Greta Ehlers, T1D, Diabetes Advocate

[00:00:00] Rob Howe: Hey everyone, Rob here. First of all, I just want to thank you for listening and supporting Diabetics Doing Things. We are going on eight years of recording this podcast and approaching 350 episodes on this feed extremely quickly. So your support means everything. We would not be here without you. Just wanted to call your attention to a few things that we're working on lately that are updates to Diabetics Doing Things. The first is we are throwing events and you can find more about our events at diabeticsdoingthings.com slash events. We launched our first event in April of 2023. It was a coffee house roastery tour and latte art class. And we have two very exciting events coming up in the fall of 2023, including our first ever. So our inaugural national diabetes awareness month event. And those are going to be on diabeticsdoingthings.com slash events this month. So be sure to check those out. Also, if you have a question that you want Eritrea and I to answer on air, please email the mailbag at diabeticsdoingthings.com. So that's mailbag at diabeticsdoingthings.com. Your question will be answered on air during a special episode of the Rob and Eritrea show. So if you want to ask us a burning question and you want us to spend some time on it, please reach out to mailbag at diabeticsdoingthings.com. All right, let's get to the episode.

[00:01:26] Greta Ehlers: Hello, and welcome back to another episode of Diabetics Doing Things. We're telling the amazing stories of people with diabetes from all over the world. And also check up our updated mission on our website. We've gotten really disciplined and kind of reformulated what we're doing, both short-term and long-term. So be sure to check that out. And speaking of short and long-term, our friend from a previous episode we did during the pandemic, Like Greta is back from Greta's Diabetes Boards, from Greta's Type 1 on Instagram. Welcome back to the show. It's so good to have you. Hello. It's so good to be back. I'm so excited. And this time, this was one of the final episodes before Eritrea became a co-host back in 2020. So I know she's been really excited to have you on as well. It's a pleasure. Yeah, it's so cool to be back. It's been quite a while. Well, it has. And even still, before you came on, you and I have followed each other for many years now on social media and been internet friends. And we recently got to meet in San Diego for ADA scientific sessions, which was super exciting. And just to finally get to meet after all these years was just awesome. So thank you for coming on the podcast after that, because after we realized we had a lot to catch up on. Absolutely. Thanks so much for having me again. Yeah. So let's talk about what's changed since the last time you were on the podcast. I know you've changed jobs. You've moved to different countries. You've been traveling all over. Give us kind of the update. Yeah. So I think the biggest change is that last time we talked, we were pretty much in the middle of the pandemic still. And that has luckily changed quite a bit. I think I was still doing my master's the last time we had a chat or the last time we recorded this podcast I was I was living in Sweden doing my master's and now I'm I'm not doing my master's anymore I graduated two years ago and I moved from Sweden to Switzerland where I got a really really cool job offer in the diabetes space actually which is really exciting I'm really excited about that and yes I think at the moment I spent my time mostly between Bern in Switzerland and Berlin I'm gonna go I'm going back and forth quite a lot and going on about my day doing very focused on on diabetes tech and bringing new solutions to the market so quite quite quite a change to what I was up to last time we talked no kidding and and I think for us to in the United States like moving state to state is fairly common and like fairly easy but like any challenges like moving from country to country uh even you know obviously still in the EU but like moving from Sweden to Switzerland and you know splitting time in Berlin like any diabetes challenges related to that or just kind of the general travel yeah so I mean it was quite changed moving to Switzerland because Switzerland is not in the EU actually so it was a bit of right that's right yeah a bit of more like paperwork, I think. And then I think when it comes to moving with diabetes, you always have this health insurance aspect, you know, like all these things you have to find out. How does it work? How's my access to tech? How's my access to, I mean, insulin? How easy is it to switch between different systems and all of that? How does the healthcare system even work? I think these are all, you know, big questions when it comes to moving abroad. But I've done it a couple of times now. I feel like I'm getting better and better at it. And luckily, Switzerland's still a very, I mean, privileged country where access to tech is very granted and very simple, actually. And I think really also that's interesting is like Switzerland is a big hub for medical technology and specifically around diabetes. So, you know, for you, you mentioned that you're working in diabetes tech. So I know you work at Diabetes Center Bern. So tell us a little bit about that for those who may not know what DCB is and what DCB is all about. Absolutely, yeah. So DCB is usually what we go with Diabetes Center Bern. We're a nonprofit organization and our mission is really simple because basically what we want to do is make life with diabetes easier. And we do that in different ways. we have a translational research approach, which means that we do foster research when it comes to diabetes tech or diabetes on the one hand. But we also, you know, want to translate these findings into real solutions which actually benefit people with diabetes out there. So a big part of our core business is startup support. We run an innovation challenge every year globally. I mean, we're based in Switzerland, but we operate all over the world because there's great ideas all over the world. So we don't want to limit ourselves to one small country. And we basically encourage researchers, scientists, startups or just individuals with great ideas to, you know, participate in our innovation challenge, submit their idea. And then we helped them with