, um, pretty, pretty good, pretty low, but like pretty good. Um, kind of, they stayed around 80 to 90, um, the whole time. I actually didn't, I didn't want to eat anything, um, and then have to bolus for it because I know for myself, when I run, my body is very, very sensitive to insulin. So any kind of insulin I have in my body up to three hours before, I'm going to plummet. And I know this through my training too. So I didn't eat anything until about an hour, an hour, hour and a half before my race. So that's when I could eat something. And then as soon as I would start my race, I know my, my blood sugars would start to kind of creep up, but that's perfect because I'd start running and then it would kind of level out. So I started the race about 190 to like a 200, which is fine for me, because I know I'm gonna go down, it's gonna level out. So as I was running, I pretty much, like very surprisingly um I stayed consistently at like 160 um kind of the whole time um so I was happy with that and um I know from my training um at certain mile marks you know uh five miles eight miles and um 12 miles I know when my body starts to get low and just on just automatically plummet so that's usually when I would take um my gels um that I brought with me I would just eat one of those real quick and I was fine to go I would also alternate between water and Gatorade um just to keep hydrated electrolytes and then if I needed that extra sugar um that Gatorade could help me out um so all of that um really helped me

[00:32:28] Rob Howe: and I all great tips and I think like I always think of doing anything with diabetes is just you add an extra step like the boys the boy scout method just like be prepared for anything so if you were if you were going to talk to somebody if somebody's going to ask you like hey how do I prepare to run a marathon maybe just in general or but also with with diabetes what what would you tell them what like little tidbit of advice would you give somebody who wanted to

[00:32:56] Gretchen Otte: do that? Definitely everything starts in your training, like 100% and just like listening to your body and really just taking it mile by mile. And like if you've never run before, take it slow and run mile by mile and see how your body does. I know through my training, at mile five, that's when I play it. So there'll be patterns. And so as you train, as you run, you kind of keep track of what your body naturally does. And that way you can prevent those lows or you can prevent those highs by, you know, upping your bolus earlier. And for me, I figured out, you know, my, I'm very sensitive with my insulin. So I know like three hours before, like I shouldn't be taking any insulin before I go out on a run because I'm going to plummet unless I brought, you know enough stuff with me um so just step by step really is the biggest thing um and then obviously like hydration was a big thing for me too um just constantly drinking water like i didn't know that you know every mile like i should be drinking water um so uh just kind of listening to your body and just really making sure that you're getting your body what it needs um really

[00:34:17] Rob Howe: does a lot. Great advice. And, uh, I'm going to plug you here cause you're going to be coming to the JDRF Dallas, uh, type 1 nation event in January, uh, and being on the athletic panel. So, uh, if you're in Dallas and you want to, uh, you want to ask Gresham a question yourself, you'll have the chance to do that. Awesome. Um, I want to talk a little bit about, uh, like, obviously you interact with tons of people, um, on, you know, in the diabetes online community, through Beyond Type 1 as well, you know, and through Myabetic as well. I have two questions with that. One, do you ever experience, like, everywhere you turn in your life, like, diabetes is there. Do you ever experience any type of burnout? And then on the other side of that question, what's your favorite story, you know, since starting Type 1 Type Happy and, you know, being so involved, what's your favorite story coming out of the Type 1 community?

[00:35:16] Gretchen Otte: um good questions um for the first one that's such a good question um do i ever get uh you know the burnout and that's so real um i that actually um didn't really come prevalent to me until pretty recently actually but um yeah just um you know for fun i i you know blog about diabetes um and then I have diabetes and then you know I work in the diabetes industry and then on my weekends you know I'll go to a diabetes event so um as much as I love you know I the best part of it is connecting with other people so like that's kind of what kept me like moving um or just like being able to do each thing is because I get to meet awesome people so like I am super stoked when I can talk to people about that. But yeah, diabetes burnout, and I call it diabetes like social burnout. It's like a total real thing. Because when you're constantly dealing with it, constantly talking about it, it can be really hard to just keep talking about it. Or, you know, if you work in it to keep, you know, working and in that industry and just not really have a break from it um but i think what's helped me is um you know like i like to run or i like to just go outside like i think just making harsh boundaries being like you know this is the time that i can you know i'm going to this event this is you know this is what i'm gonna do um but then just having time to like you know go out and run or like go hang out with friends and just kind of forget about it or not constantly thinking about it. Just having the time to live, you know, just do things that you like. And I think that really helps with any kind of burnout. Just have a little time to step away from it. Obviously, you can't step away from your diabetes, but just enough to not obsess about it and not worry about, you know, eating a certain thing or whatever you're worried about, but, um, just something fun and with people that you love. And I think that's always what helped me with kind of burnout situation. Oh yeah. I love that. That's, uh, that's so tangible,

