Recognition

New Book Helps Children With Diabetes Overcome Summer Camp Anxiety

I didn’t want to go to diabetes summer camp as a child. When it was recommended to me by various doctors over the years, I detested it.

Today, I feel differently. 

This experience sparked the creation of the second book in the “Rosie Becomes a Warrior” children’s book series, “Rosie the Type 1 Diabetes Warrior Goes to Diabetes Summer Camp.” This book is what I wish I would’ve had when I hated the idea of diabetes summer camp.

If your child has similar feelings about summer camp, here’s what I wish I’d known back then as a child with type 1 diabetes.

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Julia Flaherty—"Rosie Becomes a Warrior"

Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Julia Flaherty, Author and Illustrator of Rosie Becomes a Warrior, based in Appleton, WI, USA.

The name of my book series is "Rosie Becomes a Warrior." The two books in the series, "Rosie Becomes a Warrior" and "Rosie the Type 1 Diabetes Warrior Goes to Diabetes Summer Camp," are designed to empower children with type 1 diabetes to live their happiest lives. As the author and illustrator of this series, I hope to serve children with type 1 diabetes and their parents with the skills and support they deserve to feel empowered while managing diabetes.

I hope this book series may provide healing to adults with type 1 diabetes who didn't feel supported as children. I also think families and children with no direct relation to diabetes but who are also facing a significant life challenge (as we all do being human) will relate to Rosie and find her attitude and the lessons of these books helpful.

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Book empowers children with diabetes

Today’s interview is with Julia Flaherty from the US, the author of the book "Rosie Becomes a Warrior”. Julia wrote and designed this kids book to empower children with type 1 diabetes to live their happiest lives. The main character Rosie is a second-grader who loves to draw and eat ice cream while navigating her type 1 diabetes diagnosis with her parents. Julia shares how she found strength in her personal experience with diabetes to write this book and how she went from resenting parts of body to finding love and acceptance for herself. She reminds us, that we are worthy of love and are capable of everything we set your minds to. Rediscover a positive perspective on type 1 diabetes.

[LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW]

Two Powerful T1D Children’s Books for Everyone to Read 

It is essential to teach children that we are all unique in our own ways at a young age. Growing up “different” from the rest of your peers takes immense courage, strength, and resilience. We talked to two authors who wrote type 1 diabetes (T1D)-focused children’s books about why it is important to educate children about T1D.

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Appleton Woman Hopes to Spark Conversation About Type  1 Diabetes in New Book

APPLETON, Wis. (WBAY) - A Fox Valley woman believes her new book about Type 1 diabetes will help bring more awareness to the disease.

Julia Flaherty grew up with type one diabetes, and says it was hard - and sometimes made her feel ashamed.

“For me as a child, I was told ‘go to the bathroom to take care of it’, ‘go to the nurse’- it was more hidden,” said Flaherty.

After a year of staying home, and feeling fearful and fragile, she decided she was done being controlled by her disease.

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Rosie Becomes a Warrior Cares for Your Child and Inner-Child

"I remember when I was in the fifth grade. It was less than a year after my type 1 diabetes diagnosis at 10-years-old. We were assigned to write a book about anything we wanted. These were short books, considering we were fifth-graders, and sadly, I believe mine is lost somewhere in a pile of cardboard boxes in my garage. We had to write and illustrate the books. (I enjoyed the assignment, if that’s not obvious.)

Despite its currently unknown location, I vividly remember describing my Type 1 diabetes diagnosis in that piece of elementary literature. “It was my own personal ‘Fear Factor’,” I wrote, attributing the experience to the Joe Rogan-hosted television series of the time. I thought myself clever with that line."

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Children's Books About Type 1  Diabetes

Children’s books that include stories about type 1 and type 2 diabetes are not only important for children and families who are going through a diagnosis to read but are also fantastic resources for their classmates and teachers!

Learning about diabetes and what it’s like to experience it is critical for spreading awareness and creating more empathetic communities and a more inclusive world! If you’re looking for a new children’s book about diabetes, here are some worth adding to your bookshelf.

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Overcoming Insurance Coverage Pain Points with Julia Flaherty from Beyond Type 1

Beyond Type 1 is a global leader in the diabetes community with trustworthy resources on all aspects of diabetes, including healthcare. Julia Flaherty is a content manager at Beyond Type 1 with 20 years of experience living with type 1 diabetes. She’s faced her share of frustrations navigating healthcare and is here to share valuable information and resources that help address the pain points people with diabetes experience when it comes to healthcare coverage.

[LISTEN TO THE PODCAST]

The Power in Numbers: Change.org's Affordable Insulin for All Movement

If you search insulin on Change.org, you’ll find 320 petitions (as of this writing, ~10 are being added each week), many with 50,000, 80,000, and even 470,000+ signatures. 

One of the first petitions on insulin pricing that went on to create legal change was in Colorado. Started by community organization Healthier Colorado, the petition became a catalyst for Colorado being the first state to create a price cap on insulin for insured state residents. 

Seeing the effect the petition had, and as insulin pricing became an increasingly publicized issue, Change.org elevated the conversation around insulin pricing by creating a dedicated Movement Page. The team wanted to create a space where people can have their voices heard and lean on the power of numbers. 

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Holiday Stressing All the Way

Holidays are seasons of joy but if we're being honest, it's also a season of stress. Picking the perfect gift, not burning the turkey, crowded airports and that uncle who won't shut up about politics. Holidays got me stressing all the way! And if you live with a chronic illness like my friend and guest on this episode Julia does, holidays can be pretty hard to get through. 

Managing a chronic illness like diabetes, which I've mentioned before, is a FULL TIME job. Diabetes doesn't take holidays or days off, so balancing how we manage our diabetes on top of holiday stress is really a skill we should be adding to our resume. In this episode we share what stresses us out the most about holidays, what self-care burnout looks like and how to manage our stress levels this holiday season.

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