mentoring, with coaching, access to experts and resources, and eventually also funding to, yes, to get the solution off the ground. And that's it really much in a nutshell, but it's a really big part of what we do. Well, it's very cool. And I think, you know, for me, I'm always attracted to cool projects that were made for people with diabetes and also people with diabetes with big ideas on how, you know, the future, what the future of diabetes could look like, both from a clinical and, you know, consumer or patient focused area. And, you know, so when I guess I'll tell you the behind the scenes of how I learned about DCB is because I know you and I'm connected to you. And I saw, I think on like LinkedIn, when you got your job there, I was like, oh, this is really interesting. Let me go read about it. And then I also ran about some of the projects that you guys have fostered through the DCB Innovation Challenge. And like you said, like it's a big world and there's a lot of people with diabetes who are working on really cool things. So could you share a few projects maybe that were from last year's Innovation Challenge or some projects that you've been able to work on and what people with diabetes are bringing to the world? Absolutely, yeah. I think what I've observed and a project I really like we support is it's a US-based app actually. And it's a teenager and he got diagnosed, I think when he was 13. And after his diagnosis, he was looking for an app or a solution for diabetes management. And after, you know, checking out the app stores, he realized that there is no app which actually meet his needs. So he decided to program his own app, which is so impressive. He did that when he was 16 years old. And then, you know, he joined our challenge and he wasn't one of the winners, but we decided that we'd still like to support him because it's a really cool solution. It's from someone with diabetes for people with diabetes. And that's one of the solutions I really like because it shows that you also don't have to be this huge startup in order to, you know, do something. You can be an individual with a great idea and we're there to help and help you get it off the ground. That's one of the things. But then also what we see a lot is more on the device field, like non-invasive glucose monitoring is a really, really big thing. And it will, like without doubt, also continue to be a big thing when it comes to diabetes. But also different apps. One of our apps is for type 2, or not our app, but one of the winners of last year's challenge. they do an app for for the management of type 2 diabetes so we're not limited to type 1 diabetes which is really just diabetes overall and one of our winners from last year they're working on an accessible insulin pen so it's really really diverse as long as it's something with tech and something which actually has an impact we're really impact oriented it's important for us that these projects have an impact and make life with diabetes easier but as long as it's focused on tech and fulfills this criteria then dcb is here to support it's it's very cool and i think yeah again like you said you don't have to be a fully funded like mature startup it can just be a person with a great idea and i guess it's also just a good chance for us to plug the dcb innovation challenge which, you know, I guess the question for you, for our listeners, be who should apply? Because I know the applications are open, at least for the digital diabetes component, until August 15th, 2023. So for the 2023 challenge, like if someone's listening and they're interested, who should apply? I think really, if you have a great idea on how to make live with diabetes easier, a tech-focused idea, now that we're talking digital, it can be an app, it can be a digital platform, then please apply. Something which is really unique for me also with DCB is that we're non-profit. We're not interested in IP rights. We don't want any shares. We're really just here to guide you and support you. So you can be a researcher, you can be a startup, but yeah, you can be a person with diabetes who thinks this is a solution that people with diabetes really need and it's still missing on the market, then please apply. Great. Well, I'm going to put a link in the show notes for people who are listening because I think in the US especially, we just don't hear as much about what patients can do without a big infrastructure. I think that's always kind of the thought. And I want to talk about long-term creative projects too. This podcast has been now eight years. you've been doing your diabetes boards for many years now and I know that you don't do them as much as you used to but you know sometimes I think we we get discouraged as creators because we create something we don't really know where to take it or we don't have mentorship or advice and so I think it's really cool like you said just in that example about the young man who built the app when he was 16 he didn't win the innovation challenge but he did he did get the mentorship and now you guys are helping him turn his app into whatever the next phase of it might look like. And I think that that's something that, you know, I think a lot of people might be able to benefit from. And you never know until you try, right? So I think, you know, I hope people listening to this would be encouraged to do that. So yeah, we'll include that link in the show notes. Yeah, thank you. I think also, I just want to mention that because, I mean, I assume that because here we're all living with Type 1, but that whole co-creation process and, you know, including people with diabetes from the beginning is really, really close to our heart. And so, I mean, if there's a person with diabetes coming up with a solution, of course, we love that. But also, it's really important for us or for DCB to make sure that people with diabetes are always included. So, I mean, our CEO, Derek, he lives with type 1. Our innovation manager, Maren, and she lives with type 1. I live with type 1. And we have patient advocates also in our jury. So it's really important for us that it has an impact for people with diabetes. And I think the people who are best at evaluating whether a solution actually has a positive impact are the people who live with diabetes. So I'm really glad and really happy to be working with this organization