[00:37:33] Rob Howe: right? Cause everybody knows that you can think of somebody that you love to hang out with and something that you love to do. And it's really that simple. It's great. Yeah. Yeah. It just

[00:37:41] Gretchen Otte: kind of turns everything around. Um, and then the second question, um, favorite story. Yep.

[00:37:50] Rob Howe: favorite story or favorite interaction or just something that's something that stands out doesn't have to be favorite because i don't want you to pick if uh you've got like more than one yeah

[00:38:01] Gretchen Otte: yeah there's tons of them but i mean it's just so awesome um i've yeah i've thankfully been able to um kind of travel a whole bunch of for work um around you know the united states and stuff and And so it's so awesome just to be like, I'll be at a JDRF event and, you know, someone will come up to me and be like, are you type 1 type happy? I'm like, oh, my God, yes. Like, that's so cool. Like, so good to meet you. And I think that it's just so cool to be somewhere I've never been before, like in Chicago or something in this big city. and then someone kind of like recognize me or just, yeah, just come up and meet me and then instant new friends. It's really cool. So it just kind of shows me that, you know, us type ones are all over the place and just kind of being open to new friendships and seeing what's out there. It's really cool to see. And like you said, you know, we've talked, you know, via Instagram, But it's cool to be able to talk now through voice, and I can hear your voice. And so just see people face-to-face. It's really cool. And then, of course, like, I mean, just digitally I get messages of, you know, people reaching out to, you know. But I've helped them in their diagnosis, or I've helped their daughter. they show them my pictures and they see that I've run marathons and I've gone surfing and I do all this stuff that they can have normal lives too so I think that's like honestly the best thing is that when I hear people just being really happy that I can show that we can live normal lives that's my biggest thing and living our lives to the fullest that's the best thing you can do so I think that has really

[00:39:57] Rob Howe: made it amazing for me. All right, we're going to try something different here about the midway point of this interview. We talked about it at the beginning of the podcast, but I just wanted to give another plug to Health IQ. Really, Health IQ is just like car insurance, but for life insurance. And let me explain. It's like if you're a safe driver, you get more competitive rates. That makes sense. Health IQ just takes into account an overall healthy lifestyle and passes those savings along. It's that simple. Plus, it's good for you. The American Heart Association reports that an overall healthy lifestyle is associated with nearly 60% lower risk of mortality by cardiovascular disease. That's always good news. So get the rewards for living that healthy lifestyle. Check out healthiq.com slash DDT today. And now we'll get back to the episode. No, that's awesome. And I think, you know, when you're dealing with something like this type of advocacy work. You talked about the burnout and going to different events and volunteering for fun and trying to help. It all makes it really tangible and grounding when you get to just that one interaction. Totally. The feeling that inspired me to start this podcast was I had an email exchange with a guy that was in my class. He linked me up via email with his cousin who was 13. and his doctor, he just got diagnosed and his doctor told him he couldn't run triathlons. And I played basketball at college. And so he was like, yeah, he's like, I feel like you're an athlete. You could probably tell him that it's okay. Maybe give him some advice. So I like emailed back and forth with him. And then like six weeks later, or maybe more, like I had totally forgotten. And then I got this email with no subject line. And it was just a picture of the kid with his participation medal from his first triathlon since he'd been diagnosed. I was like the the feeling that I got from that I was like wow like if I can replicate that feeling of like just helping somebody and them taking that and like carrying it the whole way totally

[00:42:02] Gretchen Otte: it makes it so worth it I love it yeah and and even um like I wear you know my Dexcom on my arm and I'll have a picture or something on my instagram with my Dexcom on and um someone will message me and be like man like you've made me so inspired to be able to wear my Dexcom on my like you know not be afraid to show my pump or whatever like that just simple simple little things like that like you've changed that person's life forever and I think that's way more what may way more worth anything else that that could be given to you totally um okay so this has been an