who's putting such a huge emphasis on patient inclusion or patient engagement. It really, I'm glad you brought that up because from the top to bottom and even in the mentorship, like the non-employees, but the mentors who work within, you know, the groups at BCB, almost everybody lives with diabetes. And the other part of it is like, you know, whether it's Maren or whether it's my friend George from Switzerland, like, you know, there's just people that I've met and seen in the diabetes online community in Europe, especially over the last eight years. And so it's like a familiarity of like, oh, wow, like all these people are now in a position where they can help the next generation of ideas or the next generation of creators or the current generation of like someone who's got a great idea. and like you said yeah i've been playing a lot you know i've been thinking a lot about community recently and you know how in marketing and advertising at least like we we think of community and it's it's spoken of as like number of followers or like the size of your you know customer base and things like that but i think that misses like the really important part of community which is like value exchange like giving pouring value into each other and i think like Like sometimes that looks like mentorship. Sometimes that looks like fundraising. Like sometimes that looks just like friendship and kinship and like a safe space. So I'm just excited to see like, you know, as the community continues to mature and evolve, you know, across the world, it's just really cool to know that there are areas for people who have ideas about four people with diabetes. There's a place for them to go. Absolutely. And I mean, the idea part is one thing, but also we're working on a patient leader program and we always encourage people with diabetes also to join our platform and, you know, look at the ideas and provide input if they want to. So also for everybody listening, it's like if you just want to join this network, then also reach out. We don't have to have an idea, you know, to contribute or to make an impact. You can also just join and check that out. Absolutely. that's great lots of ways to get involved so hopefully hopefully some people get inspired for that listen to this episode absolutely i want to shift back to you for a second because something that i've been really curious about over the years because you know i i started diabetics doing things that i didn't know how long it would last like i didn't have an exit plan right and i still don't which is great but it's expanded and grown and changed and so i've kind of become really curious about other creatives and creators who have long-term projects. One of my good friends in the diabetes community's husband has been doing basically the same creative project for almost 25 years. And he still does art installations. There's been documentaries and it kind of inspired me to think like he didn't think on day one that 25 years later he would still be doing some iteration of that project. And so I'd love to talk to you about the diabetes boards, which we love and are big fans of. And I know as your career continues to go forward and other priorities, like I know you don't do them as often, but how do you view them as a project? Is it something that is just sort of will always be available for you to tap into? And how do you feel about that creative project as it continues to grow and evolve? yeah so i think that the main factor why i'm not really doing it at the moment is time i think it's like such a common thing that once you you know you start working and you do all these things it's just like a time thing i guess also because people and i did that before i started doing these underestimate the amount of work it actually takes i mean you guys probably know that but i think that's that's the main factor it's not that i you know made this active decision i don't want to do this anymore it's mostly like I would really want to but it takes research it takes you know like I mean if I travel a lot I'm not always bringing my board and a box full of letters along like further down on my priority list I would definitely like to do it more again I think it's just something which I haven't been able to prioritize it would definitely always be available like I've never even when I kind of realized that I don't have the time to actively you know do Instagram at the moment it was never once a consideration to delete my account or something why would I I mean so many people have reached out over the past couple of years telling me how helpful these boards and the information are so I would never just go and delete it and this way also I think if I'm inactive for a year and then I have time and I do more I don't think that anyone would be like why are you back so for sure not it's definitely you know still an open door for me and whenever I'm in the mood can be I don't know Saturday morning and some cafe and then I do some research and I try to you know find things which might be relevant And also, I mean, now with my job at DCBI, I have this huge privilege of traveling to different conferences where new data is presented. So I'm, I mean, I'm, I'm really close to the information. I just have to find time to, you know, put it on these boards and then upload it on Instagram. But this project is still very close to my heart. And I, I think it's definitely not, there will be more boards at some point. And I don't know when, but it's definitely not something I'm ready to, you know, stop doing completely. Well, I'm glad to hear it because, and this is something that Airtree maybe will lean on a little bit more. They're often imitated, but they're never replicated. I think like there's just the level of you just have an artistry about the way that you, you know, compose your photos and the way that you do the letter boards. And, you know, you even color coordinate with your nails and your tattoos. I see the vision and it's just very creative and I don't know obviously we talked about this at AD I'm just a big fan of you and your work so I think when we see those new boards they always pop up first in the feed so it's nice to just be able to share those I do miss it actually I sometimes feel like I wish I could just take two seconds and have this ready and just get it out there but there will be more

[00:20:15] Rob Howe: there will be more i just think they're so special though because you you spend so much like i remember reading one a couple days ago because i was obviously doing research with this episode and i was like wow like she cites papers like she goes so now obviously being at dcb i'm sure maybe in the future when you do your board you'll have access to all this more information but i was like they're just so in depth that i can totally imagine this it's not just a picture i'm sure everyone imagines you just put the letters on the board and take the picture no dude i have to do How does it drop? Like, what?

[00:20:44] Greta Ehlers: Yeah, but it's hard. I mean, it's the same if somebody posts really nice travel pictures and I'm like, I mean, maybe a couple of years ago, I was like, oh, this probably takes two seconds when maybe it doesn't. These people probably take 50 shots or 500, I don't even know, and then edit them and all of that stuff. So it definitely takes time. And for me, it's always been important that the boards I do have sources you know uh it's not some random information i read it was always important for me that if people want to read more they can easily find resources to it and that sometimes takes time because sometimes i find something which is really interesting i was like oh my god that would be so cool to have on a board but then i i'm like oh is this really true like i couldn't find any research and i'm like okay then i might just not even though it's a bit sad but it's important for me that these are actual findings and not just some screaming headline I see somewhere on Google. Because I'm also aware of the fact, you know, the impact these information, these facts can have. I mean, sometimes it's not, it can be heavy topics around mental health and all of that. And then you kind of want to make sure that it's correct information.

[00:22:02] Rob Howe: Now that you're at, okay, so this is something that I struggle with sometimes. So I wonder, now that you are done with your master's, you're in DCB, you're doing the work. You're also a person who lives with diabetes, right? Do you find yourself feeling any type of like burnout? Like I wake up every day and sometimes I feel inspired. And then there's other days where I'm like, I don't want to do this anymore. So with your board, is that kind of where you're at or in general at all?