[00:42:40] Rob Howe: awesome interview um thank you so much for taking the time I think I want to I ask the same question at the end of every podcast, but I want to ask you one more before, um, before I take you to the, to the, my final normal question or whatever. Um, so you've now been diagnosed for three and a half years. Um, you've, and have done a ton, a ton and made, and so many good things. What are you most hopeful for, um, in the next five years, 10 years? And like, you know, it doesn't have to be a cure. I think we're all hopeful for a cure at some point. Um, but what, when you think about your

[00:43:14] Gretchen Otte: life with diabetes? Like what gives you hope? Yeah. Um, I think just keeping my mindset, um, and just sticking with, you know, goals and things that I want to do in life. Um, and so just continuing to work towards those goals and just keep doing what I'm doing. Um, I think that helps me the most. Um, and, um,

[00:43:48] Rob Howe: No, yeah, that's, that's great. I think, yeah. And it's, that's totally personal, right? It's just a, you know, even outside of diabetes, like, you have to live your life. And I think that's, sometimes when I think of like diabetes burnout, um, that's what I think about, like especially like you said social burnout because you know sometimes i'll get on social media and it's like oh all i see is diabetes and while that's good i love to read those stories and like sharing those things with people it's like god man you know i gotta i gotta remember to live

[00:44:18] Gretchen Otte: my life uh yeah there's you can still live a normal life and um yeah and do what you really

[00:44:25] Rob Howe: want to do yeah and i think uh i'm pretty involved in the uh improv comedy community here in dallas and I teach as well. And one of the things we talk about, like an improviser's responsibility to the theater is to go out into the real world and live your life and experience it and see it and bring it back to the stage. And something that often happens is when you get really excited and you're really pumped about being into theater, into improv, is you spend all your time at the theater and you forget to live your life on the outside. I think that's like a lot of parallels with life with diabetes is that you can attack it and grab it with a bull by the horns and dive in. But don't forget to live your life on the outside and to go experience those things. And so I think, yeah, it's a great thing to be hopeful for.

[00:45:16] Gretchen Otte: Yeah, totally.

[00:45:18] Rob Howe: OK, last question. The big money question. You have traveled a lot. So I know you've been in an airport. You're familiar with how gates work. So just imagine, and the context is super important, that you're in an airport and they're about to close the door to your gate. And for whatever reason, one reason or another, you can't miss this flight. So they're going to shut the door in 30 seconds. But you just run into somebody who has either been recently diagnosed or is struggling with their diabetes or maybe they recognize you. uh what's the one thing that you say to them um in that 30 seconds before you jump on the plane

[00:45:54] Gretchen Otte: and get whisked across the country or wherever um well i mean uh probably like honestly just um i'd be like i would be like i have diabetes too you're not alone um email me i type 1 type happy handle and i'll if it had to be super quick like uh somehow quickly let them know that they're not alone i have diabetes too and i can totally help them out if they if you want to talk with me call

[00:46:26] Rob Howe: me email me i got you i love it that's great it's it's funny there's like three answers so i've asked that question like a hundred times now uh there's like three styles of answers there's one like Very similar. You're sort of in between. One, you really get your message down and get the message, deliver this powerful message, and then roll out. Number two is you realize that we live in 2017, so you can just give out your phone number or your email.

[00:46:55] Gretchen Otte: Right, because I could easily make that exchange.

[00:46:58] Rob Howe: Yeah, it's a very simple thing. And then three, people just totally negate my context. They're like, yeah, I'll probably just get another flight and I'll just hang out. So, yeah, great answer. I love it. Well, Gretchen, thanks so much for coming on the show. It was really great to, like you said, talk to you and meet you via the phone. Looking forward to meeting you in person in January at the JDRF event here in Dallas. For everybody, type1typehappy.com, type1typehappy on Instagram. But you knew that already, everybody. and so any parting words before we get off the interview

[00:47:37] Gretchen Otte: well it was so awesome to be able to be on your podcast and so good to talk with you and I'm so glad we were able to do this anytime let me know I'd love to come back

[00:47:47] Rob Howe: oh well thank you we'll definitely make that happen