[00:22:28] Greta Ehlers: I think I haven't really had that. But I also, it's funny, I had this discussion with a colleague, I think, not too long ago. And I feel like when I'm doing my work, so at DCB, I'm doing business development and scouting. So I'm really out there trying to find solutions. And if I listen to their pitches and I listen to it, it's almost like I'm stepping into a different role. I mean, I still know that I have diabetes, but I really, I go in there from a business perspective. and then of course sometimes they ask me okay what's your user perspective and then I think it's a huge advantage that I actually live with diabetes but somehow I think it would maybe be worse if I worked in in doing all the research and reading all stuff about long-term complications all the time I think the tech sphere is very it's very interesting very tech focused and I feel like sometimes I step into these meetings and I'm not the person with diabetes I mean, usually I tell them, like these startups, I'm like, look, I have T1D because they also value that kind of input. But I almost feel like I have two different kind of, you know, roles. And it's really interesting to distance myself also sometimes. Yeah. It's interesting to think of like the subject matter and how that makes the difference between like how you feel. like because you're saying like tech is very like innovative it's like pushing things forward it's positive most of the time versus like reading a paper that's you know about long-term complications or about access or about you know things that are uh you know kind of make the walls kind of close in seemingly from from a diabetes perspective because i think that's something that eritrea and i talk about a lot is you know you have you live with diabetes you might be a creator with diabetes and then you work in diabetes industry or or non-profits and you know that that can just lead to a lot of diabetes in your life which I think has pros and cons and I think that there really is no perfect like balance of like work and all those things but you know you everybody has like their own you know approach to that but it's just fascinating to me because like diabetes can simultaneously like give you a lot of energy and passion and at the same time you know in a very like closely related way it can like take that energy away like make you feel kind of sad so it's just it's always an interesting thing that i that i like to talk to creators with diabetes about especially because creativity is so much work like bringing something into the world that doesn't exist and when you think about like creating it for people with diabetes i think that kind of galvanizes you and creates a lot of momentum but at a certain point you know i always wonder if you know we're we're holding on too tight sometimes to the diabetes side yeah no I get that it's interesting because I think not too long ago I had a chat with someone and they asked me like if if if you could choose would you get rid of like your diabetes retrospectively because I think a lot of people I mean I think this question comes up sometimes also online and then people are like no never because I wouldn't be where I'm today and I agree with that but I'm also like look if I wouldn't have gotten this diagnosis 20 years ago I would of find a different passion i mean right i i i love where i am now i love that i also i work with it in most it was always my decision that i want to work in that sphere and i never regret it and i love all of it but also yeah it's a chronic condition i have to manage every day and i wish sometimes i could push a button where it's holiday and if i put out of office in my calendar at dcb i could also just take some out of office my diabetes and i can't and we all know that And so I'm always a bit like, I'm so happy where I am with my work and also with the Instagram and these amazing people out there. One of my best friends here in Berlin has type 1 diabetes. And the only reason we met is because we both have type 1 diabetes. But, you know, if I wouldn't have gotten this diagnosis when I was nine, I would have found something else. So I'm like, sometimes people romanticize it a bit. And I'm very careful with that because it is definitely still some sort of burden. Sounds intense. But I mean, also it is. What a quote. Of course.

[00:26:52] Rob Howe: I needed to hear that because I feel like so much of my life people have said, especially recently, you're so lucky you get to work in something that you really, really love. You're so lucky. You're so lucky. And I'm just like, nah, like so woo woo. Like, no, dude, like I got diagnosed nine years ago. but I never thought about it I think we're programmed to lean into gratitude right like society programs you to be like be grateful for what you have and obviously we did get the diagnosis but like both of us very young around the same age apparently but 100% I think that I would be out here wrecking stuff even if I didn't have diabetes so I love that you said that that came to that I I also love it because it's very similar to me and I think that's one of the reasons why we've been on live friends for so long. I think we, we look at a lot of things the same way. And, um, yeah, I kind of look at it as, as sure. I would love to not have it. I would love to give it back. Right. But it also gave me some purpose, you know? And I think when, you know, the origin story of the podcast, like in the hotel room in Columbia, like my pub kind of fell on the floor as I was trying to think about like what people I could try to help to try to, you know, to, to help you know give me a little bit more than just like professional you know satisfaction and and it's like oh well there are people with diabetes who could probably benefit from my story and I would love to meet and so that really is an advantage of like oh well what this gives you a focus it gives you a group of people that and like you know I would never have met Eritrea I've never met like almost any of my diabetes online friends and some of those are my like great friends for life. And I think that's a, yeah, without that, I wouldn't be the same person. So yeah, I mean, it is a bummer. You know, it doesn't go away. I did like a video recently, like I heard, it's like, yeah, it's seven days a week. There's, you just got to keep doing it every day and it never goes away. And that's just part of it. And, you know, I think, but that's also part of what is inspiring to be about people who not only manage their, their own diabetes, but they're thinking about other people's diabetes and how they can, you know, try to be the change, so to speak. So, yeah, it's pretty, pretty incredible. So, yeah, but here, Trey and I also talk about because there's now like all of these, you know, there's clinical trials going on right now for a cure, right? So people are there. There's like a guy who had the beta cells replaced. And Vertex announced this week, two people, two of their patients are no longer on insulin. Like there's stories coming out every day.

[00:29:21] Greta Ehlers: That's right. and it's so like if you're like well would you take it and it's like yeah i mean i would take it but i wouldn't trade it i wouldn't trade the diabetes management for something that's more like invasive maybe or like because i think there's a lot of other medications that you have to take sometimes for those so if it was like a one-to-one trade i would take it but i don't want to trade diabetes for something else because i feel like i understand it now and i kind of i've already got that dialed in yeah yeah i agree would you do it would you do it greta that i always ask everyone

[00:29:48] Rob Howe: because I am an outlier in what I usually say is that I would not take the cure at this point. It's part of my identity. Give it to a little kid. But Greta, would you take the cure?

[00:29:58] Greta Ehlers: I'm really like, what's the cons? What's the cons? But if there were no big cons, I'd absolutely take it. If I don't have to manage this and being waken up by my Dexcom or worry about what happens when I'm 75, give it to me.

[00:30:15] Eritrea: I'm sorry.

[00:30:18] Greta Ehlers: I love it. A little bit more on the fun side, you got to come to the U.S. recently for ADA and ADA scientific sessions. There's a lot of people running around. And this year, I think it was more patient focused or there were just more patients involved than I've seen at previous ADAs, which is very exciting. So for you, what was it like to meet some of your other US diabetes advocates in person or friends from the online community? I was super excited to meet you. I'm so excited that we got a picture together and got to talk. Because it's just so cool to meet people in person that you've followed or communicated with for so many years online. Absolutely. I was really, I knew, I think I saw that you were going and I was like, okay, I have to text Rob. And then apart from that, I'm really afraid that I haven't really met a lot of other advocates not people I don't usually also see I mean DDOC was obviously there they had their DDOC voices and I met a couple of them I meet them also at ATTD and I think ADA for me for the couple of conference days was very much back-to-back meetings and then also in the evening I was I think hanging out with other people so I didn't get to I think the people I've been in touch with over the last couple of years from the US, they haven't been there. I know that I went to the D-Data event. It was really great. And I saw they always featured these diabetes artists. And I saw that Dave had one of his, what's his insert, type 1 liver tick?

[00:32:00] Rob Howe: Yeah, Dave Mina.

[00:32:02] Greta Ehlers: David, yeah, I was there. I was at the event too, Greta.

[00:32:05] Rob Howe: Things were hiding from me.

[00:32:06] Greta Ehlers: Oh, I apparently did hide from you. I was there all day. Sometimes just standing in the corner. But that's the problem with the not having blue hair. But anyway, I saw David's artwork and I texted him on Instagram. Actually, I was like, oh my God, are you here? And then he told me that he's actually, I mean, his art is featured, but he didn't attend. So I was like, okay, that's a bit of a shame. So I wish I would have met more people actually, but especially you actually i feel like it's quite a shame that we i'll see you at easd i'm sure and

[00:32:37] Rob Howe: also we have an upcoming project with you guys over at diaTribe working at DCB so you and i don't worry you're not gonna get rid of okay okay all right i need you guys gotta tag me in the

[00:32:47] Greta Ehlers: instagram story when it happens i gotta see it yeah i'm sure it will happen but i think generally speaking it's amazing to see people face to face which you've known for a couple of years over Instagram I think it's so cool because sometimes I'm like yeah I mean these people are obviously real but I've only ever seen them on screen and then actually being able to I don't know just have a chat in person it's so cool I really I really like that it's weird how it changes it

[00:33:14] Rob Howe: right like you can have this relationship with the person via DM and you like their post and then they like your post but then you meet them IRL and now you are best friends like yeah it's crazy it's so it's so I don't know how to explain it like I meet these people and it's like I have all these buddies now in my what's up like hey guys so yeah it's it's really really cool and

[00:33:32] Greta Ehlers: everybody i think feels the same way so everybody's really open to also meeting up and you kind of have this shared base so it's never like awkward i don't think i ever met someone with diabetes i know from instagram and it was awkward it was always like really cool yeah i agree speaking of just meeting other people you are not just greta's diabetes worth but you're also greta gay icon so how do we nobody has ever called me i can i should put that on my link okay good please put it on there because i i'm i i sign up i absolutely sign up on it um for our lgbtq plus like listeners and community members who are like looking to meet other gay people queer people with diabetes like where is there like what resources can you recommend i know you have a group like on your greta's boards that you say hey like send me a message and i'll get you connected so you know just be be the plug for our you know gay and queer community members yeah i think it's interesting because sorry the whole thing for me hasn't never really been hugely intertwined i was like i mean what does being gay have anything to do with me living with diabetes and i never really thought too much about it but then i was like oh actually i think it was in connection with when the whole like Black Lives Matter came up and then people started talking how this is intertwined with, you know, living with diabetes. And then I think generally how being part of several minority groups can have an impact on your life or whatever. And then I'm like, oh, actually, yeah, that's very interesting. Because by then I obviously knew a lot of people with diabetes, but I never actively, consciously met someone who's also queer. and I thought oh this might be really interesting just to yeah see like exchange experiences or just have having someone who really can relate I think this is kind of also what it you know what matters like why why do I want to talk to someone with diabetes if I'm frustrated because I know that this person will understand my feelings and I think that was kind of coming into my mind and then I thought I can't be the only like gay person with type 1 diabetes so I think I just uploaded something on my Instagram way just like a story and I had this rainbow jumper and I was like hey and I said exactly that I'm like I can't be the only queer person who lives with type 1 diabetes then I got so many messages I think by then I already had quite some followers like I don't know maybe like 9,000 or something so I got quite a lot of messages and I was like oh this is so cool I was really happy I was like wow there's so many and then I just needed because everybody was very interested in kind of just like coming together and I needed a very quick solution so I did this group it's just a Facebook messenger group chat it's not a fancy group structure or anything it's just a group chat and I put a post on my highlight saying hey if you're queer and you have diabetes and you want to talk to people then just drop me a message and the group's not very active at all actually I think it's really lovely to see that sometimes not so much anymore but also I don't have Facebook Messenger anymore at the moment but sometimes it will be very quiet and then somebody would have a question and I feel like it hasn't always been or it wouldn't have to be diabetes related and like we related some people where it's just like hey which pump are you on and that doesn't help you do anything with like your sexual identity but i think it was still like you had this huge group of people you know are like kind of share so much and well i think i think you said too it's it's like something to relate to like and somebody who knows what you're going through or or just is interested in the same things that you are and like can see that perspective i think is so important and you know as we have these sort of we have the diabetes community you know we've got social media we got the diabetes community they have these like little micro kind the segments of the diabetes community. Like there really is something for everyone. And I think like, as we're, you know, working to build a more equitable world for people with diabetes, like you said, like the health outcomes for LGBTQ and for, you know, a black and brown and underserved communities, like we are, we see like in the data that they, that they have a very different experience than, than everybody else. And so it's just really important to make sure that those spaces exist. And it's also cool to see, it's like, yeah, everybody's busy. we're all kind of like you know the the social platforms are changing and maybe we don't use messenger the same way that we used to and all these things but when somebody has a question everybody comes in and and you know who's available it piles in and is able to you know foster that come that conversation yeah and i i did spend some time on like how is it related being queer and having diabetes and i mean for me it doesn't really interfere that much but then i was also in that group when we had chats and I was like oh but it might become very important for someone who has had one diabetes and wants to transition and use hormones for example I mean I think that was when I realized I mean I'm I'm I was assigned female at birth I'm identify myself like as a woman and it doesn't really matter for me but there's people who are queer who want to transition and they have type 1 diabetes and then it might play a huge role on your diabetes management right and the other way around and then there's all these discussions how can I tell my doctor like so I think it does quite interfere for some people and even though it's not very active at the moment I don't know of any other groups or resources because I haven't really been active online a lot the last couple of months but I mean I'm my account is still active and I'm there and if you sent me a message on Instagram, I will see it. So I think if anybody listens who feels like they want to join the group or just have a chat to me, I'm still there, even though I'm not posting a lot.

[00:39:41] Rob Howe: I think what we forget about intersectionality is how lonely it can be. So when you were saying how you felt like as a queer person living with diabetes, where you're like, I cannot be the only one. There are people who wake up that way every day and they ask themselves that question and they just don't move past it. So the fact that you started a group already is so inspiring. I will say that there are so many issues being a trans person living with diabetes because there are so many challenges and barriers. So that being a safe space for them is incredible. I hate to plug diaTribe right now, but we do have some articles for trans people. If you are a trans person listening to this episode who is in the midst of transitioning or need help, there are articles and lots of resources out there for you on diaTribe.org. Because it is so isolating. The people that I've talked to about it, it's just like they feel so lonely. So I'm glad that I hope they listen to this episode because they'll get a community group from me, from you, and then they can go and read these resources online. Yeah, I think both.

[00:40:35] Greta Ehlers: Usually I was always happy to see as much as different resources as possible. Yeah, of course. Absolutely. Yeah. Yeah. And I think that's just such an important part of like back to the community focus thing. It's like, it's not just how many people, but like, what can you deliver to, you know, what, what relatability, what like support, even just like, you know, being to say, Hey, I understand what you're going through and I can help you, you know, navigate or, or I can help answer questions or just be, you know, be a friend, be someone to listen to and talk to. I think that's what's really important. Yeah. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. Even if it's just that, I think that's, that's really important. And I mean, basically what we're describing is like friendship. friendship and fellowship. Wow. I think if you're a person with diabetes and you're looking for somebody else, if you're a person with diabetes and you feel alone, I promise you we can try to connect you to somebody who's very similar or who's going through something, whatever you're going through. Well, Greta, first of all, I'm so glad you came back. It was so great to meet you. And I'm just so glad that you're continuing to grow in your career and also like keeping close to people with diabetes. I'm like getting to be on the very forefront of like what the diabetes creators and innovators of this world are pushing and pushing forward. And that's just so exciting. And so I'm just proud to know you and thank you so much for coming back on the podcast. It was great to chat with you again. Thanks so much for having me after all these years again. And yeah, it was really great to chat to you both. And again, I think I have my diabetes tech role. Feel free to reach out. I was recently described as a gay icon living with diabetes. It's a pretty rich out. And it was really, really lovely having this chat. Thank you so much. Yes, I will include all the links to BCB. And yeah, please put that quote out there. I said I stand by it. Greta says it's the gay icon. It's going to be in the show notes. I love it. I love it. Okay. Well, thanks for listening, everyone. And we'll talk to you again soon, Greta.

[00:42:42] Rob Howe: Bye.